That is recommended in the Bhagavad-gītā. Ārto arthārthī jijñāsur jñānī ca bharatarṣabha. Catur-vidhā bhajante māṁ sukṛtino 'rjuna (BG 7.16). "Arjuna, four kinds of people, they become devotee." Who are they? Ārta. Ārta means distressed. Arthārthī, one who is poor, wants some money; jijñāsu, inquisitive; and jñānī, and man of knowledge. So ārtaḥ arthārthī, this is meant, this is referred to the gṛhastha. The gṛhastha, they become sometimes distressed. The gṛhastha-āśrama means unless there is Kṛṣṇa or full consciousness of Kṛṣṇa, it is simply miserable. Simply miserable. Duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). Simply working hard day and night, then there is . . . child is sick, then wife is not satisfied, the servant is not satisfied . . . so many things, problem. But if there is Kṛṣṇa in the center, the all problems will be solved.
But people do not know this. They think that, "I shall be happy with wife, children, servants, house, and this and that." No. That is not possible. Therefore one should be in gṛhastha-āśrama, not only in family life. Family, the dogs have got family life. He has got wife, children. The cats and the hogs, a big family. Because a hog begets, at a time, one dozen children. What you beget? You are afraid of begetting one child even, this contraceptive method. But they are not afraid. They beget one dozen children at a time, twice in a year. So to live with family, wife, children . . . then the hog accepts family life. No. That is not family life. You live with wife, children, peacefully, if you like, but bring in Kṛṣṇa in the center. That is gṛhastha-āśrama.
So Arjuna is talking of the ultimate good. But he is talking ultimate good with the point of view from material conception. He does not know . . . he knows, but he is playing the part of a person who does not know that ultimate śreya, ultimate good, is Kṛṣṇa. Ultimate good is not that, "We live with family—that is good." No. When you live with family because you cannot renounce, so that is allowed. But you live with family with Kṛṣṇa.
So Kṛṣṇa is there, but he is thinking in terms of material role that, "If my kinsmen are dead, I kill them, then where is my good? It is no good. What shall I do with the victory and happiness? Where is happiness? I cannot live without them." This is the conception. Ataḥ gṛha . . . ataḥ gṛha-kṣetra-sutāpta-vittair janasya moho 'yam (SB 5.5.8). This is illusion. Everyone is trying to become happy with society, friendship and love—children, wife, friends, money and house and land. This is the conception of material . . .