Very wonderful (Lectures)

Expressions researched:
"very wonderful" |"very wonderfully"

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Introduction to Bhagavad-gita As It Is -- Los Angeles, November 23, 1968 :

Devotee: "This is confirmed by all the great teachers, including Śaṅkara and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. In India there are many authorities on Vedic knowledge and they have virtually all accepted Śrī Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. We should therefore accept the Bhagavad-gītā as it is, directed by the Supreme Personality of Godhead..."

Prabhupāda: And here is an important fact. The other day while I was walking, I saw one advertisement of tourist agent. India, (indistinct) can view wonderful land. The wonderful land. Anyway, so I asked Karttikeya(?), "So India is considered very wonderful?" He said "Yes." Anyway, India is still considered the land of spiritual cultivation. Even one Chinese author, he has written that if you want to study religion, then you have to go India. He is impartial. He is not Indian nor an American or any country. He is Chinese. Chinese are considered to be Communist country, but he has very impartially said that if you have to learn what is religion then you have to go to India. Anyway India, actually it is the land of religion, dharma-kṣetra, although it has gone down at the present moment. But anyway, there are two sections in the..., amongst the Indian, bona fide religionists. That means bona fide religionists means those who are following the Vedic principles. They are called bona fide.

Lecture on BG 2.13 -- Hyderabad, November 18, 1972:

We are dictated by different types of desires, which is dictated by māyā, and we want to become master falsely. This is called illusion. This is called māyā. Actually, you are not master. How we can become master? Because we may be very scientifically advanced. We may manufacture very wonderful machine and weapon, but after all, we are subjected to the rules of māyā: janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi-duḥkha-doṣānudarśanam (BG 13.9). You cannot get out of these four principles of māyā's machinery janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi. Therefore the sane man, who is actually learned, he surrenders to Kṛṣṇa. Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate (BG 7.19). Actually when one becomes wise, he surrenders to Kṛṣṇa. Jñānavān māṁ prapadyate. Otherwise, who is Kṛṣṇa? "I am as good as Kṛṣṇa. I am God." That is māyā. That is not actually knowledge. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is said, ye 'nye 'ravindākṣa vimukta-māninaḥ.

Lecture on BG 3.27 -- Madras, January 1, 1976:

We do not make any false interpretation so that the reader also spoil and the listener is also spoiled.

So, so many people, sometimes they come forward to give me some credit that I have done very wonderful thing. So I reply that "I do not know how to do something wonderful. I cannot manufacture gold, I cannot show any jugglery, but if there is any credit, then the only credit is I don't adulterate. That's all. The pure milk, I don't show my expert service by adding water in it. That I do not do. So we present Bhagavad-gītā as it is. In the Bhagavad-gītā, Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Lord. In the, all the Vedic literature, Kṛṣṇa is accepted as the Supreme Lord, person, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Lecture on BG 3.27 -- Madras, January 1, 1976:

No. It is authorized, authorized movement. Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). Mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya (BG 7.7). There is no more superior fact than Kṛṣṇa. That we have to understand. And how He is superior? We are taking nature as very wonderful but behind the nature the manipulator, the controller, is Kṛṣṇa. That you have to understand. That is understanding of Kṛṣṇa.

If... Big, big scientists are finding out the wonderful natural laws, but it is their duty to find out, "Who has made this law, and how it is being conducted so nicely?"

Lecture on BG 4.8 -- Montreal, June 14, 1968:

Everything is all right. But unless a man puts on the button, plies the button, it cannot work. That thing is important.

Similarly, the statement of Bhagavad-gītā, that mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram (BG 9.10), this material world, this cosmic manifestation, is working very wonderfully, and controlling the moving and the not moving... We have got experience. Just like we are moving, man, animals. But there are certain other things, just like trees, mountains. They do not move. So moving or unmoving. But everyone is being controlled by the laws of nature. Carācaram. Cara means moving; acaram means not moving. Hetunānena kaunteya: "Because I am on the background," kaunteya, "my dear Arjuna, for this reason..." Hetunānena kaunteya.

Lecture on BG 4.34 -- New York, August 14, 1966:

Hearing about Kṛṣṇa.

Just like suppose I came to your country, United States of America. Oh, in my childhood I heard of it in school when I was reading geometry or something like, history or geography. I heard first of all. I did not come first of all. So hearing, hearing, when I understood, "Oh, that's a very wonderful country, and it is far away, and if I go there..." Similarly, as you think also about going to India, so first of all hearing. Not immediately seeing what is America or what is India. First of all hearing. So similarly, if we want to see God, then we have to hear. That is the process. Kṛṣṇa consciousness process is first with hearing. Śravaṇam. Śravaṇam means hearing.

Lecture on BG 6.4-12 -- New York, September 4, 1966:

The whole process is, yoga system is, for purifying ātmā. Purifying ātmā... You always remember that ātmā means this body, ātmā means the mind, ātmā means the soul. So purifying these things. So yoga system is made not that cheaply I want some power. Sometimes the yogis they achieve very wonderful power. Aṣṭa-siddhi-yoga. Aṣṭa-siddhi, eight kinds of perfect, material perfection, they can attain. Not for that purpose yoga sys... Although they attain that power, real yogis, they do not exhibit it. They do not exhibit it. They have got the powers, so many wonderful powers, but he doesn't... His only aim is ātma-viśuddhaye: "I am now contaminated by this material atmosphere; so I have to purify myself." So that purification process we shall discuss next day.

Lecture on BG 7.2 -- London, March 10, 1975:

Anyway, that is intelligent work. Next the administrative work. Next the productive work. And next the worker, general worker. The same brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra.

So Bhagavad-gītā recommends that you work for Kṛṣṇa. If you are engineer, so you use your talent, how to construct a very wonderful temple for Kṛṣṇa. That will be success of your learning engineering. Svanuṣṭhitasya dharmasya. Anyone has got a particular talent. So how to make that talent successful? Now, svanuṣṭhitasya dharmasya saṁsiddhir hari-toṣaṇam (SB 1.2.13). If you are very first-class engineer, you construct such an wonderful temple for Kṛṣṇa that people from all the world will come to see it. Then you are successful. So any line of education, you cannot take it, but use it for Kṛṣṇa's satisfaction. Then your education is perfect. Otherwise, śrama eva hi kevalam (SB 1.2.8), simply working uselessly and waste of time.

Lecture on BG 7.11-12 -- Bombay, February 25, 1974:

That means the frog was buried within the lump of coal for many, many thousands of years, and he was keeping samādhi. Kumbhaka, kumbhaka-yoga they know. So these are not very extraordinary things. Because after all, living entity is eternal, does not die. Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). If, by some process, he lives for some time more, that is not very wonderful thing. The wonderful thing is how to stop this birth and death. That is wonderful thing. Not that I am living, say, for fifty years or hundred years, another man is living for three hundred years. That is not very wonderful thing.

So there is regulative principles in the śāstra, as I was explaining. (aside:) Why the boys shall talk? So we must follow the... If we want to make our life perfect, we must follow the regulative principles. Just like good citizen means... What is that good citizen? Good citizen means who follows the laws of the state. He is good citizen. Good citizenship means strictly following the laws of the government.

Lecture on BG 13.16 -- Bombay, October 10, 1973:

Just like a machine, computer, a very subtle machine. It is working wonderfully. But there is a person who is pushing the button. Without that the machine is useless. It is lump of matter. Similarly this gigantic universe, cosmic manifestation, nature, is working very wonderfully. The sun is moving, moon is moving and the earth is moving, everything in right direction and minute time, and not a single inch is moving here and there. Everything is going on nicely. How?

Lecture on BG 16.8 -- Hawaii, February 4, 1975:

Liberation means not to be under the influence of the modes of material nature, not to be infected by the modes of material nature, especially passion and ignorance. That is mukti. Mukti is not very wonderful thing. It is difference of consciousness. Everyone is conscious materially: "I am this body," "I am American," "I am Indian," "I am this," "I am that." This is one consciousness, and when this consciousness is purified, tat-paratvena nirmalam... Nirmalam means completely cleanse. That is the bhakti platform. Sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁ tat-paratvena nirmalam (CC Madhya 19.170). When one becomes purified completely from all this designation... The body is designation. So according to the body, we are placed in different designation: "I am human being," "I am cat," "I am dog," "I am demigod," "I am American," "I am Indian," "I am brāhmaṇa," "I am kṣatriya"—so many designations. So bhakti platform is sarvopādhi-vinirmuktam (CC Madhya 19.170), anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam (Brs. 1.1.11).

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 1.2.8 -- Bombay, December 26, 1972:

Now, Kṛṣṇa is so kind that He has returned so much nice foodstuff, prasādam; now we can eat and thereby we can conquer the dictation of the tongue. In another place it is said, sevonmukhe hi jihvādau (Brs. 1.2.234). God realization can be possible. How? If you engage your tongue in the service of the Lord. It is very wonderful. People may say, "How is that? The tongue has to be engaged in the service of the Lord?" Yes, that is the sastric injunction. Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ. If you simply engage your tongue in the service of Kṛṣṇa, then Kṛṣṇa will appear to you, svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ. He will personally appear before you. And what is that? You can utilize your tongue simply chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa and satisfy the tongue by taking prasādam. Finished. Very simple and very easy. By simply controlling your tongue, you can control all other senses. You can control belly, you can control the genital, you can control everything.

Lecture on SB 1.3.13 -- Los Angeles, September 18, 1972:

Unless understood through authoritative sources, Kṛṣṇa is misunderstood. But He is the dhīra. He is not adhīra. He is not like ordinary man. Dhīra.

So here it is said that urukramaḥ. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is described here as urukrama. Urukrama means one who acts very wonderful things which is not possible for ordinary human being. So He wanted to show the real path of life. Mahārāja Ṛṣabhadeva, He was king, emperor of the world. So His instruction are there in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. (tapping sound) He instructed... (aside:) What is this sound? He instructed His sons, "My dear boys, this human form of life is not meant for sense enjoyment, which is available in the life of dogs and hogs." It was His instruction. He instructed that human society should be dhīra, self-controlled. That is ideal human society. That is Vedic civilization.

Lecture on SB 1.3.15 -- Los Angeles, September 20, 1972:

Therefore if we study Bhagavad-gītā very carefully, you understand everything. A little brain required. Just like we can... Just you, when you go to the oven, fire, fireplace, that fireplace, the stove... What is the stove? The stove is made of these five elements, earth, water, fire, air, but there the fire is very prominent. Therefore you cannot touch it. You do not go there. Similarly, sun planet is not very wonderful thing. It is also made of the same ingredients as it is made here in this planet, because the whole material world is made of these five elements. But there the fire element is very prominent. Therefore we are thinking, "How one can live there?" How one can cook in the kitchen when the fire is so hot? It is possible. Just like you can see in the water. You cannot live in the water, but there are thousands and millions of living entities. They are very comfortably living. The same living entities, you bring on the land, they cannot live. But you can live.

Lecture on SB 1.3.30 -- Los Angeles, October 5, 1972:

It will make immediately black. But it is very small. Similarly, the difference between Kṛṣṇa and me is that He is great, God is great, and I am small. Although qualitatively we are one. The same: big fire and small fire. Similarly, we have got also the same qualities, approximately, but very small quantity. We can play very wonderful by discovering some machine, say, the machine, what is called, which goes to the moon planet? Capsule. Or we float something in the sky, sputnik. But that is imitation of God. God is floating gigantic planets like sun, moon, in the space. You cannot do that. You can float a small sputnik.

So you have got the creative power, God has got the creative power. But God's creative power cannot be compared with your creative power. You have got the creative power, but not exactly like God. This is the conclusion. You cannot become God. You can imitate or you can do something very little.

Lecture on SB 1.5.1-4 -- New Vrindaban, May 22, 1969:

Jijñāsitam adhītaṁ ca brahma yat tat sanātanam. "Not only ordinary things, not only your material knowledge, but you have inquired about Brahman." Athāto brahma jijñāsā. Sanātanam. The Brahman means that is eternal. And what is not Brahman, that is temporary. So sanātana, "You have inquired about Brahman and you have understood, you have assimilated. You have compiled very wonderful books, adbhutam, and the history, bhāratam, Mahābhāratam." Sarvārtha. Sarvārtha-paribṛṁhitam. "And in that Mahābhārata you have given all the information of these four principles of perfection, namely dharma-artha-kāma-mokṣa. And this Bhagavad-gītā is there in the Mahābhārata. In the Bhīṣma-parva." So tathāpi śocasi. Tathāpi:. "Still you are morose. After doing all these things, you are still morose." Tathāpi śocasy ātmānam akṛtārtha iva prabho. Prabho.

Lecture on SB 1.8.38 -- Los Angeles, April 30, 1973:

Even the powerhouse is also imperson. But the man behind the everything, that is a person. Therefore God is person. Logical conclusion. How He can be imperson? Imperson has no brain. The... Just like so many machines now we have invented, very wonderful machines. But the machine is not the brain. The operator is the brain. Why do they not understand? Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram: (BG 9.10) "You are seeing the energy or the wonderful action and reaction of this material cosmic manifestation. But don't think that they are working independently. No. I am behind there." So what is the difficulty to understand? Or from example you can understand how things can go on nicely without a nice brain behind these things? It is conclusion. Mayādhyakṣeṇa. And Kṛṣṇa says further, mayā tatam idaṁ sarvam avyakta-mūrtinā (BG 9.4).

Lecture on SB 1.15.21 -- Los Angeles, December 1, 1973:

So Rāvaṇa was so powerful that he made his capital Svarṇa-laṅkā, "capital made of gold." Just like if a man comes from undeveloped country to your country, New York or any city, when they see the big, big skyscraper, they become astonished. Although skyscraper buildings are everywhere nowadays, formerly it was very wonderful.

So we can create everything very wonderful, but we can take the example of Rāvaṇa. Rāvaṇa was very advanced materially, and he had Vedic knowledge sufficiently. He was son of a brāhmaṇa. Everything was there. But the only fault was that he did not care for Rāma. That is the only fault. "Oh, what is Rāma? I don't care for Him. There is no need of performing yajñas and ritualistic ceremony to be promoted to the heavenly kingdom." Rāvaṇa said, "I shall construct a staircase to go to the moon planet. Why you are trying in this way or that way? I will do that."

Lecture on SB 2.1.1-2 -- New York, April 19, 1973:

He was playing with Kṛṣṇa Deity, so naturally he was inclined to hear about Kṛṣṇa. So he enquired, "What is my duty? Shall I simply hear about Kṛṣṇa, or something else?" So on hearing this question, Śukadeva Gosvāmī is congratulating, varīyān eṣa te praśnaḥ: (SB 2.1.1) "Oh, your question is very wonderful, very welcome, varīyān." Varīyān means "very welcome," what I have given, varīyān. "Glorious, yes. Glorious praśnaḥ, because you have enquired about Kṛṣṇa."

So varīyān eṣa te praśnaḥ kṛto loka-hitaṁ nṛpa: (SB 2.1.1) "My dear king, this question is all-auspicious for all the people of the world." If you simply enquire about Kṛṣṇa or hear about Kṛṣṇa, even though we do not understand, but that vibration of Kṛṣṇa... Just like we are chanting "Hare Kṛṣṇa," we may not understand what is meaning of Hare Kṛṣṇa, but still, because it is transcendental sound, it is auspicious.

Lecture on SB 2.3.20-21 -- Los Angeles, June 17, 1972:

So one who does not hear about the brave activities of Kṛṣṇa, they are satisfied with teeny activities of this material world... We give credit to an ordinary man to become a God. How? Now, meditation. Now, what are his wonderful activities? Simply by meditation he becomes God? This is the foolishness. God must be acting very wonderfully. Otherwise, how he's God. If he is just like ordinary man, and because he has got a big beard, he becomes God? How foolishness it is. They do not know what is God because they have not heard about God, how powerful He is, how brave activities He does. Just like Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa, when He was seven years old, He lifted a great hill, Govardhana Hill. Giridhārī. And He kept it on His finger for seven days. That is God. Kṛṣṇa, when He was householder, He married sixteen thousand wives.

Lecture on SB 6.1.19 -- Honolulu, May 19, 1976:

One scientist in Delhi, our Delhi festival, he said very nicely that "We scientists, we are just like learning how to bark like dog." Yes. He said very plainly. Because a dog is barking, everyone knows. But if there is a tent and advertisement, yes, that "Mr. such and such will bark like a dog," and people will come and pay ten dollars' fee: "A man is barking. Very wonderful. Let us see." So these rascals, the chemists, they are trying to manufacture living being within test tube, and they are becoming very famous: "Oh, now they are making life in the..." Rascal, there are so many hundreds and millions of life are there, every day being created. What credit you'll get if you manufacture a life within test tube? But the rascals, they are: "Oh, scientists. He is now going to manufacture life." "No, show me how made..." "Yes, we are trying. It will be in future." Yes. Our Svarūpa Dāmodara... There was one professor. He came to California.

Lecture on SB 6.3.18 -- Gorakhpur, February 11, 1971:

So such things are not visible within this material world. Therefore mahādbhutāni, very wonderful. Mahādbhutāni rakṣanti. What is their business? They give protection to the devotees. Rakṣanti tad-bhaktimataḥ parebhyaḥ. Bhaktimataḥ. Those who are engaged in devotional service, they are protected from parebhyaḥ. Parebhyaḥ. means the enemies of the devotees. The devotees of the Lord are always protected by these Viṣṇudūtas, who are almost as powerful as Viṣṇu. And they give protection to the devotees of the Lord, mad-bhaktaḥ, tad-bhaktamataḥ, who are following the principles of devotional service, parebhyaḥ. How they are protected? First they are protected from the hands of the enemies.

Lecture on SB 7.6.1-2 -- Stockholm, September 6, 1973:

That is being done under the driver. Just like the big car or this airship is running very nicely so long the pilot is there, so long the driver is there. Without pilot, even the arrangement is very nice, good machinery assembly, but it cannot work. Similarly, this nature, although we find very wonderfully working, but behind this nature, there is the living entity, supreme living entity, God. So to understand that God, how He is working, what we are, what is our relationship with God, why we are here, why we are transmigrating from one body to another—all these are called bhāgavata-dharma. This is called bhāgavata-dharma.

Lecture on SB 7.7.32-35 -- San Francisco, March 17, 1967, (incomplete lecture):

So Kṛṣṇa is so kind, Kṛṣṇa is so faithful to His devotee, that He has taken the menial execution of service to His devotee. These feelings, whenever I feel, I am crying." This is the stage. This is the stage, when one becomes too much, I mean to say, glorifying about the wonderful acts. This is very wonderful act. The Supreme Personality of Godhead who is the greatest, God is great, but He has taken the service of a devotee as a menial driver. So this feeling gave him in ecstasy. This is a sign. It is not artificial. Tad guṇa-sūnavan, er, śruti-mātreṇa.

Just like if you place, if you pour some water on the ground, you will see where there is down level, it will at once go to that side. Without any arrangement, you simply pour the water, and it will go down where the level is down, just like the rivers are flowing to the sea level. Similarly, a highly developed Kṛṣṇa conscious person, at once he will hear about something of Kṛṣṇa, he will be in ecstasy.

Lecture on SB 7.9.11-13 -- Hawaii, March 24, 1969:

And there are different kinds of demons, different classes of demons. That is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā. Duṣkṛtinaḥ. Duṣkṛtina means... Krti means very intelligent, and... What is that word, if a man does something wonderful? Genius? Genius? Yes. So the genius, duṣkṛtina, "wrong genius." That means the materialistic persons, scientists, they're genius. They have discovered very wonderful machine, wonderful things. They are genius, but duṣkṛtina, not for the welfare of the human society but for condemning the human society. Just like the same example, as I have given several times, that a, the person who has discovered this nuclear weapon, atomic bomb, he's certainly genius. He has got nice brain, that simply egglike bomb, if you throw, immediately the whole island of Hawaii will be finished. Just like you dropped your atomic bomb on the other side, Japan, Hiroshima... They attacked your Pearl Harbor, and the retaliation was atom bomb on Hiroshima. So these are politics.

Lecture on SB 7.9.20 -- Mayapur, February 27, 1976:

They will not agree that it is being done by God, by the direction of..., mayādhyakṣeṇa (BG 9.10). Adhyakṣa means direction. So the sun, moon, or anything material that is working, we see they are working very wonderfully, but don't think that they are working automatically or independently. No. That is not possible. The foolish man may think like that, "automatically." No, there is no automatically, no accident. Therefore, yena yasmād yataḥ yad uta, superior, inferior—everything is systematically being done according to the desire. They say, "Not a blade of grass moves without the desire of Kṛṣṇa." That's a fact. Without Kṛṣṇa's desire... Every step we are going forward, it is guided by Kṛṣṇa. It is not directly by Kṛṣṇa but through the instrument of Kṛṣṇa. This is nature.

Nectar of Devotion Lectures

The Nectar of Devotion -- Vrndavana, October 19, 1972:

You can understand Kṛṣṇa simply by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau (Brs. 1.2.234). Simply by your service attitude, to serve Kṛṣṇa, beginning with the tongue. It is very wonderful. But utilizing your tongue, you can achieve Kṛṣṇa very easily. By the tongue. By the tongue, if you simply chant, without any offense, Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, and by the tongue, if you simply taste Kṛṣṇa prasādam, and by the tongue, if you speak about Kṛṣṇa, yāre dekha tāre kaha kṛṣṇa upadeśa (CC Madhya 7.128), you understand Kṛṣṇa. The three business of the tongue. Tasting the prasādam, chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, and preaching about Kṛṣṇa. By these three things you understand Kṛṣṇa, and as you understand Kṛṣṇa, tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti (BG 4.9), you are transferred to the spiritual kingdom.

The Nectar of Devotion -- Bombay, January 7, 1973:

Wonder. You see something which is very wonderful, astonishing, that is also rasa. In this way, according to śāstra, there are twelve rasas—five primary and seven secondary. But all these rasas are there in Kṛṣṇa. Therefore Kṛṣṇa is called Akhila rasāmṛta-sindhu. Akhila rasāmṛta. You can enjoy, you can have contact with Kṛṣṇa with any of these rasas; therefore He's called Akhila... We have written a small book, Kṛṣṇa, the Reservoir of All Pleasure. Ghastly or wondrous rasas or chivalrous rasas, although they are not exactly like the five primary rasas, conjugal love, paternal affection, friendly love... Just like Bhīṣma. Bhīṣmadeva was enjoying the chivalry rasas when he decided that "This day, I must kill Arjuna. Either Kṛṣṇa will have to break His promise..." Kṛṣṇa promised that He'd not take any weapon in the battle; He should remain neutral. Because both sides, they were relatives. So it is not good to take part partially in one party and neglect other.

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.137-146 -- Bombay, February 24, 1971:

They can become the smallest. Such siddhis, such mystic powers, they can attain. So they have also demand. They are trying to get some material perfection. Just like flying in the sky or walking on the water—these things are very wonderful, and people are very much amazed. If you can walk on the water, so many followers you will get immediately. That is a wonderful thing for common man.

So they yogis want these mystic powers. Therefore they have also demand. Muktis, the jñānīs, they have also demand; the karmīs also have the demand. But the bhaktas... Just like Caitanya Mahāprabhu. We accept Caitanya Mahāprabhu as the ideal bhakta. He's teaching us how to become exceptionally perfect devotee. So He says in His Śikṣāṣṭaka, na dhanaṁ na janaṁ na sundarīṁ kavitāṁ vā jagad-īśa kāmaye (Cc. Antya 20.29, Śikṣāṣṭaka 4). "I do not want riches," na dhanam.

Festival Lectures

Sri Vyasa-puja -- Hamburg, September 5, 1969:

Every one of you should be spiritual master next. And what is their duty? Whatever you are hearing from me, whatever you are learning from me, you have to distribute the same in toto without any addition or alteration. Then all of you become the spiritual master. That is the science of becoming spiritual master. Spiritual master is not any... To become a spiritual master is not very wonderful thing. Simply one has to become sincere soul. That's all. Evaṁ paramparā-prāptam imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ (BG 4.2). In the Bhagavad-gītā it is said that "By disciplic succession this yoga process of Bhagavad-gītā was handed down from disciple to disciple. But in course of time that disciplic succession is now lost. Therefore, Arjuna, I am teaching you again the same philosophy."

Wedding Ceremonies

Wedding Ceremony and Lecture -- Boston, May 6, 1969:

They are preaching there Kṛṣṇa consciousness. They are not very big philosopher, nor Vedantist, neither, I mean to say, born in the Vedic civilized way—just like ordinary way—but they have been trained only under my direction for only two years. But they are working in London very wonderfully, so much so that people have come to know that there is a movement, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and London Times, in big heading, they wrote, "Kṛṣṇa Chanting Startles London." So formerly many sannyāsīs went there to introduce this movement, but they failed. But these sincere boys and girls... They are not very aged also—not more than twenty-six years, any one of them. But they are doing very nice. So the platform of purity is so nice that they can play tremendous...

General Lectures

Lecture -- London, September 26, 1969:

There is material world, spiritual world... You can go everywhere. But you must be capable of going there. Just like we Indians. There are many Indians... Or there are many Englishmen also, some of them want to go to India. Some of the Indians, from India they want to come to London. They think London is very wonderful city. And some Englishmen also think, "Oh, India is very wonderful land." So we are thinking that moon land or sun land or so many other planets, Venus...

So this sun example we have to understand, that to understand the sun there are three divisions. The first division is the sunlight or sunshine. The sunshine is all-pervading over the universe. It is not imagination. We get from Vedic information. It is said, yasya prabhā prabhavato jagad-aṇḍa-koṭi (Bs. 5.40).

Lecture -- Los Angeles, July 20, 1971:

That is another foolishness. In the Bhagavad-gītā, it is clearly said that nature, this material nature is not independent. Just like a foolish man, when he sees that machine is working automatically, machine is not working automatically. There is a driver. A foolish man cannot see behind the machine a driver. That is our defect in vision. A machine, there is electronics working very wonderfully. But behind that electronic work, there is a great scientist who is pushing the button. It is very simple to understand. Machine is matter. It cannot work out of its own accord. It is working under some spiritual direction. Just like this machine, the tape recorder, is working, but it is working under the direction of a living entity, a human being. The machine is all complete, but unless it is manipulated by a spirit soul, it cannot work. Similarly, take it for granted that the whole cosmic manifestation is a great machine, nature. But behind this material nature, there is God, Kṛṣṇa.

Lecture -- London, August 23, 1973:

Many śāstras, we have to take knowledge from the śāstras. And if you judge from good sense and intelligence, you'll have to admit what is said in the śāstra. Now just like in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said that mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram (BG 9.10). We are very much astonished to see the activities of the material nature wonderfully working. But we do not know that behind the material nature there is God. Under His direction the material nature is working. That is intelligence. Material nature, matter... Matter cannot act independently. That is not possible. Just like this microphone is a combination of material things—some iron, some other metals. But it has been adjusted, created by some living entity. Not that matter has automatically come into intermingling with this other and become a microphone. That is not possible. Take any machine. It may be very wonderful machine. Just like nowadays the wonderful machine is computer. What is called?

Lecture -- London, August 23, 1973:

So it acts very wonderfully, but there must be a expert man to push the button. Otherwise, it will not act. Without that expert man, this wonderful machine is lump of iron. That's all. It has no value. Take any machine. Similarly, this huge, gigantic machine of cosmic manifestation where innumerable planets are floating in the sky just like cotton swabs, don't think that it is so acting automatically. No. There is direction behind it, or there is brain behind it. And that brain, that big brain, is God. God is also like us, a being, but He is Supreme Being. As we are being, we have got our brain, we have got our creative power, we can do something, we can manufacture something like airplane, sputnik, but God has got big brain. We may float one mechanic airplane in the air, but by the God's brain, millions and trillions of heavy planets are floating in the air. That is God's brain. He has got also brain; He has got also creative power. We have also creative power, but we have got little and He has got supreme power. That is the difference. God means the supreme brain, the supreme powerful, and we are teenies, we are subordinate; therefore our position is to abide by the orders of God. That is actually religion.

Lecture at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan -- Bombay, October 18, 1973:

No. The dharma is given by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, which He says as the last instruction in the Bhagavad-gītā. Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). And actually it is happening all over the world. Since we have presented this dharma, to serve Kṛṣṇa, it is working very wonderfully. We have got branches all over the world, and you will find... Some of the samples you will see, those who are chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, these Europeans, Americans, Canadians—we have got even branch in Iran also—Muhammadans, Christians, African. Everyone is taking to this dharma, this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement.

Therefore Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu enunciated, ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanaṁ bhava-mahā-dāvāgni-nirvāpaṇam (CC Antya 20.12). Bhava-mahā-dāvāgni-nirvāpaṇam. There is a conflagration of flame all over the world on account of godless civilization, this nonsense civilization. We have to stop it. Then you will be happy.

Purports to Songs

Purport to Jaya Radha-Madhava -- New York, July 20, 1971:

"He may be God or He may be whatever He is. It doesn't matter, but we love God, Kṛṣṇa." That's all. That is called unnalloyed love. "If Kṛṣṇa is God, then I shall love Him"—this is conditional love. This is not pure love. Kṛṣṇa may be God or whatever He may be, but by His wonderful acts, the Vrajavāsī, they are thinking, "Oh Kṛṣṇa, He is very wonderful child, maybe some demigod. Maybe some demigod." Because people are generally under impression that the demigods are all-powerful. They're powerful within this material world. But they do not know that Kṛṣṇa is above all of them. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ (Bs. 5.1). The highest demigod, Brahmā, is giving his opinion, "The supreme controller is Kṛṣṇa."