Hitler, Rahu, doubts, and Krishna consciousness

[Guest guest]

Letter to: Krsnadasa

—

Vrindaban

7 November, 1972

72-11-07

 

My Dear Krsnadasa,

Please accept my blessings. I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter

dated October 30, 1972, and I have noted the contents. It appears that you

are again constantly disturbed by the same nonsense doubts. These things are

not very important, we may not waste our time with these insignificant

questions. If we are seeking to find out some fault, maya will give us all

facility to find any small thing and make it very big, that is maya. But

such questions as yours: why there is so-called discrepancy between the

views of Bhagavat and modern scientists regarding the moon and other

planets, and whether Hitler is good or bad man, these are most insignificant

matters, and for anyone who is sincerely convinced that Krishna is the

Supreme Personality of Godhead, for him these questions do not arise. Our

information comes from Vedas, and if we believe Krishna, that

vedaham samatitani

vartamanani carjuna

bhavisyani ca bhutani

mam tu veda na kascana

[bg. 7.26]

that He knows everything, and "vedais ca sarvair aham eva vedyo vedanta-krd

veda-vid eva caham [bg. 15.15],'' that Krishna is non-different from Vedas,

then these questions do not arise.

But because you have asked me, I am your spiritual master, I must try to

answer to your satisfaction. Yes, sometimes in Vedas such things like the

asura's decapitated head chasing after Candraloka, sometimes it is explained

allegorically. Just like now we are explaining in 4th Canto of

Srimad-Bhagavatam the story of King Puranjana. Just like the living entity

is living within this body, and the body is described there as city with

nine gates, the intelligence as the Queen. So there are sometimes

allegorical explanations. So there are many things which do not corroborate

with the so-called modern science, because they are explained in that way.

But where is the guarantee that modern science is also correct? So we are

concerned with Krishna Consciousness, and even though there is some

difference of opinion between modern science and allegorical explanation in

the Bhagavat, we have to take the essence of Srimad-Bhagavatam and utilize

it for our higher benefit, without bothering about the correctness of the

modern science or the allegorical explanation sometimes made in

Srimad-Bhagavatam. But this is a fact that in each and every planet there is

a predominant deity, as we have got experience in this planet there is a

president, so it is not wonderful when the predominating deity fights with

another predominating deity of another planet. The modern science takes

everything as dead stone. We take it for granted that everything is being

manipulated by a person in each and every affair of the cosmology. The

modern scientists however could not make any progress in the understanding

of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, therefore we do not accept modern

science as very perfect. We take Krishna's version:

gam avisya ca bhutani

dharayamy aham ojasa

pusnami causadhih sarvah

somo bhutvah rasatmakah

[bg. 15.13]

"I become the moon,'' and "yac chandramasi yac cagnau," (ibid, 12) "I am the

splendor of the moon,'' and "jyotisam api taj jyotis," [bg. 13.18] "I am the

source of light in all luminous objects," so no one is able to give us the

correct information than Krishna, that you should know.

Regarding Hitler, so Hitler may be good man or bad man, so what does he help

to our Krishna Consciousness movement? But it is a fact that much propaganda

was made against him, that much I know, and the Britishers are first-class

propagandists. And I have heard that his officers did everything without

informing him, just like in our ISKCON there are so many false things:

"Prabhupada said this, Prabhupada said that.'' But we have nothing to do

with Hitler in our Krishna Consciousness. Do not be deviated by such ideas

"Jnanam jneyam jnana-gamyam,'' (ibid), Krishna is knowledge, He is the

object of knowledge, He is the goal of knowledge, and

yo mam evam asammudho

janati purusottamam

sa sarva-vid bhajati mam

[bg. XV, 19]

"Whoever knows Me as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, without doubting,

is to be understood as the knower of everything, and he engages himself

therefore in devotional service'' -- this is the understanding of advanced

devotee, so my best advice to you is to agree to come to this understanding.

Your ever well wisher,

A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami