Not the work, but the consciousness must be changed – Remembering Srila Prabhupada

Saravana Kumar Paulraj

– December 4, 2009

I can’t resist trying to correlate his teachings with other philosophies and literatures. This undesirable, speculative tendency comes from eighteen years of American schooling.

Rabindranath Tagore, I find out, was also a "womanizer." Nor does Swamiji like Hart Crane’s "white wings of tumult" depiction of the bridge of consciousness. "It’s not tumult," he says, and drops the subject. Emerson? "He may think like that, but who is he to say?" Whitman? "Sentimentalism." Kahlil Gibran? "Pictures of naked people," he says, making a face. "Poets and artists are generally passionate." William Blake? "More naked people." But he approves Blake’s verse:

God appears, and God is light
To those poor souls who dwell in night,
But doth a human Form display
To those who dwell in realms of day.

Swamiji has a small record player someone gave him, but no records. Thinking he would like to hear some music, I browse through my record collection and finally choose sitar ragas performed by Ravi Shankar — preferable, I suppose, to Bach, or the Beatles.

When the sitar begins to play, Swamiji smiles a little, and I assume that he’s pleased. He sits through the twenty minute raga without speaking. When it is over, I wonder whether to play the other side.

"How did you like the music, Swamiji?" Stanley asks.

"That is sense gratification music," Swamiji answers.

"Oh?" I’m taken aback. "But it’s Ravi Shankar," I protest.

"It is sense gratification music," he repeats, unmoved.

"But it’s a raga," I insist, flustered. "They play it even in temples."

"Ravi Shankar is a businessman," Swamiji says, smiling.

"What if he wanted to become a devotee?" Roy asks.

"Then he can come."

"But weren’t you a businessman once, Swamlji?" Stanley asks.

"Because I went naked then, I should go naked now?" Swamiji answers, still smiling gently, as if amused by all the fuss.

"Everything’s sense gratification," I pout angrily. "We can’t even play ragas! What are we supposed to do?"

"You must understand," Swamiji says patiently. "If you are a musician, you can play your music for Krishna. That’s all right. Arjuna was a warrior, and he fought for Krishna, and that was his perfection. If you are a writer, you can write for Krishna; or a painter, you can paint for Krishna. Whatever you want, you can do. But don’t do it for your own sense gratification. Do it for Krishna. Not the work, but the consciousness must be changed."

From the "The Hare Krishna Explosion" by HG Hayagriva dasa

Disclaimer: The article is posted in the Yahoo Groups – Govindadwipa. All credits goes to the group and their services. Hare Krishna.