Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.2.2 Nitai: (leads chanting, etc.) suta uvaca yam pravrajantam anupetam apeta-krtyam dvaipayano viraha-katara ajuhava putreti tan-mayataya taravo ’bhinedus tam sarva-bhuta-hrdayam munim anato ’smi [SB 1.2.2] “Srila Suta Gosvami said: Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto that great sage, Sukadeva Gosvami, who can enter the hearts of all. When he went away to take up the renounced order of life, sannyasa, leaving aside home without undergoing the sacred thread ceremony, his father, Vyasadeva, cried out to him, ‘O my son!’ Indeed, only the trees echoed in response to the begrieved father.” Prabhupada: Yam pravrajantam. Pravrajantam means to leave home in renounced order of life. That is called pravrajantam. Therefore a sannyasi is called parivrajakacarya. A sannyasi is supposed to be wandering without any shelter. That is called pravrajya. So Sukadeva Gosvami, he remained sixteen years within the womb of his mother. He did not come out. He was hearing his father within the womb. So this is called paramahamsa. So a paramahamsa does not require any reformatory process, because they are already reformed. Yam pravrajantam anupetam [SB 1.2.2]. An. An means without. Upeta. Upeta means taking shelter of guru or being offered the sacred… Upanayanam. The sacred thread ceremony is called upanayanam. That means he did not undergo the regulative principles because he was within the womb. Without any samskara, he was going immediately, taking birth. Dvaipayano viraha-katarah. The father certainly was expecting the son to remain at home. Every father expects. But he, Sukadeva Gosvami, immediately after his birth, he began to go away. He was simply just waiting, “When I shall be fit to immediately go out of home, I shall take my birth.” So father became very much afflicted on account of separation from the son. Therefore dvaipayana, means Vyasadeva, viraha-katara, became very much aggrieved, that “This son was sixteen years within the womb, and as soon as he is born, he is going away.” Viraha-katara ajuhava: “My dear son, where you are going? Where you are going?” So he did not care for anyone’s calling. He went on. Putreti, “My dear son,” tan-mayataya, being absorbed in the thought of putra. Taravah abhinedus tam. There was, what is called, echo from the trees. Just like he was asking, “My dear son, where you are going? Where you are going?” And there was echo in the forest, “Where you are going? Where you are going?” So taravah abhineduh. So these are all adjectives of the Sukadeva Gosvami. So tam, “That person, who was just followed by his father, and he did not reply, but the trees replied by echoing, so I am offering…” Sukadeva Gosvami was the spiritual master of Suta Gosvami. Therefore before speaking anything… This is the etiquette, that one should offer his obeisances to the spiritual master. (reading:) “The institution of varna and asrama describes many regulative duties to be observed by the father.” There are, dasa-vidha-samskara, reformatory. How it is scientific, just to bring the born child to the standard of civilization. The cats and dogs, they also beget children on the street. A human being also does like that, like cats and dogs. Then how they can expect very intelligent children, advanced children? Therefore there is method, how to beget children. So before begetting children, there is ceremony, garbhadhana-samskara, how to impregnate the wife. Garbhadhana. It is not sex enjoyment. Therefore in the Bhagavad-gita you will find this word dharma aviruddha-kamah aham asmi. Where is that Bhagavad-gita? Find out dharmaviruddhah kamo ’smi. Devotee: (aside:) Do you know where it is? Nitai: Yeah, it’s in the Seventh Chapter, about verse fourteen. Prabhupada: No, no, why don’t you consult the index in which Krsna says “Sex life which is not against the principles of dharma or the varnasrama principle, that is I am.” Sex life also is Krsna. Have you got it? Nitai: Yes. Prabhupada: So read it. Nitai: balam balavatam caham kama-raga-vivarjitam dharmaviruddho bhutesu kamo ’smi bharatarsabha Prabhupada: Dharmaviruddha? Nitai: Dharmaviruddho bhutesu. Prabhupada: Oh. Nitai: Kamo ’smi bharatarsabha. Prabhupada: Read the… Nitai: “I am the strength of the strong, devoid of passion and desire. I am sex life which is not contrary to religious principles, O lord of the Bharatas.” Prabhupada: Yes. This sex life, garbhadhana-samskara… This is called garbhadhana-samskara, just to beget first-class children. That kind of sex life, Krsna says, “I am that sex life.” This is samskara. So formerly, at least those who were on the higher status of the society, namely the brahmana, ksatriya, and vaisyas, they had to observe this garbhadhana-samskara. It is not a secret thing. Because one is going to beget child, so the child must be worth, a human being, Therefore there is sam… First of all, the garbhadhana-samskara. Then, when the wife is pregnant, there are other samskaras. Then upanayana-samskara, vivaha-samskara, up to the point of death. From before birth and up to the point of death, there are samskaras. Asamskrtah kriya-hina mleccha rajanya-rupinah. That is stated in the Srimad… Asamskrta. The present government men, they did not go any samskara. Formerly, the kings, they… The higher castes, never mind he is king or not, but higher caste… Therefore they claimed higher. Not claimed. Actually they were. The brahmanas and the ksatriyas especially, and also the vaisyas, they went the samskara, reformatory. Just like samskara means educational process, to elevate one. Just like we send to school, college, for elevating a child to the higher standard of life, knowledge, similarly, these samskaras also like that. One must undergo the samskaras, the reformatory method, and act in life. If I have taken the samskara of brahmana, if I have accepted the sacred thread, then I must act as a brahmana. It is very practical. Just like if you have passed your examination as an engineer, then you must act as an engineer. Not that simply you have got the qualification of engineer, and now you are engaged in the business of a shopkeeper. No. You must act as engineer. That is qualification. Similarly, catur-varnyam maya srstam guna-karma-vibhagasah [Bg. 4.13] Krsna says that “This division, the social division—brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya, sudra—is made by Me according to quality and work.” Not that simply work or simply quality. You must have the quality and work, both. Means you must be bona fide candidate to work for something. If you want to work as a brahmana, then you must have all, you must possess all the bona fide qualities of a brahmana. If you want to act as a ksatriya, then you must have all the ksatriya qualities and act. The ksatriya means they are especially the… Yuddhe capy apalayanam. A ksatriya is never afraid of fighting; neither, if somebody challenges, “I would fight with you, I want to fight with you,” the ksatriya will never deny. If somebody comes forward to a ksatriya, that “I want to play chess or gamble…” Gambling was allowed to the ksatriyas. It is by gambling all the Pandavas, they lost everything. The Kauravas, his brother, they made a trick to challenge—because a ksatriya cannot deny—that “We want to play games with you and betting.” So they betted their kingdom, their wife, and their everything. Then they were banished. There was a trick to make them humiliated in every respect. So ksatriya, because a ksatriya cannot refuse, if any opposing party comes to a ksatriya that “I want to fight with you,” a ksatriya cannot deny. And that fighting would go up to the death, till it is decided. One must die. Just like Jarasandha. Jarasandha and Krsna and Arjuna and Bhima. There was many times fight with Jarasandha and Krsna. But he brought many, many unlimited number of soldiers, and they were killed. So this time Krsna wanted to kill only Jarasandha, not so many innocent soldiers. So therefore Krsna, Arjuna, and Bhima went to Jarasandha, and they went in the dress of brahmana. So Jarasandha was very charitable to the brahmanas. So when they… As brahmanas, they wanted something. “Yes, what do you want?” Then they said that “We want to fight with you.” So Jarasandha could understand, “They are in disguise. They are ksatriyas.” So Jarasandha said, “Yes, accepted. Then who will fight with me? You are three.” Then they challenged also, “Anyone. Anyone. You can accept.” So Jarasandha said that “Krsna, He fled away.” Krsna is Ranchor. Sometimes He did that. The purpose was to save the innocent soldiers, and He would take another chance to kill Jarasandha. But he thought that He fled away. Anyway, so he said that “Krsna is afraid of me. I cannot fight with Him. I reject Him. And Arjuna is younger than me; so I cannot fight with who is younger, inferior, to me. But I can accept Bhima, to fight with him.” So there was fight with Bhima and Jarasandha. This is ksatriya spirit. He could not deny. They were guests, these three men, namely Krsna, Arjuna… They were guests. So they would fight the whole day, or, say, in the morning, after taking their breakfast, they’d begin fighting. And the fighting will go on. And at night they are guests. They were received very well. They would dine together, talk together, friendly. You see? So this is ksatriya spirit. And in this way, for twenty-seven or twenty-eight days, the fighting was going on. Later on, Jarasandha was killed by the hint of Krsna. This is ksatriya spirit. Similarly, brahmana spirit. Guna-karma-vibhagasah. So Sukadeva Gosvami, he did not undergo any of these principles because he was paramahamsa, above all these things. Therefore anupetam. (reading purport:) “The institution of varnasrama prescribed many regulative duties.” Dasa-vidha-samskara, ten kinds of reformatory methods. But he did not undergo. (reading purport:) “Such duties enjoin that a candidate willing to study the Vedas must approach a bona fide spiritual master.” If anyone wants to become a brahmana, it is not that the brahmana’s son would automatically become brahmana. No. Anyone could become brahmana. Just like Jabala Upanisad. Satyakama Jabala. This Satyakama was the son of a prostitute. He was not a brahmana’s son. So he wanted to become brahmana. So he went to Gautama Muni, “Sir, please initiate me. I want to become a brahmana.” Sudras were not initiated. In the formerly… Sudras are common. Therefore Gautama Muni inquired that “What you are? Because I do not initiate who is not born of a brahmana father.” So he said, “I do not know.” “So go to your mother. Ask whose son you are.” The mother said, “I do not know.” So he came and he said that “Sir, my mother does not know whose son I am.” So Gautama Muni accepted him as disciple because he was truthful. He saw that he has got the brahminical qualification, truthful. Everyone is not willing that to admit that he is the son of a prostitute. No. But he admitted, “Yes, my mother does not know by whom I was begotten.” So this is qualification. So in the Kali-yuga especially, there is no Vedic system of reformatory process. It is the pancaratriki-vidhi, that anyone has got a little qualification for becoming brahmana, he is accepted by the spiritual master and he is trained up, he is initiated, just to make him a complete brahmana. (reading:) “So the sacred thread is the sign of those who are competent to study the Vedas from acarya, or the bona fide spiritual master.” The bona fide spiritual master is called acarya, or the acarya can become a bona fide spiritual master. Acarya means who knows the purport of the sastra, and he behaves himself according to the shastric regulative principle and teaches his disciple in that way. He is called acarya. Acarya means whose behavior, whose activities should be followed. That is called acarya. (reading:) “Generally, a man is born as ordinary being, and by the purificatory process, he is born for the second time.” That is called dvija. Even a man is born, so he is not accepted as human being. Because unless the purificatory process is there, he cannot be accepted as human being. Therefore unless in any society the varnasrama-dharma is not there, they are not human beings. They are called animals or mlecchas, yavanas. Civilized society means he must know, he must (have) undergone all the regulative principles. But at the present moment, in the Bhagavata it is said, asamskrta: “without any reformatory method.” All these posts, government posts, are occupied by persons asamskrtah kriya-hina mleccha rajanya-rupinah. So what will be their business? They do not know what is the responsibility of government. They do not know. Therefore the whole world is in chaos. They are neither themselves perfect gentlemen or perfect brahmana or ksatriya. They are also like animals, sudras. How they can rule over nicely? But formerly that was not. The brahmana, or the ksatriya especially, they must undergo the reformatory method. So “Generally, a man is born as an ordinary being, and by the purificatory processes he is born for the second time.” This is called dvija, second time, by the spiritual master. “When he sees a new light and seeks direction for spiritual progress, he approaches spiritual master to instruct him in the Vedas.” This is our process. In the beginning we do not ask anybody to become initiated or a brahmana. No. We simply invite a person to join the chanting. This is our process. We should strictly follow this. In the beginning, we should not ask that “You have to do this, you have to…” He cannot do that. That is not possible. But everyone should be given chance because in the Kali-yuga there is no reformatory system. Everyone is born sudra and less than that, candala. So they should not be neglected also. Not that “Because all people are fallen—they are less than sudras and candalas—so neglect them. Let me chant Hare Krsna.” No. This is not. The duty of Vaisnava is to reclaim these fallen souls. Just like Krsna says in the Bhagavad-gita, mam hi partha vyapasritya ye ’pi syuh papa-yonayah. Find out this verse: mam hi partha vyapasritya ye ’pi syuh papa-yonayah striyo vaisyas tatha sudras te ’pi yanti param gatim [Bg. 9.32] Krsna says, “Anyone who comes under My shelter, never mind he is the lowest of the low, lowborn…” The striyo vaisyah… Formerly, even the woman and the mercantile community and sudras, they were also considered as papa-yoni. Papa-yoni means whose brain is not very developed. That is papa-yoni. Blunt-headed. What is that? Nitai: mam hi partha vyapasritya ye ’pi syuh papa-yonayah striyo vaisyas tatha sudras te ’pi yanti param gatim [Bg. 9.32] “O son of Prtha, those who take shelter in Me, though they be of lower birth—woman, vaisyas merchants, as well as sudras, workers—can approach the supreme destination.” Prabhupada: So the supreme destination, back to Godhead, back to home, is for everyone. It is not that God… God means for everyone. God does not say, “Only the brahmana class of men, please come here. Others all rejected.” No. He is inviting everyone. Even the lowest of the lowest, low-born, papa-yonayah, women, sudra, or vaisyas, everyone. Now, Krsna says that “Everyone has got the potency of coming to Me, go back to home, back to Godhead.” That is admitted by Krsna. Now, who will make them qualified to go back to home, back to Godhead? That is the Vaisnava, those who are actually very sincere servant of Krsna. It is their duty. Krsna says that “Everyone is competent to come to Me if he is following the rules and regulations.” Vyapasritya. What is the meaning of vyapasritya? Nitai: “Particularly taking shelter.” Prabhupada: Yes, particularly. One should be willing to go back to home, back to Godhead and take shelter particularly, means his representative. Such person can be elevated. So it is not that… But unfortunately, in India, although Bhagavad-gita is there, they neglect it. The so-called brahmanas, so-called gosvamis, so- called…, they neglect this process. Just like in India, the Muhammadans, the Muhammadans who claim to be partitioned: Pakistan and Hindustan. There are number of Muhammadans, they protested that “India is going to be independent, but we do not wish to participate with the Hindus. We must be separate.” Why? Because they have got a bad experience that the Hindus did not treat them very well. Did not… Even sudra. In South India, it was the process, so bad process. If sudra is passing on the street, he has to cry, “I am a sudra passing on the street. Please close your door.” The brahmanas would close the door so that they may not even see a sudra. Then everything will be spoiled, their food grains and everything. They will close. You see. Now the result is that South India, the Communists Communists means the so-called low-class people, sudras and candalas, they are now in majority. They have formed a government that on principle, as soon as some brahmana comes for government service, he will reject. So the brahmanas are now hiding themselves, that he is brahmana, because he cannot get any job. (laughter) This is the position. So this negligence, this is not Vedic culture. Because they neglected… These Muhammadans who came, who grown in India, they were not imported from Afghanistan or Turkey or any Muhammadan country. They were Indians. But they were not given any facility for spiritual culture. The brahmanas monopolized it. Although they would not do anything. They would all, degraded form. But the state, they would keep these sudras and the candalas downtrodden and ill-treated. So therefore, when Aurangzeb passed a law, Jeziar tax.(?) Jeziar(?) tax means all the non-Muhammadans would pay a tax. So these low-class people were so neglected. They thought—it is natural—that “Why should we pay this tax? We are not very much well-treated by the Hindus. So what is the use of remain Hindu and pay the tax?” So the wholesale, this neglected class of men became Muhammadans. This is the history. Otherwise, these Muhammadans did not come from the Muhammadan country. So in this way a community was formed, Muhammadan community, gradually. And this British government took advantage of this ill- feeling between Hindus and Muhammadans. And they wanted to rule over India. They felt that ill-feeling. There is a great history. They are very big politician. In this way, at last, Jinnah, he was bribed by the British government and all the Britishers, that “You take as much money as you like.” Just like we are also sometimes alleged that “These American boys are being bribed by the American government.” Who was telling, that newspaper reporter? Nitai: Newspaper reporter. Prabhupada: Yes. “The American boys being supported by the American government to become Vaisnava.” Just see how fools they are. And the American boys, they have given up their all American comforts, and they are after me. They are eating anything I give, or I don’t give anything, they are suffering. They are still bribed. Just see. They have no common sense even. (laughs) So anyway, they think like that. So sometimes the politicians do that. So in this way, later on… Because the Britishers thought that “India is going to be independent, that cannot be checked, so make them smaller, smaller, smaller.” That is the European history. Yes, in… Formerly, under Roman Empire, all the Europeans were one nation. Is it not? I think it was, under Roman Empire. But when the empire dismantled, they became different nations—Germany, English, French. I see the same culture, the same civilization all over Europe. How they became Germans and Englishmen and this, I do not know. Anyway, this is the policy of the politicians. So because they were not given chance… Our point is that Krsna says everyone should be given chance how to come back to home, how to approach Krsna. So whose duty it is? It is the duty of Krsna’s servant. Just like Prahlada Maharaja. Prahlada Maharaja said, “My Lord, I do not wish to go back to home, back to Godhead alone. I want to take all of them who are godless or not devotee. I want to take. Unless I educate them how to go back to home, back to.,., I alone am not prepared to…” This is Prahlada. This is Vaisnava. Para-duhkha-duhkhi krpambudhir yah. Vaisnava means for himself he has no problem, but he is very, very, I mean, morose, by seeing others in distressed condition without Krsna consciousness. This is Vaisnava. A Vaisnava has no problem. He can sit down anywhere and chant Hare Krsna. Everything will be supplied to him. Krsna said, yoga-ksemam vahamy aham [Bg. 9.22] There is no problem. But it is a Vaisnava’s business to execute the will of Krsna, as Krsna says, mam hi partha vyapasritya ye ’pi syuh papa-yonayah striyo vaisyas tatha sudras te ’pi yanti param gatim [Bg. 9.32] If everyone has got the potency to go back to home, back to Godhead, it is the duty of the Vaisnava to educate the whole world how to go back to home, back to Godhead. This is Krsna consciousness movement. This is Krsna consciousness movement. It is not… [break] (end)
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Rome, May 26, 1974