Personal devotion to Krishna surpasses impersonal yoga as the most direct and natural path to transcendence for embodied souls.Listen — Srila Prabhupada Uvaca
Bhagavad-gītā Lecture [partially recorded] — July 20, 1968, Montreal 680720BG-MONTREAL [21:03 Minutes] Prabhupāda: It is simply troublesome, kleśa. Kleśa means troublesome. Because they cannot concentrate. Avyaktā hi gatir duḥkhaṁ dehavadbhir avāpyate [Bg. 12.5]. [For those whose minds are attached to the unmanifested, impersonal feature of the Supreme, advancement is very troublesome. To make progrese in that discipline is always difficult for those who are embodied.] So those who have accepted this body, for them, to think of something impersonal is simply artificial. Is simply artificial. Therefore the impersonalists or the void philosopher, their process of so-called yoga is simply troublesome, and may be some profit there, but the ultimate profit they cannot have. It is not possible. Therefore in the Bhagavad-gītā it is clearly said that yoginām api sarveṣāṁ [Bg. 6.47]: [And of all yogīs, he who always abides in Me with great faith, worshiping Me in transcendental loving service, is most intimately united with Me in yoga and is the highest of all.] "Of all the yogīs, the one who is thinking of Kṛṣṇa or Viṣṇu..." Because that is the ultimate goal.
One has to come to the point. That point, of course, one has to come ultimately, as it is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, bahūnāṁ janmanām ante [Bg. 7.19], after many, many births. [After many births and deaths, he who is actually in knowledge surrenders unto Me, knowing Me to be the cause of all causes and all that is. Such a great soul is very rare.] It is simply obstinacy.
One who does not take to the meditation of God, or they want to meditate in something other, void or impersonal—that is not possible; that is simply troublesome—so simply they are wasting time, because ultimately they have come to this point of personal conception of the Supreme Lord. Bahūnāṁ janmanām, after many, many births, if they are fortunate enough to meet some real devotee, then he becomes enlightened. And vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti [Bg. 7.19], he then accepts Vasudeva, Kṛṣṇa, as everything. Sa mahātmā su-durlabhaḥ: "Such kind of great soul is very rare." So here is an opportunity to get directly that post of great soul by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. So it is very scientific.
We can present this formula to any person who wants to understand this movement scientifically, philosophically, logically. There is no dearth of all these things in this movement. We are not sentimental at all. Of course, there must be sentiment.
Without sentiment, nobody can come to the stage of ecstasy. But that sentiment is transcendental sentiment. This is not ordinary sentiment. Sentiment, when religion or any faith is devoid of philosophy and logic, then it is material sentiment. And philosophy and logic without understanding of God is simply waste of time, mental... [break] So both should be combined—religion plus philosophy.
One should understand the principles of religion with philosophy and logic. We are claiming college students, university students, because we are presenting religion on the basis of philosophy and logic. We are not blindly following. We have no dogmatism. We have got reason, philosophy and everything, science.
If you want to understand this Kṛṣṇa consciousness on the basis of philosophy, logic and science, we are prepared to present to you. But the ultimate goal is to surrender unto the Supreme. So although you will find some of the students joining us, they are not very great philosopher or great scientist or greatest educationist, but they have accepted the reality, Kṛṣṇa. Therefore they are the highest yogī. They are highest yogī.