prahasya bhāva-gambhīraḿ
jighrantyātmānam ātmanā
kāntyā sasarja bhagavān
gandharvāpsarasāḿ gaṇān

TRANSLATION

With a laugh full of deep significance, the worshipful Brahmā then evolved by his own loveliness, which seemed to enjoy itself by itself, the hosts of Gandharvas and Apsarās.

PURPORT by His Divine Grace Bhakti Vedanta Swami Prabhupad

The musicians in the upper planetary systems are called Gandharvas, and the dancing girls are called Apsarās. After being attacked by the demons and evolving a form of a beautiful woman in the twilight, Brahmā next created Gandharvas and Apsarās. Music and dancing employed in sense gratification are to be accepted as demoniac, but the same music and dancing, when employed in glorifying the Supreme Lord as kīrtana, are transcendental, and they bring about a life completely fit for spiritual enjoyment.

I am very grateful to be amongst you. Sri Sri Radha Rasbihari’s most auspicious home.

Srila Prabupad's present office. Today we are reading from Canto-3 chapter-20, entitled “Converstaion Between Maitreya and Vidura, Text No-38.

In previous chapters, I am sorry in previous verses Lord Brahma in the process of creating this particular universal phenomenon on the order of the lord is personally going through various transformations. Srila Prabhupad explains, in order for there to be creation, one must be empowered by Rajoguna, the mode of passion. So Lord Brahma, a living entity, with extraordinarily pious karma is given this particular role, born directly from the navel of Lord Vishnu. The first person he meets in his life is Lord Vishnu, who not only gives him the knowledge of the Vedas which tells the whole purpose of life within the universal creation but also empowered on behalf of the Lord to do the work of creation. A very extra ordinary service. So as Brahma is doing, so many various obstacles come in his path and each time he has to turn to the lord to help him. This is the nature of the service. Whatever service we may be given on be half of Krishna, undoubtedly obstacles will come on our path. Sometimes very dangerous and apparently impossible difficulties, and in such a situation, a devotee welcomes the opportunity to totally take shelter of Krishna in full dependence knowing that there is no other way to overcome. When Srila Prabhupad was on Jaladuta, executing the order of his SM and Krishna, he saw, he saw before him, impossible obstacles to overcome. The obstacle of his frail age, going to foreign land, no facilities, practically no proper contacts, no money, he didn't even feel that he spoke English in such a way that it could be understood. He is going to a land where no Vaisnava has ever put his feet. Very difficult. Impossible. And factually besides his Guru Maharaj, everybody, everybody told him, it is impossible. Give up the hope.

Smt Murarji is very loving well wisher. she said Swamiji do not go, impossible, you will die. and his friends and his family members and even his god brothers who are also given the same order they all told him impossible, do not even try. But he did. Because of his complete faith in his Guru maharaj's instruction, his complete faith in causeless mercy and he wrote this beautiful poems ”Markine Bhagavata-dharma” where in he prays to Krishna in a very helpless state, completely dependent. Krishna if you do not give me the words it is not possible for me to penetrate their hearts, if you do not give them the understanding by which your message will have affect, then I can do nothing. I am completely dependent on you. I am your puppet. Make me dance as you want me to dance. You have given me this name Bhakti Vedanta. Now my lord it is for you to fulfill the purport and the real purpose of this name to give knowledge and devotion.

Your insignificant beggar,

A.C Bhaktivedanta Swami.

And this is the spirit of the entire Srimad Bhagavatam. Devotees being put into impossible situations and taking shelter of Krishna. The prominent, the prominence stories of Bhagavatam are simply this message. The Pandavas were put into impossible different situations. Jayadrath, it was impossible for Arjuna to kill him by sunset. Only Krishna could save him. Then there is Prahlad Maharaj, Ambarish Maharaj, the brajbasis, when Indra sent his rains, what could simple cowherd men, cowherd ladies and cows and bulls do against the Samvarthaka clouds. The clouds of total devastation of the universe. Thundering, lightning bolds, massive torrents of rain. Just recently in Bombay you have 37 inches of rain in one day and it paralyzed the whole city and took over the 1000 people’s life and the whole world was watching in great amazement. What could you do? That was just an insignificant little earthly monsoon rain.

But the clouds of devastation, Samvarthaka clouds, it didn't fall in drops like that of 37 inches in a day. Falls in pillars, pillars of rains pouring from sky. Those clouds in one day could create 50 miles deep of rain. That is their power. In a single day they would make the whole earth into one gigantic ocean. Hare Krishna!

And with all their power and all their strength, they were <11:34:> casting winds and rains. Even recently in New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina and the strong winds and rains. But these clouds with all of their powers they were sending winds. They were probably 1000s of miles per hour those winds and torrents of rain. Now what did those little cows going to do against that? Srimad Bhagavatam is all about this story. They all turn to Krishna. Krishna, Krishna Maha Bhaho..you are very strong Krishna, Maharaj chuckles... please save us. The brajbasis said please save us Krishna. Look your cows are in distress, your cows are in distress, you are the protector of cows. So Krishna smiled and lifted Giriraj Govardhan and this by the power of the touch of the tip of this little finger on the bottom of the Govardhan hill, Giriraj was so empowered that seven days of this massive winds and rains, they could not remove a single leaf from a single tree on all of Govardhan hill. Hare Krishna! Not a drop of water came under the hill and not a single blade of grass was uprooted on top of the hill. When Krishna wants to protect, there is nothing to fear.

Bhajahure mana, sri nanda nandana, abhaya caranaravindare...”

This is Srimad Bhagavatam. That we pray to our mind, please engage yourself in the loving service of Sri Nanda Nandana. Then there is nothing to fear. Otherwise this world is full of fear and every movement there is something to fear. For an ordinary person, the only reason they are not in fear at every moment is because of they are ignorant of all the possibilities of what could go wrong. So many things to fear. But for a devotee like Prahlad or Ambarish or Pandavas or brajbasis or Srila Prabhupad, there was nothing to fear. Because the greater the obstacle, the deeper one take shelter of the Supreme Personality of God Head. So Lord Brahma <1.14.43> demons and demonstrated immediately they attacked him to have sex with him.

This is unbelievable to Lord Brahma. Just New born children who were boys, they were so lusty, they just attacked him to have sex. First he thought it was humorous but then he realized, they were very serious and they were, they were about to overpower him and He ran away and ultimately he had to take shelter of Krishna. And Krishna told him; give up your body, cast off this body. Hare Krishna! So he cast off.

Sridhar Swami, original commentator of Bhagavatam, describes that he cast off his subtle body, not his gross body. Actual progress in spiritual life is to cast off one’s subtle body. One’s false ego and all of the desires and attachments that are there. Because we have both gross body and subtle body. Srila Prabhupad explains what is liberation? Liberation means to be free from your subtle body. Death doesn't solve anything. Suicide does not solve any problems, it only make things worse. You die physically and according to your subtle bodies condition you have to take birth to experience all the Karmas that are meant for you. So really death is not anything, does not help in anyways. Death of a subtle body, that is liberation. Death to the false ego and all the mind’s materialistic attachments. So describes here in Lord Brahma’s body, his subtle body took the form of evening twilight. And it explains here in that the evening twilight induces passion within those who are materialistic. And the demon class they were so much infatuated by this evening twilight that they saw within that twilight most beautiful female form. They went mad, infatuated, intoxicated, with kama or lust and they were offering incredible glorifications, practical prayers to the form of this woman, praising all the variously shapely parts of her body and they madly chased after her, to enjoy her. But actually there was nothing there. It was just a evening twilight. It was like a mirage, they were seeing something, that wasn’t even there but it was such a reality to them. It totally consumed their entire consciousness.

Factually that was happening in the whole world. That’s what material existence is all about. Chasing a mirage. Due to desperation, you see things that aren’t even there. Actually if you are not thirsty, you probably won't see mirages in the desert. Even if you see thing that looks like, it will not have any, you won't take it serious. You can easily figure out what is what.

But when you are starving out, when you really want something, then you start Maya. Then you start seeing what is not. A person who has no material desires, A person who is fixed in Krishna Consciousness sees everything as it is.

"Archayo upasanam..." One who hears from the spiritual master understands everything as it is. However when we are infatuated by so many unfulfilled desires for our own material enjoyment, and we are always looking, hoping, searching to find the fulfillment and then Maya takes, takes charge and she creates an appearance of what is not. Srila Prabhupad defines "Maya" as that which is not. The whole world becomes nothing but one mirage after another, one illusion after another. To something somehow the mind has to find something to fulfill its desires. The mind becomes obsessed with its desires for sense gratification and Maya doesn't even create anything really, we see things that aren’t even there.

We all have this experience in the mind. Sometimes you worry about things, crave and long for things they don’t even exist. Experience is that they don’t even exist. We just manufacture, manufacture, manufacture! That is the nature of the mind. And then intelligence overcome by the mind, it creates havoc. That is what happened to the demons and they are all looking into the twilight and they are all seeing the same thing. The girl of their dreams. Most beautiful personality and they are chasing after, totally obsessed, their minds, consciousnesses consumed by something that doesn't even exist. So the soul wants to find pleasure, but as long as the soul is under the influence of the ahankar or the false ego, it is thinking I am this body, I am this mind and then all sorts of illusions come by. The soul is looking for real pleasure, the soul is looking for real love and we see dead matter just nothing but dead matter and that infatuates us. Yes. We are thinking its going to make us happy. Like the evening twilight.

In "Shastritio matinuni bhavamedam" Rishabdev explains the basic principle of material existence is this infatuated attachment between male and female. But really what is it about? It is so illusory because the soul wants love, spiritual love. It is looking toward a dead corpse. Srila Prabhupad explains what is this body? It’s a dead corpse flapping for a few minutes only. It’s the soul which gives consciousness, it’s the soul it gives the life, but the body is dead matter but the soul want to enjoy. And then we are trying to find beauty and substance in these bodies. But really what is it? Actually, Maya really creates an embarrassing situation. Blood and puss and stool and urine and <0.23:38:1>…I mean it’s just not even a fraction of an inch of covering of a skin. Yes? And everything underneath is horrible. Yes? Go to a hospital and see the body that is slightly cut open it turns your stomach. You have to be a doctor to tolerate it.

I know one person. This person went through all kinds of years and years and years of medical college to be a doctor But when he actually had to deal with blood and open wounds, he just started vomiting, he couldn't tolerate. This is too much. So really what is it? It’s a thin little tiny layer. And its only, its only beautiful because of the relativity of your eyes. If your eyes had a higher magnifying power, you would just see all kinds of holes in this body and hairs growing out of this body would be disgusting. Do you ever put your hand under a magnifying glass? It's not something attractive. Very grotesque.

All the pores and holes and little bacteria crawling around. So Maya just creates these eyes that sees a very relative way to make something look like what it is not. If you see it too close, too far, it’s horrible. If you see just few millimeters underneath, it’s horrible. And its growing and you have to do all kinds of arrangement just to try to keep it look very nice. Hare Krishna!

But Yes people are obsessed, absolutely obsessed and the amazing thing even though we heard everything I am saying for so many years still we are infatuated. Even though we know all about it, we have vignan, we have the knowledge, we know it’s an illusion. Illusion is so powerful that even if you know it’s an illusion still you can’t give it up. What is it? Why is the soul looking at looking for pleasure in lumps of dead matter which is really grotesque? And we are seeing something so beautiful. This is the illusionary energy. Its because, we so much need pleasure "anando mayabhashyad" - we so much wanting of pleasure

We are sat-cit-ananda. We can’t live without pleasure. And when we forget Krishna Consciousness and when we forget Krishna and our relationship with Krishna, we have to find it somewhere. So due to this desire, we are infatuated and bewildered by the mirages that are manifesting within the twilight of this material existence. And when Lord Brahma saw the demons literally chasing after the twilight, <0.27.12> people are totally obsessed their entire consciousness. They can’t think of anything else but something is not even there and they are running after it. Lord Brahma, he gives full laugh of deep significance and then he created the Gandharvas and Apsarās. And Srila Prabhupad writes here in, next after this beautiful women in the twilight, he created Gandharvas and Apsarās. Music and dancing employed in sense gratification are to be accepted as demoniac. But when the same music and dancing employed in glorifying supreme lord as kirtan is transcendental and they bring about the life completely spiritual enjoyment.

Vishaya nivartantae….<0.28:31> Only solution. Yes! Even after so much knowledge, so much information about the illusory pursuits of vain objects of sense gratification still there is such attachment

Krsna says in Gita...

Yathithathoya Kaunteya….

Indriyani…<0:29:03>

The sense and I remember one of senses is the mind. The mind and sense are so strong and so infatuates, with their desire to enjoy so strong and infactious, that even an intelligent man of discrimination who is endeavoring to control them is often bewildered Then Krishna explain, the one who experience higher taste that person is fixed in consciousness. And this is what is Srila Prabhupad is speaking to conclude this beautiful purport. We are all looking for pleasure in various ways.

Bhakti is art of replacing our demoniac tendencies for material enjoyment with the most virtuous, divine, eternal propensities for the service of Krishna. We cannot simply say "No" to the senses.

Arunyakrsne parampara thaha <0:30:18.7>

Even though we have perfected the art of saying "No" to the senses, "Nethi nethi nethi" Not this, not this, not this and actually achieved Brahman realization that undifferentiated realization of the impersonal aspect of the absolute truth. Because they are not in their constitutional position which is sat-cit-ananda. They are experiencing the sat but not ananda. The nature of the soul is to love not simply exist peacefully. Therefore even in that state of Brahman realization, there is every chance of awakening of desire for pleasure again in the heart and if you do not understand param drsvan nivartate <0.29:24>…the higher taste of spiritual ecstasy then you have to fall down again into the material cosmic manifestation and start chasing after theses mirages these illusions birth after birth after birth.

Prabhupad explains here in, that “music and dancing employed in sense gratification are so very entangling" but yet they are so attractive why? Why are they are so attractive? Because it is our constitutional nature to dance and sing. Music has such power in this world. Look at some body singing about the mirages of this world, most of the songs are about everybody singing about what they see in the twilight. That’s what is all about. Everybody is singing about what they want to get in the twilight or what they thought they had but they lost. Songs about happiness, songs about longings, songs about distress and broken hearts and how people like to dance? I remember three years ago, just very close to RadhaRasbihari’s temple we were invited to do a program in one very wonderful family’s home, devotees of Sri Sri Radha Rasbihari’s and there was I think about a 100 people that attended and just not far away I believe there was the Andheri stadium while we were doing kirtan with about hundred nice devotees, aah Michel Jackson was doing his music and dancing and how many people attended? 50,000 . Yes. 50,000 people were there. Hare Krishna! This is bharath varsha. This is India.

Laughter...

These things could be conceived in America but then India I can imagine what is happening in America. And I was, Maharaj chuckles...recently I was in London and I was with a very prominent person and he got a call from a very prominent, very prominent aristocratic person from Bombay, from a very very high distinguished family. And where do you think he was? He was talking about how he just came out of a rolling stones concert. Hare Krishna! Dancing.

So much, so much attraction but what is the result? of chasing after the twilight of material existence? The result is further infatuation, karmic bondage, the worst of all, its such a total waste of time in this valuable precious human life. Every moment is so valuable. Generally a person has to, a spirit soul has to evolve through millions and millions and millions of species to come to human life and to waste our time and Maya is so expert, she just steals away moment after moment after moment. She doesn’t say come to this concert, enjoy this pleasure forever. For Materialistic people, she says, yes! enjoy for this forever and they just run to her, wholesale, they sell their souls.

But a devotee has knowledge; a devotee understands this is going to cause suffering. This is keeping me away from Krishna. So Maya will tell us, devotees! Just enjoy this for one or two times or may be for a few weeks, for a few months and then you will give it up. Because you need it now. It is some some relief some balance you need it now. But the problem is she never gives up.

The more you get, the more you become attached and the more she infatuates. What it is, is just smoke one more cigarette then you can give it up. Hha…just smoke for another month, then give it up…ha..you see you did it, you enjoyed it. So just give it another month, extend the limit to two months and then three months but the problem is with every month you smoke you are getting that much addicted and it is more difficult that you ever give it up. Until ultimately you just die with a cigarette in your mouth. Hare Krishna! Laughter...Figuratively, that’s the way material enjoyment is. It is addicting. Maya gives she always just extends the deadline for a devotee. But in the meanwhile you are becoming more and more addicted to that illusion. So Srila Prabhupad explains the Bhakti is the most practical , the most dynamic of all systems of Yoga. Because it is practical and its real and it is also the constitutional nature of the eternal soul. What is Bhakti about? Dovetailing our propensities, looking for pleasure, enjoy serving Krishna, enjoy giving pleasure to Krishna. This is real pleasure. Selfishness is the cause of all our sufferings. It is the cause of all the sufferings in the entire material cosmic manifestation. The root cause of everything that is causing misery is our desire to enjoy selfish desires. That’s all.

Our nature is to serve. To enjoy giving pleasure to Krishna. Therefore Prabhupad said you cannot stop eating when you eat nice Prasad and therefore you are having some experience of enjoyment but you are doing under Krishna’s direction, you are pleasing Krishna that’s why prasadam purifies you. Because by eating you are pleasing Krishna. When you please Him he gives you His mercy, its not just some automatic thing. The fact is, Krishna eats the prasadam and invests his own mercy within that food stuffs and by taking prasadam, by honoring prasadam even if u don’t know what it is, somehow or the other you are pleasing Krishna by doing that. By accepting His mercy. Similarly we love to chant, we love to dance, we love music, we love bells. So many bells going in this school. Every morning people have their alarm clocks with bells ringing. get up, go to work, so you could maintain your sense gratification. That’s what is about. So what about bells, just mundane bells. But when the bell rings for Krishna or the alarm clock rings to wake us up for Mangal aarti, Haribol! that bell is very purifying. We like to see beautiful things. I was listening to a tape, Srila Prabhupad is saying, you like to paint, don’t give up your propensity to paint. Paint for Krishna. We like to speak, the tongue wants to vibrate, wants to vibrate so many things. Prajalpa drains our consciousness, drains our bhakti from our heart, Prabhupada explains.The more you talk gossip and nonsense, the more you drain your propensity for Krishna Consciousness from your heart. But to remain silent, that is not the goal of the life. Why did Krishna give us the tongue if we are supposed to remain silent? Prabhupad explains some guru’s tell her disciples to become Moni Baba. Don’t say anything. Just because they are talking so much nonsense, just to stop them from talking nonsense, polluting the environment just don’t say anything. Some thing like Lord Buddha. The Brahmans were missing using the Vedas so much they are so helplessly, hopelessly, just misusing the Vedas. Just stop reading the Vedas. Maharaj chuckles...Just do what I say.

Similarly when we miss use so thing so much sometimes we just don't talk. But that’s not perfection.

Perfection is to use it properly. Krishna has given us these tongues as the most

Sevan mukhe hi jiva…swayam eva spuradatha <0:42:57>

Through the tongue alone we can achieve the ultimate perfection of the life. The beginning of devotional service is to hear and chant the glories of the lord. So Yes, with this tongue to speak Krishna, to sing about Krishna, to fulfill the environment with Krishna. That is the purpose of life and to dance for Krishna. One employed in glorifying the supreme lord in kirtan, this chanting and dancing is transcendental and they bring about the life completely fit for spiritual enjoyment.

Prabhupada is brilliant, genius. He has created Sri Sri Radha Rasbihari’s temple. Why? Simply out of his causeless mercy. Prabhupad was happy in Radha Damodar temple in Vrndavan. He did needed anything. Why did he fight against the Bombay municipal, municipal corporation? He fought against his own lawyers, he fought against the lawyers of powerful powerful influential people who had government contacts they were out to destroy his mission here. It was a battle that lasted years. And prabhupad was having his devotees working so hard in various places of the world. Devotees sacrificing their lives in America, in Japan, in Europe, so many places just to collect money to build this temple? Why? Why so much beautiful carved marble? carved teak wood, nice guest rooms, air conditioning, nice beds, restaurant, lobbies, auditoriums and such beautiful deities decorated with such luxurious clothes, jewels. Why? Because Prabhupad understood that people are looking to see something beautiful, people are looking to taste something delicious, people are looking to hear something satisfying, people are looking to smell something sweet, people are addicted to their mind and the senses. So, we have to give them the higher state, we have to give them an alternative. Prabhupad says if I sit under the tree chanting Japa how many people are going to come? Hare Krishna!

Building such a wonderful place and factually all of our acaryas, so many of our acaryas have built such wonderful temples. They didn’t need anythingg. Rupa Gosvami, Sanatana Gosvami, they gave up beautiful palaces to live under the trees, they were happy. But for the sake of the people of the world they have built Govindji, Madan Mohan, such wonderful temples. Why? Prabhupad constructed Radha Rasbihari temple so that tens and thousands, millions of people would come to experience spiritual sense gratification. To see the beauty of Gods house, anyone who sees the temple of the lord becomes purified because it is God’s house and the more they appreciate, the more they become purified. And if they experience cleanliness and good standards, how much more spiritual progress they make? The more they appreciate the more deeply they are affected by Krishna’s mercy and Prabhupad had the restaurant made, so that they can taste Prasad. And Hari katha and Hari kirtan so that they can heart sweet music, and when they come to the temple they smell sweet incense that is offered to the lord, and they enjoy, they purify, because is it is Krishna’s Prasad. So all the senses, that is why prabupad built Radha Rasbihari temple so that the mind and all the senses of anyone and everyone would be coming by the millions spiritually purified and then gradually by associating with devotees in this atmosphere, they want to participate; they want to join the kirtan and dance and chant. They want to read the books and understand what it’s all about and then their lives are transformed.

Srila Prabhupad wrote his books but he did it in such a brilliant way. Most vedic literatures were were just usually not very good paper, and they just have no words. But Prabhupad had entire Art departments, making beautiful illustrations because he want these books to attract people senses. Really attract people senses. And many times, Book distributors, in America book distributors just one on one going up to a person one at time and they were showing him the book. And usually what they do is, open the book and point to a beautiful painting, sometimes changing bodies, sometimes the chariot of the body and lead by the five sense and people just look so colorful, such a good piece of art. How could they not, how could they not stop to look at beautiful work of art? Then they start explaining, do you know what this means? It’s just like you. You are this body. You see <0:50:11>You are changing body…Laugher...

You are here, can you see where you are going? Yes! you better buy this book. Laughter..Yes! give me this book. <0.50:27>

So much nice illustrations and such beautiful covers to his books. Why? The message in it is enough to transform persons heart but to attract people minds and the senses so that they open their hearts to hear Prabhupad words, to hear and chant the holy names, that is "para upakar". That is the greatest of all welfare work. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, he embraced Pratapa Rudra maharaj again and again and again when he chanted this prayer

"tavakatamrtam tapta Jivanam" <0.51.20>.. that the glorification of the qualities of the name , the form of the lord is the most purifying and most sanctifying thing in all of this existence and one who is promoting this chanting, one who is spreading this chanting and the glories of the lord. Harikatha is the most munificent well wisher of all society. So Yes! People are chasing the illusory forms within the twilight of Brahma's creation. They have that propensity so we want to attract them to see the real substance of the beautiful name, form and qualities of Krishna, the Supreme Personality of God Head.

Srila Prabhupad ki Jay!

Thank you very much.

Should we end here?

But anyone like to ask any questions or make any comments today?

Devotee: Hare Krishna Maharaj

Maharaj: Hare Krishna

Devotee: <0.52.53>...You gave example of smoking, Maya…

One more time one more time and… so how to get out of this attitude to any form of the…

Maharaj:

Thani sarvani...<0:53:15>

There are several verses in Gita that apply and give the solution to practically any question, and this is one of them. Maharaj chuckles...

Krishna said you must restrain the senses and fix the consciousness on Him. So you must understand through knowledge. Prabhuapad told us we must read his books. If we do not read his books, if we do not discuss the subject matter of his books, Maya has all power to bewilder our intelligence, to cloud our discrimination. So therefore we must be fixed in knowledge and what is that knowledge? To understand what is this material existence? What are these mirage illusions within the twilight of the material existence that we are so addicted to trying to enjoy and what is the real substance? Prabhupad said that the fact that there are so many counterfeit currency means there must be real currency. There is no value or attraction to fools gold unless there is real gold. So, similarly why are we so attached to illusory enjoyment? Because there must be real enjoyment. This world is a perverted reflection. So, we must simultaneously say “No” to this cigarette and uti...and engage our senses in a higher experience. We can say “No” to materialistic music in the modes of passion and ignorance, and simultaneously hear the glorious Hari katha and Hari kirtan. We could say “No” to sinful food that is simply a product of material nature. Krishna tells in Gita if there any food that is not offered as sacrifice to Him is a sin. You are eating sin.

I recently heard a beautiful lecture of Prabhupad where Prabhupad was saying, we are not promoting vegetarians. We are promoting Prasad, because vegetarian is also eating sin. Not as much, eating fish eggs and meat and all of these is huge sin. Eating vegetarian is eating little sin. But eating Prasad is pure without karma, it elevates our consciousness. So “Yes”, we have to have that propensity.

<0.56.31>

Human life is meant for tapasya and what is Tapasya? To say “No” to what is unfavorable for devotional service, but in order to do that with continuity we must say “Yes” to those things that are favorable for devotional service. And in the association of devotees, this process is very pleasing to the heart. Because the association of devotees gives us the strength, ability, by which we can carry on saying “No” to Maya and “Yes” to Krishna. The idle mind is devils workshop. I think people trying to give up cigarette according to your analogy, if they just sit at home and say I am not going to do, I am not going to do…very difficult. Very very difficult. But if they are all distributing books and worshipping the deities, preaching and doing so many wonderful services to Krishna, then their mind is occupied experiencing a higher taste and gradually that inclination is cleansed - “Ceto darpana marjanam”

Harer nama Harer Nama Harer Nama Eva kevalam…

In the age of Kali, this chanting of holy names is the ultimate higher taste we are looking for because Krishna is most accessible through His name. So we must simultaneously give up our bad habits and engross ourselves in active dynamic service in the association of the devotees while chanting the names of the lord. Then by mercy of Krishna,

<0.58.27>

By following these regulative principles we get Krishna’s mercy and that mercy frees from us all this illusory attachments. To be <0.58.48> within the twilight of Brahma’s creation

Is there any other questions?

Thank you very much.

Srila Prabhupad ki Jai!

His Holiness Radhanath Swami Maharj ki Jai!