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na dadyād āmiṣaṁ śrāddhe
na cādyād dharma-tattvavit
muny-annaiḥ syāt parā prītir
yathā na paśu-hiṁsayā
(Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.15.7)
Translation by Śrīla Prabhupāda:
A person fully aware of religious principles should never offer anything like meat, eggs or fish in the śrāddha ceremony, and even if one is a kṣatriya, he himself should not eat such things. When suitable food prepared with ghee is offered to saintly persons, the function is pleasing to the forefathers and the Supreme Lord, who are never pleased when animals are killed in the name of sacrifice.
naitādṛśaḥ paro dharmo
nṛṇāṁ sad-dharmam icchatām
nyāso daṇḍasya bhūteṣu
mano-vāk-kāyajasya yaḥ
(Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.15.8)
Translation by Śrīla Prabhupāda:
Persons who want to advance in superior religion are advised to give up all envy of other living entities, whether in relationship to the body, words or mind. There is no religion superior to this.
eke karmamayān yajñān
jñānino yajña-vittamāḥ
ātma-saṁyamane ’nīhā
juhvati jñāna-dīpite
(Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.15.9)
Translation by Śrīla Prabhupāda:
Because of an awakening of spiritual knowledge, those who are intelligent in regard to sacrifice, who are actually aware of religious principles and who are free from material desires, control the self in the fire of spiritual knowledge, or knowledge of the Absolute Truth. They may give up the process of ritualistic ceremonies.
People are generally very much interested in karma-kāṇḍa ritualistic ceremonies for elevation to the higher planetary systems, but when one awakens his spiritual knowledge, he becomes uninterested in such elevation and engages himself fully in jñāna-yajña to find the objective of life. The objective of life is to stop completely the miseries of birth and death and to return home, back to Godhead. When one cultivates knowledge for this purpose, he is considered to be on a higher platform than one who is engaged in karma-yajña, or fruitive activities.
Nārada Muni, as a mahājana, here gives this instruction that in the śrāddha ceremony one should not offer these, fish, meat, eggs, like that - āmiṣa. “If one is a kṣatriya, he himself should not eat such things.
When suitable food prepared with ghee is offered to saintly persons, the function is pleasing to the forefathers and the Supreme Lord, who are never pleased when animals are killed in the name of sacrifice. Persons who want to advance in superior knowledge are advised to give up all envy towards other living entities, whether in relationship to the body, words or mind. There is no religion superior to this.”
Jīva-dayā nāma-ruci, sarva-dharma-sāra (Gītāvali: Nadīyā-godrume Nityānanda Mahājana: Text 4). It is said, jīva-dayā nāma-ruci, sarva-dharma-sāra - it is the essence of all dharma, supreme dharma, parama-dharma, to show mercy to jīvas, all living entities. jīva-dayā nāma-ruci, that means to develop taste in chanting the Name.
This is the essence of all dharma, sarva-dharma-sāra, the supreme dharma, parama-dharma. So this is prohibited here to kill animals and offer meat, eggs, fish in śrāddha ceremony. Even kṣatriyas should not do this thing.
In the Eleventh Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is said:
ye tv anevaṁ-vido ’santaḥ
stabdhāḥ sad-abhimāninaḥ
paśūn druhyanti viśrabdhāḥ
pretya khādanti te ca tān
(Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 11.5.14)
Eleventh Canto Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam says. Those who are ignorant fools, those who do not know dharma-tattva, ignorant of dharma-tattva, they are very proud. how they are not sādhus – asādhu vyakti, non-devotees, atheists, like that, because they kill animals without fear. they kill animals and eat their flesh, meat. But they don’t know what will happen to them next life. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam says, those animals whom these rascals kill, they will kill them in their next life.
Those animals will kill such persons in the next life, these murderers, butchers; and those who kill animals. That’s a fact. Śāstra says. Also, we'll see that in Durgā-pūja, Kālī-pūjā. The tāntrikas and those who are devotees of Durgā-devī or Kālī who perform pūjā, they kill animals in such pūjā, they offer to Durgādevī and Kālī. In their opinion, they say that Durgā-devī or Kālī-devī, they will be very pleased if these animals will be killed and if their blood will be offered.
But that is not a fact. Durgā-devī or Kālī-devī, she is Vaiṣṇavī. They are vaiṣṇavīs. Śivajī is a vaiṣṇava - vaiṣṇavānām yathā śambhuḥ (Sb. 12.13.16). Śivajī is a vaiṣṇava, and his wife, Durgā, Kālī, is a vaiṣṇavī. The vaiṣṇava or vaiṣṇavī generally don’t eat fish, egg, meat. They won’t eat. Durgā-devī or Kālī-devī never accept this fish, meat, etc.; they never accept. Then the question is raised: who eats this thing? They offer these things, tāntrikas, the worshippers of Durgā and Kālī. They kill innocent animals and offer its blood and meat.
Who eat it? It is said that there are these ghosts, rākṣasas, and witches, with Śivajī and Durgā-devi or Kālī-devī, they all eat it. In Caṇḍī-Purāṇa, Devī-Purāṇa, it is mentioned also, Surata Rāja, who introduced this Durgā-pūjā, he performed much pompous ceremony of this Durgā-pūjā and he killed many animals. And it is said, next life, those animals killed Surata Rāja. Raising their swords, they killed him.
So it is always prohibited, this killing of animals. You have no right, because if you have no power to give them life, then how can you kill an animal? If you have that power, that if you kill such animal and give him life back, then you kill him. Otherwise you have no right to kill. When Mahāprabhu had a discussion with the Kāzī, it is mentioned in Caitanya-caritāmṛta, what Mahāprabhu has said.
Mahāprabhu went to Kāzī and told him:
prabhu kahe, — go-dugdha khāo, gābhī tomāra mātā
vṛṣa anna upajāya, tāte teṅho pitā
pitā-mātā māri’ khāo — ebā kon dharma
kon bale kara tumi e-mata vikarma
(Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta Ādi-līlā 17.154)
Mahāprabhu said, “The cow gives us milk so she is our mother. The bull produces anna, so he is our father. So, what sort of dharma you have that you kill your father and mother and eat their flesh, meat? What sort of dharma?
Then the Kāzī said, “As you have Veda-Purāṇa, we have Kitāb Korān.” Their religious grantha is Korān. “In our Korān, it is mentioned that to kill, this cow-killing and eat its flesh. But those who are renunciates, fakīrs, those who have left his home and renunciates in our dharma, they won't eat this thing. It is forbidden for them. Those who are not renunciates, like us, gṛhasthas, attached to family, home, etc. it is recommended for us therefore we eat it. Our Korān recommends this thing.
It is mentioned in the Korān. And in your dharma, in your Veda, it is also said, yajña-paśu pata. In sacrifice, you also kill animals.
Mahāprabhu said, “No, no, no, no! In our scripture or Veda, it is not mentioned. No. We never do it. You don’t know, what is the tattva behind it. The munis or ṛṣis, our Vedic paṇḍitas, brāhmaṇas, those who are very expert in chanting Vedic hymns, who correctly chant, with the correct annotation, pronunciation, thereby they test Vedic hymns.
“They sacrifice the old animals - old cows or old animals, those who are suffering due to old age. They become compassionate on them for their suffering, getting so much pain. So they offer such cow or animal by chanting Vedic hymns in the fire sacrifice thereby that animal gets a new life, new body and jumps out from the sacrificial fire. That means they give them new life, new body. This is not killing. This is doing good to him because he was suffering. Now he gets a new body, young body, nice body - no more suffering. So this is not killing.
“In our Vedas, it is not so. But you kill and you cannot give them life. But our munis, ṛṣis, Vedic paṇḍitas, they give them life. So this is not killing at all. In our Vedas, it is not mentioned.”
And the Kāzī admitted, “Yes. What you say, that’s correct. In our dharma, our paṇḍitas, they don’t know dharma-tattva, and our scripture, Korān, it is written recently but the Vedas are very, very old, from time immemorial, it is there.”
He admitted. Then the Kāzī became vaiṣṇava. That is also there.
And another thing is there. That matsya, this fish-eating is also forbidden. In Manu-saṁhitā (5.15), it is said:
yo yasya māṃsam-aśnāti
sa tanmāṃsāda ucyate
matsyādaḥ sarva māṃsādas-
tasmān-mat-syān vivarjayet
Manu-saṁhita says. This Fish-eating is more abominable than meat-eating because this fish eats the meat of all animals. Even, the fish eats the cows, the hogs. The fish eats their flesh because in the river, if a dead cow is floating then he takes this for his food, the fish eat their flesh. Even, the fish eat the stool. Very abominable is that, so eating fish is more abominable than meat-eating. And one who eats fish eats all sorts of flesh, even cow’s flesh and hog’s flesh because fish eats all sorts of flesh - sarva māṃsādas-tasmān-mat-vivarjayet.
Therefore Manu-saṁhitā says, one should completely give up this fish-eating, meat eating. These are all detrimental for bhakti-sādhana.
And here also, Nārada Muni says, “Even don't offer these fish and meat in śrāddha ceremony. The Forefathers will never be pleased.”
Previously we discussed. One should prepare nice food, ghṛta-anna, cooked in ghee, nice, palatable. Offer it to Kṛṣṇa or Viṣṇu, then that is prasāda. Offer that prasāda to vaiṣṇavas, sādhus, santas, saintly persons, and then offer that prasāda to your forefathers, pūrvam śrāddha. That is the real śrāddha. The forefathers will be very much pleased getting kṛṣna-prasāda, viṣṇu-prasāda.
And another thing is there that in Kali-yuga, five things are forbidden.
aśvamedhaṁ gavālambhaṁ
sannyāsaṁ pala-paitṛkam
devareṇa sutotpattiṁ
kalau pañca vivarjayet
(Brahma-vaivarta Purāṇa: Kṛṣṇa-janma-khaṇḍa 185.180)
Five things are forbidden in Kali-yuga - cow-killing; that means cow-sacrifice, and horse-sacrifice. Aśvamedhaṁ gavalambhaṁ - horse sacrifice, cow-sacrifice. Aśvamedhaṁ gavālambhaṁ sannyāsaṁ pala-paitṛkam - and taking up sannyāsa; then pala-paitṛka, offering meat in śrāddha, pitṛ-śrāddha. Then devareṇa sutotpatti - if husband dies; suppose the husband of woman dies, then that woman should not accept the younger brother of that husband as her husband and produce children.
No, she should not do it. That’s forbidden in Kali-yuga. These five things are not recommended in Kali-yuga.
Here, this question is also raised. This taking up sannyāsa, when sannyāsa is forbidden in Kali-yuga. In our system, Vaiṣṇava sampradaya… Here the sannyāsa which is forbidden means karma-sannyāsa. Māyāvādī sannyāsīs, they are known as karma-sannyāsīs.
They don’t do any karma, no activity. They give up all activity, because they think: we are sannyāsīs.’ They are karma-sannyāsīs. They only sit down there in the Himālayan cave, mountainous cave, in lonely place, just meditate or do some prāṇāyama, like that. They do sādhana; they don’t do any karma. They are known as karma-sannyāsīs.
This sannyāsa means karma-sannyāsa. That karma-sannyāsa is forbidden in Kali-yuga. Vaiṣṇava-sannyāsa is tri-daṇḍi sannyāsa, that is not karma-sannyāsa. A vaiṣṇava is twenty-four hours engaged in the loving service of the Lord. He has never given up karma.
Karma means loving service here, not any other karma, no material work, activity, or fruitive work. It means loving service. Whatever is required for the pleasure of Kṛṣṇa he does. So that is not karma-sannyāsa. That is vaiṣṇava-sannyāsa there. It is not karma-sannyāsa. Some raise such question, “How when sannyāsa is forbidden, why you are taking up sannyāsa?” This is not that karma-sannyāsa.
This is tri-daṇḍa-dhāraṇam. To accept tri-daṇḍa that means complete surrender - kāya-mana-vākya. Kāya-daṇḍa, vākya-daṇḍa, mana-daṇḍa - tri-daṇḍas. Daṇḍa means rod, three rods are there. One fourth rod is there, that is jīva-daṇḍa. This is tri-daṇḍa. That means kāya-daṇḍa, vākya-daṇḍa, mana-daṇḍa. As it is said here: body, words and mind, kāya-mana-vākya.
“Persons who want to advance in superior religion are advised to give up all envy of other living entities, whether in relationship to the body, words or mind. There is no religion superior to this.”
Not to think of anything, this hiṁsā, envy, even in one’s mind also towards some animal. What to speak of kāya and vākya, by body and by words. It is, kāya-vākya-mana, that means completely surrendered.
One who is holding this tri-daṇḍa, that means he is a completely surrendered soul - kāya-mana-vākya. That is tri-daṇḍa. That tri-daṇḍī sannyāsī is there. That is not karma-sannyāsa. That is not forbidden. It is always there, in all ages.
So in Kali-yuga that sannyāsaṁ pala-paitṛka, that means offering these fish, meat, in pitṛ-śrāddha, is forbidden. These five things are forbidden in Kali-yuga.
Some also ask another question. This pala-paitṛkam, offering meat in pitṛ-śrāddha was there in other ages. You can find in Dvāpara-yuga and Tretā-yuga also. Some raise this question.
Droṇācārya ordered his students, like Arjuna. The Pandavas and Kauravas were there, and he was teaching this archery, the skill of archery. He ordered his students to go and kill a rhinoceros, a gandara, and bring him the meat. ‘I will offer it in the śrāddha ceremony to my forefathers.’
It is mentioned there, gandha maṁsa māgi, to offer meat in the śrāddha ceremony. So that thing was there to offer that meat in śraddhā ceremony. But why do you say ‘no’? But in Kali-yuga it is totally forbidden. You cannot do it.
Also here, Nārada Muni says, even if one is a kṣatriya, he himself should not eat that thing - meat, fish, egg, etc. Nārada Muni has said. But Droṇācārya saying like that, we should not bother about it.
Droṇācārya may be a very powerful person, he may do it, but for us, it is all forbidden. As Śivajī drunk poison. He is such a powerful person. Can we drink even a drop of poison? No. Śivajī did good thereby to the whole creation. Otherwise the whole of creation would have been destroyed if such poison would be there. Śivajī is such, is a very powerful person, and he has such a magnanimous heart, thinking of the welfare of the whole creation.
When all were afraid of taking poison, Śivajī said, “All right, give it to me.” When nobody is prepared to accept anything, when it is all rejected, Śivajī is so magnanimous, he accepts all these things because he has such a magnanimous heart.
He is such a good vaiṣṇava, also very powerful, So one cannot imitate him. We should not imitate him.
These ghosts, the witches, rākṣasas, yakṣas, nobody likes them. All reject them, “Get out, get out, get out!” But Śivajī says, “All right, come to me, come to me.” Because they were rejected by everyone. So Śivajī is so magnanimous, he said, “Alright, come to me." He accepts. Such a magnanimous person, Śiva. So one cannot and we should not imitate him.
Similarly Droṇācārya may be a very powerful person, he may be doing such thing, but this is not a general instruction. We should not imitate him. Even a kṣatriya should not do, Nārada Muni says.
So, so many discussions are there about fish-eating, meat-eating and offering fish, meat in śrāddha ceremony.
And another thing is there that, this dayā. “Giving up envy of other living entities, there is no religion superior to this.” This is the supreme religion. Even in body, mind and words, one should not envy a living entity. We should give up this.
This is dayā, this is mercy, jīve-dayā, mercy to all jīvas. This is supreme religion. jīva-dayā, nāma-ruci, supreme religion. Here Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura has said this thing about dayā.
sarve vedāś ca yajñāś ca
tapo dānāni cānagha
jīvābhaya-pradānasya
na kurvīran kalām api
(Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.7.41)
In the Third Canto Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is said, “Show dayā, mercy to all living entities.” those who are vaiṣṇavas. Vaiṣṇava is sarva-bhūta-hite ratāḥ - a vaiṣṇava is engaged in doing good to all living entities. So there is no question of showing envy to any jīva. A vaisnava never does so. And in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Third Canto, here is says,
sarve vedāś ca yajñāś ca
tapo dānāni cānagha
jīvābhaya-pradānasya
na kurvīran kalām api
Show mercy to one and all, to all living entities. Those who are devotees, vaiṣṇavas, they show mercy to all living entities. How? It is said, they never kill any living entity, they never think of anything ill of any living entity. There is no enviousness in their mind also, in their thoughts also. Rather, they give this tattva-upadeśa to one and all. This is dayā. Giving this tattva-upadeśa is dayā. With it, even all Vedic study, all sacrifices, all charity and all renunciation, cannot be compared to it; it is such dayā.
Prahlāda Mahārāja has said:
prāyeṇa deva munayaḥ sva-vimukti-kāmā
maunaṁ caranti vijane na parārtha-niṣṭhāḥ
(Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.9.44)
These so-called munis who do meditation, they give up, they leave this so-called society, they use to go forest in a mountain cave and sit there and do sādhana, meditation. Prahlāda Mahārāja says, they are very selfish. Sva-vimukti-kāmā, they only think of their liberation. They do sādhana for that purpose. They never think of the liberation and doing good to others.
Maunaṁ caranti vijane na parārtha-niṣṭhāḥ. They are so narrow minded persons. They are so selfish. But the person who remains here, a devotee who remains in society and does good to others by instructing this tattva-upadeśa, he really showers mercy to one and all and he tolerates calmly, all the sufferings here, the three tāpas. He tolerates here and stays here and shows his mercy to one and all, to all living entities.
Take the example of Haridāsa Ṭhākura, Jesus Christ also, who was crucified, still he prayed to the Lord, “Please forgive these persons, they don’t know what they are doing.” Similarly Haridāsa Ṭhākura also prayed to the Lord, “Please forgive these rascals. They are so ignorant fools, they don’t know what they are doing. Please forgive them.” And Haridāsa Ṭhākura tolerated all these things. He is such a great personality, a great devotee; he didn’t curse them. Rather, he prayed for their welfare. He is vaiṣṇava. He shows mercy on one and all, all living entities so merciful.
A vaiṣṇava is so merciful. He is never in his mind also thinks any envious. he is not envious at all, not to speak of killing. Here it is said. One should understand what is this dayā. Very often we also discuss this matter. If someone can develop prema towards Kṛṣṇa then he will develop prema towards one and all.
If someone has not developed prema towards Kṛṣṇa, he cannot love anyone, what to speak of the other animals, he mercilessly kills such animals. Where is the dayā? No dayā at all. He doesn’t know that they are souls, they are part and parcels of Kṛṣṇa so how can you kill them or how can you think of something ill of them? How can you be envious of them? He doesn’t know this thing. Such a person.
One who develops prema, love towards Kṛṣṇa, then he can love one and all. Even one ant, he will never kill because this belongs to Kṛṣṇa. This living entity belongs to Kṛṣṇa. I love Kṛṣṇa so he is also, the living entity or person are objects of love also because he belongs to Kṛṣṇa. This is our tattva.
Here it is said,
nātiprasīdati tathopacitopacārair
ārādhitaḥ sura-gaṇair hṛdi baddha-kāmaiḥ
yat sarva-bhūta-dayayāsad-alabhyayaiko
nānā-janeṣv avahitaḥ suhṛd antar-ātmā
(Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.9.12)
Third Canto Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam says this thing. There is Lord as Supersoul in the heart of every living entity, and He is the only well-wishing friend of all living entities, that Supersoul. Suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ (Bg. 5.29).
So those who don’t know this thing, those who are not devotees, those who are non-devotees, they cannot show mercy to one and all. This mercy, showing mercy to all living entities is only possible for the devotees. For non-devotees it is not possible at all. All other fruitive workers like what I was telling, these worshippers of Kālī, Durgā, tantra-upāsakas, they worship many demigods, Kālī, Durgā, with so much pomp and ceremonies, so opulently, only to fulfill their material desires. They never show mercy to the animals.
Even the demigods, they are also selfish. They worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead with much pomp and ceremony, and asking for their own benefit, to give blessings and boons for them. They never think of the other living entities also. Sakāma deva-gaṇa, those who have material desires. So Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead or Viṣṇu, Supreme Lord Viṣṇu, is not so pleased with their worship.
So this dayā, sarva-bhūte dayā, showing mercy to all living entities, one and all, is only possible on the part of a bhakta. It is not possible on the part of a non-devotee, even on the part of the devatas also, the same, it is not possible. And Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa or Viṣṇu, is very much pleased with such person who shows his mercy to all living entities. He is never so pleased with the worship of other persons who don’t show mercy to other living entities.
It is said. Even, Lord Viṣṇu or Kṛṣṇa is not so pleased with the worship of the demigods as They are pleased with the worship of the devotees because they show mercy to one and all, all living entities. And this pleases Kṛṣṇa very much. It pleases the Supreme Lord very much because that Supreme Lord Viṣṇu or Kṛṣṇa is the only well-wishing friend of all living entities.
If you kill an animal or cherish any enviousness towards them, how Kṛṣṇa will be pleased? Because He is the only well-wishing friend of all living entities. This is stated by the mahājanas, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura has said this.
So, this conclusion we may draw from this, is that, showing mercy to one and all, to all living entities, it is not narrowness, it is broadmindedness. Such devotees, like the demigods, they have devotion, but they are very selfish. They are very narrow-minded whereas a pure devotee, a vaiṣṇava, who has attained this human form of life, body, bhagavad-bhakti-rasikā, he shows mercy to all living entities. He is very compassionate to one and all because he loves Kṛṣṇa so he loves one and all. He is not narrow minded, he is broad mindedness.
Many things are there about dayā. And this is the symptom of pure devotion, this dayā. Dayā means mercy. Sarva-bhūta, giving mercy to all living entities is the symptom of bhakti. One who is a real, true bhakta, he shows mercy to one and all. It is said, bhrātṛ-vat, they are like our brothers. Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme father, ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pita.
sarva-yoniṣu kaunteya
mūrtayaḥ sambhavanti yāḥ
tāsāṁ brahma mahad yonir
ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā
(Bhagavad-gītā 14.1)
Kṛṣṇa says this thing in the Bhagavad-gītā, “I am the seed-giving father.” So He is the Supreme Father, so all the living entities are His sons, so they are our brothers. How can you kill your brothers? How can you cherish any enviousness towards your brothers? Kṛṣṇa will never be pleased thereby.
So, this is brotherhood, universal brotherhood. The Mohammedans, they speak about this universal brotherhood, but they are killing. ‘Where is your brotherhood? How is it your brotherhood if you are killing?’
Only a bhakta or vaiṣṇava has this (vision of) universal brotherhood. Otherwise, you cannot have this thing, universal brotherhood. Only by lips you say, only by the lips you say but in actuality, you cannot perform this universal brotherhood. This is a most important thing.