710705 - Lecture Excerpt - Los Angeles

Lectures by Date, 1971

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

710705LE-LOS_ANGELES - July 05, 1971 - 14:01 Minutes

(partially recorded)

Prabhupāda: ". . . if you want to understand Me, then you increase your attachment for Me. Everything will be all right." Just like the same story . . . not story; it is fact. Caitanya Mahāprabhu, when He was traveling in South India, He saw one brāhmin reading Bhagavad-gītā. And persons who knew him, that "That man was illiterate," it was not possible for him to read Bhagavad-gītā. But still, he was trying to read it, and crying also.

So while others were criticizing, Caitanya Mahāprabhu came to him, "Brāhmin, what you are reading?" So he could understand that, "This person, He's not come here to criticize me. He's serious." So he talked seriously, "Sir, I am reading Bhagavad-gītā. Unfortunately, I am illiterate." Now see. He is illiterate and he is reading Bhagavad-gītā?

Caitanya Mahāprabhu inquired that, "How is that, you're reading Bhagavad-gītā and you say you are illiterate?" He said: "Yes, actually I am illiterate, but my Guru Mahārāja asked me that, 'You should read every day eighteen chapters.' So what can I do? (laughter) I have to carry out the order of my spiritual master. So I have simply taken this book. I am seeing it."

Caitanya Mahāprabhu said: "Oh, you are not seeing it simply. You are crying also." "Yes, Sir, I am crying also." "Then if you are not reading, how you are crying?" "Sir, I am not reading, but I am feeling." "What is that?" "As soon as I take this Bhagavad-gītā in my hand, immediately I feel Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna sitting on the same chariot, and Arjuna is ordering Kṛṣṇa that, 'You drive my chariot between the two soldiers,' and Kṛṣṇa is driving. So I am simply feeling how Kṛṣṇa is nice, that He can work as a servant of His devotee. When I feel like that, I cry, how Kṛṣṇa is so kind." Caitanya Mahāprabhu immediately embraced him that, "You are really studying Bhagavad-gītā."

So unless we develop our love for Kṛṣṇa, there is no meaning of reading. And if we can develop our love for Kṛṣṇa just like this brāhmin, even without reading any book, that is wanted. That is wanted. Mayy āsakta-manāḥ (BG 7.1). Therefore Kṛṣṇa also confirms, mayy āsakta-manāḥ, "Simply by increasing attachment for Me." Mayy āsakta-manāḥ pārtha yogaṁ yuñjan mad-āśrayaḥ. Mad-āśrayaḥ. Mad-āśrayaḥ means "under the direction of Me or My representative." Mat.

So one who performs this yoga system, how to increase love for Kṛṣṇa, that's all, then you understand everything. The Vedas, they confirm it: yasmin vijñāte sarvam evaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavanti (Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad 1.3). If you simply understand Kṛṣṇa, then everything will be understood. Because Kṛṣṇa is everything. God is everything. To understand Kṛṣṇa, simply this attachment . . . mayy āsakta-manāḥ. Āsakti means attachment.

So our this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is . . . we are teaching people, our students especially, how to increase attachment for Kṛṣṇa. Why this temple? They are feeling that, "We are sitting in Kṛṣṇa's presence. Kṛṣṇa is so nicely dressed. I am dressing." Otherwise, from atheistic point of view, you see that "Why these people are bothering like this? They have taken a brass idol and wasting time after it?" They can say like that, because they have no love for Kṛṣṇa. But one who has love for Kṛṣṇa, he sees, "Kṛṣṇa is so kind. He's accepting my dressing. I am crowning. I am garlanding." That is a feeling.

So the whole process is to increase our feeling of love for Kṛṣṇa. That is required. Not anything else. Just gopīs. They are not Vedāntist. They are not scholars. They are village girls, and also low class. Brāhmin, kṣatriya—vaiśya, the third class. The fourth class is the śūdra. They were neither brāhmin nor kṣatriya. Vaiśya. Kṛṣi-go-rakṣya-vāṇijyaṁ vaiśya-karma svabhāva-jam (BG 18.44).

Vaiśyas, they have to take three kinds of profession: agriculture, trade and cow protection. As the kṣatriyas were meant for giving protection to the human being, the vaiśyas are understood to give protection to the cows. Go-rakṣya. Go means cow, rakṣya means protection. That is their business. So these Vṛndāvana people, they were . . . Nanda Mahārāja, he had 900,000's of cows, and he was a big man amongst the agriculturist.

So they were ordinary men, agriculturist, taking care of the cows. They were not Vedāntists, not philosopher, not scientist. Ordinary. But what is their credit? The credit is nobody could love Kṛṣṇa excelling them. That was their credit. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu recommended, ramyā kācid upāsanā vrajavadhū-vargeṇa yā kalpitā (Caitanya-manjusa): "There is no comparison of the method of worship which was adopted by the damsels of Vraja." Unalloyed love for Kṛṣṇa. No bargaining: "By loving Kṛṣṇa, I shall become a big man, I shall become great philosopher or great scientist," or "I shall improve my material condition," these are anyābhilāṣitā. And bhakti begins when one is devoid of all these material considerations.

Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam (Brs. 1.1.11). Śūnyam means when one makes zero all these material desires. Jñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam (CC Madhya 19.167): even uncovered by the resultant action of philosophical speculation and fruitive activities. Everyone is working to get some result. That is called fruitive activities. So a pure devotee has no such desires. He has no other desires.

Ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānu-śīlanam. Their only business is how to please Kṛṣṇa. That can be done by everyone, if he wants. Take, for example, if you want to please me, it does not require high education or great amount of riches or knowledge or beauty. Nothing. It is your business how to love me, how to please me. That you will know.

So if we want to love Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa will let us know. Kṛṣṇa is within you. Simply we have to decide that we shall love Kṛṣṇa only. That is wanted. Then everything is there. Ārādhito yadi haris tapasā tataḥ kim, nārādhito yadi haris tapasā tataḥ kim (Nārada Pañcarātra). The kim word is used: "What is the use of?" That is kim.

So the śāstra says that if you have learned how to love Kṛṣṇa, then what is the use of these books? There is no use. You can avoid anything, all this reading. But if you have actually developed your love for Kṛṣṇa . . . and after reading all these books, philosophy, science, if you cannot love Kṛṣṇa, then what is the use of it? Both ways. Useless. If you do not love . . . do not develop your love for God, or Kṛṣṇa, then what is the use of your philosophizing and scientific knowledge? This is all useless. And if you actually have learned how to love Kṛṣṇa, or God, then there is no need of philosophy or science or books.

So therefore the main point is how to develop. Caitanya Mahāprabhu recommends this. Premā pumartho mahān. Our greatest success of life is how to love God, Kṛṣṇa. That is greatest success. Now you can do it. But there is prescribed method, given by great ācāryas. Just like in this temple we are doing. We are timely giving. The atheist will say: "Oh, these are so foolish that they are taking so much labor for preparing food and offering and wasting time.

Best thing would have been to go to some club and enjoy wine and playing cards." They'll waste time in that way. But when . . . we are not wasting, but they say we are wasting time. They will criticize. You see? They are prepared to waste time in a brothel, but if people are sitting nicely in a temple and talking of Kṛṣṇa, serving Kṛṣṇa, they will laugh. That is our position.

So we have to become callous to all these criticism. We have to go on with our business, Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That's all. Thank you . . . (break) (end)