rla Prabhupda Speaks Out

Colleges for curing the Social Body

This exchange between His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupdaand some of his disciples took place in Vndvana, India, during March of 1974.

rla Prabhupda: In this age the politicians' business will be to exploit the poorcitizens, and the citizens will be embarrassed and harassed so much. On one sidethere will be insufficient rain and therefore scarcity of food, and on the other sidethere will be excessive taxation by the government. In this way the people will beso much harassed that they will give up their homes and go to the forest.

Atreya i dsa: Nowadays the government simply collects money and doesnothing.

rla Prabhupda: The government's duty is to see that every person is employedaccording to his capacity. There should be no unemploymentthat is a verydangerous situation in society. But the government has drawn people off the landand into the cities. They have made the consideration, "What is the use of so manypeople working on the land? Instead we can kill animals and eat them." It's allvery easybecause they don't care about the law of karma, the inevitable results ofsinful activities. "If we can eat the cows, why should we take so much trouble totill the land?" This is going on all over the world.

Atreya i dsa: Yes, the farmers' sons are giving up farming and going to the city.

rla Prabhupda: You know this nonsense of "topless, bottomless"? The leaderswant that. They want the hotels to pick up college girls and let them be enjoyed bythe guests. All over the world the whole population is becoming polluted. So howcan people expect good government? Some of the people will take charge of thegovernment, but they are polluted. So wherever we have a Hare Ka center weshould immediately establish. a college for training peoplefirst, according totheir natural talents (intellectual, administrative, productive, and laboring). Andeveryone will be elevated to spiritual awareness by performing the spiritualactivities we prescribechanting the Hare Ka mantra, hearing the science ofself-realization from Bhagavad-gt, and doing everything as an offering to Ka.Everyone's life will become devotional service to the Supreme Lord.

At the same time, for the management of practical affairs we have to organize andtrain the different social divisions, because there are different kinds of brains.Those who have very intellectual brains should become brhmaaspriests,teachers, advisors. Those who are fit for management and protection of othersshould become katriyas, administrators and military men. Those who are fit forproducing food and taking care of the cows should become vaiyas, mercantilemen. And those who can assist the others and take up trades and crafts should bedras, workingmen.

In the social body, just as in your own body, there must be divisions of work. Ifeveryone wants to be the brain (the intellectuals) or the arms (the administrators),then who is going to act as the belly (the farmers) or the legs (the workingmen)?Every kind of occupation is needed. The brain is needed; the arms are needed; thebelly is needed; the legs are needed. So you will have to make the social bodyorganized. You have to help people understand the Supreme Lord's natural social

divisions: some people will work as the brain, others as the arms, others as thebelly, and still others as the legs. The main aim is to keep the social body perfectlyfit.

You must make sure that everyone can engage in the kind of occupation he issuited for. That is important. The thing is, every kind of work can be devotionalservice to the Lordthe main point is to see that people are engaged in that spiritin their natural work. For instance, when you are walking, your brain isworking"Go this way; go that way; a car is coming"and your brain says toyour legs, "Come to this side." Now, the work of the brain and the work of thelegs are different, but the central point is oneto get you safely across the street.Similarly, the central point of the social body should be oneeveryone shouldhelp in serving Ka.

rla Satsvarpa dsa Goswami: Will this kind of college be for the general public?

rla Prabhupda: Yes, for anyone. For instance, an engineering college is open foreveryone; the only requirement is that people must be ready to take up thetraining. This is our most important program now, because people all over theworld have been misguided by these so=called leaders. Children can attend aKa conscious primary school, and then, when they are grown up, they canattend a Ka conscious college for further development in their occupationalwork and their devotional life.

Atreya i dsa: Will we teach business, also?

rla Prabhupda: Not this modern businessno. That is rascaldom. "Business"means that you produce enough grain and other crops so that you can eatsumptuously and distribute to everyonemen and animals (especially thecows)so that they will become stout and strong. That way the cows can supplymilk and the human community can work hard, without suffering from disease.We are not going to open mills and factories. No.

Yadubara dsa: rla Prabhupda, what class do the arts and crafts come under? Inour society today artists and musicians are accepted as philosophers.

rla Prabhupda: No, an artist is a workingman. At the present moment yourcolleges and universities are giving too much stress on the arts and crafts.Therefore the whole population is workingmen. No real philosophers, no wisdom.That is the difficulty. Everyone is being drawn by the attraction of getting a highsalary. They take a so-called technical or scientific education and end up workingin a factory. Of course, they won't work in the field to produce crops. Such peopleare not philosophers. A philosopher is one who is searching out the AbsoluteTruth.

In your Western countries the rascals are writing about the philosophy of sex,which is known to the dog. This kind of philosophy can be appreciated by rascals,but we do not appreciate it. Someone who is searching after the Absolute Truthhe is a philosopher. Not this rascal Freudelaborating on how to have sex. In theWestern countries the people have all become low-class, and Freud has becometheir philosopher. In the jungle, the jackal becomes the king. That's all.

What is the actual knowledge in this so-called Western philosophy? The wholeWestern world is struggling along for industry, for making money"Eat, drink,and be merry." wine and women. That's all. They are less than low class. This isthe first time the attempt is being made to make them human beings. Don't mindthat I am using very strong wordsit is a fact. They are animals, two-legged

animals. Rejected men. Vedic civilization rejects them as the lowest of the low. Butthey can be reclaimed.

Westerners can be reclaimed, just as you Westernersmy studentshave beenreclaimed. Although you come from the lowest situation, by training you arebecoming more than brhmaas. There is no bar to anyone. But unfortunately,these rascals do not agree to accept this opportunity. As soon as you say, "Nomore illicit sex:" "no more meat-eating," they become angry. Rascals and fools. Assoon as you give them good lessonseducationthey become angry. If you give asnake nice milk and banana, the result is that he will simply increase his poison.But somehow, by Ka's grace, you are becoming trained. You become trainedand revise the whole pattern of Western civilization, especially in America. Then anew chapter will come in. This is the program. Therefore Ka conscious collegesare required.

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