Hare Krishna Society

March 14 1975 Iran

Prabhupāda: Whole world, whole universe, they are made of these five elements.

Atreya Ṛṣi: All the creation, the material creation, is made of five elements.

Yoga student: What is the fifth besides earth, air, fire and water?

Prabhupāda: Ether.

Yoga student: Ether. How does ether distinguish…

Prabhupāda:

Yoga student: How is ether distinct from air?

Prabhupāda: Ether you cannot feel touch. Air you can feel touch.

Parivrājakācārya: Based on the sense perception. On this planet, the bodies are made of earth. But there are other places, other planets, where the physical body is composed of a different combination. So one is predominantly air, another can be fire, another water, ether.

Yoga student: But is ether a gross element as well?

Atreya Ṛṣi: Ether is space.

Prabhupāda: Yes, space.

Yoga student: So in that sense it’s a gross element.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Parivrājakācārya: It’s perceivable by the senses as sound.

Yoga student: As sound.

Prabhupāda: Ether is perceived by sound, air is perceived by touch. Then… Ether, air… Then fire you can see by vision. And then next, water, you can taste, and the earth you can smell. These five senses are there to appreciate these five kinds of elements. All right. Hare Kṛṣṇa. [break]

Aug 21 1973 london

Just like electricity is everywhere, electrons. One who can tackle the electrons, they can talk without any direct connection by electronic method, thousand thousand miles away. Just like radio message, television message. So similarly, Kṛṣṇa is also everywhere. Just like the waves of sound wave is going on. As soon as you produce, I produce one sound, immediately within a second the sound goes round the earth seven times. So if a material thing has got so much power, just think how much power God has got.

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Feb 19 1975 Caracas

Prabhupāda: No, we must first of all understand that our senses are imperfect. Just like we are sitting in this room. We have got our eyes, but we cannot see what is there, going on, beyond this wall. The sun is fourteen hundred thousand times bigger than this earth, and we are seeing just like a disc. So the eyelid is just near the eyes, but we cannot see what is the eyelids. If the light is off, we cannot see. So we can see under certain condition. Then what is the value of our seeing? If we, even if we manufacture telescope, that is also manufactured by the imperfect senses, so it is also not perfect. So anything understood by manipulating our imperfect senses, that is not real knowledge. So our process of understanding real knowledge is to take it from the person who has the real knowledge. Just like if we contemplate or speculate who is my father, it is never possible to understand who is my father. But if we receive the words from mother that “Here is your father,” that is perfect. Therefore the process of knowledge should be not to speculate but to receive it from the perfect person. If we receive knowledge from a mental speculator, that is not perfect knowledge.

Professor (Hṛdayānanda): What would be the mechanism or process to get this perfect knowledge and to purify our senses?

Prabhupāda: First of all we have to accept this truth, that perfect knowledge can be received from the perfect person. Just like I have given the example, who is my father. You can understand it from the perfect person, mother. If somebody speculates, “This gentleman may be your father, this gentleman may be your father,” that is not perfect knowledge. The perfect knowledge is with the mother. Mother says, “Here is your father.” That is perfect knowledge. Just like, therefore, in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said,

tad viddhi praṇipātena (aside:) Find out

Now, what is the meaning of tattva-darśinaḥ?

Hṛdayānanda: “The seers of the truth.”

Prabhupāda: Yes. You have to… Just like mother has seen the father. So her knowledge is perfect. But I have not seen my father. Because before my birth there was father, I do not know who is my father. The mother has seen the father. So you have to approach such a person who has seen the truth. That is the way of… Now you have to find out a person who has seen the transcendence and receive knowledge of transcendence from him. Then it is perfect.

Professor: (Spanish) What I mean is that, you know. We are all imperfect because we are imperfect. Right? So how can a master, a person who really understands or who claims to really understand be able to know perfection, to see the truth, how can he with his imperfect senses…

Prabhupāda: You are right, you are right.

Professor: …know the real truth.

Prabhupāda: Yes, therefore I say…

Professor: How can I get with my imperfect senses the perfection brought by the master?

Prabhupāda: The same example. Just like the mother has seen the father, and the mother says not only to her son but other gentleman that “Here is the father of the son.” So the other gentleman who has not seen the father but on the verification by the mother, he accepts the real thing. Hearing from the perfect is also perfect. If I get the chance of hearing from the perfect, then I may not be perfect, but because I have heard from the perfect, what I say, that is perfect.

Professor (Hṛdayānanda): He’s saying that he accepts that we can receive perfect knowledge, but then because I am imperfect I make an imperfect interpretation.

Prabhupāda: No, you are not allowed interpretation. As soon as you interpret, you become imperfect. Therefore we are presenting Bhagavad-gītā As It Is. Don’t interpret. Before this, all these rascals were simply interpreting and spoiling the whole thing. So this is the fact.

Professor: So what you really are asking for is blind faith.

Prabhupāda: Not blind faith. Perfect man is perfect. Unless you understand that he is perfect, don’t hear from him. That is blind. Without knowing that he is perfect, if you hear, that is your imperfectness. Why should you try to hear from a person whom you do not know perfectly well that he is perfect?

Hṛdayānanda: Can I translate that?

Prabhupāda: Yes. If you hear blindly, that is your imperfectness. You must be first of all convinced that. “The person from whom I am hearing, he is perfect.” Then your knowledge is perfect.

Professor: That conviction is not the product of reasoning.

Prabhupāda: It is not convention. It is not convention. It is actually knowing that “I have approached this perfect man.” Just like the same example: if you approach the mother of the son, she is the perfect to know the father, and if you have known from the mother that “This boy’s father is this gentleman,” that knowledge is perfect. Even though you have not seen while the father was begotten, giving birth, it doesn’t matter. But because you have heard from the mother—she is perfect—therefore your knowledge received from her is perfect. Therefore it is written, tattva-darśibhiḥ, “who has seen the truth.” So you have to approach such person who has seen the truth.

Professor: Well, that brings that to my original question again. How do I know who is perfect?

Prabhupāda: That is another thing, that you have to search out such person. Otherwise your knowledge is imperfect. Now that question will be: “How to find out such person?” The next question will be. But unless you approach such perfect person, you cannot have perfect knowledge. That is a fact. Therefore the conclusion is that we should not speculate about perfect knowledge, but we should try to approach the perfect person and receive knowledge from him. This is the conclusion.

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Srila Prabhupada’s clearly explains the reasons for ISKCON’s decline after Prabhupada’s departure

(Author unknown)

The following conversations of Srila Prabhupada clearly explains the reasons for ISKCON’s decline after Prabhupada’s departure. Though Srila Prabhupada was speaking about the failure of the Gaudiya Matha, amazingly it perfectly matches ISKCON’s own post-samadhi history, line for line. Seven sentences have been numbered for direct comparison to ISKCON.

“Why this Gaudiya Matha failed? Because they tried to become more than guru.
He, before passing away, he gave all direction and never said that ‘This man should be the next acharya.’ But these people, just after his passing away they began to fight, who shall be acharya. That is the failure.
They never thought, ‘Why Guru Maharaja gave us instruction so many things, why he did not say that this man should be acharya?’
They wanted to create artificially somebody acharya and everything failed.
They did not consider even with common sense that if Guru Maharaja wanted to appoint somebody as acharya, why did he not say? He said so many things, and this point he missed? The real point? And they insist upon it.
They declared some unfit person to become acharya. Then another man came, then another, acharya, another acharya.
So better remain a foolish person perpetually to be directed by Guru Maharaja. That is perfection.” –

Srila Prabhupada Room Conversation, 08-16-76, Bombay

Srila Prabhupada explains why ISKCON failed after he left:

Why this Gaudiya Matha failed? Because they tried to become more than guru.” ISKCON has also failed horribly in the 30 years since Srila Prabhupada’s departure. The reason is simple: the ISKCON leaders tried to be more than their guru by manufacturing so many speculative things (zonal acharyas, voted in acharyas, suspended acharyas, etc.).

Srila Prabhupada established a system in his temples whereby his unique position as founder-acharya (samsthapaka-acharya) was highlighted through his own worship in every single ISKCON temple. Some of the specific ways in which Srila Prabhupada did this was by having his vyasasana installed in all temples, installation of his deity while he was still living (in Vrindavan), having his photo on all ISKCON altars, having all disciples worship him every morning through “guru-puja”, etc. As soon as Prabhupada departed, ISKCON leaders suddenly tried to compete with him, installing their own Vyasasanas in all temples, keeping their own photos on the altar, instituting mandatory worship of themselves through “guru-puja” in all ISKCON temples, etc. Oddly, one will not find a single instruction by Srila Prabhupada to any of these ISKCON leaders, nor to ISKCON as a whole, to implement any of these changes to his institution. Srila Prabhupada specifically instructed how worship and sadhana in his movement should be carried out. Every detail of the morning program, evening program, japa, worship, etc., was given by Srila Prabhupada for all ISKCON devotees. Yet in an instant, the ISKCON leaders decided they were more than their guru, and made all sorts of unauthorized changes to his movement.

“He, before passing away, he gave all direction and never said that ‘This man should be the next acharya.’ But these people, just after his passing away they began to fight, who shall be acharya. That is the failure.”

Srila Prabhupada also gave all instructions before departing. Yet he never said “this person will be next acharya” or “these people will be the next diksha gurus”. Despite the fact that he never authorized anyone to be the next diksha guru, immediately after his departure his disciples fought over the position of acharya, throwing out anyone who did not accept their chosen 11 leaders as equal to Srila Prabhupada.

“They never thought, ‘Why Guru Maharaja gave us instruction so many things, why he did not say that this man should be acharya?’”

After Prabhupada’s departure, the ISKCON leaders never thought “Why Srila Prabhupada did not say that these men should be acharyas?” Prabhupada gave so many instructions, yet he specifically never authorized anyone to be the next acharya and diksha guru of ISKCON. Instead of understanding the reason Prabhupada never authorized or appointed anyone, the ISKCON leaders immediately fought over who would succeed Srila Prabhupada as acharya. It is a fact that Srila Prabhupada did not say that any of the 11 appointed zonal-acharyas should be acharya. It is also a fact that Srila Prabhupada did not say that any of the present 100 mini-acharyas should be mini-acharya. “So why did he not say that this man, [insert SWAMI X here], should be acharya?” That is Prabhupada’s own question. You can take it up with him.

Tamal Krishna Maharaja, one of the 11 zonal acharya’s, explained their mood at the time of appointing themselves as successor acharya’s:

“They immediately… these eleven people are the selected gurus. I can say definitely for myself, and for which I humbly beg forgiveness from everybody, that there was definitely some degree of trying to control. There’s a degree of this in most GBC’s parts, in most temple president’s parts. This is the conditioned nature, and it came out in the highest position of all. ‘Guru, oh wonderful! Now I’m a guru, and there is only eleven of us’.”

“They wanted to create artificially somebody acharya and everything failed.”

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April 17 1971 letter to Vrndavan chandra

Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated 18th February, 1971 and have noted the contents. You write to say that this Hare Krishna Movement is perfect in all respects. Thank you very much. And it is a fact that “Sankirtana will keep you happy and the books will keep you convinced”, so make your program in that way and become fixed up in Krishna Consciousness.

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Feb 24 1977 conversations

Prabhupada:This is very improved.

Rādhā–vallabha: For the next printing of Bhagavad-gītā, so much paper was ordered that it would take seventy–six train cars to carry it. (laughter)

Rāmeśvara: They’ve written us a letter about this. They have never received such a large paper order at one time for one book. We have a letter glorifying the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust from the paper company, and another letter from the printer. This is the largest.

Now let us take a walk thru with Srila Prabhupada of the BBT warehouse at THAT time…..

Feb 10 1975 Morning walk thru LA BBT Warehouse

Hṛdayānanda: Right here. See on the left there?

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. [break] (inside)

Rāmeśvara: …admire your books, Śrīla Prabhupāda. Sometimes they sit here and they pull books to examine the quality of the printing, and they always read the Back to Godhead magazine while they wait.

Prabhupāda: Harer nāma harer nāma… [Cc. Ādi 17.21]. Ah. Latest publication?

Haṁsadūta: Yes.

Rāmeśvara: The Back to Godhead printer frames these for us. He brings them over after every issue.

Prabhupāda: Oh. They are giving good service.

Rāmeśvara: They are very fond of us. They spend more time on our magazine than anyone else.

Prabhupāda: What is the picture?

Rāmeśvara: This is Sītā, the wife of Advaita Ācārya receiving…

Prabhupāda: Oh, Lord Caitanya.

Rāmeśvara: It is in Ādi-līlā, Volume Three.

Prabhupāda: Who has painted?

Rāmeśvara: Jadurāṇī.

Prabhupāda: Jadurāṇī has got good talent. Hare Kṛṣṇa. (chuckles)

Rāmeśvara: This is the office where I work.

Prabhupāda: This is developed photo.

Rāmeśvara: It is a drawing by a boy in New York named Peter Hawkins.

Prabhupāda: Drawing?

Rāmeśvara: A drawing.

Prabhupāda: Oh. Harer nāma harer nāma… [Cc. Ādi 17.21].

Rāmeśvara: We have two warehouses… [break] …to the wall and up to the ceiling.

Prabhupāda: So they are going or simply stock?

Rāmeśvara: No. It is greatly reduced since they have arrived.

Prabhupāda: So Haṁsadūta, he has to make a go-down(book warehouse) like this.

Haṁsadūta: Yeah.

Prabhupāda: Then he’ll defeat these charges. Eh? When the nation, German nation, will accept these books, then that will be proper reply, charges.

Rāmeśvara: This forklift lifts these pallets high up to the ceiling.

Prabhupāda: Oh.

Hṛdayānanda: Does Prabhupāda want to see how it work? Śruta-śravā, you can show him how it works? Quickly.

Rāmeśvara: These racks we purchased for storing the books that will be sent to the libraries and colleges. When Satsvarūpa Swami gets the orders, they are reserved over here, five hundred copies of each book, and then, when we run out, another five hundred copies goes in the rack. So that way, we always keep books. Even if we sell out, we always have books reserved for the libraries. Śruta-śravā manages our warehouse. (engine started)

Hṛdayānanda: Make it go up.

Prabhupāda: I first saw this machine in the Commonwealth Pier, Boston. (machine moving around, crashing sound)

Jayatīrtha: What are you doing, Śruta-śravā?

Rāmeśvara: Sometimes because of that roof you can’t see what you’re doing.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Rāmeśvara: So usually he’s very careful.

Prabhupāda: Sometime they are breaking also. (laughter)

Rāmeśvara: So far, no accidents.

Kirtirāja: Just today.

Rāmeśvara: He’s a little nervous. (laughter)

Prabhupāda: What is the rent?

Rāmeśvara: 1,800 dollars each month for all the offices in the warehouse. It’s considered a good price in this area. We have a speaker system, so during the day, while they work in the warehouse, they’re always hearing your lectures.

Prabhupāda: Ācchā? (chuckles)

Rāmeśvara: This is the other warehouse.

Hṛdayānanda: Back to Godhead.

Prabhupāda: There is arrangement for fire?

Rāmeśvara: Yes. We have fire insurance and fire alarm. We have fire alarm?

Kirtirāja: Yeah.

Rāmeśvara: We have fire alarm? These are Kṛṣṇa Trilogies.

Prabhupāda: All these? All these, stock?

Rāmeśvara: We always require large inventory because the temples order so fast. Bhagavad-gītās in this corner, and on this back wall here, all the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatams and Caitanya-caritāmṛta volumes… These books have just arrived from the printer.

Prabhupāda: Where is that Prajāpati? He’s not here? That play yesterday… Last evening I saw. It was very nice.

Gurudāsa: Yes. They also did Pralambāsura for the guests.

Prabhupāda: No… Now we have got Caitanya-caritāmṛta and Bhāgavatam. If such demonstration are done very nicely, it will be very much appreciated even by the public. We can collect some money.

Jayatīrtha: Yes. We plan to make a tour this summer all the way up the West Coast, and in the amphitheaters...

Prabhupāda: And in India also. Simply you have to change the language, dictate.

Jayatīrtha: Of the narration.

Gurudāsa: Yes. They’re planning to do that.

Prabhupāda: In our festival let them come and show. What is this? That man? What is his name who showed Gaurāṅga līlā?

Gurudāsa: Yes, Harigovind.

Prabhupāda: It will be hundred times better than that.

Gurudāsa: Thousand times. Ten thousand, yes.

Prabhupāda: So show this nonsense that “We can do better than you.”

Gurudāsa: It’s much more beautiful.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Jayatīrtha: They’re coming to Māyāpur.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Gurudāsa: Yesterday at the love feast they did Pralambāsura, and the guests loved it. Wonderful.

Jayatīrtha: They applauded.

Prabhupāda: They must love it. It is very nice, very nice. Organize this very nicely. We have got so many boys and girls. They can play simply. And they haven’t got to speak. This system is very nice. Let them play. What is this called, system?

Hṛdayānanda: Narration.

Prabhupāda: No, there is…

Jayatīrtha: Like pantomime.

Gurudāsa: Mime.

Prabhupāda: Even they play with tape. Tape… Tapes… The tape is going on, and then are playing.

(NOTE-In vancouver temple there was a devotee who produced weekly little 10-15 minute skits or parody’s of society and Krsna lila stories-everyone loved it)

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Hare Krsna–

Below is a conversation and part of a lecture where Srila Prabhupada is asking a disciple what he thinks it means to be- “Krsna Conscious” ? I am sure if it went on Srila Prabhupada would have gotten a lot of different answers, so he gives us the answer in a short clear way, which is easy to understand. Please read below for his answer. The following lecture next, he explains a little bit more of how to attain this God or Krsna Consciousness. There is another conversation, which I have repeatedly and unsuccessfully tried to find where Srila Prabhupada is speaking about being in Vrndavana as a young man and Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja is opening a new temple and practically all the disciples have left to see the installation of the new deity-except for our Srila Prabhupada and a very few others, whose guru basically tells him that “this boy likes to hear me” and what will the other disciples “see” when they go to the installation -they will see some stone statue of Krsna, but not actually “see” the Lord, personally. He said, we see first- by hearing from the guru. These things are significant.

damaghosa das

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Dec 10 1975 Vrndavana conversation-–

Viśāla: I remember over five years ago you telling me about, “If you read the first nine cantos of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, you become fully Kṛṣṇa conscious.” Would you kindly tell me what does it mean to be fully Kṛṣṇa conscious?

Prabhupāda: What do you understand, fully Kṛṣṇa conscious?

Viśāla: What does it mean to be fully Kṛṣṇa conscious?

Prabhupāda: No, what you mean, first of all let me know.

Harikeśa: What do you think fully Kṛṣṇa concious means? You tell Prabhupāda.

Viśāla: It’s to see Kṛṣṇa face to face?

Prabhupāda: That means Kṛṣṇa conscious? Everyone is seeing Kṛṣṇa face to face. When you go to the temple Kṛṣṇa is there, and you are seeing. Does it mean everyone is Kṛṣṇa conscious?

Viśāla: No.

Prabhupāda: Then what is the meaning of Kṛṣṇa conscious?

Indian man: Brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā na śocati na kāṅkṣati [Bg. 18.54].

Prabhupāda: Hm, that is part of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, brahṁa bhūtaḥ. Real Kṛṣṇa consciousness is: “Kṛṣṇa is master, I am servant.” This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Viśāla: To understand that you’re the servant and Kṛṣṇa is the master. I see.

Prabhupāda: When you fully understand, that is your Kṛṣṇa… That is Kṛṣṇa conscious. [break] So long you think that “I can also become like Kṛṣṇa,” then you are not Kṛṣṇa conscious.

Viśāla: In other words, if you still have material desires you can’t be fully Kṛṣṇa conscious.

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is the beginning of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam [Brs. 1.1.11]. Make all your material desires zero.

Viśāla: Thank you very much.

Prabhupāda: That is Kṛṣṇa conscious. You should only desire to serve Kṛṣṇa. [break] …clear or not?

Viśāla: Very clear. Thank you very much.

Harikeśa: What if a person doesn’t desire material enjoyment, but still, there is so much dirt?

Prabhupāda: Hm? Who is that person who has no material desires?

Harikeśa: A person really wants to be Kṛṣṇa conscious, but somehow or another, so much dirts gets in the way.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Dirt means it is not yet zero. I said that all material desires should be made zero. Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam [Brs. 1.1.11].

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Before and after, by Haripada dasa
Before it means when Srila Prabhupada was in his physical form preaching Krishna consciousness, and after it means after Srila Prabhupada disincarnated or entered his lila samadhi, I have the 23 DVDs from the ITV collection on Srila Prabhupada, there you see the very happy and bright devotees in Krishna consciousness, there Srila Prabhupada was the center and the founding Acharya and everyone was very united to please Srila Prabhupada, Srila Prabhupada’s wish and Krishna’s is that when Srila Prabhupada entered his samadhi lila, everything would continue the same as before, that is why Srila Prabhupada ordered his disciples to initiate in his name, and he would continue to be the center and the spiritual master of all, that is called Jagat guru, the guru of the whole universe.
Unfortunately Srila Prabhupada’s disciples made changes to Srila Prabhupada’s books and did not obey the order to initiate in his name, and in an artificial way that is by vows (Srila Prabhupada says in El Chaitanya Charitamrita, Madhya Lila, 1, 220, that the choice of a guru is not made by votes), they became gurus because they think that they are at the same level as Srila Prabhupada, when Srila Prabhupada’s Gurudeva entered his lila samadhi a very similar thing happened, there is a letter that Srila Prabhupada sent him to Rupaguna explaining what happened, there Srila Prabhupada says that his Gurudeva openly said to create a GBC and to all work together, and if they see someone who is self-effulgent they have to accept him as my successor, they did not obey these orders and the result is that now they all claim to be Acharyas, although they may be adhikaris kanisthas with no ability to preach, therefore we may make the same mistake in our ISKCON. Actually, among my godbrothers no one is qualified to become Acharya. So it is better not to mix with my godbrothers too intimately because instead of inspiring our students and disciples they can sometimes contaminate them. This attempt was previously made by them, especially Madhava Maharaja, Tirtha Maharaja and Bon Maharaja, but one way or another I saved the situation.
We accept that Srila Prabhupada is that self-effulgent person, but Gaudiya Matha does not recognize that, we do not mix with Gaudiya Matha. We do not mix with Srila Prabhupada’s disciples who are betraying and offending Srila Prabhupada, they live in unconsciousness and that is the reason why they do not want to obey Srila Prabhupada, Srila Prabhupada, Krishna and everyone would like it. that Iskcon was led by people who obey and love Srila Prabhupada, it is always better to pray for others than to criticize, we pray to Srila Prabhupada and Krishna so that these people obey Srila Prabhupada and thus we would all be together and happy and bright in the Krishna consciousness.
I have served in Iskcon 1984-2008, Krishna has distributed through me more than a quarter of a million books of Srila Prabhupada and from my collection I have given them more than 500,000 dollars, they have deceived me but I do not bear any grudge They already have a bad enough misfortune to be the way they are. Now I feel happy and free in Krishna consciousness.

https://youtu.be/lCASsDCBNIw ( ISKCON HISTORY – Tamal Krishna Swami – Topanga canyon discussions “It is a myth” )
https://youtu.be/YJm1xKyQqaM ( ISKCON HISTORY – Additional comments on SPL to Rupanuga – Why go to GM? )

Haribol.

Hare Krsna Dear Prabhus,

So did Lord Caitanya initiate EVERYONE to be a Diksa-guru initiating spiritual master In HIS presence, not just vartma-pradasak or maybe siksa-guru!!! That would be against sastric injunction, not to initiate in the presence of one’s guru. However the bogus guroo club now allow that, in order to try and endorse that’s what Mahaprabhu meant anyway….

Yfs, Balaram das.

EXCERPT: Bhagavad-gītā 4.1–2 Columbus, May 9, 1969

“…You haven’t got to comment or add anything, something. But to present, you can speak something, but the central point should not be missed. Then people will be benefited. Then people will be benefited. They will receive the message as it is, and this is transcendental message.

Caitanya Mahāprabhu says,

āmāra ājñāya guru hañā tāra’ ei deśa
yāre dekha, tāre kaha ‘kṛṣṇa’-upadeśa

[Cc. Madhya 7.128]

[“Instruct everyone to follow the orders of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa as they are given in the Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. In this way become a spiritual master and try to liberate everyone in this land.”]

Lord Caitanya says that “Every one of you become the spiritual master. Every one of you. Why one, two? Every one of you.” “Oh, spiritual master is very difficult job.” No. No difficult job. Caitanya Mahā… Āmāra ājñāya: “Just try to carry out My order. That’s all. Then you become spiritual master.” And if you interpolate, if you put something nonsense, rubbish, to show your so-called rascal’s education, then it is spoiled. Immediately spoiled. And if you present as it is, then it is pure…”

Bhagavad-gītā 4.1–2

Columbus, May 9, 1969

Audio for this lecture: https://prabhupadavani.org/transcriptions/bhagavad-g%C4%ABt%C4%81-412/

Hare Krsna-Below is a very nice description of how human society can be organized so as to minimize our sinful activities and make both material and spiritual advancement at the same time . These two paths are called pravritti marga and Nvritti marga or the paths of material enjoyment and the path of liberation from birth and death

damaghosa das

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SB 1.17.38–TRANSLATION

Sūta Gosvāmī said: Mahārāja Parīkṣit, thus being petitioned by the personality of Kali, gave him permission to reside in places where gambling, drinking, prostitution and animal slaughter were performed.

PURPORT-The basic principles of irreligiosity, such as pride, prostitution, intoxication and falsehood, counteract the four principles of religion, namely austerity, cleanliness, mercy and truthfulness. The personality of Kali was given permission to live in four places particularly mentioned by the King, namely the place of gambling, the place of prostitution, the place of drinking and the place of animal slaughter.

Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī directs that drinking against the principles of scriptures, such as the sautrāmaṇī-yajña, association with women outside marriage, and killing animals against the injunctions of scriptures are irreligious. In the Vedas two different types of injunctions are there for the pravṛttas, or those who are engaged in material enjoyment, and for the nivṛttas, or those who are liberated from material bondage. The Vedic injunction for the pravṛttas is to gradually regulate their activities towards the path of liberation. Therefore, for those who are in the lowest stage of ignorance and who indulge in wine, women and flesh, drinking by performing sautrāmaṇī-yajña, association of women by marriage and flesh-eating by sacrifices are sometimes recommended. Such recommendations in the Vedic literature are meant for a particular class of men, and not for all. But because they are injunctions of the Vedas for particular types of persons, such activities by the pravṛttas are not considered adharma. One man’s food may be poison for others; similarly, what is recommended for those in the mode of ignorance may be poison for those in the mode of goodness. Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī Prabhu, therefore, affirms that recommendations in the scriptures for a certain class of men are never to be considered adharma, or irreligious. But such activities are factually adharma, and they are never to be encouraged. The recommendations in the scriptures are not meant for the encouragement of such adharma, but for regulating the necessary adharma gradually toward the path of dharma.

Following in the footsteps of Mahārāja Parīkṣit, it is the duty of all executive heads of states to see that the principles of religion, namely austerity, cleanliness, mercy and truthfulness, are established in the state, and that the principles of irreligion, namely pride, illicit female association or prostitution, intoxication and falsity, are checked by all means. And to make the best use of a bad bargain, the personality of Kali may be transferred to places of gambling, drinking, prostitution and slaughterhouses, if there are any places like that. Those who are addicted to these irreligious habits may be regulated by the injunctions of the scripture. In no circumstances should they be encouraged by any state. In other words, the state should categorically stop all sorts of gambling, drinking, prostitution and falsity. The state which wants to eradicate corruption by majority may introduce the principles of religion in the following manner:

1. Two compulsory fasting days in a month, if not more (austerity). Even from the economic point of view, such two fasting days in a month in the state will save tons of food, and the system will also act very favorably on the general health of the citizens.

2. There must be compulsory marriage of young boys and girls attaining twenty-four years of age and sixteen years of age respectively. There is no harm in coeducation in the schools and colleges, provided the boys and girls are duly married, and in case there is any intimate connection between a male and female student, they should be married properly without illicit relation. The divorce act is encouraging prostitution, and this should be abolished.

3. The citizens of the state must give in charity up to fifty percent of their income for the purpose of creating a spiritual atmosphere in the state or in human society, both individually and collectively. They should preach the principles of Bhāgavatam by (a) karma-yoga, or doing everything for the satisfaction of the Lord, (b) regular hearing of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from authorized persons or realized souls, (c) chanting of the glories of the Lord congregationally at home or at places of worship, (d) rendering all kinds of service to bhāgavatas engaged in preaching Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and (e) residing in a place where the atmosphere is saturated with God consciousness. If the state is regulated by the above process, naturally there will be God consciousness everywhere.

Gambling of all description, even speculative business enterprise, is considered to be degrading, and when gambling is encouraged in the state, there is a complete disappearance of truthfulness. Allowing young boys and girls to remain unmarried more than the above-mentioned ages and licensing animal slaughterhouses of all description should be at once prohibited. The flesh-eaters may be allowed to take flesh as mentioned in the scriptures, and not otherwise. Intoxication of all description-even smoking cigarettes, chewing tobacco or the drinking of tea-must be prohibited.

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