Text 15] Narada’s Instructions on Srimad-Bhagavatam 241
Jugupsitam—verily condemned; dharma-krte—for the matter of religion;
anuSsdsatah—instruction; sva-bhava-raktasya—naturally inclined; mahan—
great; vyatikramah—unreasonable; yat-vak yatah—under whose instruction;
dharmah-—religion; iti—it is thus; itarah—the people in general; sthitah—
fixed; na—do not; manyate—think; tasya—of that; nivaranam—prohibition;
Janah—they.
TRANSLATION
The people in general are naturally inclined to enjoy, and you have
encouraged them in that way in the name of religion. This is verily con-
demned and is quite unreasonable. Because they are guided under your
instructions, they will accept such activities in the name of religion and
will hardly care for prohibitions.
PURPORT
Srila Vyasadeva’s compilation of different Vedic literatures on the basis
of regulated performances of fruitive activities as depicted in the Maha-
bharata and other literature is condemned herewith by Srila Narada. The
human beings, by long material association, life after life, have a natural
inclination, by practice, to endeavor to lord it over material energy. They
have no sense of the responsibility of human life. This human form of life
is a chance to get out of the clutches of illusory matter. The Vedas are
meant for going back to Godhead, going back home. To revolve in the
cycle of transmigration in a series of lives numbering 8,400,000 is an im-
prisoned life for the condemned conditioned souls. The human form of
life is a chance to get out of this imprisoned life, and as such the only
occupation of the human being is to reestablish his lost relationship with
God. Under the circumstances, one should never be encouraged in making
a plan for sense enjoyment in the name of religious functions. Such diver-
sion of the human energy results in a misguided civilization. Srila Vyasa-
deva is the authority in Vedic explanations in the Mahabharata, etc., and
his encouragement in sense enjoyment in some form or other is a great
barrier for spiritual advancement because the people in general will not
agree to renounce material activities which hold them in material bondage.
At acertain stage of human civilization, such material activitiesin the name
of religion (as sacrificing animals in the name of yajfia) were too much
rampant. The Lord incarnated Himself as Buddha and decried the authority
of the Vedas to stop animal sacrifice in the name of religion. This was
