SPD07-01 Perfect Questions, Perfect Answers, July 13, 1975, Philadelphia
SPD07-01
Perfect Questions, Perfect Answers,
July 13, 1975, Philadelphia
Perfect Questions, Perfect Answers,
July 13, 1975, Philadelphia
[00:30] [Sandy Nixon (Reporter):] The first question could be a very long...
[00:32] I've got fifteen questions. If I could get them all answered, I'll feel just great. The first one is very basic:
[00:38] What is Krsna consciousness?
[00:43] [Prabhupada:] "Krsna" means God, and we are all connected with Krsna, God. God is the original father.
[01:00] Therefore we have got intimate connection with Krsna. So we have forgotten it, what is Krsna,
[01:12] what is my connection with Him, what is the aim of life. All these questions there are.
[01:24] And when one becomes interested with such questions, he is called Krsna conscious.
[01:36] [Sandy Nixon:] How did Krsna consciousness develop?
[01:40] [Prabhupada:] Krsna consciousness is already there in everyone's core of heart, but due to one's material conditional life,
[01:56] he has forgotten it. So this process of chanting Hare Krsna maha-mantra means to revive that
[02:09] consciousness. It is already there. Just like a few days ago these American, European boys and girls,
[02:21] they did not know who is Krsna. But now you have seen yesterday how their whole,
[02:35] that procession, throughout the whole procession, how they were chanting and dancing in ecstasy.
[02:44] So do you think that is artificial? No. Artificially nobody can chant and dance for hours together.
[02:55] That means the awakening of Krsna consciousness. It was there; by the bona fide process,
[03:05] it is now awakened. That is explained,
[03:12] nitya-siddha krsna-bhakti sadhya kabhu naya, sravanadi-suddha-citte karaye udaya [Cc. Madhya 22.107].
[03:21] The Krsna consciousness is dormant in everyone's heart. So when he comes in contact with devotees,
[03:35] that is awakened. Just like to be attracted by a young girl or young boy, it is there in the child.
[03:50] That small child, it is there. And when he will be young, then it will be awakened. It is not that artificial
[03:59] something. So in association it is awakened. The potency is there already, but in good association,
[04:19] by hearing about Krsna, one is awakened to the status of Krsna consciousness.
[04:30] [Sandy Nixon:] What is the difference between Krsna consciousness and Christ consciousness?
[04:36] [Prabhupada:] Christ consciousness is also Krsna consciousness. But people do not follow the rules and regulations
[04:46] of Christianity. Therefore they are not awakened. The commandments of Christ, they do not follow.
[04:58] Therefore they do not come to the standard of consciousness.
[05:07] [Sandy Nixon:] What is unique about Krsna consciousness that separates it from other religions? Is it a religion?
[05:15] [Prabhupada:] Religion means primarily to know God and love Him. That is religion. And nobody knows God,
[05:28] and what to speak of loving Him. Nobody is trained up how to know God and how to love Him.
[05:40] They are satisfied by going to the church: "O God, give us our daily bread." That also not everyone goes.
[05:53] So the Communist says that "You don't go to the church. Bread we shall supply." So poor innocent persons,
[06:04] they get bread elsewhere, so they do not go to church. But nobody is serious to understand what is God
[06:17] and how to love Him. Nobody is serious. Therefore in Bhagavatam it is said it is cheating religion.
[06:33] I profess some religion, but I do not know what is God and how to love Him.
[06:40] So that type of religion is cheating religion. Religion means to know God and love Him. But generally,
[06:50] a man does not know what is God, and what to speak of loving Him?
[06:56] So therefore that is cheating religion. That is not religion. But so far Christian religion is concerned,
[07:03] there is ample chance of understanding God. But they do not care for it. Take, for example, the commandment
[07:13] is "Thou shall not kill." But in the Christian world, best slaughterhouses are maintained.
[07:23] So how they can become God conscious? They disobey the commandments, do not care for Lord Jesus
[07:37] Christ's order. So this is not only in Christian religion.
[07:43] Every religion, it is going on. It is simply rubber stamp: "I am Hindu," "I am Muslim," "I am Christian."
[07:49] And none of them do know what is God and how to love Him.
[07:56] [Sandy Nixon:] How does one know a bona fide spiritual master, then, that can lead them?
[08:00] [Prabhupada:] Who teaches these things-how to know God and how to love Him-he is spiritual master.
[08:07] Otherwise bogus, rascal bogus. Sometimes they mislead, that "I am God." Poor people, they do not know
[08:22] what is God, and a rascal proposes, "I am God," and they accept it. Just like in your country they elected
[08:35] Nixon president and again drag him. That means they did not know who is really bona fide president,
[08:44] elected somebody, and again they had to business of dragging out. Similarly, people are foolish.
[08:54] Any rascal comes, he says, "I am God," they accept. And again they accept another. This is going on.
[09:05] So one must be serious student to understand what is God and how to love Him. That is religion.
[09:17] Otherwise, it is simply waste of time. That we are teaching. That is the difference between others and our...
[09:27] We are presenting Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the science, how to know Him.
[09:35] The Bhagavad-gita is there, the Bhagavata is there. Not bogus. Authorized. Therefore this is the only institution
[09:48] which can teach how to know God and how to love Him. Two business. There is no third business.
[09:59] It is not our business to ask God to give us our necessities. We know God gives necessities to everyone,
[10:11] even one who has no religion. Just like cats and dogs. They have no religion. They do not know what
[10:20] is religion. But still, the cats and dogs are supplied with necessities of life. So why should we bother Krsna,
[10:32] asking Him, "Give us our daily bread"? He is supplying already. Our business is how to love Him.
[10:43] That is religion. Dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavaḥ atra paramo nirmatsaranam satam, vastavam vastu vedyam atra .
[10:56] Sa vai pumsam paro dharmaḥ yato bhaktir adhoksaje : "That is first-class religion which teaches
[11:03] how to love God." And that love-not for any material motive: "God, You give me this. Then I will love."
[11:17] No. Ahaituki. Love means without any personal profit. If I love God for some profit, that is business.
[11:33] That is not love. Ahaituky apratihata. And such love of God cannot be checked by any material cause.
[11:48] In any condition, one can learn how to love God. It is not conditional, that "I am poor man.
[11:57] How shall I love God? I have got so many things to do." No, it is not like that. Poor, rich or young or old,
[12:07] black or white, there is no impediment. If one wants to love God, he can love God.
[12:16] [Sandy Nixon:] Are there different paths that one can learn to love God?
[12:20] [Prabhupada:] No. There is no different.
[12:22] [Sandy Nixon:] I mean, are there other spiritual paths... Do all spiritual paths lead to the same end?
[12:28] [Prabhupada:] Spiritual paths are divided into four. Not spiritual. Real spiritual, mixed spiritual.
[12:41] Just like this, "God, give us our daily bread." It is mixed spiritual. One has approached God,
[12:51] God is spiritual, but one is asking for material profit. So this is mixture, matter and spirit.
[13:04] So there are four classes, generally known as karmi, fruitive actors. They work for getting some material profit.
[13:18] They are called karmi. Just like all men, you will see, they are working so hard day and night,
[13:27] driving their cars, zu-zu-zu-zu-zu, this way and that way. The purpose is how to get some money.
[13:36] This is called karmi. And then jnani. Jnani means he knows that "I am working so hard. Why?
[13:52] The birds, beasts, the elephants, big, big..., eight million different types of..., they are not.
[14:01] They have no business. They have no profession. How they are eating? So why unnecessarily I work so much?
[14:12] Let me know what is the problem of life." So they understand the problem of life is birth, death, old age
[14:20] and disease. And they want to solve it, how to become immortal. So they have conclusion that
[14:34] "If I merge into God's existence, then I become immortal, or immune from birth, death, old age and disease."
[14:45] This is called jnani. And some of them are yogis. They try to acquire some spiritual power to make a show
[15:04] how he can play wonder. A yogi can become very small. If you put him in a room, he will come out. You lock it,
[15:19] he will come out. If there is little space, he will come out. That is called anima. He can fly in the sky,
[15:30] float in the sky. That is called laghima. In this way, if somebody can show this magic, then immediately
[15:45] he is accepted as very wonderful man. So yogis, they... The modern yogis, they simply show some gymnastic,
[15:50] but they have no power. So I am not speaking of these third-class yogis. Real yogi means
[15:59] he has got some power. That is material power. So yogis also want this power.
[16:11] And jnanis also want salvation from the unnecessary working like ass, the karmis. And karmis want
[16:24] material profit. So they want, everyone. But the bhaktas, devotees, they don't want anything.
[16:33] They want to serve God out of love. Just like a mother loves her child.
[16:40] There is no question of profit. Out of affection, she loves. So when you come to that stage,
[16:49] to love God, that is perfection. So these different processes, karmi, jnani, yogi and bhakta,
[17:02] out of these four processes, if you want to know God, then you have to accept this bhakti.
[17:15] "Simply through the process of bhakti, one can understand Me, God." He never says by other processes. No.
[17:26] Only through bhakti. So if you are interested to know God and love Him, then you have to accept
[17:35] this devotional process. No other process will help you.
[17:44 [Sandy Nixon:] What are the methods used in attaining Krsna consciousness? How does one get to...
[17:50] [Prabhupada:] Yes, by Krsna consciousness you achieve the goal of life. In the present condition we are accepting one body,
[18:03] and we are dying after a few days, then accept another body. And that body is according to your activity.
[18:17] There are 8,400,000 different types of body. You can get any one of them. You'll have to accept one body.
[18:27] That is called transmigration of the soul. So if one is under this consciousness that "I am eternal.
[18:41] Why I am changing body? How to solve it?" that is intelligence. And not to work like cats and dogs and die.
[18:52] That is not intelligence. One who makes solution of this problem, he is intelligent.
[19:01] So therefore this Krsna consciousness movement is the ultimate solution of all problems of life.
[19:15] [Sandy Nixon:] What transformations does one undergo on the path of Krsna consciousness?
[19:20] [Prabhupada:] No transformation. The consciousness is there. It is now filled with all rubbish things.
[19:29] You have to cleanse this, and then Krsna consciousness... Just like water.
[19:34] Water is, by nature, clear, transparent. But when it is filled up with rubbish things, it is muddy.
[19:44] You cannot see very clearly. But if you filter it, all muddy things, dirty things,
[19:51] then again comes to the original position: clear, transparent water.
[20:04] [Sandy Nixon:] Does one function better in society as a result of affiliation with Krsna consciousness?
[20:12] [Gurudasa:] [explaining] Does one function in society better after being Krsna conscious?
[20:18] [Prabhupada:] What is the meaning?
[20:19] [Ravindra-svarūpa:] Is he a better citizen?
[20:23] [Sandy Nixon:] And also sociologically or cultu... Can he work better in the community?
[20:30] [Prabhupada:] That you can see practically. They are not drunkards, they are not meat-eaters.
[20:44] From physiological point of view, they are very clean. They will never be attacked with so many diseases.
[20:57] Then, they do not eat meat-means that is most sinful, to kill others for the satisfaction of the tongue.
[21:10] God has given to the human society so many things to eat: nice fruits, nice flowers,
[21:18] nice grains, first-class milk. And from milk, you can prepare hundreds of nutritious foods.
[21:29] But they do not know the art. They are maintaining big, big slaughterhouse and eating meat. No discrimination.
[21:40] That means they are not even civilized. When man is not civilized, he kills one animal and eats,
[21:52] because he does not know how to grow food. Just like we have got one farmland, in New Vrindavan.
[22:03] So we are preparing so first-class preparation from milk, the neighborers, they come, they are astonished
[22:12] that from milk such nice preparation can be done, hundreds. So that means they are not even civilized,
[22:23] how to prepare nutritious food from milk. Milk-accepting that cow flesh and blood is very nutritious-
[22:40] that we also admit-but a civilized man utilizes the blood and meat in a different way.
[22:52] The milk is nothing but blood. But it is transformed into milk. And again, from milk, you make so many things.
[23:03] You make yogurt, you make curd, you make ghee. So many things. And combination of these milk products
[23:15] with grains, with fruits and vegetables, you make similar hundreds of preparation. So this is civilized life,
[23:26] not that directly kill one animal and eat. That is uncivilized life. You take the-
[23:38] accepting that cow's flesh and blood is very nutritious-you take it in a civilized way.
[23:48] Why you should kill? It is innocent animal. Is simply eating grass given by God and supplying milk.
[24:01] And from milk you can live. And the gratefulness is that cut his throat? Is that civilization?
[24:12] What do you say?
[24:15] [Jayatirtha:] Is that civilization?
[24:16] [Sandy Nixon:] No, I agree with you a hundred percent. I want you to say these things, though, instead of me.
[24:21] I'm asking you questions so that hopefully that not by me describing anything... Just short questions...
[24:29] [Prabhupada:] So these things are uncivilized way of life, and what they will understand God?
[24:38] [Sandy Nixon:] I'm asking these questions for others, of course-a field that is not understanding Krsna consciousness.
[24:46] [Prabhupada:] To understand God means one must be first-class civilized man. Just like university is meant for
[24:58] first-class student, similarly, God consciousness means meant for the first-class human being.
[25:11] [Sandy Nixon:] Okay. This question's a hard one for me to ask, because it shows ignorance on my part.
[25:16] But I'm not asking it in ignorance. I want your answer on tape, okay?
[25:23] Does all desire ultimately have to go, including the desire to attain Krsna consciousness?
[25:34] [Prabhupada:] Without Krsna consciousness, you will have simply rubbish desires. And when you are Krsna
[25:42] conscious, then you desire rightly.
[25:55] [Sandy Nixon:] The aim of many spiritual paths is to find the guru within.
[26:01] [Prabhupada:] Within?
[26:03] [Sandy Nixon:] The guru within. Is this different...?
[26:06] [Prabhupada:] Who says that, to find guru within?
[26:10] [Sandy Nixon:] Um...
[26:16] [Jayatirtha:] Kirpal Singh, he said that.
[26:18] [Sandy Nixon:] Pardon me?
[26:19] [Jayatirtha:] Kirpal Singh, he's one person who says that.
[26:23] [Gurudasa:] Krishnamurti says that also.
[26:26] [Prabhupada:] So why does he come to teach? [laughter] This rascal, why does he come to teach? This is the answer.
[26:40] These things are spoken by rascals. He has come to teach, and he says, "Find out guru within."
[26:49] Then why you have come to teach? Because people are not intelligent, they cannot catch him.
[26:57] He talks all nonsense, and they hear, that's all.
[27:02] [Gurudasa:] He also has written a book about "No books are needed." [laughter]
[27:10] [Prabhupada:] So you can find out how rascal he is. Is it not? Do you admit or not? He writes book, and he says,
[27:19] "There is no need of books." He has come to teach, and he says, "There is no need of teacher.
[27:27] Teacher is within." Is he not a rascal?
[27:30] [Sandy Nixon:] Well, they say... Those people...
[27:31] [Prabhupada:] No, first of all you answer my question. If he says contradictory things, is he not a rascal?
[27:38] [Sandy Nixon:] Well, he's contradicting himself.
[27:40] [Prabhupada:] Therefore he is a rascal. He does not know how to defend him.
[27:49] [Sandy Nixon:] Can the Vedas be taken symbolically as well as literally?
[27:56] [Prabhupada:] As it is. We are presenting Bhagavad-gita as it is, not symbolically.
[28:05] [Sandy Nixon:] Are you attempting to revive... I feel like asking this question two different ways.
[28:14] First I'll ask it one way, which is, in a sense, incorrect. Maybe I'll just ask it this way
[28:18] and just get your answer. Are you attempting to revive in the West the awareness...
[28:24] Are you attempting to revive the ancient Indian caste system in the West? I am asking a question I know...
[28:34] [Prabhupada:] Where do you find we are reviving caste system? Where do you find? First of all let me know.
[28:42] Why you are asking this question? If you have seen that we are trying to introduce the Indian caste system,
[28:52] then you say. But if there is no such attempt, why you are asking this question?
[28:58] [Sandy Nixon:] Well, because a lot of people are interested, and...
[29:01] [Prabhupada:] No, no, lot of people, you are also one of those people. So where do you find that we are trying to
[29:10] introduce caste system? First of all find out where is the attempt. Then you ask question.
[29:20] Otherwise it is irrelevant question.
[29:23] [Sandy Nixon:] The Gita talks about a caste system. The Gita mentions the caste system.
[29:29] [Prabhupada:] Gita, what mentions, do you know?
[29:32] [Sandy Nixon:] The four castes and an untouchable caste.
[29:36] [Prabhupada:] What is that? On the basis of what?
[29:39] [Sandy Nixon:] I can't locate it directly. But the Brahma..
[29:47] [Prabhupada:] Brahmananda. Who has said that this is caste system? This is not caste system.
[30:00] Catur-varnyam maya srstam guna-karma-vibhagasaḥ [Bg. 4.13]. According to quality and according to work,
[30:11] there are four divisions of men. Just like you can understand there are engineers and there
[30:25] are medical practitioners. So do you take them as caste: "Oh, he is engineer caste. He is medical caste"?
[30:37] Do you say like that?
[30:40] [Sandy Nixon:] I don't want to say what I feel, because I'm recording you. [laughs]
[30:42] [Prabhupada:] I'm asking you. I'm asking you...
[30:46] [Sandy Nixon:] Well, I think there's always been castes. It's just that we don't recognize the fact that they're there.
[30:51] [Prabhupada:] No, "recognize" means if a man is qualified medical man, we accept him as medical man.
[30:59] And if a man is qualified engineer, we accept him as engineer.
[31:05] Similarly, Bhagavad-gita suggests-not suggest; it is there-there are four classes of men:
[31:14] the most intelligent class of men, the administrator class of men, the productive class of men
[31:22] and ordinary worker. That is already there. Bhagavad-gita says how they should be classified,
[31:32] that "He belongs to this class, he belongs to that class." That is described in the Bhagavad-gita,
[31:40] not that by birth, hereditarily, one becomes a caste. You don't try to misunderstand.
[31:51] The classification is already there: one class of men, very intelligent. Is he not there in the human society?
[32:04] Do you think all men are equally intelligent? Do you think? There must be one class
[32:12] very highly intelligent class. So what are the symptoms of the intelligent class? That is described
[32:22] in the Bhagavad-gita. The first-class intelligent man is he who can control his mind, who can control
[32:32] his senses, who is very truthful, very clean, very simple, very tolerant, very advanced in knowledge, practical
[32:44] application of knowledge in life and staunch faith in God. This is first-class man. So it is not within India;
[33:00] wherever you find all these qualities, he is first-class man. So we are trying to introduce that,
[33:10] that without first-class man, the society is useless.
[33:17] So there are first-class men. You train up. [break]
[33:24] [Sandy Nixon:] How do you feel about women's lib?
[33:29] [Jayatirtha:] She wants to know about the women's liberation. What is our feeling about women's liberation.
[33:34] [Prabhupada:] That I don't want to discuss because... [laughs] [laughter] They... As you have asked,
[33:43] I may explain, that how foolish women are being cheated by the intelligent man. You see?
[33:59] [Woman devotee:] Srila Prabhupada is liberating everybody who chants Hare Krsna.
[34:05] [Prabhupada:] They have given. In your country, they have given you liberty. Liberty means equal rights, is it not?
[34:16] Man and woman have got equal rights.
[34:19] [Sandy Nixon:] They're trying. They're trying in this country.
[34:22] [Prabhupada:] All right, trying. But you women, you cannot see that this so-called equal right means cheating the woman.
[34:38] Now I say it more clearly, that a woman and man meets. Now they become lover. Then they have sex,
[34:51] and the woman becomes pregnant, and the man goes away. The simple woman, she has to take charge of
[35:04] the child and beg from government alms, "Please give me money." This is your independence.
[35:14] Do you admit this is independence, that the man makes the woman pregnant and he goes away
[35:22] without any responsibility, and the woman cannot give up the child, she maintains, begging from the
[35:33] government, or she tries to kill the child?
[35:37] Do you think it is very good independence? What is your answer?
[35:46] [Anne Jackson, Philadelphia Enquirer reporter:] To... Whether or not it is good to kill a child? Is that the question?
[35:48] [Prabhupada:] Yes, they are killing now, abortion.
[35:51] [Ravindra-svarūpa:] Do you think this is good? He wants to know that kind of independence.
[35:57] [Anne Jackson:] For the child?
[35:58] [Ravindra-svarūpa:] For the woman.
[35:59] [Prabhupada:] For the woman.
[36:00] [Ravindra-svarūpa:] This is liberation. She has an affair with a man, she gets pregnant. The man leaves.
[36:05] Then she has to beg alms from the government to support the child...
[36:09] [Prabhupada:] Or kill.
[36:10] [Ravindra-svarūpa:] Or to kill the child. So is that good or bad?
[36:12] [Anne Jackson:] Well, she has made the choice to have...
[36:16] [Prabhupada:] That means, that is 34 ounce. You have made your choice to kill your own child. Is that very good choice?
[36:29] [Sandy Nixon:] It's the worst crime you could commit.
[36:35] [Jayatirtha:] Her brain is getting larger. [laughter]
[36:41] [Prabhupada:] Do you think it is very good business?
[36:46] [Anne Jackson:] I think this is a very complicated question.
[36:50] [Prabhupada:] Therefore I say they are cheating you in the name of independence. That you do not understand.
[36:58] Therefore 34 ounce. They are cheating you, and you are thinking you are independent.
[37:10] [Sandy Nixon:] They forget the responsibility that comes with freedom.
[37:13] [Prabhupada:] Yes, they do not take the responsibility. They go away. They enjoy and go away.
[37:18] And the woman has to take the responsibility, either kill the child or maintain, begging.
[37:25] Do you think begging is very good? In India, although they are poverty-stricken, still, they do not remain independent.
[37:40] They remain under the husband, and the husband takes all responsibility.
[37:47] So she has neither to kill the child nor go to beg for maintaining the child. So which is independence?
[37:54] To remain under husband is independence or to become free to be enjoyed by everyone?
[38:03] [Sandy Nixon:] That's not where freedom is anyway.
[38:09] [Prabhupada:] So there is no freedom; still, they think that they have freedom. That means under some plea,
[38:18] the men are cheating the women, that's all. So in the name of independence,
[38:26] they have agreed to be cheated by another class. This is the situation.
[38:40] [Sandy Nixon:] In spite of that, can a woman know Krsna as...
[38:44] [Prabhupada:] We have no such distinction.
[38:45] [Sandy Nixon:] No distinction...
[38:46] [Prabhupada:] We give Krsna consciousness both to the woman and man equally. We do not make any such distinction.
[38:54] But to protect them from this exploitation by man, we teach something, that "You do like this.
[39:03] You do like that. You be married. Be settled up. Don't wander independently." We teach them like that.
[39:15] But so far Krsna consciousness is concerned, we equally distribute. There is no such thing that
[39:23] "Oh, you are woman, less intelligent or more intelligent. Therefore you cannot come." We don't say that.
[39:31] We welcome women, men, poor, rich, everyone, because in that platform equality.
[39:45] Vidya-vinaya-sampanne brahmane gavi hastini,
[39:53] We do not refuse anyone. That is equality.
[40:03] [Sandy Nixon:] How do you deal with negativity? In the outside world do... The devotees encounter negativity
[40:14] every day, people that are not interested. How..., not just in the outside world, but how
[40:19] does one deal with that within? How does one relieve oneself of that negativism?
[40:26] [Prabhupada:] Negativity means... Just like we say, "No illicit sex." We say, teach our students, "No illicit sex."
[40:39] Do you think it is negative? [aside:] What does she mean by...?
[40:46] [Jayatirtha:] The situation is that other people think that it's negative, and therefore they feel negatively
[40:52] towards us. So how should we react to that?
[40:55] [Sandy Nixon:] How do you..., how do you deal with it within yourself?
[41:00] [Ravindra-svarūpa:] What do you mean by negativity within yourself?
[41:04] [Sandy Nixon:] No, no, not just criticism, but if you get a lot of people that are working against you all the time...
[41:13] Here you're surrounded by people that are positive and that are reinforcing.
[41:19] But when you get yourself in the outside world in a position where there are people that are
[41:23] draining you and taking your energy, how do you replenish that energy? How do you...
[41:31] [Ravindra-svarūpa:] How do we stay fixed when there are so many people against us?
[41:38] [Prabhupada:] So nobody is against you? Do you think nobody is against you? I am asking you.
[41:46] [Sandy Nixon:] Do I think nobody is against me? Oh, sure, there's people for me, against me, that don't care about me.
[41:52] [Prabhupada:] So there are against and for. Why do you bother about the against? As there are some people against us,
[42:01] there are many people for us. So that is the position in every field of activity.
[42:08] So if somebody is against us, why should we bother about it? Let us go on with our policy of work.
[42:17] [Sandy Nixon:] For instance, if the day goes by and the devotee meets only with people that are against him, he makes
[42:24] bad contacts, and he feels drained, how does he replenish...
[42:30] [Prabhupada:] Our devotee is not so fickle. They go to the person who is against us and induces him to purchase
[42:42] a book. We are selling books daily, a huge amount.
[42:54] So there is no question of against us. Anyone who is even against us, he is persuaded to purchase one book.
[43:05] So how he is against us? He is purchasing our book. [aside:] What is the daily amount of sales, our books?
[43:17] [Jayatirtha:] We sell about twenty-five thousand books and magazines a day.
[43:20] [Prabhupada:] What is the price?
[43:23] [Jayatirtha:] The collection would probably be around thirty-five to forty thousand dollars a day.
[43:31] [Prabhupada:] We are collecting forty thousand dollars a day by selling books. How I can say they are against us?
[43:42] [Sandy Nixon:] You're very positive. I like that.
[43:50] [Prabhupada:] Where is the any other institution who can sell forty thousand dollars a day?
[43:59] So how do you say that they are against us?
[44:04] [Sandy Nixon:] My last question. Could you tell me about the Hare Krsna mantra, because it's so important
[44:12] to Krsna consciousness. And I'd like to have in your words...
[44:14] [Prabhupada:] It is very simple. Hare means "O the energy of Lord," and Krsna means "O Lord." "Both of You kindly
[44:25] engage me in Your service." That's all. "Both of You, Krsna and His energy..."
[44:37] Just like here we have got conception of male and female, similarly, originally, God and His energy.
[44:49] God is male and energy female, prakrti and purusa. This idea of male and female, wherefrom it comes?
[45:02] God is manufacturing so many male and female. So the male and female idea, wherefrom it comes?
[45:14] It comes from God. He is the origin of everything. So the female, or prakrti, or energy of God,
[45:28] and God Himself... He is called Purusa. So we are appealing both God and His energy, combined together,
[45:38] engage us in Their service. This is Hare Krsna. "O Hare, O the energy of God; O Krsna,
[45:53] O Lord, both of You take care of me and engage me in Your service." That's all. This is meaning.
[46:08] [Sandy Nixon:] Okay. Thank you. [gives something to Prabhupada?] And I lost some on the way, I guess. When I moved into the house, there were these...,
[46:19] just came out of the earth, and it was so beautiful to see them.
[46:23] [Prabhupada:] So your questions also is answered?
[46:28] [Anne Jackson:] May I ask you a few questions? Could you please tell me a little bit about your life and
[46:40] how you knew that you were the spiritual master for the Krsna consciousness movement?
[46:48] [Prabhupada:] My life is simple. I was householder. I have still my wife, my children, my grandsons. So my Guru Maharaja
[47:01] ordered me that "Go and preach this cult in the Western countries." So I left everything on the order of
[47:11] my Guru Maharaja, and I am trying to execute the order. That's all.
[47:20] [Anne Jackson:] And is this picture here the man...?
[47:22] [Prabhupada:] Yes, he is my Guru Maharaja.
[47:25] [Anne Jackson:] And he is no longer living.
[47:28] [Prabhupada:] No.
[47:29] [Anne Jackson:] He spoke to you spiritually?
[47:31] [Prabhupada:] So this is my [indistinct]. That's all.
[47:38] [Anne Jackson:] At what point was it that he told you to do this? It was very late in your life that you...?
[47:46] [Prabhupada:] Yes. When I was twenty-five years old I met him first. On the first meeting he ordered me to this.
[47:59] So at that time I was married man. I had two children. So I thought, "I shall do it later on." But I was trying
[48:17] to get out of family life. It took some time. But I was trying my best to carry out his order.
[48:30] In 1944 I started magazine, Back to Godhead, when I was grhastha. Then I started writing books in
[48:43] 1958 or '59. In this way, in 1955 [1965] I came to your country.
[49:01] [Anne Jackson:] You have said that you are very small, and that you are not God, and yet it appears to me as an outsider
[49:11] that the devotees treat you as if you were God.
[49:15] [Prabhupada:] Yes, that is devotee's duty. Just like a government officer. Personally he is not very important,
[49:29] but so long he executes government order, he should be respected as government. That is the way.
[49:43] Even a ordinary policeman comes, you have to respect him because he is government man.
[49:52] But that does not mean he is government. He is respected. Saksad-dharitvena samasta-sastrair
[50:02] uktas tatha bhavyata eva sadbhiḥ. If that man thinks that "I have become government.
[50:09] People are respecting me," then he is foolish. So... But it is the etiquette.
[50:18] If the government man comes, you should respect him as government.
[50:29] [Anne Jackson:] Along the same idea, I wonder also about the many beautiful material things that the devotees
[50:38] bring to you, and, for instance, when you left the airport, you left in a beautiful, big, fancy car,
[50:46] and I wonder about this because...
[50:49] [Prabhupada:] That is teaching them how to respect. If you respect government man as government, then you must treat him like that.
[51:02] [Anne Jackson:] But...
[51:03] [Prabhupada:] If you respect spiritual master as God, then you must offer him the facilities of God.
[51:11] Otherwise, how you treat him as God? Simply in mind? In action also.
[51:20] [Anne Jackson:] I'm sorry. What was the last you said?
[51:22] [Prabhupada:] If the spiritual master is treated as God, so he must show, practically show, that he is treating as God.
[51:34] So God travels by golden car. If the spiritual master is offered an ordinary motorcar, so still
[51:42] it is not sufficient, because he has to be treated like God. What is this motorcar for God? [laughter]
[51:57] They are still deficient. If God comes to your home, will you bring Him in ordinary motorcar,
[52:10] or you would arrange for a golden car, if you treat Him as God? So your point is that they offer me
[52:22] nice motorcar, but I say that is not sufficient. That is still lacking to treat him as God. Be practical.
[52:43] [Anne Jackson:] Yesterday I met a devotee from New York who said that there were many people present at the festival
[52:51] from other planets and that you could see them. Is that true?
[52:56] [Prabhupada:] Yes, yes. Everyone can see. If you have eyes, you can see also. But if you have no eyes, therefore
[53:04] you are envious because they have offered a nice motorcar. So you have to make your eyes to see.
[53:16] A blind man cannot see. The eyes are to be treated how to see.
[53:26] [Anne Jackson:] Is this true also with your other senses?
[53:29] [Prabhupada:] Every senses. If you want to see something, you must be trained up how to see. Like scientist
[53:37] is seeing something through the microscope, and you want to see with naked eyes. How it is possible to see?
[53:50] You must adopt the process to see. Then you can see everything.
[54:02] [Anne Jackson:] I have just one more question, and that is also from an outsider's point of view.
[54:09] It appears to me that one of the most difficult aspects of Krsna consciousness for someone to accept
[54:17] who's been brought up outside of that point of view is the Deities and the idea that They represent Krsna.
[54:29] Could you talk a little bit about that?
[54:32] [Prabhupada:] Yes. At the present moment, because you are not trained up to see Krsna, so Krsna kindly appears
[54:46] before you as you can see. You can see wood, stone. You cannot see what is spirit. Even you don't see yourself.
[55:01] You are thinking, "I am this body." But you are spirit soul. You are seeing your father and mother daily,
[55:15] and... [break]
[55:19] He is everything. He is spirit and matter, everything. But you cannot see Him as spiritual identity.
[55:28] Therefore He has appeared in material form so that you can see.
[55:34] He is God, but you cannot see Him in His original, spiritual form at the present moment.
[55:44] Therefore, out of His unbounded mercy, He has appeared before you just like made of
[55:52] wood and stone so that you can see.
[56:01] [Anne Jackson:] Thank you very much.
[56:07] [Prabhupada:] So you are coming daily in our meeting?
[56:13] [Sandy Nixon:] Not daily, but I'll come.
[56:15] [Prabhupada:] That's nice. This gentleman...?
[56:26] [Devotee:] This is my father.
[56:27] [Father:] Your Grace...
[56:28] [Prabhupada:] Oh. Thank you very much. [chuckles]
[56:30] [Devotee:] And my mother.
[56:31] [Mother:] Hare Krsna.
[56:32] [Prabhupada:] Oh. So you are all fortunate. You have got such a nice son.
[56:36] [Father:] Thank you.
[56:39] [Prabhupada:] Yes. And he is giving you the best service by becoming Krsna conscious. Don't think that he is
[56:49] out of home, he is lost. No. He is giving you the best service.
[56:58] [Father:] Well, we're very pleased with him, and we always have been. We thank you for helping him find happiness.
[57:05] It's something which he was able to find through your order. [indistinct]
[57:11] [Prabhupada:] They are very good boys.
[57:12] [Father:] What's amazing to me is where you get the strength to keep the pace that you have.
[57:16] Can you tell me how you do that? [laughter] I am some years your junior, and I have a difficult pace keeping up.
[57:27] [Prabhupada:] The process is genuine, the process which I recommend and they follow. Then it is sure.
[57:40] [Devotee:] [explaining to parents] Yes. He's saying that our lifestyle will enable you to have that strength also, by worshiping God.
[57:50] [Prabhupada:] Just like the physician. He gives you medicine, and he give you the process, the dose, how to
[57:58] take the medicine, how to take diet. If the patient follow, then he is cured.
[58:41] That is the opportunity, human life. This process of God realization can be accepted by human being.
[58:56] It doesn't matter where he is born, either in India or outside India, it doesn't matter.
[59:03] Any human being can take it up. That is the difference between the animal life and human life.
[59:15] The animal, the dog, he knows how to bark only, that's all. He cannot be taught about this process.
[59:26] But a human being can be. He has got that intelligence, every human being.
[59:33] So in this human form of life, if we do not take this process, how to become Krsna conscious,
[59:40] then we will remain dogs. Because we are losing the opportunity.
[59:54] [Father:] What is it that Krsna consciousness has that offers people so much more than other religions do?
[60:00] [Prabhupada:] This is religion. I have already explained that religion means to become lover of God. That is religion.
[60:13] When there is no love of God, that is not religion. Religion means-I have already explained-
[60:23] to know God and to love Him. So if you do not know what is God, where is the question of loving Him?
[60:34] So that is not religion. It is going on in the name of religion. But religion means to know God and to love Him.
[60:50] Dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam [SB 6.3.19]. [aside:] Can you find out this verse? Give him. You don't find?
[61:55] [Nitai:] Yes, 3.19.
[61:58] [Prabhupada:] Third Chapter, nineteenth verse.
[62:10] [Nitai:] Dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam na vai vidur rsayo napi devaḥ,
[62:31] [Prabhupada:] Dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam: "The principles of religion is given by God."
[62:41] Just like the law. Law means the process of activities which is given by the government.
[62:53] You cannot make law at home. Is it clear?
[63:00] [Father:] No, I'm having a language problem, I'm afraid.
[63:04] [Jayatirtha:] [explaining] He says that law means that which is given by the government. You can't make your own law at home.
[63:10] So similarly, religion means that which is enunciated by the Lord. You can't make up your own process.
[63:18] [Father:] Well, I guess I'm missing the point. My question was what does the Hare Krsna consciousness
[63:24] have to offer that other religions don't have to offer as far as...
[63:28] [Prabhupada:] This is offering, that you want to be religious, so you try to understand religious principles from God.
[63:42] Because if one is lawyer, if one wants to become a lawyer, he must learn laws which is given
[63:53] by the government. He cannot become a lawyer at home. Similarly, if you want to become religious,
[64:03] you must learn what is religion from God. You don't manufacture your own religion. That is not religion.
[64:13] This is the first principle. But if I do not know what is God, what is the order given by God,
[64:27] then what is religion? That is going on. Everyone is manufacturing his own religion. This is the modern method,
[64:39] that religion is private. Anyone can accept any type of religion. That is liberalism, is it not?
[64:49] [Jayatirtha:] Yes.
[64:52] [Prabhupada:] Just convince him.
[64:54] [Jayatirtha:] So do you understand? The idea is that this Hare Krsna movement is based on authority of the Vedas.
[65:04] And the Vedic literatures are coming directly from Krsna. So we only accept it as truth what
[65:12] Krsna says, and we don't accept anybody's mental concoctions or speculations as being truth.
[65:19] And this is the problem with so many other religious movements today, that they depend on the interpretation or the...
[65:28] [Prabhupada:] Concoction.
[65:29] [Jayatirtha:] ...philosophy of some ordinary man. So this is the primary differential.
[65:38] [Prabhupada:] We don't say anything which is not spoken by God in the Bhagavad-gita. Therefore it is appealing everywhere.
[65:51] Although it is in Sanskrit language, still, it is appealing. Just like if you go on the street and the signboard is
[66:19] "Keep to the..."
[66:21] [Jayatirtha:] "Keep to the right."
[66:22] [Prabhupada:] "Keep to the right..."
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