Nov 6 1976 discussion with a philosopher in Vrndavana
If we propose-Become first class truthful man-they will all laugh—
Prabhupāda: And if I teach that “I’ll teach you how to become truthful,” they will laugh. People will say, “Can anyone exist nowadays, simply becoming truthful?” Then damaḥ, self-controlled. If I say, “Come here. I shall teach you how to control your senses,” he will laugh, that “What is this nonsense? We shall enjoy life and shall control senses?” This is the description of the first-class man, śamo damas titikṣā ārjava, saralatā, simplicity. No one is prepared to become first-class man. They will laugh. These are all primitive ideas.
Dr. Kneupper: You think there is nobody like that?
Prabhupāda: Not nobody, there are. But people generally will not like, that “These are primitive ideas, to become truthful, simple, and controlling the mind, controlling… These are all imaginary things. How one can live in the struggle for existence by becoming truthful?” They will say like that. Therefore everyone is fourth-class. And the second-class man, kṣatriya?
Hari-śauri:śauryaṁ tejo dhṛtir dākṣyaṁyuddhe cāpy apalāyanamdānam īśvara-bhāvaś ca
kṣātraṁ karma svabhāva-jam[Bg. 18.43] “Heroism, power, determination, resourcefulness, courage in battle, generosity, and leadership are the qualities of work for the kṣatriyas.”
Prabhupāda: This is kṣatriya. Now, who is kṣatriya? A fourth-class man, he never seen battlefield and by vote he becomes president. And here kṣatriya means yuddhe cāpy apalāyanam. If there is fight he must come forward first of all. He is in his palace, and he’s engaging common men, “Go and fight.” When there was Battle of Kurukṣetra Arjuna and Duryodhana, they came first. Because the battle was decided as soon as the leader is dead. No more fight. So they used to come first. This is kṣatriya. Where is that kṣatriya? And they are becoming politicians simply by votes, all third-class, fourth-class men. What he’ll do? Everyone is trying to keep his position by hook and crook. How he’ll think of the people? How they will be happy? He is thinking of his own happiness. And these are politicians. There is no kṣatriya. There is no brāhmaṇa. And there is no vaiśya. What is the vaiśya?
Hari-śauri: Kṛṣi-go-rakṣya-vāṇijyaṁ vaiśya-karma svabhāva-jam [Bg. 18.44].
Prabhupāda: Hm. A vaiśya means he should provide food. So food means agriculture and giving protection to the cows. If you have got sufficient food grains and milk, the whole food question is solved. And these rascals, they are not giving protection to the cows, but they are killing cows. So there is no third-class men even. All fourth-class. So how you can be happy under the control of fourth-class men? There is no first-class men, no second-class men, even no third-class. That means all fourth-class, fifth-class. That’s all. This is the human society, combination of fourth, fifth, tenth-class men. Tenth-class. The fourth-class… There are fourth-class men and more than that, fifth-class men, uncivilized. Aborigines, they are fifth class. Kirāta-hūṇāndhra-pulinda-pulkaśā ābhīra-śumbhā yavanāḥ khasādayaḥ [SB 2.4.18]. There are so many. In the human civilized… Civilization means there must be first-class men, second-class men, third-class men, fourth-class men. Then rest all fifth-class, up to tenth-class. But at the present moment there is some fourth-class men and all fifth-class, sixth-class, up to tenth-class. So how we can be happy? There is no first-class men, there is no second-class men, not even third-class men. Who is caring for agriculture? They are preparing Goodyear tire. Now eat tires. You rascal, eat tires. How long you’ll eat tires? If there is no customer for tire, that means… So that is coming. And I went to Detroit about six months ago. There’re factories. They have manufactured the wheels, huge stock. That means they are not selling. And the Goodyear Tire, they advertising, “So many millions tires we are manufacturing.” You have been in Detroit? Yes. They’re proud that “We have manufactured so many tires, so many wheels.” The time will come when there will be no purchaser for tires and wheels, and they’ll starve. That is coming. What they will do? If they become hungry there is no food grain. For some time they will eat, killing the cows, and then there will be no food, and what these tire and wheels will do?But there is no first-class brain that “We are wasting time by manufacturing tires and wheels. Without wheels we could live, but how we shall live without food grain?” There is no brain, no first-class men, no second-class men, no third-class men.
Some conclusions–Kali yuga is daily, rapidly increasing in strength as there is not much in the world these days of preaching pure Krsna Consciousness in a collective organized fashion. Except for some small sections in India, the rest of the world is madly pursuing economic development, and nuclear war is looming on the horizon. It is dangerous times and locally , individually ,and everybody is struggling very hard to just make ends meet. So what to do?
Srila Prabhupada is giving the Vedic formula for organized civilized human society, which is non existent today. In the meantime, each of us has to make due with what Krsna has given to us. I firmly believe in his words that very hard times are coming soon, and that is one reason we grow our own food here and have some sort of peaceful atmosphere in which to pursue spiritual life.
We have been warned, several times over.
Hare Krsna
damaghosa das