Prabhupāda: Hmm. Where is Jagadīśa? (break) . . . on the real goal of life.
Jagadīśa: Because they do not know that the goal of human life is to become freed from the repetition of birth and death, therefore there is no, as explained in the First Chapter of the First Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam,
- prāyeṇālpāyuṣaḥ sabhya
- kalāv asmin yuge janāḥ
- mandāḥ sumanda-matayo
- manda-bhāgyā hy upadrutāḥ
- (SB 1.1.10)
The people in the age of Kali, the age of quarrel, have a short duration of life . . .
Prabhupāda: (aside to child) Oh, you are tiger? How are you, Mr. Tiger?
Indian man: This is Mr. Ganesh elder son.
Prabhupāda: Now, a tiger? Your grandson?
Indian man: Tiger. (Gujarati)
Prabhupāda: No, he is . . . he is tiger? Ācchā. Thank you. Hmm. Go on.
Jagadīśa: People are lazy and unfortunate. They have no knowledge. And besides that, they are misled by foolish leaders. The leaders are intent only on deriving sense gratification from their so-called high position. In the Bhāgavatam also it is explained that men who are like dogs, hogs, camels and asses praise those men who do not glorify the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So the . . . it is a civilization of fools, a fool's paradise, where the common people are allowed to elect from amongst them one so-called leader who is the biggest rascal because he doesn't know anything, and none of the others, the common people, know anything about the purpose of life, and yet this so-called leader becomes elected on the basis that he can do something to help suffering humanity. The material existence is nothing but a struggle against material nature, which ultimately has no value. But it's an illusory struggle because of the spirit soul . . .
Prabhupāda: Why it has no value?
Jagadīśa: Because there is no . . .
Prabhupāda: He'll not say that is has no value. You must give the reason why it has no value.
Jagadīśa: It has no value because there is no permanent connection between the spirit soul and the material energy. The spirit soul . . . there are two kinds of energy: material energy and spiritual energy. We have experience of both. The material energy is described in the Seventh Chapter of Bhagavad-gītā . . .
Prabhupāda: You can describe like this: Just like if a man is diseased, so the physician imposes upon him some restriction, do and do not. So if by mistake we give up the do not's, then it is useless. He should observe the do not's. Then he'll be cured. And if he does not observe the do not's—whatever he likes, he does—that means his disease is increasing. Therefore it is useless. The real aim of life is how to get out of the clutches of māyā which is forcing me to accept the cycle of birth and death. That is my disease. Therefore tapasya. Tapasya means restricted life, not unrestricted life. So if we do not follow the restricted life, that means I shall continue my disease or increase my disease. The modern civilization, we are teaching how to enjoy this material world to the fullest extent, bhogaiśvarya, sense gratification, and for sense gratification, material opulence. But he does not know that he is killing himself. He is aggravating the disease. He has to accept another body. But that he does not know, that he'll have to take birth and die, again the same business. That he does not know. Therefore this civilization is misguided. Yesterday we were reading, tapo divyaṁ yena śuddhyet sattvam (SB 5.5.1). We have to purify our existence. So this aim is missing—how to purify it. Sattva. I am eternal. Now I am existing in a condition, birth and death. That they do not know. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum (SB 7.5.31). He does not know his interest. He's thinking, "This is life. Let me enjoy. And there is no life after death, and even there is, who cares for it?" This is going on.