Prabhupada:

munayaḥ; sadhu prṣṭo 'haṁ
bhavadbhir loka-maṅgalam
yat krtaḥ; krṣṇa-samprasno
yenatma suprasidati
[SB 1.2.5]

Ladies and gentlemen, I thank you very much for your kindly coming here to participate in this Krṣṇa consciousness movement. So I am reciting one or two verses from Srimad-Bhagavatam, First Canto, Second Chapter, wherein Suta Gosvami describes to the great sages assembled in Naimiṣaraṇya in respect of the importance of Krṣṇa consciousness. Naimiṣaraṇya, perhaps you have heard the name. At present there is a railway station near..., between Hardoi and Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh. The station is called Nimsar, and still the Naimiṣaraṇya atmosphere is maintained there. It is a very nice, sacred place. If you go there, you will feel immediately Krṣṇa consciousness. So, in that meeting, the great sages and saintly persons assembled there inquired from Suta Gosvami that "After departure of Lord Krṣṇa, wherein the principles of religions are kept?" Krṣṇa appeared for re-establishing the religious principle, dharma saṁsthapanarthaya. When Krṣṇa, or any incarnation of the Lord descends, there are two kinds of missions. One mission is paritraṇaya sadhunam [Bg. 4.8]. The sadhus, or the devotees, they are very much anxious to meet God, Krṣṇa, so He fulfills the desires of the sadhu, and by the way He also vinasaya ca duṣkrtam. Duṣkrtaḥ; means sinful, impious, to kill them.

So Krṣṇa has got two businesses. One, to give protection to the devotee, and the other is to kill the demon. Just like Krṣṇa appeared as kesava dhrta narahari-rupa, Nrsiṁhadeva, and Narahari, Nrsiṁhadeva, one side He was blessing Prahlada Maharaja, the devotee, and the other side He was killing his atheist father, Hiraṇyakasipu. You have seen the picture. So Krṣṇa, when He has got the fighting spirit... Because Krṣṇa is the source of everything, janmady asya yataḥ; [SB 1.1.1]. Here in this world also, you find two things: friendship and hostility. Just like modern political atmosphere, sometimes there is conference of friendships, and sometimes there is fight with lethal weapons. So this duality is visible in this material world, but in the spiritual world there is no duality. There is absolute peace and... [break]. ...So when He wants to fight, He comes here, because here there are many demons. So His fighting spirit is satisfied. Otherwise, for killing the demon, Krṣṇa does not require to descend. There are many agents of Krṣṇa. For example, this city, Visakhapatnam, on the seashore, if Krṣṇa desires, this whole city can be killed in a second, simply by overflooding the sea, or by storm. He has got many agents, parasya saktir vividhaiva sruyate [Cc. Madhya 13.65, purport]. Or the material agents, Durga devi, she can all, do all these things. So Krṣṇa does not require to descend for killing the demons, but when He feels, just like a rich man sometimes feels to contest with some wrestler, that does not mean he requires it. That is the Krṣṇa spirit. He is all-blissful. So when Krṣṇa comes, descends, there are many demons. He especially comes for the devotee. But when He fights with the demon, that is also His favor, because anyone killed by Krṣṇa, he immediately attains liberation. Therefore Krṣṇa is absolute. Either He fights or blesses, the result is the same.

So this inquiry was made by the great sages in Naimiṣaraṇya, that "After departure of Krṣṇa, wherein the principles of religions are kept?" So the answer was given by Suta Gosvami. He says, in the very beginning, munayaḥ; sadhu prṣṭo 'ham: [SB 1.2.5] "Your question is very auspicious." Munayaḥ; sadhu prṣṭo 'haṁ bhavadbhir loka-maṅgalam: "This question is very auspicious to the human society." Why? Yat krtaḥ; krṣṇa-samprasno: "Because you have inquired about Krṣṇa." So, someway or other, if you talk of Krṣṇa, then it is loka-maṅgalam. Those who are talking about Krṣṇa and those who are hearing about Krṣṇa, both of them are benefited. It doesn't matter whether he understands or not, if he simply (aside:) You can stop. These children are creating disturbance. So the purpose is that this Krṣṇa consciousness movement is hearing and chanting about Krṣṇa. The shortcut is to chant the Hare Krṣṇa mantra. So anyone who chants this Hare Krṣṇa and anyone who hears Hare Krṣṇa, both of them are benefited.

There is another verse in this chapter:

srṇvataṁ sva-kathaḥ; krṣṇaḥ;
puṇya-sravaṇa-kirtanaḥ;
hrdy antaḥ; stho hy abhadraṇi
vidhunoti suhrt satam
[SB 1.2.17]

Our heart is filled up with dirty things. The dirty things is misunderstanding. The first misunderstanding is accepting, identifying oneself with this body: "I am this body," "I am American," "I am Indian," "I am Hindu," "I am Muslim," "I am Christian," "I am this," "I am that." This identification is one of the greatest misunderstanding, and when Krṣṇa began His teaching in the Bhagavad-gita, He first... Because Arjuna accepted Him a his spiritual master. In the beginning he was talking like friend, but when the questions were not solved, Arjuna accepted Krṣṇa as his spiritual master, siṣyas te 'haṁ sadhi maṁ prapannam [Bg. 2.7]. At that time, when Krṣṇa was accepted by Arjuna as his spiritual master, He first of all chastised him. He said, asocyan anvasocas tvaṁ prajña-vadaṁs ca bhaṣase [Bg. 2.11]. Because Krṣṇa..., Arjuna was talking as a family man, so therefore He first of all chastised him that "You are talking from a low-grade platform, but you are talking just like a learned man. You are not learned." Gatasun agatasuṁs ca nanusocanti paṇḍitaḥ;. "You are not talking like a learned man." That means Krṣṇa indirectly said that "You are a fool. You do not know what is your identification."

Then He explained that,

dehino 'smin yatha dehe
kaumaraṁ yauvanaṁ jara
tatha dehantara-praptir
dhiras tatra na muhyati
[Bg. 2.13]

The soul is eternal and the body is temporary. It is changing every minute. Just like from our mother's womb, our first birth takes place between the father and mother. Two secretions emulsified, forms into a pealike body, a small pealike body. First night the soul takes shelter within that body, and the mother supplies the energy, and it develops. From that pea it becomes a small body, but the small body becomes greater and greater, and when it is fit for developing, or increasing in this material atmosphere, mother delivers the child and again it becomes developing. So developing means changing the body. Child's body... Every one of us had a body like a child, baby, but that body is now missing; we have got a different body. Young man has got a different body, old man has got a different body. So this is a fact, that the soul is there, but body is changing. Therefore the natural conclusion should be that when we leave this body, I take another body.

There is no difficulty to understand this reasonable proposition of Bhagavad-gita.

dehino 'smin yatha dehe
kaumaraṁ yauvanaṁ jara
tatha dehantara-praptir
dhiras tatra na muhyati
[Bg. 2.13]

As dehantaram, from childhood to boyhood, boyhood to youthhood, is dehantaram, another body, similarly, old man, when the body is very old, it cannot be used anymore, or the supply ingredients is almost finished, then this body we give up; we accept another body. Now this body we are changing from multiforms of bodies, jalaja nava-lakṣani sthavara lakṣa-viṁsati krmayo rudra-saṅkyakaḥ;, in this way 8,400,000 species of body we are changing. And this human form is the greatest benediction for the soul to understand Krṣṇa. And Krṣṇa says if in this body we try to understand Krṣṇa, janma karma me divyam yo janati tattvataḥ; [Bg. 4.9], if we simply to understand Krṣṇa, how Krṣṇa comes, what is His business, paritraṇaya sadhunaṁ vinasaya ca duṣkrtaṁ dharma-saṁsthapanarthaya [Bg. 4.8], what kind of religious principles He re-establishes, sambhavami yuge yuge...

So these things are explained very nicely in the Bhagavad-gita. Everyone in India knows Bhagavad-gita, and not only in India, throughout the whole world Bhagavad-gita is very well known and widely read book of knowledge. I have traveled all over the world. In every country there are different language, translations of Bhagavad-gita, and in Japanese countries there is Bhagavad-gita, in Muslim countries there is Bhagavad-gita. So Bhagavad-gita is the universal book of knowledge, and our Krṣṇa consciousness movement is based on this Bhagavad-gita. We have not manufactured anything. The same thing, which is very, very old, at least from historical point of view it is five thousand years old, but from scriptural point of view it is more than forty millions of years old. So our Krṣṇa consciousness movement is based on this Bhagavad-gita, because it is full of krṣṇa-samprasno. Here Suta Gosvami says, yat krtaḥ; krṣṇa-samprasno loka-maṅgala. "The questions raised by you," bhavadbhiḥ;, "by you, loka-maṅgala." The Bhagavad-gita should be read very widely, and should be understood very widely. That is the only source of auspicity for the human society. But don't misrepresent it. It has become a fashion now to misrepresent, comment on Bhagavad-gita according to one's whims. That is very dangerous. That is very dangerous. Bhagavad-gita should be read, should be understood as prescribed in the Bhagavad-gita. Krṣṇa says, in the Fourth Chapter, evaṁ parampara-praptam imaṁ rajarṣayo viduḥ; [Bg. 4.2]. The Bhagavad-gita should be understood by the line of disciplic succession of authorized acaryas. Fortunately, in your South India all the great acaryas appeared-Saṅkaracarya, Ramanujacarya, Madhvacarya, Viṣṇu Svami, all of them. So you are very fortunate, and the acarya commentary is also there. Ramanujacarya commentary is there, Madhvacarya commentary is there. So you take advantage and read them very nicely. That is our request, Krṣṇa consciousness. And try to understand Krṣṇa. If you simply understand Krṣṇa, then the result will be, janma karma me divyam yo janati tattvataḥ;, in truth, if fact, which you can do only if you follow the acaryas, not these rascals. Don't follow any rascal. You follow the acarya, you get the benefit of Krṣṇa consciousness. That is our request. Tyaktva dehaṁ punar janma naiti [Bg. 4.9]. Then your human form of life will be blessed. You'll get success in obtaining this human form of life. Not only that. You are all mothers here. Teach your children from the very beginning, as it is recommended by Prahlada Maharaja,

kaumara acaret prajño
dharman bhagavatan iha
durlabhaṁ manuṣaṁ janma
tad apy adhruvam arthadam
[SB 7.6.1]

Prahlada Maharaja said that children should be taught about religious principle, especially Bhagavata dharma. What is dharma and Bhagavata dharma? Bhagavata dharma means the dharma of the soul, and ordinary dharma means the dharma of this body. Generally we understand the varṇasrama-dharma, catur-varṇyaṁ maya srṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhagasaḥ;: [Bg. 4.13] the brahmaṇas, the kṣatriyas, the vaisyas, and the sudras, brahmacari, grhasta, vanaprastha, and sannyasa. So actually this is our..., Vedic principle is varṇasrama-dharma. So this varṇasrama-dharma is in relationship with this body. But we are not this body. Dehantaraṁ prap..., we are changing our body. So sometimes we may become a sudra, sometimes we may become brahmaṇa—that is change. But when you come to the platform of the soul, na hanyate hanyamane sarire [Bg. 2.20], that dharma, when it begins, the dharma of the soul, that is called bhagavata-dharma, because when one is, uh... I mean, in the platform, on the platform of understanding soul, that is called brahma-jñana, atma-jñana. So when one comes to the platform of brahma understanding, that is called brahma-bhuta [SB 4.30.20]. Brahma-bhutaḥ; prasannatma: [Bg. 18.54] when you come to that platform, understanding of the soul, then you become joyful, free from material anxiety. Just like you are on a ship and it is in danger on the ocean, tottering. At any moment you can drown. But somehow or other, if you come to the land, you feel safety, "Now I am safe." Similarly, this bodily consciousness—"I am Indian," "I am American," "I am Hindu," "I am Muslim," "I am this," "I am that"—that is just on the tottering sea. But if you come immediately on the spiritual platform, then prasannatma, "Now I am safe." Brahma-bhutaḥ; prasannatma na socati na kaṅkṣati [Bg. 18.54]. To Brahman realized soul, he has no more any hankering, nor any lamentation. So long we are on the bodily platform, we are hankering and lamenting. We are hankering for things which we do not possess, and we lament for things we lose. There are two business: to gain some material profit or lose it. This is bodily platform. But when you come to the spiritual platform, there is no more question of loss and profit. Equilibrium. So brahma-bhutaḥ; prasannatma na socati na kaṅkṣati, samaḥ; sarveṣu bhuteṣu [Bg. 18.54]. Because he has no more hankering and lamenting, there is no more enemy. Because, if there is enemy, then there is lamenting, but if there is no enemy, then samaḥ; sarveṣu bhuteṣu mad-bhaktiṁ labhate param [Bg. 18.54]. That is the beginning of transcendental activities, bhakti.

So our Krṣṇa consciousness movement is directly giving this bhakti platform, by the mercy of Krṣṇa, in the form of Lord Sri Krṣṇa Caitanya Mahaprabhu. He is distributing Krṣṇa immediately, because in this age people are so fallen, mandaḥ; sumanda-matayo manda-bhagya hy upadrutaḥ; [SB 1.1.10]. Alpayu: they're living for a short time, and mandaḥ;, mandaḥ; means very slow or inferior quality of human being. Not superior. Inferior quality means in this age there is practically no brahmaṇa; all sudras. Kalau sudra sambhavaḥ;, actually also it is so, because people in this age, if he gets one nice service, master, he is satisfied. One wife, one service, then his life is dakṣyaṁ kuṭumba bharaṇam. In this age if one can maintain his wife and few children, ah, he is very expert. He is to be considered dakṣa, very expert. You have no more to make any sacrifice. Simply if he is somehow or other able to maintain a wife, that is... That has also become impossible. The social system is coming to such degraded position. In Europe and America I have seen, very few men are family men, you see, because it is botheration. They think it is botheration or it is very heavy task. Actually, in their country it is very heavy task by so many laws and so many conventions. So they avoid marriage. So therefore, in the symptoms of Kali-yuga it has been stated, dakṣyaṁ kuṭumba-bharanam. Kuṭumba means family. If one can maintain his family, he is to be considered as very successful. No, he hasn't got to make dakṣa-yajña, or naradeva-yajña, or so many yajña. No. That he has no means. This is the position. Mandaḥ; sumanda-matayo [SB 1.1.10]. And if anyone wants to accept something for spiritual, that is sumanda-matayo, something bogus. He will accept something bogus which has no spiritual, I mean to say, reference. He will accept, "I have... I have got this religion." Mandaḥ; sumanda-matayo manda-bhagya. Because they're all unfortunate, and upadrutaḥ;, and always disturbed and anxious by so many external affairs.

Therefore, in this age Caitanya Mahaprabhu has given us very shortcut method, not manufactured by Him. No saintly acarya will manufacture his way. He must refer to the Vedic literature. So Caitanya Mahaprabhu picked up the Vedic instruction, harer nama harer nama harer namaiva kevalam/ kalau nasty eva nasty eva nasty eva gatir anyatha [Cc. Adi 17.21] from Brhad Naradiya Puraṇa. In the Srimad-Bhagavatam also it is said,

kaler doṣa-nidhe rajan
asti hy eko mahan guṇaḥ;
kirtanad eva krṣṇasya
mukta-saṅgaḥ; paraṁ vrajet
[SB 12.3.51]

So Caitanya Mahaprabhu picked up these Vedic instruction and introduced it to the world five hundred years ago, and He predicted that this mission should be spread all over the world, and specially the task was entrusted with Indians. He said specifically that,

bharata-bhumite manuṣya-janma haila yara
janma sarthaka kari' kara para-upakara
[Cc. Adi 9.41]

Those who have taken birth as human being in India, they should take this task of distributing Krṣṇa consciousness all over the world, for doing well to others. (applause)

So I request that we have made a background only for spreading Krṣṇa consciousness, and this movement has a great demand all over the world. They are confused with this materialistic way of life. They are not satisfied. Many thousands and thousands of young men, they are confused. They do not know what to do, but they do not like to live like their fathers or grandfathers. So this is an opportunity for spreading this mission of Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Krṣṇa consciousness, and Krṣṇa amongst the scholars, amongst the religionists, amongst the philosophers, even amongst people in general. This Krṣṇa book, Bhagavad-gita, is very well known, so take this opportunity, both ladies and gentlemen in India, and present Krṣṇa consciousness without any adulteration. Don't do this misservice, adding something rascaldom in Bhagavad-gita. In Bhagavad-gita it is simply mentioned, and it is described, that Krṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Mattaḥ; parataraṁ nanyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya [Bg. 7.7]. There is no greater authority than Krṣṇa.

ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavo
mattaḥ; sarvaṁ pravartate
iti matva bhajante maṁ
budha bhava-samanvitaḥ;
[Bg. 10.8]

These things are there. So my request is that your South Indian people are very intelligent men, and you are benedicted by the blessings of all acaryas. My sincere request is that you take up this movement seriously and spread all over the world. Join with us.

Thank you very much. (applause) (end)

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