HH JAS: Prabhupada said the defect with materialistic civilization especially western materialistic civilization is that they have friendship: men and women are like friends and they mix together freely. In a cultured civilization, Vedic culture, that mixing is not there, they know they are spirit soul but they know that the combination of these spirit souls in these two kinds of bodies kills spiritual realization. It doesn’t mean women are hated but it means that we know what’s what...(sanskrit)...every woman is respected as being like the mother. If the mother gives advice that’s taken as an affectionate gesture. The mother may also say something and that’s taken, mothers saying something but after all mothers may be a little sentimental. Women are considered less discriminating -so it's respected the mother is saying something - but not that that advice is always taken. First thing is that mother is not meant for my enjoyment, there’s no question any civilized society of enjoying one's own mother - that’s for the pigs! So that’s the first thing, mother is respected, she’s not meant for my enjoyment, that’s the most abominable degraded thing...(sanskrit)...she’s somebody else’s wife so she is to be respected, mothers are respected - given respect.Krishna and Balaram how they are respecting Devaki and Yasoda, especially Krishna and Balaram they went to see Devaki and Vasudev - they are offering such respects, offering obeciences, so the women are respected...(sanskrit)...where the women are worshipped there the demigods enjoy: this is Vedic civilization this doesn’t mean we put the ladies on the altar and offer Arati, but it means they are treated with such respect- not exploited....respected.
. EXCERPTS FROM: HOPES AND HORRORS OF HOUSEHOLDER LIFE
– SWAMI JAYADVAITA 1992 - PART 4)
