Text 50] The Pastimes of Lord Ramacandra 95
He cared for the citizens exactly like a father, and the citizens,
being fully engaged in their occupational duties of varna and
asrama, accepted Him as their father.
PURPORT

People are very fond of the pattern of Rama-rajya, and even today
politicians sometimes form a party called Rama-rajya, but unfortunately
they have no obedience to Lord Rama. It is sometimes said that people
want the kingdom of God without God. Such an aspiration, however, is
never to be fulfilled. Good government can exist when the relationship
between the citizens and the government is like that exemplified by Lord
Ramacandra and His citizens. Lord Ramacandra ruled His kingdom ex-
actly as a father takes care of his children, and the citizens, being obliged
to the good government of Lord Ramacandra, accepted the Lord as their
father. Thus the relationship between the citizens and the government
should be exactly like that between father and son. When the sons in a
family are well trained, they are obedient to the father and mother, and
when the father is well qualified, he takes good care of the children. As
indicated here by the words sva-dharma-nirataé vamméasrama-gunan-
vitah, the people were good citizens because they accepted the institution
of varna and dsrama, which arranges society in the varna divisions of
brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya and Sidra and the dsrama divisions of
brahmacarya, grhastha, vanaprastha and sannydsa. This is actual
human civilization. People must be trained according to the different
vamndsrama occupational duties. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gita (4.13),
cdtur-varnyam maya srstam guna-karma-vibhagasah: the four varnas
must be established according to varying qualities and work. The first
principle for good government is that it must institute this vamndsrama
system. The purpose of varndsrama is to enable people to become God
conscious. Varndésramdcaravata purusena parah puman_ visnur
Gradhyate. The entire varndsrama scheme is intended to enable people
to become Vaisnavas. Visnur asya devata. When people worship Lord
Visnu as the Supreme Lord, they become Vaisnavas. Thus people should
be trained to become Vaisnavas through the system of varna and asrama,
as they were during the reign of Lord Ramacandra, when everyone was
fully trained to follow the varndsrama principles.
