How to understand Shrila Prabhupada statements that women are less intelligent?
Any statement about a particular gender in Srila Prabhupada’s teachings is not meant to target or diminish any demographic. The overarching focus is on Krishna consciousness and spiritual elevation, and everything needs to be seen in that light.
At times, such statements may appear anti-women or male chauvinistic. However, that was never the intention of Srila Prabhupada. In fact, if we consider his life and legacy from an experiential perspective, we find that he had many female disciples — most of whom were Western women raised during the 1960s and 70s, when the feminist movement was gaining momentum.
Despite this, these women dedicated their lives to serving Srila Prabhupada, which strongly suggests that he was not at all trying to demean or suppress women. None of his female disciples reported that Srila Prabhupada made them feel inferior or devalued due to their gender. On the contrary, he empowered women in extraordinary ways — encouraging them to lead kirtans, give classes, distribute books, manage temples, and take leadership roles in his movement.
From a philosophical perspective, when Srila Prabhupada used the term “less intelligent,” we must consider the context. He often spoke of intelligence in terms of realizing our spiritual identity. All embodied souls — regardless of gender — are conditioned to identify with the body. However, due to their nurturing roles, women may be more likely to develop stronger bodily identification, as their responsibilities involve physically caring for and emotionally connecting with children.
Still, this deeper emotional capacity is not a sign of inferiority. On the contrary, it reflects a different kind of intelligence — an emotional intelligence that is invaluable for nurturing and sustaining human life. When Prabhupada mentioned “less intelligence,” he was referring more to philosophical inclination, not overall ability or value.
In fact, emotional sensitivity, often more prominent in women, enables them to care for infants and others with greater empathy and intuition than most men. That is also a profound form of intelligence, vital to family and society.
From a traditional perspective, among all the religious traditions, the Vedic tradition offers some of the most inclusive depictions of the divine feminine. There are female deities, and God is often represented as a divine couple, where the female is mentioned first — Sita-Rama, Radha-Krishna. The goddess of learning and intelligence, Saraswati Devi, is also a female deity.
Even in the Bhagavad-gita, intelligence (buddhi) is described as a feminine quality. So, philosophically and metaphysically, intelligence is closely associated with feminine energy.
It’s also important to understand the cultural and historical context of Srila Prabhupada’s time. He learned English during the 1910s and 1920s and preached primarily in the 1960s and 70s. At that time, public talks often addressed men more directly. Hence, women and children were sometimes grouped together as those who need protection, not in a demeaning way, but as a call to responsible guardianship from men.
Even today, during wars and crises, the term “women and children” is commonly used to refer to vulnerable groups who should not be harmed. The emphasis in Prabhupada’s talks is not on labeling women as “less intelligent” to justify subjugation, but rather to urge men to take responsibility for protecting and respecting them.
Furthermore, Srila Prabhupada made a clear distinction between principles and details. The core principle was always Krishna consciousness. While he supported traditional gender roles in his writings, he was flexible and pragmatic in practice. He recognized that Western women were quite different from Indian women and engaged them according to their abilities, often saying they were “as good as their male counterparts.”
In conclusion, statements that appear critical of women should not be taken as reflecting a misogynistic mindset, but should be seen within the broader, transcendental purpose of cultivating Krishna consciousness. That was — and always remained — Srila Prabhupada’s ultimate concern.