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Why are there so many problems in modern society?

The Vedas explain that there are three modes of material nature
that condition living entities to remain in the cycle of birth and
death continuously. It is only in the human form of life that the liv-
ing entity has a chance to free himself from this interminable cy-
cle. However, in the human form, if the living entity remains influ-
enced by passion and ignorance, he cannot achieve emancipa-
tion. The mode of passion results in leading a life full of misery
and the mode of ignorance results in foolishness and abject suf-
fering due to consistently making the wrong decisions. In the fol-
lowing excerpt from the Bhagavad-gita As It Is by Bhaktivedanta
Swami Prabhupada, dire consequences of living under the influ-
ence of the mode of ignorance is described.

“As far as the mode of ignorance is concerned, the performer is
without knowledge, and therefore all his activities result in present
misery, and afterwards he will go on toward animal life. Animal life
is always miserable, although, under the spell of the illusory ener-
gy, maya, the animals do not understand this. Slaughtering poor
animals is also due to the mode of ignorance. The animal killers
do not know that in the future the animal will have a body suitable
to kill them. That is the law of nature. In human society, if one kills
a man he has to be hanged. That is the law of the state. Because
of ignorance, people do not perceive that there is a complete state
controlled by the Supreme Lord. Every living creature is a son of
the Supreme Lord, and He does not tolerate even an ant’s being
killed. One has to pay for it. So indulgence in animal killing for the
taste of the tongue is the grossest kind of ignorance. A human be-
ing has no need to kill animals, because God has supplied so
many nice things. If one indulges in meat-eating anyway, it is to be
understood that he is acting in ignorance and is making his future
very dark. Of all kinds of animal killing, the killing of cows is most
vicious because the cow gives us all kinds of pleasure by supply-
ing milk. Cow slaughter is an act of the grossest type of ignorance.
In the Vedic literature (Ṛg Veda 9.46.4) the words gobhiḥ prīṇita-
matsaram indicate that one who, being fully satisfied by milk, is
desirous of killing the cow is in the grossest ignorance. There is
also a prayer in the Vedic literature that states:
namo brahmaṇya-devāya
go-brāhmaṇa-hitāya ca
jagad-dhitāya kṛṣṇāya
govindāya namo namaḥ

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