This short exchange between Prahlada maharaj and a saintly paramahamsa can teach us many things about how to go about our daily lives. The instructions are eternal or timeless as well as the benefits.
Hare Krsna
damaghosa das
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SB 7.13.31-Materialistic activities are always mixed with three kinds of miserable conditions—adhyātmika, adhidaivika and adhibautika. Therefore, even if one achieves some success by performing such activities, what is the benefit of this success? One is still subjected to birth, death, old age, disease and the reactions of his fruitive activities.
PURPORT-According to the materialistic way of life, if a poor man, after laboring very, very hard, gets some material profit at the end of his life, he is considered a success, even though he again dies while suffering the threefold miseries—adhyātmika, adhidaivika and adhibhautika. No one can escape the threefold miseries of materialistic life, namely miseries pertaining to the body and mind, miseries pertaining to the difficulties imposed by society, community, nation and other living entities, and miseries inflicted upon us by natural disturbances from earthquakes, famines, droughts, floods, epidemics, and so on. If one works very hard, suffering the threefold miseries, and then is successful in getting some small benefit, what is the value of this benefit? Besides that, even if a karmī is successful in accumulating some material wealth, he still cannot enjoy it, for he must die in bereavement. I have even seen a dying man begging a medical attendant to increase his life by four years so that he could complete his material plans. Of course, the medical man was unsuccessful in expanding the life of the man, who therefore died in great bereavement. Everyone must die in this way, and after one’s mental condition is taken into account by the laws of material nature, he is given another chance to fulfill his desires in a different body. Material plans for material happiness have no value, but under the spell of the illusory energy we consider them extremely valuable. There were many politicians, social reformers and philosophers who died very miserably, without deriving any practical value from their material plans. Therefore, a sane and sensible man never desires to work hard under the conditions of threefold miseries, only to die in disappointment.
SB 7.13.32-The brāhmaṇa continued: I am actually seeing how a rich man, who is a victim of his senses, is very greedy to accumulate wealth, and therefore suffers from insomnia due to fear from all sides, despite his wealth and opulence.
PURPORT-Greedy capitalists accumulate wealth under so many miserable conditions, the result being that because they collect money by questionable means, their minds are always agitated. Thus they are unable to sleep at night, and they have to take pills for mental tranquillity to invite sleep. And sometimes even the pills are a failure. Consequently the result of having accumulated money by so much labor is certainly not happiness, but only distress. What is the value of acquiring a comfortable position if one’s mind is always disturbed? Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura has therefore sung: saṁsāra-biṣānale, dibāniśi hiyā jvale, juḍāite nā kainu upāya
“I am suffering from the poisonous effect of material enjoyment. Thus my heart is always burning and is almost on the verge of failure.” The result of the greedy capitalist’s unnecessary accumulation of wealth is that he must suffer from a blazing fire of anxiety and always be concerned with how to save his money and invest it properly to get more and more. Such a life is certainly not very happy, but because of the spell of the illusory energy, materialistic persons engage in such activities.
SB 7.13.33-Those who are considered materially powerful and rich are always full of anxieties because of governmental laws, thieves and rogues, enemies, family members, animals, birds, persons seeking charity, the inevitable time factor and even their own selves. Thus they are invariably afraid.
PURPORT-The word svasmāt means “from one’s self.” Because of attachment for money, the richest person is even afraid of himself. He fears that he may have locked his money in an unsafe manner or might have committed some mistake. Aside from the government and its income tax and aside from thieves, even a rich man’s own relatives are always thinking of how to take advantage of him and take away his money.
SB 7.13.34-Those in human society who are intelligent should give up the original cause of lamentation, illusion, fear, anger, attachment, poverty and unnecessary labor. The original cause of all of these is the desire for unnecessary prestige and money.
PURPORT-Here is the difference between Vedic civilization and the modern demoniac civilization. Vedic civilization concerned itself with how to achieve self-realization, and for this purpose one was recommended to have a small income to maintain body and soul together. The society was divided into brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, vaiśyas and śūdras, and the members of this society would limit their endeavors to meeting their minimum demands.
….The managers of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement should be extremely cautious in regard to this point. Otherwise money will be the cause of lamentation, illusion, fear, anger, material attachment, material poverty, and unnecessary hard work. When I was alone in Vṛndāvana, I never attempted to construct maṭhās or temples; rather, I was fully satisfied with the small amount of money I could gather by selling Back to Godhead, and thus I would provide for myself and also print the literature. When I went to foreign countries, I lived according to the same principle, but when Europeans and Americans began to give money profusely, I started temples and Deity worship. The same principle should still be followed. Whatever money is collected should be spent for Kṛṣṇa, and not a farthing for sense gratification. This is the Bhāgavata principle.
SB 7.13.35–The bee and the python are two excellent spiritual masters who give us exemplary instructions regarding how to be satisfied by collecting only a little and how to stay in one place and not move.
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Some Conclusions-– What was written above sums it up nicely…..SB 7.13.34-Those in human society who are intelligent should give up the original cause of lamentation, illusion, fear, anger, attachment, poverty and unnecessary labor. The original cause of all of these is the desire for unnecessary prestige and money.
PURPORT-Here is the difference between Vedic civilization and the modern demoniac civilization. Vedic civilization concerned itself with how to achieve self-realization, and for this purpose one was recommended to have a small income to maintain body and soul together
So for many this will seem like a bitter pill-to give up the pursuit of money and false prestige because for many– that is their main goal of life.. And yet Srila Prabhupada himself and thousands of sages, saints and devotees before us have all said the same thing-live a simple life, be happy with what your destiny brings to you and spend the rest of your valuable human time pursuing self realization or God consciousness.
760814rc.bom Prabhupada: :So people are being trained up to become mad, pramattah. And do anything, bring money. This is the modern civilization.
►740525mw.rom Prabhupada: Stick to your own place and grow your food. There is no question of transport. Little transport is required, that bullock cart. Krsna was being carried on bullock cart. There is no use of petrol. Use simply the bull. They are already there. Utilize them.
►760714iv.ny … So we get enough milk, enough food grains, enough fruits. So there is no economic problem. Our purpose is to save time from unnecessary necessities of life, from unnecessary necessities of life, to save time and utilize the time for developing Krsna consciousness
►770527rc.vrn …. Therefore I am asking so much here and…, “Farm, farm, farm, farm…” That is not my program–Krsna’s program. Annad bhavanti bhutani. Produce greenness everywhere, everywhere. Vrndavana. It is not this motorcar civilization.
►751103mw.bom Prabhupada: So when one is perfectly on the spiritual platform, there is no bodily necessities. That is the sign.[not to be imitated, however] Therefore our civilization is to decrease the bodily necessities, not to increase.
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That being said here is another example of “walk my talk”…. Yesterday a devotee friend (shown in pictures) helped me bring 12 loads of prime cow manure from across the road from the dairy farmer to our three gardens out back. I was more than ecstatic to have all this liquid “gold’ placed on our soil for the plants delight !!
Here are some pictures below of that event.
This is what Srila Prabhupada means by staying at home, growing your own food, and giving up the foolish desires for money and false prestige. When we moved here from the city I took a big cut in income-but I have never regretted this move because when you get a higher taste, it is very easy to give up a lower one…
garden video of our 3 gardens for Govinda
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ux6nYbexcEM
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