So if that moment is wasted for nothing, just imagine what is your loss. A thing which you cannot get back by paying millions of dollars, if that is lost unnecessarily, so how much loss you are suffering just imagine. This is material calculation. Why we keep some valuable things, some jewel, very carefully? Because we know, "If I lose this jewel, I will lose so much money." Similarly, we should always consider that. The modern civilization, rascal civilization, they do not know how to utilize life. So many days, so many hours, they are simply wasting, simply wasting. It is said that the sunrise and sunset, during this period, the sun's business is to take away the duration of our life, sunrise and sunset. That means twelve hours or thirteen hours which is gone between the sunrise and sunset . . . this is . . . sun's business is to take away the portion, the fixed-up duration of life which I have been given. That is, some of it is taken away. The same example, just like you have got a fixed balance in the bank. If you draw even ten pence, ten shillings, that means it is taken away. You have to replace it. But replacing is not possible. Bank balance you can replace, but the balance . . . suppose you have passed . . . I have passed . . . suppose if I live for eighty years or ninety years or hundred years. So this seventy-eight years is already taken away. It cannot be replaced. You cannot make the bank balance or the duration of . . . again complete. That is not possible. This is plain fact.
Therefore here it is said that those who are Kṛṣṇa conscious, they must weight, measure, every moment, "Whether this moment has been spent without Kṛṣṇa consciousness?" That is the criterion. Avyartha-kālatvam, nāma-gāne sadā ruciḥ (CC Madhya 23.18-19). This is the test of advanced Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Rūpa Gosvāmī gives avyartha-kālatvam. Avyartha-kālatvam means, "Whether my time has been spent uselessly?" One should be alert, "Whether my time has been used . . . has been uselessly spent by talking nonsense?" In another place Rūpa Gosvāmī says:
- atyāhāraḥ prayāsaś ca
- prajalpo niyamāgrahaḥ
- laulyaṁ jana-saṅgaś ca
- ṣaḍbhir bhaktir pranaśyati
- (NOI 2)
By six kinds of activities you will lose your holding in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. What is that? Atyāhāraḥ, too much eating. Āhāra means collection or eating. So either too much collection. Our Society, international Society, we must collect thousands and thousands of dollars, but for spending it for Kṛṣṇa, not for keeping in the bank. That is not our business. We must collect as much. Suppose for doing some business . . . we are constructing our temple in Vṛndāvana. We require fifty lakhs. That is required. But I shall not collect more than fifty lakhs even one cent. This is atyāhāra. Similarly, if your body can consume foodstuff one kilo or half kilo, you can eat. But not even an ounce or even a, what is called, grain more than that. That is atyāhāra. You eat. It is not forbidden to eating. But you must eat as much as you can digest very nicely; not more than that. This is against bhakti principle, eating too much or collecting too much. Atyāhāra.
And prayāsa. Prayāsa means do something with extraordinary endeavor. So, of course, we have to do sometime, but it is the general principle. We shall accept . . . suppose you are constructing a temple. If it is . . . suppose two millions of dollars required, or, say, five millions of dollars. If we cannot do that, we shall not attempt. That is prayāsa, unnecessarily endeavor. Which is within your control, you should act. Atyāhāraḥ prayāsaḥ. And prajalpa. Prajalpa means talking all nonsense. Suppose politics, "What Mr. Nixon did yesterday, or what did he say?" So what interest we have got in this Mr. Nixon? We shall not waste our time talking this politics, that politics, this sociology, this cinema, this affair. No. We have nothing to do with that. That is called prajalpa, unnecessary talking. Talking means decreasing your duration of life. Talking. So why should you decrease your life unnecessarily? Every moment you have to utilize, "Whether it is used for Kṛṣṇa?" This is sādhana. This is sādhana, practice. Unnecessary talking, unnecessarily making enemies. Unnecessarily, "You are my subordinate; I am your master." Who is master? Everyone is subordinate to Kṛṣṇa. Nobody is master. Why you talk unnecessarily?