Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 5.5.1 in Hindi [translated] – November 14, 1975, Bombay

Prabhupada:

Yesterday we talked with Sadajivatlalji about Lord Rsabhadeva's instructions to His sons before He retired. Previously all the big, big kings used to retire from royal lifestyle. This is Vedic civilisation. Not that until one is shot dead he will not retire. That's not good. There is certain time set for retirement.

Brahmacari, grhastha, vanaprastha and sannyasa. This Hindu dharma which is going on at present, this word 'Hindu' is not found in the Vedic texts. In our sastra it is called varnasrama-dharma. Four varnas: social orders and four asramas: spiritual orders-brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya, sūdra, and brahmacari, grhastha, vanaprastha and sannyasa. By following the principles of varnasrama-dharma the human form of life becomes successful. This is Vedic conclusion.

The human civilisation begins from varnasrama-dharma. Until people follow the system of varnasrama-dharma, it is animal society. It cannot be accepted as human society. varnasramacara-vata purusena paraḥ puman. About varnasrama-dharma the Supreme Lord has explained in the Bhagavad-gita

The Supreme Personality of Godhead has created the four social orders namely brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya, sūdra, according to qualities and work and not by birth. How can you uproot that? If you destroy it then there will be no human society left. It will turn into animal society. So Maharaja Rsabhadeva Who is accepted by the followers of varnasrama-dharma, and yesterday I heard that the followers of Jainism also accept Him. The hardcore Jains. Anyway, whether Jains or Hindus, His instructions are beneficial to all. Whether, Jains, Hindus, Musselmans, Christians, the instructions of the Supreme Lord are meant for everyone. Just like the Supreme Lord instructs in the Bhagavad-gita, annad bhavanti bhūtani, [Bg 3.14] that by producing foodgrains everyone, whether human or animal, will become happy. So this production of foodgrains to make everyone happy is meant fot the Hindus, Musselmans, Jains, and everybody else. The orders of the Supreme Lord…The Supreme Personality of Godhead are one, and His instructions are meant for all. It is not that those are meant for Hindus or Musselmans only. No. There is no separate Gods for Musselmans or Hindus. God is one. Ekam brahma dvitiyam nasti. [Vedic injunction] Just like gold, if a Hindu possesses gold does it mean it becomes Hindu gold, and if it is with a Mussalman it becomes Mussalman gold? Gold is gold whether is remains with Hindu or Mussalman or Jain. Similarly, dharma means, dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam [SB 6.3.19]

Religion cannot be sectarian. Because the codes of dharma is explained in the Bhagavata that dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam. Just like the orders of the King. It is for Hindus, Musselmans, Christians and everyone. In the same way, the principles of dharma-the laws enacted by the Supreme Lord are meant for one and all. It is not sectarian or suitable for a particular society or country or candidate. No. It's for everyone. Therefore, dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam. Here also Rsabhadeva Who is an incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is imparting instructions to His sons. My dear sons,

My dear sons, This body, ayam deha, this body, this human body. Everyone has got a body. The dog has a body, the hog has a body, the ass has a body and the human being has got a body. But especially He is stressing that this body, ayam deha, this present body, which body? Deha-bhajam nrloke. Nrloke the body that you have in the human society, that body. Kastan Kaman na arhate viḍ-bhujam ye. To fulfil the demands of the body, the body has four demands-ahara, nidra, bhaya, maithuna: eating, sleeping, mating and defending.

You need to eat something, require a place to sleep, apartment, ahara, nidra, bhaya, an arrangement for defending yourself, defense, and maithuna, sense gratification. Especially sex life. These four things are required for all. The dog needs it and the human being needs it.

Eating, sleeping, mating, and defending-these four things are required for everyone whether one is a dog or a man. But there must be some distinction. Whether a dog's body or a man's body, this is explained here, ayam deha deha-bhajam nrloke, this body that you have received in the human society, it is not for kastan kaman arhate viḍ-bhujam ye. This human body should not be utilised for just fulfilling the demands of the body as the dogs and hogs do by working hard whole day. The human body should not be used for that.

Therefore the natural tendency for the human beings is to earn some money, save it and then enjoy it peacefully. However, this is not possible for a dog's body, an ass's body or a hog's body. For them, so long they will live they must work hard whole day just to maintain their bodies. Therefore it is forbidden here that ayam deha, this particular body, the human body. Just to maintain this body by working hard, that is for the dogs and hogs and not for the human beings. This is the instruction. It is not good for the human beings just to fulfil the demands of the body by working so hard. Then what should they do? The Lord says here tapo divyam.

The human body is meant for undergoing austerity. Only for working hard day and night, day shift, night shift, up to the ultimate end of life just go on labouring hard is not good. In the human life at least some portion of it must be saved for performing austerity. That is why the system of varnasrama is established in the human society. Brahmacari, grhastha, vanaprastha and sannyasa. At least before leaving the body one take vanaprastha and sannyasa and undergo austerity. Tapo divyam putraka. What is the need for austerity? Why undergo austerity? That is tapo divyam putraka yena sattvam suddhyeta. This existence, everyone wants, actually everyone is eternal. Na hanyate hanyamane sarire. [Bg 2.20] When the body is finished the living entity is not finished.

When this body is finished the living entity receives another body. For example, asmin dehe yatha kaumaram yauvanam jara, just like in this body a person becomes a child, then he grows to boyhood to youthhood to old age and then he dies. So that death is tatha dehantara-praptir, he gets another body. As from a child body to boy body, from boy body to young body, from young body to old body, similarly after this present body one will receive another body.

That is why we have to undergo austerity to determine what type of body we are going to get. Otherwise, that same cycle

You have to give up one body and accept another body. And you have to suffer the resultant actions of that body, then again give up that body and accept another body. This cycle will go on. This lesson must be taught first that I will have to give up this body, tatha dehantara praptir, so let me prepare myself in such a way as to what kind of body I want to get. If we do not endeavour for that then the human form of body that we have received will be wasted uselessly. This kind of civilisation is not desirable. This is the instruction Lord Rsabhadeva is giving to His sons.

Tapo divyam putraka yena sattvam suddhyed. Purify your existentional identity. Purify. Purify. Why purify? Why you have to purify? Because sattvam suddhyed yasmad brahma-saukhyam tv anantam. We all want happiness. What is the aim of our struggle for existence in this body? Happiness. But we will have to give up our bodies. So where is the happiness? Actually under the spell of maya we accept this as happiness. But the sastra says that this is not happiness. Happiness you will have when you can conquer these four things-birth, death, old age, and disease. First of all you conquer these then you can have happiness. So Rsabhadeva's advice is that we will have to give up our bodies, so before quitting this body we should purify our existence. Suddhyed sattvam brahma-saukhyam tv anantam. Then only we will have ananda. Sat-cit-ananda vigrahaḥ. Mamaivamso jiva bhūtaḥ. [Bg 15.7] The Supreme Personality of Godhead is declaring in the Bhagavad-gita that the spirit soul is My part and parcel. And what is form of the Supreme Lord?

The Supreme Lord has got a body, sat-cit-ananda vigrahaḥ, not like this as we have. As our bodies are perishable the Supreme Lord's body is not like that. We think that Krsna is an ordinary person like us. avajananti mam mūḍha
manusim tanum asritam [Bg 9.11]

Those who are foolish, mūḍhas, they think that since Krsna comes in a human form he is like us. They deride Him. But The Supreme Lord's body is sat-cit-ananda vigrahaḥ. Param bhavam ajananto, they don't even know what kind of the Supreme Lord possesses. The Supreme Personality of Godhead's form is eternal, full of knowledge and bliss. He Himself declares mamaivamso jiva bhūtaḥ, all these living entities are My parts and parcels. Therefore they are also eternal, full of knowledge and bliss. The word sat means eternal. Na hanyate hanyamane sarire. [Bg 2.20] When the body is finished the soul is not finished. This is called sat. Om tat sat. [Bg 17.23] And cit. Cit means knowledge. Full of knowledge. Eternal, full of knowledge, and anandamaya: blissful. This is our svarupa: constitutional position. Svarūpa means svarūpena vyavasthitiḥ.

Mukti means… This our present perverted form which is not sat-cit-ananda vigrahaḥ, which is perishable, temporary, and full of ignorance and distress, when we give up this kind of form and receive a sat-cit-ananda form, that is called mukti: liberation. Muktir hitvanyatha rūpam. Now our form is perverted. Therefore we have to execute austerity. That is human life. Tapo divyam putraka yena sattvam suddhyed. We need to purify our existence. The Supreme Lord says janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi-duḥkha-dosanudarsanam. What is your actual misery? The actual miseries are we have to take birth again and again, die again and again, and on account of accepting a material body we have to grow old, and suffer from diseases. Threefold material miseries: adhyatmika, adhibhautika and adhidaivika: miseries caused by one's body and mind, miseries caused by other living entities and miseries caused by natural calamities. Because we have forshaken the principle of varnasrama-dharma, we don't understand our real problems of life. We are simply busy in mitigating our immediate distresses. That an animal also does. Immediate relief. If it is hungry it will look for food. A hog will search for stool and a man will look for a restaurant or hotel. The business is the same. Work very hard just for eating? The sastra says that your food is already supplied. So there is no need to work hard for that.

The Supreme Personality of Godhead has already arranged your food somewhere or other. We, in the human society, work hard to earn our livelihood, but out of 800,400,000 species of life 800,000,000 are of animals, birds, insects etc and the Supreme Lord provides foods to all of them He supplies to an elephant and to an ant as well. Then why won't He provide us? For food or for that matter these four requirements are available everywhere. Visayaḥ khalu sarvataḥ syat [SB 11.9.29] Visaya. Visaya means eating, sleeping, defending and mating. Wherever you take birth these things are already arranged for you. You need not work very hard for that.

But rather you should endeavour to re-establish your lost relationship with the Supreme Lord. How I can re-establish my relation with God. And if once our relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead is established then tyaktva deham punar janma naiti mam eti kaunteya. [Bg 4.9]

These are the considerations. So our this Krsna Consciousness movement, we are trying to preach this truth. We are not saying that give up your work, household and everything. No. That is not a fact. Do not forget your real purpose of life. This is the purpose of life. Because we have lost our connection with the Supreme Lord, hence we are suffering.

A vaisnava poet in Bengal has said that when we forget Krsna or God and simply hanker after material enjoyment that state is called maya. Maya is nothing else. Maya means what is actually not. To forget the Supreme Personality of Godhead is itself maya. Therefore the Supreme Lord instructs mam eva ye prapadyante mayam etam taranti te [Bg 7.14]

It is not at all difficult to get respite from maya. The moment you surrender to the Supreme Lord maya will go away. Sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja. [Bg 18.66] That is why the Supreme Lord personally comes here from His Vaikuntha, Goloka Vrndavana. Yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati bharata [Bg 4.7] What is that dharmasya glani? To not accept God. Atheism. What is God? I am God. This atheism is dharmasya glani. Therefore the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself descends. Yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati. What is dharma? Dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam. [SB 6.3.19]

Whatever the Supreme Lord orders that is dharma. The Supreme Lord says sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja, that is dharma. This is dharma-"Abandon all vareieties of religion and surrender unto Me," this is dharma. These Hindu dharma, Mussalman dharma we have created. These are man-made. Made by man. But the Supreme Lord says sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam…The Supreme Personality of Godhead does not appear to preach Hindu, Musselmam or Christian dharmas. He comes to preach the real dharma which is to surrender unto His lotus feet. And the devotees of the Supreme Lord simply preach that. What kind of dharma do the devotees of the Lord preach? He does not manufacture an artificial, new pattern dharma and preach it. He simply repeats the words of the Supreme Lord. Therefore the Supreme Lord says

There must be disciplic succession connection. Whatever the Supreme Lord has instructed Brahmaji, he, in turn instructed the same thing to Narada. Narada preached that same messege and from Narada Vyasadeva learned. And Vyasadeva also preached the same thing, satyam param dhimahi. Janmady asya yato 'nvayad itaratas carthesv abhijnaḥ svarat [SB 1.1.1] We belong to Vyasadeva sampradaya. From Vyasadeva to Madhvacarya to Caitanya Mahaprabhu. And the same instructions are conveyed. The same messege. Nothing newly manufactured. We don't manufacture. This is the special significance of Krsna Consciousness movement that we don't manufacture. The Supreme Lord instructs

We also repeat the same thing. Nothing else. We request everyone, 'sir, always think of the Supreme Lord.' Chant Hare Krsna….hare hare. This makes you think of the Lord.

This is devotional service to the Supreme Lord. We don't say something else like 'there is no God, I am God, you are God,' as if there is a fountain of Gods. We don't speak lies like that. We speak the truth. What is that? Lord Krsna says man-mana bhava mad-bhakto. The Lord Himself says that always think of Me. And what do we say? Always think of the Lord. The point is same. No adulteration. That is called Parampara. 'Think of Me' does not mean think of you or us. My head means my head. Not that 'my head' is 'I head,' not like that. That is Krsna Consciousness movement. Whatever the Supreme Lord instructs we repeat. The Supreme Lord instructs in the Srimad Bhagavatam and also in the Bhagavad-gita. in the Bhagavad-gita the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself instructs and in the Srimad Bhagavatam Vyasadeva describes about Him. The messege is one. No difference. This is Caitanya Mahaprabhu's mission that yare dekha, tare kaha 'krsna'-upadesa [Cc Madhya 7.128]

That is Caitanya Mahaprabhu's mission and nothing else. Caitanya Mahaprabhu says amara ajnaya guru hana tara' ei desa, in whichever country you live, you all live in Bombay, these people some live in New York, some live in London, some live elsewhere, but what is the goal of our preaching? Amara ajnaya guru hana tara ei desa, by My order you all become gurus. But how can I become a guru? I am not a learned man and I have got business to do, so how can I become a guru? There is no difficulty. What is that? Yare dekha, tare kaha 'krsna-upadesa'. You must be meeting people every day. Just tell him what the Supreme Lord Krsnas has instructed. Then you become a guru. According to Caitanya Mahaprabhu's calculation there is no difficulty in becoming guru. If a person does not manufacture anything, does not show his over expertise then there is no difficulty in becoming guru. All you have got to do is repeat what the Supreme Lord has ordered. Yare dekha, tare kaha 'krsna'-upadesa. This is our mission. And our request to you all is that there will be no profit in talking all kinds of nonsense, nor has it ever happened, nor will it happen in future. Simply repeat what Krsna has adviced. You learn yourself, preach the same to others and teach them how to do. Your lives will become glorious. That is why the Supreme Lord said tapo divyam putraka yena sattvam [SB 5.5.1] If you want to purify your existence…What is the meaning of purifying the existence? To get freedom from the cycle of birth and death. This is called purification of existence. No more birth and death. The Supreme Lord Himself declares

It is very easy. Is it difficult to understand the Lord's appearance and activities? The Lord Himself says,

This knowledge that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is everything, vasudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahatma su-durlabhaḥ, that mahatma is very rare. And when does one attain such knowledge? After speculating for many, many lifetimes when one actually comes to his senses that vasudevaḥ sarvam iti, Lord Vasudeva is everything and it is a fact! The Supreme Lord Himself says

In the Vedanta-sutra, janmady asya yataḥ. [Vedanta-sūtra 1.1.2] And that same fact is elaborated in the Srimad Bhagavatam as janmady asya yato 'nvayad itaratas carthesv abhijnaḥ svarat tene brahma hrda. [SB 1.1.1] These things are described in the sastras. This Krsna-upadesa…Bhagavad-gita is also Krsna-upadesa because Krsna is personally speaking and Srimad Bhagavatam is also Krsna-upadesa because Vyasadeva is personally describing about Krsna. Param satyam dhimahi. [SB 1.1.1] According to our previous history if we again want to bring back our culture, culture is already there but we do not know. Even if we know it we don't spread it.

We try to adjust things with external objects, try to organise things but that will not yield any result.

These blind persons, they think, we will guide other blind persons. That will be of no use, because, isa-tantryam uru-damni baddhaḥa, their hans and legs are tightly bound by the ropes of the Supreme Lord. You cannot work independently.

By the laws of nature, by nature's law our hands and legs are tied. No one can even take one step out of her grip. If nature orders you that you will die today, nobody's father even or any best Doctor or scientist can save you even for a moment. Mrtyuḥ sarva-haras caham, the Supreme Lord says. [Bg 10.34] If somebody refuses to understand Me then must understand at the time of death when I will snatch awawy all his possession. These are the considerations.

Therefore Rsabhadeva instructs, My dear sons, just to work hard whole day like dogs and hogs and as soon as one gets some strength indulge in sense gratification, this is not the duty of the human form of life. The aim of human life is that by tapasya, tapasya means to give up those things which we like. That is tapasya. Tapasya means, just like we smoke biḍi: tobacco, and when I ask you to give up smoking, it must be little difficult. But that difficulty one has to tolerate. That is called tapasya. We drink wine. By giving up drinking wine we will have some difficulty. But for the Supreme Lord's sake if we give up drinking even though it is inconvinent, we have to tolerate it. This is called tapasya. Tapo divyam putraka yena. Divyam.

Divyam means divine. Undergo some austerity for the pleasure of the Lord. Therefore we instruct these Europeans, Americans wherever we preach that kindly give up four things. Do some tapasya. What are those? No illicit sex. Do not indulge in illicit sex. Except your married wife, you treat every other woman as your mother. This is not ordinary thing. This is Canakya Panḍita's consideration. Who is a Panḍita: learned? You must have heard the name of Canakya. There is a locality in New Delhi named after him as Canakyapuri. He was a big politician. He wrote many moral instructions called Niti-vakya: moral codes. He defined who is to be called a panḍita. Is he a learned who has acquired B.A, M.A, PhD degrees from university? No. Canakya Panḍita says, no. That is not true. Then who is to be called? Matrvat para-daresu, one who treats others' wives as mother, he is panḍita.

Canakya was himself a panḍita and he gives the definition of a panḍita. Therefore illicit sex, woman is required according to our varnasrama-dharma, but legitimate wife. The Supreme Lord says dharmaviruddho kamo 'smi [Bg 7.11]

"Sex life not opposed to religious principle is me." Sex life only to beget children is religious and other that is illicit sex life. That has to be given up. That is tapasya. No illicit sex and striyaḥ sūna, [SB 1.17.38] unnessarily eating meat. We are human beings and for us the Supreme Lord has supplied so many things. Grains, fruits, milk and milk products, we should eat these or eat meat? It is a grave sin. Therefore we prohibit this. If you feel some inconvinence to give it up you tolerate it. That is called tapasya. These four things I made them to stop. This illicit sex was their daily affair, daily affair. But for God's sake they have given up. They have given up illicit sex, eating meat, fish or eggs, and not only have they given up drinking wine but also smoking biḍi, cigarette and even taking tea. No illicit sex, and striyaḥ sūna pana. Pana means even taking tea or chewing betel nuts are also intoxication. so this is tapasya. These things should be given up. No illicit sex, no meat eating, no intoxication and no gambling. This much tapasya only, and not more. You don't have to go to the jungle or forest. [end]