211. When death is predestined and also is nothing but a pause to change the clothes, why is it, then, a sin to commit suicide and also to kill living beings for a certain cause?

Suicide as well as killing of other beings are both considered to be great sins, as they block the course of evolution of the Jiva. Moreover, putting an end to the present gross body by force does not help one to put an end to his sufferings. Sufferings and pleasures due to him by virtue of his past actions won't leave him until and unless they are enjoyed by him completely.

On the contrary, by suicide one is inviting more miseries, for it may take some time for him to get another gross body in which he can enjoy the effects of his actions, and during this interim period, he may have to move about in the form of a Preta or ghost. It is, of course, needless to say that killing a human being is a criminal offence legally and is totally heinous from the point of view of spiritual progress, barring, of course, such contingencies as in a war.

212. Why is it that the life-span of the modern man is so short as compared to that of his ancestors?

Our ancestors used to have a well-regulated, disciplined life. They were not slaves of their senses as the modern people are. They used to do Japa, Pranayam, Sandhyavandana (Trikala) and Svadhyaya (study of religious books like the Gita, the Bhagavata and the Ramayana). They used to do charity and selfless service, and observe Vratas like Ekadasi, Sri Rama Navami, Sri Krishna Ashtami and Dattatreya Jayanti. They used to conduct spiritual conferences and pray for world peace and not for their own individual selves. They used to take plenty of physical exercise in the form of walking ten to twenty miles a day and at a stretch. They used to observe Yama and Niyama very rigidly. They used to live mostly in villages and not in congested areas. They were self-reliant and not dependent on others even for trivial matters. They used to have Kaya Siddhi as well as Vak Siddhi. When the present-day generation realizes the value of the way of ancient living, surely will it achieve all that it desires with the Prasannata (grace) of the Devas.

213. What, according to you, should be the maximum number of children a spiritual-minded Grihastha should have?

Every Grithastha, be he worldly-minded or spiritually-inclined, wishes to have a son to keep up the lineage or the family line and a daughter to give an ineffable cosmic enlightenment expressive of the Divine Mother (Prakriti) who is the creatrix and origin of the universe, for it is from the womb of the Mother (Prakriti) that the entire creation is ushered into this world. No household couple is satisfied either with male issues or with female issues. They want both, to reveal themselves as the two reflections of their own individual selves, representative of Purusha and Prakriti. Besides these two¾ a son and a daughter— there can be one extra to avoid contingent mishaps like death and the like. A spiritually-bent householder can lead the conjugal life up to the limit of three children. Later on he can take up the Nivritti Marga for quick evolution and realization. Study the lives of realized saints like Tukaram, Ram Tirth and Pothana. You will understand the truth behind "realization in and through the world". Over-indulgence in sexuality or worldly life allows no access to spiritual matters. In this connection, it is worth the remembrance that children are not an absolute necessity for realization of Moksha, that Moksha is not debarred from those that do not beget children, and also that they are prone to exemption from the curses of the manes if they take to Sannyas without keeping up the lineage or Vamsa Vriksha.