Canto 11: General HistoryChapter 17: Lord Kṛṣṇa's Description of the Varṇāśrama System

Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 11.17.21

ahiḿsā satyam asteyam

akāma-krodha-lobhatā

bhūta-priya-hitehā ca

dharmo 'yaḿ sārva-varṇikaḥ

SYNONYMS

ahiḿsā — nonviolence; satyam — truthfulness; asteyam — honesty; a-kāma-krodha-lobhatā — being free from lust, anger and greed; bhūta — of all living entities; priya — the happiness; hita — and welfare; īhā — desiring; ca — also; dharmaḥ — duty; ayam — this; sārva-varṇikaḥ — for all members of society.

TRANSLATION

Nonviolence, truthfulness, honesty, desire for the happiness and welfare of all others and freedom from lust, anger and greed constitute duties for all members of society.

PURPORT

The word sārva-varṇika indicates that the above-mentioned principles constitute general piety, which should be observed by all members of society, even those outside the varṇāśrama system. We practically find that even in societies that have fallen away from the varṇāśrama system, the above-mentioned principles are honored and encouraged. Such principles do not constitute a specific path of liberation but are perennial virtues in human society.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness
His Holiness Hrdayananda dasa Goswami
Gopiparanadhana dasa Adhikari
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