Brāhmin, to take birth in the family of brāhmin and kṣatriya also, it is higher standard of life. That is accepted. So santaḥ means great saintly person. Learned brāhmin scholar and saintly kings, they are called santaḥ. I think in Latin it is called saint. From this word santaḥ it has come. Just like Saint Francis. Anyway, so:
- yajña-śiṣṭāśinaḥ santo
- mucyante sarva-kilbiṣaiḥ
- (BG 3.13)
This is the duty of the human being. And what is the difficulty . . . difficulty to perform yajña? There is no difficulty. It is universal. It is universal. Yajña means to satisfy the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu, or Kṛṣṇa. So you can offer Kṛṣṇa foodstuff. You are cooking something for eating, but cook it very nicely, very cleanly, with vow that the cooking is being done for Kṛṣṇa. Then it will be hygienically also very clean. So you should cook for Kṛṣṇa and offer Him, "Kṛṣṇa, whatever I have cooked secure, kindly accept". Then you take your food. What is the difficulty? After all, you have to take your food and cook. So why don't you do it for Yajña, or Kṛṣṇa? Therefore it is the duty of householders especially. The sannyāsī or the brahmacārī, they cannot take the responsibility of arcanā, because there are so many things to be done. But a gṛhastha, they are naturally cooking for the family—why not cook it very nicely for Kṛṣṇa? Where is the difficulty? Simply you have to agree to cook for Kṛṣṇa, not for yourself. And if I cook for myself, what is the wrong? That is mentioned here, bhuñjate te tv aghaṁ pāpām. Pāpā. Because we have to secure foodstuffs, especially nowadays from black market—yes, because there is no foodstuffs available. So the securing of foodstuffs is also pāpā. Because government has no black market, so the black market is pāpā. So if you secure foodstuff from black market and you cook for yourself, then you are responsible for the sinful activity. That is stated here:
- bhuñjate te tv aghaṁ pāpā
- ye pacanty ātma-kāraṇāt
- (BG 3.13)
But you can be saved from this black market sinful activities if you offer to Kṛṣṇa. Practical proposal. It is stated here. Now we have to secure food from black market; there is no denying. You cannot secure any good foodstuff from the ration shop. That is not possible. So either today or tomorrow, the whole world is going on in sinful activities. It is . . . therefore they are called pañcasuna. Pañcasuna-yajña. Pañcasuna means five kinds of violence. When you take water, there are many small animals round the jug, and you kill them. When you, I mean to say, rub the spices on the mortar and pestle, you kill some germs or small ants and animals. When you set fire, you kill so many. When you walk on the street, you kill so many animals. So you cannot kill even an ant. If you kill consciously or unconsciously, you are responsible for the sinful activity. In God's kingdom you cannot say: "If I kill a small ant, what is the sin there?" No, it is all sinful, as much as if you kill one man, which is called murder. Brāhmin, to take birth in the family of brāhmin and kṣatriya also, it is higher standard of life. That is accepted. So santaḥ means great saintly person. Learned brāhmin scholar and saintly kings, they are called santaḥ. I think in Latin it is called saint. From this word santaḥ it has come. Just like Saint Francis. Anyway, so:
- yajña-śiṣṭāśinaḥ santo
- mucyante sarva-kilbiṣaiḥ
- (BG 3.13)
This is the duty of the human being. And what is the difficulty . . . difficulty to perform yajña? There is no difficulty. It is universal. It is universal. Yajña means to satisfy the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu, or Kṛṣṇa. So you can offer Kṛṣṇa foodstuff. You are cooking something for eating, but cook it very nicely, very cleanly, with vow that the cooking is being done for Kṛṣṇa. Then it will be hygienically also very clean. So you should cook for Kṛṣṇa and offer Him, "Kṛṣṇa, whatever I have cooked secure, kindly accept". Then you take your food. What is the difficulty? After all, you have to take your food and cook. So why don't you do it for Yajña, or Kṛṣṇa? Therefore it is the duty of householders especially. The sannyāsī or the brahmacārī, they cannot take the responsibility of arcanā, because there are so many things to be done. But a gṛhastha, they are naturally cooking for the family—why not cook it very nicely for Kṛṣṇa? Where is the difficulty? Simply you have to agree to cook for Kṛṣṇa, not for yourself. And if I cook for myself, what is the wrong? That is mentioned here, bhuñjate te tv aghaṁ pāpām. Pāpā. Because we have to secure foodstuffs, especially nowadays from black market—yes, because there is no foodstuffs available. So the securing of foodstuffs is also pāpā. Because government has no black market, so the black market is pāpā. So if you secure foodstuff from black market and you cook for yourself, then you are responsible for the sinful activity. That is stated here:
- bhuñjate te tv aghaṁ pāpā
- ye pacanty ātma-kāraṇāt
- (BG 3.13)
But you can be saved from this black market sinful activities if you offer to Kṛṣṇa. Practical proposal. It is stated here. Now we have to secure food from black market; there is no denying. You cannot secure any good foodstuff from the ration shop. That is not possible. So either today or tomorrow, the whole world is going on in sinful activities. It is . . . therefore they are called pañcasuna. Pañcasuna-yajña. Pañcasuna means five kinds of violence. When you take water, there are many small animals round the jug, and you kill them. When you, I mean to say, rub the spices on the mortar and pestle, you kill some germs or small ants and animals. When you set fire, you kill so many. When you walk on the street, you kill so many animals. So you cannot kill even an ant. If you kill consciously or unconsciously, you are responsible for the sinful activity. In God's kingdom you cannot say: "If I kill a small ant, what is the sin there?" No, it is all sinful, as much as if you kill one man, which is called murder. If man-made law is according to their whims, but God's law is not like that. It is equal to everyone. If you kill a human being or if you kill a small ant it is the same murdering charges against you. Therefore in the śāstra it is recommended pañcasuna-yajña. Because unconsciously we are killing so many animals; therefore the pañcasuna-yajña should be performed.
So anyway, yajña must be performed. Yajña, saha-yajñāḥ prajāḥ sṛṣṭvā (BG 3.10) it is said, that you are born to perform yajña, especially the human beings. Not the lower animals; they cannot perform. So if you do not perform yajña, then whatever you are eating, you are eating the resultant action of your sinful activities. And therefore if you eat in the ordinary way . . . if you steal and eat nicely, that means you are creating your path clear for being arrested by the police someday and be punished. Everyone knows that. Similarly, if you simply eat the sinful activities, then what will be the result? You'll be punished. That is being done. People are not performing yajña. Nobody is performing yajña. That you can say that at the present moment to perform yajña, to secure pure ghee and grains, it is difficult job. Yes, that's right. Because in the Kali-yuga the big yajñas, which require lots of ghee and food grains to offer, that is not possible.
So anyway, yajña must be performed. Yajña, saha-yajñāḥ prajāḥ sṛṣṭvā (BG 3.10) it is said, that you are born to perform yajña, especially the human beings. Not the lower animals; they cannot perform. So if you do not perform yajña, then whatever you are eating, you are eating the resultant action of your sinful activities. And therefore if you eat in the ordinary way . . . if you steal and eat nicely, that means you are creating your path clear for being arrested by the police someday and be punished. Everyone knows that. Similarly, if you simply eat the sinful activities, then what will be the result? You'll be punished. That is being done. People are not performing yajña. Nobody is performing yajña. That you can say that at the present moment to perform yajña, to secure pure ghee and grains, it is difficult job. Yes, that's right. Because in the Kali-yuga the big yajñas, which require lots of ghee and food grains to offer, that is not possible.