Feb 23, USA (SUN) — I have been following the recent debate about the Bhaktivedanta Archives and its withholding and editing Srila Prabhupada’s audio legacy with great interest, and thought to put the issue to the test. I picked a random class from the Archive’s latest MP3 collection and compared it to the VedaBase. The result speaks for itself.
This is not an isolated incident. There are many such examples and there are many mistakes in the VedaBase too. How many more decades will it take to get a 100 percent accurate transcript of All of Srila Prabhupada’s spoken words? Each syllable of his words is of immeasurable importance. One cannot empathize that enough. It is the basis for the next 10,000 years of Krishna consciousness and spiritual culture. Future generations and scholars depend on our efforts now. Are we really aware of the great historical burden that rests on our shoulders?
I agree with Pratyatosa Prabhu and the many other devotees who have raised concerns that ALL of Srila Prabhupada’s recorded vani should be released immediately As It Is, without any editing and without any alteration whatsoever. Then a collaborative effort can be started with devotees from all over the world working on this immensely important project. It can be done just like the Wikipedia in order to properly document, correct and make available Srila Prabhupada’s entire audio collection and compare it to the present VedaBase. Such a collaborative process is self-correcting and does not cost anything. It is the modern day approach to such huge projects. It is therefore more than time to place ALL of Srila Prabhupada’s unadulterated audio into the public domain.
Audio Editing and the Vedabase
Bhagavad-gita 13.1-2, Paris, August 10, 1973
The Sanskrit has been edited out of the audio
arjuna uvaca
prakrtim purusam caiva
ksetram ksetra-jnam eva ca
etad veditum icchami
jnanam jneyam ca kesava
sri-bhagavan uvaca
idam sariram kaunteya
ksetram ity abhidhiyate
etad yo vetti tam prahuh
ksetra-jnah iti tad-vidah
[Bg. 13.2]
A small mistake in the VedaBase. It should read working, not king. It is clear in the audio.
“We are [wor]king, senses…” (aside:) Why it is open? “We are working.”
The following section has been entirely edited out of the audio. Why?
“Therefore Arjuna inquires from Krsna that: prakrtim purusam. “Who is actually enjoyer, and who is enjoyed?” These two things I want to know from You.” Prakrtim purusam caiva ksetram ksetra-jnam capi. Another two items, ksetram, the field of activities… Just like I am working. I am working. You are working. How you are working? Where you are working? I am working, being situated in this body. This is already described in the beginning that the living entity is within the body. Dehino ‘smin yatha dehe [Bg. 2.13].
So ksetra and ksetra-jna. Ksetra means the platform on which, or the stage on which we are dancing. That is called ksetra. And ksetra-jna means the person who is dancing. That is ksetra-jna. When you, when you dance, you know that I am dancing on this ground, on this platform. So you are knower. Therefore ksetra-jna. And the platform on which you are dancing, that is ksetra. So we are all dancing… In the material world, we are all dancing. How we are dancing? Getting a particular type of body. That is ksetra. There must be some platform.
For… Just like a krsaka, a agriculturist, he is plowing the land. The land is called ksetra, and the man who is plowing, he’s called ksetra-jna. He knows that; “I am plowing over this ground.” So this is also another knowledge, ksetra and ksetra-jna. Then… [Sound is garbled, with words and phrases blipped out] … etad veditum icchami. I wish to know this subject matter. Jnanam jneyam ca kesava. As well as jnanam, knowledge, what is actually knowledge, and what is the object of knowledge.
So six things he’s questioning. First of all, prakrti, one, purusa, two, ksetra, three, ksetra-jna, four, knowledge, five, and the knowable object of knowledge, six. These are the subject matter, Krsna, Arjuna is asking from Krsna. Because he has accepted Krsna guru. So for bona fide inquiries, transcendental inquiries, one must approach a guru. That is the Vedic injunction. That Arjuna has already done. When he was he was to fight or not to fight, But he could not make solution. So to make a solution we must approach Krsna as guru, or Krsna’s representative. Krsna and Krsna’s representative… In, they are the same.
Therefore Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura says: yasya prasadad bhagavat-prasadah **. By pleasing guru, you can please Krsna. Even Krsna is not pleased, if the guru is pleased, Krsna has to be pleased. Because he’s representative.
Suppose you have given somebody power of attorney to do some business. So after finishing the business, if you see the paper, not very favorable, it has not been done very nicely, still you have to accept. Because your representative has signed it. Yes. Therefore yasya prasadad bhagavat-prasadah **. Krsna not satisfied, but if your guru is satisfied, then Krsna must be satisfied. This is Krsna’s obligation. Because He has sent representative. Krsna has… acaryam mam vijaniyan [SB 11.17.27]. Krsna says: “acarya, that is I am.” Acaryam mam vijaniyan navamanyeta karhicit. “Never try to neglect acarya. Navamanyeta. Neither think of acarya as ordinary person. Vedic injunction is one must approach understand all this subject matter.
Jnana, knowledge and the… Books, volumes of books on any subject matter. As there are different types of magazines for differents of books. Big, big philosophers. Just like written philosophy on the sex impulse. To understand. This is rascaldom. Nobody is how to laugh, how to cry, how to eat, and how to enjoy sex life. No school, college is required to understand these things. These are everyone knows. Volumes of books are required to understand this real knowledge here.
Try to understand: ksetra-ksetra-jna. This body and the living entity, soul, who is working with this body, or working on this body.”
Interpolation – the bold text is not in the VedaBase (clipping noise is heard in the audio before and after the interpolation). Where is this fragment coming from?
“That is formalities, they’re also required, but the real purpose of religion is to abide by the orders of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is religion. Religion means to abide by the orders of Krishna, God. That is religion. So you may become… You may be a Christian, you may be a Muhammadan, you may be a Hindu, or Buddhist.”
This is a small mix-up mistake. In the VedaBase is the following:
“And when asked why I am killing, I give my, some interpretation of my own.”
In the Audio we hear
“And when asked why I am killing, I give some, my interpretation of my own.”
The following section is in the VedaBase but entirely edited out in the audio. Why?
“So how we can know about this material creation? But we can know from Krsna. Because He knows everything. Because everything is manufactured from Him. Mattah sarvam pravartate. So we have to know like that. Janmady asya yatah [SB 1.1.1]. So He can speak perfectly what is the plan, the, of this creation, creation of the universal, universe. The plan is that we living entities, ksetra-ksetra-jna… Ksetra means this body. Idam sariram ksetram ity abhidhiyate. It is said: idam sariram kaunteya ksetram ity abhidhiyate [Bg. 13.2]. “You have asked the question: ‘What is ksetra, field of activities, and who is the knower of this field,’ so I answer: idam sariram kaunteya ksetram [Bg. 13.2]. This body is the field of activities.”
So this material world is created by God to give us facility to work as I desire. But I must have the jurisdiction of my work. That is the… Jurisdiction my work. Just like the agriculturist, they have got their own land, demarcated. This much, my land, this much, his land, this much…” And he works, tills the field, produces food grain, according to his capacity. Similarly Krsna has given us different fields of activities. That is this body. Idam sariram kaunteya ksetram [Bg. 13.2]. Idam sariram. So from the sarira, we expand many other things. That also becomes ksetram.
So this is the purpose of creation. Krsna gives us full facility. I want to work in this way. All right, you work. Krsna says that you don’t work. This will not make you happy. You are asking Me facilities to fulfill your desire under certain condition. That you may have from Me. I can give you. But you’ll never be happy.” That is Krsna’s order. You’ll never be happy. How I shall be happy? Sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja [Bg. 18.66]. You’ll be happy only by this process. Simply by this process. If you manufacture, by your fertile brain, that: “I shall be happy in this way and that way,” you’ll never be happy. If you want to be happy at all, then this is My instruction: sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam sa… [Bg. 18.66]. Krsna is repeatedly saying this to everyone.
But he’ll not do that. He’ll say: “Krsna, give me this facility. Give me this facility. I shall cut throat of this man, and enjoy.” “All right, you cut throat.” That also Krsna gives. Krsna’s very, what is called, thankless task. Somebody wants to cut my throat, and I want, nobody may cut my throat. Krsna has to adjust. He give me facility and he’ll save also the man who is praying: “Sir, please save me from this cutting.” Krsna… Isvarah sarva-bhutanam hrd-dese ‘rjuna tisthati [Bg. 18.61]. So this is going on.
The purpose of creation is to give the conditioned soul, the rebellious soul, who, being prakrti, whose nature being constitutional nature is that he should be enjoyed by Krsna, but he has taken the wrong direction, that “I’ll not be enjoyed by Krsna. I shall become Krsna.” This is… All these people, all these living entities who are in this material world, their determination is that: “Why I shall serve Krsna? I shall become Krsna.” This is the disease. And to give us… Because He wants to become Krishna. He cannot become Krsna. But he is persisting. Krsna is giving this facility. That platform of facility, material facility, is this material world. This material world.
This is the purpose. But nobody knows. Ask anybody. They’ll say, “God created this universe or this cosmic manifestation.” That’s a fact. But why He created? That why question is answered in the Bhagavad-gita. Everyone wants to enjoy this material world according to his whims and purpose. Krishna gives facility to everyone. So that facility is given according to his desire, a particular type of body. One who wants to eat anything nonsense, no discrimination, so he’s allowed to get a body of a hog. Because a hog can eat even stool. He has no distinction. Here is halava, here is stool. But he’ll like to eat stool. That is hog life.
Similarly those who are very much fond of eating meat and blood, they’re given the body of tiger, hogs, dogs, This is nature’s law. But they do not know. They do not know. They think that: “Now I am enjoying, according to my…” That is not enjoyment. Is that very nice food? But he’s thinking, a flesh-eater, a meat-eater is thinking, he cannot eat meat a one. He mixes with some vegetable. Then he can eat. Is it not? If you say all these meat-eaters: “Don’t eat vegetables or grains. Simply eat meat.” That they cannot do. They cannot do. Ninety percent, ninety percent, he’ll eat other things, grains and vegetables. And maybe ten percent or twenty percent, meat. Although we are not meat-eater, I have seen. A little piece of meat… [break]
Where the tiger is coming? That he has no brain to understand. Why there are so many varieties of life? Because according to… Just like your… In a, in a city, there are many varieties of apartment. As you are able to pay for it, or in a shop, in a store, there are many varieties of articles. But you have to purchase according to the price you can pay.
Similarly all these varieties of bodies are there according to my desire. Krishna… That is stated in the Bhagavad-gita, you know: yantrarudhani mayaya. Isvarah sarva-bhutanam hrd-dese arjuna tisthati, The Lord is situated in everyone’s heart. Arjuna tisthati. Bhramayan sarva-bhutani yantrarudhani mayaya [Bg. 18.61]. Bhramayan. He is causing to wander all over the universe all living entities, riding on a car or machine. This machine is this body. Now I am walking, I am going here, preaching. What is the machine? The machine, first machine is my body. So who has given me this body? Mayaya. Maya, the illusory energy, has given me this body. My real body’s spiritual body. Karmana daiva-netrena jantur deha upapattaye [SB 3.31.1]. These are ver, Vedic versions. We are not speaking unauthorized. Karmana. As you are working, or as you desire to work, then similar type of body will be given to you. By nature. You are, you have got this body by nature. Mayaya, yantrarudhani mayaya.
Krishna doesn’t make your body. You desire. Krsna orders maya, the prakrti, material nature: “You give him such kind of body.” Mayadhyaksena prakrtih suyate sa-caracaram [Bg. 9.10]. Prakrti’s not working. Prakrti has given me this body not out of her own accord. Krsna has ordered: “Give this person, this living entity, such a body.” Maybe it is Brahma’s body. Maybe it is ant’s body. Maybe it is demigod’s body. Maybe it is the body of the worm in the stool. Different kinds. Eight million, four hundred thousand species of body. These bodies, we are getting according to our desire. Because except Krsna consciousness desire, all desires are subjected to the material conditions.
And as soon as we get Krsna consciousness desire, we get immediately free from this transmigration of the soul from one body to another. Tyaktva deham punar janma naiti [Bg. 4.9]. If you become simply Krishna consciousness, then no more botheration of changing this body. You get your spiritual body, go back to home, back to Godhead. Thank you very much.” (end)
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