SSR3b The Scriptural Basis of Krsna Consciousness
3a. The Immortal Nectar of the Bhagavad-gītā - 3c. Kṛṣṇa Consciousness: Hindu Cult or Divine Culture? 
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
(published in 1970 as a separate pamphlet)
The Scriptural Basis of Krsna Consciousness
On January 11, 1970, an article in the Los Angeles Times reported that faculty members at the University of California at Berkeley, including Dr. J. F. Staal, professor of philosophy and South Asian languages, had turned down a request to grant credit for an experimental course in Kṛṣṇa consciousness to have been taught by Hans Kary, president of the Hare Kṛṣṇa movement's Berkeley center. In rejecting the proposed course, Dr. Staal suggested that the devotees "spend too much time chanting to develop a philosophy." When the article came to the attention of Śrīla Prabhupāda, the founder and spiritual master of the Hare Kṛṣṇa movement, he initiated an unusual correspondence with the renowned professor.
Excerpt from the Los Angeles Times Article
"Dr. J. F. Staal, Professor of Philosophy and Near Eastern (sic) Languages at UC Berkeley and an instructor in Indian philosophy, believes that the Krishna sect is an authentic Indian religion and that its adherents are sincere. He attributes the Society's rapid increase in members to the tendency of today's younger generation to reject organized churchgoing while at the same time searching for fulfillment of a belief in mysticism.
"He points out, however, that persons who turn away from Christianity, Muhammadanism, and Judaism have usually lost faith with the personal god of those religions and are looking for a mystical religion without absolutes.
" 'These people in the Krishna movement have turned to Hinduism, but, curiously, it is a cult that is highly personalistic,' Staal said. 'They accept a personal god, Krishna, and Christianity has that. I feel that they have transferred some of their Christian background to a Hindu sect.'
"He also feels that they spend too much time chanting to develop a philosophy. On these grounds he and others on the faculty turned down the request to grant credit for an experimental course in Krishna consciousness that will be taught during the winter quarter by Hans Kary, president of the sect's Berkeley temple."
Śrīla Prabhupāda's Letter to the Los Angeles Times
January 14, 1970
Editor
Los Angeles Times
Dear Sir: With reference to your article in the Los Angeles Times dated Sunday, January 11, 1970, under the heading "Krishna Chant," I beg to point out that the Hindu religion is perfectly based on the personal conception of God, or Viṣṇu. The impersonal conception of God is a side issue, or one of the three features of God. The Absolute Truth is ultimately the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Paramātmā conception is the localized aspect of His omnipresence, and the impersonal conception is the aspect of His greatness and eternity. But all these combined together make the Complete Whole.
Dr. J. F. Staal's statement that the Kṛṣṇa cult is a combination of Christian and Hindu religion, as if something manufactured by concoction, is not correct. If Christian, Muhammadan, or Buddhist religions are personal, that is quite welcome. But the Kṛṣṇa religion has been personal from a time long, long ago when Christian, Muhammadan, and Buddhist religions had not yet come into existence. According to the Vedic conception, religion is basically made by the personal God as His laws. Religion cannot be manufactured by man or anyone except God superior to man. Religion is the law of God only.
Unfortunately, all the swamis who came before me in this country stressed the impersonal aspect of God, without sufficient knowledge of God's personal aspect. In the Bhagavad-gītā, therefore, it is said that only less intelligent persons consider that God is originally impersonal but assumes a form when He incarnates. The Kṛṣṇa philosophy, however, based on the authority of the Vedas, is that originally the Absolute Truth is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. His plenary expansion is present in everyone's heart in His localized aspect, and the impersonal Brahman effulgence is the transcendental light and heat distributed everywhere.
In the Bhagavad-gītā it is clearly said that the aim of the Vedic way of searching out the Absolute Truth is to find the personal God. One who is satisfied only with the other aspects of the Absolute Truth, namely the Paramātmā feature or the Brahman feature, is to be considered possessed of a poor fund of knowledge. Recently we have published our Śrī Īśopaniṣad, a Vedic literature, and in this small booklet we have thoroughly discussed this point.
As far as the Hindu religion is concerned, there are millions of Kṛṣṇa temples in India, and there is not a single Hindu who does not worship Kṛṣṇa. Therefore, this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is not a concocted idea. We invite all scholars, philosophers, religionists, and members of the general public to understand this movement by critical study. And if one does so seriously, one will understand the sublime position of this great movement.
The chanting process is also authorized. Professor Staal's feeling of disgust in the matter of constant chanting of the holy name of Kṛṣṇa is a definite proof of his lack of knowledge in this authorized movement of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Instead of turning down the request to give Kary's course credit, he and all other learned professors of the University of California at Berkeley should patiently hear about the truth of this authorized movement so much needed at present in godless society. (Credit for the course was later established.) This is the only movement which can save the confused younger generation. I shall invite all responsible guardians of this country to understand this transcendental movement and then give us all honest facilities to spread it for everyone's benefit.
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
Spiritual Master of the Hare Kṛṣṇa Movement
The Exchange Between Śrīla Prabhupāda and Dr. Staal
January 23, 1970
Swami A.C. Bhaktivedanta
Dear Swamiji:
Thank you very much for sending me a copy of your letter to the Los Angeles Times, now also published in the Daily Californian. I think you will agree with me that apart from publicity, little is gained by discussing religious or philosophic issues through interviews and letters in the press; but allow me to make two brief observations.
First, I know that devotion to Kṛṣṇa is old (though definitely not as old as the Vedas) and has never been influenced by Christianity, Islam, or Judaism (I never referred to Buddhism in this connection). The differences between the personal and impersonal are relatively vague, but adopting this distinction for simplicity, I expressed surprise at seeing people who have grown up in a Western culture which stresses the personal take to an Indian cult which does the same. I am less surprised when people who are dissatisfied with Western monotheism take to an Indian philosophy which stresses an impersonal absolute.
Second, I never expressed nor felt disgust at the chanting of the name of Kṛṣṇa. I am not only not irritated at it (like some people), but I rather like it. But it is an indisputable fact that the Bhagavad-gītā (not to mention the Vedas) does not require such constant chanting. The Gītā deals with quite different subjects, which I treat at some length in my courses on the philosophies of India.
Thanking you,
Yours sincerely,
J. F. Staal
Professor of Philosophy and of South Asian Languages
Reply from Śrīla Prabhupāda to Professor Staal
January 30, 1970
J. F. Staal
Professor of Philosophy and of South Asian Languages
University of California
Berkeley, California
My dear Professor Staal:
I thank you very much for your kind letter dated January 23, 1970. In the last paragraph of your letter you have mentioned that you are not irritated at the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra (like some people), but rather like it. This has given me much satisfaction, and I am sending herewith a copy of our magazine, Back to Godhead, issue number 28, in which you will find how the students (at a program at Ohio State University) liked this chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, although all of them were neophytes to this cult of chanting. Actually this chanting is very pleasing to the heart and is the best means of infusing spiritual consciousness, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, into the hearts of people in general.
This is the easiest process of spiritual realization and is recommended in the Vedas. In the Bṛhan-nāradīya Purāṇa it is clearly stated that it is only chanting of the holy name of Hari (Kṛṣṇa) that can save people from the problems of materialistic existence, and there is no other alternative, no other alternative, no other alternative in this age of Kali.
Western culture is monotheistic, but Westerners are being misled by impersonal Indian speculation. The young people of the West are frustrated because they are not diligently taught about monotheism. They are not satisfied with this process of teaching and understanding. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is a boon to them, because they are being really trained to understand Western monotheism under the authoritative Vedic system. We do not simply theoretically discuss; rather, we learn by the prescribed method of Vedic regulations.
But I am surprised to see that in the last paragraph of your letter you say, "It is an indisputable fact that the Bhagavad-gītā (not to mention the Vedas) does not require such constant chanting." I think that you have missed the following verse in the Bhagavad-gītā, apart from many other similar verses:
- satataṁ kīrtayanto māṁ
- yatantaś ca dṛḍha-vratāḥ
- namasyantaś ca māṁ bhaktyā
- nitya-yuktā upāsate
- (BG 9.14)
The engagement of the great souls, freed from delusion and perfect in their realization of God, is described here: satataṁ kīrtayanto māṁ - they are always (satataṁ) chanting (kīrtayantaḥ) My glories and - nitya-yuktā upāsate - always worshiping Me (Kṛṣṇa).
So I do not know how you can say "indisputable." And, if you want references from the Vedas, I can give you many. In the Vedas, the chief transcendental vibration oṁkāra is also Kṛṣṇa. Praṇava oṁkāra is the divine substance of the Vedas. Following the Vedas means chanting the Vedic mantras, and no Vedic mantra is complete without oṁkāra. In the Māṇḍūkya Upaniṣad, oṁkāra is stated to be the most auspicious sound representation of the Supreme Lord. This is also confirmed again in the Atharva Veda. Oṁkara is the sound representation of the Supreme Lord and is therefore the principal word in the Vedas. In this connection, the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, says, praṇavaḥ sarva-vedeṣu: "I am the syllable oṁ in all the Vedic mantras." (BG 7.8)
Furthermore, in Bhagavad-gītā, Chapter Fifteen, verse 15, Kṛṣṇa says, "I am seated in everyone's heart. By all the Vedas, I am to be known; I am the compiler of Vedānta, and I know Veda as it is." The Supreme Lord, seated in everyone's heart, is described in both the Muṇḍaka and Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣads: dvā suparṇā sayujā sakhāyā... The Supreme Lord and the individual soul are sitting in the body like two friendly birds in a tree. One bird is eating the fruits of the tree, or reactions of material activities, and the other bird, the Supersoul, is witnessing.
The goal of Vedantic study, therefore, is to know the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa. This point is stressed in the Bhagavad-gītā, Chapter Eight, verse 13, where it is stated that by the mystic yoga process, ultimately vibrating the sacred syllable oṁ, one attains to His supreme spiritual planet. In the Vedānta-sūtras, which you have certainly read, the Fourth Chapter, adhikaraṇa 4, sūtra 22, states positively, anāvṛttiḥ śabdāt: "By sound vibration one becomes liberated." By devotional service, by understanding well the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one can go to His abode and never come back again to this material condition. How is it possible? The answer is, simply by chanting His name constantly.
This is accepted by the exemplary disciple, Arjuna, who has perfectly learned the conclusion of spiritual science from the yogeśvara, the master of mystic knowledge, Kṛṣṇa. Recognizing Kṛṣṇa to be the Supreme Brahman, Arjuna addresses Him, sthāne hṛṣīkeśa...: "The world becomes joyful hearing Your name, and thus do all become attached to You." (BG 11.36) The process of chanting is herein authorized as the direct means of contacting the Supreme Absolute Truth, the Personality of Godhead. Simply by chanting the holy name Kṛṣṇa, the soul is attracted by the Supreme Person, Kṛṣṇa, to go home, back to Godhead.
In the Nārada Pañcarātra it is stated that all the Vedic rituals, mantras, and understanding are compressed into the eight words Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare. Similarly, in the Kali-santaraṇa Upaniṣad it is stated that these sixteen words, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare, are especially meant for counteracting the degrading and contaminating influence of this materialistic age of Kali.
All these points are elaborately presented in my book Teachings of Lord Chaitanya.
The process of chanting is, therefore, not only the sublime method for practical perfection of life but the authorized Vedic principle inaugurated by the greatest Vedic scholar and devotee, Lord Caitanya (whom we consider an incarnation of Kṛṣṇa). We are simply following in His authorized footsteps.
The scope of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is universal. The process for regaining one's original spiritual status of eternal life, full with bliss and knowledge, is not abstract, dry theorizing. Spiritual life is not described in the Vedas as theoretical, dry, or impersonal. The Vedas aim at the inculcation of pure love of God only, and this harmonious conclusion is practically realized by the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, or by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra.
As the goal of spiritual realization is only one, love of God, so the Vedas stand as a single comprehensive whole in the matter of transcendental understanding. Only the incomplete views of various parties apart from the bona fide Vedic lines of teaching give a rupturous appearance to the Bhagavad-gītā. The reconciliative factor adjusting all apparently diverse propositions of the Vedas is the essence of the Veda, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness (love of God).
Thanking you once again,
Yours sincerely,
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
February 8, 1970
Swami A.C. Bhaktivedanta
Dear Swamiji:
Thank you very much for your kindness in sending me your long and interesting letter of January 30, together with the last issue of Back to Godhead. So far I have had a few discussions with members of your society here, but they were not entirely satisfactory from my point of view. But now I have your much more authoritative letter, whereby the discussion moves to a higher level.
And yet, I am afraid, you have not convinced me that all the scriptures you quote prescribe only chanting of the name of Kṛṣṇa. Let me refer only to the most important ones.
In the Bhagavad-gītā (9.14), kīrtayantaḥ need not mean chanting of the name of Kṛṣṇa. It may mean glorifying, chanting, reciting, talking, and refer to songs, hymns, descriptions, or conversations. The commentators take it that way. Śaṅkara in his commentary merely repeats the word, but Anandagiri in his vyākhyā classes kīrtana as vedānta-śravaṇaṁ praṇava-japaś ca, "listening to the Vedānta and muttering oṁ" (that the Vedic oṁ is Kṛṣṇa is said in the Bhagavad-gītā, where Kṛṣṇa is also identified with many other things, and which is smṛti, but not in the Vedas, which are śruti). Another commentator, Hanumān, in his Paiśāca-bhāṣya, says that kīrtayantaḥ merely means bhāṣamānaḥ - "talking (about)."
More important, I think, than the precise meaning of this word, is that the entire verse does not require that everyone always engage in kīrtana, but merely states that some great souls do so. This is obvious from the next verse, which states that anye, "others," engage in jñāna: yajñena... yajanto mām, "worshiping me... with the worship of knowledge." The Bhagavad-gītā is broad-minded and tolerant of a variety of religious approaches, although it also stresses one aspect above all others (i.e., sarva-phala-tyāga).
Finally, in the last sūtra of the Vedānta-sūtra, anāvṛttiḥ śabdāt..., śabda refers to the scripture or to the revelation of the Vedas, as is clear from the context and from the commentators. Śaṅkara quotes a number of texts (ending with ity ādi-śabdebhyaḥ, "according to these śabdas") to support this, i.e., to support the statement that "according to the scripture there is no return." He also refers to śabda in this sūtra by saying mantrārtha-vādādi..., "mantras, descriptions, etc." Vācaspati Miśra in the Bhāmati supports this and clarifies it further by adding that a contrary view is śruti-smṛti-virodhaḥ, "in conflict with the smṛti and the śruti"
Thanking you once again for your kind attention.
Yours very sincerely,
J. F. Staal
Reply from Śrīla Prabhupāda to Professor Staal
February 15, 1970
J. F. Staal
Professor of Philosophy and of South Asian Languages
My dear Dr. Staal:
I am very glad to receive your letter dated Sunday, February 8, 1970. I am very much pleased also to note the contents.
Regarding convincing you that all scriptures prescribe chanting of the name of Kṛṣṇa, I can simply present the authority of Lord Caitanya. Lord Caitanya recommended, kīrtanīyaḥ sadā hariḥ ["Hari, Kṛṣṇa, is constantly to be praised" (Śikṣāṣṭaka 3) Cc. Ādi 17.31. Similarly, Madhvācārya quotes, vede rāmāyaṇe caiva hariḥ sarvatra gīyate ("Hari is sung about everywhere in the Vedas and Rāmāyaṇa"). Similarly, in the Bhagavad-gītā (15.15) the Lord says, vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ ("By all the Vedas, I am to be known").
In this way we find all the scriptures aiming at the Supreme Person. In the Ṛg Veda (1.22.20) the mantra is oṁ tad viṣṇoḥ paramaṁ padaṁ sadā paśyanti sūrayaḥ ("The demigods are always looking to that supreme abode of Viṣṇu"). The whole Vedic process, therefore, is to understand Lord Viṣṇu, and any scripture is directly or indirectly chanting the glories of the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu.
Regarding the Bhagavad-gītā, verse 9.14, kīrtayantaḥ certainly means glorifying, chanting, reciting, and talking, as you have said; but glorifying, chanting, or reciting about whom? It is certainly Kṛṣṇa. The word used in this connection is mām ("Me"). Therefore, we do not disagree when a person glorifies Kṛṣṇa, as Śukadeva did in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. This is also kīrtana. The highest among all Vedic literatures is the proper place for such glorification of the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, and this is to be well understood from the verse:
- nigama-kalpa-taror galitaṁ phalaṁ
- śuka-mukhād amṛta-drava-saṁyutam
- pibata bhāgavataṁ rasam ālayaṁ
- muhur aho rasikā bhuvi bhāvukāḥ
- (SB 1.1.3)
"O expert and thoughtful men, relish Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, the mature fruit of the desire tree of Vedic literatures. It emanated from the lips of Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī. Therefore this fruit has become even more tasteful, although its nectarean juice was already relishable for all, including liberated souls." (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.1.3)
It is said that Mahārāja Parīkṣit attained salvation simply by hearing, and similarly Śukadeva Gosvāmī attained salvation simply by chanting. In our devotional service there are nine different methods for achieving the same goal, love of Godhead, and the first process is hearing. This hearing process is called śruti. The next process is chanting. The chanting process is smṛti. We accept both śruti and smṛti simultaneously. We consider śruti the mother and smṛti the sister, because a child hears from the mother and then again learns from the sister by description.
Śruti and smṛti are two parallel lines. Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī therefore says:
- śruti-smṛti-purāṇādi-
- pañcarātra-vidhiṁ vinā
- aikāntikī harer bhaktir
- utpātāyaiva kalpate
- (Brs. 1.2.101)
That is, without references to śruti, smṛti, Purāṇas, and Pañcarātras, unadulterated devotional service is never achieved. Therefore, anyone who shows a devotional ecstasy without reference to the śāstras (Vedic scriptures) simply creates disturbances. On the other hand, if we simply stick to the śrutīs, then we become veda-vāda-ratāḥ,* who are not very much appreciated in the Bhagavad-gītā.
Therefore Bhagavad-gītā, although smṛti, is the essence of all Vedic scripture, sarvopaniṣado gāvaḥ.* It is just like a cow which is delivering the milk, or the essence of all the Vedas and Upaniṣads, and all the ācāryas, including Śaṅkarācārya, accept the Bhagavad-gītā as such. Therefore you cannot deny the authority of the Bhagavad-gītā because it is smṛti; that view is śruti-smṛti-virodhaḥ, "in conflict with the smṛti and the śruti," as you have correctly said.
Regarding Ānandagiri's quotation that kīrtana means vedānta-śravaṇaṁ praṇava japaś ca ("listening to the Vedānta and muttering oṁ"), the knower of Vedānta is Kṛṣṇa, and He is the compiler of Vedānta. He is veda-vit and vedānta-kṛt. So where is there a greater opportunity for vedānta-śravaṇa than to hear it from Kṛṣṇa?
Regarding the next verse, in which it is mentioned that jñāna-yajñena... yajanto mām, the object of worship is Kṛṣṇa, as indicated by mām ("Me"). The process is described in the Īśopaniṣad, mantra 11:
- vidyāṁ cāvidyāṁ ca yas
- tad vedobhayaṁ saha
- avidyayā mṛtyuṁ tīrtvā
- vidyayāmṛtam aśnute
"Only one who can learn the process of nescience and that of transcendental knowledge side by side can transcend the influence of repeated birth and death and enjoy the full blessings of immortality."
The culture of vidyā, or transcendental knowledge, is essential for the human being, otherwise the culture of avidyā, or nescience, binds him to conditional existence on the material platform. Materialistic existence means the pursuit or culture of sense gratification, and this kind of knowledge of sense gratification (avidyā) means advancement of repeated birth and death. Those who are absorbed in such knowledge cannot learn any lesson from the laws of nature, and they do the same things over repeatedly, being enamored of the beauty of illusory things. Vidyā, or factual knowledge, on the other hand, means to know thoroughly the process of nescient activities while at the same time culturing transcendental science and thereby undeviatingly following the path of liberation.
Liberation is the enjoyment of the full blessings of immortality. This immortality is enjoyed in the eternal kingdom of God (sambhūty-amṛtam aśnute), the region of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and is the result obtained by worshiping the Supreme Lord, the cause of all causes, sambhavāt. So in this way real knowledge, vidyā, means to worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa; that is jñāna-yajñena, the worship of knowledge.
This jñāna-yajñena... yajanto mām is the perfection of knowledge, as stated in the Bhagavad-gītā (7.19):
- bahūnāṁ janmanām ante
- jñānavān māṁ prapadyate
- vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti
- sa mahātmā sudurlabhaḥ
"After many births and deaths, he who is actually in knowledge surrenders unto Me (Kṛṣṇa), knowing Me to be the cause of all causes, and all that is. Such a great soul is very rare."
If one has not yet come to this conclusion of knowledge and simply indulges in dry speculation without Kṛṣṇa, then his hard speculative labor is something like beating empty husks of grain. The unhulled rice and the empty husks of rice look very much the same. One who knows how to get the grain out of the unhulled rice is wise, but one who beats on the empty husk, thinking to get some result, is simply wasting his labor uselessly. Similarly, if one studies the Vedas without finding the goal of the Vedas, Kṛṣṇa, he simply wastes his valuable time.
So to cultivate knowledge for worshiping Kṛṣṇa culminates after many, many births and deaths when one actually becomes wise. When one becomes wise in this way, he surrenders to Kṛṣṇa, recognizing Him at last to be the cause of all causes and all that is. That sort of great soul is very rare. So those who have surrendered to Kṛṣṇa life and soul are rare sudurlabha mahātmās. They are not ordinary mahātmās.
By the grace of Lord Caitanya that highest perfectional status of life is being distributed very freely. The effect is also very encouraging; otherwise, how are boys and girls without any background of Vedic culture quickly occupying the posts of rare mahātmās simply by vibrating this transcendental sound, Hare Kṛṣṇa? And simply on the basis of this chanting, the majority of them (those who are very sincere) are steady in devotional service and are not falling down to the four principles of material sinful life, namely (1) meat-eating, (2) illicit sexual connection, (3) taking of intoxicants, including coffee, tea, and tobacco, and (4) gambling. And that is the last sūtra of the Vedānta-sūtra, i.e., anāvṛttiḥ śabdāt ("By sound vibration one becomes liberated").
One has to learn by the result (phalena paricīyate). Our students are ordered to act like this, and they are not falling down. That they are remaining on the platform of pure spiritual life without hankering to culture the above principles of avidyā, or sense gratification, is the test of their proper understanding of the Vedas. They do not come back to the material platform, because they are relishing the nectarean fruit of love of God.
Sarva-phala-tyāga ("renunciation of all the fruits of one's work") is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā by the Lord Himself in the words sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66): "Give up everything and simply surrender unto Me (Kṛṣṇa)." The Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra means "O Supreme Energy of Kṛṣṇa and O Lord Kṛṣṇa, please engage me in Your eternal service." So we have given up everything and are simply engaged in the service of the Lord. What Kṛṣṇa orders us to do is our only engagement. We have given up all resultant actions of karma, jñāna, and yoga; and that is the stage of pure devotional service, bhaktir uttamā.
Yours sincerely,
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
February 25, 1970
Swami A.C. Bhaktivedanta
Founder-Ācārya
International Society for Krishna Consciousness
Dear Swamiji:
Thank you very much for your very interesting letter of February 15, 1970, with enclosure.
I am afraid that whenever you quote a passage purporting to show that only the chanting of the name Kṛṣṇa is required, I can quote another one which requires something else, adding, yadi śloko 'pi pramāṇam, ayam api ślokaḥ pramāṇaṁ bhavitum arhati: "If mere verses are authoritative, this verse also ought to be regarded as authoritative." And there may be no end to this in the foreseeable future, as Patañjali also says, mahān hi śabdasya prayoga-viṣayaḥ: "For vast is the domain for the use of words."
Yours very sincerely,
J. F. Staal
Reply from Śrīla Prabhupāda to Dr. Staal
3764 Watseka Avenue
Los Angeles, California 90034
April 24, 1970
Dear Dr. Staal:
I beg to thank you very much for your kind letter dated February 25, 1970. I am sorry that I could not reply to your letter earlier because I was a little busy in the matter of purchasing a new church estate at the above address. We have secured a very nice place for a separate temple, lecture room, my quarters, and the devotees' residential quarters, all together in a nice place with all the modern amenities.
I beg to request you to visit this place at your convenience, and if you kindly let me know a day before, my students will be very glad to receive you properly.
Regarding our correspondence, actually this quotation and counter-quotation cannot solve the problem. In a court both the learned lawyers quote from law books, but that is not the solution to the case. The determination of the case is the judgment of the presiding judge. So argument cannot bring us to a conclusion.
The scriptural quotations are sometimes contradictory, and every philosopher has a different opinion, because without putting forward a different thesis, no one can become a famous philosopher. It is therefore difficult to arrive at the right conclusion. The conclusion is, as above mentioned, to accept the judgment of authority. We follow the authority of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu, who is nondifferent from Kṛṣṇa, and His version according to Vedic scripture is that in this age this chanting is the only solution for all problems of life. And that is actually being shown by practical experience.
Recently there was a big procession of our students in Berkeley on the Advent Day of Lord Caitanya, and the public has remarked as follows: "This crowd of men is not like others, who assemble to break windows and create havoc." This is also confirmed by the police in the following words: "Members of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement cooperated fully with the police, and their efforts to maintain peaceful order throughout the parade were so successful that only minimal police involvement was required."
Similarly, in Detroit there was a big peace march, and our men were appreciated as "angels" in the crowd. So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is actually needed at the present moment as the panacea for all kinds of problems in human society.
Other quotations will not act very appreciably at this time. In a drugstore there may be many medicines, and all may be genuine, but what is required is that an experienced physician prescribe medicine for a particular patient. We cannot say in this case, "This is also medicine, and this is also medicine." No. The medicine which is effective for a particular person is the medicine for him - phalena paricīyate.
Yours very sincerely,
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
Final Note by Śrīla Prabhupāda
In a court of justice two lawyers put forward their respective relevant arguments taken from the authorized law books to decide a point, but it is up to the judge to decide the case in favor of one of the litigants. When the opposing lawyers put forward their arguments, both of them are legal and bona fide, but the judgment is given as to which argument is applicable to the particular case.
Lord Caitanya gives His judgment on the authority of śāstras that the chanting of the holy names of the Lord is the only means to elevate one to the transcendental platform, and actually we can see it is effective. Each and every one of our students who has seriously taken to this process may be examined individually, and any impartial judge will find it easy to see that they have advanced in their transcendental realization further than any philosophers, religionists, yogīs, karmīs, etc.
We have to accept everything favorable to the circumstances. Rejection of other methods in a particular circumstance does not mean that the rejected ones are not bona fide. But for the time being, taking into consideration the age, time, and object, methods are sometimes rejected even though bona fide. We have to test everything by its practical result. By such a test, in this age the constant chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra undoubtedly proves very effective.
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami