Religion Compared to Narcotic

[ancient_paztriot]

Hayagriva dasa: Marx called religion “the opiate of the people,” and Freud similarly says that “the consolations of religion may be compared to that of a narcotic.”

 

Srila Prabhupada: As I have said before, neither Marx nor Freud know what religion is, and that is their difficulty. First, they have to learn what religion is before they can discuss it intelligently.

Hayagriva dasa: Freud writes: “The believer will not let his faith be taken from him neither by arguments nor by prohibitions. And even if it did succeed with some, it would be a cruel thing to do. A man who has for decades taken a sedative is naturally unable to sleep if he is deprived of it… ”

 

Srila Prabhupada: It is also cruel to mislead people by telling them that God the Father is simply an infantile conception. That is real cruelty. It is cruel to stress sex and death and eny the conception of God as the Supreme Father.

Hayagriva dasa: Freud would not think that it is cruelty to disenchant man with an illusion. He writes: “I disagree with you when you go on to argue that man cannot in general do without the consolation of the religious illusion, that without it he would not endure the troubles of life, the cruelty of reality.”

 

Srila Prabhupada: Without a spiritual education, man remains an animal. A man’s life should be more than merely eating, sleeping, mating, defending, and dying. Man should stive to advance in spiritual knowledge. Spiritual education means understanding God. Freud may deny the existence of God, but in any case the conception of God is there in human society. One may accept or reject different conceptions of god, but the fact is undeniable that in every civilized country, there is some form of religion. One may be Christian, Buddhist, Hindu, or Muslem: the designation is not very important. Understanding God is the important factor, because that ultimate understanding is Vedanta, the ultimate conclusion of all knowledge. Athato brahma-jijæasa (Vedanta-sutra). Now, in this human form, is the time to inquire, “What is Brahman?” Brahman, the Absolute Truth, is the goal of real knowledge. Man does not have to be educated to understand sex. According to a Bengali proverb, you do not have to be taught how to cry, and when there is the impulse to enjoy sex, you enjoy it automatically. This doesn’t require the help of an educator like Mr. Freud. Everyone, animals and human beings, knows how to enjoy sex. There is no question of a “sex philosoophy.” Philsophy means inquiring into the Absolute Truth, Brahman, the supreme controller, He from whom everything has emanated. Philosophy is concerned with understanding where things come from. We may inquire into the origin of life on earth, and conclude that life comes from water, eath, or fire. Then, where do earth, water, and fire come from? He who is the source of everything is the Absolute Truth. In Bhagavad-gita, Lord Krsna says:

 

aham sarvasya prabhavo

mattah sarvam pravartate

iti matva bhajante mam

budha bhava-samanvitah

 

“I am the source of all spiritual and material worlds. Everything emanates from Me. The wise who perfectly know this engage in My devotional service and worship Me with all their hearts.” (Bg. 10.8) You become a devotee of Krsna when you perfectly understand that Krsna is the ultimate source. This knowledge comes after many lifetimes of searching and searching.

 

bahunam janmanam ante

jæanavan mam prapadyate

vasudevah sarvam iti

sa mahatma su-durlabhah

 

“After many births and deaths, he who is actually in knowledge surrenders unto Me, knowing Me to be the cause of all causes and all that is. Such a great soul is very rare.” (Bg. 7.19) After understanding that Vyasadev, Krsna, is everything, the mahatma, the great soul, begins his bhajana, his worship.

 

mahatmanas tu mam partha

daivim prakrtim asritah

bhajanty ananya-manaso

jæatva bhutadim avyayam

 

“O son of Prtha, those who are not deluded, the great souls, are under the protection of the divine nature. They are fully engaged in devotional service because they know Me as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, original and inexhaustible.” (Bg. 9.13)

[Guest guest]

I do agree with your opening paragraph. None of the psychoanalysts who are worshipped by the psychiatrists and psycologists are really worth enough to discuss about religion and God. I am a medical personnel by profession, but an individual who beleives that Science of Human cannot prove God, and just because human science does not prove the stupids and the idiots who call themselves as intellectuals without understanding God can neither comment on God nor about religious beliefs.

Even an atheist at the time of birth when he dies alone especially in hospitals needs God at that time which very few people understands.

As Baghwan says He is the source of everything, He is in both atheist and His follower, but the followers are not respected by the atheists to the extent we respect them. well thats the difference in us for which I am always thankful to Baghwan for he made me realise Him and humbled me out of the realization.