Prabhupada, Geneva, June 6, 1974: So according to Bhagavad-gita, as we are preaching, we are also opening centers, self-help center. In New Vrindaban, West Virginia, we have already opened a very big community center. We are going to open in California also, and we have already opened in India also, that we occupy a certain tract of land, we produce our own food, we keep our cows and take their milk, and there is no scarcity. Everything, there are. We don’t require to go outside the land for our livelihood. So we are advising, we are making centers like that, that “Be self-sufficient. Save time for spiritual culture.” That is human civilization. This was advised some thousands of years ago by Rsabhadeva. I will recite some verses. That is stated in the Srimad- Bhagavatam. It is stated in the Fifth Chapter of the Fifth Canto. It is said, Rsabha uvaca. Rsabhadeva was a, the emperor of this world. He was advising his sons. So he said,
nayam deho deha-bhajam nrloke kastan kaman arhate vid-bhujam ye tato tapo divyam putraka yena sattvam suddhyed yasmad brahma-saukhyam anantam [Bhag. 5.5.1]
This is the instruction of Rsabhadeva to his sons. “My dear sons, this human form of body, ayam deha, this body, na, not…” Na ayam deho deha-bhajam nrloke. Everyone has got a body. The cats and dogs, they are also possessing a body, and the human being also possessing a body. So what is the difference between the cats and dogs and human society? So Rsabhadeva says, ayam deha-bhajam nrlo…, kastan kaman na arhati yad vid-bhujam. To accept too much labor for the necessities of life, kaman… Kaman means the necessities of life. This life, this human form of life, is not meant for that. It is meant for vid-bhujam, the hogs and dogs. They are… The hog is whole day working to find out “Where is stool? Where is stool?” The human life should not be like that. Human life should be very peaceful and prosperous and save time for spiritual culture. That is stated here. Tapo divyam, for tapasya, tapasya, voluntarily accepting renouncement. This is human life. That is our Vedic principle, compulsory sannyasa. There are varnasrama-dharma. So student life, brahmacari; then married life, grhastha; then vanaprastha; then sannyasa. That is tapasya. The brahmacari is also trained up for austerity and penances. That is brahmacari. The grhastha also… Because from brahmacari life, they go to grhastha life, they are trained up in tapasya. Then again, at the age of fiftieth year, they give up the family life, they take vanaprastha. Only the husband and wife go out of home and travels all over the holy places. Then, when one is little trained up, he sends back his wife to the care of his grown-up children, and he takes sannyasa. This is varnasrama-dharma. The so-called Hindu dharma, that is a gift of the Muhammadans. We don’t find the word “Hindu” in any Vedic scripture. This “Hindu” word has come from the Muhammadan countries. They used to say the people of this part of the world, means, across the river Indus, they call “Hindas” or “Hindus.” So actually, Hindu not…, that is not Hindu dharma. Our… From the Vedic literature, we understand the varnasrama-dharma, varnasrama: four varnas and four asramas. Varnasramacaravata. In the Visnu-Purana, you’ll find this word. In the Bhagavad-gita, you’ll find. In the Bhagavata you’ll find. So really Indian civilization or Aryan civilization, Vedic civlization, means varnasrama-dharma.
varnasramacaravata purusenaparah puman visnur aradhyate pumsam nanyat tat-tosa-karanam
So this human form of life, here, according to the instruction of Rsabhadeva, is not meant for working hard simply for eating, sleeping, mating and defending. This is not human form of life. This is condemned in the sastras. Human form, the civilization means they should mold the form of the society in such a way that easily we can live and save time for spiritual culture. Therefore it is said, tapo divyam putraka. The tapasya, the spiritual culture, is necessary. Divyam. Tapasya. Tapasya means… There are so many scholars. They also undergo tapasya for finding out, discovering… Just like we have now discovered this atomic energy. That is also tapasya. Or something wonderful, discovery, that also, tapasya. But here it is said, tapo divyam: “Undergo tapasya, austerity, penances, for transcendental realization.” Divyam. In the Bhagavad-gita you’ll find, janma karma me divyam yo janati tattvatah. So we should undergo tapasya, penance, austerity, for transcendental realization. Divyam. Tapo divyam putraka: “My dear boys, this life, human form of life, is not meant for working so hard like hogs and dogs. This life is meant for tapasya, and for transcendental realization.” Tapo divyam putraka yena sattvam suddhyet. Sattva means existence. We exist, but this existence is not pure. Therefore we have to accept birth and death, old age and disease. This is not pure. Actually, we are living entities. Na jayate na mriyate va kadacit. The living entity never takes birth, neither dies. Na hanyate hanyamane sarire: [Bg. 2.20] “This body being destroyed, the living entity is not destroyed.” So as eternal part and parcel of the Supreme Lord… The Supreme Lord is sac-cid-ananda-vigraha [Bs. 5.1], eternal, full of bliss, and knowledge. But we have got this body, material body, which is full of ignorance, full of miseries and neither… It is only temporary. This is our position. Therefore tapasya should be executed, how we can also revive our original constitutional position, sac-cid-ananda- vigraha. This is called suddhyet sattva.
Lecture at World Health Organization
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Geneva, June 6, 1974
Full Lecture: http://prabhupadabooks.com/classes/general/at_world_health_organization/geneva/june/06/1974
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