real knowledge of God, he will never be misled, but if he selects a false God, or if he has not met the real God, he is subject to being misled. To save him from this danger, God imparts instructions in Bhagavad-gita. Whoever follows these instructions will be perfect. If we receive knowledge of the soul from God, there is no chance in being mistaken. As soon as we think in our own way, we are subject to error because we are imperfect and finite. Krsna precisely says that the soul is within the body, and if we accept this, we can immediately understand that the soul is different from the body. Krsna says that the owner of the body is the soul within the body, and immediately the false impression that one is the body, which is a fool's conclusion, should be eradicated. The light is there, but those who do not accept it prefer to live as fools and speculate.
Syamasundara dasa: It was Descartes's contention that the most perfect and highest emotion is intellectual love of God.
Srila Prabhupada: That is also confirmed in Bhagavad-gita. Krsna says that the jnani-bhakta, the intelligent bhakta, is very dear to Him.
tesam jnani nitya-yukta
priyo hi jnanino 'tyartham
aham sa ca mama priyah
"Of these, the wise one who is in full knowledge in union with Me through pure devotional service is the best. For I am very dear to him, and he is dear to Me." (Bg. 7.17) An unintelligent devotee may accept the principles today, and leave tomorrow. A person who accepts the Krsna conscious philosophy intelligently is very rare. We should not accept it by sentiment, but by intelligence.
Syamasundara dasa: For Descartes, real happiness arises from consciousness of perfection.
Srila Prabhupada: Yes, that consciousness is Krsna consciousness, the awareness that God is the supreme and that I am His eternal servant. This consciousness is happiness, and it is confirmed by Bhagavad-gita. When Dhruva Maharaja was offered all the riches in the world by Kuvera, the treasurer of the demigods, he said, "Please benedict me so that I may have unflinching faith in the lotus feet of Krsna." That is proper intelligence. Similarly, when Prahlada Maharaja was offered whatever he wanted by Lord Nrsimhadeva, he said, "What should I ask from You? My father was a great materialist, so great that the demigods were afraid of his anger, yet You have finished him in one second. What then is the value of this material power and opulence? Please engage me in the service of Your servants. That is all I want."
Syamasundara dasa: Descartes maintains that a man is virtuous insofar as his reason controls his passion.
Srila Prabhupada: Yes, if one can control his passions somehow or other, he is freed from many troubles.
rasa-varjam raso 'py asya
param drstva nivartate
"The embodied soul may be restricted from sense enjoyment, though the taste for sense objects remains. But, ceasing such engagements by experiencing a higher taste, he is fixed in consciousness." (Bg. 2.59) People are suffering due to their passionate activities. Therefore there are many Vedic rules and regulations governing action. If we can subdue our passionate impulses, we can save ourselves a great deal of trouble. Due to passion, one becomes a drunkard, engages in illicit sex, gambles, and acts unreasonably. If one can check his passion by reason, he can save himself from the greatest danger.
Syamasundara dasa: Descartes had a great reverence for theology, the science of God, because he felt that it was an open road to heaven for everyone, the intelligent and unintelligent alike. For Descartes, theology is concerned with real truths that transcend human reason.
Srila Prabhupada: This means that we have to take the truth from the revealed scriptures. Every revealed scripture gives some hint of an understanding of God.
Syamasundara dasa: First of all, Descartes tried to find some basis for truth. Then he came to the proof of the existence of God. As far as philosophy is concerned, he maintained that it lacks certainty and that its tenets are always subject to dispute.
Srila Prabhupada: Yes, we agree with that.