Initiation Lecture
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
London, August 22, 1971

Prabhupada: (chants responsively with devotees:)

om aparitrah pavitro va sarvavastham gato ’pi va yah smaret pundarikaksam sa bahyabhyantarah sucih

The purpose of this mantra, apavitrah pavitro va… Apavitrah means contaminated, infected, and pavitra means purified. So the mantras says, “Either one is in contaminated stage or purified stage…” Apavitrah pavitro va sarvavastham. Sarva means all, avastha means circumstances. “In all circumstances, in whatever circumstances one may be, either in contaminated stage or purified stage,” yah smaret, “anyone who remembers Pundarikaksam…” Pundarikaksam means Krsna or Visnu. Pundarika-aksam, lotus-eyed. So Lord Visnu’s eyes are just like lotus petals, so He’s called pundarikaksam. So such person who remembers, chants the name of the lord, pundarikaksam, sa bahya… Bahya means external, and internal, abhyantaram, sucih. Sucih means purified. Sri visnu sri visnu sri visnu. So simply by remembering the holy name of the Lord, Visnu, one is purified in any stage of life. That is a fact. It is said, there is a Bengali verse which says, eka krsna name yata papa hare, ai haya tati papa karibare nare (?). “By chanting once the holy name of Krsna, the sinful man can vanquish so much volumes of sinful activities, reaction, that he’s unable to perform.” A sinful man is very expert to commit sinful activities, but the holy name of Krsna is so strong that he will be unable to commit so much sins as can be extinguished simply by uttering once the name of Lord Visnu or Krsna. This is a fact. But unfortunately, we, by chanting, vanquish all kinds of sinful activities. That’s all right. But the next moment we again begin. So that is the defect. Just like I have taken some poison. Now you go to a doctor, he gives you medicine. The poisonous effect is finished or gone. You are now free. And just after coming from the doctor’s house, again you take poison, and again go to the doctor. The doctor will give you medicine, but what is this business, that you go to the doctor and counteract the poisonous effect and again come back and again take poison? What is this business? Is it very intelligent business? If you want to take poison, then take poison and die. Why you go to the physician and counteract it and again take poison? You see?

So there are certain systems that… Just like in Christian religion, they go weekly to the church and confess their sinful activities, and it is counteracted. That’s all right. God can counteract anything, or God’s representative can do that. But again just coming from the church again I begin the same thing? It is the gravest type of sinful act. That is the Vedic injunction. Namno balad yasya hi papa-buddhih. Anyone who commits sin on the strength of chanting the holy name of Visnu, oh, his sinful activities cannot be vanquished even by so much attempt performing sacrifices or penances. No it is not possible. He’s condemned. Just like you have committed some criminal act, and you are presented in the court, and you say, “My lord, I did not know this act. I have committed this. I may be excused. I’ll not do this.” Then you are excused, there is a… “That’s all right.” But if you are excused and again come back and again do the same sinful activities, criminal activities, and if you are again arrested, then you’ll be very, very severely punished. It is a common sense. How people think that “Because I chant Hare Krsna or I take the holy name of God or I go to church, therefore I can commit so much sins, never mind. It will be counteracted next week or next moment when I shall chant.” This is one of the gravest offense in chanting Hare Krsna mantra. You should always remember. By this initiation, by chanting Hare Krsna mantra, your sinful activities will be counteracted, undoubtedly. But don’t commit again. Then it will be the gravest offense. There are ten kinds of offenses. You should be careful. You have got those printed papers? Ten kinds of offenses? Yes, you take. This is a fact. Yah smaret pundarikaksam sa bahyabhyantarah sucih. As soon as you chant the holy name of Krsna, Hare Krsna, you become relieved from all reaction of sinful activities.

Every one of us, anyone who has come to this material world, beginning from Lord Brahma, what to speak of ourselves, down to the small ant, everyone is, to some extent we have committed sinful activities; therefore we are in this material world. This is a fact. Now, in this materialist world there are different stages, different species of life. That you know, that there are 8,400,000 species of life, and we are passing through all the species of life. And according to our sinful position we are placed in different kinds of places also in God’s creation. There are different kinds of places also. So this is going on. We are traveling, wandering throughout the universe, through many species of life and in many planets. This is going on. So Caitanya-caritamrta says, ei rupe brahmanda bhramite kona bhagyavan jiva [Cc. Madhya 19.151]. In this way, the living entities while wandering throughout the whole universe… Sometimes in nice place, nice life, nice society… There is no nice place, but we accept, “This is good, this is bad.” That is our mental concoction. Actually, in the material world there is no happiness, there is no nice place, because wherever you go… As it is stated in the Bhagavad-gita, punar avartino ’rjuna. Even if you go to the highest planetary system, Brahmaloka, then there also punar avartinah, means the four principles of material existence, namely birth, death, old age, and disease, they will accompany you. Wherever you go. You may have a long duration of life, but you have to meet death. That is compulsory. And as soon as you meet death, you have to enter into the womb of a certain type of mother and develop another body and come out again and begin another life. This is going on. So Krsna says in the Bhagavad-gita, a-bhrama-bhuvanal lokah punar avartino ’rjuna. Even if you go to the highest planetary system, Brahmaloka, within this material world, that process will go on, repetition of birth, death, old age, and disease. Because this material body, wherever you get it, either you are American or Englishman or Indian or moon planet or sun planet or Brahma planet, Brahmaloka planet, anywhere you go, you’ll get a certain type of body, but that material body is subjected to these four principles: birth, death, disease, and old age.

That is stated in the Bhagavad-gita in the Thirteenth Chapter, that janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi-duhkha-dosanudarsanam. This prescription is given for the man who is cultivating knowledge. For fools, everything is all right. That is a different thing. For a child, if you give the child a little poison, oh, it will eat, because it does not know. Whatever he gets. If you’ll give fire, oh, it will try to eat it. So… But those who are in knowledge, cultivating knowledge, for them there are twenty items in the Bhagavad-gita. Amanitvam adambhitvam ahimsa ksantir arjavam acaryopasanam. Acaryopasanam, accepting spiritual master, this is also one of the items, twenty items, for advancing in knowledge. So this initiation process is acaryopasanam, beginning of worshiping the spiritual master. So in that, I mean to say, list of how to progress in knowledge, so these four principles, janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi-duhkha-dosanudarsanam… One should always put in his front that “However expert I may be, I’ll have to meet death, I’ll have to take birth, I’ll have to become old man, and I’ll have to suffer the pangs of diseases.” Then what is advancement? Either you become very rich man or become a Brahma or become a small ant, you have to die. Just like when Hiranyakasipu worshiped Lord Brahma and asked him the benediction that “Sir, make me immortal.” And Brahma said, “I, myself, is not immortal. How can I make you immortal?” So immortality is not possible. Then how it is possible? We want immortality. Now we are sitting here. If there is some siren, then immediately on the roof of this house, atom bomb will be dropped. Then immediately we shall flee away from this place. Why? Because we are not prepared to meet death. We do not wish to die. That’s a fact. But death is forced. This is knowledge, that “I do not wish to die. Why death is forced upon me? Or if there is any means to avoid death?” The sastra says, “Yes, there is.” Bhagavad-gita says, Krsna says that… Krsna says, yad gatva na nivartante tad dhama paramam mama [Bg. 15.6], that if you… Mad-dhama gatva punar janma na vidyate. “If you come to my planet, dhama,” dhama means planet, place, “then you’ll never come back to take birth again in this material world.”

So any intelligent man, if he’s actually has got sense, he should try for this. And especially in this human form of life, it is possible to achieve this benediction, that I can become immortal, I can become blissful, I can become full of knowledge—sac-cid-ananda. Krsna is sac-cid-ananda-vigraha [Bs. 5.1], and if you become Krsna conscious, then ultimately you also become exactly like Him, sac-cid-ananda-vigraha. Vigraha means form, body, and sat means eternal, and cit means knowledge. Sat, cit, ananda. Ananda means blissfulness. So this body, however you may be… You may be American, you may be Englishman, you may be very rich man, you may be very poor man, you may be white man, you may be black man, whatever you may be, but this body is not sac-cid-ananda. It is not eternal; it will end. It is full of ignorance. We do not know what will happen if I go just out of this door. Full of ignorance. We do not know what is happening beyond this wall. So… And always full of anxieties. Where is ananda? There is no ananda. So this body is not sac-cid-ananda vigraha. But if you become Krsna conscious and act accordingly, then you will, at the end, you’ll get sac-cid-ananda form. Your form is sac-cid-ananda because you are part and parcel of sac-cid-ananda, Krsna. Mamaivamso jiva-bhuta. “All living entities are My parts and parcels,” Krsna says. And another place He says,

sarva-yonisu kaunteya sambhavanti murtayah yah tasam mahad yonir brahma aham bija-pradah pita [Bg. 14.4]

He’s the father of everyone.

So just like here also, the father is diseased, the son gets the body diseased, infects. If the father is healthy, the son is also healthy, child is also healthy. Similarly, if Krsna is sac-cid-ananda vigraha, if Krsna is the original father, then we are also sac-cid-ananda vigraha [Bs. 5.1] But at the present moment, what is our condition? Manah sasthanindriyani prakrti-sthani karsati [Bg. 15.7]. Now because we have got this material body, we have come in contact of this external energy, material energy, we have got this material body; therefore we are engaged in struggle for existence with mind and the material senses. That is our position. Manah sasthanindriyani-prakrti-sthani. Prakrti-sthani means material. Karsati, hard struggle. So this is our position. And if you want to get out of it… If you are foolish, that “Whatever it is, that’s… Let it… Let us enjoy now. Don’t talk talk of all these…,” oh, that is another thing. But those who are sensible, those who are actually after knowledge, those who actually want a solution of this material miserable condition of life, they must take to this Krsna consciousness. That is the only remedy. Krsna nama kara ara saba miche (?). Simply take to Krsna consciousness. All other things are simply illusion, false. Palaibe phat yei jo mache piche (?). You cannot escape. The death is awaiting always. You are given a chance. If you don’t take, properly utilize use this chance, then another death is coming, and you are awaiting another type of body according to your karma. We are manufacturing our next body. This is our position. So this initiation means to enter into transcendental life. Why? Now, to make a solution, complete solution of this material existence. This is called illusion. Adau gurvasrayam sad-dharma-prcchat sadhu-marganugamanam. You will read all these things in our book, the Nectar of Devotion, and Bhagavad-gita also. You should read all these books and appear in the next year examination. Just like this year, so many boys have appeared. They’re going to get the title Bhakti-sastri. So utilize you life. And this Krsna consciousness movement is not for a particular place. Krsna is not Indian. Krsna says, “Everyone, in all special of life, are My sons.” He’s claiming to be the father of everyone. You don’t reject Him, that “Krsna is Indian,” “Krsna is Hindu,” “Krsna is something.” No. He’s for everyone. So if Krsna says, “I am everyone’s father,” why should you reject Him? That is intelligence. That is intelligence. Father claiming, “You are my son,” and if the son says, “No, you are not my father,” then what can be done? That is another thing.

So this initiation means beginning of Krsna consciousness. You are already associating with our society. You have already learned some of the elementary knowledge, and you should be careful about the four principles of prohibition. What are those? You tell me what are our prohibitions? Huh?

Devotee: No meat, no eggs, no intoxicants…

Prabhupada: Tell me loudly so that others hear.

Devotee: No meat…

Prabhupada: No meat-eating. No, no, no meat, no meat-eating.

Devotee: No meat-eating.

Prabhupada: Yes.

Devotee: No eating of eggs…

Prabhupada: Meat is there. You cannot say, “No meat.” (laughter) But no meat-eating. Yes.

Devotee: No intoxicants, and no smoking.

Prabhupada: No intoxicant means including smoking. Smoking is also an intoxicant. Tea-drinking is also intoxication. Coffee- drinking is also intoxication. So in order to come, the position of… And…

Devotee: No illicit sex.

Prabhupada: No meat-eating, no eggs, no fish, no chicken, nothing of the sort. Simply vegetarian. Krsna… Not even vegetarian; Krsna-prasadam. We don’t accept even vegetarian diet. We simply accept Krsna-prasadam. So Krsna-prasadam which is vegetable. Krsna does not eat meat because He says in the Bhagavad-gita, patram puspam phalam toyam yo me bhaktya prayacchati. Krsna says that “Foodstuff prepared from vegetable kingdom, anyone offering Me with devotion and faith, I eat.” He says, “I eat.” So when Krsna says He eats, so you should offer Him such nice prasadam so that He can eat and you take Krsna-prasadam. Prasade sarva-duhkhanam hanir asyopajayate. So you take Krsna-prasadam. And what is the other?

Devotee: No illicit sex.

Prabhupada: No illicit sex. You cannot have illicit sex life. Here I have gotten married all these boys and girls. I don’t allow to live as boyfriend, girlfriend. No. (laughter) That is not allowed(?) in our society. All these married girls and boys, they have been married by me. Perhaps that is the first instance that a sannyasi is creating householders. (laughter) Sannyasi creates sannyasi. People are afraid of mixing with sannyasi because they think that “A sannyasi will make me a sannyasi.” But actually, that fear is not here. Here is a sannyasi who is creating grhasthas.

Indian guest: Swamiji, (Hindi or Bengali)

Prabhupada: (Hindi or Bengali) brahmacari. (Hindi or Bengali) illicit sex. Illicit sex, (Hindi or Bengali)… one should not have more than one woman or one man. That is nice. And therefore in the human society there is marriage. Not in the animal society. Married means that one should be satisfied with one woman and one man. That’s all. And there is no question of divorce. Divorce is introduced by the modern rascals, but it is not sanctioned by any religious person. You see? So we are observing these rules: no illicit sex life, no meat- eating, no intoxication, no gambling. So all my students, they strictly follow these rules, and therefore they’re advancing so quickly. Yes. You see the advancement so quickly because they follow my instruction. They follow very obedient, and they have therefore, by grace of Krsna… Yasya deve para bhaktir yatha deve tatha gurau [SU 6.23]. It is the statement of the Upanisad. “Anyone who has got unflinching faith in God and spiritual master…” Yasya deve para bhaktir. Deve means God. Para bhaktir, unflinching faith. Tatha gurau, and similarly, in guru. Tasyaite kathita hy arthah prakasante mahatmanah. To him all this Vedic knowledge becomes revealed automatically. So my students, all… Not only here in England, in London, in all places, if you go, if you travel, if you go to Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York, and many other places— I’ve got twenty branches—in Japan, and Honolulu, so they are strictly following, and they are making wonderful stride. Now here, I came here for the first time. Before me I sent my six students, married students. They were only with me utmost for one year. I sent them, “You go to London and try.” And they tried their best. So they have created some impression amongst the Londoners, which… One of my Godbrother came forty years ago. He could not do. He was a sannyasi. But how these boys and girls have done? Because they are so sincere. Yes. The sincerity… In spiritual life, sincerity is the first qualification. Arjavam. Arjavam saralaksa (?). Arjavam. Satyam saucam arjavam. These are the brahminical qualifications. One should be very sincere. Duplicity may be very good qualification for this material world, but duplicity in spiritual life is no qualification. So these boys, although they are very young—they’re not even thirty; within twenty-five, twenty-six years, all the boys and girls—but they have made some impressions. Many Indians, they have openly admitted, “Swamiji, you have made wonderful. These boys and girls are very nice.” So that is my pride, that these boys and girls following my instruction, and… I am not giving you, them any money or any bribe. No. (laughter) They are simply sincerely following my instruction. I am a mendicant. I have no money, I’m a beggar. But Krsna is helping them. So you follow these principles. Then surely, success will be there.

Rupa Gosvami has said that how one can make success in devotional life. So,

utsahan dhairyat niscayad tat-tat-karma-pravartanat sato vrtteh sadhu-sange sadbhir bhaktih prasidhyati

These six principles, one must be very much enthusiastic: “Yes, in this life I shall complete my Krsna consciousness business. I’ll not wait for the next life. This life I shall finish.” This is called utsahan. And dhairya. Dhairya means patience. Not that “Sometimes I do not find that I’m making much improvement.” But still, you should have patience. And niscayat, with confidence. “Because we are following the standard rules and regulation, success is sure.” That confidence must be there. Just like two plus two equal to four. That is a fact. Similarly, if you follow the principles as laid down in the sastras, then success is sure. But if you don’t follow, Krsna says, yah sastra-vidhim utsrjya vartate kama-karatah, na siddhim savapnoti. Anyone who does not follow rigid principle, then he cannot have success.

So our principle is very simple. We avoid these four principles of restrictions and chant Hare Krsna, sixteen rounds, and take Krsna prasadam. Very happy life. So there is no difficulty, but if we simply follow the rules and regulation with faith and confidence… Utsahan dhairyat niscayad tat-tat-karma-pravartanat. Tat-tat-karma means you have to follow the prescribed rules and regulation. Tat-tat-karma-pravar… Sato vrtteh, and you must be honest, not dishonest. You accept before the spiritual master that “I shall do it,” and if you do not do it, that’s not good. You must do it. So sato vrtteh sadhu-sange, and the association of devotees. Asadhu-sange, those who are not devotees, if you mix with them, then whatever you learned, you’ll forget. Their influence is so bad. Because we are not very strong; therefore there is every possibility that whatever we learn in bad association we may forget. Sato vrtteh sadhu-sange sadbhih. Sadbhih, by following these six principles, bhaktih prasidhyati, your devotional life will be developed, you’ll be enlightened.

utsahan dhairyat niscayad tat-tat-karma-pravartanat sato vrtteh sadhu-sange sadbhir bhaktih prasidhyati

So you follow, success is sure. And cooperate with your Godbrothers, learn how to act, and your life will be successful. Now chant. (devotees offer obeisances) (end)