196 Srimad-Bhagavatam [Canto 7, Ch. 15
must avoid five kinds of irreligion, known as vidharma, para-dharma,
dharmabhdasa, upadharma and chala-dharma. One must act according
to the religious principles that suit his constitutional position; it is not
that everyone must adhere to the same type of religion. A general prin-
ciple is that a poor man should not unnecessarily endeavor for economic
development. One who refrains from such endeavors but who engages in
devotional service is most auspicious.

One who is not satisfied with the mind must fall to degradation. One
must conquer lusty desires, anger, greed, fear, lamentation, illusion,
fright, unnecessary talks on material subjects, violence, the four miseries
of material existence, and the three material qualities. That is the objec-
tive of human life. One who has no faith in the spiritual master, who is
identical with Sri Krsna, cannot get any benefit from reading sastra. One
should never consider the spiritual master an ordinary human being,
even though the members of the spiritual master’s family may think of
him as such. Meditation and other processes of austerity are useful only
if they help in advancement toward Krsna consciousness; otherwise,
they are simply a waste of time and labor. For those who are not devo-
tees, such meditation and austerity cause falldown.

Every householder should be very careful because even though a
householder may try to conquer the senses, he becomes a victim to the
association of relatives and falls down. Thus a grhastha must become a
vanaprastha or sannyasi, live in a secluded place, and be satisfied with
food gotten by begging from door to door. He must chant the omkdara
mantra or Hare Krsna mantra, and in this way he will perceive transcen-
dental bliss within himself. After taking sannydsa, however, if one
returns to grhastha life, he is called a vanidasi, which means “‘one who
eats his own vomit.”” Such a person is shameless. A householder should
not give up the ritualistic ceremonies, and a sannydsi should not live in
society. If a sannydsi is agitated by the senses, he is a cheater influenced
by the modes of passion and ignorance. When one assumes a role in
goodness by starting philanthropic and altruistic activities, such activities
become impediments on the path of devotional service.

The best process for advancing in devotional service is to abide by the
orders of the spiritual master, for only by his direction can one conquer
the senses. Unless one is completely Krsna conscious, there is a chance of
falling down. Of course, in performing ritualistic ceremonies and other
fruitive activities there are also many dangers at every moment. Fruitive
