This division of varṇāśrama—brāhmin, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra—they're all meant for satisfying the Supreme. Varṇāśrama. Varṇāśramācāravatā. Those who are strictly following the rules and regulations of the varṇa and āśrama, brāhmin, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra, brahmacārī, gṛhastha, vānaprastha, sannyāsa . . . these are varṇa and āśrama.
So this Vedic civilization is meant for, I mean to say, training the whole people in such a way that they'll be engaged in the performance of yajña. That is called yajña, yajñārthe karma. So that either he acts as a śūdra or either he acts as a brāhmin, it doesn't matter. The real aim is to satisfy the Supreme. This is very easy. Now, there are so many grades of officer in a big establishment—either the manager or the orderly or the servant. Because the whole thing is to satisfy the supreme authority of the office, everything is all right.
Similarly, according to the capacity, one is ordinary servant, one is manager, one is clerk, one is this and that. That . . . that's all right. Similarly, according to our particular quality, one may be a brāhmin, one may be a kṣatriya, one may be a śūdra, or vaiśya. It doesn't matter. But the whole society, if they are engaged in satisfying Kṛṣṇa, that is perfection. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is not that we are asking everyone to become a sannyāsī like me and give up everything. No. That is not our program. You act as a brāhmin, as a kṣatriya or a vaiśya or a śūdra. It doesn't matter. But you try to satisfy Kṛṣṇa. That is the program.
That is enjoined in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam: ataḥ pumbhiḥ . . . in the Naimiṣāraṇya meeting, great meeting of great saintly persons and brāhmins, and Sūta Gosvāmī was president. He was speaking. And he said, ataḥ pumbhir dvija-śreṣṭhāḥ (SB 1.2.13): "You all people, assembled here, you are the best of the brāhmins." Dvija-śreṣṭhāḥ. "My dear dvija-śreṣṭhāḥ." The ordinary . . . not ordinary men. Ataḥ pumbhir dvija-śreṣṭhā varṇāśrama-vibhāgaśaḥ. He's referring to that, varṇāśrama. You cannot . . . if you want to, if you want to maintain, keep the perfect human civilization, then you must maintain this varṇāśrama. Otherwise, there will be chaos.
You have to adjust. Nobody's lower. Nobody's higher. Just like in my body. My, I have got head. I have got my leg. Leg may be less important than the head, but everything is important in the service of the body, whole body. Simply head, there is no leg: you cannot work. Suppose that you have got good brain, but you have leg . . . there is no leg. Andha-paṅgu-nyāya. Then you have to take help from others. So yajñārthe karma. The brāhmin, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra, brahmacārī, gṛhastha, vānaprastha—everyone should be engaged in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Then the society will be perfect. Otherwise, there will be chaos.
Otherwise there be chaos, and that is the position at the present moment. People are not happy, although there is enough money in Western countries, enough enjoyable things. And we see in other countries like Australia and Africa, there is enough potency of producing food and grains and milk. So this rascal proposition that population has increased, there is scarcity of . . . these are all rascal proposition. God has enough potency to give you ten times food you want. But because we have created chaos in the world, without following the Kṛṣṇa consciousness there is trouble.
So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is all-round solution, overall solution of all problems. Therefore our request is . . . those who are actually leaders, thoughtful, they should take this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement very seriously, study its philosophy, and try to spread it, as far as possible, according to his own capacity.