Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 5.5.1 – October 22, 1976, Vṛndāvana

Pradyumna: Translation: "Lord Rsabhadeva told His sons: My dear boys, of all the living entities who have accepted material bodies in this world, one who has been awarded this human form should not work hard day and night simply for sense gratification, which is available even for dogs and hogs that eat stool. One should engage in penance and austerity to attain the divine position of devotional service. By such activity, one's heart is purified, and when one attains this position, he attains eternal, blissful life, which is transcendental to material happiness and which continues forever." [SB 5.5.1] [break]

Prabhupada: The fifty percent of Western…, in Western cities, there will be ground subways. In subways, train is going on at fifty-mile speed, and working accordingly. Aim…, aim is, "I shall get some money, then I shall drink, I shall eat meat, and then I shall have sex." This is going on Not that… Nobody would say that "I am making money for spiritual salvation or for worshiping Deity in the temple or giving in charity to the Vaisnava." Nobody will say. They will say, "I am working so hard for eating all nasty things." No discrimination-"Anything you bring, I will eat: meat, eggs, rum…" I cannot say-I have not been in their home-but I have seen in the aeroplane they are eating the intestines of the hog. Yes.

Nana yoni bhramana kare kadarya bhaksana kare'. That is stated by Narottama dasa Thakura, that these people, fools…

Very simple language. He says that there are three ways: karma-kanḍa, jnana-kanḍa and upasana-kanḍa. Upasana-kanḍa means bhakti. The best of the upasana-kanḍa is bhakti. Aradhananam sarvesam visnor aradhanam param [Padma Purana].

There are upasana, worshiping various different types of demigods. That is recommended in sastra, that if you want this profit, then you worship this demigod, this demigod, this demigod. Generally they are summarized into five, pancopasana: the Surya, Ganesa, Lord Siva, Lord, er, Mother Durga and Lord Visnu. These are called pancopasana. They are recommended, summarized. Otherwise, there are thirty-three crores of devas. So these devas are worshiped according to the version of Krsna: kamais tais tair hrta-jnanaḥ yajante anya-devataḥ [Bg 7.20]. They are not accepted, those who are after pancopasana.

Anyway, the business is…, pūja means I call you and offer you some respectable gesture, some foodstuff, and then very much seated very comfortably. Naturally I may ask, "What do you want?" Then I'll expect, "Give me this. Give me that. Give me that." That is going on. That is called pūja. But those who are worshiping the Supreme Personality of Godhead, that is not called pūja; that is called seva, krsna-seva. We never say krsna-pūja. Nobody… Never says like that. Seva. Seva means it is my duty. I am eternal servant of Krsna. Seva is my duty. So there is difference between pūja and seva. Pūja means I flatter you to satisfy you, and after being satisfied, you may offer me something, or I'll ask you something and you offer me. That is called pūja. That is devata-pūja. But, so when you come to Krsna, or Visnu, that is not pūja; that is seva. Seva. So as Krsna is offered seva, service, similarly His representative, he is also offered seva. So upasana, upasana-kanḍa.

So Narottama dasa Thakura says there are three different processes: karma-kanḍa, jnana-kanḍa and upasana-kanḍa. Therefore the Vedas are called trayi, three types of processes, or injunction. So this upasana-kanḍa, the best upasana-kanḍa is bhakti. Seva, krsna-seva, this is upasana. Narottama dasa Thakura says that if one does not accept this seva-kanḍa among the upasana process, this seva process, then you will have to accept the other, lower processes, which is called karma and jnana. Narottama dasa Thakura rejects these two lower processes. He says, therefore, karma-kanḍa jnana-kanḍa sakale visera bandha. Visera bandha means the poison pot. Amrta baliya yeba khaya. Anyone can mistake the thinking that this pot of poison is pot of nectar. Then what is the result?

It is this. Here it is called deha-bhajam. One has to accept many varieties of body. One of the bodies is viḍ-bhujam, the stool-eater, stool-eater. And there is another, as I told you I saw in the aeroplane, that the pig…, they are eating stool and having the bodily construction, and there are human beings eating stool. Not only he eats the stool-eater body, but intestine. I think some of you know what is this product. What is that preparation?

Devotees: Sausages. [laughter]

Prabhupada: [indistinct] Yes. So, nana yoni brahmana kare. So by the wandering in many, many thousands of different forms of life, whether you are born in Europe and America, then we have to take it, "Nice food! intestine of hog! Oh" So, nana yoni brahmana kare sakale visera, this is, what it is like. Disgusted, but they like it. This is the result of karma-kanḍa, jnana-kanḍa. Why Narottama dasa Thakura says jnana-kanḍa? Jnana-kanḍa means that is not harmful to you. Karma-kanḍa is not at all perfect position.You work hard, you get the result. But even you get disgusted, you come to the jnana-kanḍa platform, knowledge, still it is not safe. Why it is not safe? That is stated in the sastra: aruhya krcchrena param padam tataḥpatanty adho 'nadrta-yusmad-ahghrayaḥ [SB 10.2.32]

These jnanis, they undergo severe austerities. The jnani-sampradaya, they observe very strictly-not nowadays; that they have lost-very strictly, all austerities. Sahkaracarya, he recommended this process where he has to accept very serious austerities, sitting down under the tree, taking bath three times, and so on. Very difficult. Therefore krcchra-sadhana, very severe austerities.

So the jnanis, after working very hard and undertaking austerities, they come to the position of param padam. Aruhya krcchrena param padam. Param padam means impersonal Brahman realization. But because it is not perfection, it is only this eternal portion of our lives. As there is no knowledge and ananda, partial realization of our identity will not allow you to stay eternally. You cannot. Variety. You want variety. Ananda-mayo 'bhyasat [Vedanta-sūtra 1.1.12]. We are the part and parcel of the sac-cid-ananda-vigrahaḥ. We want ananda. Ananda means we want variety. Variety is the mother of enjoyment.

So in the Brahman existence, impersonal Brahman existence, there is no variety. Just like if you stay in the sky, there is no variety-simply sunshine in the sky. But if you come to the planet, then there is variety. So similarly, the jnanis, without being allowed entrance into the varieties of the spiritual world-ananda-cinmaya-rasa-pratibhavitabhiḥ [Bs 5.37], they come down again into this material variety.

Therefore many sannyasis, they take to this material activities, philanthropic activities, opening hospitals, shelter for the poor, because they could not get any ananda in that impersonal Brahman state. Ananda-mayo 'bhyasat. By nature you want ananda, but there is no ananda. The same example I have given many times, that if you fly very, very high in the sky, and after few hours you become restless with sky, you must be…, come back. Because in the impersonal sky there is no ananda. Aruhya krcchrena [SB 10.2.32].

To go very high by aeroplane or sputnik it requires money, it requires talent, mechanical arrangement, so many things. So that is austerity. But still you cannot stay there. You have to come back again. There are many examples. The Russian aeronautics, when they are going in sputnik, they are looking after, "Where is Moscow? Where is Moscow?" because Moscow is variety, and in the sky there is no variety. Therefore this example is very nice, that in the impersonal Brahman existence you cannot exist. That's all. Because they have no information of the spiritual variety. That spiritual variety is available in the Vaikuntha planet. But you have no licence; therefore you return to Moscow. So param padam. Although you…,it is so vast in the impersonal Brahman, patanty adhaḥ. Why? Anadrta-yusmad-ahghrayaḥ [SB 10.2.32]. Without any devotional service to the lotus feet of the Lord.

So therefore here it is said that "My dear boys, don't spoil your life for sense gratification. That is the business of cats and dogs." That is not the human form. Now, what I am saying, it is not known. They are thinking, "Simply work very hard." They think there are varieties, work hard. Man is working by doing the jobs, by [indistinct], but still the government is going, "Work hard." You work hard, and you cannot [indistinct] "…still what I have to do?" So you know how working hard in your country, despite [indistinct] go to join this army draft, this system of life. No, this is not civilization. According to the [indistinct], this is not civilization. Simply by working day…

[break] …tapa, tapasya. Tapasya means give up this sense gratification, that is tapasya. Tapasya means… You should understand what is tapasya. Tapasya means to deny, nidrahara-viharakadi-vijitau [Sri Saḍ Gosvamy Astaka 6]. This is tapasya. Tapasya, you should understand tapasya. Why tapasya? Tapasya, just to purify your existence. Just like if you get fever, the doctor says, "Don't eat anything. Don't take anything. Don't touch this." Why? That is also called tapasya. If you have got fever, if you have got dysentery, and you still go on eating as you like, then it will increase. It will increase. There is a common word in India that jva means fever and bha means somebody's health is not good health. Unwanted guest. So if you want to die that way, don't eat. Don't eat anything. If you have some guest who is unwanted, if you don't supply food, then he will go away. [indistinct] Similarly, when you have got fever or any disease, you stop eating whatever it is, sense desire. Don't even [indistinct]. So similarly, for sense gratification, if we indulge in sense gratification, then you will never be able to stop this existence. Whatever [indistinct] it is, then bhūtva bhūtva praliyate [Bg 8.19]. We are accepting different bodies and again die. This will be the condemnation of material existence. So, I hope that you will [indistinct] of material life and we shall return back to Godhead… [break] [end]