Oct 18 1975 Johannesburg Africa
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: So with their advancement of knowledge…
Prabhupāda: What is the advancement of knowledge?
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: They are increasing sex life, and actually the advancement of knowledge should be decreasing sex life.
Prabhupāda: Yes. They do not know what is knowledge. The knowledge means sex life. That is their knowledge. Advancement of knowledge means how to enjoy sex life, how to take shelter of abortion, child-killing, and then contraceptive method—whole thing on the basis of sex life. That’s all. They do not know except these things. They know there is botheration after sex life, but they cannot give it up. Therefore all these arrangements: take contraceptive, kill child, and what… That means the whole thing is based on sex life. That’s all. Yan maithunādi gṛhamedhi sukhaṁ hi tuccham [SB 7.9.45]. Is that pleasure? They think it is pleasure to unite the urinals. (laughter) And this is pleasure, a standard of pleasure most third class, fourth class. Yan maithunādi gṛhamedhi sukhaṁ tuccham: very abominable. Tuccham, the śāstra says, “most abominable.” And they take it pleasure, and they make arrangement for this. When the dog enjoys sex life… Therefore they are allowed to do it on the street. People can see it. Is that very nice scene? The same thing is done by the human being, and they are taking: “This is all, everything.” This is basic principle of their happiness. That’s all. Mohinī, mohinī. This is captivation. And nature has made the woman’s face so attractive, beautiful, their breast, their hips, attractive, their sound, talking, singing, all very attractive, walking, and now they are dressing naked. They are showing simply the vagina, all other parts of the body clothed. This is going on. Whole thing is based on sex life, and that is tuccham, most abominable. Prakṛtiṁ mohinīṁ śritāḥ. It will take three hundred times births to understand that this sex life is abominable. Therefore it is bahūnāṁ janmanām ante [Bg. 7.19]. Not that immediately, simply by hearing our Bhagavad-gita lecture, they will give it up. It will take many, many births to understand.
Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante. In the Vedic system, sex life is allowed only for begetting children. Therefore they are… Restriction. Allowed, but with great restriction under religious rules and regulation and so many things, garbhādāna. Then the first principle is, even it is taken for begetting child, it is not secret.
Garbhādāna-saṁskāra. There should be a function, all the brāhmaṇas and relatives should come, and there will be ceremony, and everyone will know that “This man is going to now sex, have sex for begetting children.” This is ceremony, not secretly like cats and dogs. Cats and dogs also, they do not do secretly. A human being do it secretly and do not want the botheration. Therefore their scientific advancement means how to kill the child, how to make abortion, how to take contraceptive pills, how to distribute them, how allow the children, “Yes, you go on, but take these pills so that you may not be bothered.” Yes. Why not stop it, botheration? That you cannot, because animals. Because animal civilization, they cannot do it. Kaṇḍutive manivasi viṣaheta dhīraḥ. Why don’t you teach them to become dhīraḥ, sober—”Let me tolerate this itching sensation”—brahmacārī? That teaching is not good. You do it repeatedly, suffer, and suffer consequences. And to stop it they suffer in so many ways, suffering, suffering. Bahu-duḥkha bhajaḥ [SB 7.9.45]. Sex life, illicit or legal, the after-effect is suffering. Even it is not illicit—it is legal—then to take care of the wife or the children, for their education, for their upliftment and so on, so on, so on—suffering. And if it is illicit, then these sufferings: you commit sinful activities, kill the child, contraceptive, with the abortion, go to the doctor, pay, and so on, so on. So where is no suffering? Either legal or illicit, you have to suffer. Bahu-duḥkha bhajaḥ. Tṛpyanti neha kṛpana bahu-duḥkha bhajaḥ. These rascals, once they have done, “That’s all right. You have got one child. Just take of.” “No, again, again.” Once you have committed sinful activities, killing the child in the womb, “All right, stop it now.” “No, again.” Tṛpyanti neha kṛpana. He’s never satisfied. He knows that there is suffering behind this. Still, he’ll not stop it. Therefore a sober man… A man should be educated to become sober, that “Let me tolerate this itching, that’s all. I save so much trouble.” This is knowledge. To become rascal and more rascal and more rascal and suffer, is that civilization? Simply to make the people rascal and suffer and commit suicide? Just tell them that he has created this civilization that suffer and become rascal. That’s all. Unless you become rascal, how you will suffer? So keep them rascal and suffer. This is nature’s arrangement, that “You living entity, you have forgotten Kṛṣṇa. All right, come under my control. Be rascal, remain rascal and suffer.” Daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā [Bg. 7.14]. Why she is doing that? “Surrender to Kṛṣṇa. Otherwise you will go on suffering like this.” This is the nature’s way. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi [Bg. 3.27]. But the rascal… Because he is rascal, he does not know that “I am under the full control of prakṛti, material nature, and her business is to keep me rascal and suffer.” And they are advanced in education.
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: But they will say that this so-called suffering is actually pleasure.
Prabhupāda: That’s all right. Go on pleasure. Who checks you? Enjoy this pleasure. If everything is pleasure, then why you take the counteractive process? Why do you want to kill child? Pleasure? Why do you take contraceptive method if it is pleasure? That is the proof how much rascal they are. Mūḍha nābhijānāti. Try to understand why Kṛṣṇa has spoken so many times, “mūḍhas, māyayāpahṛta-j�ānā.” Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Lord, is speaking like that. There must be some meaning. Human civilization means to give relief to the human being, comfortable life, not to repeat the same business like the animals. That is human civilization.
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: We see practically that only the devotees are somewhat free from anxiety.
Prabhupāda: Yes, that’s a fact. We have little anxieties simply because we have to deal with this rascal world. Otherwise we have no anxiety. But we have taken this mission, to go and approach them, tell them the truth. Therefore we have got little anxiety. Otherwise there is no question of anxiety. Because we are mixing with these rascals—and we have to do that, who have taken this mission-therefore little anxiety there. That is also not very much. But you must know, the whole world is full of rascals and fools. That is not exaggeration. Eh? Or you have got different opinion?
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: No.
Prabhupāda: Hm? What do you think? Do you agree?
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: They are mūḍhas.
Prabhupāda: (laughs) Our verdict is final: “All rascals and fools.” Therefore, when I ask these rascals, “Any question?” Stopped. (laughter) “Come on, any question?” What they will question? I challenge them, “Any question?” They know that “We have been proved as rascals.”
Some Conclusions–This is a very powerful class given by Srila Prabhupada and I can remember whenever he gave a class on illicit sex life the entire room would become so very quiet, you could hear a pin drop. And the reason for this silence was because everyone of us knew- we were not free of sex desire. Even as bramacaris we would know we were just supressing the urge for sex life, but as Krsna tells us in BG, what will repression accomplish? Also once Prabhupada asked devotees why do you think I am so popular? He said– because I have given up sex life.
Another time Prabhupada said the definition of a swami is one who can walk into a room with a hundred beautiful women and not be disturbed. What have we seen in this regard in our own personal experiences with so called swamis or even normal devotees? Its a big problem therefore he says just by hearing his lecture on BG is not going to solve this problem-even for 300 births.
There is a nice verse in BG which says one who contemplates the objects of the senses, certainly deludes himself and is called a pretender. So Krsna tells us that the only way one can give up a lower taste is to experience the higher taste param drstva nirvantate.
This higher taste comes by associating with good quality devotees and following the actual process of sadhana bhakti and eventually all the nasty things in our hearts will be driven out by the power of Lord Sri Krsna. By ourselves we can do nothing and its not by jnana, or good works or personal endeavor that will bring us success. Our senses have to be controlled and that control can only come from Hrsikesa the controller and master of our senses. And He will control these senses when He is pleased with our devotional service
Hare Krsna
damaghosa das
