HIS TEACHINGS

"Human life is simply awarded to a living entity so that he can realize his spiritual identity and his permanent source of happiness."

Of all his various contributions, Shrila Prabhupada considered his books the most important. In fact, he would often describe his work of translating and explaining the ancient Vedic texts as his very life and soul. In 1970, Shrila Prabhupada founded the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, now the world's largest publisher of Vedic literature. Through its work over the last quarter of a century, millions of people have read at least one of Shrila Prabhupada's books and have felt their lives genuinely enriched. Here is a brief introduction to the spiritual knowledge you will find within those books.

Importance of the Human Form of Life

There are many forms of life on this planet. There are immovable forms such as trees and plants, and a vast array of aquatic, insect, bird, beast, and mammalian forms as well. Our human form is also one among these varied forms of life, yet even a casual observer would have to agree that we human beings are endowed with unique capacities that distinguish us from all other forms of life. What exactly are those unique capacities?
We can begin answering this question with another. What is it that distinguishes a living form from a nonliving form? The answer is consciousness, or awareness. All living forms display this symptom of consciousness to one degree or another. That is why we call them living rather than dead. Even the small microbial germ or the common houseplant show signs of consciousness, whereas our dining table and chairs do not.

It is also evident that different forms of life display different degrees and levels of consciousness, and the human form represents the highest development of consciousness that we know. It is this greater development of consciousness, then, that distinguishes the human being from all other forms of life on the planet.

But what is it about our consciousness that makes it so different from that of the insect, the bird, the beast, or even the monkey? These creatures eat and we also eat; they sleep and we also sleep; they reproduce and we reproduce; they defend themselves and so do we. That we can perform these functions with greater sophistication may be one indicator that we possess higher consciousness, but it does not fully explain our excellence above all other forms of life.

A more satisfactory explanation is found in our ability to question our existence, reflect upon our selves, and inquire into our own nature and the nature of God. We can create languages, ponder the meaning of life, and puzzle in wonderment over the nighttime sky. Such an endowment is not present in any other form of life.
The Vedas therefore advise that in this human form of life we should be inquisitive to know who we are, what the universe is, what God is, and what the relationship is between ourselves, the universe, and God. We should inquire about the solution to the ultimate problems of life, namely birth, death, old age, and disease. Such questions cannot be asked by the cats and dogs, but they must arise in the heart of a real human being.

Perfect Knowledge of the Vedas

If we can accept the importance of this type of inquiry, our next consideration will naturally be where to find authoritative answers to such questions. Clearly, if perfect knowledge concerning questions of the self, the universe, and God, exists at all, it would have to be of a standard higher than just your opinion or my opinion, or for that matter Freud's or Einstein's or anyone else's opinion.

Because all of us have imperfect senses and because we are all prone to make mistakes, our relative opinions about matters beyond our experience can supply neither valid nor reliable information.

Thus our attempt to approach such matters empirically will be fraught with various imperfections and ultimately fail. Therefore, so-called truths established exclusively on the basis of mental speculation cannot help us understand the Absolute Truth, which is beyond the reach of the imperfect senses and mind.

The Vedas explain that if we want to know about things beyond the jurisdiction of our experience-beyond the limitations of human perception and cognition-the process is to hear from one who knows. The transcendental knowledge of the Vedas was first uttered by the Supreme Lord. The Lord, the supremely powerful being, cannot fall under the influence of any other force. As a logical consequence, His knowledge must be perfect. And anyone who transmits that knowledge without change gives the same perfect knowledge. We need only accept this proposition theoretically to progress in our understanding of Vedic thought.

The idea is that the perfect knowledge of the Vedas has been preserved over time by transmission through an unbroken chain of spiritual masters. Shrila Prabhupada represents one such disciplic chain or succession. That succession goes back thousands of years to Lord Krishna Himself. Thus the knowledge found within Shrila Prabhupada's books is nondifferent from that which was originally imparted by the Supreme Lord. Shrila Prabhupada did not manufacture "truths." He merely delivered the timeless teachings of the original Vedas without addition, deletion, or change.
The writings of Shrila Prabhupada are represented mainly by three Vedic texts-the Bhagavad-gita, Shrimad-Bhagavatam, and Chaitanya-charitamrita. Together these works of literature comprise more than 25 volumes of detailed information constituting the original Vedic science of God realization, or bhagavata-dharma. Their translation into the English language, along with elaborate explanations, constitutes Shrila Prabhupada's most significant contribution to the spiritual, intellectual, and cultural life of the world.

Universal Science of God Realization

The Vedic teachings presented in Shrila Prabhupada's books can be summarized under three general headings, known in Sanskrit as sambandha, abhidheya and prayojana. Sambandha means our relationship with God, abhidheya means acting in that relationship, and prayojana means the ultimate goal or perfection. These three divisions of understanding represent universal principles common to all religious teachings of the world.

The knowledge described in Shrila Prabhupada's books enables anyone to advance in his or her understanding of God without having to change current religious, national, or cultural affiliations. The science of how to understand God, how to understand one's relationship with God, and how to develop love for God has nothing to do with sectarian faiths. These are objectives no religion in the world could deny. They are, in other words, the essence of religion-universal features by which all religions may be understood.

Preferences regarding God's holy name may differ from one religion to another, modes of worship may differ, and details of ritual and doctrine may differ as well. But the test is how much the practitioner actually develops knowledge of God and love for God.

Real religion means to learn to love God. And how to love God is the sum and substance of the teachings found in Shrila Prabhupada's books.

Difference Between the Self and the Body

Without exception, all material phenomena have a beginning and an end. A most prominent idea of modern culture is that consciousness is another such material phenomenon. Thus it is believed that consciousness (or the self) also ends with the death of the material body. This point of view, however, remains only an assumption. It has not been proven true by any scientific observation or experiment.

Nonetheless, the idea that the self ends with the body remains one of the great articles of faith of modern materialistic thought, and most of us have been educated from early childhood to think of ourselves in terms of such beliefs. Few of us, however, have thought through the philosophical implications of this type of thinking, which draws us unconsciously toward conceptions of 'the void' and nihilistic styles of life.
The most basic of the Vedic teachings stands in direct opposition to the modern scientific view of consciousness and life. According to that teaching, individual consciousness is not at all dependent upon neurobiological functions but permanently exists as an independent reality.

The presence within the material body of a conscious observer who remains ever present throughout changing bodily and mental states indicates the existence of two energies-the spiritual energy (represented by the conscious self) and the material energy (represented by the temporary body). The Vedas explain that this spiritual energy, symptomized by consciousness, continues to exist even after the material body is finished.

If each of us is an eternal soul covered only by different temporary bodily dresses, we can reasonably conclude that the highest welfare activity for all of human society is that which awakens us to our true spiritual identity and our dormant relationship with God. That activity is called Krishna consciousness.

Just as there is neither glory nor profit in saving the dress of a drowning man, there is neither glory nor profit in humanitarian efforts aimed exclusively at improving conditions for the temporary material body, which in the end is destined to grow old, become diseased, and die.

As Shrila Prabhupada himself notes in Shrimad-Bhagavatam: "The actual self is beyond the gross body and subtle mind. He is the potent, active principle of the body and mind. Without knowing the need of the dormant soul, one cannot be happy simply with the gratification of the body and mind.... The spirit soul's needs must be fulfilled. Simply by cleansing the cage of the bird, one does not satisfy the bird....

"There is dormant affection for God within everyone.... Therefore we have to engage ourselves in activities that will evoke our divine consciousness. This is possible only by hearing and chanting the divine activities of the Supreme Lord. Thus any occupational engagement which does not help one to achieve attachment for hearing and chanting the transcendental message of God is said... to be simply a waste of time."

"The Vedas are not compilations of human knowledge. Vedic knowledge comes from the spiritual world, from Lord Krishna."

REINCARNATION

"As the embodied soul continuously passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. A sober person is not bewildered by such a change." (Bhagavad-gita 2.13)

AN EXPLANATION BY SHRILA PRABHUPADA

"In the modern age, people are so uneducated that they cannot understand that the body is changing at every moment and that the ultimate change is called death. In this life one may be a king, and in the next life one may be a dog, according to karma. The spirit soul is in a deep slumber caused by the force of material nature. He is put into one type of condition and again changed into another type. Without self-realisation and knowledge, conditional life continues, and one falsely claims himself a king, a cat, or a dog. These are simply transformations brought about by the supreme arrangement."
"The scientists say life arose from matter. But they cannot actually demonstrate this in their laboratories."

SCHOLARLY APPRECIATION

Shrila Prabhupada often noted that although modern colleges and universities had many departments of understanding, there was no department that taught scientific knowledge of the self and God. By presenting the original Vedic science of God realization through his books, Shrila Prabhupada filled the gap and met this vital educational need. Over the years, hundreds of scholars who either personally met Shrila Prabhupada or read his books have expressed keen appreciation for both his personal qualities and the contribution his teachings have made to humanity.

For example, Harvey Cox, world-renowned professor of religion at Harvard University, describes how he gradually recognized the value of Shrila Prabhupada's contribution:

"When I first met the Hare Krishnas, I can remember how surprised I was, and I wondered what this meant. The costumes, the chanting, and the shaved heads appeared a little strange to me. But as I came to know the movement, I came to find that there was a striking similarity in the essence of what they were teaching and in the original core of Christianity-that is, living simply, not trying to accumulate worldly goods, living with compassion toward all creatures, sharing, loving, and living joyfully. I am impressed with how much the teachings of one man and the spiritual tradition he brought have impacted themselves into the lives of so many people. In my view Shrila Prabhupada's contribution is a very important one and will be a lasting one."

(Copyright BBT-International)

Copyright © Bhaktivedanta Manor 2008
UK Headquarters of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness
Founder-Acarya His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
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