Prahlāda Mahārāja says . . . he's praying to Lord Nṛsiṁha. He says, bālasya neha śaraṇaṁ pitarau nṛsiṁha: "My dear Lord, it is not that the parents can give all protection to the children." Nārtasya cāgadam: "Neither the physician and the medicine can give protection to a patient." Nārtasya cāgadam udanvati majjato nauḥ: "Neither a nice ship or boat can give protection to the drowning man." Taptasya yat pratividhir: "There are many devices for giving protection to different kinds of dangerous position. But they will be useless if, my dear Lord, You neglect him."
For example, there are many children who have got their parents, but they are suffering. There are many patients who are being treated by first-class medical assistants and physician, but he is dying. Similarly, there are various means invented by modern science to give protection to the people, but they become useless without the attention of the Supreme Lord. For example, in our country, in India, we thought that by independence we shall be very, very happy. But actually, when we have got independence, our position has become more precarious.
So we may make various plans to become happy in this material world, but without God's grace we can never be happy. Therefore the Bhāgavata says that the best kind of plan or best kind of occupational duties is that which leads one to the devotional service of the Supreme Lord. The exact Sanskrit verse is:
- sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo
- yato bhaktir adhokṣaje
- ahaituky apratihatā
- yayātmā suprasīdati
- (SB 1.2.6)
If you actually want peace and prosperity, then you must execute such kind of occupational duties which will lead you to the devotional service of the Lord. If he does not do so . . . that is also stated:
- dharmaḥ svanuṣṭhitaḥ puṁsāṁ
- viśvaksena kathāsu yaḥ
- notpādayed ratiṁ yadi
- śrama eva hi kevalam
- (SB 1.2.8)
You are doing your duties very nicely. You are performing your social, national or family obligations very nicely. But after all these discharges of duty, if your destination does not reach to the devotional service of the Lord, they are simply waste of time.
Therefore in every civilized form of human society there is some kind of religious activities. Unfortunately, religious activities have been misinterpreted. Just like any religious sect, either Hindu or Muslim or Christian or anyone, they go to temple or church to pray to God for some solution of problems. People generally think that, "If I become religious person, then my economic condition must be very nice."
In the Vedic way of thinking, in the material world, there are four stages of development. They are called dharma-artha-kāma-mokṣa (SB 4.8.41, CC Adi 1.90), namely following the religious principles, economic development, sense gratification and liberation. Just like in the Christian church, people go there to ask, "God, give us our daily bread." So dharma. People generally think that "If I become religious, then my economic condition must be very nice." And when one's economic condition becomes very nice . . . he wants to make economic condition very nice, he wants some monetary, financial adjustment.
This financial adjustment, or financial improvement, people generally want for sense gratification. Dharma-artha-kāma.