Prabhupāda:
- brāhmaṇa-kṣatriya-viśāṁ
- śūdrāṇāṁ ca parantapa
- karmāṇi pravibhaktāni
- svabhāva-prabhavair guṇaiḥ
I shall try to explain the social structure of the human society as they are described in the Bhagavad-gītā. In previous chapters, Śrī Kṛṣṇa has explained: cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ (BG 4.13). By quality and by work, there is, or there must be four divisions of the social structure. Cātur-varṇyam, first-class, second-class, third-class and fourth-class. That is very natural. Just like in your body, my body is divided into four divisions. The head, head department. In every, I mean to say, unit, there is head department, the first-class department, the second-class department. So we can understand from our own body, there is head department, there is arms department, there is belly department and there is the leg department. So head is first-class. Because if the arms, belly and legs are there and head is cut off, then everything is useless. If the head is there, arm is cut off, you can go on with your business. So there is four divisions everywhere. Kṛṣṇa says:
- na tad asti pṛthivyāṁ vā
- divi deveṣu vā punaḥ
- sattvaṁ prakṛti-jair muktaṁ
- yad ebhiḥ syāt tribhir guṇaiḥ
- (BG 18.40)
Kṛṣṇa says that either on this planet or in other planets in the outer space, or anywhere, the three qualities or three modes of material nature is working. The modes of goodness, the modes of passion, and the modes of ignorance. Everywhere, you'll find these three classes of living entities. Not three classes, four classes. The first-class, goodness. Second-class, passion, third-class, mixed passion and ignorance, and fourth-class ignorance. And below the fourth class, all fifth class, pañcama.
So according to these three modes of material nature, there must be division of the society. The first class men are called brāhmaṇa, most learned scholar. Learned scholar means, as I was explaining, one who has complete knowledge of God, that is learned scholar. Otherwise, to know how to eat, how to sleep, how to have sexual intercourse and how to defend, this, these knowledge is also there in the animals. They know how to eat. There is no need of university for teaching how to eat or how to sleep or how to have sex life or how to defend. These are animal necessities. But actually human being should be still more advanced in knowledge. That knowledge is not comprising only eating, sleeping, mating and defending. That knowledge is to understand the Absolute Truth, God. That knowledge.
Therefore, the Vedānta-sūtra philosophy, that begins with the word athāto brahma jijñāsā. Now, this life, this human form of life, is meant for inquiring about the Absolute Truth. Athāto brahma jijñāsā. Brahma means the Absolute Truth. So, that should be the subject matter for studying in human form of life. So Bhagavad-gītā is the right book to understand about that brahma, or the Supreme Personality of Godhead, or the Absolute Truth, whatever you call. The Absolute Truth is known in three phases: Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān.