According to the gravity of the disease, the physician prescribes different types of medicine. If your disease is very severe, then the physician says that "You have to take this medicine. This is very costly. You have to live like this, or like . . ." You know, you know, everyone. Ordinary disease, that can be cured by giving some tablet, but if the disease is very severe, then you have to undergo severe medical treatment and suffering and so on. This very example. This is practical. This is practical. There is no question of doubting.
The example is given that in this life, if you have some severe type of disease, you have to pay the doctor's bill, also severe. That you cannot avoid. So why not for sinful activities? And what is disease? Disease, infection, means that is also violating the laws of nature. That is disease. Just I gave you the example: a little scratching of nail again means three, four days so much suffering. So you cannot violate. That is, that is breaking the laws of nature, breaking the laws of God. That is sinful. Either you take it as disease or sinful activities or whatever you call. This is . . . so you have to atone.
So Parīkṣit Mahārāja is answering—he's very intelligent—dṛṣṭa-śrutābhyaṁ yat pāpam.
(aside) You sit down properly if you are feeling sleepy.
- dṛṣṭa-śrutābhyaṁ yat pāpaṁ
- jānann apy ātmano 'hitaṁ
- karoti bhūyo vivaśaḥ
- prāyaścittam atho katham
- (SB 6.1.9)
So Parīkṣit Mahārāja says that, "I accept that unless one atones, then he'll be punished, but what is the value of this atonement?" Just like a man falls diseased. He's habituated to some certain habits, and he falls diseased on account of that. He knows that, "I committed this mistake in respect of my healthy condition, so I'm now punished by this disease." He knows, and he has suffered, but why he commits again? This is the question.