Interview with Srila Prabhupada – Part 1 Whatever action a great man performs, common men follow. And whatever standards he sets by exemplary acts, all the world pursues. (Bhagavad-gita 3.21) In this interview a reporter is asking Srila Prabhupada repeatedly at what age he realised God. The question … Read more
 
It Is For the Greatest Scholar, It Is For the Innocent Boy… Part Two
 
By HDG A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada, Back To Godhead Vol. 01, No. 44, Nov 1st, 1971.
 
 
Q: Your Grace, how does one attain Krsna consciousness?
 
Srila Prabhupada: There are several stages in attainment of Krsna consciousness. The first stage is faith, or inquisitiveness just as you have come to me now, this is the first stage. Due to some inquisitiveness or some faith in the people who are teaching Krsna consciousness, who have said that it is very helpful, one comes to the first stage. One should be inquisitive and have a little faith, or a little respect for Krsna consciousness: “It is very nice. They are speaking and working.” This is the first stage.
 
If you find that Krsna consciousness is interesting, then the second stage is to associate with us, to understand more. We have class in the morning daily, but for the public, we are holding classes in the evening from 7 to 9 p.m. at our temple, discussing this book, holding kirtana, distributing prasadam. There is no labor you simply come and hear songs, dance, take offered food, hear philosophy and think, and then you go home. We don’t ask anyone to press his nose, to hold his head down or to exercise in a certain way. It is better that people automatically want to dance with us. Although dancing is labor, they like it. So, the next stage is to associate with us, to understand more and more. This is the second stage The first stage is to have faith and respect, and the second stage is association.
 
If by association, one becomes serious about becoming a regular student, that is the third stage. That is called initiation. In that stage students are guided by me; they follow strictly. For the initiated students there are four principles: we don’t allow students to take any foodstuffs which are not offered to the Deity. So we offer foodstuffs to the Deity: grains, fruits, flowers and milk products, but no meat, no eggs, or anything of that sort. Perhaps you have participated in our love feast on Sundays. Yes?
 
This video speaks for itself.  
How can you buy or sell the sky, the warmth of the land? The idea is strange to us. If we do not own the freshness of the air and the sparkle of the water, how can you buy them? Every part of this earth is sacred to my people, every shining pine needle, every … Read more
  Satisfaction of the mind can be obtained only by taking the mind away from thoughts of sense enjoyment. The more we think of sense enjoyment, the more the mind becomes dissatisfied. In the present age we unnecessarily engage the mind in so many different ways for sense gratification, and so there is no possibility … Read more
What is this? Oh my, Srila Prabhupada appearing with Allen Ginsburg? On the same stage? How is it possible?
It was true. We put these posters all over the Ohio State University campus. I was in the room when Srila Prabhupada was talking to Sriman Allen Ginsberg before the event. I was shocked, quite honestly, at how humble Srila Prabhupada was, how he was asking Ginsberg’s opinion on the venue. It was amazing. Anyway, about 2,000 Midwest teenagers from the “All American City” of Columbus, Ohio showed up, mostly to hear from the bohemian Allen. At this time he was a famous poet. At the event he gave a talk, and I only remember one thing he said. It certainly wasn’t exactly parampara.
Then Srila Prabhupada talked, and then the most amazing thing happened that I can never forget. We had the most amazing kirtan I have ever experienced. As the audience gradually started to catch on to the magical maha mantra, they began to chant. Not only chant, they all chanted like enthusiastic devotees. As the devotees stood up on the stage around Srila Prabhupada and started to dance, after having been seated around His Divine Grace, some of the audience also started dancing. Some came up by the stage, some stood up in their seats. Then Srila Prabhupada stood up on his box-like Vyasasana and was dancing and throwing some of his garland flowers to the crowd who was catching them. It was so wild, so blissful. I felt like Srila Prabhupada “opened the storehouse of love of God” and was just passing it out!
On the 16th of February 1957 a meeting was held at the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan to discuss the above subject matter. Distinguished gentlemen from different categories spoke on the subject, but practically nobody could give us a definite direction as to what actually the matter was that was troubling the whole situation.
This feeling of pinching in the existence of our life is a good sign for progress. It is an urge for enquiry what is the wrong in the world that gives us trouble? This trouble is not a new thing but it is a matter of permanent settlement in all the days of life, but it may be felt at different times in different colour. The troubles are in varieties in relation with our mind and body, in relation with our dealings with other living beings and in relation with natural phenomenons.
The Acharya – Part 1 Whatever action a great man performs, common men follow. And whatever standards he sets by exemplary acts, all the world pursues.   People in general always require a leader who can teach the public by practical behavior. A leader cannot teach the public to stop smoking if … Read more
    Once upon a time, seeing that her maidservant was engaged in different household duties, mother Yaoda personally took charge of churning butter. And while she churned butter, she sang the childhood pastimes of Krishna and enjoyed thinking of her son.   The end of her sari was tightly wrapped while she churned, and … Read more
“I recited all these verses like the blowing wind, how could you remember even one of them” The Lord replied “By the grace of the Lord someone may become a great poet and similarly by his grace someone may become a great sruti dhara, who can memorise anything immediately”.
So in this connection sruti dhara is a very important word. Sruti means hearing and dhara means one who can capture. Formerly at the start of kali yuga, almost everyone, espescially intelligent men, the brahmans, were sruti dharas. As soon as the student heard any of the Vedic wisdom from his teacher, he would remember it forever. There was no need to refer to books, therefore in those days there were no written books.
So the spiritual master delivered the Vedic hymns, along with their explanations, and the student remembered them forever. To become a sruti dhara, one who can remember by hearing is a great achievement for a student. In Bhagavad Gita Krsna says “Note that all opulent, beautiful and glorious creations spring from but a spark of my splendour”. As soon as we find anything extraordinary, we should know this is the special grace of the Lord.
