Prabhupāda: So the karmīs, they have been described in the Bhagavad-gītā: mūḍha, ass, simply unnecessarily working day and night, whole day and night. You see. Without taking care of the ātmā, without taking care of the religion. Economic development. What is this nonsense? You are losing yourself. You do not know what life you are going to get next life. You don't care for this. "Never mind whatever life I get. This life I have got. Let me work hard and accumulate money." And where the money will be? "Oh, in the bank. My sons and my daughters will enjoy." This is conception. Yasyātma-buddhiḥ kuṇape tri-dhātuke (SB 10.84.13). Bodily, all bodily conception. Ato gṛha-kṣetra-sutāpta-vittair janasya moho 'yam (SB 5.5.8). This is illusion. This is illusion. Simply working like ass without knowing what is the end of life, what is the destination of life—all asses, all these karmīs. Our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is very nice. You can understand what is what. Yes. That is knowledge.
So tato dharmaṁ tato dhanam ātmany vikṛte sati kuto dharmaḥ kuto dhanam.(?) But if you do not understand yourself, what you are, then what is the meaning of your religion and your economic development? You do not know what you are. First of all you must know what you are and what is your business, what is your destination, what is your aim of life. Then begin work, begin religious, become economic developer and so on, so on, so many things. But if you are in darkness to understand yourself, then what is the meaning of this accumulation of wealth or so-called religion, and so-called economic devel... No.
So here Nārada Muni advises that "You have explained..." Dharmādayaś ca artha. "In different literature you have divided the whole Vedas in understandable language, Purāṇas." Purāṇas means supplementary to the Vedas, to explain the Vedic knowledge according to the quality. Every human being is under some quality of the material nature. Some of them are in darkness, or ignorance. Some of them are in passion. And some of them are mixed ignorance and passion. And some of them are in light, or goodness. Not all in the same level. There are different classes of men. Just like in our Hayagrīva's library we find so many philosophical books. But if you go to ordinary man you'll find some nonsensical literature, fiction, and sex psychology, this, that. According to taste. According to taste, different taste. Because there are different classes of men. That will be explained in the next verse. He says, Nārada Muni,
- na yad vacaś citra-padaṁ harer yaśo
- jagat-pavitraṁ pragṛṇīta karhicit
- tad vāyasaṁ tīrtham uśanti mānasā
- na yatra haṁsā niramanty uśik-kṣayāḥ
- (SB 1.5.10)
So he is comparing all the books written by Vyāsadeva, including the Vedānta philosophy. He says that this is vāyasaṁ tīrtham. Vāyasaṁ tīrtham. Vāyasam means crows. And the crows, and their place of pleasure. Have you seen crows? In India we have got many crows. In your country crows are not very... But in India the crows, they take pleasure in all nasty things. The crows. You'll find they will take pleasure in a place where all nasty things are thrown, garbage. They'll pick out the garbage, find out where there is mucus, where there is pus. Just like flies. They'll sit down on the stool. Mākṣikaṁ bhramarā icchanti. And the bees, they will try to take honey. Even in the animals you'll see. The honey... The bees will never come to the stool. And the ordinary flies, they never go to collect honey. Similarly, there are divisions in the birds, divisions in the beasts, divisions in human society. So you cannot expect that ordinary person will come to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. You see? Because they have been trained to become flies, they will taste stool. You see? The modern education is to teach people to become flies, only stool. Not here, Kṛṣṇa consciousness. But you make it a honeycomb. Those who are after, seeking after honey, they will find, "Here is something." You see? Don't make it a stool society. You see? Make it a honey society. At least, give chance, those who are seeking after honey. Don't cheat people. So they'll come.
So here Nārada Muni said that "You have compiled so many books, that's all right. What is the idea? The idea is dharmādayaḥ. You are teaching religious principle." There are twenty viṁśati dharma-śāstrāḥ. This Manu-saṁhitā, Parāśara Muni's law, and social custom, this, that. So many there are. These are originally by different sages, but Vyāsadeva made it, compiled it just for proper use. People can understand them. So he has explained all these books for use of the human society undoubtedly. How to become religious, how to develop economic position, how to understand what is liberation, how to satisfy restrictedly sense gratification. Just like in books, in Vyāsadeva's books, you will find these different kinds of... Just like those who are eating flesh. That is also given direction by Vyāsadeva, in the tāmasika-purāṇa, Purāṇa for the persons who are in ignorance.
So he does not deny anybody. He has made books in such a way that any person reading books... Just like in a school there are different classes and different books are recommended for different classes. Similarly, Vyāsadeva has given the whole Vedic literature in such a nice way in the form of Purāṇas that any man can be elevated to the highest position, reading books like this. Take for example that one who is addicted to take intoxication, eating flesh, and sex life—because these are natural instincts. Loke vyavāyāmiṣa-madya-sevā nityā hi jantor na hi tatra codanā. Nobody is required to give lesson, to teach. Nobody required to be taught how he has to make sexual intercourse. Nobody has to be taken, I mean, given lesson how he can become intoxicated. Don't you see that the intoxicants, intoxicated person, they have become automatically? There is no university. There is no educational system that "You become... Take LSD like this." No. That is a natural tendency. To become intoxicated, to take liquor, LSD, gāñjā, pān, oh, very easily you can learn. To use sex life...
Loke vyavāya... These, they are natural instincts. They can be... Automatically they will be done. There is no question of... Then what is the use of book? Book is for restricting. That they do not know. When Vyāsadeva recommends that you must have sex life by marriage, that means restriction. That means restriction. You cannot have sex life here and there unrestrictedly. You have got one wife or one husband, and that is also restricted: only for begetting child you can have sex life. So many things. The whole idea is restriction. Not that "Because I have got a wife it is a machine for sex life." No, no. A marriage mean, that does not mean. Marriage does not mean like that. It is restriction. The whole Vedic civilization is to bring men to the transcendental platform by restricting all his nonsense habits to nil. But not all of a sudden. Gradually, according to the quality. Similarly, those who are addicted to flesh eating, meat-eating: "All right." Vedic literature says, "All right. You can eat meat. But sacrifice an animal before the Deity, goddess Kālī, and you can eat." So that the man who is eating meat, he'll not revolt. If I say... Just like if I say... Just like many men revolts already. That girl? What is called?
Devotee: Mādhavī-latā.
Prabhupāda: Mādhavī-latā, she revolted. She revolted. She was always trying to plead, "Why this restriction? Why this restriction?" So I had to tell, "If you don't like the restriction, then go away. You don't associate with us." What can be done? So they do not want restriction. That is natural tendency. But these śāstras are meant for restriction. Just like marriage is restriction of sex life. And offering sacrifice before goddess Kālī, that is also a restriction of meat-eating. You cannot eat meat by purchasing from the slaughterhouse. Oh, that is not recommended. If you want to eat meat, then you just sacrifice one goat. Not, I mean to say, cows. No. Goat. Any useless animal. "All right. You take." Goat is recommended to be sacrificed. So you can take. And in India the meat-eating or flesh eating is not restricted. But not the useful animal, cow, the most useful animal, the cow.
So these books, these literatures, I mean to say, Vedic literatures, are meant for restricting our life and elevating ourself. So Nārada says that "You have explained all these religious principles, or sense gratification, economic development, very nicely. But as much labor you have taken for describing..." (break) ...na tathā vāsudevasya mahimā hy anuvarṇitaḥ. So therefore our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is simply for glorifying the Lord. That is the only business. Not... Other things are secondary. That is being taught. So if you want to write books, you write books by glorifying the Lord. Na yad vacaś citra-padaṁ harer yaśaḥ (SB 1.5.10).
Nārada says, citra-padam api... Vāsudeva-vyatiriktānya-viṣaya-jñānavād evānya-viṣayaṁ vāk-cāturyam.(?) Śrīdhara Svāmī, he comments (chuckles) that except describing the glories of the Lord, any literature, any science, any contribution, is simply a jugglery of vocabulary. That's all. Jugglery. Vāk-cāturyam. Vāk means vocabulary and cāturya means jugglery. Simply setting some words in a jugglery way just to draw people's attention to waste time, that's all. Vāk-cāturyam. Vāsudeva-vyatiriktānya-viṣaya-jñānavād evānya-viṣayaṁ vāk-cāturyaṁ (ca) khilam, khilam eva ity aha, khilam.(?) It is insignificant. Citra-padam api yad vaco harer yaśo na pragṛṇīta. You can write nice books using your literary career, metaphor, and, what is called, so many things. They are producing nice literature. But if there is no glorification of the Lord, then, harer yaśo pragṛṇīta tad vāyasaṁ tīrtham. Then it is just like the place where the crows take pleasure. That's all.
Because such kind of literature will be accepted by men who are like crows. Tad vāyasaṁ tīrthaṁ kāka-tulyānāṁ kāmināṁ yati-sthānam uśanti manyante.(?) Just like kāminām, those who are very lustful, what is their pleasure spot? That vagina, that's all. That urinal. That is their pleasure. Is urinal, is very nice place? But he's sophisticated. He finds, "Oh, this is very nice place." This analytical study, (chuckling) how Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is revolting, but... (laughter) But we must talk the real thing, (laughing) that this commentator Śrīdhara Svāmī, he has given very nice example: kāmināṁ rati-sthānam. As the lusty man finds pleasure in the vagina, similarly, this sort of literature, nonsense literature, are enjoyed by persons who are just like crows. Not, what is called, swan. Swan will not go to that place. They will search out some place where there is nice transparent water and lotus flower, lilies, and nice trees and good birds. They are taking enjoyment. So even if you see among the animal society, in the bird society there is discrimination, and if in the human society there is no such discrimination, what kind of civilization that is? A crows' civilization. Black crows' civilization. Simply trying to take pleasure in nonsensical clubs, in liquor shop, in so-called cinema. They are trying to take pleasure there. They'll not...
Nārada is comparing that "Your so-called books describing about this dharma-artha-kāma-mokṣa (SB 4.8.41, Cc. Ādi 1.90) is just like the kāka's, or the crow's, pleasure-hunting." Na yad vacaś citra-padaṁ harer yaśo jagat-pavitram (SB 1.5.10). But if you produce a single literature wherein simply there is glorification of God, anyone who will read, he'll derive some immediately transcendental benefit. Produce a page only, Back to Godhead. Oh, that will bring revolution to the human society about understanding of spiritual life. Don't produce nonsense literature. Try for one page. Mānasa. Mānasa sattva-pradhāne mānasi vartamāna haṁsa.(?) Haṁsa means the swans. Therefore called paramahaṁsa. A highly elevated spiritual person is called paramahaṁsa.
Paramahaṁsa, in the sannyāsa stage there are four stages of development. Kuṭīcaka, bahūdaka, parivrājakācārya, and paramahaṁsa. Kuṭīcaka. When a person takes sannyāsa he lives in a cottage outside the village, but does not go home. But he's not accustomed to travel or to beg from door to door; so whole day and night he keeps himself in that cottage and from his relative and home something is supplied for his fooding. That is the stage of kuṭīcaka, to take supply from home. Then next stage is bahūdaka. When he comes to the understanding that "I have given up my home. Why shall I take help from my home? I am considering that home is my place. Why not everyone my friends? Vasudhaiva kuṭumbhakaḥ.(?) Everyone is my family, everyone," that is next stage. So he can go to everyone, "Will you kindly give me one cāpāṭi?" Who will not give a sannyāsī? Anyone will give. They are trained also like that, that any gṛhastha, householder, if a sannyāsī comes, immediately he should be received and respected. That is also Vedic culture. A sannyāsī should be treated as the children of the society. Everyone. Still there is. If in a village a sannyāsī goes, he will get hundreds of invitation: "Swamiji, please come. Take your bhikṣā at my place." So he has no question of eating and living. So many people will give him shelter. He'll not be in the wilderness. If actually a sannyāsī, he travels all over the country, he has no problem. Village to village, everyone will receive him. It is called bahūdaka. And then parivrājakācārya. Then, when he still further elevated, then he gives instruction. Why he should eat only without giving something to them? He'll feel like that. "Why for nothing I shall except food from others? I must give something. So whatever knowledge I have got I must distribute." This is parivrājakācārya.
And when one is experienced in everything and he is above all material affection, that is called paramahaṁsa. Haṁsa. Why...? Haṁsa means swan. Why he's compared with haṁsa? The haṁsa has got a qualification to take the essence. If you give a swan milk mixed with water, he'll, he has got some tactics, he'll simply take the milk case in and the water will be there, remain there. Similarly, haṁsa means one who has taken the essence of this cosmic manifestation. What is that essence? Kṛṣṇa. Vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti (BG 7.19). Everything, all manifestation, all activities, they're all Kṛṣṇa's energy. Therefore Kṛṣṇa is the center. Just like the same way: what is this material cosmic manifestation? It is the sun. That's all. Similarly, there are millions of suns. Therefore Kṛṣṇa is the ultimate. Kṛṣṇa-sūrya. Sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam (Bs. 5.1), cause of all cause. So one who takes Kṛṣṇa, he's paramahaṁsa.
So every Vaiṣṇava, every devotee of Kṛṣṇa, pure devotee of Kṛṣṇa, is a paramahaṁsa. So you, we are teaching people to become immediately paramahaṁsa, highest stage of sannyāsa. And the method is simply chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. You see? The post is paramahaṁsa. Vaiṣṇava. Vaiṣṇava means paramahaṁsa. He's above brāhmaṇa, above sannyāsa. But we must be real Vaiṣṇava. Vaiṣṇava means ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānuśīlanam (CC Madhya 19.167). Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam (Brs. 1.1.11). There is no other desire, material desire. Desire means material desire, this contaminated desire. It does not mean that we shall not desire to become Kṛṣṇa conscious. That desire is real desire. And any other desire, anyābhilāṣitā, for some material benefit, that is not required. But if we can keep ourself without any material desire, without any propensity for enjoying fruitive result... "I am doing something, I must enjoy this result. I must be enjoyer." This is called jñāna-karma. "Oh, I must try to understand Kṛṣṇa by my speculative method." Why? Kṛṣṇa is explaining Himself. Why don't you try to understand Him in that way? Nonsense. (chuckling) What speculative power you have got? Simply you'll commit blunder. Why? Kṛṣṇa says, "I am this, I am this, I am that, I am that." In the Bhagavad-gītā, explains. God says. Why don't you understand Him as He says? If I say that "I am from India. My birthplace is in Calcutta. I have got five children. I was formerly a businessman," then why do you understand to speculate about me? What is the use of this speculation? If you actually want to know what Swamiji is, Swamiji says that "I was householder, and I was doing medical business. I have got five children. And this and that." So that is sufficient. Why do you want to know Swamiji by speculation? Similarly, these rascals will try to understand Kṛṣṇa by speculation. No. There is no need. Paramahaṁsa. That is paramahaṁsa stage.
So Śrīdhara Svāmī says, haṁsa jatayo.(?) Jatayo means great sages, saintly persons. Haṁsa jatayo yatra na niramanti karhicid api na nitaram ramante.(?) Just like our students, Kṛṣṇa conscious person, if he is invited, "Come on, there is a nice picture in the cinema," no. He'll never go. He'll never go. (chuckles) Because he has become haṁsa. He is not a crow, that he'll go such places. Why? What is there? So haṁsa, here it is said, tad vāyasaṁ tīrtham uśanti mānasāḥ. They reject, reject. Uśanti mānasā na yatra haṁsā niramanty uśik-kṣayāḥ (SB 1.5.10). There was an incidence in my life. I was, of course, at that time householder. So one my friend, he was going to cinema with his family, and he saw me. I was in the street, and he immediately stopped his car and he asked me that "You come. We are going to cinema." So I refused, that "If you give me one thousand dollars, still I shall not go to cinema." So he dragged me. He took me to the cinema house, but I never entered. I came back. You see? Because it was detestful.
So when one becomes completely separated from all these material desires, even if you offer him some profit, he'll not accept. It is the test. Na yatra haṁsā niramanty uśik-kṣayāḥ (SB 1.5.10). Because his mind is absorbed in greater things. Uśik-kṣayāḥ. Brahman. Uśik-kṣayāḥ means Brahman. Uśika kamanīyam brahman kṣayo nivaso yeṣāṁ te, tathā prasiddha haṁsa mānasi sarasi carantaḥ.(?) Śrīdhara Svāmī explains, just like swans, they take pleasure in the mānasa-sarovara, in a place where transparent water, lily and very nice garden. They take pleasure. Yathā prasiddha haṁsa mānasi sarasi carantaḥ kamanīya-padma-khanda-nivāsaḥ.(?) You'll find swans, they will gather near the lotus flower and dive there and entangle them with the stem. That is their pleasure, to remain surrounding the lotus flower.
- kamanīya-padma-khanda-nivāsa tyakta-vicitrannadi
yukto 'py ucchista-garte kāka-krīḍa-sthāne na niramanti(?)
They are not like the crows, who are simply trying to take some pleasure from the garbage place. That's all. What is there in the garbage? They are all rejected, thrown away. But the crows will go there. They'll pull on something, "If there is something there, something?" So, as there is a natural distinction between the crows and the swans, similarly, there is distinction between a Kṛṣṇa conscious person and ordinary person. The ordinary persons are compared like the crows, and a fully Kṛṣṇa conscious person is just like swans and ducks.
Then he says,
- tad-vāg-visargo janatāgha-viplavo
- yasmin prati-ślokam abaddhavaty api
- nāmāny anantasya yaśo 'ṅkitāni yat
- śṛṇvanti gāyanti gṛṇanti sādhavaḥ
- (SB 1.5.11)
On the contrary, this is a kind of literature very nicely written, metaphorical, and poetry, everything. But there is no question of glorifying the Lord. That is compared with, just like the same place, where the crows will take pleasure. On the other hand, other kind of literature, what is that? Tad-vāg-visargo janatāgha-viplavo yasmin prati-ślokam abaddhavaty api (SB 1.5.11). A literature presented to the people, to the public for reading, which are even grammatically incorrect, but because there is glorification of the Lord, it can produce revolution. It can purify the whole human society. My Guru Mahārāja, when he was selecting articles to be published in The Harmonist, if he sees simply that there is, several times the writer has written "Kṛṣṇa," "Lord Caitanya," like that, he passes immediately: "All right. It's all right. (laughter) It is all right." That so many times he has uttered "Kṛṣṇa" and "Caitanya," so it is all right. (chuckles)
So similarly, even if we present our Back to Godhead or any other literature in broken languages, it does not matter because the glorification of the Lord is there. That is recommended by Nārada. Tad-vāg-visargo janatāgha-viplavaḥ. Janatā agha. Agha means sinful activities. If one reads one line of this literature, although it is presented in broken language, but if he simply hears there is Kṛṣṇa, then his sinful activities immediately vanquish. Janatāgha viplavaḥ. Tad-vāg-visargo janatāgha-viplavo yasmin prati-ślokam abaddhavaty api nāmāny anantasya (SB 1.5.11). Ananta means the unlimited. His name, His fame, His glory, His qualities are described. Nāmāny anantasya yaśo 'ṅkitāni. If glorification is there, even they are presented in broken language, then śṛṇvanti gāyanti gṛṇanti sādhavaḥ. Just like my Guru Mahārāja, sādhu, a saintly person, immediately passes: "Yes. It is all right." It is all right. Because there is glorification of the Lord. Of course, general public will not understand... But this is the standard, standard version, spoken by Nārada. You write something; the aim should be simply to glorify the Supreme. Then your literature is pavitra, purified. And however nicely, either literally or metaphorically or poetically, you write some literature which has nothing to do with God, or Kṛṣṇa, that is vāyasaṁ tīrtham. That is pleasure spot for the crows.
This is the version of Nārada Muni. We should be taking note of this. And for the Vaiṣṇava there is one qualification: poetic. You should... Everyone should be poetic. So... But that poetry, that poetry language, should be simply to glorify the Lord. Then it is... Just like Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, Locana dāsa Ṭhākura, they are poets. They have produced so many songs. But about whom? About Kṛṣṇa. Similarly, under the instruction of Nārada, now Vyāsadeva will produce a literature like Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, which is simply glorification of the Lord and His devotees. Bhāgavata. Bhāgavata means the Lord, and Bhāgavata means pertaining to the Lord. So pertaining to the Lord, everything. Vāstava-vastu vedyam atra. In the beginning of Bhāgavata it is said vāstava-vastu. Vastu means substance, the summum bonum. And vāstava, in relation to the summum bonum.
So if we try to understand everything in relationship with Kṛṣṇa, then we understand vāstava reality. That is reality. If we study something minus Kṛṣṇa, that is not real knowledge. Actually, Kṛṣṇa is the original cause of all. Sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam (Bs. 5.1). So unless we come to the point of Kṛṣṇa, any understanding, any knowledge is imperfect.
So we shall discuss later on. Thank you. (end)