Now, here it is said that jīvasya tattva-jijñāsā. Vedānta-sūtra begins with this word: athāto brahma jijñāsā. So nartho yaś ceha karmabhiḥ. Generally people are very much attached to karma-kāṇḍa, offering, performing great sacrifice. It has become now a fashion to call vikṣa yajña, this yajña, that yajña. But actually real purpose is tattva-jijñāsa. The nartho yaś ceha karmabhiḥ, this performance of yajña is a karma, prescribed duty. Yajña, dāna, tapaḥ, kriyā, yajña, performing yajña.
But in this age, no other yajña can be performed perfectly. It is not possible. First deficiency is there is no yajñic brāhmin. Formerly, the brahmins were so expert that by mantra they ignite fire, and they would test, putting one animal in the fire, they would take and make it again alive. That is the test of the mantra. By mantra, an animal, animal put into the fire, comes out again with rejuvenated life.
People think that gomedha yajña, aśvamedha yajña are made for killing the animal. No. It was testing the mantra of the Vedas, whether actually being pronounced. That was the test. Just like in biological laboratory, the medical practitioner, they test with animals to observe the physiological and anatomical conditions. Similarly . . . but they cannot give life; they simply kill. But here in the Vedic yajña, the animal was put in the fire and it was again taken alive.
Because such yajñic brāhmin is not there in this Kali-yuga, therefore the all the yajñas are forbidden. Aśvamedhaṁ gavālambham (CC Adi 17.164). Aśvamedhaṁ ga . . . uh, pāla-paitṛkaṁ devareṇa sutot, sannyāsam pāla-paitṛkam. Even sannyāsa is also forbidden in this age. Karma-sannyāsa. That is called karma-sannyāsa. The Vedic principle of sannyāsa is to give up this karma—karma means yajña—and take sannyāsa. But vaiṣṇava sannyāsa is tri-daṇḍī sannyāsa. They . . . that means the living entity is offering his body, mind and words for the service of the Lord. So tri-daṇḍa sannyāsa can be accepted in this age, not otherwise. There are so many.