SB 11.18.1

Devanāgarī

श्रीभगवानुवाच वनं विविक्षु: पुत्रेषु भार्यां न्यस्य सहैव वा । वन एव वसेच्छान्तस्तृतीयं भागमायुष: ॥ १ ॥

Text

śrī-bhagavān uvāca vanaṁ vivikṣuḥ putreṣu bhāryāṁ nyasya sahaiva vā vana eva vasec chāntas tṛtīyaṁ bhāgam āyuṣaḥ

Synonyms

śrī-bhagavānuvāca—the Supreme Personality of Godhead said;vanam—the forest;vivikṣuḥ—desiring to enter;putreṣu—among the sons;bhāryām—wife;nyasya—entrusting;saha—together with;eva—indeed;vā—or;vane—in the forest;eva—certainly;vaset—one should dwell;śāntaḥ—with a peaceful mind;tṛtīyam—the third;bhāgam—division;āyuṣaḥ—of life.

Translation

The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: One who desires to adopt the third order of life, vānaprastha, should enter the forest with a peaceful mind, leaving his wife with his mature sons, or else taking her along with him.

Purport

In Kali-yuga a human being generally cannot live more than one hundred years, and even this is becoming most unusual. A man who has a reasonable expectation of living for one hundred years may adopt the vānaprastha order at the age of fifty, and then at the age of seventy-five he may take sannyāsa for complete renunciation. Since in Kali-yuga very few people live for one hundred years, one should adjust the schedule accordingly. Vānaprastha is intended as a gradual transition from materialistic family life to the stage of complete renunciation.

Chapter 18 SB 11.18.2 →