Indian man (3): Tomorrow morning? Ācchā. The beads, Swāmījī. He wants the beads. We can get it from the office?
Prabhupāda: No, beads, they also purchase from the market. There is no harm. Either you take it from here or from the market.
Haṁsadūta: We buy our beads at the market also. The thing is that if someone wants to be initiated, then he has to be prepared to follow some principles, four principles. Prabhupāda just mentioned them. He must be prepared to give up all intoxicants, all illicit sex life, meat-eating—meat, fish, eggs—and no gambling. And chant the prescribed number of rounds, sixteen rounds. So anyone can be initiated, but he must be prepared to follow these restrictions. Otherwise, the effect of the chanting will not be as . . .
Indian guest: As effective as it would be.
Haṁsadūta: Exactly.
Indian man (4): So what you're saying is that there's no harm by his . . .
Prabhupāda: No, you can . . . that will help you in future to give up these habits. Chanting you can begin at any condition. But when we initiate officially, we take this promise. Then we initiate. This is our condition. Yatra pāpaś catur-vidhā. According to śāstra, these are four kinds of sinful activities: illicit sex, meat-eating, intoxication and gambling. But these are modern civilization. It is very difficult.
Indian man (3): Swāmījī? Tea and coffee's also included?
Prabhupāda: Yes, that is also intoxicant. Pāna . . . chāi, pāna. Pāna, pāna means intoxication. Dhūmra-pāna.
Indian man (7): Dhūmra-pāna.
Indian man (2): And what about supāri, Swāmījī?
Prabhupāda: Yes, that is also ingredient of pāna. Pāna, it is called pāna.
Indian man (2): I offered Vaikuṇṭhajī supāri. You see, he won't accept it. So I thought, well, it only helps digestion, because it only brings the saliva in the mouth.
Prabhupāda: Well, wine is also very digestive. (laughter) An appetizer also. All Europeans, they take first of all wine to eat voraciously. I see in the airplane. And after taking wine, they eat so much.
Indian man (8): And then they go for dancing to digest it.
Prabhupāda: Simple life. Simple life, innocent life . . . because after all, we have to give up this material world. If we become attached, then we'll have to take birth again. Nivṛtta-tarṣair . . . (SB 10.1.4). There is another verse quoted by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. It is very difficult, but there is possibility. Niṣkiñcanasya bhagavad-bhajanonmukhasya (CC Madhya 11.8).
Bhagavad-bhajana, those who are eager to go back to home, back to Godhead . . . pāraṁ paraṁ jigamiṣor bhava-sāgarasya, on the other side of this material world, for him . . . viṣayiṇāṁ sandarśanam atha yoṣitāṁ ca, hā hanta ha hanta viṣa-bhakṣaṇato 'py asādhu (CC Madhya 11.8). For such person to be attracted by these material things is not good. It is suicide. So material things, viṣaya, simply increasing the method of eating, sleeping, sex life and defense, this is material activity.