Prabhupāda: Others will recite. Others will recite. Practice. (recitation restarts)
Nitāi: (leads synonyms) (break)
"I have lost my three legs and am now standing on one leg only. Are you lamenting for my state of existence? Or are you in great anxiety because henceforward the unlawful meat-eaters will exploit you? Or are you in sorry plight because the demigods are now bereft of their share of sacrificial offerings because no sacrifices are being performed at present? Or are you grieving for the living beings because of their sufferings due to famine and drought?"
Prabhupāda: These are the symptoms of this Kali-yuga. The first thing is that, "I have lost my three legs, now standing on one leg only." At the present moment in the Kali-yuga, practically there is no religion. So the bull is the representative of religious ceremony, so he is saying that "Now I have lost my three legs. I am standing, only one leg."
So in the Satya-yuga people were very religious, full, four parts full. In the Dvāpara-yuga, then one part was missing, only three parts. Then Tretā-yuga. Satya, Tretā, then Dvāpara. But in the Kali-yuga, the one part of religiosity, that is also diminishing. This is one of the symptom. And another symptom, "Or are you in great anxiety because henceforward the unlawful meat-eaters will exploit you?" The unlawful meat-eaters, they will eat cows and bulls. This is predicted in this verse. The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam was written five thousand years ago. So at that time the prediction is there that in the Kali-yuga the meat-eaters will be unlawful and they will especially eat cows and bulls.
So what is the unlawful and lawful? Lawful means so those who eat meat under the religious regulation. Just like lawful sex. In the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, dharma aviruddhaḥ kāmo 'smi (BG 7.11). Sex life which is not illicit, according to the regulative principle of Vedic literature, that kind of sex life, Kṛṣṇa says: "I am that." That means that is pious, that is not sinful. Illicit sex life is sinful, but, I mean to say, marriage, that is also one of the function of religiosity. Just like we perform marriage ceremony under fire sacrifice, mantra. So that is legalized. Similarly, meat-eating also . . . first of all, the first-class men, second-class men and third-class men means the brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya and vaiśya, they were not interested in meat-eating. Only the fourth-class men and fifth-class men, they were allowed, or they were eating meat. Nobody is allowed. But the first-class, second-class men, they have got sense. They voluntarily give up. But the third-class . . . fourth-class, fifth-class men, they do not. Up to fourth class, they also abide. From the fifth-class men—they are called pañcama—they are very irregular. They don't care for any rules and regulation or any śāstra, scripture. They do whatever they like, fifth class. So what is legal meat-eating? Legal meat-eating is that you sacrifice one animal before the goddess, deity Kālī, Goddess Kālī, and there are so many rules and regulation. Under regulative principle one was allowed to eat meat. Not that maintain big, big slaughterhouse and purchase from the butcher shop and eat meat. This is illegal.
Now, sometimes in . . . the Christians, they say the Lord Jesus Christ sometimes ate fish. Is not that? But . . . might have done so. One thing is, Christ is powerful. Under certain circumstances, even if he had eaten some fish, that is not fault for him. Tejīyasāṁ na doṣāya (SB 10.33.29). In the śāstra says those who are very powerful, if they sometimes do something which is prohibited for common man, that is special case. But even if you accept that, "Christ ate fish, therefore we shall eat meat and maintain big, big slaughterhouse," although in the Bible it is clearly said: "Thou shall not kill," this is not Christianity. This is against, violating the rules and regulation of Christianity. Factually, one should not kill. But under some pressure or under certain condition, if it is needed, that is another thing. But generally, one should not kill.
So here it is mentioned that "Or are you in great anxiety because henceforward . . ." Henceforward means from that time the Kali-yuga has begun. Since these four principles of unlawful activities—illicit sex, meat-eating, gambling and intoxication—is freely allowed, that is Kali-yuga. So in this age, in this Kali-yuga, it is very, very difficult for persons who are interested in self-realization to remain free from sinful activities. It is very, very difficult. Māyā, or the influence of nature, in this age especially, it is very, very strong, and majority of people are therefore addicted to this sinful life—illicit sex, meat-eating, gambling and intoxication. But those who are interested in the matter of self-realization, they should voluntarily give up these sinful activities.
Then, "Their sacrifices will be stopped. Demigods, they will not get their share." This is another . . . formerly, people used to offer big, big sacrifices. Tons of grains, tons of ghee was being offered in the fire sacrifice, and there was no want. There was no want. If you perform rituals according to the Vedic system, there will be no want. Just like taxpayer, if they avoid tax-paying, then the—this is a crude example— that the government will have no money to manage the state very nicely. One should not avoid tax-paying. Similarly, as it is enjoined in the Vedic literature, yajña-śiṣṭāśinaḥ santo mucyante sarva-kilbiṣaiḥ (BG 3.13). Yajñārthe karmaṇo 'nyatra loko 'yaṁ karma-bandhanaḥ (BG 3.9). Everyone is working very hard. That is called karma-jīvana, karmīs. Karmīs, jñānīs, yogīs and bhaktas. There are four classes of men. Karmīs means those who are working day and night very hard for getting some material benefit so that he can enjoy sense pleasure. These are called karmīs. The karmīs also, not only they want to enjoy in this life; next life also they want to go to the heavenly planet.