Arrival Address
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
London, July 7, 1973

Prabhupada: …given the facility of assembling in this nice house, this good boy George Harrison, we must give him all glories. We must be thankful to him that he has given us the facility, and Krsna will bless him more and more. So far Gopijana-vallabha, Radha- Madhava, our simple worshipable Supreme Personality of Godhead, Radha-Madhava, He is always enjoying in company with Srimati Radharani, Radha-Madhava. He does not go outside Vrndavana. Krsna, original Krsna, He does not go even a step out of Vrndavana, leaving aside the gopis. Vrndavanam parityajya na padam ekam kutra gacchati. He does not go anywhere.

So people are making research to find out God. In the Brahma-samhita it is said,

panthas tu koti-sata-vatsara-sampragamyo vayor athapi manaso muni-pungavanam so ’py asti yat-prapada-simny avicintya-tattve govindam adi-purusam tam aham bhajami [Bs 5.34]

Govinda, panthas tu koti-sata-vatsara-sampragamyah. Those who are searching after God… Those who are not searching, they are useless. Those who are searching, jnani, jijnasu, so they are searching after God, but if they try to approach God, panthas tu koti-sata-vatsara, by… Just like airplane. I have come here within twelve hours, from Calcutta to London. So not this airplane, but panthas tu koti-sata-vatsara-sampra…, vayor athapi. Vayu. If… This airplane is floating on the air, but if the air becomes airplane itself or the mind becomes… You know the speed of mind. You can go on the mind millions of miles within a second. That science has not yet discovered, how to go in the speed of mind. The yogis know. The perfect yogis, they can travel on the speed of mind. That is also material science. So even on the speed of mind, or on the speed of the velocity of the air, if you try to go to approach God, find out where is God… And the time? Panthas tu koti-sata-vatsara. Not one day, two day, or one hour, two hour, but many millions of years, koti-sata-vatsara. Koti-sata-vatsara, with the speed of mind or air velocity, if you go to find out God, still, avicintya-tattva, inconceivable, inconceivable.

So Krsna is not so easy to approach by the nondevotees. Vedesu durlabha. Or even by studying Vedas, durlabha. Durlabha means not approachable, not approachable. Vedesu durlabha adurlabha atma-bhaktau. But to His devotees He’s very easy. He’s very easy. Just like the gopis. Gopis, they are village girls, not educated, not brahmana, not Vedantist. But Krsna is within their palms, within their hands. So this bhakti-yoga is so nice that Krsna, or God, who is unapproachable by any other method—however efficient it may be, it is not possible—-only by love and devotion in service He can be approached. It is clearly stated in the Bhagavad-gita: bhaktya mam abhijanati [Bg. 18.55] Krsna has explained in the Bhagavad-gita all systems—jnana-yoga system, hatha-yoga system, karma-yoga system, raja-yoga system. But at the end He says that “If anyone actually wants to know Me, that is bhakti.” Bhaktya mam abhijanati yavan yas casmi tattvatah [Bg. 18.55]. If anyone wants to know Krsna as He is… Krsna has different features, especially three: brahmeti paramatmeti bhagavan iti sabdyate—as impersonal Brahman, all- pervasive Paramatma, and the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So if anyone wants to know actually what is Krsna… Of course, it is not possible to know Krsna, but Krsna reveals to the devotee, svayam eva sphuraty adah, revelation. Just like Krsna is explaining Himself in the Bhagavad-gita. People should know. Why they are searching unnecessarily? Rascaldom. You cannot search out Krsna, God, by speculation. If He reveals Himself by His causeless mercy, being merciful upon you, being pleased upon you, then you can understand Krsna. You cannot search out Krsna. That is not possible. So the process is explained by Krsna Himself:

bhaktya mam abhijanati yavan yas casmi tattvatah tato mam tattvato jnatva visate tad-anantaram [Bg. 18.55]

If you understand Krsna through this process, bhakti process, anyabhilasita-sunyam [BRS 1.1.11], without any motive of material gain, that is called… That is beginning of bhakti. Bhakti means without any motive of material gain. That is bhakti. Anyabhilasita-sunyam [Madhya 19.167]. Sunyam means zero. All material desires becoming zero, then bhakti begins. Then bhakti begins. Before that, there is no question of bhakti.

So bhakti science is very subtle science, but it is very simple thing to the bhaktas, one who knows things as it is, a very simple thing. Similarly, those who have taken to this bhakti-yoga seriously, for them it is very simple. For others it is very difficult. It is very difficult. Therefore we should go, approach to persons who are… Tad-vijnanartham sa gurum eva abhigacchet [MU 1.2.12] We should approach (a) person who knows the bhakti science and… Yasya deve para bhaktir yatha deve tatha gurau [SU 6.23]. And by devotional service to Krsna and the spiritual master, then bhakti science becomes revealed. Without revelation, nobody can understand bhakti science, and without understanding bhakti science, nobody can understand Krsna.

Thank you very much. Hare Krsna. (end)