Hare Krsna
Please accept my humble obeisance. All glories to Srila Prabhupada
by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Despite their lofty claims about the advancement of science, scientists fail to provide any solution to the real problems of life.
When a scientist discovers something impressive to the ignorant mass of people, the common man, without inquiry, accepts such a discovery as wonderful. But the intelligent man is not struck with wonder by such discoveries. He gives all credit to the person who created the wonderful brain of the scientist. A common man is also struck with wonder by the wonderful action of material nature, and he gives all credit to the cosmic manifestation. The learned Krsna conscious person, however, knows well that behind the cosmic manifestation is the brain of Krsna, as confirmed in Bhagavad-gita (9.10): mayadhyaksena prakrtih suyate sa-caracaram. . . . A devotee is therefore not astonished . . . because he knows that the Lord is able to act far more wonderfully by His potencies, which are inconceivable to the brain of even the most erudite scientist.- Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.13.43, purport
What is “scientific”? A tiny brain, what is their science? Phene bare dhake nate ute. There is a kind of snake which has no poison. So he cannot catch even that non-poisonous snake, and he’s trying to catch one cobra. So these scientists, what is their value? What have they done to contribute to the world for the benefit of the human society? They could not give any relief from disease, relief from old age, relief from death or birth. These are the real problems. So what is their contribution? They have given some horseless carriage. Again there is problem of power. What is actually benefit they have done, that this is the benefit from the scientists? Anything they have done, there is counter disadvantage. This is simply waste of time.- Morning Walk, June 10, 1975, Honolulu
The authorities speak, and the people in general believe them. But in the case of Vedic truths, they have been taught not to believe. Even if they accept them they give a different interpretation. Each and every man wants a direct perception of Vedic knowledge; otherwise, they foolishly refuse to accept it. This means that the misguided man can believe one authority, the scientist, but will reject the authority of the Vedas. The result is that people have degenerated.- Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.9.18, purport
Another difficulty is that those who depend more on their imperfect senses cannot realize Him as the Supreme Lord. Such persons are like the modern scientist. They want to know everything by their experimental knowledge. But it is not possible to know the Supreme Person by imperfect experimental knowledge. He is described herein as adhoksaja, or beyond the range of experimental knowledge. All our senses are imperfect. We claim to observe everything and anything, but we must admit that we can observe things under certain material conditions only, which are also beyond our control. The Lord is beyond the observation of sense perception.- Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.8.19, purport
Modern scientists try to avoid death by physiochemical advancement of knowledge, but alas, the controller of death, Yamaraja, is so cruel that he does not spare even the very life of the scientist himself. The scientist, who puts forward the theory of stopping death by advancement of scientific knowledge, becomes himself a victim of death when he is called by Yamaraja.- Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.16.7, purport
Discoveries of progressive scientific achievements are therefore not independent. The scientist has to attain the knowledge of a thing already existing by means of the wonderful brain made by someone else. A scientist can work with the help of such an awarded brain, but it is not possible for the scientist to create his own or a similar brain. Therefore no one is independent in the matter of any creation, nor is such creation automatic.- Srimad-Bhagavatam 2.5.4, purport
The Mystery behind the Universe
No one can see the entire universe while sitting in one place. Even the most advanced scientist cannot see what is going on in other parts of the universe. But a devotee like Arjuna can see everything that exists in any part of the universe. Krsna gives him the power to see anything he wants to see, past, present and future.- Bhagavad-gita 11.7, purport
The supreme will is behind all cosmic activities. Of course, there are atheists of various categories who do not believe in a creator, but that is due to a poor fund of knowledge. The modern scientist, for example, has created space satellites, and by some arrangement or other, these satellites are thrown into outer space to fly for some time at the control of the scientist who is far away. Similarly, all the universes with innumerable stars and planets are controlled by the intelligence of the Personality of Godhead.- Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.1.1, purport
In this sloka, the particular words abhijnah and svarat are significant. These two words distinguish the Supreme Lord from all the other living entities. No other living entity is either abhijnah or svarat. That is, no one is either fully cognizant or fully independent. Even Brahma has to meditate upon the Supreme Lord in order to create. Then what to speak of great scientists like Einstein! The brains of such a scientist are certainly not the products of any human being. Scientists cannot manufacture such a brain, and what to speak of foolish atheists who defy the authority of the Lord?- Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.1.1 purport
How does Material Nature Work?
Material nature appears to the material scientist to act and react in a wonderful manner, but in reality it cannot act without the agitator, time, who is the representation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. When time agitates the neutral state of material nature, material nature begins to produce varieties of manifestations. Ultimately it is said that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the cause of creation. As a woman cannot produce children unless impregnated by a man, material nature cannot produce or manifest anything unless it is impregnated by the Supreme Personality of Godhead in the form of the time factor. - Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.26.17, purport
The material scientist explains that all these different planets are floating because of the law of gravity or some other law; but the actual lawmaker is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. When we speak of law, we must understand that there must be a lawmaker. The material scientists can discover laws of nature, but they are unable to recognize the lawmaker. From Srimad-Bhagavatam and Bhagavad-gita we can know who the lawmaker is: the lawmaker is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.- Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.29.42, purport
The velocities of air and light are taken into consideration by the material scientist, but he has no information of the velocity of the mind and intelligence. We have some limited experience of the velocity of the mind because in a moment we can transfer our minds to places hundreds of thousands of miles away. Intelligence is even finer. Finer than intelligence is the soul, which is not matter like mind and intelligence but is spirit, or antimatter. The soul is hundreds of thousands of times finer and more powerful than intelligence. We can thus only imagine the velocity of the soul in its traveling from one planet to another. Needless to say, the soul travels by its own strength and not with the help of any kind of material vehicle.- Caitanya-caritamrta, Adi 5.22, purport
Proper Application of Science
Science and philosophy also should be applied in the service of the Lord. There is no use presenting dry speculative theories for sense gratification. Philosophy and science should be engaged to establish the glory of the Lord. Advanced people are eager to understand the Absolute Truth through the medium of science, and therefore a great scientist should endeavor to prove the existence of the Lord on a scientific basis.- Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.5.22, purport
One must dedicate everything in the service of the Lord. If one is a learned scholar, scientist, philosopher, poet, etc., then he should employ his learning to establish the supremacy of the Lord. Try to study the energy of the Lord in every sphere of life. Do not decry Him and try to become like Him or take His position simply by fragmental accumulation of knowledge.- Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.5.32, purport
Material actions and reactions, as the material scientist can superficially observe, are not basically ultimate truth in regard to creation, maintenance and destruction. The material energy is a potency of the Lord which is displayed in time, accepting the three qualities of goodness, passion and ignorance in the forms of Visnu, Brahma and Siva. The material energy thus works under the supreme spell of His Lordship, although He is always transcendental to all such material activities.- Srimad-Bhagavatam 2.6.31, purport
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