SRIMAD BHAGAVATAM - Prabhupada

222 Srimad-Bhigavatam [Canto 7, Ch. 5nothing practical. Prahlada Maharaja, however, being an exalted devotee,had acquired all the qualities of education.yasyasti bhaktir bhagavaty akincaniisarvair gur:z,ais tatra samiisate surahariiv abhaktasya kuto mahad-gumanoratheniisati dhiivato bahi"One who has unflinching devotional faith in K:rQ.a consistentlymanifests all the good qualities of K:rQ.a and the demigods. However, hewho has no devotion to the Supreme Personality of Godhead has no goodqualifications because he is engaged by mental concoction in material existence,which is the external feature of the Lord." (Bhag. 5.18.12) Socallededucated philosophers and scientists who are simply on the mentalplatform cannot distinguish between what is actually sat, eternal, andwhat is asat, temporary. The Vedic injunction is asato mii jyotir gama:everyone should give up the platform of temporary existence and approachthe eternal platform. The soul is eternal, and topics concerningthe eternal soul are actually knowledge. Elsewhere it is said, apa§yatamiitma-tattvam grhe§u grha-medhiniim: those who are attached to thebodily conception of life and who thus stick to life as a grhastha, orhouseholder, on the platform of material sense enjoyment, cannot see thewelfare of the eternal soul. Prahlada Maharaja confirmed this by sayingthat if one wants success in life, he should immediately understand fromthe right sources what his self-interest is and how he should mold his lifein spiritual consciousness. One should understand himself to be part andparcel of K:rQ.a and thus completely take shelter of His lotus feet forguaranteed spiritual success. Everyone in the material world is in thebodily conception, struggling hard for existence, life after life. PrahladaMaharaja therefore recommended that to stop this material condition ofrepeated birth and death, one should go to the forest ( vana).In the va17J-d.Srama system, one first becomes a brahmacari, then agrhastha, a vanaprastha and finally a sannyasi. Going to the forestmeans accepting vanaprastha life, which is between grhastha life andsannyasa. As confirmed in the Vi§ry,u Puriir:z,a (3.8.9), va17J-d.Sramaciiravatapuru§er:uz para pumiin vi§ry,ur ariidhyate: by accepting theinstitution of varr:z,a and iiSrama, one can very easily elevate himself to