When the rising sun appeared in the East, the jewel of the twice-born, Lord Gaurasundara, awakened

[New Delhi and Aligarh, October 9th, 1976]

Hari Śauri: After settling in, taking his breakfast, an hour’s rest, his massage, and bath, Prabhupāda had lunch prepared by Mrs. Saigal with Pālikā supervising.

Then, after his nap, he went out onto the spacious grounds to enjoy the fresh air and pleasant vista of several acres of well-kept gardens.

Accompanied by Surendra Saigal and soon joined by a small group of eager devotees, Prabhupāda relaxed on the manicured lawns and entered into discussion prior to his scheduled late-afternoon lecture.

Surendra has a strong humanitarian side, and he solicited Śrīla Prabhupāda’s opinion about M. K. Gandhi’s attempt to elevate the so-called untouchables.

Gandhi had tried to give them respectability in Indian society by renaming them “harijanas,” literally “associates of Hari,” God.

But Prabhupāda was not impressed.

Although he approved of the sentiments behind it, Prabhupāda said that in practicality, Gandhi did not know how to elevate the lower classes.

He gave the example of a man who, having obtained a blind son, named him Padma-locana, “lotus-eyed.”

The name was wishful thinking and did not reflect the reality.

“Similarly,” Prabhupāda told us, “this harijana movement is a farce because they remain the chamar and bhangis, and still they are called harijana. The same thing. No locana, but ‘padma locana.’

“Everyone has got right; you can become the most advanced devotee. There is no hindrance. But they must be trained up as harijana. Not that artificially you simply rubber-stamp harijana. Therefore that movement is failure.”

Advantages in life, Prabhupāda told us—wealth, beauty, learning—were obtained by higher permission, granted according to one’s pious deeds.

It is not accidental that someone is born in a lower position and someone else in a higher.

Just as a person gains promotion in his job according to his work record, similarly everyone gets a birth according to their past deeds.

As far as our movement is concerned though, Prabhupāda said that we deal only on the premise that everyone is a soul, distinct from the body.

“Just like a gentleman is gentleman. One may have a different type of dress. Not that everyone is expected of the same dress. But within the dress, a gentleman is gentleman.

“Similarly, although there are so many varieties of bodies, within the body the soul is pure part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. So the spiritual movement means to take up the spirit soul within the body and to elevate him from the conditioned life. That is spiritual movement.”

The principle of the Bhāgavatam, he said, was ahaituky apratihatā [SB 1.2.6]; there is no material impediment to the soul being raised by this process.

Kṛṣṇa says that even the pāpa-yoni, the fallen, can be raised by simply taking shelter of Him.

“We have to take lessons from the śāstras. So anyone can be raised to the highest platform. Caṇḍālo ‘pi dvija śreṣṭho hari bhakti parāyaṇaḥ [SB 4.31.10 pur.]. Even one is born as caṇḍāla . . . means less than the śūdras.

“The dog eaters, Caṇḍālas. They are called śva-paca. Śva means dog and paca means cooker. There are still so many. In Korea, in China, in Hong Kong. They eat dogs.”

Surendra chuckled and told Prabhupāda a story about a German priest who stayed with him last year. The man visited Hong Kong.

“He was telling me that he had wonderful soup. And when he found out what was the soup, he said, ‘Well, didn’t you see the puppy that was going about this morning? It is soup of the same puppy.’ “

Prabhupāda grinned. He had heard similar stories before.

“Yes. In Hong Kong you won’t find street dogs. They’ll eat them. So in India also there are dog eaters. In Assam you’ll find. They make kukur pitha.

“Kukur pitha means that first of all the dog is given to eat some rice preparation with gur [Indian brown sugar]. And pushing, pushing. When he dies, then it is roasted. Then that is very good food!”

Laughing along with his audience, Prabhupāda returned to his point.

“So everyone can be raised to the platform of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. There is no difficulty. That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s movement. So from early in the morning He is teaching. Udilo aruṇa pūrava bhāge dwija maṇi gorā amani jāge

[When the rising sun appeared in the East, the jewel of the twice-born, Lord Gaurasundara, awakened].

“He was not lazy. He was very busy. From early in the morning. So if we at least pretend to follow Caitanya Mahāprabhu, we cannot sleep. We must rise early in the morning. One must get up at least one and a half hours before the sunrise.

“That is maṅgala ārati. Maṅgala ārati means to get up early in the morning, take your bath, and be prepared for the maṅgala ārati. Then begin your chanting, prayer. This is activity.”

—Hari Śauri

[22. Biographies and Glorification of Śrīla Prabhupāda / A Transcendental Diary Volume 5 – Hari Śauri dāsa / Volume Five]