VedaVyasa
Praneetha
The Mad Bhagavatam
Canto 11
Chapter 18
The Varnâs'rama System: the Withdrawn and the Renounced
As related in this chapter, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa explained to Uddhava the duties of the vānaprastha and sannyāsa orders and the religious practices proper to each of these levels of advancement.
One who is taking to the vānaprastha stage of life should leave his wife at home in the care of his sons, or else take her along, and with a peaceful mind spend the third quarter of his life in the forest. He should accept as his food whatever bulbs, fruits, roots and so on that grow in the forest, taking sometimes grains cooked by fire and sometimes fruits ripened by time. Furthermore, he should take as his garments tree bark, grass, leaves or the skin of a deer. It is prescribed that he should perform austerities by not cutting his hair, beard, or nails. Nor should he make any special attempt to remove dirt from his limbs. He should bathe three times daily in cold water and sleep upon the ground. During the hot season he should stand beneath the fearsome heat of the sun with fires blazing on four sides. During the rainy season he should stand in the midst of the downpour of rain, and during the cold winter he should submerge himself in water up to his neck. He is absolutely forbidden to clean his teeth, to store food that he has collected at one time to eat at another time, and to worship the Supreme Lord with the flesh of animals. If he can maintain those severe practices for the remainder of his life, the vānaprastha will achieve the Tapoloka planet.
The fourth quarter of life is meant for sannyāsa. One should develop complete detachment from attaining residence on different planets, up to even Brahmaloka. Such wishes for material elevation are due to desire for the fruits of material activity. When one recognizes that endeavors to achieve residence on the higher planets ultimately award only suffering, then it is enjoined that one should take to sannyāsa in a spirit of renunciation. The process of accepting sannyāsa involves worshiping the Lord with sacrifice, giving everything one possesses in charity to the priests and establishing within one's own heart the various sacrificial fires. For a sannyāsī, association with women or even the sight of women is more undesirable than taking poison. Except in emergencies, the sannyāsī should never wear more clothing than a loincloth or some simple covering over his loincloth. He should carry no more than his staff and waterpot. Giving up all violence to living creatures, he should become subdued in the functions of his body, mind and speech. He should remain detached and fixed on the self and travel alone to such pure places as the mountains, rivers and forests. Thus engaged, he should remember the Supreme Personality of Godhead and dwell in a place that is fearless and not heavily populated. He should take his alms each day at seven homes chosen at random from those of the members of the four social classes, avoiding only the homes of those who are cursed or fallen. With a pure heart he should offer to the Supreme Personality of Godhead whatever food he has collected and take the mahā-prasādam remnants. In this way he should always be mindful that hankering for sense gratification is bondage and that engaging the objects of the senses in the service of Lord Mādhava is liberation. If one lacks knowledge and renunciation, or continues to be troubled by the unconquered six enemies headed by lust and the all-powerful senses, or if one accepts the tri-daṇḍa renounced order simply for the purpose of carrying out a livelihood, then he will achieve as his result only the killing of his own soul.
A paramahaḿsa is not under the control of injunctions and prohibitions. He is a devotee of the Supreme Lord, detached from external sense gratification and completely free from desire for even such subtle gratificatory goals as liberation. He is expert in discrimination and, just like a simple child, is free from concepts of pride and insult. Although actually competent, he wanders about like a dull person, and although most learned, he engages himself like an insane fool in incoherent speech. Although actually fixed in the Vedas, he behaves in an unordered fashion. He tolerates the evil words of others and never shows contempt for anyone else. He avoids acting as an enemy or vainly indulging in argument. He sees the Supreme Personality of Godhead in all creatures and also all living beings within the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In order to keep his body alive for performing worship of the Lord, he accepts whatever excellent or inferior food, clothing and bedding he can obtain without endeavor. Although he has to make some effort to find food for maintaining his body, he does not become joyful when he finds something, nor does he become depressed when not finding anything. The Supreme Lord Himself, although not at all subject to the Vedic orders and prohibitions, by His own free will executes various prescribed duties; similarly the paramahaḿsa, even while on the platform of freedom from subjugation to Vedic rules and prohibitions, carries out various duties. Because his perception of dualities has become completely eradicated by transcendental knowledge, which is focused on the Supreme Lord, he obtains upon the demise of his material body the liberation known as sārṣṭi, in which one becomes equal in opulence with the Lord.
The person who desires his own best interest should take shelter of a bona fide spiritual master. Filling his mind with faith, keeping free from enviousness and remaining fixed in devotion, the disciple should serve the spiritual master, whom he should regard as nondifferent from the Supreme Lord. For a brahmacārī, the primary duty is service to the spiritual master. The main duties for a householder are protection of living beings and sacrifice, for a vānaprastha austerities, and for a sannyāsī self-control and nonviolence. Celibacy (practiced by householders at all times except once a month when the wife is fertile), penance, cleanliness, self-satisfaction, friendship with all living beings and above all worship of the Supreme Personality of Godhead are duties meant for every jīva soul. One acquires firm devotion for the Supreme Lord by always rendering service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead through one's own particular prescribed duty, by not engaging in the worship of any other personalities, and also by thinking of all creatures as the place of residence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His form as the Supersoul. The followers of the karma-kāṇḍa section of the Vedas can attain the planets of the forefathers and so on by their ritualistic activities, but if they become endowed with devotion for the Supreme Lord, then by these same activities they can achieve the supreme stage of liberation.
11.18.1
(1) The Supreme Lord said: 'If one in the third phase of life wants to retreat into the forest, one should proceed in peace. For the sake of that peace one must take one's wife along or else entrust her to the sons.
In Kali-yuga a human being generally cannot live more than one hundred years, and even this is becoming most unusual. A man who has a reasonable expectation of living for one hundred years may adopt the vānaprastha order at the age of fifty, and then at the age of seventy-five he may take sannyāsa for complete renunciation. Since in Kali-yuga very few people live for one hundred years, one should adjust the schedule accordingly. Vānaprastha is intended as a gradual transition from materialistic family life to the stage of complete renunciation.
11.18.2
medhyair vṛttiḿ prakalpayet
(2) One should arrange for the pure [*] sustenance of the bulbs, roots and fruits of the forest, and dress oneself with tree bark, grass, leaves or animal skins.
11.18.3
(3) With the hair on one's head and body, the facial hair and the nails carrying dirt, and the teeth not cleaned [at other times], one should three times a day bathe and [at night] sleep on the ground.
11.18.4
(4) Ascetically tolerating the five fires during the summer [the sacrificial fires in four directions and the sun above], the torrents of rain during the rainy season and the cold of dipping up to one's neck one's body in water during the winter, one should, as before mentioned engaged, execute one's penance [see also 4.23: 6].
One who engages in sense gratification must perform severe penances at the end of life to counteract his sinful, hedonistic activities. A devotee of the Lord, however, naturally develops Kṛṣṇa consciousness and need not subject himself to such radical penances. As stated in the Pañcarātra,
"If one is worshiping the Lord properly, what is the use of severe penances? And if one is not properly worshiping the Lord, what is the use of severe penances? If Śrī Kṛṣṇa is realized within and without everything that exists, what is the use of severe penances? And if Śrī Kṛṣṇa is not seen within and without everything, then what is the use of severe penances?"
11.18.5
ulūkhalāśma-kuṭṭo vā
(5) Eating at the right time one should consume what's either prepared on a fire or what's grinded with a mortar, pulverized with a stone or grinded with one's teeth.
In Vedic civilization it is recommended that at the end of one's life one should go to a holy place or forest for spiritual perfection. In sacred forests one does not find restaurants, supermarkets, fast-food chains and so on, and thus one must eat simply, reducing sense gratification.
Although in the Western countries people eat processed food, one living simply must himself separate and pulverize grains and other foods before eating. This is referred to here.
11.18.6
nādadītānyadāhṛtam
(6) With a practical approach depending the place, the time and what he is capable of, he personally must collect whatever is needed for his sustenance, and not store anything for another time [see also 7.12: 19].
According to Vedic regulations, one practicing austerity should collect only what he requires for immediate use, and upon receiving gifts of foodstuff he should immediately give up that which he has previously collected, so that there will be no surplus. This regulation is meant to keep one fixed in faithful dependence on the Supreme Lord. One should never stock food or other bodily necessities for future use. The term deśa-kāla-balābhijña indicates that in a particularly difficult place, or in time of emergency or personal incapacity, this strict rule need not be followed,
11.18.7
vanyaiś caru-puroḍāśair
(7) A vânaprastha may worship Me with oblations [of rice, barley and dâl], may offer rice cakes or offer fruits according to the season, but never, even though it's scripturally defended, be of worship with sacrificing animals.
One who has taken the vānaprastha order of life should never perform animal sacrifices or eat meat.
11.18.8
cāturmāsyāni ca muner
(8) As before [while he was a grihastha] he performs the fire sacrifice, the sacrifice for a new moon and a full moon and he also keeps to what was enjoined for the wise by the vedic experts concerning the four months' sacrifice [of câturmâsya].
11.18.9
(9) Being of that practice the sage will, because of the penance, be as emaciated that one sees his veins, worshiping Me, the Goal of All Penance, reach Me in the world of the seers [see also maharloka].
A vānaprastha who develops pure devotional service achieves the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, while in the vānaprastha stage of life. One who does not become completely Kṛṣṇa conscious, however, first goes to the planet Maharloka, or Ṛṣiloka, and from there directly achieves Lord Kṛṣṇa.
One achieves Maharloka, or Ṛṣiloka, through strict observance of positive and negative regulations. However, without developing a taste for chanting and hearing the glories of the Lord (śravaṇaḿ kīrtanaḿ viṣṇoḥ [SB 7.5.23]), it is not possible to achieve the perfect liberation of going back home, back to Godhead. Therefore, on the Maharloka planet the unsuccessful sage gives more attention to chanting and hearing, and thus he gradually develops pure love of Godhead.
11.18.10
tapo niḥśreyasaḿ mahat
kāmāyālpīyase yuñjyād
(10) Is there then a greater fool, than someone who for a long time is of this difficult but glorious penance which awards liberation, but practices it for the purpose of trivial sense gratification [see also vântâs'î]?
Although the process of vānaprastha described by Lord Kṛṣṇa is so glorious that even the consolation prize is promotion to Maharloka, one who consciously performs this process for such promotion to heaven is certainly the greatest fool. The Lord does not want this process to be abused or exploited by materialistic rascals, for the ultimate goal is love of Godhead.
11.18.11
yadāsau niyame 'kalpo
mac-citto 'gniḿ samāviśet
(11) When he in his regulated activities due to old age with his body trembling is no longer able to carry on [before he reaches sannyâsa], he should, fixed on Me, place the fires within his heart and enter the fire [see also 7.12: 23].
Since the process of vānaprastha is recommended for those nearing the end of life, there is always the likelihood that one will prematurely succumb to the symptoms of old age and be unable to reach the final stage of sannyāsa. If one simply cannot carry on his religious duties due to old age, it is here advised that he fix the mind in Lord Kṛṣṇa and enter into the sacrificial fire. Although this may not be possible in the modern age, we can appreciate the absolute seriousness of going back home, back to Godhead, as evidenced in this verse.
11.18.12
lokeṣu nirayātmasu
virāgo jāyate samyań
(12) When all that is obtained from the karma, including a higher world, is nothing but hell to him and complete detachment has developed, may he at that point give up the fire of sacrifice and take to the renounced order [see also B.G. 18: 2 and **].
11.18.13
(13) Having worshiped to the injunctions and having given all he has to the leader of the ceremony, should he, placing the sacrificial fire within his life breath, free from expectations take up sannyâsa [see also 9.6*].
One cannot maintain the sannyāsa order of life unless one gives up all materialistic association and engages exclusively in devotional service to the Supreme Lord. Any material desire will gradually prove to be a stumbling block in the prosecution of renounced life. Therefore, a liberated sannyāsī must vigilantly keep himself free from the weeds of material desires, which surface principally in the form of attachment to women, money and reputation. One may possess a beautiful garden filled with fruits and flowers, but without vigilant maintenance the garden will be overrun by weeds. Similarly, one who achieves a beautiful state of Kṛṣṇa consciousness takes the sannyāsa order of life, but if he does not vigilantly and painstakingly keep his heart clean, there is always the danger of a relapse into illusion.
11.18.14
(14) To the learned one who out of respect for the truth takes up sannyâsa appear the demigods in the form of his original wife [and other allurements] forming stumbling blocks; surpassing them the sannyâsî should go for the beyond [see also B.G. 6: 25, 1.19: 2-3, 5.6: 4, 11.4: 7].
The demigods are empowered with universal administration and by their potency may appear as the former wife of a sannyāsī or as other women, so that the sannyāsī gives up his strict vows and becomes entangled in sense gratification. Lord Kṛṣṇa here encourages all sannyāsīs by telling them, "Pay no attention to such illusory manifestations. Continue your duties and go back home, back to Godhead."
11.18.15
bibhṛyāc cen munir vāsaḥ
kaupīnācchādanaḿ param
(15) As far as a sage wishes to wear clothes, he covers himself with a loincloth [or kaupîna]. Carrying with him nothing but the bare necessities of a waterpot and a staff he forsakes everything else.
11.18.16
(16) He should place his foot where his eyes are telling him it is safe [not to step on living beings], he should drink water filtered with his cloth, he should speak truthful words of purity and he should do what his mind says is pure.
While walking, a saintly person is careful not to kill any tiny creatures on the ground. Similarly, he filters his drinking water through cloth to avoid swallowing small creatures living within the water. Speaking untruths simply for sense gratification is detrimental to devotional service and should be avoided. Speaking impersonal philosophy and glorifying the sense gratification of the material world, even that found in heavenly planets, contaminates the heart and must be avoided by those desiring perfection in the loving service of the Lord. By serious consideration one can understand that any activity other than devotional service to Lord Kṛṣṇa has no ultimate value; therefore one should exclusively engage in the purified activities of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
11.18.17
maunānīhānilāyāmā
(17) Taciturnity, disinclination and the arrest of breath constitute the strict disciplines for the voice, the body and the mind. Of him with whom there is no question of these My dearest, one can, despite of his bamboo rods, never say that he is a real sannyâsî [see also tridanda].
The word daṇḍa indicates the staff carried by those in the renounced order of life, and daṇḍa also indicates severe discipline. The Vaiṣṇava sannyāsīs accept a staff made of three bamboo rods, signifying dedication of the body, mind and words to the service of the Supreme Lord. Here Lord Kṛṣṇa says that one must first accept these three daṇḍas, or disciplines (namely control of the voice, body and mind), within oneself. The practice of anilāyāma (or prāṇāyāma, regulating the life air) is meant to control the mind, and one who always thinks of service to Lord Kṛṣṇa has certainly achieved the perfection of prāṇāyāma. Merely carrying the three external daṇḍas without assimilating the internal daṇḍas of bodily, mental and vocal discipline can never make one an actual Vaiṣṇava sannyāsī, as explained here by Lord Kṛṣṇa.
In the Haḿsa-gītā section of Mahābhārata there are instructions regarding the sannyāsa order of life. A conditioned soul who adopts only the external ornaments of tridaṇḍī-sannyāsa will not actually be able to control the senses. One who takes sannyāsa for false prestige, making a show of saintliness without actual advancement in kṛṣṇa-kīrtana, will soon be vanquished by the external energy of the Lord.
11.18.18
saptāgārān asańkḷptāḿs
(18) When he goes begging with the four varnas he should avoid the impure [sinful, polluted] households, when he at random approaches seven different houses where he must be satisfied with whatever he acquires [see also cakra, compare 1.4: 8].
Those who oppose Vedic culture pass laws to make begging by saintly persons a criminal act. They thus insult and persecute saintly beggars, considering them to be ordinary vagrants. A lazy person begging to avoid work is certainly abominable, but a saintly person dedicated to the service of the Lord and practicing the discipline of begging to develop full dependence on the Lord's mercy should be given all facility in human society. that there are three forms of collecting alms. Mādhukara is the process of imitating the bee, who collects a tiny amount of nectar from each flower. In this way, the saintly person accepts a very small amount from each person, avoiding social conflict. The process mentioned here is asańkḷpta, by which one indiscriminately approaches seven houses, being satisfied with whatever may be obtained. Prāk-praṇīta is that process by which one establishes regular donors and collects one's maintenance from them. In this regard Śrīla Vīrarāghava Ācārya has described the initial stage of sannyāsa, called kuṭīcaka, as follows. A man accepting the initial stage of sannyāsa arranges for his children or other relatives and well-wishers to build him a kuṭī, or meditation cottage. He gives up worldly affairs and sits within the cottage, trying to remain free from lust, anger, greed, illusion and so on. According to the prescribed injunctions of regulated life, he accepts a tri-daṇḍa, purifies himself with a waterpot, shaves his head (leaving a śikhā, or tuft), chants Gāyatrī mantra on the sacred thread and wears saffron garments. Bathing regularly, cleansing, performing ācamana, chanting japa, studying the Vedas, remaining celibate and meditating on the Lord, he receives regular supplies of food from his children, friends and relatives. Accepting only the bare necessities of life, he remains fixed in his cottage up to the moment of liberation.
11.18.19
tatropaspṛśya vāg-yataḥ
bhuñjītāśeṣam āhṛtam
(19) Somewhere outside going to a reservoir of water he should, cleansed by it, in silence duly distribute what was collected and next after cleaning it eat all that remained.
s that a saintly person should not argue or quarrel with materialistic persons who may request or demand part of his foodstuff. The word vibhajya indicates that one should give something to such persons to avoid disturbance, and then, offering the remnants to Lord Viṣṇu, one should eat everything on one's plate, without saving food for the future. The word bahiḥ indicates that one should not eat in a public place, and vāg-yata indicates that one should eat silently, meditating upon the Lord's mercy.
11.18.20
niḥsańgaḥ saḿyatendriyaḥ
(20) Moving about alone on this earth free from attachment, with his senses fully under control and satisfied within in his realization of the True Self, he is, steady on the spiritual platform, of an equal vision [B.G. 5: 18, see bhajan].
One who remains attached to material sense gratification cannot be steady in the process of chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. Being shackled by illusory desires, he is not able to fully control the senses. Actually, one should take shelter of devotional service to Lord Kṛṣṇa twenty-four hours a day, for by such service one remains within the scope of spiritual reality. By chanting and hearing the holy names of the Lord along with the Lord's glories and pastimes, one naturally drifts away from the field of material sense gratification. Good association with Lord Kṛṣṇa and His devotees automatically vanquishes useless material association, and one is able to carry out the Vedic injunctions meant to lift the conditioned soul out of the material field and onto the liberated platform of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. v"Offering gifts in charity, accepting charitable gifts, revealing one's mind in confidence, inquiring confidentially, accepting prasādam and offering prasādam are the six symptoms of love shared by one devotee and another."
11.18.21
mad-bhāva-vimalāśayaḥ
(21) Dwelling in a solitary and safe place and with his consciousness purified in his love for Me, the sage should concentrate on the soul only as being non-different from Me.
One who is engaged exclusively in the devotional service of the Lord in one of the five principal relationships is to be known as a pure Vaiṣṇava. Because of his advanced stage of love of Godhead, a pure devotee is able to constantly chant the glories of the Lord without material hindrance. He is not interested in anything except Lord Kṛṣṇa and never considers himself to be qualitatively different from the Lord. One who is still attracted by the gross material body and subtle material mind, which cover the eternal soul, continues to see himself as different from the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This misconception is due to false identification with matter. With senses purified of material contamination, one must serve the Lord, who is the master of all senses, and thus one's devotional service is considered free from discrepancy.
One who ignores the injunctions of Vedic literature uselessly wastes his sense activity in illusory material activities. He falsely considers himself to be different from Lord Kṛṣṇa and therefore imagines that he possesses an interest independent of the Lord's interest. There is no possibility that such a person can achieve steadiness in life, because the material field of action is constantly being shifted and transformed by the disturbing influence of time. If a devotee begins to cultivate an interest apart from the loving service of the Lord, his meditation on his oneness with the Lord will be disturbed and overturned. When the mind deviates from the lotus feet of the Lord, the duality of material nature again becomes prominent within the mind, and one resumes a work program based on the three modes of material nature.
11.18.22
anvīkṣetātmano bandhaḿ
(22) Meditating on the soul being bound and being liberated [see 11.10] there is, when one steady in the knowledge has tied down the senses that are distracted by sense-gratification, the full control over them and the liberation.
By carefully understanding one's eternal nature, one will not again be bound up in the shackles of material energy, and by constant engagement in the service of the Absolute Truth, one is liberated. Then the flickering material senses can no longer drag one into the false consciousness of being a material enjoyer. Such steady sense control gives one relief from the harassment of material sense gratification.
11.18.23
(23) With the six divisions [the senses and the mind] fully controlled by the consciousness of Me, the sage who has experienced the greater happiness of the soul, should live therefore detached from the futile matters of lust.
11.18.24
bhikṣārthaḿ praviśaḿś caret
(24) He should travel to the pure places of refuge on earth with rivers, mountains and forests. The cities, towns and pasturing grounds he should only enter to beg for alms with those who live to serve the body.
According to Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī, the word pura refers to cities and towns with shopping centers, markets and other commercial enterprises, whereas grāma refers to smaller towns, lacking such facilities. The vānaprastha or sannyāsī trying to become free from material attachment should avoid those who are working day and night for sense gratification, approaching them only to engage them in necessary acts of charity. Those who are preaching Kṛṣṇa consciousness all over the world are understood to be liberated souls, and therefore they constantly approach the materialistic living entities to engage them in the devotional service of Lord Kṛṣṇa. However, even such preachers should strictly avoid contact with the materialistic world when not actually necessary for advancing the mission of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. The injunction is that one should not deal unnecessarily with the materialistic world.
11.18.25
vānaprasthāśrama-padeṣv
saḿsidhyaty āśv asammohaḥ
(25) The order of life living in the forest should always take the position of begging because by food obtained from gleaning [or living on the dole] one quickly finds perfection, freedom from illusion and a purified existence.
A vānaprastha should never give up the purifying process of begging for his food, and ordinary people should not foolishly equate a lazy bum living at the cost of others with a saintly beggar engaged in higher duties for the Supreme Lord.
11.18.26
naitad vastutayā paśyed
asakta-citto viramed
ihāmutra-cikīrṣitāt
(26) Never should one consider the perishable that one sees in direct experience as the ultimate reality; with a consciousness free from attachment one should retire from all materially motivated actions in this world and in the next.
One may doubt how a gentleman can retire from family life and live as a beggar, eating meager foodstuffs. The Lord here responds by stating that sumptuous or palatable foods — along with all other material objects, such as the body itself — should never be seen as ultimate reality, since they are obviously perishable items. One should retire from material programs destined to enhance the quality of one's illusion both in this life and the next.
11.18.27
(27) Fixed in oneself by the power of reason one must turn away from this universe, which in the Self is all knitted together with the mind, the speech and the life air [see ahankâra]. One should not keep that deluding material energy in mind.
Every conditioned soul considers the material world to be the object of his personal sense gratification and therefore considers the material body to be his actual identity. The word tyaktvā indicates that one must give up one's false identification with the material world and the material body, since both are merely products of the illusory potency of the Lord. One should never again meditate on the material world and body as objects of sense gratification but rather should become situated in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Looking at things from the eternal point of view, this world is simply illusory. The material energy of the Lord is devoid of consciousness and thus cannot be the basis of actual happiness. The Supreme Lord Himself is the only absolutely conscious entity. He is absolutely self-sufficient, standing alone as Viṣṇu, the Personality of Godhead. Only Viṣṇu, and not the insignificant workings of material nature, can give us the actual perfection of life.
11.18.28
mad-bhakto vānapekṣakaḥ
(28) Whether it concerns someone who is dedicated to the knowledge of selfrealization and is detached from external manifestations, or whether it is about someone who as My devotee does not desire liberation [as a paramahamsa], in both cases one gives up what is prescribed for rituals and paraphernalia relating to one's phase of life [the âs'rama]; such a one is supposed to be beyond the range of rules and regulations [see also 10.78: 31-32, 3.29: 25 and 5.1*].
In the previous verses the Lord has elaborately described various rituals, paraphernalia and disciplines for the various spiritual orders of life. The sannyāsī, for example, carries a tri-daṇḍa and a waterpot and eats and lives in a particular way. A paramahaḿsa devotee, having completely given up all attachment and interest in the material world, is no longer attracted by such external features of renunciation.
11.18.29
(29) Though intelligent he should enjoy life like a child, though most skilled he should act like a stunted person, though being most learned he should speak like an absent-minded person and though very well knowing the injunctions, he should live unrestricted ['wander as a cow'].
A paramahaḿsa-sannyāsī, fearing that his mind may be deviated by the tremendous prestige that people sometimes offer to a perfectly self-realized person, conceals his position as described in this verse. A self-realized person does not try to please the mass of people, nor does he desire social prestige, since the mission of his life is to remain detached from the material world and to always please the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Although neglecting ordinary rules and regulations, a paramahaḿsa does not ever become sinful or immoral, but rather neglects ritualistic aspects of religious custom, such as dressing in a particular way, performing certain ceremonies or executing specific penances and austerities.
The pure devotees of the Lord who have dedicated their lives to propagating the Lord's holy name must very expertly present Kṛṣṇa consciousness in a way pleasing to the mass of people so that they will accept it. Those who are preaching should try to make Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa popular without trying to advance their personal prestige in the name of missionary progress. A paramahaḿsa not engaged in distributing Kṛṣṇa consciousness, however, should have no attachment whatsoever to public opinion.
11.18.30
(30) He should never be strictly attentive to what the Vedas speak of [viz. the fruitive sacrifices], nor should he act against them; he shouldn't be a skeptic nor take sides simply speaking for the sake of the argument.
Although a paramahaḿsa devotee conceals his exalted position, certain activities are forbidden even for one trying to conceal himself. in the name of concealment one should not become a ghost. The word pāsaṇḍa refers to atheistic philosophies opposing the Vedas, such as Buddhism, and haituka refers to those who accept only that which can be demonstrated by mundane logic or experimentation. Since the whole purpose of the Vedas is to understand that which is beyond material experience, a skeptic's so-called logic is irrelevant to spiritual progress. Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī warns us in this regard that a devotee should not read atheistic literature, even with the purpose of refining arguments against atheism. Such literature should be entirely avoided.
11.18.31
nodvijeta janād dhīro
ati-vādāḿs titikṣeta
nāvamanyeta kañcana
(31) The saintly person should never feel disturbed over what other people are saying. Nor should he disturb others or ever like an animal with anyone create a negative atmosphere to the interest of the body [to be hostile about territory, food and such]. Instead he should tolerate harsh words and never belittle anyone [see also B.G. 12: 15].
"One should chant the holy name of the Lord in a humble state of mind, thinking oneself lower than the straw in the street; one should be more tolerant than a tree, devoid of all sense of false prestige and ready to offer all respect to others. In such a state of mind one can chant the holy name of the Lord constantly."
A Vaiṣṇava should never disturb any other living entity with his body, mind or words. He should always be tolerant and never belittle others. Although a Vaiṣṇava may act powerfully against the demons for Lord Kṛṣṇa's sake — as did Arjuna, Hanumān and many other great devotees — a Vaiṣṇava becomes very meek and humble in regard to his own reputation.
11.18.32
bhūteṣv ātmany avasthitaḥ
bhūtāny ekātmakāni ca
(32) The One Supreme is the Soul situated within all living beings and within one's own body. Just like the moon that is reflected in different reservoirs of water are also all material bodies individual sparks [or reflections] of the One [see also B.G. 6: 29 & 13: 34].
All material bodies are composed of the same material nature, which is ultimately the potency of the one Supreme Lord. Therefore, one cannot justify feelings of hostility toward any living entity. In carrying out the Lord's mission on earth, the bona fide representatives of God never become envious or hostile toward anyone, even when chastised by those who flagrantly violate the laws of God. Every living being is ultimately the son of God, and God is present within everyone's body. Therefore, saintly persons should be very careful even when dealing with the most insignificant person or creature.
11.18.33
(33) Firm in one's determination one [the sannyâsî] should not feel dejected when one at times has no [or not the right] food, nor should one rejoice when there is plenty; both matters are disposed by God.
11.18.34
āhārārthaḿ samīheta
(34) One should endeavor in order to eat and to sustain properly one's personal life force, because by that strength the spiritual truth is contemplated which, being understood, gives liberation [see B.G. 6: 16].
11.18.35
yadṛcchayopapannānnam
adyāc chreṣṭham utāparam
(35) Whatever the food, clothing and bedding a sage finds on his way, he must accept, irrespective its good or poor quality [see also 7.13].
Sometimes excellent, sumptuous food will come without endeavor, and at other times tasteless food appears. A sage should not become happily excited when a sumptuous plate is brought to him, nor should he angrily refuse ordinary food that comes of its own accord. If no food comes at all, as mentioned in the previous verse, one must endeavor to avoid starvation. From these verses it appears that even a saintly sage must have a good dose of common sense.
11.18.36
yathāhaḿ līlayeśvaraḥ
(36) General cleanliness, washing the hands, taking a bath and other regular duties are by the one of spiritual realization to be performed without any compulsion, the same way as I, the Controller, act according to My own will.
11.18.37
ā-dehāntāt kvacit khyātis
(37) The notion of leading a seperate life is finished when one has realized Me. Sometimes such a notion lingers till the body dies, but everything will after all turn out to be fine with Me.
11.18.38
duḥkhodarkeṣu kāmeṣu
ajjñāsita-mad-dharmo
(38) Unhappy about the consequences of a lusty life the one who has not yet seriously considered Me must, with the aversion that rose in the desire for spiritual perfection, be of the duty to approach a wise [bonafide] person [of proper reference], a guru [see also B.G. 16: 23-24, 4: 34 & 17: 14].
11.18.39
yāvad brahma vijānīyān
(39) The devotee should with great faith and respect, free from envy serve the spiritual master who embodies Me, for as long as it takes to arrive at a clear realization of the spiritual [see also 11.17: 27].
11.18.40-41
pracaṇḍendriya-sārathiḥ
avipakva-kaṣāyo 'smād
(40-41) He then who is not in control of the six vices [the anarthas], he who as the charioteer is lead by the senses, he who lacking in detachment is bereft of knowledge, he who uses the three-stick staff for ulterior purposes and he who denies Me, himself and the godly situated within himself, has, because he didn't overcome the contamination and thus spoils the dharma, lost his way in this world as well as in the next.
Lord Kṛṣṇa here condemns bogus personalities who adopt the sannyāsa order of life for sense gratification while still maintaining all of the symptoms of gross illusion. A false show of sannyāsa is never accepted by intelligent followers of Vedic principles. So-called sannyāsīs who ruin all Vedic religious principles sometimes become famous among foolish persons, but they are simply cheating themselves and their followers. These charlatan sannyāsīs are never actually engaged in the loving devotional service of Lord Kṛṣṇa.
11.18.42
gṛhiṇo bhūta-rakṣejyā
dvijasyācārya-sevanam
(42) The nature of a mendicant is to be equable and nonviolent, penance and discrimination characterizes the one living in the forest, the householder offers shelter and performs sacrifices and a celibate novice serves the âcârya.
The brahmacārī lives in the āśrama of the spiritual master and personally assists the ācārya. Householders generally are entrusted with the performance of sacrifice and Deity worship and should provide maintenance for all living entities. The vānaprastha must clearly understand the difference between body and soul in order to maintain his status of renunciation, and he should also perform austerities. The sannyāsī should fully absorb his body, mind and words in self-realization. Having thus achieved equanimity of mind, he is the best well-wisher of all living entities.
11.18.43
sarveṣāḿ mad-upāsanam
(43) The celibacy, austerity, cleanliness, contentment and being friendly towards all living entities that can be observed with all who worship Me, constitutes just as well the way of the householder who at the appropriate time approaches his wife [see also B.G. 7: 11].
Sarveṣāḿ mad-upāsanam indicates that all followers of the varṇāśrama system must worship Lord Kṛṣṇa or risk falling down from their position. As stated in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (11.5.3), na bhajanty avajānanti sthānād bhraṣṭāḥ patanty adhaḥ: even though one may be advanced in the performance of Vedic rituals and customs, without worshiping the Supreme Lord one will certainly fall down.
11.18.44
(44) The one who thus according his nature worships Me with no one else as the object of devotion, will come to realize Me in all living entities and achieves unflinching devotional service unto Me.
11.18.45
bhaktyoddhavānapāyinyā
(45) Through his unrelenting devotional service, Uddhava, he comes to Me, the Supreme Controller of all the Worlds, the Absolute Truth and Ultimate Cause who gives rise to and also puts an end to everything.
As described in the First Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.2.11), Lord Kṛṣṇa is understood in three features — as impersonal Brahman, localized Paramātmā and ultimately the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the source of everything. Lord Kṛṣṇa absorbs the impersonal philosophers into the rays of His body, appears before the perfect yogīs as the Lord of the heart, and ultimately brings His pure devotees back to His own abode for an eternal life of bliss and knowledge.
11.18.46
(46) Thus according to his own sense of duty having purified his existence, he will, fully understanding My supreme position and endowed with spiritual knowledge and wisdom, very soon achieve Me.
11.18.47
varṇāśramavatāḿ dharma
(47) All followers of the varnâs'rama-system are characterized by a traditional code of conduct that settles the dharma. This sense of duty combined with my bhakti awards the highest perfection of life.
According to the varṇāśrama system, the members of different orders and statuses of life have many traditional duties, such as worshiping the forefathers to save them from possible sinful reactions. All such Vedic rituals, sacrifices, austerities and so forth should be offered to the lotus feet of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. They then become the transcendental means for going back home, back to Godhead. In other words, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, or loving service to Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, is the sum and substance of progressive human life.
11.18.48
(48) O saintly soul, with this I have described to you, upon your request, the means by which one as a devotee may be perfectly engaged according to one's own nature and may come to Me, the One Supreme.'
Thus end of the Eleventh Canto, Eighteenth Chapter, of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, entitled "Description of Varṇāśrama-dharma."
(My humble salutations to the lotus feet of Swamyjis, Philosophers, Scholars and Knowledge Seekers for the collection)
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