24 Srimad-Bhagavatam [Canto 7, Ch. 11

eternal (for everyone); varna-Gsrama-dcara-yutam—based on the prin-
ciples of the four divisions of society and the four divisions of spiritual
advancement; yat—from which; pumaén—the people in general;
vindate—can enjoy very peacefully; param—the supreme knowledge
(by which one can attain devotional service).

TRANSLATION

Maharaja Yudhisthira said: My dear lord, I wish to hear from
you about the principles of religion by which one can attain the
ultimate goal of life —devotional service. I wish to hear about the
general occupational duties of human society and the system of
social and spiritual advancement known as varnasrama-dharma.

PURPORT

Sandtana-dharma means devotional service. The word sandtana
refers to that which is eternal, which does not change but continues in all
circumstances. We have several times explained what the eternal occupa-
tional duty of the living being i is. Indeed, it has been explained by Sri
Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Jivera ‘svariipa’ haya—krsnera ‘nitya-dasa’: the
real occupational duty of the living entity is to serve the Supreme Per-
sonality of Godhead. Even if one prefers to deviate from this principle he
remains a servant because that is his eternal position; but one serves
mayd, the illusory, material energy. The Krsna consciousness move-
ment, therefore, is an attempt to guide human society to serving the Per-
sonality of Godhead instead of serving the material world with no real
profit. Our actual experience is that every man, animal, bird and beast —
indeed, every living entity—is engaged in rendering service. Even
though one’s body or one’s superficial religion may change, every living
entity is always engaged in the service of someone. Therefore, the men-
tality of service is called the eternal occupational duty. This eternal oc-
cupational duty can be organized through the institution of varnasrama,
in which there are four varnas (brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya and Stidra)
and four a@sramas (brahmacarya, grhastha, vanaprastha and sannydsa).
Thus, Yudhisthira Maharaja inquired from Narada Muni about the prin-
ciples of sandtana-dharma for the benefit of human society.
