MW GER 1974-06-17 Fools' Paradise Lost
ANNOUNCER: The following is a morning walk conversation,
with His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda,
recorded on the 17th of June, 1974, in Germany.
DEVOTEE: Of all the four pillars of sinful activity, is meat-eating the worst?
PRABHUPĀDA: Everything is worst.
Sinful is sinful.
Disease is disease.
This body: Either it is living or it is dead, it is not very important thing.
And the whole world is after this body.
Kṛṣṇa says, “The body, either dead or alive:
It is not a subject matter for serious consideration.”
Now see.
And what the world is going on?
Simply for bodily…
Body means senses.
It is very difficult for the western people to understand that:
Body is not important thing; the soul is important thing.
First of all, they do not know what is soul.
And if one cannot understand what is soul, what he will understand about God?
Soul is the minute particle of God.
If one cannot understand about this minute particle,
then what he’ll understand of the Supreme?
In the laboratory, if you can test a little sample…
Just like take a little sea water: Analyze: You chemically test.
Then you can understand what is the composition of the sea water.
But if you have no knowledge even a small drop of sea water,
how you’ll understand the sea, what…
That is their position.
They do not understand even the sample of spirit soul, as we are.
Simply they are trying to cover it.
“There is no soul; there is no soul.
Life is generated from matter.”
Although they cannot prove it.
A fool’s paradise.
The fools, rascals:
They are explaining the living force in some way, and other fools are accepting.
This is the position of western countries, Europe and America.
Fool’s paradise.
It is paradise, certainly.
Very, very, big, big building and advancement, but all rascals and fools.
Fool’s paradise.
And if you call a fool a fool, he’ll be angry.
mūrkhāyopadeśo hi prakopayati na śamyati [?]
Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Rāma Rāma…
So much production, but if nature’s like can stop this production.
Then the question of over-population.
[If] the nature likes, it can produce three times, four times this production.
prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi [Bg. 3.27]
After all, nature is producing.
We do not know how to deal with nature.
Therefore there is scarcity, and we say, “over-population.”
There is no question of over-population.
There are so many hundred and thousands of birds within this forest—other animals.
They have no problems of over-population.
Eh?
All these men, who are living in these villages:
So, what is their means of livelihood?
Agriculture or industry?
Or service? [splice]
This should be exemplary.
Our community shall live in this way
and save time for spiritual advancement of life.
This example should be shown to the whole world, that “Here is a community:
They have no problem, and they are simply interested in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.”
This will be the idea.
- Is it possible? HANSADUTTA: Yes.
- Yeah. - Huh?
“They do not do any industry.
They do not kill cows.
They do not go to cinema.
They do not have illicit sex.
They don’t drink.
No problems.
Simply they’re eating very nicely and chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa.”
Show this example.
At least in this fool’s paradise.
They are thinking it is paradise.
And the paradise is lost every ten years or fifteen years by the bombing.
German bombs: the France, and France bombs the… This is their paradise.
So let them understand that “You are all fools; It is peace.
You are fool’s paradise.
This is life, what we are doing;” Teach them.
So that the fools will understand what is life.
They are manufacturing atom bomb.
Russia is hiding himself.
India is… Over the past few years, spending crores of rupees to develop the…
Hmm; and people are starving for want of…
There was a cartoon that some public came to some minister:
“Sir, we are starving; give us our food.”
So the reply was: “Of course, that’s a problem—food problem.
But I can assure you that from next week you’ll have television.”
These rascals are like that.
“Next, from next week, you’ll have television—atom bomb.
Never mind; starve.”
That is also becoming fool’s paradise.
jaḍa-vidyā jato māyāra vaibhava [Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura]
In this way, the more we increase sense gratification by advancement of material…,
the more we forget Kṛṣṇa.
And more we forget Kṛṣṇa: We are more fools.
In England and America now,
more and more there is a big movement for birth control and contraceptives…
Yes.
…as their means to conquer over the so-called over-population problem.
No, it is not over-population.
They don’t want to take care of children.
This is their problem.
It is not the question of over-population.
They want to remain free and enjoy life, that’s all.
No responsibility.
That is the hippies.
That is the hippy movement.
I have seen in all the big colleges and universities in England that I have been to,
that this—amongst the students, the boys and girls—it is becoming so free.
It is just like a hippy commune— the universities and colleges.
Yes.
They are indebted in so many ways.
Therefore human being should be responsible.
But the modern civilization is teaching to become irresponsible. [break]
…on the sun.
Suppose if your heat increases, what happens to you?
I get sick.
That’s all.
Samudvigna: Always full of anxiety.
sadā samudvigna-dhiyām [SB 7.5.5]
Intelligence is always absorbed:
“Enemy may not come; let me discover this:
discover this atom bomb; this will save me; this will save me.”
This is their…
sadā samudvigna-dhiyām asad-grahāt [SB 7.5.5]
Why this anxiety?
Because they have accepted something false as truth.
Asad-grahāt.
They have accepted sense gratification is the truth.
indriyāṇi parāṇy ahuḥ [Bg. 3.42]
Indriyāṇi means senses.
Parā: Supreme; this is supreme.
Then, if somebody is little advanced: Indriyebhyaḥ paraṁ manaḥ [Bg. 3.42].
Then the mental speculators: psychologists, philosophers, another,
better class of rascals…
This is the third-class rascal,
and they are second-class rascal.
indriyāṇi parāṇy āhur indriyebhyaḥ paraṁ manaḥ
manasas tu parā buddhiḥ [Bg. 3.42]
Then the intelligent class.
They consider, “What is this nonsense?
They are all suffering here.”
In this way, one who becomes actually intelligent—wise—then he understands,
“Kṛṣṇa is everything.”
bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate [Bg. 7.19]
So that highest position we are giving by Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
We are not training them to be first-class…
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