14 Beyond Birth and Death

ments intended to regulate our lives. The body must
be controlled in order for us to reach the highest
perfection, and without regulated principles, it is not
possible to perfect our lives. The regulated principles
may differ from country to country or from scripture
to scripture, but that doesn’t matter, for they are
made according to the time and circumstances and
mentality of the people. But the principle of regu-
lated control is the same. Similarly, the government
sets down certain regulations to be obeyed by its
citizens. There is no possibility of making advance-
ment in government or civilization without some
regulations. In the verse above, Sti Krsna tells Arjuna
that the regulative principles of the Vedas are meant
to control the three modes of material nature—good-
ness, passion and ignorance (traigunya-visaya veda).
However, Krsna is advising Arjuna to establish him-
self in his pure constitutional position as spirit soul
beyond the dualities of material nature.

As we have already pointed out, these dualities—
such as heat and cold, pleasure and pain—arise due to
the contact of the senses with their objects. In other
words, they are born of identification with the body.
Krsna indicates that those who are devoted to enjoy-
ment and power are carried away by the words of
the Vedas which promise pain or heavenly enjoy-
ment by sacrifice and regulated activity. Enjoyment
is our birthright, for it is the characteristic of the
spirit soul, but the spirit soul tries to enjoy materially,
and this is the mistake.

Everyone is turning to material subjects for enjoy-
ment and is compiling as much knowledge as possible.
Someone is becoming a chemist, physicist, politician
