So the punar-janma-jayaya aihistam. The brahmanas, the learned rsis, sages, they're especially engaged for punar-janma-jayaya, to conquer over the process of repetition of birth and death. That is the highest occupational... So every man is meant for that, punar-janma-jayaya. Unless we conquer this process of punar janma, bhutva bhutva praliyate [Bg. 8.19], and if we simply waste our time like animalseating, sleeping, sex intercourse and defensethen it is animal life. So especially in this age they cannot distinguish that what is the animal life and what is human life. They think, "The dog, animal, he is sleeping on the street, and I am sleeping on the twentieth floor of a nice apartment. Therefore I am civilized." The sastra says no. Either you sleep on the street or on the twenty-fourth story of apartment, you are sleeping. You are not doing any other thing. Simply the dog is eating without any plate, and suppose if you are eating in a golden plate. That does not mean the taste of the foodstuff has changed. No. The foodstuff given to the dog on the street, without any plate, and the foodstuff given to me in a golden plate, the taste is the same. And the value, food value, is the same. So we have to see in that way, that to improve the quality of eating, sleeping, mating... The dog is having sexual intercourse in the open street, and if we have sexual intercourse in a very secluded place and very nice bedstead, that does not change the quality. Therefore we should know it that simply by eating, sleeping, defending and sex life, that is animal life. Human life is meant for how to become free from this process of repetition of birth and death. That is liberation.   (More...)

There is a little story, very interesting. So one poor boy, he was student in a school, and the teacher's annual ceremony of father's death would be held. So he requested all his student, "What you will give me, contribution?" Formerly the teacher was not taking any salary. But whatever he wanted, the students will bring either from parents' house or by begging. That was the system. The teacher would not charge anything. A brahmana cannot be..., charge anything. Generally, the brahmanas were teachers. That is one of the profession of the brahmana. Everyone must have livelihood. So brahmana livelihood is pathana pathana. He must become a learned scholar, and he will make others also learned scholar. That is brahmana's business. Pathana pathana yajana yajana dana pratigrahah. Sat-karma. Six kinds of profession for the brahmanas. And ksatriya's profession is to give protection to the citizen and levy some tax, twenty-five percent, not more than that. Whatever is income your, give twenty-five percent to the ksatriya king. That's all. That includes sales tax, this tax, that tax, so many tax, income tax. All finished. You give twenty-five percent. And if you have no income, no tax. Not like that even you have no income, "No, last year you gave so much tax. You must give it. Otherwise your property will be sold." Not like that. So that is ksatriya's income. Similarly, vaisya's income, krsi-go-raksya-vanijyam [Bg. 18.44], agriculture, cow protection, and if there is excess foodstuff, then he can sell, make trade. And sudras, they will simply help.   (More...)