Desa, kala, patra – Time, place, and circumstance.
January 29, 2014 in Yasoda nandana Dasa by Yasoda nandana dasa
By Yasoda nandana dasa and the Prabhupada anugas
Deśa-kāla-pātra. Deśa means situation, and kāla, time, and pātra, means the subject, the individual.
Deśa-kāla-pātra: according to time, according to circumstances, according to the subject, everything is scrutinizingly judged, not whimsically. We must understand everything by taking these three elements into consideration. (Lectures : Bhagavad-gita 7.1 — Fiji, May 24, 1975 : 750524BG.FIJ)
For an example: Singing for entertainment is true, but when singing next to those who are sick then it becomes transformed into a wrong action or bad behavior.
Serving ice cold drink at night in a cold place might be received by a person with a reluctant heart, but when the ice was served during the hot hours of sunny day it would be gladly welcomed.
From the examples above it is obvious that what is called the wrong action, when people do not know how to adjust to the place, time and circumstances of their behavior. So, the appropriate way is to adjust our actions to Deśa-kāla-pātra.