Philadelphia: July 11–15

In His Quarters At The Philadelphia Temple, Srila Prabhupada explained to a young man from India the process of understanding God:

"Krsna Himself says, 'I can be understood only by devotional service, sincere service.' It is very easy to learn this art; there is no distinction as to caste, creed, color. Now so many people are loving Krsna. One doesn't have to be expert in philosophy or science or be very rich and intelligent. No. Simply love Krsna.

"Even the priests are surprised. They have told me, 'These boys and girls used to be our students, but they never wanted to go to church. Now they spend all their time for God.' And just today at the airport one reporter asked, 'What is it that you are offering that has made your students so affectionate and enthusiastic and loving?' I told him, 'I have simply tried to give them Krsna. I have not bribed them.' "

Professor Thomas J. Hopkins is the Chairman of the Department of Religious Thought at Franklin and Marshall College. He wrote his doctoral dissertation on the Srimad-Bhagavatam and has been closely following the Hare Krsna movement since its beginning in America in 1966. For these reasons Professor Hopkins has long been anxious to meet with Srila Prabhupada, and in Philadelphia he finally had the opportunity.

Dr. Hopkins: Of all the things which you have written, which is the most important?

Prabhupada: The most important thing is how to love God.

Dr. Hopkins: But which book?

Prabhupada: The Vedanta philosophy; first the Bhagavad-gita, then the Srimad-Bhagavatam.

Dr. Hopkins: But is there one of the translations or purports which you would want everybody to read?

Prabhupada: Yes. The Bhagavatam says that the ultimate goal in life is how to become liberated, not how to develop economically. (Bhag. 1.2.9) We should just get money honestly, not for sense gratification but for the necessities of life; to fulfill the bodily demands, not artificially to create them. Why? Because the ultimate goal is to attain liberation. It is not to make a new model car every year. We should not work hard day and night and go to church for material profit, praying to God to get money. People want material gain because they have no spiritual information; therefore they are described as "mudhas," fools and rascals. If I take care of my shirt very nicely but I do not care for the person inside the shirt, then what is my position? Similarly, this whole material world is busy taking care of the body, not the soul inside the body. Therefore, all these so-called educational institutions are blind. It is a society of the blind leading the blind.

Dr. Hopkins: What is the solution?

Prabhupada: First of all understand you are spirit. Find out what is your relationship with God and act accordingly. That is the perfection of life.