annad bhavanti bhutani
parjanyad anna-sambhavah
yajnad bhavati parjanyo
yajnah karma-samudbhavah
“All living bodies subsist on food grains, which are produced from rains. Rains are produced by performance of yajna [sacrifice], and yajna is born of prescribed duties.”Bhagavad-gita 3.14
When I was coming to your village, I saw that there are so many agricultural fields producing so much tobacco. Tobacco production can give you some money, but you will be short of food grains. Bhagavan, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, says that if you want to make the people in general happy and prosperous, then you must produce anna, food grains. Bhagavan has not said anywhere that you should produce tobacco, jute, and similar other things that are not required at all.
The whole purpose of life is to perform yajna. In the Vishnu Purana (3.8.9) there is a verse:
varnasramacara-vata
purusena parah puman
vishnur aradhyate pantha
nanyat tat-tosa-karanam
“The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Vishnu, is worshiped by the proper execution of prescribed duties in the system of varna and asrama. There is no other way to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead.”
In the Srimad-Bhagavatam (11.5.32) it is said,
yajnaih sankirtana-prayair
yajanti hi su-medhasah
“[In the Age of Kali] intelligent persons will worship the Lord with the yajna of chanting the holy names of the Lord.” Yajna means to satisfy the yajna-purusa: Lord Narayana, or Bhagavan. In the Srimad- Bhagavatam (7.5.31) Prahlada Maharaja says,
na te viduh svartha-gatim hi vishnum
durasaya ye bahir-artha-maninah
andha yathandhair upaniyamanas
te ’pisa-tantryam uru-damni baddhah
“Persons who are strongly entrapped by the consciousness of enjoying material life, and who have therefore accepted as their leader or guru a similar blind man attached to external sense objects, cannot understand that the goal of life is to return home, back to Godhead, and engage in the service of Lord Vishnu. As blind men guided by another blind man miss the right path and fall into a ditch, materially attached men led by another materially attached man are bound by the ropes of fruitive labor, which are made of very strong cords, and they continue again and again in materialistic life, suffering the threefold miseries.” People do not know that the aim of life is to approach Lord Vishnu. In the Puranas, Lord Shiva instructs Parvati, aradhananam sarvesam visnor aradhanam param: “Of all types of worship, the worship of Vishnu is topmost.” So human life is specially meant for worshiping Vishnu.
Unfortunately, the blind leaders are not teaching people how to execute vishnu-aradhana, worship of Vishnu. This Krishna consciousness movement was started just to educate people how to worship Lord Vishnu. That is our mission all over the world.
Krishna says in Bhagavad-gita (3.9),
yajnarthat karmano ’nyatra
loko ’yam karma-bandhanah
tad-artham karma kaunteya
mukta-sangah samacara
“Work done as a sacrifice for Vishnu has to be performed; otherwise work causes bondage in this material world. Therefore, O son of Kunti, perform your prescribed duties for His satisfaction, and in that way you will always remain free from bondage.”
Karma-Free Work
Yajna means Vishnu. One should act simply to satisfy Vishnu. Any work one is habituated to do should be aimed at satisfying Vishnu. Otherwise we shall be implicated in the karma. Karma means we act in some way under the direction of material energy, or illusionary energy, and we become implicated. It is stated in the Bhagavad-gita (13.22), karanam guna-sango ’sya sad-asad-yoni-janmasu: According to our work and our association with the modes of nature, we get different types of body. If we give up vishnu-aradhana, if we give up the aim of achieving the favor of Vishnu, then we become implicated in the resultant action of our different activities.
Krishna therefore teaches,
yat karosi yad asnasi
yaj juhosi dadasi yat
yat tapasyasi kaunteya
tat kurusva mad-arpanam
“Whatever you do, that doesn’t matter, but the result should be given to Me.” [Bg. 9.27] At the present moment in this age, all over the world people have forgotten Vishnu, or God. They are whimsically doing things that will implicate them birth after birth, sad-asadyoni- janmasu. After death you will receive either a high-class birth or a low-class birthsat or asat. But this is not the solution of life.
Everyone has a different type of occupation, as stated in the Bhagavad-gita: brahma-karma, kshatriya-karma, vaishya-karma, or shudra-karma. Generally, one works as a brahmana, a kshatriya, a vaishya, or a shudra. Lord Krishna says,
yatah pravrttir bhutanam
yena sarvam idam tatam
sva-karmana tam abhyarcya
siddhim vindati manavah
“By worship of the Lord, who is the source of all beings and who is all pervading, a man can attain perfection through performing his own work.” [Bg. 18.46] In the worship of Krishna there is no restriction that only the brahmanas can offer prayers to Krishna and worship Him; everyone can. Krishna says,
mam hi partha vyapasritya
ye ’pi syuh papa-yonayah
striyo vaishyas tatha shudras
te ’pi yanti param gatim
“O son of Partha, those who take shelter in Me, though they be of lower birth women, vaishyas [merchants], and shudras [workers]can attain the supreme destination.” Even those lower than the shudras can also take advantage of worshiping Krishna. So our work should be performed for executing yajna.
The Yajna for This Age
Formerly yajna was performed very gorgeously. So many mounds of grains and so much ghee was put into the fire. But in this age, Kali-yuga, there is insufficient ghee and grains to offer in the yajna fire. Therefore in this Kali-yuga, yajna is performed by chanting the holy name of the Lord.
So my only submission is that you produce enough food grains. Don’t waste your time by producing tobacco. In the scriptures, tobacco is forbidden:
abhyarthitas tada tasmai
sthanani kalaye dadau
dyutam panam striyah suna
yatradharmas catur-vidhah
“Maharaja Pariksit, thus being petitioned by the personality of Kali, gave him permission to reside in places where gambling, drinking, prostitution, and animal slaughter were performed.” [Srimad- Bhagavatam 1.17.38]. Pana means smoking also. These four things gambling, intoxication, illicit sex, and animal slaughterare considered sinful activities. And in the Bhagavad-gita (7.28) it is said,
yesam tv anta-gatam papam
jananam punya-karmanam
te dvandva-moha-nirmukta
bhajante mam drdha-vratah
Unless one is free from sinful activities, he cannot be fully engaged in worshiping the Supreme Lord, Krishna. So anyone who wants the real benefit of human life must give up these four principles of sinful life.
Krishna therefore says to everyone,
sarva-dharman parityajya
mam ekam saranam vraja
aham tvam sarva-papebhyo
moksayisyami ma sucah
“Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reactions. Do not fear.” [Bg. 18.66]
It is not possible that we can give up sinful activities by our own endeavor, because in this age, Kali yuga, everyone is addicted to some sinful activities. But if we surrender to Krishna as He is instructing fully, without any reservation.He will help us to become free from the sinful reactions.