Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 5: “The Creative Impetus”
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Chapter Fourteen
The Material World as the Great Forest of Enjoyment
SB5.14Summary
The direct meaning of the forest of material existence is given in this chapter. Merchants sometimes enter the forest to collect many rare things and sell them at a good profit in the city, but the forest path is always bedecked with dangers. When the pure soul wants to give up the Lord’s service to enjoy the material world, Krsna certainly gives him a chance to enter the material world. As stated in the Prema-vivarta: krsna-bahirmukha hana bhoga vancha kare. This is the reason the pure spirit soul falls down to the material world. Due to his activities under the influence of the three modes of material nature, the living entity takes different positions in different species. Sometimes he is a demigod in the heavenly planets and sometimes a most insignificant creature in the lower planetary systems. In this regard, Srila Narottama dasa Thakura says, nana yoni sada phire: the living entity passes through various species. Kardarya bhaksana kare: he is obliged to eat and enjoy abominable things. Tara janma adhah-pate yaya: in this way his whole life is spoiled. Without the protection of an all-merciful Vaisnava. the conditioned soul cannot get out of the clutches of maya. As stated in Bhagavad-gita (manah sasthanindriyani prakrti-sthani karsati [Bg. 15.7]), the living entity begins material life with his mind and the five knowledge-acquiring senses, and with these he struggles for existence within the material world. These senses are compared to rogues and thieves within the forest. They take away a man’s knowledge and place him in a network of nescience. Thus the senses are like rogues and thieves that plunder his spiritual knowledge. Over and above this, there are family members, wife and children. who are exactly like ferocious animals in the forest. The business of such ferocious animals is to eat a man’s flesh. The living entity allows himself to be attacked by jackals and foxes (wife and children), and thus his real spiritual life is finished. In the forest of material life, everyone is envious like mosquitoes, and rats and mice are always creating disturbances. Everyone in this material world is placed in many awkward positions and surrounded by envious people and disturbing animals. The result is that the living entity in the material world is always plundered and bitten by many living entities. Nonetheless, despite these disturbances, he does not want to give up his family life, and he continues his fruitive activities in an attempt to become happy in the future. He thus becomes more and more entangled in the results of karma, and thus he is forced to act impiously. His witnesses are the sun during the day and the moon during the night. The demigods also witness, but the conditioned soul thinks that his attempts at sense gratification are not being witnessed by anyone. Sometimes, when he is detected, he temporarily renounces everything, but due to his great attachment for the body, his renunciation is given up before he can attain perfection.
In this material world there are many envious people. There is the tax-exacting government, which is compared to an owl, and there are invisible crickets that create unbearable sounds. The conditioned soul is certainly greatly harassed by the agents of material nature, but his intelligence is lost due to undesirable association. In an attempt to gain relief from the disturbances of material existence, he falls victim to so-called yogis, sadhus and incarnations who can display some magic but who do not understand devotional service. Sometimes the conditioned soul is bereft of all money, and consequently he becomes unkind to his family members. In this material world there is not a pinch of actual happiness, for which the conditioned soul is longing life after life. The government officials are like carnivorous Raksasas who exact heavy taxes for the maintenance of the government. The hard-working conditioned soul is very saddened due to these heavy taxes.
The path of fruitive activities leads to difficult mountains, and sometimes the conditioned soul wants to cross these mountains, but he is never successful, and consequently he becomes more and more aggrieved and disappointed. Becoming materially and financially embarrassed, the conditioned soul unnecessarily chastises his family. In the material condition there are four principal needs, out of which sleep is compared to a python. When asleep, the conditioned soul completely forgets his real existence, and in sleep he does not feel the tribulations of material life. Sometimes, being in need of money, the conditioned soul steals and cheats, although he may apparently be associated with devotees for spiritual advancement. His only business is getting out of the clutches of maya, but due to improper guidance he becomes more and more entangled in material dealings. This material world is simply an embarrassment and is composed of tribulations presented as happiness. distress, attachment, enmity and envy. On the whole it is simply full of tribulation and misery. When a person loses his intelligence due to attachment to wife and sex, his entire consciousness becomes polluted. He thus only thinks of the association of women. The time factor, which is like a serpent, takes away everyone’s life, including that of Lord Brahma and the insignificant ant. Sometimes the conditioned soul tries to save himself from inexorable time and thus takes shelter of some bogus savior. Unfortunately. the bogus savior cannot even save himself. How, then. can he protect others? The bogus saviors do not care for bona fide knowledge received from qualified brahmanas and Vedic sources. Their only business is indulging in sex and recommending sexual freedom even for widows. Thus they are like monkeys in the forest. Srila Sukadeva Gosvami thus explains the material forest and its difficult path to Maharaja Pariksit. SB5.14.1 TEXT 1 sa hovaca sa esa dehatma-maninam sattvadi-guna-visesa-vikalpita-kusalaku-sala-samavahara-vinirmita-vividha-dehavalibhir viyoga-samyogady-anadi-samsaranubhavasya dvara-bhutena sad-indriya-vargena tasmin durgadhvavad asugame ’dhvany apatita isvarasya bhagavato visnor vasa-vartinya mayaya jiva-loko ’yam yatha vanik-sartho ’rtha-parah sva-deha-nispadita-karmanubhavah smasanavad asivatamayam samsaratavyam gato nadyapi viphala-bahu-pratiyogehas tat-tapopasamanim hari-guru-caranaravinda-madhukaranupadavim avarundhe. SYNONYMS sah—the self-realized devotee (Sri Sukadeva Gosvami); ha—indeed; uvaca—spoke; sah—he (the conditioned soul); esah—this one; deha-atma-maninam—of those who foolishly take the body to be the self; sattva-adi—of sattva, rajah and tamah; guna—by the modes; visesa—particular; vikalpita—falsely constituted; kusala—sometimes by favorable actions; akusala—sometimes by very unfavorable actions; samavahara—by a mixture of both; vinirmita—obtained; vividha—various types; deha-avalibhih—by the series of bodies; viyoga-samyoga-adi—symptomized by giving up one type of body (viyoga) and accepting another (samyoga); anadi-samsara-anubhavasya—of the perception of the beginningless process of transmigration; dvara-bhutena—existing as the doorways; sat-indriya-vargena—by these six senses (the mind and five knowledge-acquiring senses, namely the eyes, ears, tongue, nose and skin); tasmin—on that; durga-adhva-vat—like a path that is very difficult to traverse; asugame—being difficult to pass through; adhvani—on a path in the forest; apatitah—happened; isvarasya—of the controller; bhagavatah—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; visnoh—of Lord Visnu; vasa-vartinya—acting under the control; mayaya—by the material energy; jiva-lokah—the conditioned living entity; ayam—this; yatha—exactly like; vanik—a merchant; sa-arthah—having an object; artha-parah—who is very attached to money; sva-deha-nispadita—performed by his own body; karma—the fruits of activities; anubhavah—who experiences; smasana-vat asivatamayam—like an inauspicious cemetery or place of burial; samsara-atavyam—in the forest of material life; gatah—having entered; na—not; adya api—until now; viphala—unsuccessful; bahu-pratiyoga—full of great difficulties and varieties of miserable conditions; ihah—whose activities here in this material world; tat-tapa-upasa-manim—which pacifies the miseries of the forest of material life; hari-guru-carana-aravinda—to the lotus feet of the Lord and His devotee; madhukara-anupadavim—the road followed in pursuance of devotees who are attached like bumblebees; avarundhe—gain. TRANSLATION When King Pariksit asked Sukadeva Gosvami about the direct meaning of the material forest, Sukadeva Gosvami replied as follows: My dear King, a man belonging to the mercantile community [vanik] is always interested in earning money. Sometimes he enters the forest to acquire some cheap commodities like wood and earth and sell them in the city at good prices. Similarly, the conditioned soul, being greedy, enters this material world for some material profit. Gradually he enters the deepest part of the forest, not really knowing how to get out. Having entered the material world, the pure soul becomes conditioned by the material atmosphere, which is created by the external energy under the control of Lord Visnu. Thus the living entity comes under the control of the external energy, daivi maya. Living independently and bewildered in the forest, he does not attain the association of devotees who are always engaged in the service of the Lord. Once in the bodily conception, he gets different types of bodies one after the other under the influence of material energy and impelled by the modes of material nature [sattva-guna, rajo-guna and tamo-guna]. In this way the conditioned soul goes sometimes to the heavenly planets, sometimes to the earthly planets and sometimes to the lower planets and lower species. Thus he suffers continuously due to different types of bodies. These sufferings and pains are sometimes mixed. Sometimes they are very severe, and sometimes they are not. These bodily conditions are acquired due to the conditioned soul’s mental speculation. He uses his mind and five senses to acquire knowledge, and these bring about the different bodies and different conditions. Using the senses under the control of the external energy, maya, the living entity suffers the miserable conditions of material existence. He is actually searching for relief, but he is generally baffled, although sometimes he is relieved after great difficulty. Struggling for existence in this way, he cannot get the shelter of pure devotees, who are like bumblebees engaged in loving service at the lotus feet of Lord Visnu. PURPORT The most important information in this verse is hari-guru-carana-aravinda-madhukara-anupadavim. In this material world the conditioned souls are baffled by their activities, and sometimes they are relieved after great difficulty. On the whole the conditioned soul is never happy. He simply struggles for existence. Actually his only business is to accept the spiritual master, the guru, and through him he must accept the lotus feet or the Lord. This is explained by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu: guru-krsna-prasade paya bhakti-lata-bija. people struggling for existence in the forests or cities of the material world are not actually enjoying life. They are simply suffering different pains and pleasures, generally pains that are always inauspicious. They try to gain release from these pains, but they cannot due to ignorance. For them it is stated in the Vedas: tad-vijnanartham sa gurum evabhigacchet [MU 1.2.12]. When the living entity is lost in the forest of the material world, in the struggle for existence, his first business is to find a bona fide guru who is always engaged at the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Visnu. After all, if he is at all eager to be relieved of the struggle for existence, he must find a bona fide guru and take instructions at his lotus feet. In this way he can get out of the struggle. Since the material world is compared herein to a forest, it may be argued that in Kali-yuga modern civilization is mainly situated in the cities. A great city, however, is like a great forest. Actually city life is more dangerous than life in the forest. If one enters an unknown city without friend or shelter, living in that city is more difficult than living in a forest. There are many big cities all over the surface of the globe, and wherever one looks he sees the struggle for existence going on twenty-four hours a day. people rush about in cars going seventy and eighty miles an hour, constantly coming and going, and this sets the scene of the great struggle for existence. One has to rise early in the morning and travel in that car at breakneck speed. There is always the danger of an accident, and one has to take great care. In his automobile, the living entity is full of anxieties, and his struggle is not at all auspicious. Apart from human beings, other species like cats and dogs are also struggling very hard day and night for existence. Thus the struggle for existence continues, and the conditioned soul changes from one position to another. For a while, he is a child, but he has to become a boy. From a boy, he has to change into a youth, and from youth to manhood and old age. Finally, when the body is no longer workable, he has to accept a new body in a different species. Giving up the body is called death, and accepting another body is called birth. The human form is an opportunity to take shelter of the bona fide spiritual master and, through him, the Supreme Lord. This Krsna consciousness movement has been started to give an opportunity to all the members of human society, who are misled by foolish leaders. No one can get out of this struggle for existence, which is full of miseries, without accepting a pure devotee of the Lord. The material attempt changes from one position to another, and no one actually gains relief from the struggle for existence. The only resort is the lotus feet of a bona fide spiritual master, and, through him, the lotus feet of the Lord. SB5.14.2 TEXT 2 yasyam u ha va ete sad-indriya-namanah karmana dasyava eva te; tad yatha purusasya dhanam yat kincid dharmaupayikam bahu-krcchradhigatam saksat parama-purusaradhana-laksano yo ’sau dharmas tam tu samparaya udaharanti; tad-dharmyam dhanam darsana-sparsana-sravanasvadanavaghrana-sankalpa-vyavasaya-grha-gramyopabhogena kunathasyajitatmano yatha sarthasya vilum-panti. SYNONYMS yasyam—in which; u ha—certainly; va—or; ete—all these; sat-indriya-namanah—who are named the six senses (the mind and the five knowledge-acquiring senses); karmana—by their activity; dasyavah—the plunderers; eva—certainly; te—they; tat—that; yatha—as; purusasya—of a person; dhanam—the wealth; yat—whatever; kincit—something; dharma-aupayikam—which is a means to religious principles; bahu-krcchra-adhigatam—earned after much hard labor; saksat—directly; parama-purusa-aradhana-laksanah—whose symptoms are worship of the Supreme Lord by performance of sacrifices and so on; yah—which; asau—that; dharmah—religious principles; tam—that; tu—but; samparaye—for the benefit of the living entity after death; udaharanti—the wise declare; tat-dharmyam—religious (relating to the prosecution of the varnasrama-dharma); dhanam—wealth; darsana—by seeing; sparsana—by touching; sravana—by hearing; asvadana—by tasting; avaghrana—by smelling; sankalpa—by determination; vyavasaya—by a conclusion; grha—in the material home; gramya-upabhogena—by material sense gratification; kunathasya—of the misguided conditioned soul; ajita-atmanah—who has not controlled himself; yatha—just as; sarthasya—of the living entity interested in sense gratification; vilumpanti—they plunder. TRANSLATION In the forest of material existence, the uncontrolled senses are like plunderers. The conditioned soul may earn some money for the advancement of Krsna consciousness, but unfortunately the uncontrolled senses plunder his money through sense gratification. The senses are plunderers because they make one spend his money unnecessarily for seeing, smelling, tasting, touching, hearing, desiring and willing. In this way the conditioned soul is obliged to gratify his senses, and thus all his money is spent. This money is actually acquired for the execution of religious principles, but it is taken away by the plundering senses. PURPORT purva jamnarjita vidya purva janmarjitam dhanam agre dhavati dhavati. By following the principles of the varnasrama-dharma, one attains a better position in the material world. One may be rich, learned, beautiful or highborn. One who has all these assets should know that they are all meant for the advancement of Krsna consciousness. Unfortunately, when a person is misguided he misuses his high position for sense gratification. Therefore the uncontrolled senses are considered plunderers. The good position one attains by executing religious principles is wasted as the plundering senses take it away. By executing religious principles under the laws of varna-srama-dharma, one is placed in a comfortable position. One may very easily use his assets for the further advancement of Krsna consciousness. One should understand that the wealth and opportunity one gets in the material world should not be squandered in sense gratification. They are meant for the advancement of Krsna consciousness. This Krsna consciousness movement is therefore teaching people to control the mind and five knowledge-acquiring senses by a definite process. One should practice a little austerity and not spend money on anything other than the regulative life of devotional service. The senses demand that one see beautiful things; therefore money should be spent for decorating the Deity in the temple. Similarly, the tongue has to taste good food, which should be bought and offered to the Deity. The nose can be utilized in smelling the flowers offered to the Deity, and the hearing can be utilized by listening to the vibration of the Hare Krsna mantra. In this way the senses can be regulated and utilized to advance Krsna consciousness. Thus a good position might not be spoiled by material sense gratification in the form of illicit sex, meat-eating, intoxication and gambling. One spoils an opulent position in the material world by driving cars, spending time in nightclubs or tasting abominable food in restaurants. In these ways. the plundering senses take away all the assets that the conditioned soul has acquired with great difficulty. SB5.14.3 TEXT 3 atha ca yatra kautumbika darapatyadayo namna karmana vrka-srgala evanicchato ’pi kadaryasya kutumbina uranakavat samraksyamanam misato ’pi haranti. SYNONYMS atha—in this way; ca—also; yatra—in which; kautumbikah—the family members; dara-apatya-adayah—beginning with the wife and children; namna—by name only; karmana—by their behavior; vrka-srgalah—tigers and jackals; eva—certainly; anicchatah—of one who does not desire to spend his wealth; api—certainly; kadaryasya—being too miserly; kutumbinah—who is surrounded by family members; uranaka-vat—like a lamb; samraksyamanam—although protected; misatah—of one who is observing; api—even; haranti—they forcibly take away. TRANSLATION My dear King, family members in this material world go under the names of wife and children, but actually they behave like tigers and jackals. A herdsman tries to protect his sheep to the best of his ability, but the tigers and foxes take them away by force. Similarly, although a miserly man wants to guard his money very carefully, his family members take away all his assets forcibly, even though he is very vigilant. PURPORT One Hindi poet has sung: din ka dakini rat ka baghini palak palak rahu cuse. During the daytime, the wife is compared to a witch, and at night she is compared to a tigress. Her only business is sucking the blood of her husband both day and night. During the day there are household expenditures, and the money earned by the husband at the cost of his blood is taken away. At night, due to sex pleasure, the husband discharges blood in the form of semen. In this way he is bled by his wife both day and night, yet he is so crazy that he very carefully maintains her. Similarly, the children are also like tigers, jackals and foxes. As tigers, jackals and foxes take away lambs despite the herdsman’s vigilant protection, children take away the father’s money, although the father supervises the money himself. Thus family members may be called wives and children, but actually they are plunderers. SB5.14.4 TEXT 4 yatha hy anuvatsaram krsyamanam apy adagdha-bijam ksetram punar evavapana-kale gulma-trna-virudbhir gahvaram iva bhavaty evam eva grhasramah karma-ksetram yasmin na hi karmany utsidanti yad ayam kama-karanda esa avasathah. SYNONYMS yatha—just as; hi—certainly; anuvatsaram—every year; krsyamanam—being plowed; api—although; adagdha-bijam—in which the seeds are not burned; ksetram—the field; punah—again; eva—certainly; avapana-kale—at the times for sowing the seeds; gulma—by bushes; trna—by grasses; virudbhih—by the creepers; gahvaram iva—like a bower; bhavati—becomes; evam—thus; eva—certainly; grha-asramah—family life; karma-ksetram—the field of activities; yasmin—in which; na—not; hi—certainly; karmani utsidanti—fruitive activities disappear; yat—therefore; ayam—this; kama-karandah—the storehouse of fruitive desire; esah—this; avasathah—abode. TRANSLATION Every year the plowman plows over his grain field, completely uprooting all weeds. Nonetheless, the seeds lie there and, not being completely burned, again come up with the plants sown in the field. Even after being plowed under, the weeds come up densely. Similarly, the grhastha-asrama [family life] is a field of fruitive activity. Unless the desire to enjoy family life is completely burned out, it grows up again and again. Even though camphor may be removed from a pot, the pot nonetheless retains the aroma of camphor. As long as the seeds of desire are not destroyed, fruitive activities are not destroyed. PURPORT Unless one’s desires are completely transferred to the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the desire for family life continues. even after one has taken sannyasa. Sometimes in our society, ISKCON. a person out of sentiment may take sannyasa, but because his desires are not burned completely, he again takes to family life, even at the risk of losing his prestige and disgracing his good name. These strong desires can be burned out completely when one fully engages in the service of the Lord in devotional service. SB5.14.5 TEXT 5 tatra gato damsa-masaka-samapasadair manujaih salabha-sakunta-taskara-musakadibhir uparudhyamana-bahih-pranah kvacit parivartamano ’sminn adhvany avidya-kama-karmabhir uparakta-manasanupapannartham nara-lokam gandharva-nagaram upapannam iti mithya-drstir anupasyati. SYNONYMS tatra—to that household life; gatah—gone; damsa—gadflies; masaka—mosquitoes; sama—equal to; apasadaih—who are low-class; manu-jaih—by men; salabha—locusts; sakunta—a large bird of prey; taskara—thieves; musaka-adibhih—by rats and so on; uparudhyamana—being disturbed; bahih-pranah—the external life air in the form of wealth and so on; kvacit—sometimes; parivartamanah—wandering; asmin—in this; adhvani—path of material existence; avidya-kama—by ignorance and lust; karmabhih—and by fruitive activities; uparakta-manasa—due to the mind’s being influenced; anupapanna-artham—in which the desired results are never obtained; nara-lokam—this material world; gandharva-nagaram—a will-o’-the-wisp city; upapannam—existing; iti—taking it as; mithya-drstih—he whose vision is mistaken; anupasyati—observes. TRANSLATION Sometimes the conditioned soul in household life, being attached to material wealth and possessions, is disturbed by gadflies and mosquitoes, and sometimes locusts, birds of prey and rats give him trouble. Nonetheless, he still wanders down the path of material existence. Due to ignorance he becomes lusty and engages in fruitive activity. Because his mind is absorbed in these activities, he sees the material world as permanent, although it is temporary like a phantasmagoria, a house in the sky. PURPORT The following song is sung by Narottama dasa Thakura: ahankare matta hana, nitai-pada pasariya, Due to forgetting the lotus feet of Lord Nityananda and being puffed up by material possessions, wealth and opulence, one thinks the false, temporary material world to be an actual fact. This is the material disease. The living entity is eternal and blissful, but despite miserable material conditions, he thinks the material world to be real and factual due to his ignorance. SB5.14.6 TEXT 6 tatra ca kvacid atapodaka-nibhan visayan upadhavati pana-bhojana-vyavayadi-vyasana-lolupah. SYNONYMS tatra—there (in this phantom place); ca—also; kvacit—sometimes; atapa-udaka-nibhan—like the water in a mirage in the desert; visayan—the objects of sense enjoyment; upadhavati—runs after; pana—to drinking; bhojana—to eating; vyavaya—to sex life; adi—and so on; vyasana—with addiction; lolupah—a debauchee. TRANSLATION Sometimes in this house in the sky [gandharva-pura] the conditioned soul drinks, eats and has sex. Being overly attached, he chases after the objects of the senses just as a deer chases a mirage in the desert. PURPORT There are two worlds—the spiritual and the material. The material world is false like a mirage in the desert. In the desert, animals think they see water, but actually there is none. Similarly, those who are animalistic try to find peace within the desert of material life. It is repeatedly said in different sastras that there is no pleasure in this material world. Furthermore, even if we agree to live without pleasure, we are not allowed to do so. In Bhagavad-gita, Lord Krsna says that the material world is not only full of miseries (duhkhalayam) but also temporary (asasvatam). Even if we want to live here amid miseries, material nature will not allow us to do so. It will oblige us to change bodies and enter another atmosphere full of miserable conditions. SB5.14.7 TEXT 7 kvacic casesa-dosa-nisadanam purisa-visesam tad-varna-guna-nirmita-matih suvarnam upaditsaty agni-kama-katara ivolmuka-pisacam. SYNONYMS kvacit—sometimes; ca—also; asesa—unlimited; dosa—of faults; nisadanam—the source of; purisa—of stool; visesam—a particular type; tat-varna-guna—whose color is the same as that of the mode of passion (reddish); nirmita-matih—whose mind is absorbed in that; suvarnam—gold; upaditsati—desiring to get; agni-kama—by the desire for fire; katarah—who is troubled; iva—like; ulmuka-pisacam—a phosphorescent light known as a will-o’-the-wisp, which is sometimes mistaken for a ghost. TRANSLATION Sometimes the living entity is interested in the yellow stool known as gold and runs after it. That gold is the source of material opulence and envy, and it can enable one to afford illicit sex, gambling, meat-eating and intoxication. Those whose minds are overcome by the mode of passion are attracted by the color of gold, just as a man suffering from cold in the forest runs after a phosphorescent light in a marshy land, considering it to be fire. PURPORT Pariksit Maharaja told Kali-yuga to leave his kingdom immediately and reside in four places: brothels, liquor shops, slaughterhouses and gambling casinos. However, Kali-yuga requested him to give him only one place where these four places are included, and Pariksit Maharaja gave him the place where gold is stored. Gold encompasses the four principles of sin, and therefore, according to spiritual life, gold should be avoided as far as possible. If there is gold, there is certainly illicit sex, meat-eating, gambling and intoxication. Because people in the Western world have a great deal of gold, they are victims of these four sins. The color of gold is very glittering, and a materialistic person becomes very much attracted by its yellow color. However, this gold is actually a type of stool. A person with a bad liver generally passes yellow stool. The color of this stool attracts a materialistic person, just as the will-o’-the-wisp attracts one who needs heat. SB5.14.8 TEXT 8 atha kadacin nivasa-paniya-dravinady-anekatmopajivanabhinivesa etasyam samsaratavyam itas tatah paridhavati. SYNONYMS atha—in this way; kadacit—sometimes; nivasa—residence; paniya—water; dravina—wealth; adi—and so on; aneka—in various items; atma-upajivana—which are considered necessary to maintain body and soul together; abhinivesah—a person fully absorbed; etasyam—in this; samsara-atavyam—the material world, which is like a great forest; itah tatah—here and there; paridhavati—runs around. TRANSLATION Sometimes the conditioned soul is absorbed in finding residential quarters or apartments and getting a supply of water and riches to maintain his body. Absorbed in acquiring a variety of necessities, he forgets everything and perpetually runs around the forest of material existence. PURPORT As originally mentioned, a poor man belonging to the mercantile community goes to the forest to get some cheap goods to bring back to the city to sell at a profit. He is so absorbed in the thought of maintaining body and soul together that he forgets his original relationship with Krsna and seeks only the bodily comforts. Thus material activities are the conditioned soul’s only engagement. Not knowing the aim of life, the materialist perpetually wanders in material existence, struggling to get the necessities of life. Not understanding the aim of life, even though he acquires sufficient necessities, he manufactures artificial necessities and thus becomes more and more entangled. He creates a mental situation whereby he needs greater and greater comforts. The materialist does not know the secret of nature’s ways. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gita (3.27): prakrteh kriyamanani “The bewildered spirit soul, under the influence of the three modes of material nature, thinks himself to be the doer of activities which are in actuality carried out by nature.” Due to lusty desire, the living entity creates a certain mental situation whereby he wants to enjoy this material world. He thus becomes entangled, enters different bodies and suffers in them.
asatyere satya kari mani
gunaih karmani sarvasah
ahankara-vimudhatma
kartaham iti manyate