Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam: Canto 7: “The Science of God”
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Chapter Fourteen
SB7.14.10
TEXT 10
tri-vargaṁ nātikṛcchreṇa
bhajeta gṛha-medhy api
yathā-deśaṁ yathā-kālaṁ
yāvad-daivopapāditam
SYNONYMS
tri-vargam—three principles, namely religiosity, economic development and sense gratification; na—not; ati-kṛcchreṇa—by very severe endeavor; bhajeta—should execute; gṛha-medhī—a person interested only in family life; api—although; yathā-deśam—according to the place; yathā-kālam—according to the time; yāvat—as much as; daiva—by the grace of the Lord; upapāditam—obtained.
TRANSLATION
Even if one is a householder rather than a brahmacārī, a sannyāsī or a vānaprastha, one should not endeavor very hard for religiosity, economic development or satisfaction of the senses. Even in householder life, one should be satisfied to maintain body and soul together with whatever is available with minimum endeavor, according to place and time, by the grace of the Lord. One should not engage oneself in ugra-karma.
PURPORT
In human life there are four principles to be fulfilled—dharma, artha, kāma and mokṣa (religion, economic development, sense gratification, and liberation). First one should be religious, observing various rules and regulations, and then one must earn some money for maintenance of his family and the satisfaction of his senses. The most important ceremony for sense gratification is marriage because sexual intercourse is one of the principal necessities of the material body. Yan maithunādi-gṛhamedhi-sukhaṁ hi tuccham [SB 7.9.45]. Although sexual intercourse is not a very exalted requisite in life, both animals and men require some sense gratification because of material propensities. One should be satisfied with married life and not expend energy for extra sense gratification or sex life.
As for economic development, the responsibility for this should be entrusted mainly to the vaiśyas and gṛhasthas. Human society should be divided into varṇas and āśramas—brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra, brahmacarya, gṛhastha, vānaprastha and sannyāsa. Economic development is necessary for gṛhasthas. Brāhmaṇa gṛhasthas should be satisfied with a life of adhyayana, adhyāpana, yajana and yājana—being learned scholars, teaching others to be scholars, learning how to worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu, and also teaching others how to worship Lord Viṣṇu, or even the demigods. A brāhmaṇa should do this without remuneration, but he is allowed to accept charity from a person whom he teaches how to be a human being. As for the kṣatriyas, they are supposed to be the kings of the land, and the land should be distributed to the vaiśyas for agricultural activities, cow protection and trade. Śūdras must work; sometimes they should engage in occupational duties as cloth manufacturers, weavers, blacksmiths, goldsmiths, brass-smiths, and so on, or else they should engage in hard labor to produce food grains.
These are the different occupational duties by which men should earn their livelihood, and in this way human society should be simple. At the present moment, however, everyone is engaged in technological advancement, which is described in Bhagavad-gītā as ugra-karma—extremely severe endeavor. This ugra-karma is the cause of agitation within the human mind. Men are engaging in many sinful activities and becoming degraded by opening slaughterhouses, breweries and cigarette factories, as well as nightclubs and other establishments for sense enjoyment. In this way they are spoiling their lives. In all of these activities, of course, householders are involved, and therefore it is advised here, with the use of the word api, that even though one is a householder, one should not engage himself in severe hardships. One’s means of livelihood should be extremely simple. As for those who are not gṛhasthas—the brahmacārīs, vānaprasthas and sannyāsīs—they don’t have to do anything but strive for advancement in spiritual life. This means that three fourths of the entire population should stop sense gratification and simply be engaged in the advancement of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Only one fourth of the population should be gṛhastha, and that should be according to laws of restricted sense gratification. The gṛhasthas, vānaprasthas, brahmacārīs and sannyāsīs should endeavor together with their total energy to become Kṛṣṇa conscious. This type of civilization is called daiva-varṇāśrama. One of the objectives of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is to establish this daiva-varṇāśrama, but not to encourage so-called varṇāśrama without scientifically organized endeavor by human society.
SB7.14.11 TEXT 11 āśvāghānte ’vasāyibhyaḥ kāmān saṁvibhajed yathā apy ekām ātmano dārāṁ nṛṇāṁ svatva-graho yataḥ SYNONYMS ā—even up to; śva—the dog; agha—sinful animals or living entities; ante avasāyibhyaḥ—unto the caṇḍālas, the lowest of men (dog-eaters and hog-eaters); kāmān—the necessities of life; saṁvibhajet—should divide; yathā—as much as (deserved); api—even; ekām—one; ātmanaḥ—own; dārām—the wife; nṛṇām—of the people in general; svatva-grahaḥ—the wife is accepted as being identical with one’s self; yataḥ—because of which.
TRANSLATION Dogs, fallen persons and untouchables, including caṇḍālas [dog-eaters], should all be maintained with their proper necessities, which should be contributed by the householders. Even one’s wife at home, with whom one is most intimately attached, should be offered for the reception of guests and people in general. PURPORT Although in modern society the dog is accepted as part of one’s household paraphernalia, in the Vedic system of household life the dog is untouchable; as mentioned here, a dog may be maintained with proper food, but it cannot be allowed to enter one’s house, what to speak of the bedroom. Outcastes or untouchable caṇḍālas should also be provided with the necessities for life. The word used in this connection is yathā, which means “as much as deserved.” The outcastes should not be given money with which to indulge in more than they need, for otherwise they will misuse it. At the present moment, for example, low-class men are generally paid quite amply, but instead of using their money to cultivate knowledge and advance in life, such low-class men use their extra money for wine-drinking and similar sinful activities. As mentioned in Bhagavad-gītā (4.13), cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ: there must be four divisions of human society according to the work and qualities of men. Men with the lowest qualities cannot do any work that requires higher intelligence. However, although such a division of men must exist according to their quality and work, it is suggested herewith that everyone must have the necessities of life. The communists of the present day are in favor of supplying the necessities of life to everyone, but they consider only the human beings and not the lower animals. The Bhāgavatam’s principles are so broad, however, that it recommends that the necessities of life be supplied to everyone, man or animal, regardless of good or bad qualities.
The idea of giving even one’s wife to the service of the public is that one’s intimate relationship with his wife, or one’s excessive attachment for his wife, by which one thinks his wife to be his better half or to be identical with himself, must gradually be given up. As formerly suggested, the idea of ownership, even of one’s family, must be abandoned. The dream of material life is the cause of bondage in the cycle of birth and death, and therefore one should give up this dream. Consequently, in the human form of life one’s attachment for his wife should be given up, as suggested herein.
SB7.14.12 TEXT 12 jahyād yad-arthe svān prāṇān hanyād vā pitaraṁ gurum tasyāṁ svatvaṁ striyāṁ jahyād yas tena hy ajito jitaḥ SYNONYMS jahyāt—one may give up; yat-arthe—for whom; svān—one’s own; prāṇān—life; hanyāt—one may kill; vā—or; pitaram—the father; gurum—the teacher or spiritual master; tasyām—unto her; svatvam—ownership; striyām—unto the wife; jahyāt—one must give up; yaḥ—one who (the Supreme Personality of Godhead); tena—by him; hi—indeed; ajitaḥ—cannot be conquered; jitaḥ—conquered.
TRANSLATION One so seriously considers one’s wife to be his own that he sometimes kills himself for her or kills others, including even his parents or his spiritual master or teacher. Therefore if one can give up his attachment to such a wife, he conquers the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is never conquered by anyone. PURPORT Every husband is too much attached to his wife. Therefore, to give up one’s connection with his wife is extremely difficult, but if one can somehow or other give it up for the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, then the Lord Himself, although not able to be conquered by anyone, comes very much under the control of the devotee. And if the Lord is pleased with a devotee, what is there that is unobtainable? Why should one not give up his affection for his wife and children and take shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead? Where is the loss of anything material? Householder life means attachment for one’s wife, whereas sannyāsa means detachment from one’s wife and attachment to Kṛṣṇa.
SB7.14.13 TEXT 13 kṛmi-viḍ-bhasma-niṣṭhāntaṁ kvedaṁ tucchaṁ kalevaram kva tadīya-ratir bhāryā kvāyam ātmā nabhaś-chadiḥ SYNONYMS kṛmi—insects, germs; viṭ—stool; bhasma—ashes; niṣṭha—attachment; antam—at the end; kva—what is; idam—this (body); tuccham—very insignificant; kalevaram—material tabernacle; kva—what is that; tadīya-ratiḥ—attraction for that body; bhāryā—wife; kva ayam—what is the value of this body; ātmā—the Supreme Soul; nabhaḥ-chadiḥ—all-pervading like the sky.
TRANSLATION Through proper deliberation, one should give up attraction to his wife’s body because that body will ultimately be transformed into small insects, stool or ashes. What is the value of this insignificant body? How much greater is the Supreme Being, who is all-pervading like the sky? PURPORT Here also, the same point is stressed: one should give up attachment for his wife—or, in other words, for sex life. If one is intelligent, he can think of his wife’s body as nothing but a lump of matter that will ultimately be transformed into small insects, stool or ashes. In different societies there are different ways of dealing with the human body at the time of the funeral ceremony. In some societies the body is given to the vultures to be eaten, and therefore the body ultimately turns to vulture stool. Sometimes the body is merely abandoned, and in that case the body is consumed by small insects. In some societies the body is immediately burned after death, and thus it becomes ashes. In any case, if one intelligently considers the constitution of the body and the soul beyond it, what is the value of the body? Antavanta ime dehā nityasyoktāḥ śarīriṇaḥ: [Bg. 2.18] the body may perish at any moment, but the soul is eternal. If one gives up attachment for the body and increases his attachment for the spirit soul, his life is successful. It is merely a matter of deliberation.
SB7.14.14 TEXT 14 siddhair yajñāvaśiṣṭārthaiḥ kalpayed vṛttim ātmanaḥ śeṣe svatvaṁ tyajan prājñaḥ padavīṁ mahatām iyāt SYNONYMS siddhaiḥ—things obtained by the grace of the Lord; yajñā-avaśiṣṭa-arthaiḥ—things obtained after a sacrifice is offered to the Lord or after the recommended pañca-sūnā yajña is performed; kalpayet—one should consider; vṛttim—the means of livelihood; ātmanaḥ—for the self; śeṣe—at the end; svatvam—so-called proprietorship over one’s wife, children, home, business and so on; tyajan—giving up; prājñaḥ—those who are wise; padavīm—the position; mahatām—of the great personalities who are fully satisfied in spiritual consciousness; iyāt—should achieve.
TRANSLATION An intelligent person should be satisfied with eating prasāda [food offered to the Lord] or with performing the five different kinds of yajña [pañca-sūnā]. By such activities, one can give up attachment for the body and so-called proprietorship with reference to the body. When one is able to do this, he is firmly fixed in the position of a mahātmā. PURPORT Nature already has an arrangement to feed us. By the order of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, there is an arrangement for eatables for every living entity within the 8,400,000 forms of life. Eko bahūnāṁ yo vidadhāti kāmān. Every living entity has to eat something, and in fact the necessities for his life have already been provided by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Lord has provided food for both the elephant and the ant. All living beings are living at the cost of the Supreme Lord, and therefore one who is intelligent should not work very hard for material comforts. Rather, one should save his energy for advancing in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. All created things in the sky, in the air, on land and in the sea belong to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and every living being is provided with food. Therefore one should not be very much anxious about economic development and unnecessarily waste time and energy with the risk of falling down in the cycle of birth and death.
SB7.14.15 TEXT 15 devān ṛṣīn nṛ-bhūtāni pitṝn ātmānam anvaham sva-vṛttyāgata-vittena yajeta puruṣaṁ pṛthak SYNONYMS devān—unto the demigods; ṛṣīn—unto the great sages; nṛ—unto human society; bhūtāni—unto the living entities in general; pitṝn—unto the forefathers; ātmānam—one’s self or the Supreme Self; anvaham—daily; sva-vṛttyā—by one’s means of livelihood; āgata-vittena—money that automatically comes; yajeta—one should worship; puruṣam—the person situated in everyone’s heart; pṛthak—separately.
TRANSLATION Every day, one should worship the Supreme Being who is situated in everyone’s heart, and on this basis one should separately worship the demigods, the saintly persons, ordinary human beings and living entities, one’s forefathers and one’s self. In this way one is able to worship the Supreme Being in the core of everyone’s heart. SB7.14.16 TEXT 16 yarhy ātmano ’dhikārādyāḥ sarvāḥ syur yajña-sampadaḥ vaitānikena vidhinā agni-hotrādinā yajet SYNONYMS yarhi—when; ātmanaḥ—of one’s self; adhikāra-ādyāḥ—things possessed by him under full control; sarvāḥ—everything; syuḥ—becomes; yajña-sampadaḥ—paraphernalia for performing yajña, or the means for pleasing the Supreme Personality of Godhead; vaitānikena—with authorized books that direct the performance of yajña; vidhinā—according to regulative principles; agni-hotra-ādinā—by offering sacrifices to the fire, etc.; yajet—one should worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
TRANSLATION When one is enriched with wealth and knowledge which are under his full control and by means of which he can perform yajña or please the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one must perform sacrifices, offering oblations to the fire according to the directions of the śāstras. In this way one should worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead. PURPORT If a gṛhastha, or householder, is sufficiently educated in Vedic knowledge and has become sufficiently rich to offer worship to please the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he must perform yajñas as directed by the authorized scriptures. Bhagavad-gītā (3.9) clearly says, yajñārthāt karmaṇo ’nyatra loko ’yaṁ karma-bandhanaḥ: everyone may be engaged in his occupational duties, but the result of these duties should be offered for sacrifice to satisfy the Supreme Lord. If one is fortunate enough to possess transcendental knowledge as well as the money with which to perform sacrifices, one must do it according to the directions given in the śāstras. It is said in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (12.3.52):
kṛte yad dhyāyato viṣṇuṁ The entire Vedic civilization aims at satisfying the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This was possible in Satya-yuga by meditation upon the Supreme Lord within the core of one’s heart and in Tretā-yuga by the performance of costly yajñas. The same goal could be achieved in Dvāpara-yuga by worship of the Lord in the temple, and in this age of Kali one can achieve the same goal by performing saṅkīrtana-yajña. Therefore one who has education and wealth must use them to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead by helping the saṅkīrtana movement that has already begun—the Hare Kṛṣṇa movement, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. All educated and wealthy persons must join this movement, since money and education are meant for service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. If money and education are not engaged in the service of the Lord, these valuable assets must be engaged in the service of māyā. The education of so-called scientists, philosophers and poets is now engaged in the service of māyā, and the wealth of the rich is also engaged in māyā’s service. The service of māyā, however, creates a chaotic condition in the world. Therefore the wealthy man and the educated man should sacrifice their knowledge and opulence by dedicating them for the satisfaction of the Supreme Lord and joining this saṅkīrtana movement (yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana-prāyair yajanti hi sumedhasaḥ [SB 11.5.32]).
SB7.14.17 TEXT 17 na hy agni-mukhato ’yaṁ vai bhagavān sarva-yajña-bhuk ijyeta haviṣā rājan yathā vipra-mukhe hutaiḥ SYNONYMS na—not; hi—indeed; agni—fire; mukhataḥ—from the mouth or the flames; ayam—this; vai—certainly; bhagavān—Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa; sarva-yajña-bhuk—the enjoyer of the results of all kinds of sacrifices; ijyeta—is worshiped; haviṣā—by offering of clarified butter; rājan—O King; yathā—as much as; vipra-mukhe—through the mouth of a brāhmaṇa; hutaiḥ—by offering him first-class food.
TRANSLATION The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, is the enjoyer of sacrificial offerings. Yet although His Lordship eats the oblations offered in the fire, my dear King, He is still more satisfied when nice food made of grains and ghee is offered to Him through the mouths of qualified brāhmaṇas. PURPORT As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (3.9), yajñārthāt karmaṇo ’nyatra loko ’yaṁ karma-bandhanaḥ: all fruitive activities should be performed for sacrifice, which should be directed toward pleasing Kṛṣṇa. As stated elsewhere in Bhagavad-gītā (5.29), bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram: He is the Supreme Lord and enjoyer of everything. However, although sacrifice may be offered to please Kṛṣṇa, He is more pleased when grains and ghee, instead of being offered in the fire, are prepared as prasāda and distributed, first to the brāhmaṇas and then to others. This system pleases Kṛṣṇa more than anything else. Furthermore, at the present time there is very little chance to offer sacrifices by pouring oblations of food grains and ghee into the fire. Especially in India, there is practically no ghee; for everything that should be done with ghee, people use a certain type of oil preparation. Oil, however, is never recommended for offering in a sacrificial fire. In Kali-yuga, the available quantity of food grains and ghee is gradually diminishing, and people are embarrassed that they cannot produce sufficient ghee and food grains. Under the circumstances, the śāstras enjoin, yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana-prāyair yajanti hi sumedhasaḥ: [SB 11.5.32] in this age, those who are intellectual offer yajña, or perform sacrifices, through the saṅkīrtana movement. Everyone should join the saṅkīrtana movement, offering to the fire of this movement the oblations of his knowledge and riches. In our saṅkīrtana movement, or Hare Kṛṣṇa movement, we offer sumptuous prasāda to the Deity and later distribute the same prasāda to the brāhmaṇas, the Vaiṣṇavas and then to the people in general. Kṛṣṇa’s prasāda is offered to the brāhmaṇas and Vaiṣṇavas, and the prasāda of the brāhmaṇas and Vaiṣṇavas is offered to the general populace. This kind of sacrifice—chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra and distribution of prasāda—is the most perfect and bona fide way of offering sacrifice for the pleasure of Yajña, or Viṣṇu.
SB7.14.18 TEXT 18 tasmād brāhmaṇa-deveṣu martyādiṣu yathārhataḥ tais taiḥ kāmair yajasvainaṁ kṣetra-jñaṁ brāhmaṇān anu SYNONYMS tasmāt—therefore; brāhmaṇa-deveṣu—through the brāhmaṇas and the demigods; martya-ādiṣu—through ordinary human beings and other living entities; yathā-arhataḥ—according to your ability; taiḥ taiḥ—with all those; kāmaiḥ—various objects of enjoyment such as sumptuous food, flower garlands, sandalwood paste, etc.; yajasva—you should worship; enam—this; kṣetra-jñam—Supreme Lord situated in the hearts of all beings; brāhmaṇān—the brāhmaṇas; anu—after.
TRANSLATION Therefore, my dear King, first offer prasāda unto the brāhmaṇas and the demigods, and after sumptuously feeding them you may distribute prasāda to other living entities according to your ability. In this way you will be able to worship all living entities—or, in other words, the supreme living entity within every living entity. PURPORT To distribute prasāda to all living entities, the process is that we must first offer prasāda to the brāhmaṇas and the Vaiṣṇavas, for the demigods are represented by the brāhmaṇas. In this way the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is situated in everyone’s heart, will be worshiped. This is the Vedic system of offering prasāda. Whenever there is a ceremony for distribution of prasāda, the prasāda is offered first to the brāhmaṇas, then to the children and old men, then to the women, and then to animals like dogs and other domestic animals. When it is said that Nārāyaṇa, the Supreme Being, is situated in everyone’s heart, this does not mean that everyone has become Nārāyaṇa or that a particular poor man has become Nārāyaṇa. Such a conclusion is rejected herein.
SB7.14.19 TEXT 19 kuryād apara-pakṣīyaṁ māsi prauṣṭha-pade dvijaḥ śrāddhaṁ pitror yathā-vittaṁ tad-bandhūnāṁ ca vittavān SYNONYMS kuryāt—one should perform; apara-pakṣīyam—during the fortnight of the dark moon; māsi—in the month of Āśvina (October–November); prauṣṭha-pade—in the month of Bhādra (August–September); dvijaḥ—twice-born; śrāddham—oblations; pitroḥ—unto the forefathers; yathā-vittam—according to one’s means of income; tat-bandhūnām ca—as well as relatives of forefathers; vitta-vān—one who is sufficiently rich.
TRANSLATION A brāhmaṇa who is sufficiently rich must offer oblations to the forefathers during the dark-moon fortnight in the latter part of the month of Bhādra. Similarly, he should offer oblations to the relatives of the forefathers during the mahālayā ceremonies in the month of Āśvina.* SB7.14.20-23 TEXTS 20–23 ayane viṣuve kuryād vyatīpāte dina-kṣaye candrādityoparāge ca dvādaśyāṁ śravaṇeṣu ca tṛtīyāyāṁ śukla-pakṣe navamyām atha kārtike catasṛṣv apy aṣṭakāsu hemante śiśire tathā māghe ca sita-saptamyāṁ maghā-rākā-samāgame rākayā cānumatyā ca māsarkṣāṇi yutāny api dvādaśyām anurādhā syāc chravaṇas tisra uttarāḥ tisṛṣv ekādaśī vāsu janmarkṣa-śroṇa-yoga-yuk SYNONYMS ayane—on the day when the sun begins to move north, or Makara-saṅkrānti, and on the day when the sun begins to move south, or Karkaṭa-saṅkrānti; viṣuve—on the Meṣa-saṅkrānti and on the Tulā-saṅkrānti; kuryāt—one should perform; vyatīpāte—in the yoga named Vyatīpāta; dina-kṣaye—on that day in which three tithis are combined; candra-āditya-uparāge—at the time of the eclipse of either the moon or the sun; ca—and also; dvādaśyām śravaṇeṣu—on the twelfth lunar day and in the nakṣatra named Śravaṇa; ca—and; tṛtīyāyām—on the Akṣaya-tṛtīyā day; śukla-pakṣe—in the bright fortnight of the month; navamyām—on the ninth lunar day; atha—also; kārtike—in the month of Kārtika (October–November); catasṛṣu—on the four; api—also; aṣṭakāsu—on the Aṣṭakās; hemante—before the winter season; śiśire—in the winter season; tathā—and also; māghe—in the month of Māgha (January–February); ca—and; sita-saptamyām—on the seventh lunar day of the bright fortnight; maghā-rākā-samāgame—in the conjunction of Maghā-nakṣatra and the full-moon day; rākayā—with a day of the completely full moon; ca—and; anumatyā—with a full-moon day when the moon is slightly less than completely full; ca—and; māsa-ṛkṣāṇi—the nakṣatras that are the sources of the names of the various months; yutāni—are conjoined; api—also; dvādaśyām—on the twelfth lunar day; anurādhā—the nakṣatra named Anurādhā; syāt—may occur; śravaṇaḥ—the nakṣatra named Śravaṇa; tisraḥ—the three (nakṣatras); uttarāḥ—the nakṣatras named Uttarā (Uttara-phalgunī, Uttarāṣāḍhā and Uttara-bhādrapadā); tisṛṣu—on three; ekādaśī—the eleventh lunar day; vā—or; āsu—on these; janma-ṛkṣa—of one’s own janma-nakṣatra, or birth star; śroṇa—of Śravaṇa-nakṣatra; yoga—by a conjunction; yuk—having.
TRANSLATION One should perform the śrāddha ceremony on the Makara-saṅkrānti [the day when the sun begins to move north] or on the Karkaṭa-saṅkrānti [the day when the sun begins to move south]. One should also perform this ceremony on the Meṣa-saṅkrānti day and the Tulā-saṅkrānti day, in the yoga named Vyatīpāta, on that day in which three lunar tithis are conjoined, during an eclipse of either the moon or the sun, on the twelfth lunar day, and in the Śravaṇa-nakṣatra. One should perform this ceremony on the Akṣaya-tṛtīyā day, on the ninth lunar day of the bright fortnight of the month of Kārtika, on the four aṣṭakās in the winter season and cool season, on the seventh lunar day of the bright fortnight of the month of Māgha, during the conjunction of Maghā-nakṣatra and the full-moon day, and on the days when the moon is completely full, or not quite completely full, when these days are conjoined with the nakṣatras from which the names of certain months are derived. One should also perform the śrāddha ceremony on the twelfth lunar day when it is in conjunction with any of the nakṣatras named Anurādhā, Śravaṇa, Uttara-phalgunī, Uttarāṣāḍhā or Uttara-bhādrapadā. Again, one should perform this ceremony when the eleventh lunar day is in conjunction with either Uttara-phalgunī, Uttarāṣāḍhā or Uttara-bhādrapadā. Finally, one should perform this ceremony on days conjoined with one’s own birth star [janma-nakṣatra] or with Śravaṇa-nakṣatra. PURPORT The word ayana means “path” or “going.” The six months when the sun moves toward the north are called uttarāyaṇa, or the northern path, and the six months when it moves south are called dakṣiṇāyana, or the southern path. These are mentioned in Bhagavad-gītā (8.24–25). The first day when the sun begins to move north and enter the zodiacal sign of Capricorn is called Makara-saṅkrānti, and the first day when the sun begins to move south and enter the sign of Cancer is called Karkaṭa-saṅkrānti. On these two days of the year, one should perform the śrāddha ceremony.
Viṣuva, or Viṣuva-saṅkrānti, means Meṣa-saṅkrānti, or the day on which the sun enters the sign Aries. Tulā-saṅkrānti is the day on which the sun enters the sign Libra. Both of these days occur only once within a year. The word yoga refers to a certain relationship between the sun and moon as they move in the sky. There are twenty-seven different degrees of yoga, of which the seventeenth is called Vyatīpāta. On the day when this occurs, one should perform the śrāddha ceremony. A tithi, or lunar day, consists of the distance between the longitude of the sun and that of the moon. Sometimes a tithi is less than twenty-four hours. When it starts after sunrise on a certain day and ends before the sunrise of the following day, the previous tithi and the following tithi both “touch” the twenty-four-hour day between the sunrises. This is called tryaha-sparśa, or a day touched by some portion of three tithis.
Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī has given quotations from many śāstras stating that the śrāddha ceremony of oblations to the forefathers should not be performed on Ekādaśī tithi. When the tithi of the death anniversary falls on the Ekādaśī day, the śrāddha ceremony should be held not on Ekādaśī but on the next day, or dvādaśī. In the Brahma-vaivarta Purāṇa it is said:
ye kurvanti mahīpāla If one performs the śrāddha ceremony of oblations to the forefathers on the Ekādaśī tithi, then the performer, the forefathers for whom the śrāddha is observed, and the purohita, or the family priest who encourages the ceremony, all go to hell.
SB7.14.24 TEXT 24 ta ete śreyasaḥ kālā nṝṇāṁ śreyo-vivardhanāḥ kuryāt sarvātmanaiteṣu śreyo ’moghaṁ tad-āyuṣaḥ SYNONYMS te—therefore; ete—all these (descriptions of astronomical calculations); śreyasaḥ—of auspiciousness; kālāḥ—times; nṝṇām—for human beings; śreyaḥ—auspiciousness; vivardhanāḥ—increase; kuryāt—one should perform; sarva-ātmanā—by other activities (not only the śrāddha ceremony); eteṣu—in these (seasons); śreyaḥ—(causing) auspiciousness; amogham—and success; tat—of a human being; āyuṣaḥ—of the duration of life.
TRANSLATION All of these seasonal times are considered extremely auspicious for humanity. At such times, one should perform all auspicious activities, for by such activities a human being attains success in his short duration of life. PURPORT When one comes to the human form of life through natural evolution, one must then take the responsibility for further progress. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (9.25), yānti deva-vratā devān: one who worships the demigods can be promoted to their planets. Yānti mad-yājino ’pi mām: and if one practices devotional service to the Lord, he goes back home, back to Godhead. In the human form of life, therefore, one is meant to act auspiciously in order to return home, back to Godhead. Devotional service, however, does not depend on material conditions. Ahaituky apratihatā. Of course, for those who are engaged in fruitive activities on the material platform, the times and seasons mentioned above are extremely congenial.
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tretāyāṁ yajato makhaiḥ
dvāpare paricaryāyāṁ
kalau tad dhari-kīrtanāt
śrāddhaṁ caikādaśi-dine
trayas te narakaṁ yānti
dātā bhoktā ca prerakaḥ