Published on November 21st, 2022 | by
8Modern Education–Making them Demons, That’s All.
The defect of modern education is that the children are taught all nonsense things. They do not receive even the first point of knowledge, that I am pure spirit soul part and parcel of God.
His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada on the topic of modern education
Modern education has artificially devised a puffed-up concept of womanly life, and therefore marriage is practically an imagination in human society. (Bg 16.7 Purport)
Unfortunately, human beings, although they have the bodies of men, are becoming less than animals in their behavior. This is the fault of modern education. Modern educators do not know the aim of human life. They are only concerned with how to develop the economic condition of their countries or of human society. (Cc. Adi 9.42)
Similarly, the dormant consciousness of God, or Krsna, is there in everyone. It simply requires proper education to awaken it. However, this education is not given in the universities. That is the defect in modern education. Although the inclination to be Krsna conscious is there, the authorities are unfortunately not giving any education about God. (JSD 1.1)
So-called modern educators claim that the purpose of education is to solve the problems of life. But in actuality they are teaching their students how to increase sense gratification more and more, thereby creating more and more paths to degradation. (JSD 4.2)
Indeed, it seems that the more educated one becomes, the less he believes in God, in God’s law, in the next life, and in sinful and pious activities. Thus modern education is simply preparing men to become animals. If there is no education to teach a human being what he is and whether or not he is this body, he remains no better than an ass. (MG 3)
This life is preparation for the next life. That they do not know. The modern education and its universities are completely in darkness about this simple knowledge. (PQPA 9)
What is the problem of our lives? That we do not know. Modern education never gives enlightenment about the real problem of life. (SSR 5)
Therefore the cow is also our mother. Just as we drink breast-milk from our mother, we drink milk from mother cow. You must not kill your mother; that is a great sin. Therefore meat-eating is prohibited. But people have become so sinful that they do not consider, When I was young this cow supplied her blood in the form of milk to feed me, to keep me alive. But now that I am grown up, I am so ungrateful that I am going to kill her and eat her flesh. This is the advancement of modern education: that people have learned how to kill their mother. (N98:TQE 7)
Unfortunately, modern education is giving stress on the outward, external body or to the dress. . . They do not understand who is the person who is dressed or who has got this body. (751001AR.Mau)
Modern education, they do not know even what is soul, what is this body, how the transmigration of the soul taking place. All blunt. There is no educational institution all over the world to understand this science. Although it is the most important science for the human being. (740329Bg.Bom)
The modern education, they think this body is everything. No. (730722Bg.Lon)
There is no education actually. The modern education means simply a craftsmanship. If you can prepare a nice motor car. . . this is craftsmanship. It is the blacksmith’s work. It is not knowledge. Knowledge is different. So therefore the modern education system is to create dogs. He will never be happy unless he gets a good master. So modern education there is no real knowledge. Real knowledge begins in the Bhagavad-gita. (760419Bg.Mel)
Actually, at the present moment there is no education, because education means to understand my identity. The so-called education which is going on, that is called art. . . . The modern education, they are simply giving lessons on some art, generally known as technology. . . .But we do not know what is going to happen next life, my soul. That we do not. (750217Bg.Mex)
How transmigration of the soul takes place, that we have no knowledge, poor fund of knowledge. We can simply think gross. Jada-darsana. It is called jada-darsana. . . .So this is the defect of modern education. (751031Bg.Nai )
This life is meant for this purpose: to understand Krsna, or God. Yes. Athato brahma jijnasa. This is meant. Not for wasting our time simply with the animal propensities. The modern civilization, modern education, has no information about this. (N98:760427Cc.Auc)
And in the modern education, in the modern civilization, people are simply taught to work very hard and gratify senses. (710217Cc.Gor)
The purpose of education is to make man the highest of the mankind, but modern education is teaching lowest of the mankind. (661126Cc.NY)
Just like any madman, if he is under proper treatment, there is hope of his being cured. But the modern education is that to keep him madman. That is the defect of modern civilization. Everyone is madman within this material world, and the modern education is to keep him madman. (760713Cc.NY)
Unfortunately, in the modern education there is no information of the spiritual world, the spiritual identity, and go on, our relationship with God-nothing. (760715Cc.NY)
What is the problem of our life? That you do not know. The modern education never gives enlightenment what is the problem of life. (701107LE.Bom) Unfortunately, in the modern education system, there is no departmental education about this consciousness or spirit soul, although it is the most important factor. (680508LE.Bos)
The modern educational system without any knowledge of Bhagavan, I may tell you frankly, not only in India, everywhere, they are practically slaughterhouse. Because in our country, it is a different thing; at least we have got the Vedic culture at home if it is not in the schools. But in other countries, because there is no bhagavata-dharma culture, the students, although they are provided with ample opportunity for education, the nicest educational system, nice building, nice facilities, everything nice, unfortunately the products are coming out frustrated, confused young men, and some of them are called hippies. (690503LE.Bos)
In the modern education system, not only education system, in every field of life, practically we do not know what is the ultimate goal of life. (691224LE.Bos)
Unfortunately we are simply manufacturing sudras, not brahmanas. That is the defect of modern education. (730130LE.Cal)
The modern educational system without any knowledge of Bhagavan, I may tell you frankly, not only in India,…Actually the modern educational institutions are different grades of slaughterhouses. (N98:711120LE.Del)
This is the defect of modern education. We are educated in a way in which we have misunderstood, This is my body. This is my hand. This is my leg. This is my country. This is my mother. This is my father. This is my school. This is my, I know. I have the concept of my. But who is conceiving my? We have no information where it is. This is the greatest drawback of modern education, that not only in your country or any country they have completely neglected what is meant by God. (680611LE.Mon)
This science is unknown to the modern education department, how the spirit soul is transmigrating from one body to another. (730909LE.Sto)
One Russian professor said, Swamiji, after this life there is no. . . Everything is finished. But that’s not the fact. That is the defect of modern education. (730102ND.Bom)
Modern education is so nasty that they encourage preyas. Especially in the, not in this country, everywhere. That boys and girls are not checked, rather encouraged, encouraged in the matter of immature sex life. Preyas. They want it, All right, do it, take tablets and enjoy. This is dangerous. For this reason, the generation are becoming degraded, because they are not aiming at the sreyas. They are simply aiming at the preyas, immediate pleasing thing. They do not know that immature sex life spoils the brain, spoils strength. Everything is spoiled. (730220SB.Auc)
This is modern education. This is modern civilization. They are not aware of the tivram bhayam, the most fierceful situation of birth, death, old age, and disease. This is the opportunity, the human life, how to get out of it. The means are there. But we are so fools. We are so foolishly educated in the name of modern civilization that we neglect all these things and we place ourself in the waves of the material nature. (741210SB.Bom)
It is a fourth-class, fifth-class… The modern educational system is producing not only fourth–fourth class is also gentle–fifth-class, sixth-class. So in the modern educational system, universities, there is no such information, we see. It is very lamentable, but these knowledges are there in the Vedic literature. (750706SB.Chi)
In the modern educational system, the purpose is to elevate the general people. But they do not know how to elevate. Therefore there is so much trouble. The elevation should be… There must be some purpose, end. What purpose education is being given? It is purposeless education. Mostly, at the present moment, education means to give all facility for sense gratification. That’s all. Boys and girls in the school and colleges, from the very beginning they are given all liberty for sex life. So this is not education. Education means to lead the people gradually to Krsna consciousness. That is education, God consciousness. (731112SB.Del)
This is the duty of the guardians, of the government, how to avoid death. Where is that education? So that is the defect of the modern education. There is no training. So, gardulika pravaha. It is going on, very risky civilization. (751128SB.Del)
By the modern education we have become so dull-headed, we cannot understand the simple truth that we have to change this body. (750702SB.Den)
So modern education there is no real knowledge. Real knowledge begins in the Bhagavad-gita. (760511SB.Hon)
The modern education, modern civilization, they are so much misled that they do not know what is the aim of. . . Ask anybody-very learned scholar, scientist, philosopher, or medical man, engineer, lawyer-What is the aim of life? Nobody knows. They think aim of life: eat, drink, be merry, and enjoy, that’s all. (760518SB.Hon)
Formerly this independence was very much valued. So at the modern education this independence is being killed. People are becoming unemployed-machine, machine. (720613SB.LA)
Of course, in the modern educational system, the purpose is to elevate the general people. But they do not know how. It is not that you go to a school, college, and learn to smoke and do all nonsense, and you become elevated. It is a fourth class, fifth class. The modern educational system is producing not only fourth–fourth class is also gentle–fifth class, sixth class; fifth class, sixth class… (720925SB.LA)
So therefore the modern education system is to create dogs. He will never be happy unless he gets a good master. (731215SB.LA)
We accept one kind of body and struggle for existence, suffer so much, again we get another body, and new chapter of suffering begins. This knowledge is lacking in modern education. And they are very much proud of becoming advanced in knowledge. What is the advancement of knowledge? (750625SB.LA )
The modern education system has no knowledge. They simply know that This life is everything. Waste this life by sense gratification, because after death everything is void. Now I have got this body. Body means the senses. So enjoy my senses. (710824SB.Lon)
In spite of their Ph.D.s they have no, this simple education, that I suffer when I am killed. Why I shall kill others? This is the modern education, all nonsense rascals’ education. This is not education. (760226SB.May)
Because they have been trained to become flies, they will taste stool. You see? The modern education is to teach people to become flies, only stool. (690606SB.NV)
You become animal. That’s all. More or less, you become animal. The modern education is like that, preparing so many animals. (710724SB.NY)
But how the nature is working, how different forms of body, different activities are going on, by whose judgment, who is looking after, these things they do not know. This is the modern education. (750717SB.SF)
You ask anybody; I think 99.9% will be unable to understand what is dehi and deha.
This is our modern education. (760619SB.Tor)
We do not know, modern education. There is no such information what is called bondage and what is called liberation. (721102SB.Vrn)
Give me some service, sir. Give me some service. In the modern education, they. . . The more and more industries increasing, there sudras are being trained up-technology, technology. (740803SB.Vrn)
Especially the modern education, they are making things more and more complicated. (RUSSELL.Sya)
Devotee: They feel so alienated from artificial material life that they think maybe, that simply more. . ., they think animalistic would be more desirable.
Atreya Rsi: The inclination may be right, but the spiritual education is lacking. They don’t have the teacher.
Prabhupada: Yes.
Devotee: Education.
Prabhupada: That is the defect of modern education. (720614rc.LA)
Foolish people, they are ignorant, but there is next life, and this life is preparation for next life. That they do not know. The modern education, universities, they’re completely in darkness about this simple knowledge. (N98:720704rc.NY)
Although they are proud of education, but they do not discuss what is the constitutional position of the soul, how he is transferring from one body to another, how it is to be done. This science is unknown to the modern education. Is it not? They do not know. They simply speculate. That is the defect of modern educational system, and actually everyone is seeking for spiritual emancipation. Therefore in your country, in spite of so many big, big universities, you are producing hippies, hopeless population. (N98:720705iv.NY)
Brahmananda: Bhaktivinoda Thakura also says that the modern education makes men just like an ass.
Prabhupada: That is, I am explaining. (730420mw.LA)
The modern education, modern civilization. They’ve no knowledge; they do not know that there is life after death, although it is a simple fact. (730709r3.Lon)
They have no knowledge. The knowledge of eating, sleeping, mating, defending, that is animal knowledge. Everyone knows it. How to eat, nobody requires any education. How to sleep, nobody requires and any education. How to have sex life, nobody requires any education. How to defend, nobody requires education. They are not subject matter of education. Everyone knows it, how to do it. The modern education means they are on this subject matter. (730711r7.Lon)
So modern education is that they are creating sudras, to become dependent on others. (730921r2.Bom)
After changing this body, I will have to accept another body. This is the fact. But the modern education, they do not know it, neither they believe, even the practical example is there. (740418pc.Hyd)
So nobody is believable. So this is the result of modern education. You cannot find out an ideal-character man. (740524r2.Rom)
That is the defect of modern education, they manufacture education, although they are imperfect. They have no the common sense that I am imperfect. How I am manufacturing education and becoming teacher? My becoming teacher is cheating because I have no perfect knowledge. Knowledge means it must be perfect, not Maybe, Perhaps. This is not knowledge, definite knowledge. (750301rc.Atl)
The modern education means to create dogs. The dog goes door to door and moves the tail, Please give me if you have anything. So this educated person with application goes, and they say, No vacancy. Get out. Therefore they are dogs. Educated means dogs. They are creating dogs. (750302r2.Atl)
Body is only the covering; real person is the spirit soul. So the modern education has no knowledge of this. (750514rc.Per)
Yantra means machine. So the modern education is missing the pilot. They are simply wandering with the machine. (750623rc.LA)
That is the whole philosophy of the modern educated man: There is no life. Big, big professors, they say like that. Brain should be utilized for some benevolent work for the good of the living entities. But this brain, modern educated brain, is being misused for discovering something which is very dangerous to the human society. Therefore duskrtina. And he is getting Nobel Prize because he has discovered this atomic weapon which is so dangerous, and he is glorified, Oh, you have done so nice scientific discovery. What is that discovery? That you can kill. Instead of one man with gun, you can kill one thousand men. Therefore you must be offered Nobel Prize. This is man’s appreciation. (751009mw.Dur)
Prabhupada: But this brain, modern educated brain, is being misused for discovering something which is very dangerous to the human society.
Harikesa: It’s a college. It’s a girls’ college. (break) Prabhupada: How to kill child. This is education. Huh? Educated girl means how to divorce husband, how to kill child. Is it not? Educated, modern educated girl means how to become unfaithful to the husband, how to divorce and how to kill child.
Gopala Krsna: How to get equal rights.
Prabhupada: No, equal rights, that’s all right. This is the education. The uneducated girls do not do this. (751017mw.joh)
The modern education means to create dogs. The dog goes door to door and moves the tail, Please give me if you have anything. So this educated person with application goes, and they say, No vacancy. Get out. Therefore they are dogs. Educated means dogs. They are creating dogs. In Vedic culture no brahmana will accept any job. No ksatriya will accept any job. No vaisya will accept any. Only sudras. Only sudras. (751117mw.bom)
Dr. Patel: The modern education has become a farce in that dress.
Prabhupada: Farce, yes. No education. (751117mw.Bom)
[Educated] girl means how to divorce husband, how to kill child. Is it not? Educated, modern educated girl means how to become unfaithful to the husband, how to divorce and how to …This vast knowledge is unknown to the modern educational department. But here it is in the Bhagavad-gita. They can take advantage of it. But the fools and rascals will not take advantage.
They will remain like animals in the ignorance, like cats and dogs. That is their business. (751126mw.Del)
Prabhupada: Tyagat means one must be disgusted with this material way of life. This is tyaga. But they are being educated to be more attached to this material world.
Dr. Patel: This modern education.
Prabhupada: Yes. (751218mw.Bom)
Our education is first of all to become brahmacari, and the modern education is how to become vyabhicari, this rascal education. (760106mw.Nel)
The modern education is they do not know it. Perhaps, Maybe, this is not scientific proposal. (760420rc.Mel)
Modern education, they cannot understand that this repetition of birth, death, old age, and disease is a botheration. They do not understand that. Why they accept it? Accept it, they think there is no other way. But if there is a way to stop this, why do they not take it? Hm? What is the value of this education? They cannot distinguish between right and wrong. (760610gc.LA)
Cats and dogs cannot be educated about God, but a human being can be educated. That is the distinction between animals and man. But modern education is keeping them in ignorance about God, so they are no better than cats and dogs. (760615r2.Det)
Everyone can understand it. It is very simple thing. But the modern education has made them so dull brain, they cannot understand, neither do they try to understand. That is the difficulty. Matter, subject matter, is very simple thing. I am changing bodies, but in spite of my change of body, I am the spirit soul existing. This is the first understanding. (760617iv.Tor)
Our modern education, they do not believe that there is spirit soul within the body and the spirit soul transmigrates from one body to another. Where is that education? Is there any education that there is spirit soul within the body and that spirit soul is transmigrating from one body to another? Is there any education, scientific education, all over the world? (760817iv.Hyd)
Both the parents and the children, all of them are going again in the cycle of birth and death and wasting the opportunity of getting a human body. This is modern civilization. They do not know this science. They are kept in darkness. This is so-called education. Mudho ‘yam nabhijanati mam ebhyah paramam mama.
Na te viduh svartha-gatim hi. . . They do not know what is the destination of life. In darkness. There is no education practically. The modern education is how to eat nicely, how to sleep nicely, how to have sex nicely, how to defend nice. . . .They do not know what is the aim of life. (760823mw.Hyd)
Prabhupada: Gurukrpa Maharaja, what is the benefit of this modern education? Gurukrpa: No benefit. It makes them an ass.
Prabhupada: Making them demons, that’s all. (770124mw.Bhu )
What is the use of millions of stars? Modern education, they are creating twinkling stars, millions. All useless for light. No light. (770322rc.Bom)
Actually the modern educational institutions are different grades of slaughterhouses. (68-01-11.Ham)
So far school is concerned, we know that modern education in schools and colleges is not very much helpful in advancement of Krishna Consciousness. (68-02-20.Rob)
At the present moment, the modern education has taught everyone either not to think of God or everyone can think of God in his own way. The result is people have become Godless atheists. (69-09-03.Gop)
They simply speculate. That is the defect of modern educational system, and actually everyone is seeking for spiritual emancipation. Therefore in your country, in spite of so many big, big universities, you are producing hippies, hopeless population. (70-05-22.Hay)
Unfortunately people at the present moment do not know what is the next life, what is this life, what is karma, how one becomes entangled, how one becomes free. The modern education is void of all this enlightenment. They are kept in darkness without any knowledge of the values of life. The defect of modern education is that the children are taught all nonsense things. They do not receive even the first point of knowledge, that I am pure spirit soul part and parcel of God. (74-07-16.Alf)
There are two kind of men, dhira and adhira. The modern education is producing only the adhira class who are neither sober or educated. (75-06-23.Sva)
The defect of modern education is that the children are taught all nonsense things. They do not receive even the first point of knowledge, that I am pure spirit soul part and parcel of God. (75-12-04.Aja)
Students at the school where I teach often ask the teachers if God exists. Almost all the students even agree that God exists. They are quite happy to know (if the teacher says yes) that God is there. But they are not told clearly about God. Neither the teachers know. So some significant number of people have to read Srila Prabhupada’s books and let these curious students know that Krishna is the God they are looking for- The Supreme Personality of Godhead!
Hare Krsna,
ISKCON has created the greatest blunder till now. They have rejected Srila Prabhupada and surrendered to demoniac modern education. They have set up many karmi schools most probably from 1988. They follow the cirriculum of the government. Vedic gurukula is a farthing, teachers are atheists, students are atheists all wearing karmi clothes. They neither wear tilala nor shave their heads. All karmis …
Why ISKCON is doing all these nonsense ? They are leading thousands of people to hell…They have to pay heavily for the the grievious offence the the lotus feet of Srila Prabhupada.
Hare Krishna Prabhuji
PAMHO AGTSP
how can one understand the spiritual subject matter by following four regulative principles i.,e how this regulative principles helps us to understand spiritual subject matter
It is not possible to understand spiritual knowledge without following the four regulative principles. Illicit sex, gambling, meat-eating and intoxication all disqualify a person from being able to understand spiritual life. These four principles are the four pillars of sinful life. So the more you break the regulative principles the more sinful you become and these sinful activities increase unlimited. As Krishna says in the Bhagavad-gita (yesam anta gata papam jannanam punya karmanam) unless one is completely free from all sinful activities he can not be understood.
So it is not so much how following these principles help us make spiritual advancement, it is that breaking these four principles will mean it will be impossible for us to make any spiritual advancement.
Actually simply by following these four principles does not guarantee spiritual advancement. It is not enough just to follow the principles, one has to be engaged in practical devotional service under the direction of a bona fide spiritual master. Maybe you know that the Mayavadis are also very enthusiastic about trying to follow these four principles. Anyone who can follow these principles will become strong and successful in both material and spiritual endeavors. But following the four regulative principles is a prerequisite, it is something we have to do before we can make any spiritual advancement.
If we do not make some tangible advancement in Krishna consciousness it will be very difficult for us to continue to follow these principles. We need to get some actual transcendental taste from serving Krishna and then we will be experiencing spiritual pleasure that is unlimitedly better than any so-called pleasure we could experience in the material world through sex or money or fame, profit and adoration.
As I said any ‘pakka’ Mayavadi will also be trying to follow these four regulative principles and they may do it from the strength of austerity, they may force themselves to follow the principles, knowing that they will become strong and powerful by following them, but because the Mayavadis do not actually render any service to Krishna because they believe they are Narayana themselves they can not get any substantial spiritual bliss. So they can follow for some time on the strength of their austerities but because the higher spiritual taste is not there in their minds they are still attached to sex and money and power and fame in the material world. So by their austerities they try to suppress this but ultimately they tend to fail and fall down again into the material world.
The point I am trying to make is that simply following the four regulative principles does not cause us to develop Krishna consciousness. It is a prerequisite. We can not become Krishna conscious without strictly following the four regulative principles, but if we simply follow the regulative principles we are not going to become Krishna conscious. Krishna consciousness requires surrender to and service of the bona fide spiritual master and then by his mercy one can get the mercy of Krishna. So we can only develop Krishna consciousness by the mercy of a pure devotee of Krishna. That is the real point. Without pleasing a pure devotee of Krishna we have no hope of becoming Krishna conscious… It is only possible by his mercy.
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
Great article. Unfortunately, the demonic mind will not understand the sanctity of one’s being. It only understands self-destruction and mass destruction. Today’s generation is continuing to deteriorate wrt spiritual sense. No matter how much advance the technology-mind can get but one will always stay further.. futher away from HIM. We are awaiting for the Savior to tread us all on the path of Righteousness. May that day come soon.
Hare krishna prabhuji
PAMHO,AGTSP
i am a student studying in one of the leading engineering colleges in india.
i have read many books by srila prabhupada.i agree to the fact that modern education is just producing demons with no morals and values in life.
please suggest me what best i can do after passing out of college to remain krishna conscious and simultaneously do a job to support my family
Dear Manoj
The thing we should do is simply surrender to Krishna. And pray to Krishna in all humility, “please engage me in Your service.”
There should be no demands and we need to be open to accept whatever service Krishna wants us to do.
What you need to do is become Krishna conscious. And the process is simple. Rise early in the morning, offer Mangal-Aroti, chant on your beads at least 16 rounds of the Hare Krishna maha-mantra. Study all of Srila Prabhupada’s books, strictly follow the four regulative principles: no illicit sex, no meat eating, no gambling and no intoxication. And as you do this you will advance in Krishna consciousness more and more, and Krishna is in your heart, He will guide you what to do.
The main thing is to become Krishna consciousness. You need to work on this. Everything else will fall into place automatically.
Chant Hare Krishna and be happy!
Madhudvisa dasa
Of course HDG is correct in everything he said about modern education. The problem I have with this article is that it is very repetitive. Surely you could have found a way to edit all of the comments into a more coherent article.