definition

Through parental care, through remedies for different kinds of disease, and through means of protection on the water, in the air and on land, there is always an endeavor for relief from various kinds of suffering in the material world, but none of them are guaranteed measures for protection. They may be beneficial temporarily, but they afford no permanent benefit. Despite the presence of a father and mother, a child cannot be protected from accidental death, disease and various other miseries. No one can help, including the parents. Ultimately the shelter is the Lord, and one who takes shelter of the Lord is protected. This is guaranteed. As the Lord says in Bhagavad-gita (9.31), kaunteya pratijanihi na me bhaktaḥ pranasyati: "O son of Kunti, declare it boldly that My devotee never perishes." Therefore, unless one is protected by the mercy of the Lord, no remedial measure can act effectively. One should consequently depend fully on the causeless mercy of the Lord. Although as a matter of routine duty one must of course accept other remedial measures, no one can protect one who is neglected by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In this material world, everyone is trying to counteract the onslaught of material nature, but everyone is ultimately fully controlled by material nature. Therefore even though so-called philosophers and scientists try to surmount the onslaught of material nature, they have not been able to do so. Krsna says in Bhagavad-gita (13.9) that the real sufferings of the material world are four-janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi (birth, death, old age and disease). In the history of the world, no one has been successful in conquering these miseries imposed by material nature. Prakrteḥ kriyamanani gunaiḥ karmani sarvasaḥ. Nature (prakrti) is so strong that no one can overcome her stringent laws. So-called scientists, philosophers, religionists and politicians should therefore conclude that they cannot offer facilities to the people in general. They should make vigorous propaganda to awaken the populace and raise them to the platform of Krsna consciousness. Our humble attempt to propagate the Krsna consciousness movement all over the world is the only remedy that can bring about a peaceful and happy life. We can never be happy without the mercy of the Supreme Lord (tvad-upeksitanam). If we keep displeasing our supreme father, we shall never be happy within this material world, in either the upper or lower planetary systems.    (More...)

Every living being either a man or an animal or a bird etc everyone thinks that he is free by himself but actually nobody is free from the severe laws of the Lord.* That is the condition of material existence. All living beings in the material world have taken up the risk of conditioned life by their own selection and have thus been entrapped by the laws of material nature. The human form of life is meant for understanding this conditioned life and thus become free from the clutches of material existence and the only means for getting out of the entanglement is to agree to obey the Supreme. But instead of becoming free from the clutches of Maya or illusion, the foolish human being becomes bound up by different nomenclatures of being designated as Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, Sudras, Hindus, Mussalmans, Indians, Europeans, Americans, Chinese, and many others and thus carry on the orders of the Supreme Lord under the influence respective scriptural or legislative injunctions.* Such scriptural injunctions are made by a liberated representative of God in consideration of different conditions of living and by carrying on such orders of the Lord gradually the conditioned living beings become free from the clutches of material existence. The factual position of the living being is, however, that he is eternally servitor of the Supreme Lord. In his liberated state he renders service to the Lord in transcendental love and thus enjoys a life of full freedom even sometimes on the equal level with the Lord or sometimes more than the Lord. But in the conditioned state of the material world every living being wants to be the Lord of other living beings and thus by the illusion of Maya such mentality of lording it over, becomes a cause of further extention of conditional life. So in the material world the living being is still more conditioned till he surrenders unto the Lord by reviving his original state of eternal servitorship. That is the last instruction of the Bhagwat Geeta and all other recognised scriprures of the world.    (More...)

The principles of religion do not stand on some dogmas or manmade formulas, but they stand on four primary regulative observances, namely austerity, cleanliness, mercy and truthfulness. The mass of people must be educated to practice these principles from childhood. Austerity means to accept voluntarily things which may not be very comfortable for the body but are conducive for spiritual realization, for example, fasting. Fasting twice or four times a month is a sort of austerity which may be voluntarily accepted for spiritual realization only, and not for any other purposes, political or otherwise. Fastings which are not meant for self-realization but for some other purposes are condemned in the Bhagavad-gita (Bg. 17.56). Similarly, cleanliness is necessary both for the mind and the body. Simply bodily cleanliness may help to some extent, but cleanliness of the mind is necessary, and it is effected by glorifying the Supreme Lord. No one can cleanse the accumulated mental dust without glorifying the Supreme Lord. A godless civilization cannot cleanse the mind because it has no idea of God, and for this simple reason people under such a civilization cannot have good qualifications, however they may be materially equipped. We have to see things by their resultant action. The resultant action of human civilization in the age of Kali is dissatisfaction, so everyone is anxious to get peace of mind. This peace of mind was complete in the Satya Age because of the existence of the above-mentioned attributes of the human being. Gradually these attributes have diminished in the Treta-yuga to three fourths, in the Dvapara to half, and in this age of Kali they are diminished to one fourth, which is also gradually diminishing on account of prevailing untruthfulness. By pride, either artificial or real, the resultant action of austerity is spoiled; by too much affection for female association, cleanliness is spoiled; by too much addiction to intoxication, mercifulness is spoiled; and by too much lying propaganda, truthfulness is spoiled. The revival of Bhagavata-dharma can save the human civilization from falling a prey to evils of all description.    (More...)