"I'll cite one story, interesting story, that one person, he was out of home for ten years, and he went to the Himalayas to find out some yogi to get some perfection. Now, after ten years, that particular man came back to his village. That is quite natural, that any person who achieves some success, he wants to show it before his friends and relatives and countrymen. That is quite natural. So he came back to his village, and all the villagers, they assembled, and they were very much anxious to know: 'Oh, my dear friend, you have been ten years to learn yoga perfections. So what you have learned, please let us know.' So he said that 'I am finished the laghimā-siddhi perfection. That means I have learned how to become the lightest.' And what is the result? He said, 'Oh, I can walk over the river.' So everyone was very anxious because people are very inquisitive and curious. So all of them requested him, 'All right, let us have some demonstration. Please show that you'll walk over the river.' So there were, all the villagers came and requested him. 'All right, I shall show tomorrow morning.'
So there was an old man. He said, 'My dear such-and-such, oh, after working for ten years, you have learned something who is two cents worth.' Oh, that man was very angry. 'Oh, it is two cent worth, do you think?' 'Yes, I think it is two cent worth.' 'Why?' 'Now because you'll walk over the river. All right. But I shall pay to the boatman two cents. I shall walk over the river." (laughter)
So these things are two cents worth in comparison to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Don't be after them. Suppose you'll learn something to play wonderful. What you'll do with that? How it will help you? Your problem is how to get out this, get out of this material entanglement. Suppose if you play something wonderful in the... There are so many wonderful men here. They are showing. So a man who is after Kṛṣṇa consciousness, they are not after these wonderful things. Because they know it perfectly well that 'All this display will not save me.' What is that? If I get anything I desire? That may be something wonderful for you, but how do I benefit. Oh, what I want here? I want simply to get myself, get free from these miseries of material existence. That can be done only by Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Not by playing all these wonderful...
So one who is serious about Kṛṣṇa consciousness, all these wonderful things, they do not captivate. You see? For them, two cents worth. Two cents. Suppose you can fly in the air. What is that? A rich man pay something to the aeroplane and, say, hundred dollars. He can fly from one place to another. Modern science, modern, has made everything cheap. So don't be after this perfection, material perfection. Any kind of material perfection will not solve our real problem. Our real problem is how to get rid of this material entanglement, the threefold miseries, birth after birth, I am going, repeating transmigration of, repetition of, getting one birth after... These are the problems.
So Kṛṣṇa says, tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya: (BG 4.9) 'After leaving this body, no more birth in this miserable world. He comes unto Me.' We should stick to that point. And that will make us successful in our Kṛṣṇa consciousness."
(Srila Prabhupada Lecture, New York, August 1, 1966)
.
.
