So these Yamadūta superficially saw that "This man, Ajāmila, is a first-class sinful man, and he has to be taken to Yamarāja. He has simply committed adharma." But the Viṣṇudūta has come because he is now freed from all material contamination, because at the end of his life he chanted the holy name of Nārāyaṇa. So that is... If it is possible, so much advantage of chanting the holy name of the Lord, if you constantly keep yourself engaged in chanting the holy name of the Lord, there is no possibility of your being touched by māyā. This is the position. Vartamānaḥ anyayoḥ kālaḥ guṇābhijñāpakaḥ. Guṇābhijñāpakaḥ. Anyone who is intelligent, who can understand what this man is, which quality he belongs to... This is education. This is learning, to understand what is the position of this particular... The general definition is given, ūrdhvaṁ gacchanti sattva-sthā madhye tiṣṭhanti rājasāḥ, jaghanya-guṇa-vṛtti-sthā adho gac... (BG 14.18). You can... Any person who has studied śāstra, and he is in the sattva-guṇa, to him it is..., everything is there. He can understand what is this man, what he is going to be and what he was, past, present, future, everything. Why? How one can understand past, present, future? Through the śāstra. Śāstra-cakṣuśaḥ. There are still astrological calculation in India called Bṛghu-saṁhitā. If you consult Bṛghu-saṁhitā, immediately they will give you your past, present and future. Immediately they will give. The astrology science is so perfect. What you were in the past life, what you are at the present and what you are going to be, these three things they can be known.
- vartamānaḥ anyayoḥ kālaḥ
- guṇābhijñāpako yathā
- evaṁ janmānyayor etad
- dharmādharma-nidarśanam
So we have to follow the principle of religion; otherwise we are misguided. Just like a child has to be sent to school to understand, to become learned scholar. It is compulsory, not that I may send my child to school or if I like, I don't send. No. It is compulsory. Tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum evābhigacchet (MU 1.2.12). This is Vedic injunction. If you want to be learned fully, especially if you want to learn the transcendental science, gurum eva abhigacchet: "One must go to a guru." Guru—the spiritual master as well as the teacher also, guru. So he must att..., he must go to a guru. Tad viddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā (BG 4.34). And going to guru, what you have to do? Praṇipātena. You have to fully surrender. Paripraśnena. After surrendering, then you can enquire, you can put question. Otherwise, it is illegal. If you do not accept anybody as guru, then don't put question before him to waste his time and your time. This is the process. First of all find out whom you like to accept as guru. Then put question. But sometimes we have to talk with persons who is not student: outsider. That is preaching work. But śāstra says that one should approach a guru, and with surrender he would ask him, and guru will talk with a person who is surrendered. Otherwise, there is no necessity of talk, because he will not accept. One who has come to challenge the guru, so he will simply waste time. He will not accept. But a disciple who has surrendered, he will accept. Therefore talking is recommended between guru and disciple, not outsider. Tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum eva abhigacchet (MU 1.2.12). This is essential. And guru trains the disciple according to the Vedic principle. Therefore there are division of varṇa and āśrama.
