Srimad Bhagavad Gita AS IT IS

Bhagavad Gita:   Chapter 6 - Dhyana-yoga

TEXT 5
                          uddhared atmanatmanam
                           natmanam avasadayet
                        atmaiva hy atmano bandhur
                          atmaiva ripur atmanah

   WORD FOR WORD
   uddharet--one must deliver; atmana--by the mind; atmanam--the conditioned soul; na--never; atmanam--the conditioned soul; avasadayet--put into degradation; atma--mind; eva--certainly; hi--indeed; atmanah--of the conditioned soul; bandhuh--friend; atma--mind; eva--certainly; ripuh--enemy; atmanah--of the conditioned soul.
 
TRANSLATION
   "One must deliver himself with the help of his mind, and not degrade himself. The mind is the friend of the conditioned soul, and his enemy as well."
 
PURPORT by HDG Srila A.C. Bhaltivedanta Swami Prabhupad:

The word atma denotes body, mind and soul--depending upon different circumstances. In the yoga system, the mind and the conditioned soul are especially important. Since the mind is the central point of yoga practice, atma refers here to the mind. The purpose of the yoga system is to control the mind and to draw it away from attachment to sense objects. It is stressed herein that the mind must be so trained that it can deliver the conditioned soul from the mire of nescience. In material existence one is subjected to the influence of the mind and the senses. In fact, the pure soul is entangled in the material world because the mind is involved with the false ego, which desires to lord it over material nature. Therefore, the mind should be trained so that it will not be attracted by the glitter of material nature, and in this way the conditioned soul may be saved. One should not degrade oneself by attraction to sense objects. The more one is attracted by sense objects, the more one becomes entangled in material existence. The  best way to disentangle oneself is to always engage the mind in Krsna consciousness. The word hi is used for emphasizing this point, i.e., that one must do this. It is also said:

                           mana eva manusyanam
                         karanam bandha-moksayon
                          bandhaya visayasango
                        muktyai nirvisayam manah.

   "For man, mind is the cause of bondage and mind is the cause of liberation. Mind absorbed in sense objects is the cause of bondage, and mind detached from the sense objects is the cause of liberation." (Amrta-bindu Upanisad 2) Therefore, the mind which is always engaged in Krsna consciousness is the cause of supreme liberation.

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Copyright 1983 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International. Used with permission.

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Prabhupada Uvacha:
(here's some nectar, sometimes it comes in the form of Srutakirti prabhu's diary, other times from Govinda dasi's diary, Hari Sauri prabhu's Transcendental Diary, or sometimes from a letter, or other related source, but still nectar...)

Personal: His Indifference and Detachment

Prabhupada was never indifferent or uninterested in anything connected with the Krsna consciousness movement. If he sometimes wouldn't respond to a disciple's question, that was his gravity, instructing us by ignoring us.

He was indifferent to his own health. In his desire to spread Krsna consciousness, he didn't rest as he should have for someone his age. He continued traveling because he could not be indifferent to the fallen souls and to his disciples. He had created by his preaching and traveling the worldwide Krsna consciousness movement, and he had placed himself in the center as its upholder. He could not be indifferent. He said if a body is cut in the finger, the whole body suffers. When ISKCON in Argentina was closed by the government, Prabhupada worried and wrote in his Bhaktivedanta purports how he was worrying in the mood of Vasudeva: Vasudeva knew that his son Krsna could not be harmed, but he was in the ecstatic mood of anxious protection.

Prabhupada was detached from the bad names people used against Krsna consciousness in newspaper accounts, mostly because he saw the bright side of it -- the fact that the newspapers were mentioning Krsna's name. He cared for many things, yet on Krsna's behalf he was also indifferent. Although much money came in, Prabhupada was not concerned to keep any of it. He said his author's royalties for writing so many books was to take two capatis a day. He was detached from the Fisher mansion purchased in Detroit and from other mansions. He was indifferent towards any books being printed about himself. He wanted Krsna glorified. He was also not very eager to meet big heads of state. When someone asked him, "Why don't you try to meet President Nixon and tell him these things?" Prabhupada replied, "What good would it do?" He was prepared to meet with the Pope, but when their schedules did not coincide, he did not pursue it. He knew that posing for a picture with a head of state did not mean much.

He was certainly indifferent to women's charms. He saw his female disciples as daughters and granddaughters and he respected their service to him. He saw them as spirit souls, but did not meet with them much in comparison to the meetings he had with his men disciples. He was not interested in sitting with women or looking at them for enjoyment.

He was indifferent to any kind of invitations to take tours in different cities he visited. He didn't want to go somewhere to see special downtown centers or tourist places, shopping places, and he never went to cinemas or sports events. He did like nice parks where he could walk in the mornings, and he liked big meeting halls in the city if there was an audience there to hear him speak Krsna consciousness. He was interested in buildings for possible purchase as temples. Although he visited alluring cities like New York, London, and Paris, he was not interested to see the libraries, palaces, museums, natural wonders such as caves or waterfalls, seasides, or mountain resorts. They held no attraction for him. He preferred a simple room with a low desk where he could speak to guests and be among devotees for the best furthering of Krsna consciousness. If by his service he was thrust into some situation in the midst of opulence or distraction, however, he was indifferent to the situation, even though externally it was in opposition to his way of life.

Especially in the first years in America, Prabhupada was indifferent to the fact that his hosts in Pennsylvania ate meat or that he was moving into the hell of the material world known as the Bowery. He was indifferent to the fact that his first disciples were very sinful before becoming devotees. In such situations, he accepted and tolerated and was detached even from the desire to be in the most spiritual surroundings of a holy place. He was indifferent to a place being holy or unholy, as long as he was able to preach.

He kept a simple diet and wasn't interested in special foods such as the special cooking which the Italians could offer, or the French, or the Americans. Even within the Indian diet, which was his preference, he was not interested in fancy things, but in simple rice, dal, capatis, and sabji.

He was indifferent to clothes and would not sport any bright scarves or colorful cadars or special shoes or coats or hats. His simple sannyasi dress he kept constant. He liked bright clothes for the Deities and the opportunity to spend money to build wonderful buildings and new ways to spread Krsna consciousness, such as through dioramas. He also liked and appreciated the best quality in book printing and color reproduction of the paintings. In these things, even in their worldly aspects, Srila Prabhupada was a connoisseur, a keen appreciator of quality, and he asked his devotees to compete in the market for the best quality and price; they should get the best deal and the best product for use in Krsna's service.

Satsvarupa dasa Goswami.

- From the Prabhupada Nectar by HH Satsvarupa dasa Goswami

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Listen to Srila Prabhupad on-line
....a different lecture, morning walk, conversation or class daily.

"Spiritual Food and Finance"

Denver,  July 1, 1975

>>> Ref. VedaBase => Morning Walk -- July 1, 1975, Denver

Listen to the entire lecture on-line:
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Prabhupada: It is Krsna's book, we are all servants, engaged. [break] (laughing) Here your parents accusing me, and in India the caste brahmanas accusing me. My standing... I do not know what is my standing. Your parents are accusing me, "This rascal, converting our sons to become mendicant without any material enjoyment." And there, "This rascal is giving sacred thread to the mlecchas and yavanas." (Still laughing)

Visnujana: Is that why you keep traveling, Prabhupada, so they won't catch you?

Prabhupada: Narada Muni was accused by Prajapati Daksa that "You are traveling in the dress of a sadhu, but you are the most sinful man. You have turned my sons in the renounced order of life to become beggar, without any advancement, without any enjoyment." So that accusation is always there, beginning from Narada Muni down to us. Some parents came to demonstrate?

Brahmananda: In Los Angeles, yes. I understand they've demonstrated before, someone was saying? They had placards, and they were marching.

Bhavananda: In Laguna Beach they also.

Prabhupada: Therefore Dr. Judah has said...

Brahmananda: He has dedicated his book, "To the parents and to the devotees."

Prabhupada: He has tried to pacify the parents.

Brahmananda: Yes. Another parent is coming to see you today.

Prabhupada: Oh, to accuse me? (laughter)

Brahmananda: No, her son said she is very favorable. She's the mother of Pariksit.

Prabhupada: Your mother was very angry upon us. (laughter) You know that? When she came to see me, I told, "Mrs. Bruce, can you give me some money?" (laughing) (Imitating angry woman's voice:) "I have given you two sons!" (laughter) She was very angry. "Still you want money?" (laughter) "And that's all right."

Tamala Krsna: You asked them to bow down to her?

Prabhupada: No, I asked him to bow down to your mother.

Brahmananda: Yes, at initiation.

Prabhupada: After initiation.

Tamala Krsna: Did she like...

Prabhupada: I gave her proper respect. Mother, after all, she is. She is fortunate mother. She has produced such nice sons. And I offered her respect, yes. Any of your mother and father, they are all very fortunate. And you are doing... giving the best service to your family. Our Nitai's mother came. She looked very nice lady, yes. I think you are the first child.

Nitai: Yes.

Prabhupada: Therefore she looks young, not very old. Within forty?

Nitai: Over forty, I think. Within fifty.

Prabhupada: Oh. But she looks younger. And your grandmother?

Nitai: She is eighty.

Prabhupada: Oh. [break] ...Daksa accused Narada that "My sons were not out of the three kinds of debts." One debt is debtor to the saintly sages. Just like we are reading Srimad-Bhagavatam, we are indebted to Vyasadeva. He has given such literature, and we are taking advantage of it. As such, especially the brahmanas, they have got indebtedness to big sages and saintly person. They receive knowledge from them. And they are indebtor to the demigods. Therefore they have to perform yajnas. And they are indebtor to their father because the father has brought them to this world. So in this way, especially a brahmana is indebted to demigods, the past sages, and the father. So the indebtedness to the sages is performed by becoming brahmacari, and to the demigods by offering sacrifices, and to the father by begetting children, to continue the progeny. So Narada Muni was accused that "You keep them indebted to these principles, so how they can be liberated? Simply by dressing like you, (laughs) a mendicant?" Accusing. But perhaps he did not know. There is another version in the Srimad-Bhagavatam,

devarsi-bhutapta-nrnam pitrnam

nayam rni na ca kinkaro rajan

sarvatmana yah saranam saranyam

gato mukunda parihrtya...

 [SB 11.5.41]

Anyone who has fully surrendered to Krsna, he is no more debtor to anyone. And Krsna says that "You surrender to Me, and I shall keep you protected from all kinds of..." Because if you don't repay your debts, then you become sinful. But Krsna says, "I shall protect for all kinds of sin." So if anyone has surrendered to Krsna, he is no more debtor to anyone. He is immune from all obligation. His only obligation is to Krsna. [break] ...has eaten up this?

Brahmananda: This tree? [break]

continued.......................