Sometimes foolish people argue that since Kṛṣṇa is not present at the moment, one cannot take direct instructions from Him

[Tamohara dasa ADMIN.]

Sometimes foolish people argue that since Kṛṣṇa is not present at the moment, one cannot take direct instructions from Him. Such foolish people do not know that there is no difference between directly hearing Bhagavad-gītā and reading it, as long as one accepts Bhagavad-gītā as it is, spoken by the Lord. However, if one wants to understand Bhagavad-gītā by his imperfect interpretations, one cannot possibly understand the mysteries of Bhagavad-gītā, even though one may be a great scholar according to mundane estimation.

Srila Prabhupada,
Srimad Bhagvatam 4.30.10, Purport

When i met Srila Prabhupada, its hard to explain, but he is EXACTLY like his books, they are not different, he is a walking Bhagavatam. Sometimes foolish devotees say he is no longer available, but that is not my experience. He is there in his books, it is not an ordinary affair. -Tamohara dasa