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The Essence of Knowledge
The Original Teachings of HDG A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
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Teachings of HDG Bhaktivedanta Svami explained by Dharmavira Prabhu
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What are Vedas? – they are like a desire tree
“So you learn from the Vedic literature. Every information is there. And all the Vedic literature is summarized in this Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Vedic literature, it is compared with desire tree. Now, desire tree means whatever you desire, you get from that tree. So these Vedas is considered as the desire tree, means any kind of knowledge you want, it is complete there perfectly, any kind, either spiritual or material, any department of knowledge. All kinds of knowledge, you can achieve from the Vedic language. There is Dhanur-veda, Āyur-veda, Jyotir-veda and all kinds. Veda means knowledge. So for military art, if you want to consult Vedic literature, you will get complete information, perfect.
Similarly, Jyotir-veda. Jyoti means the luminaries in the sky, the stars. You can get. We are trying to go to the moon planet and wasting our time and energy, but if you consult Vedas, you get full information of the moon planet, sun planet or any other planet. There are millions and millions of trillions of planets. You can get all, Brahmaloka, up to the topmost planet. Jyotir-veda. That is called Jyotir-veda. And the Dhanur-veda. Āyur-veda. Āyuḥ means duration of life. And nobody wants to be diseased. So that means medical science. That is also fully there.”
[From the lecture on Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 2.1.5, Paris, June 13, 1974]
Vedic literature, it is compared with desire tree. Now, desire tree means whatever you desire, you get from that tree. So these Vedas is considered as the desire tree, means any kind of knowledge you want, it is complete there perfectly, any kind, either spiritual or material, any department of knowledge.
“It is the most perfect science, bhakti-yoga.”
AC Bhaktivedanta Svami, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.9.49, Vṛndāvana, April 4, 1976
“We are getting knowledge from Kṛṣṇa, the most perfect. We have to receive knowledge from the perfect not by ascending process, experiencing failure, experiencing failure, experiencing failure. Not like that. That will take long time. But if you actually want to be perfect, just approach the perfect, take knowledge from him, and you become perfect. That is the injunction. Tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum eva abhigacchet śrotriyaṁ brahma-niṣṭham (MU 1.2.12).
tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum evābhigacchet
samit-pāṇiḥ śrotriyaṁ brahma-niṣṭham
“To understand these things properly, one must humbly approach, with firewood in hand, a spiritual master who is learned in the Vedas and firmly devoted to the Absolute Truth.” [Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad 1.2.12]
From the Srila Prabhupada’s Room Conversation with Professor Durckheim, German Spiritual Writer, June 19, 1974, Germany