A Case of Mistaken Identity

Nobody Knows Who's Who
Arrival address, Detroit Airport, July 16, 1971

War on Terror

Who are the Terrorists? by Hansadutta das

Those who are in the bodily conception of life are terrorists. Those who keep us from making progress to freedom are terrorists. Those who keep us in bondage of the cycle of birth and death are terrorists. There is no fear more terrifying than birth, old age, disease and death. The government leaders, the educators, the scientists and pseudo-religionists who perpetuate by conventional habit the bodily concept—all of them are terrorists. They are waging a war for and of sense gratification. Everyone is planning on increasing their sense gratification, up to the point of suicide bombing. How can you stop them? How can you win? more

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Related Topics

Aim of Life
Knowledge - Enlightenment
The Living Beings - Spirit Soul - Life Force

There is a great defect in the modern civilization, and people are accepting this body as self, and based on this mistake in the foundation, everything is going wrong. The basic principle of civilization—accepting this body as the soul—is the beginning of all problems. The great philosophers, scientists, theologists and thoughtful men, they do not know what is the defect. Recently I was in Moscow. I had a talk with a big professor of Indology, Professor Kotovsky. So he was speaking that "Swamiji, after this finishing, annihilation of this body, everything is finished." So I was astonished that a learned professor who is posing himself on a very advanced post, he has no idea about the soul and the body, how they are different, how the soul migrating from one body to another. And everyone is accepting this body as the self, and "There is no life after death; therefore make the best use of this bad bargain and enjoy sense gratification as far as possible." But this Krishna consciousness movement is checking this wrong progress of human civilization. Our first proposition is that "You are not this body; you are spirit soul. Some way or other, you are in contact with this material world, and you have got this material body, and under illusion, you are accepting something which you are not."

So basic principle of this Krishna consciousness movement is to correct the wrong foundation of the human civilization. In the Bhagavad-gita this is the beginning of spiritual knowledge. When Arjuna was identifying himself with this body and bodily relationship, Krishna first of all corrected that "You are not this body." So if we do not understand these first steps of spiritual knowledge, then where is the question of making further progress?

You Don't Have a Soul
Coming Back: Changing Bodies

Prof. Durckheim: Perhaps it makes a difference if a person thinks, "I am the spirit, and I have a body," rather than "I am the body, and I have a soul."

Prabhupada: Yes. It is a mistake to think that you are the body and possess a soul. That is not true. You are the soul, and you are covered by a temporary body. The soul is the important thing, not the body. For example, as long as you wear a coat, it is important to you. But if it becomes torn, you throw it away and purchase another coat. The living being constantly experiences the same thing. You separate from this present body and accept another body. That is called death. The body which you previously occupied becomes unimportant, and the body you now occupy becomes important. This is the big problem-people give so much importance to a body that within a few short years will be exchanged for another one.