Nanu svadharma matrad api karmana pitṛloka srute, pitṛloka-prāpti phalaṁ asti va tatraha tasyaite kovida viveki tasyaiva hetoḥ tad arthaṁ yatra kuryād yad upary brahmaloka paryantam adhaḥ sthāvara paryantam brahmadbi jivena na labhate. Now, those who are karma-kāṇḍīya, karmīs . . . karmīs means those who follow strictly the ritualistic ceremonies, as it is indicated in the Vedas. They are karmīs. Karma, akarma and vikarma. There are three divisions of our activities. Generally we say karmīs, ordinary men, who are working hard to earn some money and enjoy. Actually, they are not karmīs, they are vikarmīs.
Real karmīs . . . just like a thief. A thief is stealing. That is also certain kind of activity. It is not inactivity. So we cannot say that this is bona fide activity. He's also planning. He's also making plan—how to steal, how to go upstairs of the house and then come down. So there is activity. But such kind of activity is not bona fide activity. Therefore, according to śāstra, it is called vikarma. Vikarma means it is counteractivity. Activity means you have to work legally. That is activity. If you say that "I am very much active in stealing," then that is not excused. Then you'll . . . Government will say: "Please stop your activity. You come into the prison." Yes. (chuckles)
So similarly, this kind of activity, sense-gratificatory activities, they are not karmīs even. They are vikarmīs. Because they are preparing their ground-adānta-gobhir viśatāṁ tamisram (SB 7.5.30) "By such activities they are going to the darkest region of hell." Adānta . . . why? Now adānta-gobhiḥ. Adānta means uncontrolled, and go means senses. Such activities, impulse by uncontrolled senses, they will lead . . . such activities will lead him to the darkest region of hellish conditional life.
So activi . . . real activity means to elevate yourself. That is . . . that is called karma. Karma, akarma and vikarma. Vikarma means such activities will, which will lead him to the hellish condition of life. And karma means that activity which will promote you to the higher standard of life, in the higher planetary system, where the standard of life is far, far greater than in this planet. So that is called karma.
Therefore generally, Vedic . . . those who are following the Vedic principles, they become active in the ritualistic ceremony. The idea is they'll be promoted to higher planets and will be able to enjoy better sense gratification. Suppose a man is very rich and he has got ten thousands of years' living condition. Then he thinks, "Oh, how happy I am. For ten thousand of years I shall be able to gratify my senses."
So the karmīs are like that. They want actually sense gratification, but they want higher standard of sense gratification. Yes. That is their . . . we are . . . economic development, in this planet. What is this economic development? That means if we get to go more money, then we shall be able to gratify our senses more perfectly and more satisfactorily. That is the idea. Actually, either you become karmī or vikarmī, they are all on the platform of sense gratification. So one is going down, and one is going up. So Nārada Muni says that:
- tasyaiva hetoḥ prayateta kovido
- na labhyate yad bhramatām upary adhaḥ
- (SB 1.5.18)
"You should try . . . one should try to achieve that thing which cannot be gained even by going up or going down." "Up" means upper planetary system, and "down" means lower planetary system. And Bhagavad-gītā also confirms this, ūrdhvaṁ gacchanti sattva-sthāḥ. There are three modes of material nature. "Those who are situated on the modes of goodness, they are promoted to the higher planetary system." And ūrdhvaṁ gacchanti sattva-sthā madhye tiṣṭhanti rājasāḥ (BG 14.18).
There are seven . . . according to Vedic information, there are fourteen different spheres of planetary system: seven down and seven up. So we are in the middle. This is called Bhūrloka. Above this, there is Bhuvarloka. Above that, there is Svargaloka, heavenly. The moon planet and similar other planets in the orbit, they are called Svargaloka. Bhūrloka, Bhuvarloka, Svargaloka.
Then Janaloka. In Janaloka . . . great saintly persons, after death, they go to Janaloka or Maharloka. Then there is Satyaloka, or Brahmaloka. In this way there are seven planetary spheres. Similarly, down also: Tala, Atala, Vitala, Talātala, Rasātala, Pātāla. They are also named, down, down, down, down. The lowest down planetary system is called Pātāla.
So here Nārada Muni says that, "Try to achieve that thing which is not gained even if you go to the highest planetary system or if you go to the lowest planetary system—or if you remain in this planetary system, middle." That means . . . going up means to be situated in the modes of goodness. Ūrdhvaṁ gacchanti sattva-sthāḥ (BG 14.18). Sattva-sthā, "Those who are situated in the mode of goodness, they can be elevated to the higher planetary system." Madhye tiṣṭhanti rājasāḥ: "And those who are in the modes of passion, they remain within this world."
And adho gacchanti . . . jaghanya-guṇa-vṛtti-sthāḥ: "Those whose habits are very abominable," jaghanya. Jaghanya means very abominable, hateful. "One who is addicted to such hateful habits . . ." Jaghanya-guṇa-vṛtti, adho gacchanti. Adho gacchanti means either they go down planetary system or down living condition just like animals. Just like animals, they are jaghanya-guṇa-vṛtti-sthāḥ.
They can lie down anywhere. They can eat anything. They have no sense that, "This is not good, I am doing this." They have no sense. Just like tree. We go sometimes in the jungle. A tree is standing for several thousands of years, but it has no sense, "Oh, I am standing like this, alone?" These are the births of jaghanya-guṇa-vṛtti-sthā adho gacchanti. If our character and behavior is very low and abominable, then we are awaiting such condition of life.
But here Nārada Muni says that there is another thing, which is neither achieved either in the higher planetary system or lower planetary system. That means pāpa-puṇya. You go to the higher planetary system by pious activities, and you go to the lower, I mean to say, less than human life or lower planetary system, by papa, or sinful activities. But Kṛṣṇa says that "Don't be attracted by pious activities; neither go down to abominable condition of life. Simply capture Me." Mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja.