So the subject matter for hearing for the ordinary person, those who are engaged in family matters, grhesu grha-medhinam... So does it mean to become a family man is bad? No. It does not mean. But if you become grhamedhi, that is particularly said, grhesu grhamedhi. Grhesu, living in family life, but in family life there are also two classes of men: grhastha and these grhamedhi. Therefore I say that each and every word of Srimad-Bhagavatam, you will have new enlightening, new. Difference, there is difference between grhastha and grhamedhi. Grhamedhi, just like ordinary persons, their household life means they have made the home as the center of their existence. Just like I was seeing just now the rooms of our grhastha, householder, boys and girls. Things are scattered. (laughter) But if you go to another person's, grhastha (grhamedhi), you will find their apartment nicely decorated, chairs, cushions, and sitting place, but they have no vision about self. And here, although we see that household affairs, their resting place, is not so nicely decorated, but their aim is Krsna. So that is the difference between grhamedhi and grhastha. Grhamedhi means they simply want to decorate their apartment and children and wife. That is their end of life. That is all. They have no other business. Apasyatam, blind of the value of life. Whereas the grhastha, he is not blind about the value of his life. He is simply looking forward, how to become successful, Krsna conscious. So those who are blind of the point of self-realization, such householders, they have got many subject matter of hearing in the newspapers. Srotavyadini rajendra nrnam santi sahasrasah [SB 2.1.2]. Sahasrasah means thousands of subject matters. For whom? Grhesu grha-medhinam. Such householders who made their aim of life to decorate the apartment. That's all. Work whole day and night, and have good dress, good apartment. That's all. They think this is success. These things are, were before also.

So these are being pointed out, grhesu grha-medhinam. For them there are many thousands of news items. Why they have got thousands? Now, what is their mode of life? That is explained. Their mode of life, Sukadeva Gosvami explained to Pariksit Maharaja. Nidraya hriyate naktam vyavayena ca va vayah: [SB 2.1.3] "At night they are wasting their duration of life either by sleeping or by sex life." That's all. This is their business at night. Then, at daytime, what is their business? At daytime, diva carthehaya rajan kutumba-bharanena va: [SB 2.1.3] "And daytime, they are always busy: ‘Where is money? Where is money? Where is money? (laughter) Where is money?' " Diva carthe. Arthe means money. Ihaya, hankering after money. Then? They are getting money. Why they should waste their time? No. Nidraya... Diva carthehaya rajan kutumba-bharanena va: [SB 2.1.3] As soon as there is money, there is immediately program how to spend it for family. Kutumba-bharanena va. Kutumba means family, relatives. You see? They will spend thousands of dollars for family and relatives. But if you ask some dollars for Krsna consciousness, they are not interested (inclined?). You see? So for these persons there are varieties of material news. Nidraya hriyate naktam. At night... So their life means day and night. So this is the program of their life. At night those, either sleeping or going to the night club or dancing club, sex life. That's all. Not that these things are new. These are old things. People were accustomed to all these things only... The human nature is always... They are thinking, "modern days." What do you mean by "modern days"? Nothing has changed. "Putting the old wine in new bottle." That's all. (laughter) The practice is going on. Diva carthehaya.

So the question is why they are wasting their life in this way? So that is answered also. He says,

Dehapatya. Dehapatya. Deha means this body, and apatya means change of. Dehapatya-kalatra. Kalatra means wife. Dehapatya-kalatradisu atma-sainyesu. Just like a nation feels himself well-protected when the nation has got good defense measure, similarly, an ordinary man, he thinks that "If I have got strong built body and very faithful wife and nice children," dehapatya-kalatradisu, "and after this," means, "some good bank balance, some landed property, security, these things," one person accepts, "they will give me protection. Yes. They will give. I am now well-protected. I have got nice children. I have got nice wife. I have got good bank balance. I have got so many properties. So why shall I go to Krsna conscious? I am well-protected. These boys and girls, they have no bank balance. They have no home. Therefore they should go." But they are blind. How they are blind? They are thinking that these things will give him protection. Pramatta. Pramatta means crazy. (laughter) Crazy. By craziness he is thinking that "These things will give me protection." No. Tesam pramatto nidhanam pasyann api na pasyati. Because he is crazy, he does not see to the destruction of these things although he is seeing others, that they are being destroyed every moment. "My father has died. Naturally I shall die. Naturally my sons also will die. So why I am so much anxious of protecting this family? Everyone will die." Pasyann api na pasyati. They see, but still do not see. They see daily that "I am working so hard for these things, but these things will be destroyed, as it has been destroyed previously in the history." So many empires were destroyed. The British empire destroyed, the Roman empire destroyed, the Egyptian empire destroyed, the, I mean to say, the Indian empire... Formerly..., just like Pariksit Maharaja. He was the emperor of the world. So these things, pasyann api na pasyati, they see that "They cannot give me protection. When I shall be called for death..." Just like Pariksit Maharaja is preparing. "At that time, all these, my soldiers, my bank balance, my good wife, my good children, my good countrymen -- no. Nobody can give me any protection." Just like when you have to fly in the sky, you have to protect yourself. No other can... Take it for the birds or for the airplanes. If you are being crushed in the airplane, no other airplane can protect you. You'll have to come down from the sky. (laughter) Similarly, when death will come, none of you will be able to give me protection. Either my good state or good family or good bank balance or good this, that. No. That's all, finished. You see?

Srimad-Bhagavatam 2.1.1-4
Boston, December 22, 1969
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