Why renounce order of life will not work if you are not attached in devotional services?
Those who are frustrated and confused want to negate this material world. They know what they don’t want, but they do not know what they do want. People are always saying, “I don’t want this.” But what do they want? That they do not know. The word Ananya-Visaya means Ananya-bhakti, undeviating devotional service. We must simply be attached to Krishna twenty-four hours a day without deviation. In this way our renunciation can be perfect. If we think we can be attached to Krishna and material things at the same time, we are mistaken. We cannot ignite a fire and at the same time pour water on it. If we do, the fire will not act.
The Mayavadi sannyasis renounce this world (Brahma Satyam Jagan Mithya). It is very good to preach renunciation of the world, but side by side we must have an attraction for something, otherwise, our renunciation will not remain. We see many Mayavadi sannyasis who say Brahma Satyam Jagan Mithya, but after they take sannyasa they return to the material world to open hospitals and do philanthropic work. Why? If they have left this world, considering it Mithya, false, why do they return to take up politics, philanthropy, and sociology? Actually, this is bound to happen, for we are living entities and are active. If out of frustration we try to become inactive, we shall fail in our attempt. We must engage in activities.
The supreme activity, the Brahman (spiritual) activity, is devotional service. Unfortunately, the Mayavadis do not know this. They think that the spiritual world is void. However, the spiritual world is exactly like the material world in that it has varieties. In the spiritual world, there are also houses, trees, roads, chariots – everything is there, but without the material inebrieties.
Source: A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada (2014 edition), “Teachings of Queen Kunti”, Page 203 & 204
