Pradyumna: Translation: "The intricacies of action are very hard to understand. Therefore one should know properly what action is, what forbidden action is, and what inaction is."

Prabhupäda:

karmaëo hy api boddhavyaà
boddhavyaà ca vikarmaëaù
akarmaëaç ca boddhavyaà
gahanä karmaëo gatiù

The same principle of working order is being discussed by Kåñëa again in this verse. The beginning was cätur-varëyaà mayä såñöaà guëa-karma-vibhägaçaù [Bg. 4.13]. We should remember the same principle always. Four classes are divided according to quality and karma. Therefore Kåñëa says, karmaëo hy api boddhavyam. What is actually work. Boddhavyaà ca vikarmaëaù. Vikarmaëaù means forbidden. This is the human life's business. He should know what is actual work and what is forbidden work.

Just like a good citizen knows what is lawful work and what is unlawful work. Lawful work is executed knows what is lawful work and what is unlawful work. Lawful work is executed by intelligent citizens, and unlawful work is executed by the criminals. He has to suffer. You can cheat the man-made government by hiding yourself, so-called hiding. You cannot hide yourself from, any vikarma or unlawful work, from the eyes of the Supreme Lord. That is not possible. You can hide yourself from the eyes of the police, man-made law, but it is not possible to hide yourself from the eyes of the Supreme. That is not possible. Because the Supreme is sitting within your heart. Éçvaraù sarva-bhütänäà håd-deçe 'rjuna tiñöhati [Bg. 18.61]. And He is sitting as anumantä and upadrañöä. He is simply seeing what you are doing, and He is giving sanction also. Even a thief who is going to act something criminally, without the sanction of the Supersoul, who is sitting within everyone's heart, he cannot do that.

That you have got experience. Suppose you are doing, going to do something which is not very good. The conscience is beating, "No, no, you should not do this. You should not do this." But because without the sanction of the Supreme, I cannot do anything, so if we persist to do something, then the sanction is given, "At your risk." That is going on. God does not give you sanction for doing anything criminal. But if we persist to do something criminal, then God gives sanction, "All right, do. Do it at your risk." That is going on. Karmaëä daiva-netreëa. Now, when we act something on account of my persistence by the sanction of the Lord, then I become subjected to the fruits of such resultant action.

And we get a different type of body. That is going on. In the çästra it is said, karmaëä daiva-netreëa jantur dehopapattaye [SB 3.31.1]. Jantuù, of the living entity.... We are getting different types of bodies. Just like we are sitting, so many people, ladies and gentlemen. Everyone's bodily feature is different from the other. So why there are different features? We are all human being. Why we have got different types of bodies? Not only in human society. The animal society, the bird society.... It is all karmaëä, by our personal fruitive action. Karmaëä daiva-netreëa. This law we do not know. We work irresponsibly without knowing the result of our work. Therefore we are getting different types of bodies, different types of situation, different type of occupation, so many things. Therefore people should be trained, as Kåñëa said in the beginning, that cätur-varëyaà mayä såñöaà guëa-karma-vibhägaçaù [Bg. 4.13].

The four classes of men, according to quality, they should be engaged in different types of occupation, guëa-karma. First of all, guëa. Guëa means quality. In the material world also, practically we see, if we want to work in a certain type of occupation, first of all it is examined whether I have got the quality. Suppose if I want to work as an engineer, so I must possess the quality first of all, whether I can act as an engineer. Similarly, if I want to work as a lawyer, then I must have the quality, qualification.

Similarly, different type of quality, different type of qualification, and then different type of work. Guëa-karma-vibhägaçaù. So that requires guidance. And who is the guide? The father is the guide, the king, the government is the guide, the elderly, guru is the guide. There must be guide. Gurur na sa syät pitä na sa syäj janané na sä syät. In this way.... Sva-jano na sa syät na mocayed yaù samupeta-måtyum. These laws are unknown at the present moment in this age. There are so many gurus, so many fathers, so many relatives, so many husbands. There are so many guides, but they do not know what is the aim of life. Therefore çästra says that "If you do not know what is the aim of life, you should not become a guru, you should not become a father, you should not become a mother." Janané na sä syät.

So what is the aim of life? The aim of life... Na mocayed yaù samupeta-måtyum. Samupeta-måtyum. We have got this disease, måtyu, we have to die. We are making so many plans for our happiness, but where is the plan for stopping your death? That is the ultimate goal of life, but they do not know it. Na mocayed yaù samupeta-måtyum. Kåñëa says... Everything is explained in the Bhagavad-gétä.

Therefore we are repeatedly asking everyone to study Bhagavad-gétä as it is. Don't become a learned scholar and interpret foolishly or differently from Bhagavad-gétä. Everything is there.

So Kåñëa says that our real problem of life is janma-måtyu-jarä-vyädhi-duùkha-doñänudarçanam. That is the problem. Repetition of birth. Bhütvä bhütvä praléyate. We take one body according to karma. Karmaëä daiva-netreëa jantur dehopapattaye [SB 3.31.1]. We get a body according to karma, daiva-netreëa. That is not in your hand. Suppose if you are living like cats and dogs, the nature's way is that you get next life the dog's body, cat's body, or hog's body. And if you are working just like a god, godly, with good qualification, godly qualification, then you become next life demigod. You get your situation in the higher planetary system. These are all explained in the Bhagavad-gétä.

How do you know? Ürdhvaà gacchanti sattva-sthäù. If you act just like a qualified brähmaëa, sattva-sthä, sattva-sthä means brähmaëa- then you get your promotion in the higher planetary system ürdhvam. Ürdhvaà gacchanti sattva-sthäù. If you act like a brähmaëa, then get your promotion to the higher planetary system, Janaloka, Maharloka, Tapoloka, Brahmaloka, Siddhaloka. There are so many planets. The people do not know. There is no such education. But we have got this knowledge from the Vedic literature. Ürdhvaà gacchanti sattva-sthä madhye tiñöhanti räjasäù [Bg. 14.18]. If you have got the qualification of rajo-guëa, creative energy, then you remain in the middle planetary system, Bhür, Bhuvaù, Svaù. Those who are brähmaëas know gäyatré-mantra, oà bhür bhuvaù svaù.

And jaghanya-guëa-våtti-sthä adho gacchanti tämasäù. Tämasäù, tamo-guëa, jaghanya, abominable, nasty, unclean, eating nasty things... Then jaghanya-guëa-våtti-sthä adho gacchanti tämasäù. They go to the lower planetary system, Tala, Atala, Vitala, Pätäla, Rasätala, Talätala. There are so many planets. Or in the animal kingdom. So we are creating our next body, karmaëä, by our work. Therefore Kåñëa says, karmaëo hy api boddhavyam.

You must know, because you have to accept next body. You can talk foolishly, "No, there is no body." Bhasmé-bhütasya... That is the atheistic theory, that after the body is burned into ashes, everything is finished. Big, big professors, big, big learned scholars, so-called scholars, they say like that, "Oh, there is no life. Everything is finished after this body is finished." But that is not a fact. If we have to accept the authority of Bhagavad-gétä... We have to accept it. If we don't accept, that is our foolishness.

Bhagavän says, tathä dehäntara-präptiù. Dehino 'smin yathä dehe kaumäraà yauvanaà jarä, tathä dehäntara [Bg. 2.13]. Dehäntara-präptiù is there. As we are getting dehäntara. We have got experience every day. Just like in daytime we have got this body. At night, when we dream, we have got a different body. We go elsewhere; we're working differently, forgetting this body, and again, daytime, we forget our body which was seen in the dream. That is also dream; this is also dream. This is daydream, and that is night dream. But the seer, the soul, is permanent. He is in the daytime and he is also nighttime. So this is our position. We are changing our body.

Just like I was a child, you were a child, but that we have forgotten. But that does not mean I did not have. Similarly, in the past I had a body, in the present I have got a body, so why not in the future? This is common sense. In future you must have a body. Tathä dehäntara-präptiù. Kåñëa says, authority. I may say, "There is no body," but Kåñëa says, "There is body." And how this body is manufactured? Karmaëä, by your work. If you work foolishly in the tamo-guëa, then you get the body of ignorance, ugly body, abominable body, poor body, without any education, without any knowledge. These things are there. And if you work sattva-guëa, then you get better body. And rajo-guëa, then in the middle-class body. These are stated in the çästra. You have to accept it.

Therefore Kåñëa says, karmaëo hy api boddhavyaà boddhavyaà ca vikarmaëaù. Vikarmaëaù means forbidden work, "You should not do this." Just like we are forbidding our students, no illicit sex. This is forbidden. No intoxication. This is forbidden in the çästra. Yatra päpaç catur-vidhäù, four kinds of sinful activities. These are the basic pillars, four pillars of sinful activities: illicit sex life and intoxication, meat-eating and gambling. Striya-sünä-päna-dyüta yatra päpaç catur-vidhäù, the four kinds of sinful activities. So if we act sinfully, then we get a body which is result of sinful action. By pious activities, we get janmaiçvarya-çruta-çréù. Janma, first-class family, first-class nation, janma. That is very important thing, to get birth in first-class family, enlightened family, brähmaëa family. Çucénäà çrématäà gehe yoga-bhrañöo 'bhijäyate. These are all explained in the Bhagavad-gétä.

Yoga-bhrañöaù. Suppose one has taken to Kåñëa consciousness, bhakti-yoga. So if he can execute properly, then

bhaktyä mäm abhijänäti
yävän yaç cäsmi tattvataù
tato mäà tattvato jïätvä
viçate tad-anantaram
[Bg. 18.55]

Then he will understand what is God, what is kingdom of God. And after death, he shall enter into the kingdom of God. Tyaktvä dehaà punar janma naiti [Bg. 4.9]. So this is the only shelter. If you take to bhakti-yoga, even if you fail to execute it properly, then still, you are guaranteed your next life, çucénäà çrématäà gehe, in the family of nice brähmaëa or very rich man. You will get birth. Çucénäm means first-class brähmaëa, Vaiñëava. Çuci. Yaù smaret puëòarékäkñaà sa bähyäbhyantara-çuciù.

Çuci means brähmaëa, and muci means cobbler. Muci means cobbler. There is a Bengali verse, çuci haya muci haya yadi kåñëa tyaje. The first line is muci haya çuci haya yadi kåñëa bhaje: "One who takes to Kåñëa consciousness, even he is born in the family of cobbler, muci..." Everyone knows, Indians. So muci haya çuci haya, although he is born in the family of a muci, cobbler, he becomes çuci, a brähmaëa, by, yadi kåñëa bhaje, if he is a devotee of Kåñëa, if he is in Kåñëa consciousness. And muci haya çuci haya yadi kåñëa bhaje or çuci haya muci haya yadi kåñëa tyaje: "If one is born of a brähmaëa family, but gives up Kåñëa bhajana, devotional life, he becomes a muci." Karmaëä. Because he's changed his karma.

Therefore cätur-varëyaà mayä såñöaà guëa-karma-vibhägaçaù [Bg. 4.13]. So this education should be introduced. Guëa. First of all, everyone should be educated to accept the sattva-guëa, sättvika, goodness. Everyone should be trained up, the first-class good man. Satyaà çamaù damaù titikñä ärjava, jïänaà vijïänam ästikyaà brahma-karma svabhäva-jam. Everyone should be taught.... [break] ...if he remains like an animal, eating, sleeping and mating and dying like cats and dogs, that is not right. Therefore Kåñëa says that what type of karma should one execute? Karmaëo hy api boddhavyam. One should learn, not foolishly do anything and anything.

Like the çüdras. Çüdras also have got their duty, particular duty. I have explained several times. But if we take to Kåñëa consciousness, it doesn't matter whether one is possessing the brahminical qualification or the kñatriya qualification or vaiçya qualification or çüdra qualification. It doesn't matter. If one is taken to the service of Kåñëa consciousness, he is above all these brähmaëa, kñatriya, vaiçya, çüdra. That type of karma should... Therefore it is called karma-yoga. Karma... You have certain type of tendency to work. So you work in that. Sva-karmaëä tam abhyarcya.

That is the recommendation, that according to your qualification, you work, but by the result of your work, you worship Kåñëa, or the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is required. That is Kåñëa consciousness. It is not that everyone is expected to become first-class brahminical culture. It doesn't matter.

The same example. This example are given in the Çrémad-Bhägavatam.

Viprädayo guëa-påthak. If we understand what is the meaning of becoming brähmaëa, what is the meaning of becoming kñatriya, what is the meaning of become a vaiçya, and what is the meaning of becoming çüdra... That is described in the Çrémad-Bhägavatam. Mukha-bähüru-pädebhyaù. Mukha means the face, bähu means the arms, üru means the waist, and päda, these legs. So mukha-bähüru-pädebhyaù. These brähmaëa and the kñatriya and the vaiçya and the çüdra, it should be taken as the different parts of the body of the viräö-puruña, Kåñëa. Of the viräö-puruña.

So the brähmaëa's business you can understand-the mouth. You have got the tongue. Brähmaëa's business is to eat and to chant Vedic mantras. Therefore to give eatables to the Supreme Lord, according to our Vedic principle, the brähmaëas are called and they are given foodstuff, that "You eat. By your eating, Kåñëa will eat." But that has been misused now, but actually that is the meaning. In the Vedic literature they do not say that "For some pious activities you call some poor men." No. Brähmaëas. Brähmaëa-bhajana. Because the brähmaëa is supposed to be the mouth of God. Similarly, kñatriya is supposed to be the arms of God, the vaiçyas, the waist of God, and the çüdras, the legs of God.

But God is Absolute. Therefore there is no distinction between mouth or the leg. If you offer flowers and tulasé on the lotus feet of God, Kåñëa, and if you decorate the mouth of Kåñëa, it is the same bhakti. Because there is no difference of the mouth and legs, provided the mouth is working as mouth and the leg is working as leg for satisfying the Supreme. Then there is no such distinction. As soon as Kåñëa consciousness is absent, a so-called brähmaëa is puffed up. 'Oh, I am born in brähmaëa family. I am bigger than the çüdras." That is falldown. The real purpose is that either you be mouth or hand or waist or leg, the real purpose is to maintain the body very perfectly. That is real purpose.

Similarly, either you become brähmaëa or you become kñatriya or you become çüdra or vaiçya, real purpose is how to satisfy Kåñëa. That is explained in Bhägavatam.

ataù pumbhir dvija-çreñöhä
varëäçrama-vibhägaçaù
svanuñöhitasya dharmasya
saàsiddhir hari-toñaëam
[SB 1.2.13]

The real purpose is whether you are satisfying Kåñëa. If your, that aim is lost, that you do not require to satisfy Kåñëa, you simply satisfy your senses, then it has no meaning.

ya eñäà puruñaà säkñäd
ätma-prabhavam éçvaram
na bhajanty avajänanti
sthänäd bhrañöäù patanty adhaù

Sthänäd bhrañöäù... I claim... It is very simple to understand. Suppose this hand, my hand, but how long it is hand? So long it is attached to the service of the body. If this hand is cut off from this body, it may be called hand, but it has no meaning. Similarly, head also. The head is head so long it is attached to the body. If the head is cut off from the body, then what is the meaning of this head? It has no meaning.

Similarly, either you become brähmaëa or you become kñatriya or you become vaiçya or çüdra, if you are not attached to the service of the supreme whole, then you are useless brähmaëa, useless kñatriya, useless vaiçya. This is the purpose. Therefore Kåñëa has begun that cätur-varëyaà mayä såñöaà guëa-karma-vibhägaçaù [Bg. 4.13]. Therefore one has to understand what is the meaning of these different types of activities. Karmaëo hy api boddhavyaà boddhavyaà ca vikarmaëaù. Vikarmaëaù means if you cannot work which will satisfy Kåñëa, that is vikarma. That is vikarma, forbidden. Because the real purpose of working is to satisfy Kåñëa. He is the center. He is the center of all activities. Sva-karmaëä tam abhyarcya saàsiddhià labhate paräm. Simply by satisfying the central point, Kåñëa, then you get saàsiddhi. It doesn't matter whether you are a çüdra or a brähmaëa or engineer or lawyer. The real point is how to satisfy Kåñëa.

But that education is lacking. So our Kåñëa consciousness movement is teaching how to serve Kåñëa from any position. It doesn't matter. Whether you are a brähmaëa, kñatriya, vaiçya, çüdra, lawyer, engineer, or film actor or anything, it doesn't matter, but whether you are trying to satisfy Kåñëa. That is the point. If you have no such sense, "I have to satisfy Kåñëa," then it is çrama eva hi kevalam.

dharmaù svanuñöhitaù puàsäà
viñvaksena-kathäsu yaù
notpädayed yadi ratià
çrama eva hi kevalam
[SB 1.2.8]

This is simply labor. It has no meaning, because you are creating, your own formation, next body, another body, that out of your responsibility, you are acting like a hog, you get the body of a hog. You are acting like a monkey, you get the body of a monkey. If you are acting like a god, demigod, you get your body. Karmaëä daiva-netreëa.

Therefore one should know, "What class of work I shall be engaged in?" So the easy process is... It doesn't matter... According to your qualification, you engage yourself in any work, but try to satisfy Kåñëa. Then your life is successful. Otherwise it is çrama eva hi kevalam.

Therefore Kåñëa says, karmaëo hy api boddhavyaà boddhavyaà ca vikarmaëaù. Vikarmaëaù means sense gratification. I explained this verse from Bhägavatam last night. Nünaà pramattaù kurute vikarma yat [SB 5.5.4]. What is that vikarmaëaù? Yad indriya-prétaya äpåëoti. Anything which is done for sense gratification, that is vikarma. So people are engaged in vikarma. Everywhere, all over the world, the education, the scientific advancement, culture, everything.... Now culture means some dancing. Now it has become a culture. And what is that dancing? Sense gratification. Boys and girls, dancing ball dance, sense gratification. That is vikarma. But here, the same dancing before the Deity is bhakti. The same dancing. You dance in a theatrical performance, in a platform. That is also dancing. And here, in this stage, before the Deity, if you are dancing with Hare Kåñëa mahä-mantra, then you are making bhakti, progress. And that dancing means you are becoming entangled in your karma. Because that dancing is sense gratification, vikarmaëaù. Nünaà pramattaù kurute vikarma yad indriya-prétaya äpåëoti [SB 5.5.4].

So Åñabhadeva says na sädhu manye: "This is not good." Yata ätmano 'yam asann api kleçada äsa dehaù. Asann api, this body is not permanent. Still, asann api, although it is not permanent, for a few years only, it [is] kleçada, simply full of miserable conditions. Because you have committed, executed vikarma, therefore you have got this body.

It doesn't matter whether it is rich body or poor body. Everyone has to undergo the threefold miserable condition of life. When typhoid is there, it does not discriminate that "Here is a rich body. I shall give him less pain." No. When the typhoid is there, either your body is rich body or poor body, you have to suffer the same pain. When you are within the womb of your mother, you have to suffer the same pain, either you become in the queen's womb or in the cobbler's wife's womb. That packed up situation... But they do not know. Janma-måtyu-jarä. There are so many sufferings. In the process of birth. There are so many sufferings in the process of birth and death and old age. A rich man or poor man, when we are old, we have to suffer so many invalidity.

Similarly, janma-måtyu-jarä-vyädhi. Jarä, jarä and vyädhi and måtyu. So we are not conscious about the suffering position of this material body. The çästra says, "Don't accept again any material body." Na sädhu manye: "This is not good, that you are repeatedly getting this material body." Na sädhu manye yata ätmanaù. Ätmanaù, the soul is encaged in this material body. Yata ätmano 'yam asann api. Although temporary, I have got this body. Kleçada äsa dehaù.

So if we want to stop this miserable condition of getting another material body, then we must know what is karma, what is vikarma. That is Kåñëa's proposal. Karmaëo hy api boddhavyaà boddhavyaà ca vikarmaëaù. Akarmaëaç ca boddhavyam. Akarmaëa means there is no reaction. Reaction. Karma, if you do nice work, it has got reaction. It has nice body, nice education, nice family, nice riches. This is also nice. We take it as nice. We want to go to the heavenly planet. But they do not know that even in the heavenly planet there is the janma-måtyu-jarä-vyädhi.

Therefore Kåñëa does not recommend that you go to the heavenly body. He says, ä-brahma-bhuvanäl lokäù punar ävartino 'rjuna [Bg. 8.16]. Even if you go to the Brahmaloka, still, the repetition of birth and... Yad gatvä na nivartante tad dhäma paramaà mama [Bg. 15.6]. Yad gatvä na nivartante. But we do not know that there is a dhäma. If we somehow or other, if we can promote our self to that dhäma, then na nivartante, yad gatvä na nivartante tad dhäma paramaà mama. In another place says, tyaktvä dehaà punar janma naiti mäm eti [Bg. 4.9].

So people have no information that Kåñëa, or the Supreme Lord, He has got His place and anyone can go. How one can go?

yänti deva-vratä devän
pitèn yänti pitå-vratäù
bhütäni yänti bhütejyä
yänti mad-yäjino 'pi mäm
[Bg. 9.25]

"If one becomes devoted to My worship, My business, bhakti-yoga, he comes to Me." In another place He says, bhaktyä mäm abhijänäti yävän yaç cäsmi [Bg. 18.55].

So therefore our only business is to understand Kåñëa. Yajïärthe karma. This is akarma. Here it is said, akarmaëa, akarmaëaù api boddhavyam, akarmaëaç ca boddhavyam. Akarma means without reaction. Here, if we act for our sense gratification, the reaction is.... Just like a soldier is killing. He is getting gold medal. The same soldier, when comes home, if he kills one man, he is hanged. Why? He can say in the court, "Sir, when I was fighting in the battlefield, I killed so many. I got gold medal. And why you are hanging me just now?" "Because you are have done for your own sense gratification. And that you did for government sanction."

Therefore any karma, if you do it for Kåñëa's satisfaction, that is akarma it has no reaction. But if you do anything for your own sense gratification, you will have to suffer the resultant action, good or bad. Therefore Kåñëa says,

karmaëo hy api boddhavyaà
boddhavyaà ca vikarmaëaù
akarmaëaç ca boddhavyaà
gahanä karmaëo gatiù