MW LA 1974-01-07 What Is Real Leadership
ANNOUNCER: The following is a morning walk conversation,
with His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda,
recorded on the 7th of January, 1974, in Los Angeles, California.
PRABHUPĀDA: …achieved their advancement of knowledge
by seeing a crack in the moon.
You know that?
Yes.
They are now researching, “What is this crack?”
For seeing the crack, they spend so much money.
BALI MARDANA: They are so foolish. - Just see.
When I was in Hawaii I gave a lecture at one Catholic college,
and the priest in charge,
he was asking me if in our philosophy we believe that animals have a soul.
- He’s so foolish… - Eh?
The Christians are so foolish, even though they have big learned positions,
they do not understand that the animal also has a soul.
- You told, in that meeting? - Yeah.
- And what did they say? - They could not deny. They could not say anything.
Yes, what is the difference that you say the animals… How do you say?
What is the symptoms of possessing soul?
The symptoms of possessing soul is described in the Bhagavad-gītā:
yena sarvam idaṁ tatam [Bg 2.17].
The consciousness.
The animals have no consciousness?
How foolish they are!
- Just to rationalize their sins. - No. Rational or not rational…
No, to rationalize their meat-eating, they say…
- Yes; to support—yes—their sinful activities. - Yes.
How you can say there is no soul in the animals?
What is the reason?
What is their reason?
SATSVARŪPA: At one interview a person said to you,
“They do not understand metaphysics,
and the human being understands metaphysics.”
Metaphysics.
A child also does not understand.
So therefore he has no soul?
Cut him?
They are doing that.
They are doing that, so rascal.
Do everyone understand metaphysics?
KARANDHARA: No. - Eh?
- Should not be killed if they don’t understand. - Eh?
- They should not be killed just if they don’t understand. - Yes.
- Is that any reason? DEVOTEE: Actually, they have no philosophical basis for
that belief that the animal has no soul; it’s just a…
- No philosophy. - Speculation; yeah.
Simply rascaldom.
And that is being preached by the priestly class.
Priestly class; just see the society!
What third-class society! [break]
- …the soul enters after the birth of the child; eh? - Oh, no…
Is it not?
- Therefore killing or abortion is not bad. - Oh.
- They say that that a… - Huh?
Abortion isn’t bad because the child is not fully formed
and therefore is not really a life.
It’s not really alive.
Just see.
Therefore one man who is sleeping:
He has no soul.
- No one… They do not believe that generally. - Yes.
- They admit that they are killing. - They admit?
That they are killing the child, but they do not care.
’Cause they don’t want to take the trouble to raise it.
GURUKṚPĀ: Just like the rabbit.
Rabbit philosophy.
So, therefore, considering from all points of view,
our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is the best in the world.
There is no doubt; you must be convinced about it.
Otherwise, how you can preach?
- Now is a very ripe time to push forward our philosophy. - Eh?
- Now it is a very ripe time to push forward our philosophy. - Yes; yes.
I was thinking of taking a full…, large advertisements in New York Times,
present our philosophy in a… So people can read; everyone will see it.
Now, a you you… Why don’t you publish that…?
I have suggested that poster.
- For the poster? - Yes.
- I have not seen it. - Take… Take contribution from public…
- Oh yeah. - …for one day’s advertisement.
And advertise this poster in every paper.
- You see… Yes. - I want to do that.
Also I was thinking to have a large scale propaganda
- in all the college newspapers, specifically. - Yes.
- To attract… - The same… One advertisement.
What is it?
- “Real leaders of human society.” - Yes, yes; that…
- You have seen that design I have given? - No, I haven’t seen it.
Oh, it is not yet done?
No, it’s being worked on.
You can give him the rough idea.
That will [be] very nice propaganda,
to select real leaders of the society.
The… We are misled by rascal leaders.
That is the difficulty.
All rascals.
If the society is led by real, learned scholars, then it will be nice.
Qualified leaders.
That is wanted; leader means better qualified man to lead others.
That is leader.
Leader does not mean he is himself a fool and leading other fools. [break]
…poster could have a coupon for Bhagavad-gītā to find the real solution…
- No, no. - They can purchase?
Bhagavad-gītā there are so many; they’ll purchase another rascal’s Bhagavad-gītā.
Simply you make propaganda that what is real leadership.
Then they will inquire and we shall reply. [break]
…so many things.
So, we may not create any disruption amongst our solidarity.
Then things will not make progress.
In a big machine, even one screw is slack, the machine stops.
- You know that? - Hmm.
So we should not commit such mistake.
“Don’t care; it is a small screw.”
No; even that small screw can stop the whole machine. [break]
…that we are on the platform of deathlessness.
Then we can be careful about falling down.
And this is a fact.
And we will not want to fall down.
Yes; that… That is seriousness.
Suppose you are going on a plane to Vaikuṇṭha.
So your business should be that you may not fall down.
The plane may not stop.
It is like that. [break]
…Bhāgavata, simply this point is being stressed,
- that “This is the platform of deathlessness.” - Oh.
In Bhagavad-gītā.
Subtitles by Pratyatoṣa Dāsa, Causelessmercy.com