New York Times March 03, 2009 – PETER STEINFELS
At the same time, they were “often disinclined or hesitant to talk with me about religion,” Mr. Zuckerman reported, “and even once they agreed to do so, they usually had very little to say on the matter.”
… Thoughtful, well-educated Danes and Swedes reacted to Mr. Zuckerman’s basic questions about God, Jesus, death and so on as completely novel. “I really have never thought about that,” one of his interviewees answered, adding, “It’s been fun to get these kinds of questions that I never, never think about.”
This indifference or obliviousness to religious matters was sometimes subtly enforced. “In Denmark,” a 
pastor told Mr. Zuckerman, “the word ‘God’ is one of the most embarrassing words you can say. You would rather go naked through the city than talk about God.”
One man recounted the shock he felt when a colleague, after a few drinks, confessed to believing in God. “I hope you don’t feel I’m a bad person,” the colleague pleaded. go to story
Prominent atheist Professor Richard Dawkins (right) supports a bus campaign which tells passengers: ‘There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life’
Atheist or theist, everyone is conscious
excerpt from Quest for Enlightenment
Krishna consciousness, the science of God, is very important because it enables us to understand God and our relationship with Him. Of course, in every religion there is some conception of God: “God is great.” But simply understanding that God is great is not sufficient. We must have knowledge about our relationship with God.
Generally, we take it for granted that God is our order-supplier. So those who believe in God usually approach Him in distress or when they’re in need of money. Then there are some who approach God out of curiosity, and a few who want to understand the science of God. These are the four classes of men who are interested in God, and they all have a background of pious activities. Without a background of pious activities, a person will not be interested in the science of God. Therefore those who are unfortunate, who are impelled by impious activities, do not believe in God; they never care for God. So it is very difficult for the atheists to understand God.
Still, because Krishna consciousness is a science, even an atheist can appreciate it if he is intelligent. Atheist or theist, everyone is conscious. That is a fact. It doesn’t matter whether you believe in God or you do not believe in God: you are conscious. As soon as I pinch any part of your body, you at once protest, “Somebody is pinching me! I am feeling pain!” Even in the animals there is consciousness.
Now, what is this consciousness? The Bhagavad-gita says, avinashi tu tad viddhi yena sarvam idam tatam: “Consciousness is that which is spread all over your body, and it is eternal.” How is consciousness eternal? That you can understand by practical experience. In your childhood you were conscious, in your boyhood you were conscious, in your youth you were conscious, and as you progress to old age you will be conscious. So your body is changing, but your consciousness continues unchanged. This you cannot deny. Therefore the Bhagavad-gita says, na hanyate hanyamane sharire: [Bg. 2.20] “Consciousness is eternal. It is not vanquished with the destruction of the temporary body.”
As soon as there is no consciousness in the body, the body is dead. Then what is consciousness? It is the symptom of the presence of the soul. Just as a fire situated in one place distributes heat and light everywhere, the spirit soul present in your body spreads consciousness all over your body. This is a fact. From your childhood body to your boyhood body to your youthful body, your consciousness continues. Similarly, your consciousness will carry you into another body, and that transmigration from one body to another is called death. When your old body cannot be maintained anymore, the consciousness has to be transferred to a new body. When your garment is too old, it has to be changed. Similarly. when the material body is too old to carry on, your consciousness is transferred to another body and you begin another life. This is the law of nature.
But unfortunately the modern educational system has no department for teaching about consciousness or the spirit soul, although this knowledge is the most important. Without consciousness, without the soul’s being present, the body is useless. Unfortunately, we take very good care of the body but have no knowledge of consciousness or the spirit soul. This ignorance is due to maya , or illusion. We are very serious about the nonpermanent things—the body and its extensions, which will not exist, which will be vanquished after a certain period of years—but we do not care about the eternal consciousness, the spirit soul, which is transmigrating from one body to another. Ignorance of the spirit soul is the main defect of modern civilization.
As long as we are unaware of the presence of the spirit soul in the body, as long as we do not inquire about the spirit soul, all our activities are simply a waste of time. This is stated in the Srimad-Bhagavatam [5.5.5]: parabhavas tavad abodha-jato yavan na jijñasata atma-tattvam . Anyone who has accepted a temporary body is understood to be foolish. So every one of us is born foolish, because we identify ourselves with the temporary body. Everyone knows that his body will one day not exist, but everyone still identifies himself with his body. This is ignorance, or illusion.
Nearly everyone in the world is immersed in this ignorance, for they do not know that they are spirit souls transmigrating from one body to another. Although no one wants to die, cruel death is forced upon everyone. But people do not consider this problem very seriously. They think they are very happy following the principles of animal life—eating, sleeping, mating, and defending. At the present moment people are very proud of the advancement of human civilization, but they are almost totally concerned with these four principles. According to the Vedic literature, this way of life is no better than the animals’.
Human life is meant for advanced knowledge. And what is that advanced knowledge? To know oneself, to answer the question, What am I? In every civilized society there is some set of religious principles, whether Islam or Christianity or Judaism or Hinduism or Buddhism. And what is the purpose of the scriptures and religious principles? To understand consciousness, to understand the spirit soul and how it has fallen into material, conditioned life, how it is transmigrating among various species of life, and how it can be released from this cycle of birth and death. There are 8,400,000 species of life, and we are wandering among them. Only when we reach the human form of life do we have the opportunity to ask the question, What am I? If we do not understand what we are, then we miss the opportunity of human life. We simply waste our time in the propensities of animal life—eating, sleeping, mating, and defending. We must inquire, “I do not wish to die; why is death forced upon me? I do not want to be diseased; why is disease forced upon me?” But even if a person becomes very ill, he will generally not inquire like this. He will simply think, “All right, I am diseased. Let me go to the doctor and get some medicine.” But from the innermost part of his heart he doesn’t ever want to be diseased, he doesn’t want to be dead. Why? Because he is eternal. His real position is eternal life, blissful life, without any death, without any birth, without any disease. So he is missing the opportunity of human life unless he inquires into how he can attain this position.
The human form of life is the opportunity to achieve the highest perfection. If we do not make progress toward that vision, we are simply spoiling this opportunity of civilized human life. I especially mention civilized human life, with developed consciousness, developed education. At this developed stage we should ask, “Why are calamities being forced upon me?” Nobody wants to meet calamities. In every city of your country I see the fire brigade and the ambulance always rushing in the street. Who wants his house to be set on fire? Who wants to meet an accident? These things are being forced on us, but still no one asks, “I do not want these calamities. Why are they being forced upon me?” As soon as we become inquisitive to know why all these miserable conditions of life are being forced upon us, that is the beginning of our self-realization. Now you are trying to solve these problems through so-called scientific research or so-called philosophical research, but the actual solution is to reform or purify your consciousness. If you purify your consciousness, you will end the process of transmigration from body to body. Of course, now you may be very happy that you have a nice American body. You are enjoying life. But do you know what your next life will be? That you do not know. But you should know that life is a continuity. This present life is only a flash—a moment in our journey through millions of species of life. So the Krishna consciousness movement is the movement for purifying consciousness, ending transmigration, and solving all problems.
Krishna consciousness is very simple. Simply chant these sixteen words: Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare . We are simply requesting you to chant these sixteen words. There is no loss on your part, but there is immense gain. Why don’t you make an experiment? It is not very difficult. Throughout the world thousands are chanting. Although the mantra is written in Sanskrit, it is a universal transcendental vibration.
If we take to chanting this mantra , we come directly in touch with the Supreme Lord. That makes us purified. If we go near the fire we become warm. Similarly, if we come directly in touch with the Supreme Spirit, our purification begins. So if you chant this Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, your impure consciousness will be purified and you will know what you are. Chanting Hare Krishna is the process of cleansing the mind of all dirty things. And as soon as you are cleansed of all dirty things, your material anxieties are over. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gita [18.54]:
brahma-bhutah prasannatma na shochati na kankshati
samah sarveshu bhuteshu mad-bhaktim labhate param
The word brahma-bhuta [SB 4.30.20] means that as soon as you come to the platform of spiritual understanding, you immediately become joyful and are freed from all material anxieties. You no longer hanker after any profit, nor are you very sorry when there is a great loss (na shochati na kankshati ). Then you can see everyone on an equal level, and your lost relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead is again established. Then your real life begins. Taking up Krishna consciousness means that we begin our real life and get free from the temporary life of changing from one body to another. So the Krishna consciousness movement is a very important movement. Try to understand it. We have our magazine, Back to Godhead , and we have branches in many places in your country.
So we invite you to come. There is no expenditure. We simply request that you come and try to understand this movement. It is very scientific; it is not a bogus bluff. Try to understand with all your argument, reason, logic. We are prepared to answer your questions.
This movement is for your benefit; it is not an institution to make some profit. It is just meant to render service to the whole of humanity so that you may understand the science of God and be benefited. We are simply presenting Krishna consciousness before you. Now it is up to you to accept it or not. Thank you very much.
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