The purpose of marrying is to beget a son, because a son is necessary to deliver his father and forefathers from any hellish conditional life in which they may be. Canakya Pandita therefore says, putra-hinam grham sunyam: without a son, married life is simply abominable. King Anga was a very pious king in this life, but because of his previous sinful activity he could not get a son. It is concluded, therefore, that if a person does not get a son it is due to his past sinful life.   (More...)

According to the Vedic version, there is a hellish planet called Put, and one who delivers a person from there is called putra. The purpose of marriage, therefore, is to have a putra, or son who is able to deliver his father, even if the father falls down to the hellish condition of put. Maharaja Prthus father, Vena, was a most sinful person and was therefore cursed to death by the brahmanas. Now all the great saintly persons, sages and brahmanas present in the meeting, after hearing from Maharaja Prthu about his great mission in life, became convinced that the statement of the Vedas had been fully proved. The purpose of accepting a wife in religious marriage, as sanctioned in the Vedas, is to have a putra, a son qualified to deliver his father from the darkest region of hellish life. Marriage is not intended for sense gratification but for getting a son fully qualified to deliver his father. But if a son is raised to become an unqualified demon, how can he deliver his father from hellish life? It is therefore the duty of a father to become a Vaisnava and raise his children to become Vaisnavas; then even if by chance the father falls into a hellish life in his next birth, such a son can deliver him, as Maharaja Prthu delivered his father.   (More...)

When Prahlada Maharaja was offered benediction by Nrsimhadeva, due to his great devotion and tolerance he refused to accept any benediction from the Lord, thinking that such acceptance was not befitting a sincere devotee. The rendering of service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead in expectation of a good reward is deprecated by Prahlada Maharaja as mercantile business. Because Prahlada Maharaja was a Vaisnava, he did not ask a benediction for his personal self but was very affectionate toward his father. Although his father tortured him and would have killed him had he himself not been killed by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Prahlada Maharaja begged pardon for him from the Lord. This favor was immediately granted by the Lord, and Hiranyakasipu was delivered from the darkest region of hellish life, and he returned back home, back to Godhead, by the grace of his son. Prahlada Maharaja is the topmost example of a Vaisnava, who is always compassionate toward sinful persons suffering a hellish life within this material world. Krsna is therefore known as para-duhkha-duhkhi krpambudhih, or one who is compassionate toward others suffering and who is an ocean of mercy. Like Prahlada Maharaja, all pure devotees of the Lord come to this material world with full compassion to deliver the sinful. They undergo all kinds of tribulations, suffering them with tolerance, because that is another qualification of a Vaisnava, who tries to deliver all sinful persons from the hellish conditions of material existence. Vaisnavas are therefore offered the following prayer:   (More...)

At the fag end of life, when the invalidity of old age attacks a man, his body becomes useless for all purposes. Therefore Vedic training dictates that when a man is in his boyhood he should be trained in the process of brahmacarya; that is, he should be completely engaged in the service of the Lord and should not in any way associate with women. When the boy becomes a young man, he marries between the ages of twenty and twenty-five. When he is married at the right age, he can immediately beget strong, healthy sons. Now female descendants are increasing because young men are very weak sexually. A male child will be born if the husband is sexually stronger than the wife, but if the female is stronger, a female child will be born. Thus it is essential to practice the system of brahmacarya if one wishes to beget a male child when one is married. When one reaches the age of fifty, he should give up family life. At that time ones child should be grown up so that the father can leave the family responsibilities to him. The husband and wife may then go abroad to live a retired life and travel to different places of pilgrimage. When both the husband and wife lose their attachment for family and home, the wife returns home to live under the care of her grown-up children and to remain aloof from family affairs. The husband then takes sannyasa to render some service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead.   (More...)