God is independent and transcendental; true religion means surrendering to His orders, not manufacturing one's own path.Listen — Srila Prabhupada Uvaca
Hayagrīva: And, uh, we can go on to Hegel?
Hayagrīva: He did quite a bit of reading in Indian philosophy, but it seems to be confined to impersonal...
Prabhupāda: It is simply, Upaniads is just the opposite--spirit is not matter. That is the instruction of Upaniads.
Hayagrīva: He writes, "Spirit, insofar as it is the spirit of God is not a spirit beyond the stars, beyond the world. On the contrary, God is present, omnipresent and exists as spirit in all spirits. God is a living God who is acting and working. Religion is a product of the divine spirit. It is not a discovery of man but a work of divine operation."
Prabhupāda: This is very important thing, that a man cannot manufacture religion. That is very important point. Therefore we say religion means the words, the order given by God. Just like Ka says: sarva-dharmn parityajya. [Bg 18.66] "You have manufactured so many religious system. You give up, kick it out. It has no value. Here is religion." And in the beginning He said, dharma-sasthpanrthya: "I have appeared to re-establish the principle of religion." [Bg 4.8] And He says at last that, "Give up. Kick out all this so-called religion. Here is religion." What is that? Mm eka araa: "You just surrender to Me." This is religion. And Bhgavata [6.3.19] says, dharma tu skd bhagavat-pratam: "The order given by God, that is religion." Otherwise everything is bogus, it
has no meaning. The same example: law means which is given by the government. You cannot say, "I have prepared the law." Who will care for you? Even the small law, "Keep to the right," that is religion. If you say, "What is the wrong? If I keep to the left..." No. That will not be accepted. "Keep to the right," is religion and, "Keep to the left" is criminal. So religious, pious and impious, everything on the order of Ka, or God. If you follow strictly the instruction of Ka, then you are religious, pious, transcendental, devotee, everything. And if you defy Ka, you manufacture your own way, then you are rascal, asura: na m duktino mh prapadyante nardham [Bg 7.15]. He is nardham. This is the way. Lowest of the mankind: nardham, who do not follow the instruction of Ka; our God.
Hayagrīva: He writes, "The lifting of the spirit to God occurs in the innermost regions of spirit upon the basis of thought. Religion as the innermost affair of man has here its center and the root of its life. God is in his very essence thought and thinking, however His image and configuration, configuration be determined otherwise."