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TEACHINGS OF QUEEN KUNTĪ
Absolute Truth ( athāto brahma-jijñāsā ). But if we do not endeavor for this, if we misuse this opportunity and simply remain like animals, we shall return to an animal form of life. Therefore the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is trying to save people from going down to animal life.
The appearance of Lord Kṛṣṇa is compared to the growth of sandalwood trees in the Malaya Hills ( malayasyeva candanam ). There are two Malayas—the Malaya Hills and the part of the world now known as Malaysia. The  candana  tree, or sandalwood tree, can grow anywhere—there is no rule that it has to grow in Malaysia or the Malaya Hills—but because this sandalwood grows in large quantities in those parts of the world, it is known as  malaya-candana . In the Western countries there is scented water known as eau de cologne. It can be manufactured anywhere, but because it was originally manufactured in the city of Cologne, it is known as eau de cologne. Similarly, sandalwood can grow anywhere, but because it was originally very prominent in Malaysia and the Malaya Hills, it is known as Malayan sandalwood. Kuntī offered this prayer five thousand years ago, and this indicates that sandalwood was growing five thousand years ago in Malaysia. Malaysia is not a new name; it was known thousands and thousands of years ago to the followers of the Vedic culture. Nowadays, of course, Malaysia is growing rubber trees because there is a good demand for rubber, but formerly Malaysia grew sandalwood on a large scale because there was a great demand for sandalwood, especially in India.
Because India is a tropical country and sandalwood is very cooling, people in India use sandalwood pulp as a cosmetic. Even now, during the very warm days of the summer season, those who can afford to do so apply sandalwood pulp to their bodies and feel cool all day. In India it was the system that after bathing and sanctifying the body by applying marks of  tilaka , one would offer obeisances to the Deity, take some  candana-prasāda  from the room of the Deity, and apply it as a cosmetic to the body. This was called  prasādhanam . But it is said that in Kali-yuga, the present age,  snānam eva prasādhanam  ( Bhāg.  12.2.5): if one can even bathe nicely, that is  prasādhana . In India even the poorest man will take an early morning bath every day, but when I came to America I saw that even taking one's daily bath may be a difficult thing and is often not the practice. In India we are accustomed to see people bathe thrice in a day, but in New York I have seen that one may have to go to a friend's house to bathe because one may not have facilities to do so at home. These are symptoms of Kali-yuga.  Snānam eva prasādhanam . In the Kali-yuga it will be very difficult even to take a bath.