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When human being becomes irreligious, without any religion, then it is no better than the cats and dogs

Expressions researched:
"when human being becomes irreligious, without any religion, then it is no better than the cats and dogs"

Lectures

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

The difference is that a human being, civilized being, has some sort of religious understanding. The cats and dogs, they have no such thing. That is the difference. Therefore, when human being becomes irreligious, without any religion, then it is no better than the cats and dogs. Dharmeṇa hīnaḥ paśubhiḥ samāṇaḥ.

Dharma, generally it is understood "religion." Religion means a kind of faith. So that is not the proper meaning of dharma, "faith." Faith one may have, one may not have. But actually dharma means compulsory: it must be. Just like sugar. Sugar must be sweet. There is no question of sometimes becoming sweet and sometimes becoming bitter. That is not sugar. Sugar must be sweet. Similarly, dharma is also a "must be." It cannot be option, or a kind of faith which you can change at your whims. That is not dharma. Dharma means "must be." The same example: A particular thing has a particular characteristic. The sugar characteristic is sweetness. Chili is hot. Similarly, everything has got its characteristic. Just like microphone. I am speaking; it must resound. That is the characteristic. That is dharma: which cannot be separated. If sweetness is separated from sugar, it is no longer sugar. Similarly, dharma means that. Dharma means, real meaning is, characteristic. The characteristic of the living being is to serve. Caitanya Mahāprabhu gave this instruction: jīvera svarūpa haya nitya kṛṣṇa dāsa (CC Madhya 20.108-109). That is the characteristic of all living entities, to become servant, to become servant of Kṛṣṇa. But when we do not serve Kṛṣṇa, then, because my constitutional position is to serve, I have to serve māyā. If you don't serve Kṛṣṇa, then you will have to serve māyā. Because you have no other business than to serve. Just like a servant class: If he gives up one master, he must accept another master. May be better master, but master he has to accept. Just like dog. Without accepting a master, it is street dog. It has no position. So dharma means that the characteristic of the living being.

So here it is, says, dharmasya hy āpavargyasya na artha arthāyopakalpate. There are four principles in the material world: dharma, artha, kāma, mokṣa (SB 4.8.41, CC Ādi 1.90). Human life begins from religious life, because in the animal life there is no religion. Animal life—cats' life, dogs' life, tigers' life, or any other less than human being. . . Especially civilized human being all over the world, there is some type of religion, either it may be Hindu religion or Christian religion or Muhammadan religion or Buddhist religion. That is the sign of civilized human society. Dharmeṇa hīnaḥ paśubhiḥ samānaḥ. Āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithunaṁ ca sāmānyam etat paśubhiḥ narāṇām (Hitopadeśa 25). Eating, sleeping, sex life and defense, they are common either to the human being or to the animals. So what is the difference between animal and human being? The difference is that a human being, civilized being, has some sort of religious understanding. The cats and dogs, they have no such thing. That is the difference. Therefore, when human being becomes irreligious, without any religion, then it is no better than the cats and dogs. Dharmeṇa hīnaḥ paśubhiḥ samāṇaḥ.

So civilized human being must have religion. But religion does not mean to develop or improve economic condition. Generally people go to church, to temple, to express some, I mean to say, awful condition, ārtaḥ jijñāsuḥ. Catur-vidhā bhajante māṁ sukṛtino 'rjuna. What is the next line? Ārto arthārthī jijñāsur jñānī ca bharatarṣabha (BG 7.16). Four classes of men in the beginning take to God consciousness if they are pious, sukṛtinaḥ. Sukṛti means pious. One who does not act sinfully, he is called sukṛti. And one who acts sinfully, he is called duṣkṛtina. So Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā that four classes of men, namely ārto arthārthī, if he is pious and if he is distressed, then he goes to church or temple: "My Lord, I am distressed. Please give me some help," prays to the Lord. And arthārthī, one who is poor, he also goes to pray to God to give him some money; he is in distressed condition. These two classes, and another two classes: jijñāsu, one who is inquisitive to understand what is God, and jñānī. . . Jñānī means one who understands his constitutional position. He is jñānī. Most people, they do not understand what he is and what is the goal of life. They are called ajñānī, "in ignorance." Just like animal. Animal does not know what is the aim of life. Similarly, if a human being does not know what is the aim of life, he is also animal. So catur-vidhā bhajante māṁ sukṛtino 'rjuna, arthārthī jñānī, jijñāsur jñānī ca bharatarṣabha (BG 7.16).

So this is beginning of life. To try to understand, to approach God, that is the beginning of human civilized life. Therefore, in the Vedic civilization, there are four principles: dharma, artha, kāma, mokṣa. Dharma means religious principle, to understand. And economic development—because we require money, after all, to keep this body fit—that is also required. Dharma, artha, kāma. Kāma means sense gratification. Āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithunaṁ ca. To eat, to make arrangement for eating, to make arrangement for sleeping, to make arrangement for sense gratification and to make arrangement for defense—these are necessities of the body. These are called kāma. Dharma artha kāma mokṣa (SB 4.8.41, CC Ādi 1.90). And at last, to become liberated, mokṣa. Mokṣa means to get out of the entanglement of material miserable condition of life. That is called mokṣa. What is the material miserable condition of life? There are many. But the essence is, as presented by Kṛṣṇa, janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi-duḥkha-doṣānudarśanam (BG 13.9). Everyone is trying, struggling for existence, to get out of the miserable condition of life. Everyone is trying. The standard of miserable condition may be different. One has got a million dollar; he thinks, "This is miserable condition. I must have ten times of this money. Then I will be happy." And one has got one hundred million dollars. . . or one hundred dollars, he thinks that "If thousand dollars I get. . ." In this way, everyone is trying to approach a position where he will be happy.

Page Title:When human being becomes irreligious, without any religion, then it is no better than the cats and dogs
Compiler:SharmisthaK
Created:2022-10-11, 13:13:10
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=1, Con=0, Let=0
No. of Quotes:1