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Arr PAR 1972-07-20 Why Study the Perishable
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ANNOUNCER: The following
is an arrival address
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given by His Divine Grace
A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda,
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recorded on the 20th of
July, 1972, in Paris, France.
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PRABHUPĀDA: The
saṅkīrtana movement
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was started by Lord Caitanya
Mahāprabhu five hundred years ago
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for mitigating the sufferings
of the people of the world.
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He predicted that in every village, in
every town on the surface of the globe,
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let this saṅkīrtana
movement be spread out,
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and people will be happy and they’ll
find Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu.
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That was His prediction.
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Actually this is happening now.
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So our simple method—we go
everywhere all over the world,
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chant this Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-
mantra, and we attract people,
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especially younger
generation, boys and girls.
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Sometimes the newspaper
reporters they ask me,
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“Why these young men
and young women
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they are very much attracted
with this movement?”
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I replied, “That is the
success of the movement,
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because younger generation,
they are the flowers,
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the future hope of the
country, of the world.
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If they take this movement seriously
then the whole world will be happy.”
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Vedic civilization desires
that everyone be happy.
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sarve sukhino bhavantu
[Upanisad]
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Vedic civilization is not animal
civilization, exploiting others…
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Giving something to others.
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Sometimes the people,
they think that India
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comes to the foreign country to take
qualification for earning livelihood.
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Actually they come here when…
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One of my Godbrothers long ago,
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he came to England, Lady
Willingdon challenged the preacher
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that “In your country people come
here, they take some degree
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and go to back to their
country and become big man.
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So what you have
got to teach us?”
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Actually, from
materialistic point of view
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we haven’t got to teach to the
Western country anything.
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That’s a fact.
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Because your science, your
machine, far advanced.
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But still there is a great treasure house
in India, which is spiritual knowledge.
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You have to take from India.
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Of course, this
spiritual knowledge,
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Vedic knowledge, is not for any
particular society or country.
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It is meant for all.
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People sometimes ask
me, “Eastern,” “Western.”
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Actually there is no Eastern and
Western in spiritual platform.
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Spiritual platform is one.
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You are spirit soul, I’m spirit soul.
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So on the spiritual platform, if we see,
as it is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā,
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paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśinaḥ
[Bg. 5.18]
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Those who are actually
learned, they are sama-darśī.
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They have no distinction.
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The exact version of Lord Kṛṣṇa is:
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vidyā-vinaya-sampanne
brāhmaṇe gavi hastini
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śune caiva śva-pāke ca
panditāḥ sama-darśinaḥ
[Bg. 5.18]
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A brāhmaṇa is considered…
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A brāhmaṇa generally
becomes very learned,
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vidyā-vinaya, very gentle.
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So one brāhmaṇa who is qualified
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with gentle qualities and high
learning vidyā-vinaya-sampanne,
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and a cow, an animal, and an
elephant, a dog, a low-born caṇḍāla,
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all these living entities…
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A learned man sees all of
them on the equal level,
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because a learned man who is
actually on the spiritual platform,
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he knows that “Here is a dog
and here is a learned brāhmaṇa.
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By their karma they have got different
dress only, but within the brāhmaṇa,
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within the dog the same
spirit soul is there.”
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So our material platform
we distinguish, “I am Indian,
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you are Frenchman, he’s Englishman,
he’s American, he’s cat, he’s dog.”
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This is the vision of
the material platform.
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In the spiritual
platform we can see
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that every living entity is
part and parcel of God,
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as it is confirmed in
the Bhagavad-gītā:
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mamaivāṁśo jīva-bhūta
[Bg. 15.7]
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Every living entity; it
doesn’t matter what he is.
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There are 8,400,000 species
of forms, but all of them,
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they’re covered only
by different dresses.
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Just like you Frenchmen, you
may be differently dressed,
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and Englishman may
be differently dressed,
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and Indian may be
differently dressed.
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But dress is not very important.
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The man within the
dress, he’s important.
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Similarly, this body is not
very important thing.
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Antavanta ime dehā
nityasyoktāḥ śarīriṇaḥ
[Bg. 2.18]
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This body is perishable.
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But the soul within the
body, he’s not perishable.
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Therefore this human form of life
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is meant for cultivating the
knowledge of the nonperishable.
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Unfortunately, our science,
philosophy in school, college,
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university, they are simply
concerned with the perishable,
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not with the imperishable.
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This Kṛṣṇa consciousness
movement is meant for
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taking into account
of the nonperishable.
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So, it is the movement of the soul,
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not the movement as political movement,
social movement or religious movement.
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They are pertaining to
the perishable body.
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But Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement
is pertaining to the imperishable soul.
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Therefore our this saṅkīrtana movement,
simply by chanting this Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra,
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your heart will be gradually cleansed so
that you can come to the spiritual platform.
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Just like here in this movement
we have got students
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from all countries of the world,
all religions of the world.
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But they no more think of the particular
type of religion or nation or creed or color.
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No.
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All of them think as part
and parcel of Kṛṣṇa.
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When we come to that platform
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and when we engage ourself
in that positional occupation,
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then we are liberated.
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So this movement is very
important movement.
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It is not of course possible to give
you all details within a few minutes,
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but if you are interested you
can kindly contact with us
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either by correspondence or by reading
our literature or by personal contact.
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Any way, your life will be sublime.
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We have not such distinction that
“This is India,” “This is England,”
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“This is France,” “This is Africa.”
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We think every living entity, not only
human being, even animals, birds,
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beasts, trees, aquatics, insects,
reptiles—all are part and parcel of God.
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But the lower animals, the aquatics,
birds, beasts, trees, plants, insect—
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they are unable to
receive this knowledge.
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The human being has
developed consciousness.
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He can receive this
knowledge of spirit soul.
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So our only request is that do not take
this movement as a religious movement.
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It is the movement of the soul.
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It is very scientific,
based on authority.
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And practically we are seeing,
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we are getting good
responses all over the world.
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We have got over a
hundred branches.
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And, and even Africa also
we have got many branches.
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Canada, Europe, America, Australia,
New Zealand—everywhere.
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So our only request is the leaders
of the nation, the scientist,
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the philosopher, may kindly take
some interest in this movement.
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We can talk with them.
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We have got many literatures, big,
big books, scientifically explained,
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philosophically explained.
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So our only request is that you
come forward and try to understand
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this philosophy and spread for the
benefit of the whole human society.
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Thank you very much.
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