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The deer in the flower garden is an allegory used by the great sage Narada to point out to the King that the King himself is similarly entrapped by such surroundings. Actually everyone is surrounded by such a family life, which misleads one. The living entity thus forgets that he has to return home, back to Godhead. He simply becomes entangled in family life. Prahlada Maharaja has therefore hinted: hitvatma-patam grham andha-kupam vanam gato yad dharim asrayeta [SB 7.5.5]. Family life is considered a blind well (andha-kupam) into which a person falls and dies without help. Prahlada Maharaja recommends that while ones senses are there and one is strong enough, he should abandon the grhastha-asrama and take shelter of the lotus feet of the Lord, going to the forest of Vrndavana. According to Vedic civilization, one has to give up family life at a certain age (the age of fifty), take vanaprastha and eventually remain alone as a sannyasi. That is the prescribed method of Vedic civilization known as varnasrama-dharma. When one takes sannyasa after enjoying family life, he pleases the Supreme Lord Visnu. (More...) One has to understand ones position in family or worldly life. That is called intelligence. One should not remain always trapped in family life to satisfy his tongue and genitals in association with a wife. In such a way, one simply spoils his life. According to Vedic civilization, it is imperative to give up the family at a certain stage, by force if necessary. Unfortunately, so-called followers of Vedic life do not give up their family even at the end of life, unless they are forced by death. There should be a thorough overhauling of the social system, and society should revert to the Vedic principles, that is, the four varnas and the four asramas. (More...) So therefore this affection is the very hard knot for being bound up in this material world, this affection. Therefore the Vedic civilization is that the affection is to be cut off compulsory at a certain age, not that the affection should continue. If the affection continues, then there is no chance of my becoming free from this material world. There is no chance. Therefore vanaprastha. Because the wife's..., affection with the wife, is very, very strong. So vanaprastha means the husband and wife, they give up the affection. Not give up, go away from home, and they travel in the holy places just to purify, and again, when the affection draws, they come to the family. Again remain for one or two months, then again go away. So the wife, there is no sex connection, but wife remains as assistant to the man to be accustomed how to remain aloof from the family. And then, when he is practiced to remain aloof from the..., then wife is also sent back to the family, to the care of elderly children, and the man takes sannyasa, compulsory. It is called "civil suicide." My Guru Maharaja used to say, "Commit civil suicide." Mean... If you commit suicide it is criminal. It is also suicide, no more connection with family. This is also suicide, but it is civil. There is no criminal action against... But it is also voluntarily committing suicideno more connection with anyone. (More...) One must leave his family life and enter the forest after the age of fifty. This is an authoritative statement of the Vedas. Kardama Muni was to leave his family life to completely engage in the service of the Lord. But since he knew that the Lord Himself, as Kapila, had taken birth in his home as his own son, why was he preparing to leave home to search out self-realization or God realization? God Himself was present in his homewhy should he leave home? Such a question may certainly arise. But here it is said that whatever is spoken in the Vedas and whatever is practiced in accordance with the injunctions of the Vedas is to be accepted as authoritative in society. Vedic authority says that a householder must leave home after his fiftieth year. Pancasordhvam vanam vrajet: one must leave his family life and enter the forest after the age of fifty. This is an authoritative statement of the Vedas, based on the division of social life into four departments of activitybrahmacarya, grhastha, vanaprastha and sannyasa. (More...) Link to this page: https://prabhupadabooks.com/?g=971 Previous: [none] Next: [none]
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