What does capitalism mean? If I can cheat you, that's very good. The more I can cheat–oh, a very good man, good businessman, entrepreneur, industrialist, investor. Even if someone has cheated all innocent people who have put their trust in him, he's regarded as a "good" man, "successful" man.

"Reap what you sow"

Exploitation in the name of advancement

They dare to say that when this body is finished, everything is finished. They say that. How does that fit in? Then, if that's a fact, why should I observe any kind of laws? If everything will be finished after this, then why shall I restrain myself in this life? Why not do anything and everything if it's a one-time affair? And that's exactly the problem. People are being taught that it's just a one-time affair, so get it while you can, eat, drink and be merry. What is the result? Insanity, capitalism. What does capitalism mean? If I can cheat you, that's very good. The more I can cheat–oh, a very good man, good businessman, entrepreneur, industrialist, investor. Even if someone has cheated all innocent people who have put their trust in him, he's regarded as a "good" man, "successful" man.

Now the people feel, "Oh, we have been cheated by these capitalists, and they're enjoying everything at our expense. Let us tear them down by revolution and institute socialism, communism. Then we will all enjoy, like these capitalists. We will share the wealth equally." But in order to have it, you have to exploit somebody. Who are you going to exploit? The capitalist, of course. First he people get ripped off by the capitalist, next the people rip off the capitalist. All become capitalists, exploiting the capitalist. And when that doesn't work anymore, they'll exploit one another: anarchy. They'll become like animals.

This is Kali-yuga: fierce competition and hard struggle for existence. Just like cats and dogs fighting over a bone. That is our advancement of science and technology, politics.

...Scientists are researching nature to find out nature's laws. But why do they want to find out nature's laws? Not so they can follow nature, but so they can exploit nature. just like a criminal becomes a lawyer and studies the law. Why? So he can become expert in breaking the law. Such men are the material scientists. They're studying nature and then exploit to the maximum.

But they do not know that nature... whose nature is it? We say, "his nature is to be happy, her nature is to be morose, another's nature is to be cynical. So we're talking of nature... whose nature? God's nature. Bhagavad-gita (3.27) says, prakriteh kriyamanani gunaih karmani sarvasah. Prakriteh means naure. "The whole material nature is working under My direction, producing all the moving and nonmoving beings. By its rule it is created and annihilated again and again." Nature is not just a haphazard, helter skelter, accidental affair. Every atom has been accounted for.

Blind man, lame man

GUEST: So we have this government creating a tremendous amount of anxiety for its population. There must be some deductive way to scare people back to the path. People think that drinking beer and wine is better than learning some kind of knowledge. What will ultimately benefit them? There's no welfare for society in general, and governments seem to think that the only reason they exist is to live upon taxation created by the powers of demons.

HANSADUTTA: So what to do?

GUEST: I agree, and I have often said that our culture is really lacking in the world culture. Our society doesn't have culture. Most of what we've learned has been technological advancements and so forth.

HANSADUTTA: So if we can recognize that much, that we don't have a culture, and that our leaders are exploiting us, taking advantage of their position, then we have to decide who does have a culture. Where is culture? What is culture? We say, "Here it is in the Vedas, the Vedic culture. It's all there, outlined in the shastras." If we can recognize that much, then it's very easy to decide what to do, because Vedic culture begins with the acceptance of the spiritual master, who is the living representative or transmitting agent, broadcasting agent for that culture. He's the embodiment of it, and he can engage us practically, individually in the pursuit of that culture.

GUEST: One further thing is let's not just throw stones at the West, because Vedic culture hasn't been practiced so well in the East for a long time too. In some ways, I see that Western culture, although it is headlong crazy, has even more respect for human life on a day-to-day level, than some of our cultures in the East, even though they pride themselves on knowledge of spiritual attainments. They don't really care that much for the welfare of those who are born into the lower castes.

HANSADUTTA: Therefore we have to, from the beginning, not make the mistake of seeing the malpractice, either Western or Eastern, but we should just see...

GUEST: Or rectify...

HANSADUTTA: No, we should see what is the standard according to those who have been recognized as standards–that means the acharyas and of course the shastras. Everything else has to be measured against that. India is far from being...

GUEST: Elevated. Personally, I feel that we have the best chance in the Western culture to establish or at least make some headway with steering people back on the path, even though they strayed so far. They've come to the point where in some ways they've become a little bit disgusted with technology, seeing now the problems that have cropped up from the misapplication of technology, and they have a little more experience with the problems that material opulence can create in the structure of society.

HANSADUTTA: That's a fact, actually. That's why Prabhupada came here. He used to say the blind man and the lame man should cooperate. The blind man cannot see, so he cannot make progress, and the lame man has no legs, so he can't make progress. However, if the blind man takes the lame man onto his shoulders, then together by cooperation they can go forward. The blind man can walk, and the lame man can see. So he compared America to the blind man. He said America is spiritually blind. And India is materially lame. he said if these two cultures get together–Vedic wisdom and American technology–then the whole world will go forward and benefit.