MW MAY 1976-02-10 Ten-Handed Krishna
ANNOUNCER: The following is a morning walk conversation
with His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda,
recorded on the 10th of February, 1976, in Māyāpura, India.
PRABHUPĀDA: …ten direction.
Eight direction, corner, and northeast, east-west, and up and down.
So everywhere He is present.
So Kṛṣṇa has got ten hands.
So my father used to say,
“When Kṛṣṇa takes your money or possession in ten hands,
how you can protect it with two hands?
And when He give you in ten hands, how much you can take in two hands?”
[laughs] So in my case it has become practical.
Everything He has taken in ten hands, and now He is giving in ten hands.
[laughter] I am practically experiencing.
My Guru Mahārāja ordered me, “You do this.”
I was trying to save my business, my family,
with two hands, and Kṛṣṇa took it in ten hands.
And now, after making me beggar, He is giving me, ten hands:
“You take as much as you like.”
Now I am thinking of my father’s instruction. [break]
…ambition was that I become a great de… bhāgavata.
That was his… He used to invite so many saintly persons,
and he would pray, “Please bless my son”—
I was very pet son—”that he may become a devotee of Rādhārāṇī.
Rādhārāṇī may bless him.”
That was his only prayer.
TAMĀLA KṚṢṆA: Fulfilled.
Yes.
He was inviting so many saintly persons.
That is the old system, to receive saintly person.
HṚDAYĀNANDA: Śrīla Prabhupāda,
you said that you were not so much impressed
by the saintly persons that were coming.
Yes.
Why was that?
Not that… Not all of them were real Vaiṣṇava.
That was my discrimination from the beginning of my life.
I never liked these bogus swamis and yogis.
I never liked.
But my father had no discrimination.
“Never mind whatever he is.
He is a saintly person.
Receive him.”
He was giving fortnightly… There was one Māyāvādī sannyāsī in Kālīghāṭa.
So first of all the father was sannyāsī.
Then his son was sannyāsī.
So we had very good relationship with him.
I also used to… Because father was going…
So he would carry gāñjā for him—in those days gāñjā was very cheap—
so much gāñjā and so much butter.
Whenever he would visit, he’d give some red cloth, gāñjā, and butter.
Your father would give him gāñjā?
That, to sannyāsī.
Why?
Well, he was smoking gāñjā.
But why did he supply him?
He did not discriminate that this is bad.
He smokes, and he had some regard for him.
“All right, take gāñjā.
[laughter]
So is… Kṛṣṇa is also like that if we…
Yeah.
He was offering him something, “Whatever he likes.”
That was his theory.
Friendly.
Yes.
“It doesn’t matter.”
He did not know the gāñjā smoking was bad for sādhu.
That is impression in India.
We criticize, but in India, in every sādhu samāj they smoke gāñjā.
Still?
Oh, yes.
Not high class.
These bogus swamis and yogis.
They…
Yeah. That Mr. Das, the lawyer who came here?
I used to visit him, and he had one sādhu who used to come who was his guru,
and he would also smoke gāñjā.
Yes. Gāñjā smoking is not taken as bad in India, by the sādhus, not ordinary men.
Right.
He told me, Mr. Das, that it increased his meditation and ecstasy.
Whatever it may be, gāñjā smoking by the sādhus,
sannyāsīs, is not taken very bad serious.
The hippies learned from them.
Allen Ginsberg introduced… “Yes.
Gāñjā smoking is very good by the saintly person.”
I think your Guru Mahārāja spoke strongly against such persons.
Oh, yes.
And from him we learned that intoxication, any kind of intoxication, is bad.
Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura also was…
He was also not very serious,
but Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura was very serious, and we learned from him.
No, it is śāstrīya.
No intoxication is good.
How is it that Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was not so strict in that regard,
yet his son, who learned from him, became very strict, like a rod?
[chuckles] Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura was so strict [laughs]
because he married twice, he used to say, strī-saṅgī,
attached to woman,” even his father. [laughter]
He was very strict.
Sometimes when he would be angry, he’d, “He’s strī-saṅgī.
And don’t discuss this thing. [laughs]
He was very strict.
No excuse, no compromise.
That’s where you got all of that from.
My is imitation, but his was real. [laughs]
All these Navadvīpa people were afraid of him. Afraid.
Strong-hearted. They made a, what is called, conspiracy to kill him.
Who did this?
Oh, the Navadvīpa gosvāmīs.
They raised 25,000 rupees and wanted to bribe this police officer
that “You take this money. We shall finish him.
Don’t take any action.”
But the policeman said?
Refused.
“Yes, we take bribe, but not in such cases.”
Why?
“He’s a saintly person. We cannot agree to that.”
Everyone knows police takes bribe.
They admit, “Yes, we take bribe, but not in such cases.”
This was told by Guru Mahārāja, Bhaktisi…, to me.
He was talking many things confidential.
Prabhupāda, what is that story
that one time Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī was invited to…
He wanted to get invitation or he was invited to speak
and they put so many conditions on his speaking.
It was some place.
Yes.
Said, “Now you cannot speak on such and such subject.” He agreed, “All right.”
I think there was a Vaiṣṇava meeting inaugurated by Mahārāja Maṇīndrānandī.
You are referring to that. [break]
When I was visiting, I used to sit on his couch.
Yes, like…
Guru Mahārāja was sitting on the couch, so I took him as ordinary gentleman.
So then nobody asked me that, that “You are sitting? Get down.”
No. Nobody asked me.
Then I was seeing that all other big, big disciples, they are sitting down.
So then I began to sit down.
Neither Guru Mahārāja told me, neither anybody told me.
What kind of a… It was a regular couch…
Yes. …or a cauki? Yes.
Not cauki, couch.
That padded couch, bench.
Sofa.
Sofa, sofa, yes.
Oh, boy.
You were a young man at that time.
Yes.
But no one said anything.
Not very young.
It was in 19… Yes.
1923?
No.
’23, of course, when I first met him, he was sitting ground. I was also.
At Mathurā there was party, parikrama party, in 1933.
So I went to see that party, what they are doing,
Gauḍīya Maṭha, out of inquisitiveness.
It was at that time.
Hm hm.
You mentioned once that the most of the parikrama devotees,
they wanted to go on parikrama but he was speaking?
Yes.
So I did not go to parikrama, so he very much appreciated.
There was announcement that “Now parikrama will start in the evening at five,
and Prabhupāda also will speak.
So anyone who wants to hear Prabhupāda, he can stay.
Others be ready for going.”
So about a dozen men remained, and all went to parikrama.
So I was at that time new man—not exactly new man, but not recognized disciple.
I did not go.
So he saw that I am sitting, I did not go to parikrama.
He very much appreciated.
I preferred to hear him than go to parikrama.
That he appreciated.
HARI−ŚAURI: That was the same time that you took initiation?
Yes. After that, I took initiation.
Where was the initiation ceremony?
That Allahabad. In Allahabad.
1933.
So from Mathurā everyone went to Allahabad?
Yes, or they went to somewhere.
But I came back.
From Allahabad I went to Mathurā, and I came back to Allahabad at my own place.
Initiation was held at that Gauḍīya Maṭha in Allahabad?
Hah.
At that time that Gauḍīya Maṭha also not there.
That is a… a rented house.
Did you help to build that one?
Eh?
Did you help to establish that Gauḍīya Maṭha?
No, majority was paid by one of my Godbrothers,
that three thousand, purchasing land.
Then gradually developed.
We used to pay something
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