How a man is going to heaven or hell, one can understand from the direction of the scriptures, just like you can understand how a man is going to be punished or rewarded within this material world. If you see somebody is working very hard, doing nicely, you can conjecture that, "This man will be happy." Say, for example, if a boy is studying very nicely, you can conjecture that "This boy will rise very highly in his future life."
And similarly, if a boy is whiling away his time by playing, you can understand, "This boy is being spoiled." Similarly, by the direction of the scripture, you can understand what is the destination of a certain person. Therefore they say śāstra-cakṣuṣaḥ. Whether I am progressing or regressing, that will be understood through the eyes of śāstra, not in ordinary eyes.
So he says, kathaṁ svid dhriyate daṇḍaḥ kiṁ vāsya sthānam īpsitam (SB 6.1.39): "According to punishment and reward, a man, a living entity . . ." Living entity means this daṇḍaḥ, this punishment and reward is meant for the human being, not the animals. Animals are not supposed to be under the stringent laws of material nature.
Just like in ordinary way, all the state laws are applicable to the human being, not to the animals. Because if an animal goes to the wrong path or if an animal takes away something from your possession, he is not punished, neither anybody goes to complain in the police court.
Similarly, human being . . . that is also civilized human being, advanced, civilized. That is stated here that daṇḍyāḥ kiṁ kāriṇaḥ sarve āho svit katicin nṛṇām. Human being . . . that is also very few human being, because those who are supposed to be advanced, the Āryans . . . the Āryans are called the advanced human being. The civilization means Āryan civilization. So katicin nṛṇām.
This very word is used here. Not all human beings. Those who are . . . they are also punished. But a civilized human being is very much responsible life. The chance is given to get out of this cycle of birth and death. Therefore, for civilized human being, these Vedas, these scriptures, are made for them, not for the rascals and fools, those who are in the lower stage of life; only for the civilized.
So the yamadūta ūcuḥ. Then the reply is given by the Yamadūtas, the representatives, the constables of Yamarāja. They are working under Yamarāja, who is an authority. They must know. They must know what is right and wrong. So how nicely they are replying. So the first challenge was given, "What is dharma? What is religion? What is piety?"
So they are replying, veda-praṇihito dharmaḥ: "Dharma means the injunctions given in the Vedas. That is dharma." Just like if you ask: "What is law?" then the immediate answer is, "Law means the injunction of the state." You cannot make it law. The state, the government, whatever the government orders, that is law. The word of the government is law.
Similarly, dharma means the injunctions given in the Vedas. It is clearly said, veda-praṇihito dharma hy adharmas tad viparyayaḥ (SB 6.1.40): "And nonreligions, or irreligious, irreligion, or nonreligion, is just the opposite." For example, if you abide by the laws of the Vedas, then you should know that you are following the path of dharma, or religion. But if you do not abide by the laws of Vedas, then you are irreligious. This is the sum and substance.
Now, why Vedas should be accepted so seriously? At least we, who are supposed to be followers of the Vedic laws, we take it so seriously. For example, how we accept the injunctions of Vedas seriously? There is example - a stool, animal stool, or any, human being stool—stool is stool—that stool is supposed to be impious, impure. If you touch stool, then you have to take your bath. You become impure. You have to take your bath, as you do generally. After passing stool we take bath. That is a Hindu injunction. And even a man goes twice for passing stool, he must take twice bath. That is real Hindu religious life.
Now, stool, in one place it is said that, "It is impure. If you touch, then you have to take your bath." In another place it is said: "This stool, particular, the cow dung, is pure. Cow dung is pure. If there is any impure place, if you smear over it cow dung, then it is pure." That is also injunction of the Vedas. Now, you cannot argue that, "One place you say that this stool is impure, and another place you say this is pure. This is contradiction." Sometimes people find this contradiction. But you have to accept, because it is injunction of the Vedas. That you are doing practically, every day.
Similarly, this bone, any bone, animal bone, if you touch, you have to take bath. You become impure. But this conchshell which you are sounding, vibrating in the Deity room, that is also bone. But you cannot argue that, "You say bone is impure. Why you are taking one bone in the Deity room?" That you cannot say. This is acceptance of Vedas, without any argument. And if you want to know why one is accepted pure and one is accepted impure, if you make, I mean to say, research, you will find that the Vedic injunction is right.
Take for . . . this cow dung. Perhaps, you doctor, know that one Dr. Lalman Ghosh in Calcutta, he analyzed this cow dung, and—he was a professor in the medical college—he has declared that cow dung is full of antiseptic properties. So Vedic injunction is . . . that is right. But sometimes it appears to be contradictory. But we cannot judge how it is so contradictory. We have to accept like that. That is the following of Vedic rules.
Similarly, in the Bhagavad-gītā you will find Kṛṣṇa has explained so many ways, karma-yoga, jñāna-yoga, dhyāna-yoga, haṭha-yoga, so many other things, but ultimately He says bhakti-yoga is the supreme. Sarva dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). Mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja means this is bhakti-yoga. One has to simply obey or surrender unto Kṛṣṇa, giving up all other types of religious principles.
So one can say that Lord Kṛṣṇa said in some places of the Bhagavad-gītā that this yoga, karma-yoga, is nice, jñāna-yoga is nice. No. The last word what He says, that is to be accepted. You cannot argue that Kṛṣṇa said, "Karma-yoga is also good." You cannot argue that "I shall take to karma-yoga." That is . . . karma-yoga, different stages of evolution. One who is fit for simply karma-yoga, that process is recommended for him. But if one ultimately wants the supreme benefit, then this is the injunction of Bhagavad-gītā, that sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66).
So we have to follow the Vedic principles. That is dharma. And why Vedic principles are to be accepted as supreme? That is also explained here: veda-praṇihito dharmo hy adharmas tad viparyayaḥ vedo nārāyaṇaḥ sākṣāt (SB 6.1.40). Veda means Nārāyaṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, directly. Just like law book is directly government, similarly, veda nārāyaṇaḥ sākṣāt svayambhūr iti śuśruma. Again he says susruma, "I have heard it. I have heard it."
When I say: "I have heard it," that means I have heard it from a superior authority. Śuśruma. No followers of Vedic principle will say: "It is my opinion." Your opinion is nonsense. What you are? This is the way of understanding Vedas. Śuśruma. Therefore Veda is known as śruti—śruti and smṛti. There is no such thing that, "In my opinion," "I comment like this," "I take the meaning like this." No. You have to understand it by the śuśruma process, or śrota-panthā, by hearing from the authorities.
Just like in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam (BG 4.1), that "First of all I said this principle of bhagavad-bhakti-yoga, or Bhagavad-gītā yoga, to the sun-god." Imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham: "I spoke." Proktavān. Vivasvān manave prahuḥ: "And the sun-god said to his son, Manu." Manur ikṣvākave bravīt. Just see. That means the principles of Bhagavad-gītā is being accepted by the process of hearing from authority. That is the process. You cannot comment in your own way. That is not authorized. You have to hear from the authority.
Therefore Kathopanisad says, tad vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum evābhigacchet (MU 1.2.12): "If anyone wants to learn the transcendental science, he has to, he has to accept." Gacchet. This is vidhiliṅ, "must." There is no exception. You cannot say that "Without going to a spiritual master, I shall learn the transcendental science." No, that is not possible. Therefore, in our Vaiṣṇava principles it is said, ādau gurv-āśrayam. In the very beginning of understanding spiritual knowledge, one has to take shelter of a guru. Ādau gurv-āśrayam. Sad-dharma-pṛcchati: the next stage is inquiring from the spiritual master about real spiritual life. These are the processes.