252 THE SCIENCE OF SELF-REALIZATION

happens after death, one dies like an animal. The animal does not know
that he is going to have another body; he has no such knowledge.

Human life is not meant for becoming an animal. One should not
simply be interested in eating, sleeping, sex life, and defense. You may
have a very nice arrangement for eating, or many nice buildings for
sleeping, or a very good arrangement for sex life, or a very good defense
force to protect you, but that does not mean that you are a human being.
That type of civilization is animal life. Animals are also interested in eat-
ing, sleeping, and sex life, and according to their own methods they de-
fend also. Where, then, is the distinction between human life and animal
life if you simply engage in these four principles of bodily nature?

The distinction is made when a human being is inquisitive—‘‘Why
have I been put into this miserable condition? Is there any remedy for it?
Is there any perpetual, eternal life? I do not want to die. I want to live
very happily and peacefully. Is there a chance of this? What is that -
method? What is that science?’’? When these inquiries are there and
steps are taken to answer these questions, that is human civilization; |
otherwise it is doggish civilization, animal civilization.

Animals are satisfied if they can eat, sleep, have some sex life, and
have some defense. Actually there is no defense because no one can pro-
tect himself from the hands of cruel death. Hiranyakasipu, for instance,
wanted to live forever, and so he underwent severe austerities. So-called
scientists are now saying that we shall stop death by scientific methods.
This is also another crazy utterance. That is not possible. You may make
great advancement in scientific knowledge, but there is no scientific solu-
tion to these four problems—birth, death, old age, and disease.

One who is intelligent will be eager to solve these four prime problems.
No one wants to die. But there is no remedy. I have to die. Everyone is
very anxious to stop the increase of population by employing so many
contraceptive methods, but still, birth is going on. So there is no stoppage
of birth. You may invent up-to-date medicines by your scientific
methods, but you cannot stop disease. It is not possible just to take a
tablet to put an end to disease.

In the Bhagavad-gita it is said, janma-mrtyu-jard-vyadhi-duhkha-
dosdnudarsanam: one might think that he has solved all the problems of
his life, but where is the solution to these four problems of birth, death,
old age, and disease? That solution is Krsna consciousness.

Krsna also says in the same book,
