Chapter 17: Punishment and Reward of Kali

The basic principles of irreligiosity, such as pride, prostitution, intoxication and falsehood, counteract the four principles of religion, namely austerity, cleanliness, mercy and truthfulness. The personality of Kali was given permission to live in four places particularly mentioned by the King, namely the place of gambling, the place of prostitution, the place of drinking and the place of animal slaughter.

Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī directs that drinking against the principles of scriptures, such as the Sautrāmaṇī-yajña, etc., association with women outside marriage, and killing animals against the injunctions of scripture, are irreligious. In the Vedas two different types of injunctions are there for the pravṛttas, or those who are engaged in material enjoyment, and for the nivṛttas, or those who are liberated from material bondage. The Vedic injunction for the pravṛttas is to gradually regulate their activities towards the path of liberation. Therefore, for those who are in the lowest stage of ignorance and indulge in wine, woman and flesh, drinking by performing Sautrāmaṇī-yajña, association of woman by marriage and flesh-eating by sacrifices are sometimes recommended. But such recommendations in the Vedic literature are meant for a particular class of men, and not for all. But because there are injunctions of the Vedas for particular types of persons, such activities by the pravṛttas are not considered adharma. One man’s food may be poison for others; similarly, what is recommended for those in the modes of ignorance may be poison for those in the modes of goodness. Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī Prabhu, therefore, affirms that recommendations in the scriptures for a certain class of men are never to be considered adharma, or irreligious. But such activities are factually adharma, and they are never to be encouraged. The recommendations in the scriptures are not meant for encouragement of such adharmas, but for regulating the necessary adharmas gradually toward the path of dharma.

Following in the footsteps of Mahārāja Parīkṣit, it is the duty of all executive heads of states to see that the principles of religion, namely austerity, cleanliness, mercy and truthfulness, are established in the state, and the principles of irreligion, namely pride, illicit female association or prostitution, intoxication and falsity be checked by all means. And to make the best use of a bad bargain, the personality of Kali may be transferred to places of gambling, drinking, prostitution and slaughterhouses, if there are any places like that. Those who are addicted to these irreligious habits may be regulated by the injunctions of the scripture. In all circumstances they should not be encouraged by any state. In other words, the state should categorically stop all sorts of gambling, drinking, prostitution and falsity. The state which wants to eradicate corruption by majority may introduce the principles of religion in the following manner:

1. Two compulsory fasting days in a month, if not more (austerity). Even from the economic point of view, such two fasting days in a month in the state will save tons of food, and the system will also act very favorably on the general health of the citizens.

2. There must be compulsory marriage of young boys and girls attaining twenty-four years of age and sixteen years of age respectively. There is no harm in coeducation in the schools and colleges provided the boys and girls are duly married, and in case there is any intimate connection between a male and female student, they should be married properly without illicit relation. The divorce act is encouraging prostitution, and this should be abolished.

3. The citizens of the state must give in charity up to fifty percent of their income for the purpose of creating a spiritual atmosphere in the state or in the human society, both individually and collectively. They should preach the principles of Bhāgavatam by a) karma-yoga or doing everything for the satisfaction of the Lord, b) regular hearing of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from authorized persons or realized souls, c) chanting of the glories of the Lord congregationally at home or at places of worship, d) rendering all kinds of service to Bhāgavatas engaged in preaching Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, and e) residing in a place where the atmosphere is saturated with God consciousness. If the state is regulated by the above process, naturally there will be God consciousness everywhere.

Gambling of all description, even speculative business enterprises, is considered to be degrading, and by encouraging gambling in the state, there is a complete disappearance of truthfulness. Allowing young boys and girls to remain unmarried more than the above-mentioned ages and license for animal slaughter houses of all description should be at once prohibited. The flesh-eaters may be allowed to take flesh as is mentioned in the scriptures, and not otherwise. Intoxication of all description, even the smoking of cigarettes, the chewing of tobacco or drinking of tea, must be prohibited.