Bhagvad Gita Slokas...

Srila Prabhupada passtimes-14

Year 1974
Vishakapatnam🇮🇳
Sea beach, Morning walk,🚶�🏃� April 22

I was lucky to be in most of the morning conversation with Srila Prabhupada.

But this morning walk was different for me as I, noticed something unusual.

Srila Prabhupada as usual on his morning walk, was having conversation. This time, He was having conversation with Swarup Damodar Maharaj and Tamal Krishna Goswami Maharaj.
We were 18 in numbers.

Brahmananda Maharaj, Shyamsundar, Swarup Damodara Maharaj, Tamal Krishna Maharaj were in first row,

Behind them were 4 devotees, I was one of them.

Behind us were remaining devotees.

I was excited to be, just behind Srila Prabhupada, hearing him, feeling him and I felt, I was the most blessed being in this world.

Walking a long distance, slowly, I was planning in my mind to follow his foot steps.👣

As I was to, trace his foot prints, 👣
My mouth went wide open, I pinched myself, then I closed my eyes couple of times
then I uttered,

oh!! Krishna

I was thinking, I might me illusioned, dreaming, spaced out or else

So, I tapped Tamal Krishna Maharaj, who was beside me by that time, on his shoulder.
Being Mata ji, and tapping Maharaj, I completely forgot what I was doing.

I was Amazed Amazed Amazed

I couldn't speak anything to him, I just pointed and he understood.

He then, asked others to confirm. Then others and others.

All devotees in the back were surprised and amazed to find what I found.

Sorry, I forgot to share what I found.

We all witnessed that very day,
We witnessed that Our Prabhupada is very very special.
Not of this world.

We all had a foot print, but
There was no foot print of His Divine Grace.

There were no impressions left of His marks.

Hare Krishna
Jay Srila Prabhupada

From the "Stories book of Srila Prabhupada" by Malati Mata ji.

Gita Jayanti-The Perfection of Reading the Bhagavad-gita . . .

The Perfection of Reading the Bhagavad-gita . . . Today is Gita Jayanti, the day on which Lord Krishna spoke the Bhagavad-gita to Arjuna. One year on this occasion I heard a beautiful talk in which Srila Prabhupada spoke about the perfection of reading the Gita:

“When Lord Chaitanya was traveling in South India, in a big temple, Ranganath temple, He went to see the Deity, and He saw one brahman was reading Bhagavad-gita. And people were joking with him, ‘Oh, Mr. Brahman, how you are reading Bhagavad-gita?’ Because they were neighbors, they knew that this brahman was illiterate, and he was studying Bhagavad-gita. So they were joking. But the brahman did not care about them. He was taking the book and in his own way he was reading. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu saw this incident. He came to the brahman. He asked the brahman, ‘My dear brahman, what you are reading?’ The brahman could understand, ‘This person is not joking with me; he is serious.’ So he explained, ‘My dear sir, I am reading Bhagavad-gita. Unfortunately, I am illiterate. I do not know even the alphabet.’ ‘Why you are reading Bhagavad-gita?’ So he said, ‘My spiritual master knows that I am illiterate, but still, he has asked me to read Bhagavad-gita. What can I do? Therefore I have taken this book. I am simply seeing. I do not know how to read.’ ‘Oh, that’s all right. You cannot read. But I see that you are crying. How you are crying, if you are not reading?’ ‘Yes, I am crying. Of course, there is cause.’ ‘What is that?’ ‘As soon as I take this Bhagavad-gita, I remember Krishna. Krishna is sitting as driver and Arjuna is hearing. I have heard the story. I know something of the instruction but cannot read. So as soon as I take this book, this picture comes before me and I simply think how Krishna is so nice that He has become a charioteer of His devotee. He is so great. Still, He has accepted a menial service of His devotee. This gives me so much pleasure that I cry.’ Chaitanya Mahaprabhu embraced him, ‘Your Bhagavad-gita reading is perfect. You have taken the essence.’

“If you simply remember how Krishna is teaching Arjuna and Arjuna is hearing—if you simply remember the picture—that is sufficient. Even if you think that you cannot read. Because after all, we have to become Krishna conscious. We don’t have to become a learned man to argue with another learned man. If it is possible, we can do that. But it does not make any difference if I cannot argue with others or if I cannot teach very nicely Bhagavad-gita to others. Simply if I remember this picture, that is perfection. Because we have to become Krishna conscious. We have to simply think of Krishna. You think in any way. That is your perfection. Smartavyah satatam visnuh. This is the injunction. You have to think of Vishnu always. This is samadhi; this is meditation; this is yoga siddhi, perfection of yoga.

“One who has learned to think of Krishna always, he is already on the perfectional stage. Aradhito yadi haris tapasa tatah kim. If one has come to this stage, just to understand Krishna to be the great, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and he’s a surrendered soul: ‘Krishna, whatever You like You do. I am surrendered.’ This is aradhana. Then he isn’t required to undergo any austerities or penance. His everything is finished. And naradhito yadi haris tapasa tatah kim. And if he does not come to this stage, his so-called scholarship, learned argument, this or that—all nonsense, finished. Useless. One has to come to this stage. Therefore Lord Chaitanya embraced the brahman: ‘Yes, your study of Bhagavad-gita is perfect.’ Because one has to come to this stage, thinking of Krishna always.

“So, that is the perfection. Krishna and gopis. They were cowherd girls. Their father, mother, they were only ordinary village [people], keeping cows. That’s all. What was their education? They were not Vedantists. But they learned to love Krishna. That was their qualification. And Chaitanya Mahaprabhu certifies, ramya kacid upasana vraja-vadhu-vargena ya kalpita: ‘Oh, there is no better worship than that which was contemplated by the gopis.’ They did not know what is Krishna, but they loved Krishna. That’s all. They loved Krishna. Because Krishna was God or Krishna was something great? No. Their natural affection was for Krishna. They could not stay even for a moment without seeing Krishna. That was their qualification. This is Krishna consciousness.

“So, one has to come to perfect Krishna consciousness some way or other. That is perfection. We have presented so many formulas. Why? Not that the formulas are important, but the formulas will help me to remember Krishna always. Just like you are going to sell our magazines. So this magazine selling or taking some contribution is not our business. Our business is that we are spreading Krishna consciousness; people are hearing something about Krishna. And because we are helping, we are also hearing. We are also benefiting. When you speak to somebody about Krishna, then I hear also Krishna. Sravanam kirtanam. The first preliminary steps, hearing and chanting, are going on. So in this way we shall take all opportunities so that twenty-four hours, whether awake or sleeping, we shall always think of Krishna. That is perfection. This chanting means always remembering Krishna—Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. I am cooking for Krishna, I am typing for Krishna, I am going to preach for Krishna, I’m distributing Back to Godhead for Krishna. In this way, always remember Krishna; that’s all. That will make you perfect.”

Hare Krishna.
H.H Giriraj Swami

Bhagvad Gita As it is introduction -part-1

Bhagavad-gītā is also known as Gītopaniṣad. It is the essence of Vedic knowledge and one of the most important Upaniṣads in Vedic literature.

The spirit of Bhagavad-gītā is mentioned in Bhagavad-gītā itself. It is just like this: If we want to take a particular medicine, then we have to follow the directions written on the label. We cannot take the medicine according to our own whim or the direction of a friend. It must be taken according to the directions on the label or the directions given by a physician. Similarly, Bhagavad-gītā should be taken or accepted as it is directed by the speaker Himself.

The speaker of Bhagavad-gītā is Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. He is mentioned on every page of Bhagavad-gītā as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Bhagavān. Of course the word bhagavān sometimes refers to any powerful person or any powerful demigod, and certainly here bhagavān designates Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa as a great personality, but at the same time we should know that Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, as is confirmed by all great ācāryas (spiritual masters) like Śaṅkarācārya, Rāmānujācārya, Madhvācārya, Nimbārka Svāmī, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and many other authorities of Vedic knowledge in India. The Lord Himself also establishes Himself as the Supreme Personality of Godhead in the Bhagavad-gītā, and He is accepted as such in the Brahma-saṁhitā and all the Purāṇas, especially the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, known as the Bhāgavata Purāṇa (kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam).

Therefore we should take Bhagavad-gītā as it is directed by the Personality of Godhead Himself.

Here the Lord informs Arjuna that this system of yoga, the Bhagavad-gītā, was first spoken to the sun-god, and the sun-god explained it to Manu, and Manu explained it to Ikṣvāku, and in that way, by disciplic succession, one speaker after another, this yoga system has been coming down. But in the course of time it has become lost. Consequently the Lord has to speak it again, this time to Arjuna on the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra.

Inattentive Chanting

Questions about INATTENTIVE CHANTING and answers by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura from his books:

Q. What is the main impediment blocking one from developing attachment for chanting?
A. If one gives up all the offenses in chanting, but remains inattentive, he can never develop attachment for chanting. (Sajjana Tosani 11/1)

Q. What are the various definitions of inattention while chanting?
A. O Lord! All anarthas are produced when we do not pay attention to our chanting. The exalted devotees have defined inattention as indifference, laziness, and restlessness. (Harinama-cintamani)

Q. What is the symptom of a restless chanter?
A. Those who are afflicted with restlessness try to finish their prescribed rounds as soon as possible. One should be extremely careful not to commit such an offense while chanting. (Harinama-cintamani)

Q. How can laziness be destroyed?
A. The characteristic of a saintly person is that he does not waste time. By seeing such character in another, one will certainly hanker after it. One will think, "Alas! When will I become fortunate enough to chant, sing, and remember the holy names of the Lord like this saintly person?" Such enthusiasm in a lazy person's mind will destroy his laziness because he will remember Krsna. (Harinama-cintamani)

Q. Why does one become indifferent to chanting the holy names?
A. If the desire to accumulate wealth, enjoy the association of women, name and fame, to cheat others, and to seek victory over defeat fills one's heart, that will naturally make one indifferent to chanting the Lord's holy names. (Harinama-cintamani)

Q. Why is inattention in chanting the source of all offenses?
A. O reservoir of all transcendental qualities! If one chants the holy names of the Lord but his attention is elsewhere, how can he benefit? If even such a person chants one hundred thousand holy names of the Lord, still a drop of the mellow of ecstatic love will not be attained. O Lord! This is the definition of inattention while chanting the holy names. This offense is deeply rooted in the hearts of materialists. (Harinama-cintamani)

Vedic Culture: Varṇāśrama-dharma

From the book" perfect questions, perfect answers

Original Tape Transcript

Bob: I've asked devotees about how they feel towards sex in their relations, and I see the way they feel, but I can't see myself acting the same way. See, I'll be getting married at the end of this summer.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Hm-m?

Bob: I'll be getting married at the end of this summer, in September or August when I return to America. And the devotees say that the householders only have sex to conceive a child, and I cannot picture myself at all in such a position, and—What kind of sex life can one lead, living in the material world?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: The Vedic principle is that one should avoid sex life altogether. The whole Vedic principle is to get liberation from material bondage. There are different attachments for material enjoyment, of which sex life is the topmost enjoyment. The Bhāgavatam says that this material world...

puṁsaḥ striyā mithunī-bhāvam etam
[SB 5.5.8]

Man is attached to woman, and woman is attached to man. Not only in human society—in animal society also. That attachment is the basic principle of material life. So, a woman is hankering or seeking after the association of a man, and a man is hankering or seeking for the association of a woman. All the fiction novels, dramas, cinema and even ordinary advertisements that you see simply depict the attachment between man and woman. Even in the tailor's shop you will find in the window some woman and some man.

pravṛttir eṣā bhūtānāṁ
nivṛttis tu mahāphalām
(Manu Smṛti, 5.56)

So this attachment is already there.

Bob: Attachment between man and woman?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Man and woman. So if you want to get liberation from this material world, then that attachment should be reduced to nil. Otherwise, simply further attachment—You will have to take rebirth, either as a human being or as a demigod or as an animal, as a serpent, as a bird, as a beast. You will have to take birth. So, this basic principle of increasing attachment is not our business, although it is the general tendency. Gṛha, kṣetra, suta [home, land, sons]. But if one can reduce and stop it, that is first class. Therefore our Vedic system is to first of all train a boy as a brahmacārī—no sex life. The Vedic principle is to reduce attachment, not to increase it. Therefore the whole system is called varṇāśrama-dharma. The Indian system calls for varṇa and āśrama—four social orders and four spiritual orders. Brahmacarya [celibate student life], gṛhastha [married life], vānaprastha [retired life] and sannyāsa [renounced life]—these are the spiritual orders. And the social orders consist of brāhmaṇas[intellectuals], kṣatriyas [administrators], vaiśyas [merchants and farmers] and śūdras [ordinary workers]. So under this system, the regulative principles are so nice that

even if one has the tendency to enjoy material life, he is so nicely molded that at last he achieves liberation and goes back home, back to Godhead. This is the process. So sex life is not required, but because we are attached to it, therefore there are some regulative principles under which it is maintained.

To be continued....

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, the postgraduate study of the science of Godhead

Medical books of anatomy or physiology are available in the market, but no one can become a qualified medical practitioner simply by reading such books at home. One has to be admitted to the medical college and study the books under the guidance of learned professors. Similarly, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, the postgraduate study of the science of Godhead, can only be learned by studying it at the feet of a realized soul like Śrīla Vyāsadeva. Although Śukadeva Gosvāmī was a liberated soul from the very day of his birth, he still had to take lessons of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from his great father, Vyāsadeva, who compiled the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam under the instruction of another great soul, Śrī Nārada Muni. Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu instructed a learned brāhmaṇato study Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from a personal bhāgavata. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is based on the transcendental name, form, attributes, pastimes, entourage and variegatedness of the Supreme Person, and it is spoken by the incarnation of the Personality of Godhead, Śrīla Vyāsadeva. Pastimes of the Lord are executed in cooperation with His pure devotees, and consequently historical incidents are mentioned in this great literature because they are related to Kṛṣṇa. It is called brahma-sammitam because it is the sound representative of Lord Kṛṣṇa — like the Bhagavad-gītā. Bhagavad-gītā is the sound incarnation of the Lord because it is spoken by the Supreme Lord, and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the sound representative of the Lord because it was spoken by the incarnation of the Lord about the activities of the Lord. As stated in the beginning of this book, it is the essence of the Vedic desire tree and the natural commentation on the Brahma-sūtras, the topmost philosophical thesis on the subject matter of Brahman. Vyāsadeva appeared at the end of Dvāpara-yuga as the son of Satyavatī, and therefore the word dvāpara-ādau, or “the beginning of Dvāpara-yuga,” in this context means just prior to the beginning of the Kali-yuga. The logic of this statement, according to Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, is comparable to that of calling the upper portion of the tree the beginning. The root of the tree is the beginning of the tree, but in common knowledge the upper portion of the tree is first seen. In that way the end of the tree is accepted as its beginning.

Unlimitedly Merciful Lord

Unlimitedly Merciful Lord——
Jagannatha will be very much pleased upon you. Yes. Little service to God is taken as great service. Krsna is so kind. So we should try always to give the best service, best energy, and you become liberated. Actually we cannot give any service to Krsna. He is unlimited. What is the value of our service? But He takes it seriously: "Oh, he is trying to give me some service." Otherwise what service He needs from us?

Suppose He has created these big universes, what service we can give? By His will, He can create millions of universes. What service we can give? We... No. These are the chances of service, this Ratha-yatra. God is so great, so big, how we can pack up in the ratha. But this is a chance, that you get Him sit on the ratha and prepare it, manufacture it. Because your energy is engaged for His service, that is accepted.

So this example... Just like a small child eating lozenges, and out of that, if he offers father, "Father, take it," and father takes it very serious..., "Ah, very nice." And what is that lozenges to the father? It is nothing. But because the child offers to the father in love, father takes it very seriously: "Oh, you are so nice. Yes, yes, give me."

That is stated in Bhagavad-gita [Bg. 9.26] "A leaf, a fruit, a little water." What is the value of these? "Because he is giving Me in faith and devotion, I accept it." And what is this one piece of leaf and a fruit for God? It is nothing. He is being served by many thousands of goddess of fortune. Then what is the value of this leaf and flower and fruit? But still, He says "Yes, I eat them." And once God eats from your hand, then your life is successful.

Srila  Prabhupada Morning Walk -- June 29, 1974, Melbourne

Floating of planets

Since the beginning of creation, the demons and the demigods, or the Vaiṣṇavas, are always the two classes of living beings to dominate the planets of the universes. Lord Brahmā is the first demigod, and Hiraṇyākṣa is the first demon in this universe. Only under certain conditions do the planets float as weightless balls in the air, and as soon as these conditions are disturbed, the planets may fall down in the Garbhodaka Ocean, which covers half the universe. The other half is the spherical dome within which the innumerable planetary systems exist. The floating of the planets in the weightless air is due to the inner constitution of the globes, and the modernized drilling of the earth to exploit oil from within is a sort of disturbance by the modern demons and can result in a greatly harmful reaction to the floating condition of the earth. A similar disturbance was created formerly by the demons headed by Hiraṇyākṣa (the great exploiter of the gold rush), and the earth was detached from its weightless condition and fell down into the Garbhodaka Ocean. The Lord, as maintainer of the whole creation of the material world, therefore assumed the gigantic form of a boar with a proportionate snout and picked up the earth from within the water of Garbhodaka. 

Such is the symptom of an incarnation of the Lord. The incarnation of the Lord is not the concocted idea of fanciful men who create an incarnation out of imagination. The incarnation of the Lord appears under certain extraordinary circumstances like the above-mentioned occasion, and the incarnation performs a task which is not even imaginable by the tiny brain of mankind. The modern creators of the many cheap incarnations may take note of the factual incarnation of God as the gigantic boar with a suitable snout to carry the planet earth.

When the Lord appeared to pick up the earth, the demon of the name Hiraṇyākṣa tried to create a disturbance in the methodical functions of the Lord, and therefore he was killed by being pierced by the Lord’s tusk. 

Srila Prabhupada Passtimes-13

(Tamal Krishna Goswami and Sura dasa witnessed this pastime. Sura dasa has confirmed the accuracy of this story from his diary and recollection. Sura noted that of the three reports that morning, this one brought a smile to Srila Prabhupada’s face.)

It was forty years ago, August, 1977, just three months before Srila Prabhupada was to leave our external vision. Srila Prabhupada was sitting in his room in Vrndavana, very ill and leaning up against the wall, showing little response as some sannyasi’s were giving reports about their preaching activities. Then a devotee arrived with a copy of that day’s Hindustan Times and Srila Prabhupada’s mood dramatically changed. The famous Indian newspaper featured an article about the recent Hare Krishna wedding in Detroit, which was receiving huge international favorable publicity for his movement.

Srila Prabhupada immediately sat up attentively and asked to have the story read to him. The article detailed how Lekhasravanti devi dasi (daughter of legendary labor leader, Walter Reuther) was getting married to fellow devotee Bhusaya dasa, and Ambarisa dasa (great grandson of world famous automotive genius, Henry Ford) was serving as best man. Mukunda Goswami had flown into Detroit a week earlier and had expertly arranged for the world’s top media to take notice.

At this time and for years prior, the Hare Krishna movement had been widely misrepresented through the media as a dangerous cult, accused of holding its members hostage through brainwashing. There had been numerous kidnappings and “deprogrammings” of devotees and even court cases trying to destroy ISKCON. But now, through the wedding’s publicity the world could receive the true accurate view that the Hare Krishna movement is an ancient and authentic spiritual culture, not to be lumped in with the many new cults springing up throughout the world. Quickly, the wedding became recognized by devotees as a major preaching opportunity.

The wedding was favorably covered by TIME, Newsweek, NBC Nightly News, Washington Post, The Guardian, Der Spiegel, and reached most countries around the planet where the Hare Krishna movement was active.. The media’s interest was based upon the famous battles fought between Henry Ford and Walter Reuther, during the early days of unionizing Ford Motor Company. (Both Henry Ford and Walter Reuther were featured by TIME Magazine in their 1998 series “The 100 most Influential People of the 20th Century”). And now two of their descendants were working harmoniously together in Krishna Consciousness, first to jointly purchase the Fisher Mansion as Detroit’s Hare Krishna Temple in 1975, and now two years later, again serving together to display Vaisnava culture through this Vedic wedding.

As Srila Prabhupada listened to the article he heard how the newlyweds were maintaining themselves solely through the distribution of his books, to which he responded, “This is the perfection of householder life.” He was especially pleased to see the article photo and expressed satisfaction that his two disciples, Ambarisa and Lekhasravanti, from such different backgrounds were working together cooperatively to spread Krishna Consciousness.

The devotees had pulled out all the stops to present Krishna Conscious culture to the world. Baradraja Prabhu’s Bhajan Band was flown in from Los Angeles and chanted songs of our vaisnava acharya’s, filling the atmosphere with devotion. Ambarisa Prabhu ordered the most fragrant flowers from Hawaii that were offered to the Deities, and then distributed as flower garlands to each guest. Master Chef, Gopati Prabhu, headed up his team of devotees to create an international cultural display of sumptuous prasadam. Mukhya devi dasi, who had been friends with Lekhasravanti since their University of Michigan days, served as Maid of Honor. Yogesvara Prabhu requested his personal friend, the New York Times Fashion Editor, to cover the event, which she did with a grand photo-journalistic article.

Dozens more Detroit devotees were engaged in making this wedding a showcase for Vaisnava culture. When Srila Prabhupada had requested Ambarisa and Lekhasravanti to purchase the Temple in 1975, he detailed how it should be used for “cultural conquest” and his vision was now beginning to take shape. Srila Prabhupada smiled as he listened to and relished the article and when it was over, requested it to be read to him again!

Srila Prabhupada is a loving father to all his followers. In March, 1974, Lekhasravanti had flown to Bombay to personally meet Srila Prabhupada for the first time. When she arrived, Prabhupada was speaking to friends and followers on a dormitory rooftop. As he spoke about how we are not the body, but we are spirit souls, part and parcel of Krishna, that truth became alive for her. She cried with joy realizing she had finally met her spiritual father.

Lekhasravanti met with Prabhupada the next day and mentioned how her parents were both killed in a plane crash in 1970. Prabhupada immediately consoled her, quoting a Sanskrit verse that her parents were still alive somewhere, as the self (spirit soul) never dies. Srila Prabhupada then asked Lekhasravanti if she wanted to get married. Lekhasravanti tried to be philosophical and replied, “Oh Srila Prabhupada, whatever Krishna desires.” Prabhupada chuckled, “Every girl wants to get married.” Lekhasravanti explained her parent’s had a life insurance policy from which she had inherited a half million dollars and wished to use what she had left in Krishna’s service. At that time she wrote Srila Prabhupada a check for $50,000 which he happily accepted as Krishna’s mercy, and used for printing Srimad Bhagavatams.

Lekhasravanti had previously donated her house to become the first Hare Krishna Temple in Ann Arbor, Michigan. A year later when she co-purchased the Fisher Mansion with Ambarisa to become the new Detroit Temple, she gave the last of her inheritance. At that time Srila Prabhupada showed his concern for Lekhasravanti’s protection when he told Temple President Goverdhan prabhu, “Now make sure she is always taken care of.” And now Srila Prabhupada’s fatherly satisfaction was on display as Lekhasravanti became married in Krishna Consciousness. (And remains so today).

After hearing the Hindustan Times article read to him a second time, Srila Prabhupada asked, “How much money was spent on the wedding”? It was quite a lot at that time, around $10,000 and some thought Prabhupada might disapprove. When told, Srila Prabhupada approved the expenditure and that the wedding was done in a grand style. And that his Krishna Consciousness movement was being recognized by the media and society at large more and more, not as a new cult, but as an ancient, authorized and comprehensive spiritual culture.

Hearing about and glorifying the Lord

one should first of all hear about the Lord. When one has perfectly and scrutinizingly heard, one must glorify His acts and deeds, and thus it will become possible to remember constantly the transcendental nature of the Lord. Hearing about and glorifying the Lord are identical with the transcendental nature of the Lord, and by so doing, one will be always in the association of the Lord. This brings freedom from all sorts of fear. The Lord is the Supersoul (Paramātmā) present in the hearts of all living beings, and thus by the above hearing and glorifying process, the Lord invites the association of all in His creation. This process of hearing about and glorifying the Lord is applicable for everyone, whoever he may be, and it will lead one to the ultimate success in everything in which one may be engaged by providence. There are many classes of human beings: the fruitive workers, the empiric philosophers, the mystic yogīs and, ultimately, the unalloyed devotees. For all of them, one and the same process is applicable for achieving the desired success. Everyone wants to be free from all kinds of fear, and everyone wants the fullest extent of happiness in life. The perfect process for achieving this, here and now, is recommended in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, which is uttered by such a great authority as Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī. By hearing about and glorifying the Lord, all a person’s activities become molded into spiritual activities, and thus all conceptions of material miseries become completely vanquished.

Krishna has unlimited energies

(From the book  "Perfect questions  Perfect Answers" )

continued  from  previous  section.....

Bob: But when you eat the food, there is energy from the sun in the food.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: So, I am giving an example. I am creating some energy by digesting the food, and that is maintaining my body. If your energy supply is not proper, then your body becomes weak or unhealthy. Your body is made out of your own energy. Similarly, this gigantic cosmic body—the universe—is made of Kṛṣṇa's energy. How can you deny it? As your body is made out of your energy, similarly the universal body must be made by somebody's energy. That is Kṛṣṇa. [There is a long pause.]

Bob: I'll have to think about it to follow that.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: What is to follow? It is a fact. [He laughs.] Your hair is growing daily. Why? Because you have some energy.

Bob: The energy I obtain from my food.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Somehow or other you have obtained that energy! And through that energy your hair is growing. So if your body is manufactured by your energy, similarly the whole gigantic manifestation is made of God's energy. It is a fact! It is not your energy.

Bob: Yes. Oh, I see that.

A devotee: Just like—aren't the planets in this universe the sun's energy—a product of the sun's energy?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes, but who produced the sun? That is Kṛṣṇa's energy. Because it is heat, and Kṛṣṇa says, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ: [Bg. 7.4] "Heat—that is My energy." The sun is the representation of the heating energy of Kṛṣṇa. It is not your energy. You cannot say, "The sun is made by me." But somebody must have made it, and Kṛṣṇa says that He did. So, we believe Kṛṣṇa. Therefore we are Kṛṣṇa-ites.

Bob: Kṛṣṇa-ites?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes. Our knowledge is perfect. If I say that heat is the energy of Kṛṣṇa, you cannot deny it, because it is not your energy. In your body there is some certain amount of heat. Similarly, heat is someone's energy. And who is that person? That is Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa says, "Yes, it is My energy." So my knowledge is perfect. Because I take the version of the greatest scientist, I am the greatest scientist. I may be a fool personally, but because I take knowledge from the greatest scientist, I am the greatest scientist. I have no difficulty.

Bob: Excuse me?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: I have no difficulty in becoming the greatest scientist because I take the knowledge from the greatest scientist. [There is a long pause.] "This earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and ego—they are My eight separated energies."

Bob: They are separated energies?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes. Just like this milk. What is this milk? The separated energy of the cow. [Śyāmasundara and Bob, stunned, laugh in realization.] Is it not? It is the manifestation of the separated energy of the cow.

Śyāmasundara: Is it like a by-product?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes.

Bob: So, what is the significance of this energy's being separated from Kṛṣṇa?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: "Separated" means that this is made out of the body of the cow but it is not the cow. That is separation.

Bob: So, this earth and all is made out of Kṛṣṇa but it is not Kṛṣṇa?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: It is not Kṛṣṇa. Or, you can say, Kṛṣṇa and not Kṛṣṇa simultaneously. That is our philosophy. One and different. You cannot say that these things are different from Kṛṣṇa, because without Kṛṣṇa they have no existence. At the same time, you cannot say, "Then let me worship water. Why Kṛṣṇa? The pantheists say that because everything is God, whatever we do is God worship. This is Māyāvāda philosophy—that because everything is made of God, therefore everything is God. But our philosophy is that everything is God but also not God.

Bob: So what on earth is God? Is there anything on earth that is God?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes. Because everything is made out of the energy of God. But that does not mean that by worshiping anything you are worshiping God.

Bob: So what is on earth that is not māyā [illusion]? It is...

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Māyā means "energy."

Bob: It means energy?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes. Māyā—and another meaning is "illusion." So foolish persons accept the energy as the energetic. That is māyā. Just like sunshine. Sunshine enters your room. Sunshine is the energy of the sun. But because the sunshine enters your room, you cannot say that the sun has entered. If the sun enters your room, then your room and yourself—everything—will be finished. Immediately. You will not have the leisure to understand that the sun has entered. Is it not?

Bob: It is so.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: But you cannot say that sunshine is not the sun. Without the sun, where is the sunshine? So you cannot say that sunshine is not the sun. But at the same time, it is not the sun. It is the sun and not the sun—both. That is our philosophy. Acintya-bhedābheda—inconceivable. In the material sense, you cannot conceive that a thing is simultaneously positive and negative. That you cannot think of. That is inconceivable energy. And because everything is Kṛṣṇa's energy, Kṛṣṇa can manifest Himself from any energy. Therefore, when we worship Kṛṣṇa in a form made of something—of earth, water or something like that—that is Kṛṣṇa. You cannot say that it is not Kṛṣṇa. When we worship this metal form of Kṛṣṇa [the Deity form in the temple], that is Kṛṣṇa. That's a fact, because metal is an energy of Kṛṣṇa. Therefore, it is nondifferent from Kṛṣṇa, and Kṛṣṇa is so powerful that He can present Himself fully in His energy. So this Deity worship is not heathenism. It is actually worship of God, provided you know the process.

Bob: If you know the process, then the Deity becomes Kṛṣṇa?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Not becomes—it is Kṛṣṇa.

Bob: The Deity is Kṛṣṇa, but only if you know the process?

Śrīla Prabhupāda:Yes. just like this electric wire—it is electricity. One who knows the process, he can derive electricity out of it.

Śyāmasundara: Otherwise it's just wire.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Just wire.

Bob: So if I build a statue of Kṛṣṇa, it is not Kṛṣṇa unless...

Śrīla Prabhupāda: It is Kṛṣṇa. But you have to know the process of understanding that it is Kṛṣṇa. It is Kṛṣṇa.

Bob: It is not just earth and mud.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: No. Earth has no separate existence without Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa says, "My energy." You cannot separate the energy from the energetic. It is not possible. You cannot separate heat from fire. But fire is different from the heat, and heat is different from the fire. You are taking heat; that does not mean you are touching fire. Fire, in spite of emanating heat, keeps its identity. Similarly, although Kṛṣṇa, by His different energies, is creating everything, He remains Kṛṣṇa. The Māyāvādī philosophers think that if Kṛṣṇa is everything, then Kṛṣṇa's separate identity is lost. That is material thinking. For example, by drinking this milk, little by little, when I finish, there is no more milk; it has gone to my belly. Kṛṣṇa is not like that. He is omnipotent. We are utilizing His energy continually; still He is there, present. Just like a man begetting children unlimitedly, but the man is there. A crude example. It's not that because he has produced hundreds of children, he is finished. So, similarly, God or Kṛṣṇa, in spite of His unlimited number of children, is there.

pūrṇasya pūrṇam ādāya
pūrṇam evāvaśiṣyate
[Īśo Invocation]

"Because He is the complete whole, even though so many complete units emanate from Him, He remains the complete balance." This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Kṛṣṇa is never finished. Kṛṣṇa is so powerful. Therefore He is all-attractive. This is one side of the display of Kṛṣṇa's energy. Similarly, He has unlimited energies. This study of Kṛṣṇa's energy is only one side, or a portion only. So in this way, if you go on studying Kṛṣṇa, that is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. It is not a bogus thing—"maybe," "perhaps not." Absolutely! It is!

Śyāmasundara: And the study itself is never finished.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: No. How can it be? Kṛṣṇa has unlimited energy.

Finished chapter 1

Srila Prabhupada passtimes-12

Crying at Srila Rupagoswami Samadhi

Sripada Hrdayananda Babaji Maharaja was born in Radha Kunda and has been a pujarifor 78 years. He lives next to the Radha Damodara Temple.  At the beginning of the interview, upon being asked if he knew Srila Prabhupada, Babaji Maharaja began to cry, "Never have I seen anyone do sadhana like he did. I have lived all my life in Vraja and I have never seen anyone like him. Prabhupada did many arduous things, he worked  very hard there at the Radha Damodara Temple. At that time it was austere, undeveloped, and very muddy and dirty with no facilities.”

"Many years later, when I heard that it was actually he who had been chosen by Caitanya Mahaprabhu to spread the Hare Krishna Maha-Mantra around the world, I was not surprised.”

"Prabhupada spread this Krishna consciousness by the mercy of Rupa Goswami. Prabhupada used to pray to Rupa Goswami, "You please give me your mercy." And then he got that mercy. I know this because I saw some things he did at the Radha Damodara Temple. My room is still located in the same place as it was then, in 1964 or '65. Many times in the middle of the night, at midnight or 1 or 2 in the morning, I would hear a voice crying from inside the courtyard by Rupa Goswami's samadhi mandira. That voice was calling out and crying but I did not know what it was because I was trying to take rest. But one night, on the full moon, I heard that voice again, so I climbed up to the roof of our house and looked down into the Radha Damodara courtyard. I saw something very amazing. Srila Prabhupada was sweeping the courtyard of Rupa Goswami’s samadhi. He was bending down with a small broom and as he swept the ground by the samadhi, he was crying out, "He Rupa! He Sanatana! He Gurudeva! Please give me your mercy. Without your mercy I cannot do anything. Give me the mercy. Give me the strength that I may fulfill your orders." Then, I realized that it was he who almost every night was calling out as he was sweeping like this." 

Duty of a teacher

(From the book  "Perfect questions  Perfect Answers" )

continued  from  previous  section.....

Bob: What is the proper duty of the teacher in society? Let us say a science teacher. What should he be doing in the classroom?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Classroom? You should simply teach about Kṛṣṇa.

Bob: He should not teach about...

Śrīla Prabhupāda: No. That will include everything. His aim should be to know Kṛṣṇa.

Bob: Can a scientist teach the science of combining acid and alkaline, and this kind of science, with Kṛṣṇa as its object?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: How can it be?

Bob: If you—when one studies science, one finds general tendencies of nature, and these general tendencies of nature point to a controlling force....

Śrīla Prabhupāda: That I was explaining the other day. I asked one chemist whether, according to chemical formulas, hydrogen and oxygen linked together become water. Do they not?

Bob: It's true.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Now, there is a vast amount of water in the Atlantic Ocean and Pacific Ocean. What quantity of chemicals was required?

Bob: How much?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes. How many tons?

Bob: Many!

Śrīla Prabhupāda: So who supplied it?

Bob: This was supplied by God.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Somebody must have supplied it.

Bob: Yes.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: So that is science. You can teach like that.

Bob: Should one bother teaching that if you combine acid and alkaline they form a neutral?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: The same thing. There are so many effervescents. So, who is performing it? Who is supplying the acid and alkaline? [There is a long pause.]

Bob: So this comes from the same source as the water.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes. You cannot manufacture water unless you have hydrogen and oxygen. So, here is a vast—not only this Atlantic or Pacific: there are millions of planets, and there are millions of Atlantic and Pacific oceans. So who created this water with hydrogen and oxygen, and how was it supplied? That is our question. Somebody must have supplied it, otherwise how has it come into existence?

Bob: But should it also be taught how you make water from hydrogen and oxygen? The procedure of burning them together—should this also be taught? That is, you burn hydrogen and oxygen together...

Śrīla Prabhupāda: That is secondary. That is not very difficult. Just like Mālatī made this puri [a kind of bread]. So, there is flour, and there is ghee [clarified butter], and she made a puri. But unless there is ghee and flour, where is the chance of making a puri? In the Bhagavad-gītā there is this statement: "Water, earth, air, fire—they are My energies." What is your body? This external body—that is your energy. Do you know that? Your body is made out of your energy. For example, I am eating...

Bob: Yes.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: So I am creating some energy, and therefore my body is maintained.

Bob: Oh, I see.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: So therefore your body is made out of your energy.

To be continued...............