Page 33 - Sri Canakya Niti

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Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, declares in the
Bhagavad-gītā, cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭam, “I alone created the
fourfold divisions of society.” Certain duties apply to each level of
society. Brāhmaṇas, who are the head of society, conduct yajñas and
offer spiritual guidance to the other members. Kṣatriyas, the kings
and warriors, are the administrators, protectors and enforcers of law
and order. Vaiśyas, members of the mercantile class, protect cows,
run the farms and engage in commerce. Śūdras are the working
class. Whereas each class has its own regulations that apply to that
class alone, nīti-śāstra is meant for all classes. From householders to
renunciants, it has something for everybody. Hence nīti-śāstra being
common to all mankind, is “common sense.” In this verse Cāṇakya
Paṇḍita says that those who master these principles will come to the
stage of dharma, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Kalau śūdra-sambhavaḥ:
here and now in Kali-yuga when practically everyone is born a śūdra
and are thus lacking in every form of common sense, the urgency for
Śrī Cāṇakya-nīti is magnifi ed.
Śrīla Prabhupāda states in the introduction to his Bhagavad-gītā As It
Is that dharma means “that which sustains.” He writes:

Now a particular religious faith may have some beginning in the
history of human society, but sanātana-dharma lies outside of
history, for it belongs to the living beings who have no birth and
who never die.
Let us try to understand this eternal religion from the Sanskrit verbal
root dhṛ, which means ‘to sustain.’ Therefore dharma is that quality
which remains always and which cannot be taken away. When
we speak of fire it is concluded that light and heat will be there.

Otherwise we cannot call it fi re. In a similar way, we must fi nd the
constant companion of the eternal being: that eternal part or quality
is his religion, his dharma.

True dharma, our loving relationship with God, is our sustenance. To

find our relationship with Him is the highest common sense.

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