True happiness and social harmony arise when humanity recognizes its spiritual identity and adopts Krishna Consciousness as life's central purpose.Listen — Srila Prabhupada Uvaca
Interview — July 20, 1972, Paris 720720I2-PARIS [20:23 Minutes] Interview_720720I2-PARIS Prabhupāda: [indistinct] ...this wrong conception should be now. We should know our real identity. Then everything will be all right. We are going on on a wrong concept of life.
Therefore people are not happy. So I want to give them the message, spiritual life. If people accept it, they will be happy. Frenchman: [French] Bhūgarbha: [translating] He says in history there were many masters and many great teachers such as Jesus Christ, and many others who have come to bring a certain message. He says, "Are we seeing something today of the same level?" Prabhupāda: Yes, certainly.
Because from God's side there is always an attempt to make the people right. As soon as they're wrongly directed, some messenger comes, like Jesus Christ or Buddha or, before Him, Lord Kṛṣṇa. So what we are preaching, that is not new. It is God consciousness.
And all the great messiahs, they came. But the thing is that people are changing in their different education mentality. So we have to present things in such a way so that intelligent person can accept the old teachings in the Western countries, like Lord Jesus Christ. Either they're not being followed or they're not properly understood, because in London I saw hundreds of churches are vacant. That means it shows practical that people have no more interest in Christianity, or the Christian people could not convince them about the spiritual necessity of life.
Many churches are for sale. That's not a good sign. That means people have lost interest in spiritual life. But fortunately, the younger generation, they are taking this spiritual movement. Frenchman: [French] Bhūgarbha: [translating] He asks: Lord Jesus Christ, when he came, brought a message of hope, of peace and confidence, not only in this life but also in the future life, life after death.
He asks if Your Divine Grace would like to speak about what our conception this life after death is. He also asks that I translate at the same time as you are speaking. Is that all right? Prabhupāda: So we are giving a message by which everyone can be happy in this life and next life also. Generally, all religious sects, they do not believe in the next life.
Or even they believe, they have no clear idea of the next life. Frenchman: [French] Bhūgarbha: [translating] What is the present hope of the human society even beyond death? Prabhupāda: Yes. Human society... A human life is an opportunity to stop all the problems of material life. So if he does not do so, if he does not understand or take to this business how to solve all the problems of life, then he's missing the opportunity.