# June 13 ## Spoken on June 13 *Lectures from this day: 11 recordings* --- **[1968: Bhagavad-gītā 4.7](spoken/1968/680613bg.mon)** > Now you can select your own religion. Either you be a Hindu or Muslim or Muhammadan or Buddhist—whatever you like—*Śrīmad-Bhāgavata* does not stop you, but it gives you hint what is the purpose of religion. The purpose of religion is to develop your love of Godhead. That is real religion. So here Kṛṣṇa says that *yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati*. As soon as there is decadence of people's love of Godhead... That means when people become forgetful, almost forgetful. Because at least some people remember that there is God. But generally, in this age, they are forgetful. That is *dharmasya glāniḥ.* > That means that surrendering unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the real religion of the living entity. Not that I like a particular type of faith, that is my religion. Religion means when one is trained how to surrender unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is called religion. And the *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* also gives enunciation of the word *dharma,* that *sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmaḥ.* "That is the best system of religion," *sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmaḥ, yato bhaktir adhokṣaje*, "by which one is trained to surrender unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead." That is best religion. --- **[1972: Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 2.3.18–19](spoken/1972/720613sb.la)** > So we cannot cheat God or His law. That is not possible. We may be very intelligent to cheat here the police or the government or the laws, but it is not possible to cheat the supreme laws. That is not possible. Therefore, in order to avoid the superintendence of the Supreme Lord... Because there is superintendence; as it is stated in the *Bhagavad-gītā,* you have read, *mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram* : "Under My superintendence the law of nature is working." > What is the profession of *śūdra*? *Śūdra* means *paricaryātmakaṁ kāryaṁ śūdra-karma śvabhāva-jam*. One who is hankering after service, he is *śūdra.* He has no capacity to live independently. The *brāhmaṇa,* real *brāhmaṇa,* he will starve; he will die out of starvation, he will never accept anyone's service. That is *brāhmaṇa. Uñcha-vṛtti.* If he has no income, he will go on the field, and when the grains are taken away, some grains fall down. They will pick up all those grains and live on that. Still, they will not go to anyone that "I am hungry. Give me something." No. *Uñcha-vṛtti.* --- **[1974: Bhagavad-gītā 7.1–3](spoken/1974/740613bg.par)** > This perfection of *yoga* can be achieved by practicing *bhakti-yoga* as it is recommended here, *mayy āsakta-manāḥ pārtha yogaṁ yuñjan mad-āśrayaḥ:* under the guidance of the Supreme Personality of Godhead or His representative, bona fide. If you practice this *yoga,* then you can understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead in complete, without any doubt. And if you practice this *yoga* in this life, and try to understand Kṛṣṇa, what He is, then, after giving up this body—you have to give up this body, today or tomorrow—then you go directly to Kṛṣṇa. It is therefore explained in the Fourth Chapter, *janma karma me divyaṁ yo jānāti tattvataḥ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya* : "My dear Arjuna, anyone, if he simply tries to understand why I come in this material world, what is My mission, what do I do, if he simply one understands, then he immediately becomes fit for being transferred to the spiritual world." So our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is to educate people how to understand Kṛṣṇa, and then make his life perfect. > So our knowledge is very, very limited. Besides that, we have got four deficiencies. The one deficiency is that we commit mistake. Anyone, any big man of this material world, he commits mistake. Besides that, he is illusioned. Illusioned means to accept something what is not fact. Just like... [coughs] [aside:] Water. We accept this body as self. This is called illusion. According to Vedic understanding, anyone who thinks of this body as the self, he's animal. Just like a dog, he thinks that he is the body, similarly, if a man thinks that he is this body—he is American or Indian or Frenchman or German or Hindu or Muslim, with this bodily concept of life—so, according to Vedic understanding, this conception is animal conception. So this is called illusion. --- **[1974: Room Conversation with Mr. Deshimaru](spoken/1974/740613r1.par)** > These people, they do not know that what is the aim of life. The aim is Viṣṇu. *Durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ.* They are implicated with the external energy, therefore very much anxious to mitigate this suffering, mitigate that suffering, mitigate that suffering, that suffering, that suf... The suffering will never end. Simply they will be bewildered, one after another, one after another, sometimes man's life, sometimes a dog's life, sometimes cat's life, that's life. So this kind of philosophy is propounded by blind men. *Andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānāḥ.* One blind man is guiding another blind man without knowing the strict, stringent laws of nature. [aside:] There is one bead lying for three hundred years there. Whose? He has taken initiation; he does not know where is the bead? On the... There is a bead. Just see. --- **[1974: Room Conversation with Russian Orthodox Church Representative](spoken/1974/740613r2.par)** > "O Pārtha, how can a person who knows that the soul is indestructible, unborn, eternal and immutable kill anyone or cause anyone to kill?" [*translates*] --- **[1974: Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 2.1.5](spoken/1974/740613sb.par)** > So that is a different article from this matter. Otherwise, why a woman does not become pregnant automatically? Why? Can anyone answer? Why the seed-giving father is necessary? Let women produce children automatically. No, that is not possible. Therefore, for producing all these living entities in different forms of life, the seed-giving father is required, and that is God, Kṛṣṇa. Is there any bad logic? There is confirmation in the *śāstra.* Kṛṣṇa says, *ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā* : "I am the seed-giving father." And is it possible to produce life without the father? Is it possible? Then why these rascal scientists say that "Now we shall produce life"? How you can do it? It is not possible. This is rascaldom. Because we are living entities, therefore even in the Christian world the Supreme Lord God is accepted as the supreme father: "O Father, give us our daily bread." It is very good, accepting the Supreme Lord, the supreme father. Everyone must accept. That is human life. That is human knowledge. That is common sense knowledge, that "If I am produced by my father, so, so many living entities, wherefrom they have come? They have come from the supreme father." *Sarvātmā.* He is called *sarvātmā. Śrotavyaḥ kīrtitavyaś ca.* > Aham,* Kṛṣṇa says, that "I am the seed-giving father of all living entities." "Of all" means *sarva-yoniṣu,* in different forms, in different species of life. This outward dress is different. Somebody has become ant and somebody has become elephant, or bigger than that, whale fish. Another fish there is *timiṅgala.* That perhaps we have not seen. Whale fish, some of them have seen. It is just like as big as a big house. And still there are fishes which is called *timiṅgala. Timiṅgala* means they swallow up these whale fish, just like you swallow up some small nut. They are called *timiṅgala.* So there are so many varieties of life. We do not know. But we know from the *śāstra.* In the *śāstra* we can know. Therefore we should consult Vedic literature to have full knowledge. *Jalajā nava-lakṣāṇi* [*Padma Purāṇa*]: "In the water there are 900,000 species of life." Now, who can deny that? If you deny, then I shall tell you that "Go and count." [laughs] But we can get the full knowledge from the *śāstra.* This is called Vedic knowledge. Everything is complete. --- **[1976: Morning Walk](spoken/1976/760613mw.det)** > Mākhanlāl*:*...devotional service is transcendental to the modes of material nature? That's from the very moment that one first begins to render devotional service? Or gradually? From the first very moment? > Mākhanlāl*:* So where that is described in the Third Canto, Part Four, *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam,* where it is described about devotional service in ignorance, passion and goodness and so forth, that has nothing to do with your disciples then? --- **[1976: Room Conversation with Mother and Son](spoken/1976/760613r1.det)** > So advanced Westerners, they are now educated in science philosophy; they are not attracted with these dogmatic views. So to remain in ignorance is animal life. To be enlightened is human life. And the topmost enlightenment is to understand God and to love Him. That is topmost enlightenment. Unfortunately, there is no education to know what is God, and what to speak of loving Him. This is modern civilization—ignorance. A civilization of ignorance. They do not know what is what. Simply speculating, wasting time, talking all nonsense. This is going on in the name of education. But actually they are in ignorance. They do not know what is what. They are reading so many philosophical speculation, horrible condition of the so-called philosopher, scientist. Simply "I believe," "In this believe, that believe." You believe..., believe something. That is your upstart. But your belief is not final. That is creating chaotic condition. You believe some way, I believe something, he believes something. What is the profit? Chaos. > So all these philosophers, scientists, they believe, "I believe," as if his belief will be a doctrine. Why he believes like that? People also accept like that. Nobody questions that a person says "I believe," that means he is not in perfect knowledge. But in Vedic *śāstra,* there is no question of belief. This is the fact. *Jalajā nava-lakṣāṇi* [*Padma Purāṇa*]. It never says that "I believe there are so many aquatics." No. Clear declaration, *jalajā nava-lakṣāṇi:* there are nine hundred thousand different forms of life in the water. *Bās.* This is Vedic knowledge. It never says "I believe." What is the meaning of belief? You must know definitely and declare it. That is Vedic knowledge. Speculation is not allowed. Truth must be declared as it is. [aside:] That Bengali woman wanted to see me? Mrs. Dasgupta. --- **[1976: Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 6.1.47](spoken/1976/760613sb.det)** > Nirmatsara.* This movement, there is no distinction. No *matsaratā. Matsaratā* means to be intolerant for other's advancement. Nobody's... This is material nature. Nobody wants that his friend or his son even, or... Of course, the father likes the son is increasing in opulence. He likes. But sometimes he does not like. So this world is full of envy. But Caitanya Mahāprabhu's movement is for the *paramahaṁsa,* who is not envious. *Paramo nirmatsarāṇāṁ satāṁ vāstavaṁ vastu vedyam atra. Nirmatsara*, when one is not envious of others. That is called *nirma...* Because in the material world, everyone is envious of another person. That is the nature. Therefore there is so much fight. Everyone is envious. Nation is another nation's against, envious, even person to person, brother to brother, family to family, community to community. Everywhere, *matsaratā. Para-utkarṣam asahanam. Matsaratā* means one cannot tolerate others' flourishing condition. Immediately envious. > Bhagavad-bhajanonmukhasya.* How to go back to home, back to Godhead to serve Kṛṣṇa—this is one side. And one side, nil—we don't want any more anything. *Niṣkiñcana.* For such a person, *viṣayiṇāṁ sandarśanam atha yoṣitāṁ ca*. For such a person, if he has become captivated by the material attraction, means money and material comforts..., woman and material comforts. This is material civilization. Everyone is after woman. Woman or men, the... It is not that woman means the form of woman and man is the form of man. Woman means enjoyable and man means enjoyer. So here in this material world everyone is enjoyer. Everyone is enjoyer. Not only the man thinks "I shall enjoy the woman," the woman thinks, "I shall enjoy the man." The spirit is how to become enjoyer. Therefore sometimes the living entity is described as *puruṣa.* Actually, every living entity is *prakṛti. Prakṛti* means "enjoyable." So everyone is to be enjoyable by Kṛṣṇa. But thinking "I am enjoyer," that is *māyā.* So anyone is thinking of enjoying this material world, *viṣayiṇāṁ atha yoṣitāṁ ca... Viṣayiṇāṁ sandarśanam atha yoṣitām.* So for any person who is serious about going back to home, back to..., for them these things are abominable, more than drinking poison. This is the verdict of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. --- ## Letters on June 13 *Letters from this day: 15* --- **[1968: Letter to Krsna Devi Dinesh](letters/1968/680613_krsna_devi_dinesh)** > I had not heard anything from you in long time, so I was very glad to hear that you are doing well. --- **[1968: Letter to Satsvarupa](letters/1968/680613_satsvarupa)** > Your endeavor to utilize energy 24 hours for Krishna Consciousness is a great qualification. --- **[1969: Letter to Dinesh](letters/1969/690613_dinesh)** > Most probably I shall be going to London by the end of July, and from different sources I can understand that the Beatles are becoming interested in the Sankirtana Movement. --- **[1969: Letter to Krsna Dasa](letters/1969/690613_krsna_dasa)** > They are just appropriate for an advancing Vaisnava. Please keep yourself in this nice attitude and Krishna will bless you. --- **[1969: Letter to Mukunda](letters/1969/690613_mukunda)** > It is very gratifying that at last you have got a five-story building, and in the meantime negotiations are continuing for a church. It is very good news and I thank you for your joint invitation. --- **[1970: Letter to Govinda](letters/1970/700613_govinda)** > I have received the Tulasi seeds and the instructions. Immediately I have handed it over to Karandhara, and he is taking care of it nicely, but the seeds are not yet sprouted—today is the sixth day. So the factual result will be informed to you in due course. --- **[1970: Letter to Himavati Hansadutta](letters/1970/700613_himavati_hansadutta)** > I have already inquired from Krsna das why I did not receive any letter from you. --- **[1970: Letter to Revatinandana](letters/1970/700613_revatinandana)** > Regarding your question whether you may go to Rathayatra festival, yes, you may go because in your present temple the Deities are not regularly installed. So you can close the temple for a few days keeping in front of the Deities some dried fruits and a tumbler of water. When the Deity is installed it is called niyama seva. --- **[1972: Letter to Bhargava](letters/1972/720613_bhargava)** > I am feeling the tendency more and more to retire behind the scenes for translating work, and I want to turn over the management of everything to the GBC and other senior leaders amongst my disciples, so if you have in future any more matters for discussing you may assist me in training these leaders and managers by placing your questions before them. I think Rupanuga will be able to answer all of your questions satisfactorily, so you can be confident that he is giving you all good advice. --- **[1972: Letter to Sankarsana](letters/1972/720613_sankarsana)** > So far your question about jealousy, spiritual jealousy means to think always that the service rendered by such and such devotee is so nice and pleasing to Krishna, so let me try harder to please Krishna than him and then Krishna will notice me also. --- **[1972: Letter to Sriman Joshi](letters/1972/720613_sriman_joshi)** > ACBS/sda n.b. by the next autumn I shall be in India (Sept 1972) at that time if you invite me in Punjab, I shall be glad to visit all places there. --- **[1972: Letter to Stokakrsna](letters/1972/720613_stokakrsna)** > Yes, the proof of your teaching method shall be seen in the spiritual improvement and fresh enthusiasm exhibited by the children. --- **[1973: Letter to Hariprasada Badruka](letters/1973/730613_hariprasada_badruka)** > My health is not yet recovered, but it is improving very slowly. So, I have been advised to stay here for at least four months, June, July, August and September. --- **[1974: Letter to Gargamuni](letters/1974/740613_gargamuni)** > I find in both these letters you have especially desired to call Tamala Krsna Goswami to act as GBC. But he left India particularly thinking himself not very fit for management. --- **[1975: Letter to Mr. Ogata](letters/1975/750613_mr._ogata)** > By experience, we gather that Japanese ladies and gentlemen are very much interested with our Krishna Consciousness movement, especially with our literature, and more specifically with Srimad-bhagavatam. ---