Psychology
Lecture
21 October 2004 – Riga, Latvia
at the
International High School for Practical Psychology
vande
’ham sri guroh sri-yuta-pada-kamalam sri–gurun vaisnavams ca
sri rupam sagrajatam saha-gan-raghunathanvitam tam sa-jivam
sadvaitam savadhutam parijana-sahitam krsna-caitanya-devam
sri-radha-krsna-padan saha-gana-lalita-sri-visakhanvitams ca
Ladies and
gentlemen, thank you very much for attending this lecture here at
the International High School for Practical Psychology. I am very
happy that it is an institute of practical psychology, because if
psychology is not practical, what is the use of it? Theoretical
psychology has no value unless you can make it practical. So today
we are giving you a very practical lesson in how to properly
understand and utilize psychology.
Today we are
discussing the psychology of terrorism. Just like recently, in
Baghdad, some terrorists captured some Americans and a Briton and
they cut their heads off. So what is the cause of terrorism, and
how do we get rid of it?
Terrorism is
rooted in a psychological state which is known as “lording-it-over”
mentality. The original psychological text of ancient India is
Bhagavad-gita; in the Bhagavad-gita the terrorist
mentality is described in full detail. I will read you this from
Chapter 16, where it describes the mentality of the terrorist.
The terrorist
thinks:
“So much wealth
do I have today, and will gain more according to my schemes. So
much is mine now, and I will increase it in the future, more
and more. He is my enemy, and I have killed him; my other enemies
will also be killed. I am the lord of everything - I am the
enjoyer. I am perfect, powerful and happy. I am the richest man,
surrounded by aristocratic relatives. There are none so powerful
and happy as I am. I shall perform some sacrifices; I shall give
some charity; and thus I shall rejoice. I will be happy.”
In this way such
persons are deluded by ignorance.
So the
terroristic mentality is one of thinking, “Everything belongs to me;
I am the lord; everything is mine.” Such a mentality becomes an
obsession. Once one develops this terroristic spirit, one becomes
overpowered by unlimited amounts of lust and greed to control and
own everything. This terroristic mentality is becoming more and
more widespread on this planet now, and something has to be done to
curb it. Otherwise this whole planet will break out into total,
complete hell – total, complete hell, unless something is done to
stop this terroristic mentality.
In case you’re
getting scared, don’t worry. We have the solution to this problem.
It is called “Krishna consciousness.”
In a jungle,
there are so many animals, and some of the animals are naturally
going to be very ferocious, like a tiger or a lion. Likewise, in a
world where everyone is like an animal, some will be gentle, and
some will be very ferocious, like a terrorist. So the solution to
the problem of terrorism in the world is to elevate the human
society beyond the animal platform. In other words, we’re all
responsible for the terrorism problem, because we all have a
tendency to act like animals unless we become spiritually
enlightened beings. This is why a guru, or spiritual master, is
very important - because he elevates us beyond the animal platform
to the platform of spiritual realization. In a society where many
people are becoming spiritually realized, terrorism cannot flourish.
So what we have
to do to stop terrorism is to educate the intelligent class of men
and women on this planet in how to become spiritually enlightened
beings. That influence will uplift the mentality of the entire
planet. If even one percent of the world population can become
spiritually enlightened, the terrorism problem will go away.
Terrorism is not solved by bigger guns, or by tanks or bombs,
because the terrorists are very good at hiding. The only way you
can defeat the terrorists is to introduce a new, enlightened
mentality into the world environment so that people don’t feel a
need to try to lord it over material nature to be happy.
Right now our
conception of happiness is based on how much money we can make - how
much we can control other people. This is a terroristic mentality
that each and every one of us has. In other words, each of us has a
little terrorist in our own heart. The ones who will be called
‘terrorists’ are the big ones, who will fly airplanes into the World
Trade Center. But there is a little bit of a terrorist in every one
of us, and that is the desire to lord it over this world. We have a
tendency to think, “Now I have this much money; now I want more
money; now I want more money; now I want more, more, more, more,
more.” This is the mood of a terrorist. He wants to own and
control everything.
What we have to
do is realize, as Krishna says in the Bhagavad-gita,
sarva-loka-mahesvaram [BG 5.29]: Lord Krishna, or God, says
that actually He is the owner of everything. Instead of trying to
accumulate everything to put in our own bank accounts, or our own
pockets, we should try to engage everything in this world in the
service of God. Instead of thinking, “This belongs to me, that
belongs to me”, we should think, “Nothing is mine.” We should
think, “Everything belongs to God.” This will put a stop to the
terroristic mentality.
So, each and
every one of us has to learn this art of how to see everything as
the property of God. Even your body does not belong to you. We
come into this world naked and we leave this world naked. In the
middle we claim, “This is my land” – and we fight. But how can we
claim it is “my” land? When I am born I have nothing. When I die I
have nothing. Everything remains simply as the property of God. If
we can all realize this - or at least if the leading, educated class
of people can realize this - then the terrorism problem will go
away.
There’s a very
nice book called the Sri Isopanisad. In this book there’s a
very beautiful verse in Sanskrit. It says:
isavasyam idam
sarvam
yat kinca jagatyam jagat
tena tyaktena bhunjitha
ma grdhah kasya svid dhanam
This means, “One
should therefore accept only that which has been set aside as one’s
quota and should not be greedy for other things, knowing well to
whom they belong.” We have to know that everything is actually
God’s property, and use everything for His service.
We very proudly
say, “My body”, or “I ___ this body” - “I am male”, “I am female”,
“I am Latvian”, “I am American” – but actually this body is just the
energy of God. It simply belongs to Him. Therefore this body
should be used in His service. This will make us happy. Do you
know that a thief can never be happy? Do you know why a thief can
never be happy? Because he is always afraid of getting caught. As
long as we are taking this body, which is the property of God, and
we’re thinking, “This is mine” - then we always have to live
in a state of fear. If we use this body in the service of the Lord,
by chanting His name on our lips, “Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna,
Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare . . .” - or in a Christian church they
sing, “Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah”;
or if you go to the temple or the church or the synagogue and you
bow down before the Lord - in this way if you use your body, use
your tongue, use your intelligence - use everything in the service
of God - then you will have no anxieties whatsoever in your life,
because you are no longer trying to steal from God that which is His
property. In this way you will create a wonderful spiritual
atmosphere by your example, wherever you go in the world. And the
terroristic mentality will go away.
The whole point
is that you have to become a saint. Wherever a saint goes, other
people are inspired also to become saints. The sinners give up
being sinners, and they become saints by the association of a great
saint. Even the terrorists can give up. In Russia, there was one
man . . . he was a member of the Russian Mafia, and he used to
carry a sawed-off shotgun inside his coat - and the Mafia would
simply go and murder people. But he realized that this is not
right, and became a devotee of Lord Krishna. He became a great
saint. So in this way, this process of Krishna consciousness that
we are teaching is the perfection of the science of psychology,
because it can turn a terrorist - or member of the Mafia - into a
great saint. This is why we have come today to the International
High School of Practical Psychology - because we wanted to teach you
how to solve the terrorist problem that is running rampant, running
wild, all over this planet.
Does anyone have
any questions?
Q1 [What kind of
change in society is required?]
A1 - Actually, we
can keep the society like it is now. The street sweeper can
continue sweeping the street; the bread-baker can continue baking
the bread; the prime minister can continue being the prime
minister. Everyone can continue what they are doing and chant the
holy names of God.
Hare Krishna,
Hare Krishna
Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare
Hare Rama, Hare Rama
Rama Rama, Hare Hare
Just imagine if
all day they’re baking the bread, and they’re going “Hare Krishna,
Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare” – and then the bread
becomes so spiritual. And you eat that bread you just feel, “Hare
Krishna, Hare Krishna . . .” And the street sweeper - he’s sweeping
the street: “Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna . . .”
You walk by, and you see this street sweeper going “Hare Krishna,
Hare Krishna”, and you go “Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna . . .” Then
you go to meet the prime minister, and he’s going, “Hare Krishna,
Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama
Rama, Hare Hare.” Everybody is so happy chanting Hare Krishna.
Nobody wants to fight, nobody wants to kill anyone, and everybody
just becomes very happy – they raise families, they do their
business nicely, they take good care of their customers, they take
good care of their friends and their family, they stop killing the
cows - everyone just becomes a wonderful, happy family, all over the
whole planet. So this is what happens when we become Krishna
conscious. Instead of thinking, oh, Latvian, Finnish, British and
American, and Muslim and Christian, and man and woman, and black and
white – making all these divisions and fighting – we can simply
realize that we’re all one family. We’re all God’s children, and
there’s no reason for any animosity.
Any other
questions?
Q2 [What church
can we attend?]
A2 - Any church
is good. God is actually one. Whether you call Him Christ or you
call Him Krishna, He is the same – God is one. So whether you want
to chant God’s name in your mosque, your synagogue, your church,
your temple – that does not matter. But everyone must chant the
names of God. But along with chanting the names of God, we have to
give up sinful life. And to unnecessarily kill other living beings
– that is sinful life. The human being is not required to kill the
animals and eat them. In fact, the karmic reaction to inflicting
terrorism upon the animals is that we must also suffer being
attacked by terrorists. The Bible says, “As you sow, so shall you
reap.” So we should not cause any suffering to the animals. We
must be kind to the animals: they are our brothers and sisters.
Love the animals and don’t eat them. You will be much healthier on
a vegetarian diet. It’s cheaper, it’s more delicious - and you
don’t get the bad karma of killing your brothers and sisters. So
chant the names of the Lord in your Lutheran church and stop killing
animals. That will help the world to become peaceful and happy.
Questions more?
Q3 [But aren’t
we all children of God . . . ?]
A3 - We are all
the children of God, that’s true; but some of the children didn’t
run away from home. Jesus didn’t run away from home, but we did.
That’s the difference. You have run away from home, and He [Jesus]
is a loyal son of His Father, so He has come to try to bring you
back home. This is the vision of all great spiritual masters. They
come on behalf of the Lord to rescue us from our fallen position in
this material world. As Mataji says, we are the disobedient sons of
God: Jesus is the obedient son, but you are disobedient. We can
teach you how to become obedient sons and go back to Godhead – if
you are willing to learn. Are you? He says yes. Very good.
Other questions?
Q4 [How can you
be healthy on a vegetarian diet? Isn’t it expensive to get the
protein you need from nuts, etc . . . ?]
A4 - But meat is
very expensive. A vegetarian diet is definitely cheaper than
meat-eating . . . I will take you to the grocery store – come with
me to the grocery store after this meeting and I will show you the
difference. If you take rice and beans and you drink milk, you will
get all the protein you need. Do I look sick? I’ve been eating a
vegetarian diet for 33 years . . . I was born in 1947. I’m an old
man, almost 60 years old – but I feel like a young man, 30 years
old. So there are many benefits to not eating the rotting flesh of
dead animals.
One should eat
vegetarian foods and offer them to the Lord before eating. And then
by eating food which has been offered to the Lord, it becomes
blessed food, or the holy sacrament which purifies your brain cells
to help you realize God. Just like in a Christian church, you have
Holy Communion. In the Hare Krishna lifestyle that we practice,
every meal is Holy Communion. Simply by eating you become very,
very holy.
Q5 [Were you
raised this way . . . how did you come to Krishna consciousness?]
A5 - When I was a
little boy I did not know this wonderful Krishna consciousness. I
was raised to be a sinful, meat-eating, money-hungry person like
everyone else. But I was miserable! I knew there had to be
something more than just making money, getting old, getting sick,
and dying. So when I went to college, I began reading and
inquiring: What is the real purpose of human life? My professors
could not tell me. My fraternity brothers could not tell me, nor
could other students. The textbooks I was reading could not tell
me. Nobody could tell me what was the meaning of my existence. But
I knew that I had to find out: What is the meaning of life? I
struggled for many years – in fact it took me six years of intense
struggle to discover what the actual meaning of life was. When I
realized what the meaning of life was, everything changed. And for
the last 33 years, my whole life has been dedicated to enlightening
you about what the meaning of your life is.
There is one
underlying source for all that exists. You and I both come from the
same, original source. There is one origin for everything that
exists. Each and every one of us is meant to live in perfect
harmony with that original source of our existence. If you are
synchronized with your source - if you’re in harmony with your
source - then you will be absolutely happy and free of illusion and
anxiety. But if you’re not in harmony with the source of your
existence, no matter what arrangements you may make here in Riga or
anywhere in the world for your happiness, you will still remain
frustrated. So you have to learn how to become perfectly harmonized
with the source of your existence. That’s true for you, for
everybody else in this room, and for everybody throughout the entire
universe.
You have a
question?
Q6 [Can there
varieties of religion without wars and terrorism?]
A6 - Wherever
there is terrorism, real religion does not exist. Religion is one:
to reconnect yourself with your source in loving service. Whether
you say Christ or Krishna or Allah is a detail. The underlying
principle is that you have to be in perfect harmony with the source
of your existence: God. Whichever name you call him doesn’t
matter. That is the one religion that will reunite everyone in
peace and happiness. If we bicker, saying, “Yes Krishna, no Jesus,
no Allah”, then we fight. Or if we say, “Yes Jesus, no Krishna, no
Allah”, then we fight. If we say, “Yes Allah, no Jesus, no
Krishna”, then we fight. But if we say, “Yes Jesus, yes Krishna,
yes Allah” – then we don’t fight. Do you understand?
God is one. How
many suns are there in the sky? There is one sun in the sky: every
morning it rises, and every evening it sets. (Of course you can’t
see it for the clouds, but if you go up in an airplane you’ll see
that the sun actually shining over Latvia today, but the clouds are
blocking it.) So there’s one sun. But how many different names are
there for the sun? In the Latvian language the sun is called
something, in Russian it’s called something, in English it’s called
something, in French it’s called something – and just as the sun has
many names according to many different languages, similarly God has
many names according to different religious traditions. But still
there’s only one God. Can you imagine if Latvia and Russia went to
war over the name of sun? There are two different names - in
Russian it’s called what? And in Latvian? So they have a big war:
What’s going to be the name of the sun. Pow, pow – a big war, with
bombs, tanks . . . That’s what the so-called ‘religious’ people are
doing today. They are fighting over what we will call God. There
is only one God; you can’t change Him by calling Him different
names. So this is the real formula for peace and happiness in the
world. Let us all worship that one supreme God. And stop eating
our four-legged brothers and sisters.
Yes, there can be
varieties. Just like in America there are so many cultures that
came together and formed one nation. You can have diversity within
unity. Have you ever heard that concept, ‘diversity within unity’?
Even here we have diversity. We are coming together as one group of
friendly people to talk to each other. But we have Latvians, we
have Americans, we have Indians; we have males, we have females -
yet we are all together as friends to discuss philosophy. So if you
want to maintain your tradition, your way of worshiping God, we have
no objection. But simply we are asking, don’t eat your brothers and
sisters. Is that all right?
Q7 [Why
‘Krishna’?]
A7 - The name
Krishna is so beautiful! Krishna - - -
Q8 [Is this a new
religion you are introducing?]
A8 - We are not
introducing a new religion. We are teaching that which is the
essence of all religion. I was raised as a Christian, and I’m still
a Christian. I did not give up believing in Jesus to chant Hare
Krishna. I simply became a better Christian, that’s all.
Q9 [Hasn’t God
created many religions?]
A9 - That is
created by man. God has given us one religion: to love Him with a
pure heart. But man, in his imperfect, political mentality, has
created so much animosity – this religion, that religion, this
religion, that religion – this is man’s invention, not God’s. God
has given one religion: to love Him with a pure heart.
Questions more?
Q10 [Can this
process change the world right now? How soon?]
A10 - Yes.
That’s up to you. How soon will you become a pure lover of
God? You become a revolutionary person on this planet.
You become a pure lover of God, and by your influence you will
create a revolution in this country. We’re waiting for you
to become a pure lover of God. And you will transform the
world.
Q11 [What about
the prayers we say now, like the Lord’s Prayer – is there some new,
universal prayer – like the euro currency - to replace these?]
A11
- No, all
the prayers can remain; they don’t have to stop . . . Actually this
Hare Krishna prayer is the universal ‘euro’ mantra – this Hare
Krishna is good for everyone. I’m a Christian and I chant Hare
Krishna. I know Muslims who chant Hare Krishna; there are Jews who
chant Hare Krishna – everyone chants Hare Krishna. It’s not a
sectarian prayer. It’s good for everyone. Christians can chant it,
Muslims can chant it, Jews can chant it, Hindus can chant it –
everyone can chant Hare Krishna. You don’t have to give up being a
Christian to chant Hare Krishna. I have a Baptist minister who is
my student. He chants Hare Krishna - a Baptist minister in North
Carolina, in the United States. He’s a Baptist minister, he chants
Hare Krishna, and he supports my ministry with a regular monthly
donation.
Questions more?
Q12 [But we
would all agree that man has evolved from apes, yes?]
A12
- You’re
saying we would all agree that man has evolved from monkeys? Well,
we accept that Darwin was a monkey. But I did not come from
the monkey. I’m descended from Brahmaji, the chief demigod of this
universe. He’s a highly intelligent being – he’s not a monkey, like
Darwin’s grandfather.
Q13 [Can we
really unite world under one culture?]
A13
- 5000
years ago this planet was united by one culture, called the Vedic
culture, which was centered in India. The whole planet Earth was
one culture.
Q14 [What is the
origin of this universal culture?]
A14
- Actually
it’s from other planets . . .
-
end recording –
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Transcribed by Her Grace Labangalatika devi dasi
