Bhakti Vikasa Swami's Blog, page 80
July 9, 2023
Vows for controlling the tongue
Krsna realization begins from the tongue. How? Now you simply make it a vow, that “I shall not accept anything that is not offered to Krsna.” And you take another vow, that “I shall not talk anything except glorifying the Lord.” Then you become perfect. Very simple method. Simply you have to make this determination, that “I shall not talk anything which is not about Krsna, and I shall not eat anything which is not offered to Krsna.”
From Srila Prabhupada’s lecture on, Bhagavad-gita 4.27 — April 16, 1974, Bombay.
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July 7, 2023
India’s situation
India is meant for doing welfare activities to the world, but we have forgotten that. We are trying to imitate the Western country and technology, and we have thrown out our Vedic treasure house, our transcendental knowledge treasure house.
Srila Prabhupada, Lecture, 10 Nov 1971
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July 6, 2023
The lowest of the mankind
Naradhama means lowest of the mankind. Why lowest of the mankind? Because mankind means those who are interested to understand God. That is mankind. Otherwise “dog-kind.” The dogs and asses, they are not interested to know what is God. It is the prerogative of the human being to understand what is God. Therefore a man who has got this human form of body does not inquire about God, he is naradhama, the lowest of the mankind. Na mam duskrtino mudhah. And rascal, ass. Na mam duskrtino mudhah prapadyante naradhamah mayayapahrta-jnanah [Bg. 7.15].
Srila Prabhupada, Talk on Bhagavad-gita 12.13-14 — May 12, 1974, Bombay
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July 5, 2023
Sai Baba is the Lord Himself?
The final questioner asked about one of the popular figures on the current spiritual circuit. “Sri Sai Baba is the Lord Himself — what is your opinion of this?”
Perhaps the questioner was hoping for a controversial reaction, but Srila Prabhupada rarely criticizes other so-called gurus in public. Nevertheless, by his reply the audience understood what he really thinks, and they were delighted. “We are rascals, so we do not know all these things,” he said, taking the humble stance. “We know only that Krsna is the Lord. We are not very scholarly.” The audience laughed in appreciation at his punch line: “We only know krsnas tu bhagavan svayam [SB 1.3.28] — only Krsna is the Lord and the rest are all cheaters.”
From Hari Sauri Prabhu’s Transcendental Diary, TD 5-2: New Delhi and Chandigarh
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July 4, 2023
Read, read, read
Bhagavata is the only guide. Read Bhagavata repeatedly, whole life. Safe. Always. Always, whenever there is time, read, read, read.
Srila Prabhupada, Room Conversation — February 16, 1977, Mayapur
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July 3, 2023
Sanatana Gosvami poses himself as a fool
When Sanatana Gosvami left his government post and came to Caitanya Mahaprabhu for the first time, he asked the Lord, “What is education?” Although Sanatana Gosvami knew a number of languages, including Sanskrit, he still inquired about real education. “The general populace calls me highly educated,” Sanatana Gosvami told the Lord, “and I am such a fool that I actually believe them.”
The Lord replied, “Why should you not think you’re well educated? You’re a great scholar in Sanskrit and Persian.”
“That may be,” Sanatana Gosvami said, “but I do not know what I am.” He then went on to tell the Lord: “I do not wish to suffer, but these material miseries are forced upon me. I neither know where I’ve come from nor where I’m going, but people are calling me educated. When they call me a great scholar, I am satisfied, but in truth I am such a great fool that I know not what I am.” Sanatana Gosvami was actually speaking for all of us, for this is our present situation. We may be proud of our academic education, but if asked what we are, we are not able to say. Everyone is under the conception that this body is the self, but we learn from Vedic sources that this is not so. Only after realizing that we are not these bodies can we enter into real knowledge and understand what we actually are.
From Raja-Vidya: The king of Knowledge, by Srila Prabhupada
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July 2, 2023
No more offenses
I remember being present when you were giving darsana in Bhaktivedanta Manor once, and a devotee referred to a passage you wrote in the eighth chapter of The Nectar of Devotion: “The chanting of Hare Krsna is beneficial for eradicating all sins, but if one becomes an offender to the holy names of the Lord, then he has no chance of being delivered.” The devotee appealed to you, that “isn’t there some way of becoming free from these offenses?” You looked at him very gravely and replied, “You are asking this question because you want to offend. Then you want to do something to escape those reactions. But you must stop your offenses. No more offenses.”
Bhakti Caitanya Swami, Vyasa-puja offering, 2000
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July 1, 2023
What India is meant for
India is meant for para-upakara, not for exploiting others. That may be for the fools and rascals in other countries, but India is dedicated.
Srila Prabhupada, Lecture, 3 Apr 1974
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June 30, 2023
Minority fools
Yogesvara: In the United States, there are something called minority groups. Minority group means like the Irish or the Negroes, the Jews…
Prabhupada: They’re also fools. Minority fools. They’re minority fools.
Yogesvara: Minority fools?
Prabhupada: Yes. Because he’s thinking, “I am Irishman.”
Yogesvara: Yes, but their point is that “Even if we are spirit soul, we are still being exploited because we are a small number. So we must band together to protect ourselves.”
Prabhupada: You are exploited always. Why do you blame this man or that man? You are being exploited by maya. Where is your position of freedom?
Yogesvara: They say, “Well, maya we cannot fight, but we can fight the government.”
Prabhupada: Why should you fight? If you cannot… Suppose you cannot… Can you fight with death? Maya, maya has imposed upon you death. So fight with maya, that there will be no death. That you cannot do. So you are always, what is called, defeated. That is your position. Daivi hy esa gunamayi mama maya duratyaya [Bg. 7.14].
[This divine energy of Mine, consisting of the three modes of material nature, is difficult to overcome. But those who have surrendered unto Me can easily cross beyond it.]
So best thing is surrender to Krsna for protection. That is wanted. We don’t think “minority.” Suppose… Hare Krsna people, how many there are in the Paris city? How many?
Yogesvara: Seventy, eighty.
Prabhupada: So we are not sorry that minority. Where is the…? Insignificant. Don’t talk of minority. But we are not sorry. Minority, majority, all these are foolishness. The whole platform is mistaken. [pause] Rupa Gosvami was a minister. He was in the majority. But voluntarily he accepted minority. He went to Vrndavana and living alone, underneath a tree. He was enjoying so much honor. Tyaktva turnam asesa-mandala-pati-srenim [Sri Sri Sad Gosvamy Astaka 4].
[I offer my respectful obeisances unto the six Gosvamis, namely Sri Rupa Gosvami, Sri Sanatana Gosvami, Sri Raghunatha Bhatta Gosvami, Sri Raghunatha dasa Gosvami, Sri Jiva Gosvami, and Sri Gopala Bhatta Gosvami, who kicked off all association of aristocracy as insignificant. In order to deliver the poor conditioned souls, they accepted loincloths, treating themselves as mendicants, but they are always merged in the ecstatic ocean of the gopis‘ love for Krsna and bathe always and repeatedly in the waves of that ocean.]
His associates were big, big zamindars, big businessmen, politicians. Because he’s minister. But he preferred to resign that post and become a minority, to live alone in Vrndavana underneath a tree. Why he preferred this? And remaining there alone, he has given you the Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu. So we have to see how much service we are going to give Krsna. This “minority,” “majority,” these are all material conception of life. If you can give major service to Krsna, that is your success of life. I started this movement alone, minority. Is it not?
Yogesvara: Yes, one.
Prabhupada: One only; less than minority. [laughter] The “minority,” “majority,” these are material conception. And spiritual is how much you are giving service to Krsna. That is considered. That is to be taken into consideration. [pause] Krsna says Himself, manusyanam sahasresu kascid
yatati siddhaye [Bg. 7.3]:
[Out of many thousands among men, one may endeavor for perfection, and of those who have achieved perfection, hardly one knows Me in truth.]
“Out of millions and millions of people, one may understand Me.” So if I have turned so many people to understand Krsna, so that is service. At least, they are trying to understand Krsna.
Morning Walk — June 11, 1974, Paris
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June 29, 2023
Opinion of an ass
In an exchange with the director of research of the Department of Social Welfare, Melbourne, Srila Prabhupada explained his antipathy to public opinion.
Prabhupada: I am giving the example of ideal character.
Director: Yeah, but that’s one opinion.
Prabhupada: No. It will not depend on opinion. What is the value of opinion if the people are all asses? There is no opinion. One should take as it is enjoined in the sastra. No opinion. What is the use of taking the opinion of an ass? So the people are trained up just like dogs and asses, then what is the use of their opinion? If you are to enforce, you must do like this. Just like when we introduced this “No illicit sex,” I never cared for their opinion. What is the use of taking their opinion? “It must be done.” That is the defect of Western civilization: vox populi, taking the opinion of the public. But what is the value of this public? Drunkards, smokers, meat-eaters, woman-hunters. They are not first-class men. What is the use of such third-class, fourth-class men’s opinion? We do not advocate such opinion. What Krsna said, that is standard, that’s all. Krsna is the Supreme, and His version is final.
No opinion, no democracy. When you go to a physician, doctor, for treatment, the physician does not place his prescription for the opinion of other patients: “Now I am prescribing this medicine for this gentleman, now give me your opinion.” Does he do that? All the patients, what they will think? The physician is the perfect person. Whatever he has written as the prescription, that’s all. But here in the West, everything, public opinion. What is the use of such opinion?
Director: You don’t think the patients have any mind of their own?
Prabhupada: They have a mind, but that is deprecated mind. Just like a madman has got his mind, but what is the value of that mind? You are not going to take the opinion of a madman. He has his mind, but he is a madman. Mudha. Mayayapahrta-jnana. His knowledge has been taken away. The mind being in disordered condition, there is no value of his opinion.
Public we don’t care. Wei What is the public? We have got our own public here. So pubi What is the public? All rascals. They are killing cows and drinking and topless dance, bottomless dance. What is the value of this public? All rascals. I don’t give any importance to this class of public, only after sense gratification, that’s all. They have no ideals of life.
They do not know what is God. What is the value of this public? Mudhas. If he cannot (follow after initiation), then he is cat and dog. He is not a human being. Why he should accept initiation? Let him remain a cat and dog. He promises to follow, and if he cannot follow, then he is nothing but cat and dog. In the court, they take promises, that “In the name of God, “”In the name of Bible.” So that means he will speak the truth. Similarly, before the fire, before Deity, before guru, before devotees, he is promising something, and if he does not follow, then he is cat and dog. He cannot advance. It is not possible. That is the distinction between cat and dog and human being. Cat and dog, they cannot promise. It is not possible. But a human being can promise. And if he keeps his promise, then he is human being. Otherwise cat and dog. Word of honor. The cats and dogs, they have no sense of honor. Either you kick him or pat, he does not know what is the difference. That is cat and dog. He does not know the distinction. A human being knows what is promise, what is word of honor.
Jan 10, 74
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