Bhakti Vikasa Swami's Blog, page 194

This is not advancement of civilization

Prabhupada:At night they sleep or enjoy sex, nidraya hriyate naktam vyavayena, and in daytime they hanker after money, runs the motorcar head-break speed, neck-break speed.

Hayagriva: Breakneck.

Prabhupada: Breakneck. And then what is the business? Searching out some means of food, exactly like the hog, he is loitering here and there, Where is stool? Where is stool? Where is stool? And this is going on in the polished way as civilization. There is so much risk, as running these cars so many people are dying. There is record, it is very dangerous. At least I feel as soon as I go to the street, it is dangerous. The motorcar are running so speedy, and what is the business? The business is where to find out food. So therefore it is condemned that this kind of civilization is hoggish civilization. This hog is running after, Where is stool? Where is stool? Where is stool? And you are running in a car. The same. Purpose is the same: Where is stool? Purpose is the same. Therefore this is not advancement of civilization.

(From a conversation about Socrates)

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Sex and pure devotees

Your next question: In regard to Kardama Muni, how can a pure devotee become passionate for any amount of agitation? That is not passion. One should not be impotent also. One should have full potency, to beget children, but such sex life should be under his full control. Passion is a different thing. Passion makes one blind. And a devotee is full controller; that is the difference. The example is given of the tortoise; as soon as he likes he discloses his senses, and when he likes he pulls them within. That is the position of a pure devotee. He can wind up the senses, whenever he likes and he can exhibit the senses whenever he likes. On the whole, the senses are under his control. He is not under the control of the senses as are the ordinary persons. That is the meaning of Goswami. A Goswamin does not mean he is to become impotent; and can have no children; but he can use it when he likes. They are never the victim of passion.

Sense gratification means unlawful sex life. Sex life is not sense gratification; unlawful sex life is sense gratification. If there is no need of sex life and one uses sex life anyway, that is sense gratification. But when there is need of sex life, that is not sense gratification. Never think that the devotee is impotent and is obliged to become free from sex life. If required they can take to sex life 1000 times. Otherwise, if there is no need for it, they have no use for it. Kardama Muni married a wife. Why he shall not give her children? The wife begged that she must have some children. So he must satisfy the wife and give her some children, that is the duty of husband. But he left his wife as soon as the son was grown up. Not that he used to live with the wife for all the days.

So far Lord Brahma and his attraction for his daughter; this illustration should be taken by conditioned souls, that even a person like Brahma is sometimes victimized, how much careful we should be. Not that even Brahma was enticed, so we shall become enticed more and more. This is an example set for us by great devotees.

To become agitated is not very unusual thing, but to control it, that is the real thing.

From Srila Prabhupada’s letter to Himavati — Hawaii 23 March, 1969

To become guru is not at all difficult

Caitanya Mahaprabhu says that don’t talk all nonsense thing. Simply say the real thing.

And what is the real thing? That is explained by Krsna: sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja [Bg 18.66]. You take this mission, “My dear sir, you give up everything nonsense. You simply surrender to Krsna.” Then you become guru. Is it very difficult to become guru? No. But we shall not take this business. We shall talk all nonsense and become guru and incarnation and God and so on, so on, and cheat others and cheat oneself. This is going on. Otherwise, to become guru is not at all difficult.

From Srila Prabhupada’s lecture on Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.25.43 — December 11, 1974, Bombay

Be careful of “gentlemen”

You should not keep your trust on so-called gentlemen of the world however nicely dressed he may be. In the matter of discharging our mission of Krishna consciousness we have to meet so many so called gentlemen but we must be very cautious for dealing with them as we are cautious in dealing with serpents.

From Srila Prabhupada’s letter to Brahmananda, Satsvarupa, Rayarama, Gargamuni, Rupanuga, Donald — San Francisco 28 March, 1967

Srila Prabhupada instructs about education, including Montessori

Your idea to start a nursery school in New Vrindaban is very good proposal and you may immediately try for it by cooperatively consulting amongst yourselves how to do it. But one thing, we are teaching Bhakti by practical attendance and by decreasing playing desire or drive. If the children simply do as their elders are doing, that is, regularly attending mangal arati, rising early, chanting, eating prasadam, looking at books, worshiping the —
like that, then automatically they will become trained up in right way and there is no need for special program for education. Children will always do as they see others doing, so if by the good association of their parents and the other older persons, they will come out nicely fixed in Krishna Consciousness, and because they are not spoiled by an artificial standard of sense gratification, they will think that performing austerities is great fun, just like in India we see the young brahmacaris are sent out to beg for their spiritual master to teach them humility and non-attachment, and they spend the whole day in the hot sun and come back at night, take a handful of rice, and sleep without blankets on the hard floor — and they take this type of life as very much enjoyable and great fun. This is how we train our children in Krishna Consciousness, just be keeping them always attending our regular program and associating with Krishna devotees, teaching them in spiritual realization by giving them the idea that sacrifice and tapasya for achieving the highest goal of life is a very nice way of life. Not that we shall give them many games for playing, these so-called scientific methods of learning are artificial, unnecessary, and on the whole I do not have much trust in this Montessori system or any other such system of teaching. Your idea for having altars to train the children in deity worship is very nice.

>>> Ref. VedaBase => Letter to: Satyabhama — Mayapur 28 February, 1972

The simple method I have introduced, namely learn English and Sanskrit, is sufficient. Why the so-called Montessori method?

>>> Ref. VedaBase => Letter to: Satsvarupa — New York 11 April, 1973

During Srila Prabhupada’s presence, when his gurukula teachers began to seriously follow the teachings of Mary Montessori, Kirtanananda remarked, “They have taken a new guru.” That was the worst pronouncement and a sign that the gurukula teachers had to immediately adjust their priorities and decide who was their guru.

>>> Ref. VedaBase => SPN 2-49: Personal: Srila Prabhupada Demanded Loyalty

No force!

I can only suggest, and wherever possible that can be applied, but I do not force anyone. After all, you are only working so hard to please Krsna only out of love for me, so there can be no question of force if love is there. We should not ever try to force anyone or reduce our Society to an impersonal business exchange, this will kill everything. Our only purpose in every endeavor is simply to make advancement in spiritual life or in pleasing Krsna.

From Srila Prabhupada’s letter to Bhakta dasa — Sydney 9 April, 1972

Some of Srila Prabhupada’s instructions on childcare

(As given to Kisori Dasi. Reference-Memories of a Modern Day Saint Vol. 5 by Siddhanta das)

Srila Prabhupada told me so many things about how to treat children. Vedic ways, Vaisnava ways to treat children, which is totally opposite of our culture. A child should never be left to cry. Immediately pick him up.

Never to say “No” to a child. Then he will feel very confident later.

After bathing a baby, wrap him firmly and fully in cloth up to the neck, including the arms. Then he will sleep very well. For babies, plenty of sleep is needed as much as food and drink so that they can grow properly.

If a child has something in his hand that you don’t want him to have and you want to take it away, the way that he will not cry and not act contrarily, is that in the other hand you show him something and you give him. So then you will easily take that thing. He will drop it by himself and forget about it.

Academics should never be given to a child before seven years old. Otherwise he will be damaged and later his brain will not be properly fit.

He should play a lot.

If a boy is very intelligent, he can be very naughty. It’s also a sign of
intelligence.

Children should have toys, should have cars. Then he was telling about the story of his guns. He said, “If he has toys to play with, then later he will not have so much desire for big cars, and all this.”

About boys, Srila Prabhupada said, “A mother should feed as long as she can.” He gave the example that Krsna was being fed by His mother up to seven years old.

He said, “If a boy takes milk from the breast of his mother for a long time,
then later he will not be so attracted to the breasts of women.”

After birth, for one month only see very close family. Only the father can take the baby. Even other family members cannot. And never go out before minimum one month, so that they don’t get bacteria and all that from outside. No one should touch the baby.

Never give newborns yogurt, because it is very cold.

If you are cooking, even for the Deities, and the child is coming in the kitchen, and he wants to grab something — he is hungry — you have to give him immediately, even if it’s not offered.

Very important feeding the child. And, “Never, never beat him.”

If girls cry in the house, Laksmi will leave.

Girls should never be married to a man to whom she is not at all attracted. This is a big crime.

Forgetting about the sex impulse

Regarding your wish to be married with a Krsna conscious family, that is nice. You will have your nice, fixed-up wife, and you will be happy working hard for Krsna together. I never discourage marriage, providing it is for Krsna’s service and not for simply sex life. It is always meant for a higher purpose. In God’s creation there is male and female even in the spiritual world and there is purpose for such creation. This purpose is so that male and female may join together, not for sex-life, but to glorify the Lord. From Srimad-Bhagavatam we learn that in Vaikuntha the women are much more
beautiful in their figure, smiling, dressing, etc., but the men and women there are so much attracted by the chanting of Hare Krsna that they do not get any sex impulse even by intimate mingling. Here also we sometimes get very good example, because when our nice boys and girls are dancing together in chanting Hare Krsna at least for that time they forget all about the sex impulse. This is perfection of life, to be so much attracted to Krsna that all insignificant pleasures are utterly forgotten.

From Srila Prabhupada’s letter to Uddhava — Los Angeles 18 February, 1969

Please live peacefully

An old father required massaging so all the children wanted to serve the father. The father divided the right and left portion of his body to be served by the children. Later along with the service, there was some quarrel between the children, and they were competing by hitting the parts of the father which was assigned to the opposing party. So the father said that you are hitting my different parts due to your opposition to one another, but I am therefore dying. If there is any misunderstanding, it will be solved when I am present there in April. In the meantime, please live peacefully, and things may go on as it is going on.

From Srila Prabhupada’s letter to Rayarama — Los Angeles 20 February, 1969

No higher and lower on the transcendental platform

In the transcendental loving service of the Lord, it doesn’t matter whether we are working, cooking, painting, writing, chanting, or whatever, they are all the same. There are no such distinctions of higher and lower on the transcendental platform. The important thing is that we are engaging our time and energy in the service of the Lord. After all, we are so tiny, what can we do? Krishna sees simply that this time is being spent in His service.

From Srila Prabhupada’s letter to Karunamayi — Los Angeles 25 February, 1968