Without devotion to Krishna, even civilization's greatest achievements are merely ornaments adorning a corpse.Listen — Srila Prabhupada Uvaca
Arrival Address — August 8, 1973, Paris 730808AR-PARIS [12:22 Minutes] Arrival_730808AR-PARIS [poor recording] [translated simultaneously into French by devotee]
Prabhupāda: So it is said, bhagavad-bhakti-hīnasya jātiḥśāstraṁ japas tapaḥ aprāṇasyaiva dehasya maṇḍanaṁ loka-rañjanam [Hari-bhakti-sudhodaya 3.11] The verse says that if a person, or if a community, or if a nation has no sense of devotional service, such person, such community or nation, they are like decoration of the dead body. Sometimes a dead body is decorated. So that decoration may be pleasing for the relatives of the dead body; otherwise, decorating a dead body is not very much pleasing to others. So the idea is that we have this body—simply decorating the body or taking care of the body is not the perfection of life.
The body means the senses, and above the senses there is the mind, and above the mind there is intelligence, and above the intelligence there is the soul. Actually, on the foundation of the soul, the intelligence, the mind and the senses are acting. When the soul is gone out of this body, there is no more use of intelligence, mind or senses. When it goes out of this body, he transmigrates finally, and according to that body, he uses a different type of intelligence, mind and sense gratification.
Just like a dog, it has got a body. But we say "dog's mentality" because according to the body, his mind is also different, his intelligence also different. So the soul is pure, part and parcel of God, but on account of the soul's being covered by material body, mind, intelligence, it is different at the present moment. So in the human form of body there is the opportunity to understand all these activity or philosophy of life. So in this human form of life, if we do not cultivate Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then we are missing the opportunity.
So it is the duty of the mahājanas, or the leaders, to give opportunity to the human being for developing Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is the greatest benedictory movement for the human society. Unfortunately, we are living in a time where the people of demonic mentality are in greater number. So this demoniac mentality is always there.
Just like Prahlāda Mahārāja was executing Kṛṣṇa consciousness. His father was a demon, so the father put the son into so many difficulties of life. So Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement... [break] ...become Kṛṣṇa conscious there will be some difficulties. So just like we are chanting within this room—somebody called foolish. So these kind of difficulties we have to meet.
Kṛṣṇa consciousness means preparing for going back to home, back to Godhead. We are rotting within this material world from time immemorial... [break] ...or in a previous creation, we similarly... [break] ...since the creation of this cosmic manifestation we are rotting.