we have been discussing for the last few days how to become free from the reaction of our sinful life. That is real problem. But people, they have no knowledge what is life, what is sinful life, what is pious life, why we are put into this condition that "We have to do this; we haven't got to do that." This is real philosophy of life. The āsuras, as we were discussing in this morning walk, they do not know it. Āsurās. . . Pravṛttiṁ ca nivṛttiṁ ca na vidur āsurāḥ janāḥ (BG 16.7). We are living. . . In the ordinary life also, we live a little carefully so that we may not fall sick. For that purpose there is very vigilance in the immigration department, that in Australia we had some nice mangoes brought from Bombay, and they did not allow to take it. They thought this mango is more dangerous than the dry meat.
They will allow importation of dry meat, three hundred years old, (laughter) put into the refrigerator, and that is imported. That is not infectious. But mango, very nice mango, fresh mango—we started in Bombay at night, and we came in the morning—it has become poisonous. So we are so much precautious that not any germs, infectious disease, may enter. That is there. But what is that infection which has caused me to accept this material body again and again? That they do not know. That they do not know. They do not believe in the next life, and therefore āsurāḥ janāḥ. This is the symptom or characteristic of the āsurāḥ janāḥ. You should be precautious. That is natural. We become precautious, that "We should not do this so that I may not fall sick." But we do not know what is our real sickness. That we do not know.
That is being presented by Kṛṣṇa in the Bhagavad-gītā, that "This is your sickness, real sickness." What is that? Janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi-duḥkha-doṣānudarśanam (BG 13.9). You are trying to be unaffected by all kinds of sickness, but your real sickness is this material disease: you take birth, you die, you become old and you suffer from diseases. This is your real sickness. But who is caring for this? Where is the scientist who are investigating how to stop death, how to stop birth? They are, of course, investigating how to stop birth, but still, birth is going on. This sort of stopping birthdays, by killing the body, is not stopping, because the body is not the person. The real person is within the body. Within the body. Dehino 'smin yathā dehe (BG 2.13). We have explained. That they do not know. They are taking. . . No. By killing the body or by protecting the body, that is not the solution. The solution is that the living entity has infected itself with the material disease. It has to be cured. That is the whole purpose of Vedic civilization, how to cure your material disease.
So this cure of material disease have been described—we are discussing—first by atonement. So Parīkṣit Mahārāja did not like it very much because he saw, the atonement is like bathing of the elephant. By atonement we may be free from the infection, but again we do it. Karmaṇā. Then again. . . That is called karma-kāṇḍa, fruitive activities. Because the bīja, the seed of my sinful desires, that is not cured. For the time being. . . Just like go to the doctor. You are suffering from a severe disease, and he gives some medicine, takes his fees. That is my atonement, prāyaścitta. But it is no guarantee that I will not fall disease again. So this atonement like that. Many patients, they are suffering from some chronic disease, some venereal disease. They go to the doctor and they give injection, very costly medicine and so much suffering, but as soon as he cured, again he does the same thing so that he is attacked with venereal disease. So this is not very effective way of becoming. . .
Then it was suggested that people, because they are in darkness, āsuras, they do not know how to become immune from all diseases, therefore prāyaścittaṁ vimarśanam, he suggested, Śukadeva. Vimarśanam: he must be sober, that "I am suffering from some disease, and I am heavily paying the penalty to the doctor, and still I am doing the same thing?" So therefore Śukadeva Gosvāmī suggested, prāyaścittaṁ vimarśanam. Vimarśanam means to become sober and think that "Why I cannot check my desire to do sinful activities?" Then he suggested to come to that understanding he requires good brain. Ordinary brain, they cannot understand that "Why I am forced to act sinfully, although after doing that I suffer? I have committed theft. I am suffer. . . I go to jail. Again I come out." So therefore it is called vimarśanam. So for vimarśanam—means to become sober—you require practicing the tapasya. That is also, we have discussed.