Prabhupāda: Gṛham śatrum api prāptam. Śatrum means enemy. If you see that an enemy has come to your house, śatrum api—śatru means enemy; api, although—you should receive him in such a way that he'll completely believe you that you are his enemy . . . you are not his enemy. That was the system.
In the Kurukṣetra war, the two brothers, I mean to say, cousin-brothers are fighting. But after finishing the fighting there is no enmity. These people are going to their camp, they are coming, talking or taking lunch. Very friendly. Friendly. There was another fight, between Bhīma and Jarāsandha. The whole day there was fighting. It was decided that one should be killed. That's a fact. The fighting between kṣatriyas, that it will not end unless one of them is killed. That is kṣatriya spirit.
So they know . . . Bhīma and Jarāsandha knew it very well that this fighting is going on until one is dead, one of the belligerent party. But at night Bhīma is the guest of Jarāsandha, eating together, talking friendly. This is brahminical culture. For duty's sake, for some cause, we may fight. That's all right. But that does not mean we shall remain inimical always. Gṛham śatrum api prāptaṁ viśvastam akuto bhayam.
There is another example. The fighting was going on between Arjuna and Duryodhana. So Duryodhana criticized the commander-in-chief, Bhīma . . . er, Bhīṣmadeva. "My dear grandfather, you are affectionate to the other parties, my other cousin-brothers; therefore you are not fighting very nicely." "Oh, you think like that, that I'm not fighting very nicely?" "Yes." Just to enthuse him. Yes. So he said, "All right. Tomorrow I shall kill all these five brothers. Is that all right?" "Yes, that's nice." (laughter) "So I'll keep these five arrows reserved for killing these five brothers."
So Duryodhana did not believe that, "He may miss these five arrows," but he said: "My dear grandfather, better I keep these five arrows with me. I shall deliver you tomorrow morning." "All right, you keep it." Kṛṣṇa understood. Kṛṣṇa is all-pervading. He immediately said Arjuna, "Tomorrow you are going to be killed. Be assured." Why? "Now this is the position." "Then what to do?" "Now, you go to Duryodhana and take away all those arrows. Otherwise you'll be killed."
So Arjuna remembered that Duryodhana once promised—Duryodhana was elderly, Arjuna is young, younger brother—that, "My dear brother, I promise, whatever you want I can give you." So Duryodhana (Arjuna) said: "All right. I shall ask you some days later. Not now." So Arjuna thought, "Now this is the opportunity. I shall go and ask Duryodhana to give me those arrows."
So Arjuna went to the other camp, and immediately Duryodhana received him as his brother: "My dear brother, you have come? What do you want? You want the kingdom without fighting? Therefore you have come? I can give you. I can stop this fighting if you want without fighting." "No," Arjuna said. "No, I have come for some other purpose." "All right. Whatever you want, you can . . ." "Yes, you some time promised that whatever I want you will give me." "Yes, I am keeping my promise. What you want?" He said: "Give me those five arrows." (laughter) "Yes, you take it." Immediately. This is kṣatriya spirit. This is brahminical culture. "Yes, you take it. Promise."
Rāmacandra was going to be enthroned, and the stepmother said the same to Daśaratha Mahārāja, that . . . they were stepmothers, Mahārāja Daśaratha's three wives. So one wife wanted that her son should be king. So immediately she proposed that "Instead of Rāmacandra, my son should be king." Mahārāja Daśaratha said: "How it can be? It is already arranged. He is the eldest son." "No, you promised sometimes that you will keep your promise and satisfy me. So this is my demand." "So what do you want?" "That Rāmacandra should be banished immediately and my son should be enthroned." She (he) agreed.
He called Rāmacandra, "This is the demand of Your stepmother. Kindly go to the forest for fourteen years, and Your stepbrother will be king." Rāmacandra agreed immediately: "Yes, that's all right, father." This is brahminical culture. Is there any single instance in the history that a king which is going to be enthroned next morning, and by the order of his father immediately he goes away to the forest?
Therefore there is no harm that we make materially very much advanced—but not like cats and dogs. Take brahminical culture. Then it will be perfect, the whole society. Go-brāhmaṇa-hitāya ca jagad-dhitāya kṛṣṇāya govindāya . . . that brahminical culture can be established only by understanding Kṛṣṇa. Without understanding Kṛṣṇa, whatever we do, we shall remain simply animals. That's all.