Shloka 1
Prahlāda Instructs the Sons of Demons: Begin Bhakti from Childhood; Household Attachment as Bondage; Nārāyaṇa as the All-Pervading Supersoul
श्रीप्रह्राद उवाच कौमार आचरेत्प्राज्ञो धर्मान्भागवतानिह । दुर्लभं मानुषं जन्म तदप्यध्रुवमर्थदम् ॥ १ ॥
śrī-prahrāda uvāca kaumāra ācaret prājño dharmān bhāgavatān iha durlabhaṁ mānuṣaṁ janma tad apy adhruvam arthadam
श्रीप्रह्लाद म्हणाले—ज्ञानी पुरुषाने बाल्यापासूनच येथे भागवतधर्म, म्हणजे भगवद्भक्तीचे आचरण करावे. मनुष्यजन्म दुर्लभ आहे; तो नश्वर असला तरी परम अर्थ देणारा आहे।
The whole purpose of Vedic civilization and of reading the Vedas is to attain the perfect stage of devotional service in the human form of life. According to the Vedic system, therefore, from the very beginning of life the brahmacarya system is introduced so that from one’s very childhood — from the age of five years — one can practice modifying one’s human activities so as to engage perfectly in devotional service. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (2.40) , svalpam apy asya dharmasya trāyate mahato bhayāt: “Even a little advancement on this path can protect one from the most dangerous type of fear.” Modern civilization, not referring to the verdicts of Vedic literature, is so cruel to the members of human society that instead of teaching children to become brahmacārīs, it teaches mothers to kill their children even in the womb, on the plea of curbing the increase of population. And if by chance a child is saved, he is educated only for sense gratification. Gradually, throughout the entire world, human society is losing interest in the perfection of life. Indeed, men are living like cats and dogs, spoiling the duration of their human lives by actually preparing to transmigrate again to the degraded species among the 8,400,000 forms of life. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is anxious to serve human society by teaching people to perform devotional service, which can save a human being from being degraded again to animal life. As already stated by Prahlāda Mahārāja, bhāgavata-dharma consists of śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ smaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanam/ arcanaṁ vandanaṁ dāsyaṁ sakhyam ātma-nivedanam. In all the schools, colleges and universities, and at home, all children and youths should be taught to hear about the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In other words, they should be taught to hear the instructions of Bhagavad-gītā, to put them into practice in their lives, and thus to become strong in devotional service, free from fear of being degraded to animal life. Following bhāgavata-dharma has been made extremely easy in this Age of Kali. The śāstra says:
FAQs
Bhagavatam 7.6.1 teaches that a wise person should begin practicing bhāgavata-dharma (devotional principles) from early childhood because human life is rare and quickly passes.
Prahlada instructed his schoolmates to take up devotion early, reminding them that although the body and life are temporary, the human form can deliver the highest spiritual benefit when used for bhakti.
Use time intentionally: begin daily devotion (hearing, chanting, prayer, service) now rather than postponing, because life is uncertain yet can yield lasting spiritual gain.