QA-session with Bangalore Devotees
Bhakti Vijnana Goswami · Bangalore · 2021
Chapters
Introduction and personal background
So Hare Krishna. I'm very happy to be with you this morning.
And I was asked to introduce myself a little bit and to tell my little story how I started chanting Hare Krishna mantra and how I came to this movement of Krishna consciousness.
Now on the path that may please you. Jaya Prabhupada! Patrick. It happened 41 years back, so it's a long journey. I joined I started chanting Hare Krishna mantra in 1980. And at that time I was a postgraduate student.
I was doing my PhD thesis on molecular biology. Nah, uh molecular biology and a PhD finding. But your internet is very big. Do you want to stop video? Yeah, I can stop video Is it better now? Yes Maharaj it is better now.
Okay. So I was doing my PhD degree, I was working on this, and at that time somebody, one friend
gave me Bhagavad-gītā, and through my friend, the Bhagavad-gītā Kurda Napotor Satumanari and to give you a little understanding
of what the situation was like at that time, it was Soviet Union and Soviet Union was officially an atheistic country.
You cannot preach about God, you cannot even believe in God, because if you believe in God, you're already against the state, against the government. I was officially indoctrinated in the atheism.
You know, as far as I remember from my kindergarten years, you know, everyone was telling me there is no God, there is no God, there is no God.
And basically and I believe that there is no God because everyone says that there is no God. Nothings in the school and the official on the cover of the cover and the purports and the prabhupada.
When I was studying in the university, one co-student of mine, one fellow student of mine, he dared to admit that he believes in God because there was the exam on atheism, and he said, I believe in God, and he was kicked out from the university practically immediately just because he dared to say that maybe there is God.
If you believed in God, you would be deprived on all your career possibilities, you will be basically, you can believe in God, but you will be nothing in this society. But if you preach, you will be put in prison.
If you preach something about God that God exists, that that was dangerous, that was crime against the kommunism. Soviet Unla Advan Adamari or Adigamana Criminal Areadume and Carriade Vongal Jailapotan.
So a friend of mine from the university he, first met with the devotees and he started chanting.
First impressions of Bhagavad-gita
And eventually he gave me Bhagavad-gītā and said, why don't you chant this Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. I still remember very clearly my first impression after reading Bhagavad-gītā. It was a very amazing experience
because I felt that the whole new world is opening to me. I saw what I saw in Bhagavad-gītā, I saw in Bhagavad-gītā very rational explanation of what the world is all about based on the premise that there is God.
Bangermanachium. As you could understand, I have scientific background and you know I was trained as a scientist. So scientists they don't believe so easily in things but they they're trained to think rationally.
So what, I was impressed the most by Bhagavad-gītā is that it's a very rational system. It's not just a system of belief, blind belief. Just believe and you will be saved.
It was a very rational and intellectually satisfying worldview. Now scientists are molecular biology participants, and And and I I developed my
doubts in atheism because before that I used to think that only rational worldview is atheistic worldview. Here we have worldview with God in the center, but very rational nevertheless. So I developed some of my doubts.
I said, you know, from purely scientific or intelligent point of view, this bold, this both understandings are equal and we should try to check whether what is better
what is explaining the world around us better the Panay and Model and Nati Patipunchuma Sunday or Aram Chida. Nina and Nastiga Matuna Pogutariana, Nasti Gamum Vingam Motuna or
Agata Pogutari or yeah expendamri, and me get lend one of the parkle, Ponja, unmegately Papu Terry because how
Beginning to chant as an experiment
do you check it? So the friend of mine who uh uh told me about Bhagavad-gītā,
who gave me Bhagavad-gītā, he said why don't you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare, Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare. He didn't tell me much about Kṛṣṇa besides Bhagavad-gītā, but in Bhagavad-gītā Kṛṣṇa speaks very little about himself, so to speak.
So Krishna Pati and the Arimounku. He said, if you chant this mantra, you will develop some abilities, you will have a clear mind, this and that.
He gave me the pep talk of why it is necessary to chant Hare Krishna Mantra without going too much into the theology of the whole process.
Our summit that they are male automa in the Jamamanak Manasrumba clear, manasurumba sutamago, nare saktiga, rumba, male autamadasum naruana Krishna So I decided to try chanting Hare Krishna mantra just as an experiment.
I thought let me try it and I can always stop it if I don't like it or if it doesn't work. So forty-one years later I am still chanting so apparently it works. Now Pator Oshima Param checks we don't know the key, no job.
In my life there were many amazing uh uh events which proved to me the potency of Hare Krishna mantra. Because of Hare Krishna mantra I felt very amazing. I had quite some experiences how this sound vibration works.
You know, I just hear the kata and re and the mandra mandate But
perhaps the most obvious uh result of Hare Krishna mantra is that you chant and chant and chant and you're not getting tired, you are not getting bored with it, you are not getting really you know when when you repeat the same thing again and again and again.
After some time you become very disgusted with this sound. But sound of Hare Krishna mantra is actually very pleasing and very soothing. And it gives you some very nice experience.
Pudu Idalena Acharita Kavishana, Urdada, Mandra, Edao Vati Tripi Tripisona Kujana Borajasama Solidurum in the Vati Nam To
get the full experience of the potency of this sound, you definitely need you know some purity of the heart, some conditions should be in place, you should chant it purely.
But even from the very beginning you can feel that it's something different than ordinary words because if you would chant something else you would be disgusted very soon. You can try it for yourself.
You can chant Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola, Pepsi Cola, Pepsi Cola, Pepsi Cola. I don't think it will give you any good result. But you chant Hare Krishna and you feel something even from the very beginning.
So I'm just sharing with you my little life story, which is the proof that Hare Krishna mantra has a lot of potency, and maybe in some other sessions I will explain to you more.
Preaching under Soviet regime
You know, 15 minutes for now is enough. Here I am, a former scientist who ultimately decided to dedicate his whole life to this process.
And not only this, ultimately, you know, I I was in front of a very difficult choice because at one point the police found out that I'm not only chanting Hare Krishna mantra but also preaching it and I had hard time.
So I overcame some difficulties to actually to have the right to chant Hare Krishna mantra. You are here and you don't have any external difficulties in this regard,
but it's a very what I want to say: it's a very precious gift which we all have, and we should appreciate it and should value this opportunity to chant this Hare Krishna mantra, it's not, it's a privilege. So sorry.
Maharaj we can officially end, but uh can you stay to uh clear some doubts with people? Yeah, I can answer the questions, I see few hands up. So yes.
No no there will be too many hands. You can go they will go up to ten o'clock if you leave. Okay. Yeah, yeah.
Up to ten o'clock I am not the single soul and a water solution, in a Russian government, Soviet Union contributed. I'll try yeah, you can announce yeah.
So I'm opening first chat, Maharaj, and then they will ask questions also one by one I'll allow them to ask questions. Hare Krishna. This is Radika here from Chennai, India.
Logic of gunas in Bhagavad-gita
I just have one query. You know, you said there is a lot of logic in Bhagavad Gita, while we understand it from Radhica, you know, you are you are a scientist to the background.
Can you explain what was the most uh you know of all the logics which was something which was very impressive for you? Mm-hmm. Well, I can explain about little details like not details but
essential bricks, philosophical bricks which impressed me, like for example this guṇa theory, sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa, and tamo-guṇa. It was very impressive.
But overall, I was impressed by the impression which I had after reading Bhagavad-gītā, was that here we have a very comprehensive worldview which is logical in itself.
It's not just a little piece of logic here and there, but I see very logical and rational worldview which developed from the premise that there is God. You please translate, I will explain a little more what I mean.
So Bodhi delay or a conja And a Bahokita in the Mario or Kareconja Logic in a conja logic appena. Motta Bah Yeah, like for example if you take this Guna theory, it's a very scientific thing.
You can make an experiment, you can prove, you can see, you know, you do something, this will be the consequence of what you're doing. So it's a very scientific understanding.
But even though I was impressed by this, I was more impressed by the whole and the whole theory, the whole concept. It's like in geometry.
In geometry, there are different geometries: like there is normal geometry, Euclidean geometry, there is Lobachevsky geometry, there are some different geometries, and all these geometries with different understanding they stem out from initial premises.
And if you change one initial premise, the whole system chang But nevertheless, it's a different system, but it's logical in itself, uh it's complete and logical in itself.
So what I saw in Bhagavad Gita is so very comprehensive and internally rational and logical worldview based on a completely different premises, completely different initial understandings. Yeah.
And then I started trying to, you know, look at the world around me from these two different worldviews. From atheistic, scientific worldview and from Bhagavad-gītā worldview.
And Nastika Malipurma, no one, Bhagavad Gita Mulama Pakra, Walakata.
And I could see the explanation of different events from Gnostic point of view, scientific point of view, and Bhagavad Gita point of view, there were different explanations.
But ultimately I realized that Bhagavad-gītā point of view explains the world around me in a better way.
Up a moon in a compare pani parkambo day, the moon ele, Bahokita Mulama or the Parkara day, one jumanda that's ultimately uh more complete understanding.
It gives you a more clear and more complete understanding of what is going on and why it is going on. Extremely impressive and thank you so much. I think you really made our day and our land. Thank you so much. Ravi Gumad.
Sharada. Hello, I am Rajma. Sir, I want to clarify. Can you speak a little louder?
Spread of ISKCON in Russia
I want to clarify some doubt from the Maharaj. Sir, how many years you are preaching this in your country sir?
And also how many people are joined so far chanting this Mahā-mantra? And what is the status in your country now sir? Well, I started preaching probably you know three, four years later, when I was convinced myself.
And in 1990, 1991, there was a radical change in the country and preaching was allowed and since then we distributed at
least 20 million of Bhagavad-gītās. I don't know the exact statistics, but 20 million Bhagavad-gītās for Russia, which has 130 million people, it's a very significant amount.
It basically means that every household has one Bhagavad-gītā, or almost every household has one Bhagavad-gītā. Practice Panakapram Pracharaman Aram chana I to like to only government Punjari X Panaram City.
Now that rent the code giveaway, Bahaki Purderon, upna in Narton, overweightly Bahaki put the donor. And you know, in in 1993 Many years back, we had an event in Moscow.
It was the beginning of this new era in the history of Russia. And during this event there were 33,000 people chanting together Hare Krishna Mantra in Kirtan. Public layer, well, I don't put the moon iron very since
that time, many many thousands of people started doing this practice. I don't exactly know the statistics, but those who are regular practitioners, I would say that there is not less than 10,000 people.
And there are some casual people, people who are just interested or you know sometimes meet with devotees and interested in this philosophy.
So if you're interested about regular practitioners probably in the range of 10,000 people, or maybe more, maybe And now the particular nippadin very team is When we have big festivals like for the whole Russia, around six thousand
Three gunas and physical matter
people come, but because Russia is so big, you know, and festival means that you know for the big festivals in Moscow around 10,000 people come, but that's maybe casual people but you know so I I think you know 15-20 thousand is a realistic figure for people who are seriously practicing Krishna consciousness.
I am Ramani Kumar. I want to introduce me as a postgraduate in engineering from IIT. I have been reading all this astronomy for a very I also started reading Bhagavad-gītā some six years back.
I also had a similar experience what Maharajal explained that Sattvakunam I mean Trikunam even the formation of matter itself would have come from dark matter with that three color forces.
Is it uh you are comparing that trigula with that three forces which enabled formation of matter from dark matter. That is what I want to know. Ramadian Salita, IIT postgraduate chat Uh
the moon to force dark matter abinsolisatwangaland, it's someone that can solid again.
Yes, we can talk about this for a long time, but definitely when you see the matter around us, you can see that there is gross matter, so to speak, and there is energy.
Gross matter is comparing to tamagun, or this is tamasique more or less element.
And then you have energy, which is Rajasic element, and then you have structure, information, order, so to speak. And that's Satvik element, more subtle. So com,bination this is a very elementary level of matter.
And of course, you can see the same on a you know on a Different levels.
But if you go to the elementary level of the matter, the construction of the matter, then you will be able to distinguish these things you know that there is gross matter, and there is energy and there is information or structure or order.
So that's already on this level you can distinguish this Srigunas theory. What to speak on any other Latin okay sorry so yeah sorry Mamanara, Tamogunam, Sakti, Rajogun.
Social impact of Krishna consciousness
Idela Ulundumayama Avanjara and the rules at Matulama Pakamria the Sutchamapuralun Satvagunam. No, it's okay, I've I already said. Oh okay, maybe just one more question and then I'll go to my regular routine. Thanks for the Krishna Guru Jee. Good morning.
I am very much pleased about your answers. I want to ask actually how it has transformed you personally that is economic status. Everybody people want to uplift themselves.
Then officially by uh transforming yourself and others and officially how it helped you to rise up vertically so as to be example for others and socially, socially answered.
30 million out of 30 or 130 million is tremendous and even 10,000 practices are very good, exemplary How it has transformed your economic status and official status as a scientist?
Mapuro Munaray, Mukwa million, Moonbody Makal to Bondu waiting a Padmoon Body Makers. Make a period, otherwise, Baban Kishana we didn't be like Mudia, some of the ideas sorting to Patarab regularly, and make a period Savannah. And the scientists think a very key bar with the same. He thought he thought that you are married and how is that your life has improved economically also?
But he wants to know is there any other things which can be told so that which impresses like this like out of one thirty million you gave two thirty million, is there anything else about information which can help
others to relate to Well what I can say that so many people uh you know now
so many people practice vegetarianism in Russia, partially or to a greater extent, due to preaching of Hare Krishna movement, because before that, vegetarianism was not known to people.
There were very few people who were strict vegetarians. Now it's very common among Russian people.
So much so that in the Soviet Union, if you would be vegetarian, you would be viewed as a dangerous person because it's was so different from the rest of society. So that's one one thing.
Add the Pontius Kan or Pracharat Nalay, Nariber Namari dead Granga, Adnan Vegetarian Sabra and Tilgranga. Or in the Roma with Yasmana Kalangal Mari, if an area very clean of the chat, with a weapon. Mari Naria, Samuel Martha Room, Keram.
And uh another thing is that uh you know as you know we all strictly avoid all kinds of intoxication. Uh and um in Russia many people they use intoxications.
So from the social point of view, this preaching is also very helpful because, as we all know, drugs, intoxication, alcohol, it's a social evil.
And so many people were saved and were able to get rid of these bad habits just because they were somehow rather in contact with Hare Krishna movement or with Hare Krishna mantra. In a ma Kuripode Mulugrad Sadhana Vision.
Anna Nama is gonna pracharathanala, Narayaver on the Ala Buddha, why could it last one or two questions from okay okay ashi shardamata our repartamani slash Marius Father Bush.
doesn't have any question only one she wants to say that she wants to touch your lotus feet but preaching in such a tough country. Thank you. Last Murchikla Sharada. Let me amount the shame. But that's only what it's like.
What what is the realization you have after chanting Hare Krishna how much peacefully you feel, how much and she is uh she is uh she is uh asking you to do more and you Hare Krishna mantra to everybody. Thank you.
I feel very happy when I do proper chanting then I feel very happy and very um yeah and I I want to share it with everyone this experience. That's the feeling which I have. I don't know what it okay we can we can stop now.
Yeah. Okay, hardly.