Just like temperature. If you are put into high temperature, 110 degree, then it is very intolerable for you. It is very painful. Even for us Indians—we are born in India, tropical climate—still, when the temperature is more than a hundred, it becomes intolerable. And what to speak of you? You are born in a different temperature. Similarly, we cannot tolerate lower temperature. If it is below fifty degree, it is intolerable for us. So there are different climates, different temperature. And in Canada they tolerate forty degree less than zero. So it is a question of different condition of life. But we are conditioned: high-grade temperature, less temperature, high-grade cold. But we can be trained up to any kind of conditional life. That capacity we have got.
There is a Bengali proverb, śarīre na mahāśaya ya sahabe taya saya(?), means "This body is," means, "it can tolerate any condition, provided you practice it." It is not that, that you are under certain condition, and if you are changed, it becomes so intolerable that you cannot live. No. If you practice. . . Just like nowadays nobody is going; formerly they are going to the Himalayan mountain, and there is very cold. And the tapasya. . . There is practice, method: in high scorching heat the saintly person or sages, they will ignite fire all round. Already there is high temperature, and still they will get fire all round and go on, meditation. This is tapasya. These are the items of tapasya. There is scorching heat, and they will arrange that. There is pinching, chilly cold, less than hundred degree, and they will go under water and put the body up to this and meditate. These are the items of tapasya. Tapasya. So for God realization formerly people used to undergo such severe type of penances, and at the present moment we are so fallen, we cannot tolerate these four principles? Is it very difficult? We are imposing some tapasya, that "Don't indulge in these things. No illicit sex, no intoxication, no meat-eating, no gambling." These are the items of tapasya for advancing in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So is it very difficult? It is not difficult. If one can practice, go within the water up to the neck in chilly, pinching cold, is it more difficult to give up illicit sex and meat-eating and intoxication? We are not advising, "No sex." Illicit sex. So where is the difficulty? But the age is so fallen that even these primary tapasya we cannot execute. That is the difficulty.
But if you want to realize God, as it is said here, tapasaiva, only by tapasya, only by penance one can realize. Otherwise not. Otherwise it is not possible. Therefore this word is used, tapasaiva. Tapasā eva: "only by tapasya." There is no other means. Tapasaiva param. Param means the Supreme. If you want to realize the Supreme, the Absolute, then you must agree to certain type of tapasya. Otherwise it is not possible. The preliminary little tapasya—just like ekādaśī; that is also one of the items of the tapasya. Actually, on the ekādaśī days we shall not take any food, even drink water. But in our Society we are not doing so much strictly. We say, "Ekādaśī, you don't take food grains. Take little fruit, milk." This is tapasya. So we cannot execute this tapasya? So if we are not prepared to undertake even this very, very easily executable tapasya, then how we can expect go back to home, back to Godhead? No, that is not possible. Therefore here it is said, tapasaiva, tapasā eva. Eva means certainly. You have to.