So we should take this opportunity, Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Ādau śraddhā tataḥ sādhu-saṅgaḥ (Cc. Madhya 23.14-15). This association, society, of sādhus, who have dedicated their life for understanding Kṛṣṇa, for serving Kṛṣṇa, they are sādhu. Ādau śraddhā tataḥ sādhu... tataḥ sādhu-saṅgo 'tha bhajana-kriyā. By sādhu-saṅga (CC Madhya 22.83) means next stage is how to adopt devotional life.
These boys, these girls, gradually they came. First of all they were hearing, Then they came forward, "Please make me your disciple." That means "Under your direction my bhajana-kriyā will go." This is called bhajana-kriyā, under the direction of the spiritual master. Then anartha-nivṛttiḥ syāt. Anartha means things which are not wanted. We are accustomed to so many things, rascal things, which is not at all wanted. But we have been accustomed. By bad association.
Take, for example, one smokes. Nobody learns smoking from the birth. By bad association one learns how to smoke. Similarly drinking, similarly meat-eating. Because from the birth we require milk, not meat-eating. But then after all we understand that "Beef is very nice. There must be a beef shop." And... This is going on. You see? These are anarthas, not required. You require simple food: rice, wheat, little milk, vegetable, and little sugar. That's all. You don't require all these nonsense. But you have been habituated.
But if we become bhajana-kriyā, you come to the practice of devotional service, naturally you have to give up. Because we accept a disciple to engage in the bhajana-kriyā—first of all he must give up these anarthas. So these anarthas, one cannot giving up smoking or drinking, but actually, if he takes to devotional service, he can very easily give up. He can very easily give up. There are so many examples. It is not story. So if there is bhajana-kriyā sincerely, then the anartha-nivṛtti automatically becomes. Then you become clean. Here it is said, jñāna-tapasā pūtāḥ, purified. Jñāna-tapasā.
Knowledge is there that "I am a spirit soul. I am part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. And Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme. Therefore my business is to serve Kṛṣṇa." This is jñāna. And if one does not know this, he is rascal. That's all. No jñāna. This is jñāna. Therefore it is confirmed by Kṛṣṇa: bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate (BG 7.19). Jñāna means he must surrender to Kṛṣṇa. That is jñāna.
And so long one does not reach to this point, surrender to Kṛṣṇa, he's a rascal. That's all. Mūḍha. Na māṁ prapadyante mūḍhāḥ, duṣkṛtino narādhamāḥ (BG 7.15). That is his qualification. One who has not surrendered to Kṛṣṇa, then he is duṣkṛtinaḥ, mūḍhāḥ, narādhamāḥ... "No, no. He's M.A., Ph.D." Māyayāpahṛta-jñānāḥ. His knowledge has no value. Useless. Māyayāpahṛta-jñānāḥ. Śrama eva hi kevalam. That is the verdict of the śāstras.
- dharmaḥ svanuṣṭhitaḥ puṁsāṁ
- viṣvaksena-kathāsu yaḥ
- notpādayed yadi ratiṁ
- śrama eva hi kevalam
- (SB 1.2.8)
Simply laboring for nothing. So this is called anartha-nivṛttiḥ. Jñāna-tapasā. Then niṣṭhā. "Oh, I must fix up." Then ruci, taste increases. Tato niṣṭhā rucis tataḥ athāsaktiḥ.
Then attachment. As soon as you get attachment for Kṛṣṇa, naturally, vīta-rāga, you give up attachment for your material life. Vīta-rāga. Unless you have got attachment for Kṛṣṇa, you cannot up attachment of this material sense gratification. That is not possible. Paraṁ dṛṣṭvā nivartate (BG 2.59). By force, you cannot train a person that "You must be refraining from all these things." No, it is not possible. Vīta-rāga means when you increase rāga for Kṛṣṇa, then you can become vīta-rāga. Paraṁ dṛṣṭvā ni... That if you get rasagullā, you can give up gur. Gur is also sweet, and rasagullā is sweet. But if somebody says that "Why you are eating gur...?" Or something else. "Here is nice rasagullā." Similarly, unless we get better things... Better things...
Kṛṣṇa is better thing, there is no need of proof. These European boys and girls, they have not come to me for better money. Because money is considered the best thing in the world, but they have enjoyed all these things. Therefore they are no more after money accumulation. They are after Kṛṣṇa. Paraṁ dṛṣṭvā nivartate. They can earn. They have dedicated their life. They're doing everything for me. They could earn in their country thousands of dollars. Thousands of doll... Any man can earn any day twenty-five dollars minimum. And twenty-five dollars means two hundred and fifty rupees per day. So they can get so much money. Why they have sacrificed everything? They have sacrificed their money. They have sacrificed their intoxication habit. They have sacrificed their illicit sex life. They have sacrificed their gambling life. Why? Paraṁ dṛṣṭvā nivartate. Because they have understood little trāyate mahato bhayāt.
Such things, the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Vīta-rāga-bhaya-krodhāḥ (BG 2.56). And you become fearless. You fearless. Even so many incidences happened in this spot, why they are fearless? Because they had attachment for Kṛṣṇa. This boy was threatened for life, but still he stood, fearless. Vīta-rāga...