Perfect Answers — Perfect Questions, Perfect Answers

Subtitles

[00:00]: So sometimes I’m going to be asking you questions, and most of the time I might be able to answer them
[00:01]: myself, or it might be a question which I know the answer to, but I’m going to have to ask you it as if…
[00:10]: It might sound as if I’m stupid, but it’s what I’m going to do. The first question could be a very long…
[00:16]: I’ve got fifteen questions. If I could get them all answered, I’ll feel just great. The first one is very basic:
[00:23]: What is Krsna consciousness?
[00:24]: Krsna means God, and we are all connected with Krsna, God. God is the original father.
[00:41]: Therefore we have got intimate connection with Krsna. So we have forgotten it, what is Krsna,
[00:55]: what is my connection with Him, what is the aim of life. All these questions there are.
[01:08]: And when one becomes interested with such questions, he is called Krsna conscious.
[01:16] How did Krsna consciousness develop?
[01:23]: Krsna consciousness is already there in everyone’s core of heart, but due to one’s material conditional life,
[01:40]: he has forgotten it. So this process of chanting Hare Krsna maha-mantra means to revive that
[01:54]: consciousness. It is already there. Just like a few days ago these American, European boys and girls,
[02:05]: they did not know who is Krsna. But now you have seen yesterday how their whole,
[02:19]: that procession, throughout the whole procession, how they were chanting and dancing in ecstasy.
[02:27]: So do you think that is artificial? No. Artificially nobody can chant and dance for hours together.
[02:37]: That means the awakening of Krsna consciousness. It was there; by the bona fide process,
[02:48]: it is now awakened. That is explained,
[02:54]: nitya-siddha krsna-bhakti sadhya kabhu naya sravanadi-suddha-citte karaye udaya
[03:03]: The Krsna consciousness is dormant in everyone’s heart. So when he comes in contact with devotees,
[03:18]: that is awakened. Just like to be attracted by a young girl or young boy, it is there in the child.
[03:32]: That small child, it is there. And when he will be young, then it will be awakened. It is not that artificial
[03:44]: something. So in association it is awakened. The potency is there already, but in good association,
[04:01] by hearing about Krsna one is awakened to the status of Krsna consciousness.
[04:10] What is the difference between Krsna consciousness and Christ consciousness?
[04:18]: Christ consciousness is also Krsna consciousness, but people do not follow the rules and regulations
[04:30]: of Christianity. Therefore they are not awakened. The commandments of Christ, they do not follow.
[04:41]: Therefore they do not come to the standard of consciousness.
[04:46]: What is unique about Krsna consciousness that separates it from other religions? If it’s a religion.
[04:59]: Religion means primarily to know God and love Him. That is religion. And nobody knows God,
[05:12]: and what to speak of loving Him? Nobody is trained up how to know God and how to love Him.
[05:21]: They are satisfied by going to the church: “O God, give us our daily bread.” That also not everyone goes.
[05:36]: So the Communist says that “You don’t go to the church. Bread we shall supply.” So poor innocent persons,
[05:48]: they get bread elsewhere, so they do not go to church. But nobody is serious to understand what is God
[06:00]: and how to love Him. Nobody is serious. Therefore in Bhagavatam, it is said, it is cheating religion.
[06:15]: I profess some religion, but I do not know what is God and how to love Him. That’s all.
[06:23]: So that type of religion is cheating religion. Religion means to know God and love Him. But generally,
[06:34] a man does not know what is God and what to speak of loving Him?
[06:38]: So therefore that is cheating religion. That is not religion. But so far Christian religion is concerned,
[06:46]: there is ample chance of understanding God. But they do not care for it. Take for example, the commandment
[06:57]: is “Thou shall not kill.” But in the Christian world, best slaughterhouses are maintained.
[07:05]: So how they can become God conscious? They disobey the commandments, do not care for Lord Jesus
[07:22]: Christ’s order. So this is not only in Christian religion.
[07:27]: Every religion, it is going on. It is simply rubber stamp. “I am Hindu,” “I am Muslim,” “I am Christian.”
[07:33]: And none of them do know what is God and how to love Him.
[07:37]: How does one know a bona fide spiritual master, then, that can lead them?
[07:44]: Who teaches these things-how to know God and how to love Him-he is spiritual master.
[07:48]: Otherwise bogus, rascal bogus. Sometimes they mislead that “I am God.” Poor people, they do not know
[08:07]: what is God, and a rascal proposes, “I am God,” and they accept it. Just like in your country they elected
[08:20]: Nixon president and again drag him. That means they did not know who is really bona fide president,
[08:28]: elected somebody, and again they had to business of dragging out. Similarly, people are foolish.
[08:37]: Any rascal comes. He says, “I am God.” They accept. And again they accept another. This is going on.
[08:47]: So one must be serious student to understand what is God and how to love Him. That is religion.
[08:57]: Otherwise, it is simply waste of time. That we are teaching. That is the difference between others and our…
[09:11]: We are presenting Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the science, how to know Him.
[09:19]: The Bhagavad-gita is there, Bhagavata is there. Not bogus. Authorized. Therefore this is the only institution
[09:30]: which can teach how to know God and how to love Him. Two business. There is no third business.
[09:41]: It is not our business to ask God to give us our necessities. We know God gives necessities to everyone,
[09:54]: even one who has no religion. Just like cats and dogs. They have no religion. They do not know what
[10:04]: is religion. But still, the cats and dogs are supplied with necessities of life. So why we should bother Krsna,
[10:16]: asking Him, “Give us our daily bread”? He is supplying already. Our business is how to love Him.
[10:25]: That is religion. Dharmah projjhita-kaitavah atra paramo nirmatsaranam satam vastavam vastu vedyam atra.
[10:38]: Sa vai pumsam paro dharmah yato bhaktir adhoksaje: “That is first-class religion which teaches
[10:48]: how to love God.” And that love-not for any material motive: “God, You give me this. Then I will love.”
[11:02]: No. Ahaituki. Love means without any personal profit. If I love God for some profit that is business.
[11:17]: That is not love. Ahaituky apratihata. And such love of God cannot be checked by any material cause.
[11:32]: In any condition, one can learn how to love God. It is not conditional, that “I am poor man.
[11:41]: 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,
[11:51]: black or white, there is no impediment. If one wants to love God, he can love God.
[11:58] Are there different paths that one can learn to love God?
[12:04]: No. There is no different.
[12:06] I mean, are there other spiritual paths… Do all spiritual paths lead to the same end?
[12:11]: Spiritual paths are divided into four. Not spiritual. Real spiritual, mixed spiritual.
[12:22]: Just like this, “God, give us our daily bread.” It is mixed spiritual. One has approached God,
[12:34]: God is spiritual, but one is asking for material profit. So this is mixture, matter and spirit.
[12:46]: So there are four classes generally known as karmi, fruitive actors, they work for getting some material profit.
[13:02]: They are called karmi. Just like all men, you will see, they are working so hard day and night,
[13:10]: driving their cars, (makes noise of cars) this way and that way. The purpose is how to get some money.
[13:18]: This is called karmi. And then jñani. Jñani means he knows that “I am working so hard. Why?
[13:35]: The birds, beasts, the elephants, big, big…, eight million different types of…, they are not.
[13:45]: They have no business. They have no profession. How they are eating? So why unnecessarily I work so much?
[13:55]: Let me know what is the problem of life.” So they understand the problem of life is birth, death, old age
[14:04]: and disease. And they want to solve it, how to become immortal. So they have conclusion that
[14:19]: “If I merge into God’s existence, then I become immortal or immune from birth, death, old age and disease.”
[14:28]: This is called jñani. And some of them are yogis. They try to acquire some spiritual power to make a show
[14:47]: 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.
[15:04]: He will come out. If there is little space, he will come out. That is called anima. He can fly in the sky,
[15:14]: float in the sky. That is called laghima. In this way, if somebody can show this magic, then immediately
[15:24] he is accepted as very wonderful man. So yogis, they… The modern yogis, they simply show some gymnastic,
[15:33]: but they have no power. So I am not speaking of these third-class yogis. Real yogi means
[15:43]: he has got some power. That is material power. So yogis also want this power.
[15:54]: And jñanis also want salvation from the unnecessary working like ass, the karmi. And karmis want
[16:07]: material profit. So they want, everyone. But the bhaktas, devotees, they don’t want anything.
[16:17]: They want to serve God out of love. Just like a mother loves her child.
[16:23]: There is no question of profit. Out of affection, she loves. So when you come to that stage,
[16:32]: to love God, that is perfection. So these different processes, karmi, jñani, yogi and bhakta,
[16:45]: out of these four processes, if you want to know God, then you have to accept this bhakti.
[16:52]: That is stated in the Bhagavad-gita, bhaktya mam abhijanati [Bg. 18.55].
[16:58]: “Simply through the process of bhakti, one can understand Me, God.” He never says by other processes, no.
[17:08]: Only through bhakti. So if you are interested to know God and love Him, then you have to accept
[17:19]: this devotional process. No other process will help you.
[17:23] What are the methods used in attaining Krsna consciousness? How does one get to…
[17:34]: Yes, by Krsna consciousness you achieve the goal of life. In the present condition we are accepting one body,
[17:48]: and we are dying after a few days. Then accept another body. And that body is according to your activity.
[17:59]: There are 8,400,000 different types of body. You can get any one of them. You’ll have to accept one body.
[18:10]: That is called transmigration of the soul. So if one is under this consciousness that “I am eternal.
[18:24]: Why I am changing body? How to solve it?” that is intelligence. And not to work like cats and dogs and die,
[18:35]: that is not intelligence. One who makes solution of this problem, he is intelligent.
[18:43]: So therefore this Krsna consciousness movement is the ultimate solution of all problems of life.
[18:52]: What transformations does one undergo on the path of Krsna consciousness?
[19:05]: No transformation. The consciousness is there. It is now filled with all rubbish things.
[19:12]: You have to cleanse this, and then Krsna consciousness… Just like water.
[19:18]: Water is, by nature, clear, transparent. But when it is filled up with rubbish things, it is muddy.
[19:27]: You cannot see very clearly. But if you filter it, all muddy things, dirty things,
[19:35]: then again comes to the original position, clear, transparent water.
[19:41]: Does one function better in society as a result of affiliation with Krsna consciousness?
[19:53]: What is the meaning?
[20:03]: Is he a better citizen?
[20:06]: And also sociologically or cultu… Can he work better in the community?
[20:13]: That you can see practically. They are not drunkards, they are not meat-eaters.
[20:26]: From physiological point of view, they are very clean. They will never be attacked with so many diseases.
[20:39]: Then they do not eat meat, means that is the most sinful, to kill others for the satisfaction of the tongue.
[20:51]: God has given to the human society so many things to eat: nice fruits, nice flowers,
[21:02]: nice grains, first-class milk. And from milk, you can prepare hundreds of nutritious foods.
[21:12]: But they do not know the art. They are maintaining big, big slaughterhouse and eating meat. No discrimination.
[21:23]: That means they are not even civilized. When man is not civilized, he kills one animal and eats
[21:35]: because he does not know how to grow food. Just like we have got one farm land, in New Vrindaban.
[21:45]: So we are preparing so first-class preparation from milk, the neighbours they come, they are astonished
[21:54]: that from milk such nice preparation can be done, hundreds. So that means they are not even civilized,
[22:05]: how to prepare nutritious food from milk. Milk–accepting that cow flesh and blood is very nutritious,
[22:23]: that we also admit–but a civilized man utilizes the blood and meat in a different way.
[22:33]: The milk is nothing but blood. But it is transformed into milk. And again, from milk you make so many things.
[22:47]: You make yogurt, you make curd, you make ghee, so many things. And combination of these milk products
[22:58]: with grains, with fruits and vegetables, you make similar hundreds of preparation. So this is civilized life,
[23:07]: not that directly kill one animal and eat. That is uncivilized life. You take the–
[23:22]: accepting that cow’s flesh and blood is very nutritious–you take it in a civilized way.
[23:30]: Why you should kill? It is innocent animal. Is simply eating grass given by God and supplying milk.
[23:43]: And from milk you can live. And the gratefulness is that cut his throat? Is that civilization?
[23:56]: What do you say? Is that civilization?
[24:00]: No, I agree a hundred percent. I want you to say these things, though, instead of me.
[24:06]: I’m asking you questions so that hopefully that not by me describing anything…
[24:12]: So these things are uncivilized way of life, and what they will understand God? That is not possible.
[24:23]: I’m asking these questions for others, of course, a field(?) that is not understanding Krsna consciousness.
[24:30]: To understand God means one must be first-class civilized man. Just like university is meant for
[24:41]: first-class student, similarly, God consciousness means meant for the first-class human being.
[24:51]: O.K. This question’s a hard one for me to ask because it shows ignorance on my part.
[25:00]: But I’m not asking it in ignorance. I want your answer on tape, O.K.?
[25:07]: Does all desire ultimately have to go, including the desire to attain Krsna consciousness?
[25:16]: Without Krsna consciousness, you will have simply rubbish desires. And when you are Krsna
[25:26]: conscious, then you desire rightly.
[25:30]: The aim of many spiritual paths is to find the guru within.
[25:44]: Within?
[25:46]: The guru within. Is this different…?
[25:50]: Who says that, to find guru within?
[25:53]: Um…
[25:55]: Kirpal Singh, he’s one person who says that.
[26:02]: Krishnamurti says that also.
[26:09]: So why does he come to teach? (laughter) This rascal, why does he come to teach? This is the answer.
[26:22]: These things are spoken by rascals. He has come to teach, and he says, “Find out guru within.”
[26:32]: Then why you have come to teach? Because people are not intelligent, they cannot catch him.
[26:40]: He talks all nonsense, and they hear, that’s all.
[26:44]: He also has written a book about “No books are needed.” (laughter)
[26:53]: So you can find out how rascal he is. Is it not? Do you admit or not? He writes book, and he says,
[27:03]: “There is no need of books.” He has come to teach, and he says, “There is no need of teacher.
[27:10]: Teacher is within.” Is he not a rascal?
[27:12]: Well, they say… Those people…
[27:15]: No, first of all you answer my question. If he says contradictory things, is he not a rascal?
[27:21]: Well, he’s contradicting himself.
[27:24]: Therefore he is a rascal. He does not know how to defend him.
[27:28] Can the Vedas be taken symbolically as well as literally?
[27:37]: As it is. We are presenting Bhagavad-gita As It Is, not symbolically.
[27:46] Are you attempting to revive… I feel like asking this question two different ways.
[27:57]: First I’ll ask it one way which is, in a sense, incorrect. Maybe I’ll just ask it this way
[28:03]: and just get your answer. Are you attempting to revive in the West the awareness…
[28:07]: Are you attempting to revive the ancient Indian caste system in the West?
[28:15]: Where do you find we are reviving caste system? Where do you find? First of all let me know.
[28:23]: Why you are asking this question? If you have seen that we are trying to introduce the Indian caste system,
[28:34]: then you say. But if there is no such attempt, why you are asking this question?
[28:41]: Well, because a lot of people are interested, and…
[28:45]: No, no, lot of people, you are also one of them. So where do you find that we are trying to
[28:54]: introduce caste system? First of all find out where is the attempt. Then you ask question.
[29:02]: Otherwise it is irrelevant question.
[29:05]: The Gita mentions the caste system.
[29:11]: Gita, what mentions, do you know?
[29:16]: The four castes and an untouchable caste.
[29:19]: What is that? On the basis of what?
[29:22]: I can’t locate it directly. But the Brahma…
[29:29]: Brahmananda. Who has said that this is caste system? This is not caste system.
[29:44]: Catur-varnyam maya srstam guna-karma-vibhagasah [Bg. 4.13]. According to quality and according to work,
[29:57]: there are four divisions of men. Just like you can understand there are engineers and there
[30:09]: are medical practitioners. So do you take them as caste? “Oh, he is engineer caste. He is medical caste.”
[30:21]: Do you say like that?
[30:22]: I don’t want to say what I feel because I’m recording you. (laughs)
[30:28]: I’m asking you, I’m asking you…
[30:29]: Well, I think there’s always been castes. It’s just that we don’t recognize the fact that they’re there.
[30:36]: No, recognize means if a man is qualified medical man we accept him as medical man.
[30:42]: And if a man is qualified engineer, we accept him as engineer.
[30:47]: Similarly, Bhagavad-gita suggests-not suggest, it is there-there are four classes of men,
[30:57]: the most intelligent class of men, the administrator class of men, the productive class of men
[31:05]: and ordinary worker. That is already there. Bhagavad-gita says how they should be classified,
[31:15]: that “He belongs to this class, he belongs to that class.” That is described in the Bhagavad-gita,
[31:22]: not that by birth, hereditarily, one becomes a caste. You don’t try to misunderstand.
[31:33]: The classification is already there: one class of men, very intelligent. Is he not there in the human society?
[31:47]: Do you think all men are equally intelligent? Do you think? There must be one class,
[31:56]: very highly intelligent class. So what are the symptoms of the intelligent class? That is described
[32:05]: in the Bhagavad-gita. The first-class intelligent man is he who can control his mind, who can control
[32:16]: his senses, who is very truthful, very clean, very simple, very tolerant, very advanced in knowledge, practical
[32:28]: application of knowledge in life and staunch faith in God. This is first-class man. So it is not within India,
[32:43]: whereever you find all these qualities, he is first-class man. So we are trying to introduce that,
[32:52]: that without first-class man, the society is useless.
[32:59]: So there are first-class men. You train up. Just like a boy…
[33:17]: …How do you feel about women’s lib?
[33:21]: She wants to know about the women’s liberation. What is our feeling about women’s liberation.
[33:28]: That I don’t want to discuss because… (laughs) (laughter) They… As you have asked,
[33:39]: I may explain that how foolish women are being cheated by the intelligent man. You see.
[33:49]: Srila Prabhupada is liberating everybody who chants Hare Krsna.
[33:59]: They have given. In your country, they have given you liberty. Liberty means equal rights, is it not?
[34:09]: Man and woman has got equal rights.
[34:13]: They’re trying in this country.
[34:17]: All right, trying. But you women, you cannot see that this so-called equal right means cheating the woman.
[34:29]: Now I say more clearly that a woman and man meets. Now they become lover. Then they have sex,
[34:46]: and the woman becomes pregnant, and the man goes away. The simple woman, she has to take charge of
[34:59]: the child and beg from government alms, “Please give me money.” This is your independence.
[35:06]: Do you admit this is independence, that the man makes the woman pregnant and he goes away
[35:17]: without any responsibility, and the woman cannot give up the child, she maintains, begging from the
[35:27]: government or she tries to kill the child?
[35:31]: Do you think it is very good independence? What is your answer?
[35:38]: To… Whether or not it is good to kill a child? Is that the question?
[35:43]: Yes, they are killing now, abortion.
[35:47]: He wants to know that kind of independence.
[35:53]: For the child? For the woman. For the woman.
[35:53]: This is liberation. She has an affair with a man, and she gets pregnant. The man leaves.
[35:59]: Then she has to beg alms from the government to support the child…
[36:03]: Or kill.
[36:05]: Or she kills the child. So is that good or bad?
[36:07]: Well, she has made the choice to have…
[36:12]: That means, that is 34 ounce. You have made your choice to kill your own child. Is that very good choice?
[36:20]: It’s the worst crime you could commit.
[36:26]: Her brain is getting larger. (laughter)
[36:33]: Do you think it is very good business?
[36:38]: I think this is a very complicated question.
[36:44]: Therefore I say they are cheating you in the name of independence. That you do not understand.
[36:52]: Therefore 34 ounce. They are cheating you, and you are thinking you are independent.
[37:04]: They forget the responsibility that comes with freedom.
[37:08]: Yes, they do not take the responsibility. They go away. They enjoy and go away.
[37:12]: And the woman has to take the responsibility, either kill the child or maintainer, begging.
[37:18]: Do you think begging is very good? In India, although they are poverty-stricken, still, they do not remain independent.
[37:34]: They remain under the husband, and the husband takes all responsibility.
[37:40]: So she has neither to kill the child nor go to beg for maintaining the child. So which is independence?
[37:48]: To remain under husband is independence or to become free to be enjoyed by everyone?
[37:55]: That’s not where the freedom is anyway.
[38:00]: So there is no freedom; still, they think that they have freedom. That means under some plea,
[38:13]: the men are cheating the women, that’s all. So in the name of independence,
[38:20]: they have agreed to be cheated by another class. This is the situation.
[38:33]: In spite of that, can women know Krsna as…
[38:38]: We have no such distinction.
[38:40]: No distinction…
[38:41]: We give Krsna consciousness both to the woman and man equally. We do not make any such distinction.
[38:49]: But to protect them from this exploitation by man, we teach something, that “You do like this.
[38:57]: You do like that. You be married. Be settled up. Don’t wander independently.” We teach them like that.
[39:09]: But so far Krsna consciousness is concerned, we equally distribute. There is no such thing that
[39:13]: “Oh, you are woman, less intelligent or more intelligent. Therefore you cannot come.” We don’t say that.
[39:24]: We welcome women, men, poor, rich, everyone, because in that platform equality.
[39:38]: vidya-vinaya-sampanne brahmane gavi hastini
[39:43]: suni caiva svapake ca panditah sama-darsinah [Bg. 5.18]
[39:46]: We do not refuse anyone. That is equality.
[39:54]: How do you deal with negativity? In the outside world do… The devotees encounter negativity
[40:07]: every day, people that are not interested. How, not just on the outside world, but how
[40:14]: does one deal with that within, how does one relieve oneself of that negativism?
[40:19]: Negativity means… Just like we say, “No illicit sex.” We say, we teach our students, “No illicit sex.”
[40:31]: Do you think it is negative? What does she mean by…?
[40:40]: The situation is that other people think that it’s negative, and therefore they feel negatively
[40:47]: towards us. So how should we react to that?
[40:49]: Well, how to do, you deal with it within yourself?
[40:54]: What do you mean negativity within yourself?
[40:57]: No, no, not just criticism but if you get a lot of people that are working against you all the time…
[41:07]: Here you’re surrounded by people that are positive and that are reinforcing.
[41:13]: But when you get yourself in the outside world in a position where there are people that are
[41:18]: draining you and taking your energy, how do you replenish that energy?
[41:22]: How do we stay fixed when there are so many people against us?
[41:27]: So nobody is against you? Do you think nobody is against you? I am asking you.
[41:40]: Do I think nobody is against me? Oh, sure, there’s people for me, against me, that don’t care about me.
[41:47]: So there are against and for. Why do you bother about the against? As there are some people against us,
[41:56]: there are many people for us. So that is the position in every field of activity.
[42:01]: So if somebody is against us, why should we bother about it. Let us go on with our policy of work.
[42:09]: For instance if the day goes by and the devotee meets only with people who are against him, he makes
[42:20]: bad contacts and he feels drained, how does he replenish…
[42:24]: Our devotees are not so fickle. They go to the person who is against us and induces him to purchase
[42:37]: a book. We are selling books daily, a huge amount.
[42:47]: So there is no question of against us. Anyone who is even against us, he is persuaded to purchase one book.
[42:59]: So how he is against us? He is purchasing our book. What is the daily amount of sales, our books?
[43:12]: We sell about twenty-five thousand books and magazines a day.
[43:15]: What is the price? ; [43:21]; The collection would probably be around 35 to forty thousand dollars a day.
[43:26]: We are collecting forty thousand dollars a day by selling books. How I can say they are against us?
[43:34]: You’re very positive. I like that.
[43:44]: Where is the any other institution who can sell forty thousand dollars a day?
[43:50]: So how do you say that they are against us?
[43:56]: My last question. Could you tell me about the Hare Krsna mantra because it’s so important
[44:06]: to Krsna consciousness. And I’d like to have…
[44:08]: It is very simple. Hare means “O the energy of Lord,” and Krsna means “O Lord. Both of You kindly
[44:19]: engage me in Your service.” That’s all. “Both of You, Krsna and His energy…”
[44:31]: Just like here we have got conception of male and female, similarly, originally, God and His energy,
[44:43]: God is male and energy female, prakrti and purusa. This idea of male and female, wherefrom it comes?
[44:55]: God is manufacturing so many male and female. So the male and female idea, wherefrom it comes?
[45:08]: It comes from God. He is the origin of everything. So the female, or prakrti, or energy of God,
[45:22]: and God Himself… He is called purusa. So we are appealing both God and His energy, combined together,
[45:33]: engage us in Their service. This is Hare Krsna. O Hare means “O the energy of God,” O Krsna,
[45:47]: “O Lord, both of You take care of me and engage me in Your service.” That’s all. This is meaning.
[46:03]: O.K., thank you. And I lost some on the way, I guess. When I moved into the house, there were these…
[46:13]: just came out of the earth and it was so beautiful to see them.
[46:17]: So your questions also is answered?
[46:23]: May I ask you a few questions? Could you please tell me a little bit about your life and
[46:34]: how you knew that you were the spiritual master for the Krsna consciousness movement?
[46:41]: My life is simple. I was householder. I have still my wife, my children, my grandsons. So my Guru Maharaja
[46:56]: ordered me that “Go and preach this cult in the western countries.” So I left everything on the order of
[47:06]: my Guru Maharaja, and I am trying to execute the order. That’s all.
[47:10]: And is this picture here the man…?
[47:17]: Yes, he is my Guru Maharaja.
[47:20]: And he is no longer living.
[47:23]: No.
[47:24]: He spoke to you spiritually?
[47:26]: So this is my (indistinct). That’s all.
[47:31]: At what point was it that he told you to do this? It was very late in your life that you…?
[47:39]: Yes. When I was twenty-five years old I met him first. On the first meeting he ordered me to this.
[47:52]: 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
[48:11]: to get out of family life. It took some time. But I was trying my best to carry out his order.
[48:23]: In 1944 I started magazine, Back to Godhead, when I was grhastha. Then I started writing books in
[48:39]: 1958 or ’59. In this way in 1965 I came to your country.
[48:54]: You have said that you are very small and that you are not God, and yet it appears to me as an outsider
[49:06]: that the devotees treat you as if you were God.
[49:09]: Yes, that is devotee’s duty. Just like a government officer. Personally he is not very important,
[49:23]: but so long he executes government order, he should be respected as government. That is the way.
[49:38]: Even a ordinary policeman comes, you have to respect him because he is government man.
[49:45]: But that does not mean he is government. He is respected. Saksad-dharitvena samasta-sastrair
[49:57]: uktas tatha bhavyata eva sadbhih. If that man thinks that “I have become government.
[50:03]: People are respecting me,” then he is foolish. So… But it is the etiquette.
[50:13]: If the government man comes, you should respect him as government.
[50:21]: Along the same idea, I wonder also about the many beautiful material things that the devotees
[50:32]: bring to you, and, for instance, when you left the airport, you left in a beautiful, big, fancy car,
[50:40]: and I wonder about this because…
[50:44]: That is teaching them how to respect. If you respect government man as government, then you must treat him like that.
[50:57]: But…
[50:59]: If you respect spiritual master as God, then you must offer him the facilities of God.
[51:04]: Otherwise how you treat him as God? Simply in mind? In action also.
[51:10]: I’m sorry. What was the last you said?
[51:17]: If the spiritual master is treated as God, so he must show, practically show, that he is treating as God.
[51:26]: So God travels by golden car. So if the spiritual master is offered ordinary motor car, so still
[51:37]: it is not sufficient, because he has to be treated like God. What is this motor car for God?
[51:48]: (laughter) They are still deficient. If God comes to your home, will you bring Him in ordinary motor car
[52:06]: or you would arrange for a golden car? If you treat him as God? So your point is that they offer me
[52:17]: nice motor car, but I say that is not sufficient. That is still lacking to treat him as God. Be practical.
[52:39]: Yesterday I met a devotee from New York who said that there were many people present at the festival
[52:46]: from other planets and that you could see them. Is that true?
[52:50]: Yes, yes. Everyone can see. If you have eyes, you can see also. But if you have no eyes, therefore
[53:00]: you are envious because they have offered a nice motor car. So you have to make your eyes to see.
[53:10]: A blind man cannot see. The eyes are to be treated how to see.
[53:18]: Is this true also with your other senses?
[53:23]: Every senses. If you want to see something, you must be trained up how to see. Like a scientist
[53:32]: is seeing something through the microscope, and you want to see with naked eyes. How it is possible to see?
[53:42]: You must adopt the process to see. Then you can see everything.
[53:50]: I have just one more question, and that is also from an outsider’s point of view.
[54:06]: It appears to me that one of the most difficult aspects of Krsna consciousness for someone to accept
[54:12]: who’s been brought up outside of that point of view is the Deities and the idea that they represent Krsna.
[54:23]: Could you talk a little bit about that?
[54:25]: Yes. At the present moment, because you are not trained up to see Krsna, so Krsna kindly appears
[54:41]: before you as you can see. You can see wood, stone. You cannot see what is spirit. Even you don’t see yourself.
[54:46]: You are thinking, “I am this body.” But you are spirit soul. You are seeing your father and mother daily,
[55:09]: and…
[55:12]: He is everything. He is spirit and matter, everything. But you cannot see Him as spiritual identity.
[55:22]: Therefore He has appeared in material form so that you can see. This is Deity.
[55:31]: He is God, but you cannot see Him in His original spiritual form at the present moment.
[55:48]: Therefore, out of His unbounded mercy, He has appeared before you just like made of
[55:57]: wood and stone so that you can see.
[56:00] Thank you very much.
[56:07]: Hare Krsna. So you are coming daily in our meeting?
[56:15]: Not daily, but I’ll come.
[56:19]: That’s nice. This gentleman…? This is my father. Your Grace…
[56:33]: Oh. Thank you very much. (chuckles) And my mother. Hare Krsna.
[56:36]: Oh. So you are all fortunate. You have got such a nice son.
[56:39]: Thank you.
[56:40]: Yes. And he is giving you the best service by becoming Krsna conscious. Don’t think that he is
[56:54]: out of home, he is lost, no. He is giving you the best service.
[56:59]: Well, we’re very pleased with him and we always have been. Thank you for helping him find happiness.
[57:09]: It’s something which he was able to find through your order. (indistinct)
[57:14]: They are very good boys.
[57:16]: What’s amazing to me is where you get the strength to keep the pace that you have.
[57:20]: Can you tell me how you do that? I am some years your junior, and I have difficult pace, keeping up.
[57:30]: The process is genuine, the process which I recommend and they follow. Then it is sure.
[57:41]: Yes. He’s saying that our lifestyle will enable you to have that strength also, by worshiping God.
[57:50]: Just like the physician. He gives you medicine, and he give you the process, the dose, how to
[58:03]: take the medicine, how to take diet. If the patient follow, then he is cured.
[58:26]: That is the opportunity, human life. This process of God realization can be accepted by human being.
[58:58]: It doesn’t matter where he is born. Either in India or outside India, it doesn’t matter.
[59:06]: Any human being can take it up. That is the difference between the animal life and human life.
[59:17]: The animal, the dog, he knows how to bark only, that’s all. He cannot be taught about this process.
[59:27]: But a human being can be. He has got that intelligence, every human being.
[59:36]: So in this human form of life, if we do not take this process, how to become Krsna conscious,
[59:44]: then we will remain dogs. Because we are loosing the opportunity.
[59:52]: What is it that Krsna consciousness has that offers people so much more than other religions do?
[60:02]: This is religion. I have already explained that religion means to become lover of God. That is religion.
[60:16]: When there is no love of God, that is not religion. Religion means–I have already explained–
[60:26]: to know God and to love Him. So if you do not know what is God, where is the question of loving Him?
[60:35]: 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 [Bhag. 6.3.19]. Can you find out this verse? Give him. You don’t find?
[61:35]: Yes, 3.19. Third Chapter, nineteen verse.
[62:02]: dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam na vai vidur rsayo napi devah
[62:22]: na siddha-mukhya asura manusyah kuto nu vidyadhara-caranadayah [Bhag. 6.3.19]
[62:31]: Dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam: “The principles of religion is given by God.”
[62:43]: Just like the law. Law means the process of activities which is given by the government.
[62:54]: You cannot make law at home. Is it clear?
[63:02]: No, I’m having a language problem, I’m afraid.
[63:06]: He says that law means that which is given by the government. You can’t make your own law at home.
[63:13]: So similarly, religion means that which is enunciated by the Lord. You can’t make up your own process.
[63:19]: Well, I guess I’m missing the point. My question was what does the Hare Krsna consciousness
[63:28]: have to offer that other religions don’t have to offer as far as…
[63:31]: This is offering that you want to be religious, so you try to understand religious principles from God.
[63:41]: Because if one is lawyer, if one wants to become a lawyer, he must learn laws which is given
[63:56]: by the government. He cannot become a lawyer at home. Similarly, if you want to become religious,
[64:05]: 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,
[64:29]: then what is religion? That is going on. Everyone is manufacturing his own religion. This is the modern method,
[64:42]: that religion is private. Anyone can accept any type of religion. That is liberalism, is it not?
[64:52]: Yes.
[64:53]: Just convince him.
[64:55]: So do you understand? The idea is that this Hare Krsna movement is based on authority of the Vedas.
[65:07]: And the Vedic literatures are coming directly from Krsna. So we only accept it as truth what
[65:15]: Krsna says and we don’t accept anybody’s mental concoctions or speculations as being truth.
[65:22]: And this is the problem with so many other religious movements today, that they depend on the interpretation or the…
[65:31]: Concoction.
[65:33]: …philosophy of some ordinary man. So this is the primary differential.
[65:40]: We don’t say anything which is not spoken by God in the Bhagavad-gita. Therefore it is appealing everywhere.
[65:52]: Although it is in Sanskrit language, still, it is appealing. Just like if you go on the street and the signboard is,
[66:22]: “Keep to the right…”