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Māyāpur, India – February 28, 1972 (continued)

Śrīla Prabhupāda: This movement is especially meant to enable a human being to reach the real goal of life.

Bob: Is the real goal of life to know God?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes. To go back home, back to Godhead. That is the real goal of life. The water that …

mām upetya punar janma duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam nāpnuvanti mahātmānaḥ saṁsiddhiṁ paramāṁ gatāḥ

This is the version of Bhagavad-gītā [8.15]. Kṛṣṇa says, “If anyone comes to Me, he does not come back again.” …

Bob: But when you have some knowledge of God, then life is not so miserable?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: No! Some knowledge will not do. You must have perfect knowledge. Janma karma ca me divyam evaṁ yo …

Bob: I think that science cannot deny or affirm it. Science does not know it.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Therefore I say that your science is imperfect.

Bob: Science may, though, say something. It is said in science that energy is never destroyed; it is changed.

Śrīla Prabhupāda: That’s all right. But how is the energy working in the future – that science does not know. …

Bob: What is the “we” that has to change? What is constant?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: That is the soul.

Bob: From one life to the next?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: That is the soul – I. What “you” is speaking? What “I” is speaking? Identity: ātmā, or soul.

Bob: My soul is different from your soul?

Śrīla Prabhupāda: Yes. You are an individual soul, I am an individual soul.

Bob: You have removed yourself from karmic influences. If I were to remove myself from karmic influences, would our souls …

Śrīla Prabhupāda: The soul is of the same quality in all. You are under a certain conception of life at …