Å›rÄ«-bhagavÄn uvÄca
vanaṠvivikṣuḥ putreṣu
bhÄryÄá¹ nyasya sahaiva vÄ
vana eva vasec chÄntas
tá¹›tÄ«yaá¹ bhÄgam Äyuá¹£aḥ
Å›rÄ«-bhagavÄn uvÄca - the Supreme Personality of Godhead said; vanam - the forest; viviká¹£uḥ - desiring to enter; putreá¹£u - among the sons; bhÄryÄm - wife; nyasya - entrusting; saha - together with; eva - indeed; vÄ - or; vane - in the forest; eva - certainly; vaset - one should dwell; Å›Äntaḥ - with a peaceful mind; tá¹›tÄ«yam - the third; bhÄgam - division; Äyuá¹£aḥ - of life.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: One who desires to adopt the third order of life, vÄnaprastha, should enter the forest with a peaceful mind, leaving his wife with his mature sons, or else taking her along with him.
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 vÄnaprastha order at the age of fifty, and then at the age of seventy-five he may take sannyÄsa for complete renunciation. Since in Kali-yuga very few people live for one hundred years, one should adjust the schedule accordingly. VÄnaprastha is intended as a gradual transition from materialistic family life to the stage of complete renunciation.
