In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam twelve different personalities have been described that "These persons are great men." So we have to follow their principle and, or their, in the principle in their disciplic succession; then we can fulfill. The same thing is here also described. Yad yad ācarati śresthas lokas tad anuvartate. And Śrī Kṛṣṇa Himself . . . undoubtedly Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the greatest personality in those days and still now also. Still, in all—not only in India; in all parts of the world—Śrī Kṛṣṇa is accepted as the greatest leader of philosophical presentation of this Bhagavad-gītā. Every nation, every country reads it very minutely. So undoubtedly He is a great leader.
Now, if we follow Kṛṣṇa, not only we are chanting:
- Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare
- Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare
but we have to follow the principles laid down in the Bhagavad-gītā. That will make our life successful. Practically we have to apply this, have to apply the principles. Otherwise the whole attempt will be failure. That is explained in the next verse:
- utsīdeyur ime lokā
- na kuryāṁ karma ced aham
- saṅkarasya ca kartā syām
- upahanyām imāḥ prajāḥ
- (BG 3.24)
"If I do not place idea before the living entities, prajā . . ." Prajā means those who have taken birth, they are called prajā. Ja means birth. Ja. Janma, janma. And prajā, prakṛṣṭa-rūpeṇa ja. Anyone, prajā . . . just like in a state it is called prajā, or citizens, who have taken the birth in that particular place. So similarly, Lord Kṛṣṇa says that "If I do not set example in My life, then there will be unwanted population."
Unwanted population. And actually that has become now in the present world. By not following the principles of God consciousness, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, we have got now unwanted population. Unwanted population. Here it is plainly written, saṅkarasya ca kartā syām. Saṅkarasya ca means cross-breeding. Saṅkarasya.
According to Vedic rites, the breeding of child is very nicely enunciated. That is called garbhādhāna-saṁskāra. Garbhādhāna-saṁskāra. Before begetting a child, one has to perform some ceremonies just to make his mind completely pure and sanctified. Both the husband and wife become sanctified, and then they take part in sex life, and that child becomes . . . comes out a very nice child. So from the very beginning of the birth there are systems how to beget good population. So these things are there.
Now, Kṛṣṇa says that, "If I do not place the ideal life, then the population will be saṅkara." Saṅkara means unwanted; creating disturbances always. There will be no peace in the world. For actually we are feeling that there is no peace in the world. Why? Because the population has become unwanted. And by increasing such population the natural sequence will be . . . there must be. There will be some disease, there will be some famine or there will be some war when the population will be vanquished. That is the law of nature.
That is accepted in economics also, Malthusian theory. Perhaps most of you know that whenever there is unwanted population these three things will naturally, by nature's course, will appear—famine, pestilence and war—and the population will be finished. So there was some unwanted population at that time also for which Kṛṣṇa arranged the war, battlefield of war. Battlefield of war. So we have to follow. If we want very good population, very good generation, then we have to follow the principles of Bhagavad-gītā. The principles of Bhagavad-gītā is ultimately described, as we will find in the last stage:
- sarva-dharmān parityajya
- mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja
- ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo
- mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ
- (BG 18.66)