Below is a very telling conversation with Srila Prabhupada about the Indians who come to America and other western countries. They have lost their own culture and instead, end up eating hot dogs and hamburgers . Srila Prabhupada once told us, the Indians are ten steps from Krsna going the wrong direction, and the westerners are a hundred steps from Krsna, going towards Him.
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NY July 11 1976
Indian man (2): Remember when we were building our altar? Remember last year when I talked to you? We were building altar, and actually I went to every Indian, and myself and the president of that temple, we begged everything we can do possible… And we wanted to collect almost ten thousand dollars, we couldn’t even collect five thousand dollars, and most of them were making between fifteen and thirty thousand dollars. Some of them in fact gave us pennies.
Prabhupāda: Just see.
Indian man (2): And they took from us one Bhagavad-gītā. We gave them Bhagavad-gītā and they gave us some pennies.
Prabhupāda: This is not good report.
Indian man (2): It’s difficult to collect money from the Indians. That is my experience, and I…
Bali–mardana: Because they are thinking of rupees. (laughter)
Prabhupāda: That means they do not like Kṛṣṇa.
Indian man (2): I don’t know. Somehow or other, I myself am totally confused about Indian community in this country. I have no comments to make, but I found out that they are the least charitable community among all communities. I lived in Canada almost ten years, and I found out other communities are very charitable. Even if you go to other community, at least they will give something, but Indians…
Prabhupāda: (Hindi) Every Indian should come to the temple and become a devotee.
Indian man (1): I think more and more people are really coming to the temple and becoming part of it, as I think most of the devotees around here know, in the last few years. Everybody I know of…
Prabhupāda: “More and more coming” means not all are coming. (laughter)
Indian man (1): All of them would be the desirable thing.
Prabhupāda: What is the objection?
Indian man (1): There are so many other temples. Hindu temple, Sindhu(?) temple… There’s organization of community of Indians, they are trying to develop their own.
Indian lady: Yes.
Indian man (1): There is Gītā temple, there’s a Sindhi temple.
Indian man (1): It is a temple, everybody facing their back towards Kṛṣṇa and chanting about what was happening in the town.
Indian man (1): And they were chanting, not chanting, talking about what was going on in the town.
Prabhupāda: That means they do not know Kṛṣṇa.
Indian man (1): But here you can only talk about Kṛṣṇa, so they don’t want to come.
Indian man (2): If you want to talk to them about Kṛṣṇa you’ll lose a friend.
Indian man (1): Right away.
Indian man (2): Right away. So either make friends with Kṛṣṇa, or make friends with that guy.
Prabhupāda: That is not very good. That means they have fallen from their culture. They have lost their culture.
Indian man (1): Some of them in fact enjoy eating hot dogs and hamburgers. They said, “Oh, I have been eating vegetables for ages.Now I have come here to eat hot dogs and hamburgers.” That is their comment. They have done totally,
Prabhupāda: What is this hot dog?
Guest: Together with other poisons.
Rādhāvallabha: Made from cows. [break]
Indian man (2): Want something to eat?
Prabhupāda: (Hindi) And they talk of Bhagavad-gītā and keeping Kṛṣṇa background? Somebody says?
Bali–mardana: Yes. Mostly they don’t even talk of Bhagavad-gītā, they talk about social things, but Kṛṣṇa they keep to the back. They have named the place Gītā Mandira. Gītā Temple. But they do not discuss Gītā, just for show.
Prabhupāda: That is the disease. Even Mahatma Gandhi, he was talking of Kṛṣṇa, Bhagavad-gītā, but throughout his whole life he never established a temple of Kṛṣṇa, although his photograph you’ll find with Bhagavad-gītā. This is the calamity.
Indian man (1): In the last days Mahatma Gandhi kept saying rāma rāma, rāma–nāma is the only way chanting… One of his article he says there is no other cure but to chant the name of the Lord.
Prabhupāda: Mahatma Gandhi would have preached Bhagavad-gītā, the world would have taken very seriously, because he was respectable.
Prabhupāda: Yes. (Hindi) The four things Kṛṣṇa wants, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad–yājī māṁ namaskuru [Bg. 18.65]. He charges four thing: to think of Kṛṣṇa, to become His devotee, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto, mad–yājī… Find out this verse. Here isBhagavad-gītā.
Below is a very telling conversation with Srila Prabhupada about the Indians who come to America and other western countries. They have lost their own culture and instead, end up eating hot dogs and hamburgers . Srila Prabhupada once told us, the Indians are ten steps from Krsna going the wrong direction, and the westerners are a hundred steps from Krsna, going towards Him.