Room Conversation with Indian Guest – July 11, 1973, London

He should become a disciple of a bona fide guru

Prabhupada: ...accepted in that group.

Indian man (1): Suppose if somebody is absolutely ignorant about...

Prabhupada: So therefore there should be education. Why the sastras are there? Why guru is there? Tad-vijnanartham sa gurum evabhigacchet [Munḍaka Upanisad 1.2.12]. You must accept guru and learn. Why should you remain ignorant?

Indian man (1): How one should start when he's completely ignorant of all these things?

Prabhupada: He should go... Tad-vijnanartham sa gurum evabhigacchet.

Indian man (1): Tad viddhi pranipatena... [Bg 4.34].

Prabhupada: Pariprasnena sevaya. He should become a disciple of a bona fide guru. Otherwise, how he can learn? If you are uneducated, you should go to school.

Indian man (1): [aside:] You want to ask anything?

[pause]

Prabhupada: [Hindi] [laughter] It is very difficult to, to guru, but when guru comes, they also do not accept him. What can be done? They are so fallen. Only fortunate. Ei rūpe brahmanḍa bhramite kona bhagyavan jiva [Cc Madhya 19.151]. So to go to guru, to Krsna, that requires fortune. Kona bhagyavan jiva. Some fortunate person. Guru-krsna-krpaya paya bhakti-lata-bija [Cc Madhya 19.151]. By the mercy of guru and Krsna, he gets the seed of this bhakti. Bhaktya mam abhijanati [Bg 18.55]. And when he's a bhakta, then he can understand what is God.

[aside:] Get the light on.

Bhaktya mam abhijana... No, there. That's all right.

Indian man (2): [Hindi]

Prabhupada: [Hindi for some time, a few English words]

[break] [Hindi for some time] [end]