There are, for the materialistic person, there are two varieties of self-interest. One is concentrated interest and other is expanded interest. Just like a child, if you give him some foodstuff, a cake, he will immediately eat, himself - and if he is little liberal, then his other friends also he will give. First of all, first is, he wants to eat, and then the other friend, "Oh, you are eating, give me something." "All right, you also take." So this is called extended interest, and the beginning is self-interest, anna brahman, "I shall . . ." Self-preservation is the first law of nature. So in our ordinary activities we find the same thing. Suppose a big political leader, in the beginning he is interested with his family, with his family members, but sometimes he takes to national interest, for all members of the country or the society, community. And then there is fight between one community to another community, one family to another family, one nation to another nation, because that extended self-interest does not make the thing perfect. That extended self-interest must be up to Viṣṇu. Then it will be perfect. But that they do not know, because they have no idea that there is Viṣṇu, the Supreme Lord, or Kṛṣṇa. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum (SB 7.5.31). They do not know. They think that "I have extended my self-interest to my country, to my family. I have become a big man." And people also give him honor. This we have practical experience. But that is extended self-interest. That is not actually philanthropy.
Philanthropy is when one becomes interested in Kṛṣṇa's interest. That is real philanthropy. Otherwise it is all kāma. There is no question of prema. It is going on as prema, deśa-bhakti, love for humanity. Hmm? The whole world is going on, but these are all imperfect things. The so-called philanthropism, altruism, humanitarianism, they are all . . . means imperfect, na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum (SB 7.5.31). That is not self-interest. Self-interest . . . Just like this finger, pick up some nice cake, rasagullā. But if the fingers think that "We have got it, we shall use it," all the fingers together, it will be spoiled. But if the fingers think that "Give it to the stomach," then it will be everyone's interest. As soon as the rasagullā goes to the stomach, the energy is distributed not only to these fingers of the right hand, but the left-hand fingers also. This law they do not know. This law they do not know. Therefore it is yadā na paśyanti, paśyaty ayathā guṇehām. Everyone is trying communally, nationally, individually for his or their interest. So that is not good. Svārthe pramattaḥ. They do not know what is real self-interest.
Yadā na paśyaty ayathā guṇehāṁ svārthe. Everyone should be interested, but svārtha. This is svārtha, that if you get a nice foodstuff, if you put to the stomach, then real svārtha. Not only the fingers which have picked up the foodstuff, not only his interested, tasmin tuṣṭe jagat tuṣṭaḥ. Yathā taror mūla, prāṇopahārāc ca yathendriyāṇām (SB 4.31.14). If you put the foodstuff through this one way, not foolish way, that we have to put the foodstuff within the body. So there are nine holes in the body: this mouth, the eyes, the ears and the genital, the rectum, the navel. There are nine holes. If some rascal says that any hole will do, you put the foodstuff through any hole . . . Sometimes it is done. When one cannot eat, the foodstuff is forced through the body through the rectum, through the nose. That is very troublesome. But the real process is, one process, you put the foodstuff through the mouth. It must go to the stomach, and then the energy will be distributed, everyone will be happy. Similarly, if we serve Kṛṣṇa, if we abide by the orders of Kṛṣṇa and satisfy Him, as He says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66), that is the perfection of life. If we work otherwise, forgetting Kṛṣṇa . . . Here it is said, gata-smṛtir vindati tatra tāpān. If we forget Kṛṣṇa, if we make our own plan to satisfy myself, community, society, nation, this is forgetfulness, and the result will be gata-smṛtir vindati tatra tāpān. You get simply trouble. That is being done, actually. The whole world is forgetfulness of Kṛṣṇa, or God. Kṛṣṇa, forgetfulness, and they are making so many plans to become happy, but the result is vindati tāpān, simply suffering, simply suffering. It will never be successful.
The same example, yathā taror mūla-niṣecanena tṛpyanti tat-skandha-bhujopaśākhāḥ (SB 4.31.14). The process is that you have to pour water at the root of the tree, then the tree will luxuriantly grow. But if you do not know the process, if you begin watering leaf to leaf, branch to branch, twig to twig, it will be simply waste of time. You can say, "I am pouring water on this leaf, on that leaf, on that . . ." It will take . . . You cannot. There are so many leaves in the tree, it is not possible individually you can do it. But if you put the water, pour the water on the root, it is very easy, and all the leaves and twigs and flowers and fruits, they get nourishment. That is wanted. Yathā taror mūla-niṣecanena tṛpyanti tat-skandha-bhujopaśākhāḥ, prāṇopahārāc ca yathendriyāṇām (SB 4.31.14). And by offering food to the stomach, all the indriyas, senses, they become vigorous, or strong. Similarly, sarvārhaṇam acyutejyā, if you satisfy Kṛṣṇa, acyuta ijyā, then the whole society, whole community, whole living beings, everyone will be satisfied. If you simply push on this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, then all different activities of the human society will be very, very nicely performed. Or if you do this nationalism, communism, it will never be perfect.
So we have got example in our country. Many countries; not only our country. Your country also, that President Kennedy, he was killed. Many other presidents also—in our country Gandhi was killed—because in that way, you cannot satisfy everyone. It is not possible. The so-called socialism, communism, altruism, humanitarianism will never be able to satisfy everyone. That is not possible. Kāmādīnāṁ kati na katidhā pālitā durnideśās teṣāṁ jātā mayi na karuṇā na trapā nopaśāntiḥ (CC Madhya 22.16). These different types of "isms," that is simply satisfying different desires. It is not the program.