Text 34] Pṛthu Mahārāja's Meeting with the Four Kumāras
931
constantly thinking of activities to earn money and gratify the senses is following a path which is suicidal. Factually all human society is following this path. Some way or other, people are determined to earn money or get money by begging, borrowing or stealing and applying that for sense gratification. Such a civilization is the greatest obstacle in the path of self-realization.
TEXT 34
न कुर्यात्कर्हिचित्सङ्गं तमस्तीव्रं तितीरिषुः । धर्मार्थकाममोक्षाणां यदत्यन्तविधातकम् ॥३४॥
na kuryāt karhicit saṅgam tamas tīvram titīriṣuḥ dharmārtha-kāma-mokṣāṇām yad atyanta-vighātakam
na—do not; kuryāt—act; karhicit—at any time; saṅgam—association; tamaḥ—ignorance; tīvram—with great speed; titīriṣuḥ—persons who desire to cross over nescience; dharma—religion; artha—economic development; kāma—sense gratification; mokṣāṇām—of salvation; yat—that which; atyanta—very much; vighātakam—obstruction or stumbling block.
TRANSLATION
Those who strongly desire to cross the ocean of nescience must not associate with the modes of ignorance because hedonistic activities are the greatest obstructions to realization of religious principles, economic development, regulated sense gratification and, at last, liberation.
PURPORT
The four principles of life allow one to live according to religious principles, to earn money according to one's position in society, to allow the senses to enjoy the sense objects according to regulations, and to progress along the path of liberation from this material attachment. As long as the body is there, it is not possible to become completely free from all these material interests. It is not, however, recommended that one act only for sense gratification and earn money for that purpose only, sacrificing all religious principles. At the present moment, human civilization does not care for religious principles. It is, however, greatly interested in economic development without religious principles. For instance, in a slaughterhouse the butchers certainly get money easily, but such business is not based on religious principles. Similarly, there are many night clubs for sense gratifi-