ethos Posted October 31, 2002 Author Report Share Posted October 31, 2002 Syamasundara dasa: As far as we know, Socrates was a self-taught man. Is it possible for a person to be self-taught? That is, can self-knowledge be attained through meditation, or introspection? Srila Prabhupada: Yes. Ordinarily, everyone thinks according to the bodily conception. If I begin to study the different parts of my body and seriously begin to consider what I am, I will gradually arrive at the study of the soul. If I ask myself, “Am I this hand?” the answer will be, “No, I am not this hand. Rather, this is my hand.” I can thus continue analyzing each part of the body and discover that all the parts are mine but that I am different. Through this method of self-study, any intelligent man can see that he is not the body. This is the first lesson of Bhagavad-gita: “As the embodied soul continuously passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. the self-realized soul is not bewildered by such a change.” (Bg. 2.13) At one time I had the body of a child, but now that body is no longer existing. Still, I am aware that I possessed such a body; therefore from this I can deduce that I am something other than the body. I may rent an apartment, but I do not identify with it. The body may be mine, but I am not the body. By this kind of introspection, a man can teach himself the distinction between the body and the soul. As far as being completely self-taught––according to Bhagavad-gita and the Vedic conception, life is continuous. Since we are always acquiring experience, we cannot say that Socrates was self-taught. Rather, in his pervious lives he cultivated knowledge, and this knowledge is continuing. That is a fact. Otherwise, why is one man intelligent and another man ignorant? This is due to continuity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ethos Posted October 31, 2002 Author Report Share Posted October 31, 2002 Hayagriva dasa: Socrates believed that through meditation, a person can attain knowledge, and through knowledge he can become virtuous. When he is virtuous, he acts in the right way, and by so doing, becomes happy. Therefore, the enlightened man is meditative, knowledgeable, and virtuous. He is also happy because he acts properly. Srila Prabhupada: Yes, that is confirmed in Bhagavad-gita: “One who is thus transcendentally situated at once realizes the Supreme Brahman. He never laments or desires to have anything; he is equally disposed toward every living entity. In that state he attains pure devotional service unto Me.” (Bg. 18.54) When one is self-realized, he immediately becomes happy, joyful (prasannatma). This is because he is properly situated. A person may labor a long time under some mistaken idea, but when he finally comes to the proper conclusion, he becomes very happy. He thinks, “Oh, what a fool I was, going on so long in such a mistaken way.” Thus, a self-realized person is happy. Happiness means that you no longer have to think of attaining things. For instance, Dhruva Maharaja told the Lord: Svamin krtartho ’smi. “I don’t want any material benediction.” Prahlada Maharaja also said, “My Lord, I don’t want any material benefits. I have seen my father, who was such a big materialist that even the demigods were afraid of him, destroyed by You within a second. Therefore I am not after these things.” Real knowledge means that you no longer hander. The karmis, jnanis and yogis are all hankering after something. The karmis want material wealth, beautiful women and good positions. If one is not hankering for what one does not ahve, he is lamenting for what he has lost. The jnanis are also hankering, expecting to become one with God and merge into His existence. The yogis are hankering after some magical powers to befool others into thinking tha they have become God. In India, some yogis convince people that they can manufacture gold and fly in the sky, and foolish people believe them. Even if a yogi can fly, there are many birds flying. What is the difference? An intelligent person can understand this. If a person says that he can walk on water, thousands of fools will come to see him. People will even pay ten rupees just to see a man bark like a dog, not thinking that there are many dogs barking anyway. In any case, people are always hankering and lamenting, but the devotee is fully satisfied in the service of the Lord. The devotee doesn’t hanker for anything, nor does he lament. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ethos Posted November 1, 2002 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2002 Syamasundara dasa: When you say that Krsna consciousness is the ultimate goal of life, does this mean always being conscious of Krsna? Srila Prabhupada: Yes, we should always be thinking of Krsna. We should act in such a way that we have to think of Krsna all the time. For instance, we are discussing the philosophy of Socrates in order to strengthen our Krsna consciousness. Therefore the ultimate goal is Krsna. Otherwise, we are not interested in criticizing or accepting anyone’s philosophy. We are neutral. Syamasundara dasa: So the proper use of intelligence is to guide everything in such a way that we become Krsna consciousness? Srila Prabhupada: That is it. Without Krsna consciousness, we remain on the mental platform. Being on the mental platform means hovering. On that platform, we are not fixed. It is the business of the mind to accept this and reject that, but when we are fixed in Krsna consciousness, we are no longer subjected to the mind’s accepting and rejecting. Syamasundara dasa: Right conduct then becomes automatic? Srila Prabhupada: Yes. As soon as the mind wanders, we should immediately drag it back to concentrate on Krsna. While chanting, our mind sometimes wanders far away, but when we become conscious of this, we should immediately bring the mind back to hear the sound vibration of Hare Krsna.. that is called yoga-abhyas, the practice of yoga. We should not allow the mind to wander elsewhere. We should simply chant and hear. That is the best yoga system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ethos Posted November 1, 2002 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2002 Hayagriva dasa: In additon to believing in the value of insight, or meditation, Socrates also believed that knowlede can be imparted from one person to another. He therefore asserted the importance of a guru, which he himself was from many people. Sometimes, posing as an ignorant person, Socrates would question his disciples. He would not offer the answers but would try to draw them out of his disciples, a process known as the maieutic method. He considered himself to be a kind of midwife drawing the truth from the repository of the soul. Srila Prabhupada: This is similar to our method because we say that you must approach a guru in order to learn the truth. This is the instruction given in all Vedic scriptures. In Bhagavad-gita, Lord Krsna Himself advises: “Just try to learn the truth by approaching a spiritual master. Inquire from him submissively and render service unto him. The self-realized soul can impart knowledge unto you because they have seen the truth.” (Bg. 4.34) A guru who knows the truth is one who has seen the truth. People say, “Can you show me God?” It is a natural tendency to want to know something by direct perception. This is possible by advanced devotion. As I have already explained: santah sadaiva hrdayesu vilokayanti. The realized devotee is constantly seeing the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Syamasundara. You can constantly see the Supreme Lord as Paramatma sitting within your heart, and you can take advice from Him. Krsna also condirms this: buddhi-yogam dadamyaham. Yoga means concentrating the mind in order to see the Supersoul within. Therefore you have to control the activities of the senses and withdraw them from material engagement. when your concentration is perfect, when your mind is focused on Paramatma, you always see Him. In Bhagavad-gita, Krsna says: “And of all yogis, he who always abides in Me with great faith, worshiping Me in transcendental loving service, is most intimately united with Me in yoga and is the highest of all.” (Bg. 6.47) The perfect yogi sees God constantly within. That is perfection. The process that Socrates used gave his disciples a good chance to develop their understanding. When a parent raises a child, he first of all takes his hand and teaches him how to walk. sometimes he gives the child freedom to walk on his own, although he may sometimes fall down. the father then encourages the child, saying, “Ah, you are doing very nicely. Stand up again and walk.” Similarly, the guru gives his disciple the chance to think properly in order to go back home, back to Godhead. Sometimes, when a person comes to argue, the guru says, “All right, what do you consider important?” In this way, the person’s position is understood. An expert teacher knows how to capture a fool. First, let the fool go on and speak all sorts of nonsense. Then he can understand where he is having difficulty. That is also a process. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ethos Posted November 1, 2002 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2002 Hayagriva dasa: It has been said that Socrates philosophy is primarily a philosophy of ethics, pointing to the way of action in the world. Jnana, or knowledge in itself, is not sufficient. It must be applied, and must serve as a basis for activity. Srila Prabhupada: Yes, ethics form the basic principle of purification. We cannot be purified unless we know what is moral and what is immoral. Unfortunately, everything in this material world is more or less immoral, but we still have to distinguish between good and bad. Therefore we have regulative principles. By following them, we can come to the spiritual platform and transcend the influence of the three modes of material nature. Passion is the binding force in the material world. In a prison, prisoners are sometimes shackled, and similarly, material nature provides the shackles of sex life to bind us to this material world. This is the mode of rajas, passion. In Bhagavad-gita, Krsna says: “It is lust only, Arjuna, which is born of contact with the material mode of passion and later transformed into wrath, and which is the all-devouring sinful enemy of this world.” (Bg. 3.37) Rajo-guna, the mode of passion, includes kama, lusty desires. When our lusty desires are not fulfilled, we become angry (Krodha). All this binds us to the material world. As stated in Srimad-Bhagavatam: “As soon as irrevocable loving service is established in the heart, the effect of nature’s modes of passion and ignorance, such as lust, desire and hankering, disappear from the heart. Then the devotee is established in goodness, and he becomes completely happy.” (Bhag. 1.2.19) When we are subjected to the lower material modes (rajo-guna and tamo-guna), we become greedy and lusty. Ethics provide a way to escape the clutches of greeed and lust. Then we can come to the platform of goodness and from there attain the spiritual platform. Hayagriva dasa: Is meditation in itself sufficient to transcend these lower modes? Srila Prabhupada: Yes. If we seek the Supersoul within, our meditatin is perfect. But if we manufacture something in the name of transcendental meditation in order to bluff others, it is useless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ethos Posted November 1, 2002 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2002 Syamasundara dasa: Socrates believed that ignorance results in bad actions, and that the knowledgeable man will automatically act properly. Srila Prabhupada: When an ignorant child touches fire and is burned, he cries. His distress is due to ignorance. An intelligent person will not touch fire because he knows it’s properties. Thus ignorance is the cause of bondage and suffering. It is due to ignorance that people commit many sinful activities and become entangled. Syamasundara dasa: Does this mean that when people are enlightened with proper knowledge, they will automatically become good? Srila Prabhupada: Yes. It is stated in Bhagavad-gita: “As a blazing fire turns firewood to ashes, O Arjuna, so does the fire of knowledge burn to ashes all reactions to material activities.” (Bg. 4.37) The fire of knowledge consumes all sinful activities. To this end, there is need for education. People are born ignorant, and education is needed to remove their ignorance. Since they are born illusioned by the bodily conception, people act like animals. They therefore have to be educated to understand that they are different from the material body. Syamasundara dasa: Why is it that some people who receive this knowledge later reject it? Srila Prabhupada: Then it is not perfect knowledge. when one actually receives perfect knowledge, he becomes good. This is a fact. If one is not good, it is because he has not received perfect knowledge. Syamasundara dasa: Is there not a class of men that is always evil? Srila Prabhupada: No. Syamasundara dasa: Can any man be made good? Srila Prabhupada: Certainly, because the soul is by nature good. The living entity is covered by the inferior modes of material nature, by passion and ignorance. When he is cleansed of this covering, his goodness will emerge. The soul is originally good because it is part and parcel of God, and God is all good. That which is part and parcel of gold is also gold. Although the soul is covered by matter, the soul is all good. When a sharpened knife is covered by rust, it looses its sharpness. If we remove the rust, the knife will once again be sharp. Syamasundara dasa: Does the existence of evil in the world mean that there is absolute evil? Srila Prabhupada: Absolute evil means forgetfulness of the Absolute Truth. Krsna is the Absolute Truth, and lack of Krsna consciousness is absolute evil. In terms of the absolute evil, we may say that this is good and that is bad, but all this is mental concoction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ethos Posted November 1, 2002 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2002 Syamasundara dasa: Generally speaking, Socrates was more concerned with God as a moral reality than as a personal conception. Srila Prabhupada: Moral reality is necessarily presonal. If man is moral, we say that he is honest. If he follows no moral principles, we say that he is dishonest. Thus morality and immorality refer Syamasundara dasa: Then if God is pure morality, He must be a person. Srila Prabhupada: Certainly. All good. god is good, and this means that He is full of morality. Syamasundara dasa: Socrates taught that good deeds bring happiness and that to perform them is the real goal of life. Srila Prabhupada: That is the law of karma. If I work hard in this life, I earn money. If I study hard, I acquire an education. However, if I neither work nor study, I remain poor and uneducated. This is the law of karma. According to the Vedic varnasrama-dharma, society is divided into four castes: brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya and sudra. Each caste has its particular duty, but that duty is connected to God’s service. In other words, everyone can satisfy the Supreme Lord by performing his duty. By walking, the legs perform their duty, and by touching or holding, the hands perform their duty. Every part of the body performs a duty alotted to it. Similarly, we are all part and parcel of God, and if we do our duty, we are serving God. This is the system of varnasrama-dharma. Krsna Himself says in Bhagavad-gita: “According to the three modes of material nature and the work associated with them, the four divisions of human society are created by Me.” It is further stated: “By worship of the Lord, who is the source of all beings, and who is all-pervading, a man can, in the performance of his own duty, attain perfection.” (Bg. 18.46) Thus the respective duties of the brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya or sudra can be dovetailed to the service of the Lord, and by doing so, any man can attain perfection. Syamasundara dasa: Is moral improvement the highest goal of mankind, or is there something higher? Srila Prabhupada: First of all, we must understand what morality is. Morality means discharging our prescribed duties without hindering others in the execution of their duties. That is morality. Syamasundara dasa: What do you consider the shortcomings of a philosophy devoted to moral improvement and knowing oneself through pure reason alone? Srila Prabhupada: Knowing oneself through pure reason alone will take time. Of course, in European philosophy, there is an atempt at more independent thought, but such independent thinking is not approved by the followers of the Vedas. The Vedic followers receive knowledge directly from authorities. They do not speculate. We cannot attain knowledge through speculation because everyone is imperfect. A person may be proud of seeing, but he does not know that his eyesight is conditioned. Unless there is sunlight, he cannot see. Therefore, what is the intrinsic value of eyesight? We should not be very proud of seeing or thinking because our senses are imperfect. We therefore have to receive knowledge from the perfect. In this way, we save time. According to the Vedic system, we receive knowledge from Vyasadeva, Narada, and Sri Krsna Himself. This knowledge is perfect because these personalities are not subjected to the four defects of conditioned living entities. The conditioned living entity has a tendency to commit mistakes, to be illusioned, to have imperfect senses, and to cheat. These are the four imperfections of conditional life. We therefore have to receive knowledge from those who are liberated. This is the Vedic process. If we receive knowledge from Krsna, there cannot be any mistake, nor any question of illusion. Our senses may be imperfect, but Krsna’s senses are perfect; therefore whatever Krsna says, we accept, and that acceptance is our perfection. A person may search for years to find out who his father is, but the immediate answer is available through his mother. The best way to solve this problem is by directly asking the mother. Similarly, all knowledge received from the perfect liberated person or from the mother Vedas is perfect. Syamasundara dasa: Socrates’s emphasis was on humanity and ethical action. He said that our lives should be composed of good deeds because we can attain the highest perfection by being virtuous. Srila Prabhupada: Yes, to do good work is also recommended in Srimad-Bhagavatam. It is possible to go home, back to Godhead, if we always work for the benefit of others. This Krsna consciousness movement means benefitting others twenty-four hours a day. People are lacking knowledge of God, and we are preaching this knowledge. This is the highest humanitarian work: to elevate the ignorant to the platform of knowledge. Syamasundara dasa: But wouldn’t you say that there is something more than moral improvement? Isn’t that just a by-product of something else? Srila Prabhupada: Yes, real improvement is realizing God and our relationship with Him. In order to come to this platform, morality or purity is required. God is pure, and unless we are also pure, we cannot appraoach God. Therefore, we are prohibiting meat, eating, illicit sex, intoxication, and gambling. These are immoral habits that are always keping us impure. Unless we abandon these impure habits, we cannot progress in Krsna consciousness. Syamasundara dasa: Then morality is just a qualification for becoming God conscious, isn’t it? Srila Prabhupada: If we take to Krsna consciousness, we automatically become moral. On the one hand, we have to observe the regulative moral principles, and on the other hand we have to develop our tendency to serve Krsna more and more. By serving Krsna, we become moral. However, if we try to be moral without serving Krsna, we will fail. Therefore so-called followers of morality are always frustrated. The goal is transcendental to human morality. We have to come to the platform of Krsna consciousness in order to be truly moral. According to Srimad-Bhagavatam: “All the demigods and their exalted qualities, such as religion, knowledge, and renunciation, become manifest in the body of one who has developed unalloyed devotion for the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vasudeva. On the other hand, a person devoid of devotional service and engaged in material activities has no good qualities. Even if he is adept at the practice of mystic yoga or the honest endeavor of maintaining his family and relatives, he must be driven by his own mental speculations and must engage in the service of the Lord’s external energy. How can there be any good qualities in such a man?” (Bhag 5.18.12) The conclusion is that we cannot be moral without being devotees. We may artificially try to be moral, but ultimately we will fail. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ethos Posted November 1, 2002 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2002 Syamasundara dasa: By virtue of his intelligence, Socrates could keep his passions controlled, but most people do not have such intellectual strength. They are not able to control themselves rationally and act properly. How does Krsna consciousness help in this endeavor? Srila Prabhupada: Krsna consciousness purifies the intelligence, the mind, and the senses. Since everything is purified, there is no chance in being employed in anything but Krsna consciousness. Anyone can do this under the proper guidance, whereas not everyone can do as Socrates did. The common man does not have sufficient intelligence to control himself without spiritual exercise. Yet, despite his intelligence, Socrates had no clear conception of God. In Bhagavad-gita, Arjuna tells Sri Krsna: “You are the Supreme Brahman, the ultimate, the supreme abode and purifier, the Absolute Truth, and the eternal Divine Person. You are the primal God, transcendental and original, and You are the unborn and all-pervading beauty.” (Bg. 10.12) The word pavitraà means “the purest.” This includes all morality. Acting in Krsna consciousness is the best morality, and this is supported in Bhagavad-gita: “Even if one commits the most abominable actions, if he is engaged in devotional service, he is to be considered saintly because he is properly situated.” (Bg. 9.30) Even if a person is considered immoral from the mundance point of view, he should be regarded as moral if he acts on the platform of Krsna consciousness. Sometimes a person in Krsna consciousness may appear to act immorally. For instance, in the dead of night, the young cowherd girls of Vrndavana left their husbands and fathers to go to the forest to see Krsna. From the materialistic point of view, this is immoral, but becasue their actions were connected with Krsna, they are considered highly moral. By nature, Arjuna was not inclined to kill, even at the risk of his kingdom, but Krsna wanted him to fight; therefore Arjuna entered the battle and acted morally, even though he was killing people. Syamasundara dasa: Then you are saying that morality is absolute as long as it is in relation with Krsna? Srila Prabhupada: If Krsna or His representative says, “Do this,” that act is moral. We cannot create morality. We cannot say, “I am a devotee of Krsna; therefore I can kill.” No. We cannot do anything unless we receive a direct order. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ethos Posted November 1, 2002 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2002 Syamasundara dasa: But can leading a life that is honest, or based on doing good to others, lead us to ultimate happiness? Srila Prabhupada: Unless we are Krsna conscious, there is no meaning to honesty and morality. They are artificial. People are always saying, “This is mine.” But our accepting proprietorship is actually immoral because nothing belongs to us. Isavasyam idam sarvam ( Isopanisad 1). Everything belongs to Krsna. We cannot say, “This table is mine. This wife is mine. This house is mine.” It is immoral to claim another’s property as our own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ethos Posted November 1, 2002 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2002 Syamasundara dasa: Socrates defines right as that which is beneficial to others, and wrong as that which does harm to others. Srila Prabhupada: That is a general definition, but we should know what is beneficial for others. Krsna consciousness is beneficial, and anything else is not beneficial. Syamasundara dasa: For instance, he states that stealing, lying, cheating, hating, and other evils, are absolutely bad. Yet if there is a necessity to cheat or lie in order to serve Krsna, would that be bad? Srila Prabhupada: Cheating and lying are not necessary. By cheating, we cannot serve Krsna. that is not the principle. However, if Krsna directly orders us to cheat, that is a different matter. But we cannot create that order. We cannot say, “Because I am Krsna conscious, it is all right for me to cheat.” No. However, once Krsna asked Yudhisthira to go tell Dronacarya that hs son was dead, although his son was not. This was a kind of cheating, but because Krsna directly directly ordered it, it was all right. Orders from Krsna are transcendental to everything––morality and immorality. In Krsna consciousness, there is neither morality nor immorality. There is simply good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ethos Posted November 1, 2002 Author Report Share Posted November 1, 2002 Syamasundara dasa: Socrates deliberately took poison in order not to contradict himself. The government told him that if he retracted his statements, he could live, but he preferred to be a martyr for his own beliefs. Srila Prabhupada: It is good that he stuck to his point, yet regrettable that he lived in a society that would not permit him to think independently. Therefore he was obliged to die. In that sense, Socrates was a great soul. Although he appeared in a society that was not very advanced, he was nonetheless a great philosopher. Hayagriva dasa: Socrates considered the contemplation of beauty to be an activity of the wise man, but relative beauty in the mundane world is simply a reflection of absolute beauty. In the same way, good in the relative world is but a reflection of the absolute good. In any case, absolute good or beauty is transcendental. Srila Prabhupada: Yes, that is also our view. Beauty, knowledge, strength, wealth, fame, and renunciation are all transcendental. In this material world, everything is a perverted reflection. A foolish animal may run after a mirage in the desert, thinking it water, but a sane man knows better. Although there is no water in the desert, we cannot conclude that there is not water at all. Water certainly exists. Similarly, real happiness, beauty, knowledge, strength, and the other opulences exist in the spiritual world, but here they are only reflected pervertedly. Generally, people have no information of the spiritual world; therefore they have to imagine something spiritual. They do not understand that this material world is imaginary. “One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna.” (Bg. 4.9) Although people are reading Bhagavad-gita, they cannot understand this very simple point. After giving up the material body, the devotee goes to Krsna. Of course, the Christians say that after death, one goes to heaven or hell, and to some extent that is a fact. If we understand Krsna in this lifetime, we can go to Krsna’s eternal abode; otherwise, we remain in this material world to undergo the same cycle of birth and death. That is hell. Hayagriva dasa: At the conclusion of The Republic, Socrates gives the analogy of humanity living within a dark cave. The self-realized teacher has seen the light outside the cave. When he returns to the cave to inform the people that they are in darkness, many consider him crazy for speaking of such a thing as the light outside. Thus the teacher often puts himself in a very dangerous position. Srila Prabhupada: That is a fact. We often give the example of a frog within a dark well, thinking that his well is everything. When he is informed that there is an Atlantic Ocean, he cannot conceive of such a great quantity of water. Those who are in the dark well of material existence are surprised to hear that there is light outside. Everyone in the material world is suffering in the dark well of material existence, and we are throwing down this rope called Krsna consciousness. If people do not catch hold, what can we do? If you are fortunate, you can capture the Lord with the help of the teacher, but it is up to you to catch hold of the rope. Everyone is trying to get out of the misery of material existence. Therefore Krsna says: “Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reaction. Do not fear.” (Bg. 18.66) Still, due to obstinance, people refuse, or do not believe Him. The Vedas also tell us, “Don’t remain in the dark well. Come out into the light.” Unfortunately, people want to become perfect and yet remain in the dark well. This material universe is by nature dark, and therefore Krsna has supplied the sun and moon for light. Yet there is Krsna’s kingdom, which is different, as Krsna Himself tells us in Bhagavad-gita: “That supreme abode of Mine is not illumined by the sun or moon, nor by electricity. One who reaches it never return to this material world.” (Bg. 15.6) In Krsna’s kingdom there is no need for sun, moon, or electricity. His kingdom is all effulgent. In the darkness of this material world, the only happiness is in sleep and sex. As stated in Srimad-Bhagavatam: “Those persons who are materially engrossed, being blind to the knowledge of ultimate truth, are interested in hearing about many different subjects, O Emperor. The lifetime of such an envious householders is passed at night either in sleeping or in sex indulgence, and in the day either making money or maintaining family members.” (Bhag. 2.1.2-3) Materialists spend much time reading newspapers, novels, and magazines. They have many forms of engagement because they are ignorant of self-realization. They think that life simply means living in a family surrounded by their wife, children, and friends. They work hard during the day for money, racing their cars at breakneck speed, and at night they either sleep or enjoy sex. This is just like the life of a hog constantly searching for stool. Yet all of this is taking place in the name of civilization. This kind of hoggish civilization is condemned in the Vedic literatures. Krsna advises us to produce grains, eat fruits, begetables, drink milk, and cultivate Krsna consciousness. In this way, we can become happy. Hayagriva dasa: Socrates speaks of everyone sitting in the cave, watching a kind of cinema composed of imitation forms. Srila Prabhupada: This means that people are in darkness, and everything is seen in darkness is not clear. Therefore the Vedic version is: “Don’t remain in darkness. Come to the light.” The light is the guru. “I was born in the darkest ignorance, and my spiritual master opened my eyes with the torch of knowledge. I offer my respectful obeisances unto him.” (Sri Guru Pranama) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.