Human life is meant for austerity and spiritual purification, not the relentless sense gratification that degrades one to hog-like consciousness.Listen — Srila Prabhupada Uvaca
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 5.5.1 Engagement — August 3, 1972, London 720803SB-LONDON [53:39 Minutes] SB-05.05.01_720803SB-LONDON Prabhupāda: nāyaṁ deho deha-bhājāṁ nṛloke kaṣṭān kāmān arhate viḍ-bhujāṁ ye tapo divyaṁ putrakā yena sattvaṁ śuddhyed yasmād brahma-saukhyaṁ tv anantam [SB 5.5.1] Many millions of years ago, King Ṛṣabhadeva... He was incarnation of God. Before His retirement He instructed His sons. He had one hundred sons.
The eldest one was Bharata, and under..., after his name, this planet was called Bhārata-varṣa. Bhārata-varṣa at the present moment, what we understand, that small piece of land, India, Bhārata-varṣa does not mean that piece of land. Bhārata-varṣa means this whole planet. So before that, before Emperor Bharata, this planet was known as Ilāvṛta-varṣa, and after the reign of Mahārāja Bharata this planet is known as Bhārata-varṣa. Gradually, the Vedic culture being forgotten, the whole planet is now divided.
The seven islands, as already existing, they are mentioned in the Vedic literature also, sapta-dvīpa: Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Australia, and the Archipelago [Arctic level?]. In this way this whole world is divided into seven lands, islands. So Mahārāja Pṛthu..., er, Mahārāja Ṛṣabhadeva, before retirement... Formerly, even one is king, he was to take leave of householder affairs. The Vedic culture means that the social order and the spiritual order of life.
The social order of life is mentioned in the Bhagavad-gītā: cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ [Bg. 4.13]. According to quality and according to work, the social order is divided into four. The most intelligent class of men are called the brāhmaṇas, and the next intelligent class of men, namely the politicians, or one who wants to take part in administration, they are called kṣatriyas. And the next intelligent class of men, those who are busy in production—because we want food—so the productive class of men is called vaiśya, mercantile. And the laborer class of men, namely one who is neither intelligent nor administrator nor trader, but wants to live at the shelter of somebody, master, they are called śūdras. The brāhmaṇas, the kṣatriyas and the vaiśyas, they would never accept subordination, service, under anyone.
But the śūdras, as it is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā: paricaryātmakaṁ kāryaṁ śūdra-karma svabhāva-jam [Bg. 18.44]. By nature, a śūdra wants to take shelter of somebody else and live. So at the present moment, the Kali-yuga, the śāstra says, almost everyone is a śūdra because nobody can live independently. Kalau śūdra-sambhavaḥ. Kalau means in this age, this iron age, almost everyone is a śūdra.
It is very difficult to find out really brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya. Vaiśyas maybe there are, but mostly śūdras. Because the other three orders of life are missing, therefore at the present moment there is no peace. In every step there is fight, there is quarrel.
Kali means disagreement and quarrel. So this age is called Kali-yuga. This Kali-yuga has begun since the Battle of Kurukṣetra. You have heard in Mahābhārata or in the Bhagavad-gītā. Bhagavad-gītā is within Mahābhārata.