View source for Because the teachers were very much cautious that, "This Prahlada has got tendency to become a devotee," so they were very careful

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[[Category:Because]]
[[Category:Teacher]]
[[Category:Were]]
[[Category:Very Much]]
[[Category:Cautious]]
[[Category:Prahlada]]
[[Category:Tendency to Become]]
[[Category:Becoming a Devotee of God]]
[[Category:They Were]]
[[Category:Very Careful]]
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<h2>Lectures</h2>
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<h3>Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures</h3>
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The teacher said: "Sir, we have not taught this. I do not know how your son has learned all this devotional service. By nature he is so like that." Prahlāda Mahārāja was doing that. Because the teachers were very much cautious that, "This Prahlāda has got tendency to become a devotee," so they were very careful.
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[[Vanisource:710908 - Lecture SB 07.05.22-30 - London|710908 - Lecture SB 07.05.22-30 - London]]
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Śaṅkarācārya taught his philosophy to develop your consciousness to the platform of Brahma understanding. When one understands himself that "I am not this body. I do not belong to this material world. I am spirit soul," that is Brahma understanding. Brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā ([[Vanisource:BG 18.54 (1972)|BG 18.54]]). At that time he becomes very jolly. So there are many different process of austerities to come to this platform of Brahma understanding, but if one is engaged in this devotional service, sravanam kīrtanam viṣṇu, he is to be understood as already on the Brahma platform. Therefore, Prahlāda Mahārāja says: "I think such person has studied completely. His knowledge is perfect." Tan manye adhītam uttamam.

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:niśamyaitat suta-vaco
:hiraṇyakaśipus tadā
:guru-putram uvācedaṁ
:ruṣā-prasphuritādharaḥ 
:([[Vanisource:SB 7.5.25|SB 7.5.25]])
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When he heard, the atheist father, "Oh, this boy is speaking nonsense," you see, so he became very much angry. Ruṣā. Ruṣā means became too much angry. Ruṣā-prasphuritādharaḥ. His lips were throbbing, he was so angry. Immediately called the teachers, "Come on!" Guru-putram uvācedaṁ ruṣā, brahma-bandho kim etat te vipakṣaṁ śrayatāsatā. "I gave my child, my boy, to be educated by you. What sort of education you have given him? He is talking nonsense, devotional service. I wanted to make him politician, diplomat, tricky, and you have taught him śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ ([[Vanisource:SB 7.5.23-24|SB 7.5.23]])?" (laughter) You see?

That is still going on. That is still going on. When I wanted to start this movement in India, I approached many friends, "Sir, you have got four boys. Give me one boy. I want to make him devotee." They refused. "Oh," he will say: "Swāmījī, what will be the benefit by becoming devotee? After all, he has to earn his livelihood." (laughter) Nobody agreed.

Nobody agreed. Everyone wants that his son should be hard working, just like hogs and dogs, and satisfy senses. That's all. Everyone wants. That is civilization. Nobody wants that his son should be a devotee. They will not tolerate that. If somebody's son comes to us to become devotee, I have experienced, the father and mother immediately comes, "Oh, Swāmījī, what you are doing?" But his son becomes hippie—he will tolerate. That he will tolerate. But he becomes devotee—"Oh, we can't tolerate. How can we . . .?" You see? This is the nature.

This is the nature. If one son is going astray by drinking, "Oh, young men, they can do that." But he becomes a devotee, he immediately becomes warned, "Oh, what danger is!" (laughter) "He is going to be a devotee." This is the nature of demons. If the father, mother are demons, how you can expect nice child? You see? That is the defect of the modern civilization. Therefore the whole world is unhappy. There is need of devotees, need of real brahmin. That is wanted. Therefore this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement . . . even a certain little percentage of people become Kṛṣṇa conscious, the whole face of the world will change. It is so nice.

So Hiraṇyakaśipu did not like that his son was becoming a devotee. So he chastised the teachers, because he was king, emperor, very powerful. He conquered all the universal planets, he was so powerful. So the teachers become very much threatened. So when they were asked, "What nonsense you have taught my boy, spoiled? He has become a devotee," so they said:

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:na mat praṇītaṁ na para-praṇītaṁ
:suto vadaty eṣa tavendra-śatro
:naisargikīyaṁ matir asya rājan
:niyaccha manyuṁ kad adāḥ sma mā naḥ 
:([[Vanisource:SB 7.5.28|SB 7.5.28]])
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So the teacher said: "Sir, we have not taught this. I do not know how your son has learned all this devotional service. By nature he is so like that." Prahlāda Mahārāja was doing that. Because the teachers were very much cautious that, "This Prahlāda has got tendency to become a devotee," so they were very careful. But Prahlāda Mahārāja, what he did do, as soon as there is tiffin hour, all the teachers gone, he would immediately call all the class friend and stand up on the bench and speak on bhagavad-bhakti. Perhaps you have seen that picture. That teaching is there. If there is time we shall . . . how he was teaching his class friend to become devotee.

Just like our boys going on the street try to teach all others how to learn devotional service. This is our business. Prahlāda Mahārāja is our ācārya, former ācārya. So following his footsteps, we have to do that. Everyone did that, preaching. Preaching is required. People are in ignorance. They do not know what is God, what is his relationship with God. Therefore preaching is necessary. So Prahlāda Mahārāja was doing that. Therefore the teacher said that naisargikīyaṁ matir asya rājan niyaccha manyum: "Don't be unnecessarily angry upon us. We did not teach him. By nature he is like that."

So this is also another feature, that why one becomes devotee, why the other does not become? That means in his former life he was a devotee. It could not be finished in one life, but in this life automatically he is trying to become devotee. Therefore devotional service is so nice that even if you cannot finish the whole course in one life, next life you are guaranteed to get a very nice birth so that you can develop further.

That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā: śucīnāṁ śrīmatāṁ gehe yoga-bhraṣṭoḥ sañjāyate ([[Vanisource:BG 6.41 (1972)|BG 6.41]]). When Kṛṣṇa . . . er, Arjuna inquired from Kṛṣṇa that, "A yogī, he cannot finish his duty, or yogic process, in one life. Then what happens? He becomes neither this way or that way?" Kṛṣṇa said: "No. Whatever he has finished, that is his permanent assets.

Next life he begins from that point and he gets the opportunity of take birth"—śucīnāṁ śrīmatāṁ gehe—"he is given birth in very nice family, either in very nice brahmin family or very rich family." In these two places one gets the opportunity to increase his Kṛṣṇa consciousness very easily. If he gets his birth in a nice brahmin family, automatically he is trained in that way. And if he gets his birth in a rich family, he has no economic demand. He hasn't got to earn. He can save the time for developing Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
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