20 THE SCIENCE OF SELF-REALIZATION

God by some meditation or mystic power. Krsna is not that type of God.
Krsna was God from the very beginning of His appearance.

Krsna also has unlimited fame. Of course, we are devotees of Krsna
and know of Him and glorify Him, but apart from us, many millions in
the world are aware of the fame of the Bhagavad-gita. In all countries all
over the world the Bhagavad-gita is read by philosophers, psychologists,
and religionists. We are also finding very good sales with our Bhagavad-
gita As It Is. This is because the commodity is pure gold. There are many
editions of the Bhagavad-gita, but they are not pure. Ours is selling more
because we are presenting the Bhagavad-gita as it is. The fame of the
Bhagavad-gita is Krsna’s fame.

Beauty, another opulence, is possessed unlimitedly by Krsna. Krsna
Himself is very beautiful, as are all His associates. Those who were pious
in a previous life receive an opportunity in this material world to take
birth in good families and good nations. The American people are very
rich and beautiful, and these opulences are a result of pious activities. All
over the world people are attracted to the Americans because they are ad-
vanced in scientific knowledge, riches, beauty, and so on. This planet is
an insignificant planet within the universe, yet within this planet, one
country — America—has so many attractive features. We can just imag-
ine, then, how many attractive features must be possessed by God, who
is the creator of the entire cosmic manifestation. How beautiful He must
be—He who has created all beauty.

A person is attractive not only because of his beauty, but also because
of his knowledge. A scientist or philosopher may be attractive because of
his knowledge, but what knowledge is more sublime than that given by
Krsna in the Bhagavad-gita? There is no comparison in the world to such
knowledge. At the same time, Krsna possesses full renunciation
(vairdgya). So many things are working under Krsna’s direction in this
material world, but actually Krsna is not present here. A big factory may
continue to work, although the owner may not be present. Similarly,
Krsna’s potencies are working under the direction of His assistants, the
demigods. Thus Krsna Himself is aloof from the material world. This is
all described in the revealed scriptures.

God, therefore, has many names according to His activities, but
because He possesses so many opulences and because with these
opulences He attracts everyone, He is called Krsna. The Vedic literature
asserts that God has many names, but ‘‘Krsna’’ is the principal name.

The purpose of this Krsna consciousness movement is to propagate
God’s name, God’s glories, God’s activities, God’s beauty, and God’s
