Prabhupāda: Kṣudrāyuṣāṁ nṛṇām. Kṣudra means very small; āyuṣām, duration of life. As we can compare that an ant's life or a germ's life . . . they are also living entities. Their duration of life is very small. There are many flies, they take their birth at night, in the evening, and the whole night they are busy the same way: eating, sleeping, begetting children and being afraid of. All the qualities are there. In India we have got experience, they are called diwali germs or insects. In the evening before the light—one, two, three—in this way, by midnight, it increases to thousands and millions. And in the morning, at the end of the night, you will find heaps of insects, or dead body. Heaps. Millions.
So there are different grades of life. It is called mṛtyu-loka. This material world is called mṛtyu-loka: "Where everyone dies." But there are grades of duration of life. One living entity has got four minutes' life, another, ten minutes, another, hundred minutes. Then days—one day, hundred days. Then year—one year, or four year, or five year, or utmost hundred years on this planet. So the human being can live up to utmost hundred year, but in other planets there are other living entities, demigods. And the highest, the topmost planet, is Brahmaloka. And you have learned from Bhagavad-gītā, in the Brahmaloka the duration of life, to our calculation, is very, very long. Sahasra-yuga-paryantam ahar yad brahmaṇo viduḥ (BG 8.17). In the Brahmaloka, the duration of twelve hours, our twelve hours, morning to evening, that is many millions of years to our calculation. So even if you go to that planet, Brahmaloka, as you are trying to go to the moon planet . . . from śāstra we understand in the moon planet, they live up to ten thousands of years according to heavenly calculation. In each planet, in each society, the calculation is different. So it is calculated that in the moon planet you can live for ten thousands of years, and that calculation is compared: our six months equal to one day in that planet. So just imagine how many years of our calculation they can live.
But Bhagavān Śrī Kṛṣṇa informs us that wherever you may go, the Yamarāja is ready, the representative of Kṛṣṇa as Yamarāja, just like the magistrate is also the representative of the government. So he is ready to come exactly as you finish your terms of duration of life. That is the way. Ābrahma-bhuvanāl lokāḥ punar āvartino 'rjuna (BG 8.16). So at the end of life, everyone becomes disgusted. Therefore there is some release interval. At the end of life, mostly, people, those who are . . . especially ordinary human being, they do not wish to live anymore. Even from the point of view, this bodily, old body, always diseased, rheumatic pains, so . . . and there is no life. For old man there is no enjoyment, material enjoyment. He wants to enjoy, but he cannot enjoy. Therefore generally, they become disgusted.
There was a question, very nice question, by Akbar Badshah, the emperor, Muhammadan emperor, Mogul emperor of India, Akbar Badshah. He was in the fifteenth century, five hundred years ago. So he kept very intelligent ministers. They would reply. Whatever inquiries are made by the emperor, the particular minister will inform, "This is this, sir." So he inquired one minister. His name was . . . hmm. I forget now. So, "How long the lusty desire continues, sex desire?" So he replied: "Up to the point of death." So the emperor said: "No, no. How it can be?" "No, he has got the desire, but he cannot use it. His instruments become dull or useless. Therefore . . . but the desire is there." and, "I don't believe it. I cannot . . . I am not satisfied with this answer." "All right, sir, I will satisfy you."
So one day, all of a sudden the minister came to Akbar Badshah, "Sir, you will have to come with me immediately, and take your young daughter with you." So Akbar Badshah could understand there is some meaning, so he immediately he prepared and took his young daughter with him. So he asked: "Where you are going?" "You will come to know." So he entered in a house where an old man was on the deathbed, a very old man. So the minister requested the emperor that, "While entering the room, you'll kindly try to see the face of the lying man who is going to die." So Akbar was very intelligent. So he was seeing the face. So he marked it that the man was looking towards the young girl, not to the emperor. So he said: "Yes, I have got your answer."
So these desires . . . this is the root cause of our coming to this material world: to enjoy. Enjoyment is there in the spiritual world, but there, in the spiritual world, the enjoyer is Kṛṣṇa, and everyone is enjoyed. That is the position. Just like in the Western countries, the women declare that, "Why we should not have equal rights with the man?" But by nature it is different. The man is the enjoyer, and the woman is the enjoyed. That is the position. Bhoktā and bhogyā. There are many social problems in your country—I do not wish to discuss—but it is very grave problems. But they do not know how to systematize the human form of life because they do not know what is the aim of life. That they do not know. So aim of life is to stop this repetition of birth and death. That is the aim of life. The so-called scientists, they do not know it, and neither they work for it. They do not know it.
So here it is said, kṣudrāyuṣām, "those who have got small duration of life." Although this small duration of life, human life, in comparison to the duration of life of other planets it is very, very small, so but they do not know how to fulfill the mission of living condition during this life. In the animal life, the consciousness is not developed, but in the human form of life, although it is perishable, adhruvam . . . Prahlāda Mahārāja said adhruvam. Dhruva. Dhruva means certain. So he advised:
- kaumāra ācaret prājño
- dharmān bhāgavatān iha
- durlabhaṁ mānuṣaṁ janma
- tad apy adhruvam arthadam
- (SB 7.6.1)
That is his advice, Prahlāda Mahārāja. He was talking with his class friend, five years old. So he was teaching them that, "Just become Kṛṣṇa conscious. Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa." Nārada taught him. He listened from Nārada. So he was convinced that this is the only business, how to make advancement in Kṛṣṇa consciousness by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra.