So it is Pariksit Maharaja. He is very intelligent devotee. He is criticizing this atonement process"Whole week I have done all sinful activities, and on Sunday I go to church and pay some fine, and again, from Monday, I begin my business." Punah punah, again and again. So this business will not help us, because the..., I may commit some sinful activities, and repenting, I pay some fine or some prayascitta, but my heart is not cleansed. That is required. The heart is filled up with all dirty things. What it will give me benefit if formally I give some fine as atonement? Pariksit Maharaja is rejecting this process, "This will not help." And he has given very good example: kunjara-saucavat. From nature we can study so many things, very instructive. Krsna has made the nature in such a way that any intelligent man, if he studies simply the nature, without going into school or college he becomes a very learned man, if he has got the capacity to study nature. So such nature, a natural instance, example, is cited: kunjara-saucavat. Kunjara means elephant. Elephant is a very big animal, and it takes bath in the lake, very nicely washes the body. Then, as soon as he comes on the bank, he immediately takes some dust and throw it over the body. Those who have seen the elephants... This is their nature.

So these people may be very big men, very big animal, but their intelligence is lacking. The intelligence is that "Why I am put into miserable condition of life?" That is intelligence. That intelligence was found in the life of Sanatana Gosvami. When he first met Caitanya Mahaprabhu, his spiritual master, the first question was that "I am considered as very learned scholar and very good administrator." Gramya-vyavahare kahe pandita, satya kori mani. "And some, my ignorant friends, they call me I am very big man, very learned man." But apanara hitahita kichui na jani: "Unfortunately, I do not know how to get out of this material condition of life. I do not know." So that is the position, everyone. We are big, big scientist, big, big philosophers, big, big statesmen, politician, but I do not know why I am forced to die. Big, big scientists, they are discovering so many things, but he cannot discover something which will stop his death. That is not possible. So punah punas carvita-carvananam [SB 7.5.30]. We may attempt so many things, but if we do not know how to stop the mental activities which is prone to commit sinful activities That is our first business. That cannot be done by any other means except Krsna consciousness. Except Krsna consciousness, it is not possible to control the mind. If you can Now, it is the business of everyone If he wants to be the first-class man in the society, brahmana, the qualification is samo damas satyam saucam titiksva. These are the brahmana Samah means controlling the mind. Even Arjuna, he said to Krsna when Krsna was teaching him the process of mystic yoga and control the mind Five thousand years ago Arjuna A person like Arjuna is not ordinary person. He is talking with Krsna. So still he says, "My dear Krsna, this is not possible for me. I am a family man and a politician. I cannot control my mind. It is not possible." So nowadays, after five thousand years when Arjuna thought himself incapable of controlling the mind by the so-called yogic process, how it is possible nowthis world has so much deterioratedto practice this meditation and yoga process and control the mind? It is impossible. That is not possible. It is simply humbug. You have to

Therefore sastra gives us the instruction, krte yad dhyayato visnum [SB 12.3.52]. Krte mean in the Satya-yuga, when man used to live for one hundred thousands of years. Just like Valmiki Muni, he underwent meditation for sixty thousands of years, and he attained success. So it was possible, krte, in the Satya-yuga. Satya-yuga was the first, beginning of millennium. Satya-yuga exists for eighteen hundred thousand years, and then Treta-yuga, for twelve hundred thousand years, then Dvapara-yuga, eight hundred thousands of years. Now it is Kali-yuga, it is four hundred thousands of years. And the duration of life in Satya-yuga was hundred thousands of years, and in the Treta-yuga it was one thousands of years. No? Ten thousands of years. And in the Dvapara-yuga one thousand years. And now it is one hundred. That is also not all. So this age is not suitable for yogic meditation. That is not possible. Therefore sastra gives us instruction that "Self-realization which was possible in the Satya-yuga by meditation, the same thing was made possible in the Treta-yuga," krte yad dhyayato visnum tretayam yajato makhaih, "by performing big, big sacrifices." That is Treta-yuga. And Krte yad dhyayato visnum tretayam yajato makhaih, dvapare paricaryayam: "In Dvapara-yuga by worshiping the Deity." Therefore in India you will find so many temples, because this is coming from Dvapara-yuga.

So kalau tad dhari-kirtanat. In this age, Kali-yuga, the age of quarrel and fight and misunderstandingthis is called Kali-yugain this age this is the only means: hari-kirtanat. The sankirtana movement is hari-kirtana. Hari-kirtana... Kirtana means chanting about the glorification of the Lord, hari-kirtana. And this is also confirmed in the Srimad-Bhagavatam:

So those who are intelligent, they catch up this easy method of self-realization. The more you chant, then the cleansing process of the heart goes on very nicely. Ceto-darpana-marjanam [Cc. Antya 20.12]. This is recommended. Ceto-darp... This is the first, because our spiritual life does not begin unless ceto-darpana-marjanam, unless the mirror of the heart is cleansed. But this is the easiest process. If you chant Hare Krsna maha-mantra in ecstasy, the first benefit will be that your heart will be cleansed. Then you can see what is your position, what you are, what is your business. If your heart is unclean, then... So that uncleanliness of heart cannot be cleansed by this process, atonement. That is not possible. Therefore... Pariksit Maharaja is very intelligent. He said, prayascittam atho apartham. Apa, apa means "negative," and artha means "meaning." "It has no meaning." He immediately rejects the prayascittam apartham. "What benefit will be there? He remains unclean. He does not cleanse his heart, core of heart." In the core of heart he has got all the dirty things: "How I shall cheat, how I shall make black market, how I shall enjoy senses, how I will go to prostitute and drink." These things are packed up. So simply by going to the temple or to the church and make some atonement, it will not benefit. One has to take seriously to this method, sankirtanam. Ceto-darpana-marjanam bhava-maha-davagni-nirvapanam [Cc. Antya 20.12]. The first installment is that you cleanse your heart. The next installment is bhava-maha-davagni-nirvapanam. If your heart is cleansed, then you can understand what is your position in this material world. And with a dirty heart, you cannot understand. If your heart is clean, then you can understand that "I am not this body. I am spirit soul. So what I am doing really for me? I am spirit soul. I am not this body. I am soaping over this body, but as I am, I am starving." This is going on. The material civilization means they are taking care of the body and no information of the soul which is within the body. This is material civilization. And our Krsna consciousness movement is not so much attention for the body, but full attention for the soul. This is Krsna consciousness, just opposite.

Therefore they cannot understand this movement. It is completely spiritual movement. It is not material movement. Therefore they sometimes mistake that "Your people are weak in health. They are becoming this and that. They do not eat meat, so vitality is less." Then "We are not concerned with the vitality. We are concerned with the spiritual life." Therefore they sometimes misunderstand. So anyway, people may understand or misunderstandit doesn't matter. You go on with your kirtana and make guarantee that there is no material life.

Thank you very much. (end)