Suppose a man is very comfortably situated. Does it mean that he will not die? He'll die. So simply by bodily comforts you cannot exist—survival of the fittest; struggle for existence. So when we simply take care of the body, that is called dharmasya glāniḥ, polluted. One must know what is the necessity of the body and what is the necessity of the soul. The real necessity of life is to supply the comforts of the soul. And the soul can be comforted not by material adjustment. Because soul is a different identity, the soul must be given spiritual food. That spiritual food is this Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
If you give the soul the spiritual food . . . food, there are . . . when one is diseased, you have to give him diet and medicine. Two things required. If you simply give medicine, no diet, that will be not be very successful. Both things. So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is meant for giving food—means diet and medicine—to the soul. The medicine is this Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. Bhavauṣadhāc chrotra-mano-'bhirāmāt ka uttamaśloka-guṇānuvādāt virajyeta pumān vinā paśughnāt (SB 10.1.4). The Parīkṣit Mahārāja said to Śukadeva Gosvāmī that, "This Bhāgavata discussion which you are prepared to give me, it is not ordinary thing." Nivṛtta-tarṣair upagīyamānāt.
This Bhāgavata discussion is relishable by persons who are nivṛtta-tṛṣṇā. Tṛṣṇā. Tṛṣṇā means hankering. Everyone in this material world is hankering. Hankering. So one who is freed from this hankering, he can taste the Bhāgavata, how palatable it is. It is such a thing. Nivṛtta-tarṣaiḥ . . . similarly bhāgavata means also the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra is also bhāgavata. Bhāgavata means anything in relationship with the Supreme Lord. That is called bhāgavata. The Supreme Lord is called Bhagavān. Bhagavata-śabda. And in relationship with Him, anything, that bhagavata-śabda turns into bhāgavata-śabda.
So Parīkṣit Mahārāja said that the taste of Bhāgavata can be relished by a person who has finished his hankering of material desires. Nivṛtta-tarṣair upagīyamānāt. And what is . . . why such thing should be tasted? Bhavauṣadhi. Bhavauṣadhi, medicine for our disease of birth and death. Bhava means "become." Our . . . at the present moment, we are in diseased condition. They do not know what is the diseased condition, what is the healthy condition, these rascals. They do not know anything. Still they are passing on as great scientist, philosopher . . . they do not inquire that, "I do not want to die. Why death is enforced upon me?" There is no such inquiry. Neither there is any solution. And still they are scientist. What kind of scientist? If you can . . .
Science means that you advance in knowledge so that your miserable condition of life can be reduced, minimized. That is science. Otherwise, what is this science? They are simply promising, "In future." "But what you are delivering just now, sir?" "Now just now you suffer as you are suffering; go on suffering. In future we shall find out some chemicals." No. Actually, ātyantika-duḥkha-nivṛtti. Ātyantika, ultimate. Ātyantika means ultimate. Duḥkha means sufferings.
That should be the aim of human life. So they do not know what is ātyantika-duḥkha. Duḥkha means suffering. So ātyantika-duḥkha is pointed out in the Bhagavad-gītā: "Here is the ātyantika-duḥkha, sir." What is this? Janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi (BG 13.9): birth, death, old age and disease. So what you have done for vanishing or making . . . or nullifying this duḥkha, these sufferings?
So there is no such thing in the material world. Ātyantika-duḥkha-nivṛtti, ultimate relinquishment from all kinds of suffering, is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā. What is that?
- mām upetya kaunteya
- duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam
- nāpnuvanti mahātmānaḥ
- saṁsiddhiṁ paramāṁ gatāḥ
- (BG 8.15)
So you should read all this. You have got Bhāgavata, everything explanation. This is ātyantika-duḥkha-nivṛtti, ultimate relinquishment from all sufferings. What is that? Mām upetya: "One who approaches Me or one who comes to Me, back to home, back to Godhead." So they have no knowledge what is God and whether one can go back to home, back to Godhead, it is a practical thing or not. No knowledge. Simply like animals. That's all. No knowledge. They pray, "O God, give us our daily bread." Now ask him, "What is God?" Can he explain? No.
Then whom we are asking? In the air? If I ask, if I submit some petition, there must be some person. So I do not know what is that person, where to submit this petition. Simply . . . they say that He's in the sky. The sky, there are so many birds also, but that is not God. You see. No knowledge. No knowledge. Imperfect knowledge, all. And they're passing on as scientists, philosophers, great thinkers, writers, and . . . all rubbish. All rubbish. The only book is Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Bhagavad-gītā.