Morning Walk , Los Angeles , 1973-12-29

Prabhupāda: ... [indistinct] not come?

Karandhara: He's coming Prabhupāda. He just pulled up.

Prabhupāda: Oh.

Jaya-hari: Prabhupāda?, this morning you talked about astrology in your lecture. Is this accepted in the Vedic scripture and by the gurus?

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. Astrology means... That is also Vedic. Jyotir-veda. Jyotir-veda. That is also part of the Vedas. [break] The brāhmaṇas, they learn these three things = astrology and medicine. These two things. A brāhmaṇa is supposed to go to every householder's place, and he will inform, "Today is such-and-such tithi. The such-and-such thing should be done."

And if required, if somebody inquires about "Now I am going to that place. What will happen? Just find out the auspicious moment," so they will give him. Still it is current. It may be wrongly done or rightly, but the system is still there, astrologer. The king should be always accompanied by a first-class astrologer. [break] ...there is a whole street, both sides simply astrology. [break] ...good astrologers.

Jaya-hari: Yes. Astrology is very popular in the Western world. [break]

Prabhupāda: Where is our scientist?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Here, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: Oh, how are you? Thank you very much. Come on. How are you? Feeling all right?

Dr. Wolfe: Fine, thank you.

Prabhupāda: Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: I brought a friend, Śrīla Prabhupāda, from Calcutta. He was my class friend in Calcutta. He is from St. Xavier's College. He graduated.

Prabhupāda: Oh. Bengali?

Sujit: Bengali. [Bengali conversation]

Prabhupāda: [Bengali] ...Mahatma Gandhi Road.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Daniel, come here. Daniel Sardar.

Sujit: Sujit.

Prabhupāda: Sujit, oh. [Bengali conversation regarding Sujit being a student of science, chemistry and plastics engineering, and Śrīla Prabhupāda tells him that he attended Scottish Churches' College] [japa] [break] ...astrology?

Sujit: What is my opinion?

Prabhupāda: No. I am asking scientist.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: First of all I did not believe astrology in the beginning. I thought it was a pseudo science.

Prabhupāda: No, you may think, but what is the opinion of the scientist?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Oh, scientists would say that there is no background.

Prabhupāda: So how it so happens?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Because they say something which cannot be proved by experimental science, that does not work, calling science.

Prabhupāda: So then how do you say that life is from matter? That cannot be proved by experiment.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: That is why they are going to prove it. They are trying to prove it.

Prabhupāda: Then again, "going to prove." They cannot prove, they'll not not admit it.

Sujit: See, astrology, I think, what he said is half true. Astrology is a science, but it is not an exact science like mathematics and chemistry.

Prabhupāda: No. No, it is mathematics. Astrology is simply based on mathematics. Exactly.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: To calculate the planetary...

Prabhupāda: Just see. The comet...

Sujit: It is from astronomy.

Prabhupāda: Astronomy, yes. Astrology is the part of astronomy. Yes.

Sujit: It's part of the science. It has been accepted as part of the science.

Prabhupāda: No, it is...

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Astrological science is mostly speculative theory.

Prabhupāda: Astronomy also.

Sujit: They are proving a lot of things. They are calculating when a certain star can be in certain positions.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: No, that can be done.

Sujit: Yes, it's being done.

Prabhupāda: So our astrology is calculated by the position of the stars.

Sujit: That's true, but as far as...

Prabhupāda: By astronomy you calculate the position of the star, and they know, "If the star is in such-and-such position, the result will be like this." That is astrology.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: This looks like collecting some facts from some experience.

Sujit: Statistics.

Prabhupāda: No, no. It is calculated by the astral movement. It is a great science. People do not know it now.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: So Wolfe Prabhu was telling me that "So we don't believe in astrology, but when Śrīla Prabhupāda says, then you believe." So...

Prabhupāda: Huh?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Wolfe, he was telling me that, because I was telling him that I did not believe in astrology. Then one day Śrīla Prabhupāda was talking on astrology. Then Wolfe said, "If Śrīla Prabhupāda said, then you believe. And if it is not said by Śrīla Prabhupāda, you don't believe."

Prabhupāda: No. We believe in astrology. But because it is a difficult science, people do not understand it properly. That is another thing. In my practical life I see. In my horoscope, everything is written, what I am doing. Everything written. So...

Svarūpa Dāmodara: That would be called like genius. Sometimes. If somebody can predict what is going to happen in the future, can be, just like, taken...

Prabhupāda: No, these astrologers can give everyone exact, the history of life, what is going to happen, what happened.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: But it is true, though, Śrīla Prabhupāda, in our family life, when we want to do something, they always go to an astrologer.

Prabhupāda: Astrologer. Yes. That is... [end]