Hovering Over the Mental Plane

Indian man (2): ... political things. Two and two will always be four. But we people don't agree so far.

Prabhupada: Yes. You want five.

Indian man (2): [laughter] We want five, correct. Four to make it five.

Prabhupada: There is a story that a grocer's son was doing business, and when he was given a five rupees note, so he was giving four rupees. So the customer said, "Why you are giving me four rupees?" "No, I do not know what is the exchange." "No, it is six rupees." So, "No, father will be angry." [laughter] Means he knows perfectly well what is five rupees, but he is innocent when he was giving four rupees. And when the customer wanted six rupees, he, "No, my father will be angry." [break] ...created a havoc by misinterpreting Bhagavad-gita, all people. According to their whims, "Five rupees note means four rupees," by imagination, they have created havoc all over the world. Otherwise everything is there. Avajananti mam mudhah [Bg 9.11]. If we take Krishna's instruction, then whole world becomes immediately happy. But they will not take it. They will manufacture their own: "Two plus two equal to five" or "three," not exactly to four.

Indian man (3): So all anxiety and duhkha have been created by the man himself.

Prabhupada: Yes. They have created.

Indian man (3): Nobody else is doing for him, but he created himself.

Prabhupada: Yes.

Indian man (3): And then he said, "I am in misery. I am in trouble." Trouble is created by you. Nobody has else created.

Prabhupada: So that is explained in the Bhagavad-gita, that mind is the enemy and mind is the friend. So we created our mind, enemy or friend, and we suffer for that.

Indian man (3): Mind is very, very powerful. How to make use of that? Actually, mind is using the man; man is not using his mind.

Prabhupada: In the Bhagavata it is said, yasyasti bhaktir bhagavaty akincana sarvair gunais tatra samasate surah [SB 5.18.12]. In another line...

Harikesa: Harav abhakta?

Prabhupada: Eh? Harav abhaktasya kuto mahad-guna mano-rathenasato dhavato bahih [SB 5.18.12]. One who is Krishna conscious, he has got all the good qualities. Yasyasti bhaktir bhagavaty akincana sarvair gunaih: "All good qualities can be manifest." And harav abhaktasya kuto mahad-gunah: "And one who is not devotee, he has no good qualities." "Why? He is so educated." No, mano-rathena: "He is hovering over the mind." Asato dhavato bahih: "He will stick to this asat." But the Vedic injunction is asato ma sad gamaya. He cannot go to the real platform of life. Asato bahih. They do not understand that this godless civilization is the root cause of all calamities in the world. [Hindi] Kirtaniyah sada harih. Caitanya Mahaprabhu said that kirtaniyah sada harih. Twenty-four hours you have to do that. But where is twenty-four hours? You will not twenty-four minutes.