Ideal Life
Hari Sauri Dasa: During the afternoon Dhrishtadyumna Swami arrived on a Radha-Damodara sankirtana bus. Srila Prabhupada received him in his darsana room after his afternoon nap, at about four thirty. He immediately asked him for a report. Dhrishtadyumna Swami told him the Radha-Damodara parties have already sold seventy thousand magazines this month and are aiming for one hundred thousand before the month's end. In addition to this he said that twenty thousand big books have been sold, and there is still another week to go. In a slightly jocular mood, designed to bring out the competitive spirit in his disciples, Srila Prabhupada asked Kirtanananda Maharaja what the figures were for his distribution. But when Kirtanananda replied that he didn't know what the figures were, Srila Prabhupada changed his tone to conciliatory. "No, your line is this farming." And then when Kirtanananda Maharaja responded that per man, he thought his party distributed more books than anybody in ISKCON, Prabhupada was appreciative. "And still they are maintaining this farm," he said to Dhrishtadyumna. Prabhupada began to extoll the virtues of plain living and high thinking, as opposed to what he termed a "nasty civilizaton" which unnecessarily increases the necessities of life. He compared the electric light to the castor oil lamp. Both products, the oil and the castor seeds, come from the earth. But to get the oil requires so much endeavor, drilling into the ocean, simply to improve the lighting system. "In this way your real business of life is finished. The energy and the intelligence you got for your self-realization, this precarious position, constantly dying and taking birth in various species of life, this is your problem, this was to be solved in human life. You have got advanced intelligence, but that intelligence is utilized from castor seed lamp to the electric lamp. That's all. Just try to understand. What is that improvement? And for this improving from castor seed oil lamp to electricity lamp, you forget your real business. You lost yourself. This civilization is going on. This is called maya. For some fictitious happiness you lose your whole purpose of life. It is difficult to understand, but the fact is there."
Kulasekhara Dasa, formerly of London, was also present. Srila Prabhupada recalled how Kulasekhara's father, a London docker, was driving for him during one of his visits. Kulasekhara told Prabhupada that he was finding country life to be so much more peaceful and less anxiety-ridden than living in the city. "Yes," Prabhupada said. "Less disease. Less brain taxing. Everything is less. And if you have temple, it is very happy life. Just for your food work a little, and balance time engage yourself in Krishna consciousness. This is ideal life." Gently holding one of the vased flowers on his desk he said, "Just see the minute fibers on the flower. Can anyone manufacture this? So small fibers. And how brilliant it is. If you study only one flower, you become God conscious. There is a machine which we call nature. From that machine, everything is coming." Remembering something Srila Prabhupada had said in London about Krishna's artistry, Kulasekhara offered, "You said they do not know that the butterflies and flowers are painted, but Krishna paints them with thought." Prabhupada smiled. "Yes. How you can expect without painting it has come so beautiful? This is foolishness, 'nature.' What is this nature? Everything is being done by the machine of Krishna. Parasya saktir vividhaiva sruyate. Anyway, improve this mode of life. Live in open place, produce your food grains, produce your milk, save time, chant Hare Krishna. Plain living, high thinking, ideal life. Artificial necessities of life do increase your so-called comforts, but if you forget your real business, that is suicidal. We want to stop this suicidal policy. We don't want to stop the modern advancement of technology, although the so-called advancement of technology is suicidal." He laughed. "But we don't talk of this. Caitanya Mahaprabhu has therefore given a simple formula, chant Hare Krishna. Even in your technological factories, you can chant. What is the wrong there? You go on pulling on with your machine and chant, Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna."
Turning to Kirtanananda Swami he asked if everyone was getting sufficient milk. When Kirtanananda Maharaja said "as much as they want," Prabhupada laughed. "As much as they want, then jaundice. Too much is not good. They may take minimum half pound per head, and maximum one pound. Not more than that. But 'Because there is enough, let us eat,' no. That is not good. But children must get at least one pound milk. If they drink more milk they become stout and strong. Then their life is built up strong, and nice brain to understand. "Do they not see the benefit of the Society, that we are not killing children, we are maintaining them with sufficient milk? Is it not better civilization? And they are, for fear of overpopulation, they are killing. The mother is killing the child. Is that civilization? We welcome, and they kill. So why do they not find the distinction between this civilization, that civilization?" Dhrishtadyumna Swami said they have no arguments except that they want to be free. "But they are not free," Prabhupada said. "That means they are fools. Where is your freedom? Nature is working. If you are free, then do not die. Nobody wants to die. What is the answer? The people's general tendency is, unless he's a madman, nobody is prepared to die. But he has to die."
Presenting the same impractical liberalism that the young reporter in Los Angeles had, Dhrishtadyumna answered, "But I accept death as part of life. It's natural. So I'm not afraid." "Then when there is some sign of death, why do you go away?" Prabhupada challenged him. "Sit down and die." Everyone laughed at his exposure of the obvious. He went on to explain the actual psychology. "You don't accept. You don't want to die. That is a fact. You are talking foolishly, that 'I accept it;' but you don't accept it. The real fact is this, that you do not wish to die, but because you find that there is no other alternative, 'Then I accept it. All right.' So you can talk like that, foolishly, but the intelligent man, you do not want to die."
Kuladri prabhu presented another criticism directed at the devotees. "They say why do you worry so much about death? We are living. We are enjoying life, why do you worry about death?" "Because we are intelligent," Srila Prabhupada responded. "I love you. Therefore you'll die and you'll become a dog, so I am taking sympathy on you that 'Don't become a dog.' Every human being is anxious. The example is given just like a child flying kite and is going this way, this way, on the roof. Now on the edge of the roof, so one gentleman standing, 'Hey, you'll fall down.' That is his duty. "He [the child] says, 'Why you are checking me?' "?'Because I am human being. You are foolish boy. Therefore I am checking you.' That is natural. The boy is not his son, but because he is gentleman, he wants to give him some protection. It is the duty of gentleman. "Therefore Caitanya Mahaprabhu said to the Indians, that 'You become perfect and go and give this knowledge to the rest of the world. They are all rascals. It is para-upakara, humanitarian. You may say, 'Why do you bother?' But as a human being I bother. Every human being will do that. Krishna comes, bothering Himself. Yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati bharata. 'When these have become rascals, fools, I come, again advise them.' So those who are servants of God, they are also doing the same thing, on behalf of God. Their position is therefore exalted. They should be worshiped as God because they are doing the work of God. They are not cheating the public. "So improve this farming very nicely. So the cows, they should be given as much pasturing as possible. If you simply drink little milk, and little vegetables, that will supply all vitamins. You do not require to take vitamin pills. No, there is no need, it has got all the vitamins. That is admitted. Vitamin A, D, in milk. And fruits, vitamin C. In this way, in fruits, vegetables, grains, milk, all vitamins are there." Even meat-eaters can be catered to, Prabhupada suggested, by giving them the cow's flesh after it dies a natural death. Whenever a cow dies, they can simply be informed, and be allowed to take away the carcass for free.
Dhrishtadyumna Maharaja raised the objection that what might be practical for devotees might not be so for the rest of society. Prabhupada retorted, "So what is not practical for you, our system, your system is also not practical for us. We cannot live in this way. Anyway, if you can maintain a perfect community of plain living, high thinking, that is sufficient. We do not canvass but naturally they'll see that this is convenient. After all, they are human beings. They are learning. So that is part of our business to preach. But to practice personally, that is our main business. Not that everyone will be preacher, but at least his own life be perfect."
Kulasekhara is now producing Brijbasi Spirit, a magazine about New Vrindaban. Advance copies are sent to His Divine Grace and the last issue came while we were in Hawaii. Kulasekhara bore the latest, which he laid on Srila Prabhupada's desk. It featured a beautiful picture of Sri Sri Radha-Vrindavananatha, the Deities of the original New Vrindaban farm. Seeing Them on the cover, Prabhupada asked Kirtanananda Swami to make arrangements for him to go up to the old farmhouse. Kulasekhara prabhu expressed his feeling that the main Deities of New Vrindaban, Sri Sri Radha-Vrindavanacandra, were even more beautiful than Sri Sri Radha-Londonisvara, the first large set of Deities to be installed in the Society. But it seemed he had a partisan purpose, and wanted Prabhupada's support. "Oh, yes," Srila Prabhupada readily agreed. But it was clear he said it more to maintain Kulasekhara's enthusiasm rather than from his own conviction, because he then immediately modified it. "London differently. Vrindavanacandra is village beauty, and He is London beauty. He's town beauty." Encouraged, Kulasekhara pursued his line of thought. "I have not seen more beautiful anywhere than Radha-Vrindavanacandra. The jewelry ..." "No," Prabhupada told him evenly. "Every one is beautiful; but everyone praises our London Deity." "They have not seen yet Radha-Vrindavanacandra," Kirtanananda Maharaja suggested. Prabhupada smiled, but wouldn't be drawn. "No, they have seen the picture."
Reference: Transcendental Diary Volume 3 by Hari Sauri Dasa
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