The contamination of material world is called sin. That is sin. Just like you infect some disease, germ, you become diseased. I have got some infection, so I am diseased. You may know it or not know it, that doesn't matter. If you infect, knowingly or unknowingly, you will be diseased. So what is that infection? That infection, that is stated in the Īśopaniṣad, we read in the . . . every morning, īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam (Īśo mantra 1).
This everything what we see, either in the sky or in the water or outside our vision, everything belongs to God. Īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam.
So everything God's property. You cannot, even you are son of God, you cannot take anything without God's permission. Just like even your father's property. You'll inherit your father's . . . that's a fact. But suppose a father has got on the table one thousand dollars. If you take it without his permission, if you think that "It is my father's money," but by law you become a criminal. Your father can prosecute you criminally. That is the state law. Even it is your father's money, even your father is very kind, but if you take your father's money without his permission, then you are a criminal. And what to speak of others? Similarly, we are all sons of God. That's a fact. Kṛṣṇa says:
- sarva-yoniṣu kaunteya
- sambhavanti mūrtayaḥ yāḥ
- tāsāṁ mahad yonir brahma
- ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā
- (BG 14.4)
Aham. Kṛṣṇa says that, "All these living entities in 8,400,000's of species . . ." He doesn't mean that only human being. The animals, the birds, beasts, trees, everything—all living entities—they are all sons of God. He says, ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ. The material nature is the mother.
Just like in ordinary way, the father and mother requires to give a birth to a child. Similarly, this material nature is the mother. We have got this body from the mother, material nature. Just like we get the body from the mother's womb. Father gives the seed and mother gives the body. In the combination we get out. Similarly, ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā (BG 14.4): Kṛṣṇa impregnates this material nature with the living entities, and when there is creation they come out. This is the process.
So we are fallen in this material condition of life, and because we have disobeyed without the permission of father, we have misused our independence; therefore we are condemned within this material world. The īśāvāsya, the Īśopaniṣad teaches us, therefore reminds us that, "My dear human being . . ." The śāstras, the scriptures, the Vedas, they're meant for human being, not for the dogs, cats. Those who are not taking advantage of these scriptures of Vedic literatures, they are no more than animals. Because animals, they cannot take advantage of this knowledge. But human being can take.