ERROR: Your browser does not support scripts.

yesam—unto those only; sah—the Lord; esah—the; bhagavan—the Personality of Godhead; dayayet—does bestow His mercy; anantah—the unlimited potential; sarva-atmana—by all means, without reservation; asrita-padah—surrendered soul; yadi—if such surrender; nirvyalikam—without pretension; te—those only; dustaram—insurmountable; atitaranti—can overcome; ca—and the paraphernalia; deva-mayam—diverse energies of the Lord; na—not; esam—of them; mama—mine; aham—myself; iti—thus; dhih—conscious; sva—dogs; srgala—jackals; bhaksye—in the matter of eating.

But anyone who is specifically favored by the Supreme Lord, the Personality of Godhead, due to unalloyed surrender unto the service of the Lord, can overcome the insurmountable ocean of illusion and can understand the Lord. But those who are attached to this body, which is meant to be eaten at the end by dogs and jackals, cannot do so.

The unalloyed devotees of the Lord know the glories of the Lord in the sense that they can understand how great the Lord is and how great is His expansion of diverse energy. Those who are attached to the perishable body can hardly enter into the realm of the science of Godhead. The whole materialistic world, based on the conception of the material body as the self, is ignorant of the science of God. The materialist is always busy working for the welfare of the material body, not only his own but also those of his children, kinsmen, communitymen, countrymen, etc. The materialists have many branches of philanthropic and altruistic activities from a political, national and international angle of vision, but none of the field work can go beyond the jurisdiction of the misconception of identifying the material body with the spirit soul. Unless, therefore, one is saved from the wrong conception of the body and the soul, there is no knowledge of Godhead, and unless there is knowledge of God, all advancement of material civilization, however dazzling, should be considered a failure.

SB2.7.43-45

TEXTS 43–45

vedaham anga paramasya hi yoga-mayam

yuyam bhavas ca bhagavan atha daitya-varyah

patni manoh sa ca manus ca tad-atmajas ca

pracinabarhir rbhur anga uta dhruvas ca

iksvakur aila-mucukunda-videha-gadhi-

raghv-ambarisa-sagara gaya-nahusadyah

mandhatr-alarka-satadhanv-anu-rantideva

devavrato balir amurttarayo dilipah

saubhary-utanka-sibi-devala-pippalada-

sarasvatoddhava-parasara-bhurisenah

ye ’nye vibhisana-hanumad-upendradatta-

partharstisena-vidura-srutadeva-varyah

veda—know it; aham—myself; anga—O Narada; paramasya—of the Supreme; hi—certainly; yoga-mayam—potency; yuyam—yourself; bhavah—Siva; ca—and; bhagavan—the great demigod; atha—as also; daitya-varyah—Prahlada Maharaja, the great devotee of the Lord born in the family of an atheist; patni—Satarupa; manoh—of Manu; sah—he; ca—also; manuh—Svayambhuva; ca—and; tat-atma-jah ca—and his children like Priyavrata, Uttanapada, Devahuti, etc.; pracinabarhih—Pracinabarhi; rbhuh—Rbhu; angah—Anga; uta—even; dhruvah—Dhruva; ca—and; iksvakuh—Iksvaku; aila—Aila; mucukunda—Mucukunda; videha—Maharaja Janaka; gadhi—Gadhi; raghu—Raghu; ambarisa—Ambarisa; sagarah—Sagara; gaya—Gaya; nahusa—Nahusa; adyah—and so on; mandhatr—Mandhata; alarka—Alarka; satadhanu—Satadhanu; anu—Anu; rantidevah—Rantideva; devavratah—Bhisma; balih—Bali; amurttarayah—Amurttaraya; dilipah—Dilipa; saubhari—Saubhari; utanka—Utanka; sibi—Sibi; devala—Devala; pippalada—Pippalada; sarasvata—Sarasvata; uddhava—Uddhava; parasara—Parasara; bhurisenah—Bhurisena; ye—those who; anye—others; vibhisana—Vibhisana; hanumat—Hanuman; upendra-datta—Sukadeva Gosvami; partha—Arjuna; arstisena—Arstisena; vidura—Vidura; srutadeva—Srutadeva; varyah—the foremost.

O Narada, although the potencies of the Lord are unknowable and immeasurable, still, because we are all surrendered souls, we know how He acts through yogamaya potencies. And, similarly, the potencies of the Lord are also known to the all-powerful Siva, the great king of the atheist family, namely Prahlada Maharaja, Svayambhuva Manu, his wife Satarupa, his sons and daughters like Priyavrata, Uttanapada, Akuti, Devahuti and Prasuti, Pracinabarhi, Rbhu, Anga the father of Vena, Maharaja Dhruva, Iksvaku, Aila, Mucukunda, Maharaja Janaka, Gadhi, Raghu, Ambarisa, Sagara, Gaya, Nahusa, Mandhata, Alarka, Satadhanve, Anu, Rantideva, Bhisma, Bali, Amurttaraya, Dilipa, Saubhari, Utanka, Sibi, Devala, Pippalada, Sarasvata, Uddhava, Parasara, Bhurisena, Vibhisana, Hanuman, Sukadeva Gosvami, Arjuna, Arstisena, Vidura, Srutadeva, etc.

All the great devotees of the Lord, as mentioned above, who flourished in the past or present, and all the devotees of the Lord who will come in the future, are aware of the different potencies of the Lord along with the potency of His name, quality, pastimes, entourage, personality, etc. And how do they know? Certainly it is not by mental speculation, nor by any attempt by dint of limited instruments of knowledge. By the limited instruments of knowledge (either the senses or the material instruments like microscopes and telescopes) one cannot even fully know the Lord’s material potencies, which are manifested before our eyes. For example there are many millions and billions of planets far, far beyond the scientist’s calculation. But these are only the manifestations of the Lord’s material energy. What can the scientist hope to know of the spiritual potency of the Lord by such material efforts? Mental speculations, by adding some dozens of “if’s” and “maybe’s,” cannot aid the advancement of knowledge—on the contrary, such mental speculations will only end in despair by dismissing the case abruptly and declaring the nonexistence of God. The sane person, therefore, ceases to speculate on subjects beyond the jurisdiction of his tiny brain, and as a matter of course he tries to learn to surrender unto the Supreme Lord, who alone can lead one to the platform of real knowledge. In the Upanisads it is clearly said that the Supreme Personality of Godhead can never be known simply by working very hard and taxing the good brain, nor can He be known simply by mental speculation and jugglery of words. The Lord is knowable only by one who is a surrendered soul. Herein Brahmaji, the greatest of all material living beings, acknowledges this truth. Therefore, the fruitless spoiling of energy by pursuing the path of experimental knowledge must be given up. One should gain knowledge by surrendering unto the Lord and by acknowledging the authority of the persons mentioned herein. The Lord is unlimited and, by the grace of the yogamaya, helps the surrendered soul to know Him proportionately with the advance of one’s surrender.

SB2.7.46

TEXT 46

te vai vidanty atitaranti ca deva-mayam

stri-sudra-huna-sabara api papa-jivah

yady adbhuta-krama-parayana-sila-siksas

tiryag-jana api kim u sruta-dharana ye

te—such persons; vai—undoubtedly; vidanti—do know; atitaranti—surpass; ca—also; deva-mayam—the covering energy of the Lord; stri—such as women; sudra—the laborer class of men; huna—the mountaineers; sabarah—the Siberians, or those lower than the sudras; api—although; papa-jivah—sinful living beings; yadi—provided; adbhuta-krama—one whose acts are so wonderful; parayana—those who are devotees; sila—behavior; siksah—trained by; tiryak-janah—even those who are not human beings; api—also; kim—what; u—to speak of; sruta-dharanah—those who have taken to the idea of the Lord by hearing about Him; ye—those.

Surrendered souls, even from groups leading sinful lives, such as women, the laborer class, the mountaineers and the Siberians, or even the birds and beasts, can also know about the science of Godhead and become liberated from the clutches of the illusory energy by surrendering unto the pure devotees of the Lord and by following in their footsteps in devotional service.

sasvat prasantam abhayam pratibodha-matram

Sometimes there are inquiries as to how one can surrender unto the Supreme Lord. In the Bhagavad-gita (18.66) the Lord asked Arjuna to surrender unto Him, and therefore persons unwilling to do so question where God is and to whom they should surrender. The answer to such questions or inquiries is given herein very properly. The Personality of Godhead may not be present before one’s eyes, but if one is sincere in wanting such guidance the Lord will send a bona fide person who can guide one properly back home, back to Godhead. There is no need of material qualifications for making progress on the path of spiritual realization. In the material world, when one accepts some particular type of service, he is required to possess some particular type of qualification also. Without this one is unfit for such service. But in the devotional service of the Lord the only qualification required is surrender. Surrendering oneself is in one’s own hand. If one likes, he can surrender immediately, without delay, and that begins his spiritual life. The bona fide representative of God is as good as God Himself. Or, in other words, the loving representative of the Lord is more kind and more easy to approach. A sinful soul cannot approach the Lord directly, but such a sinful man can very easily approach a pure devotee of the Lord. And if one agrees to put himself under the guidance of such a devotee of the Lord, he can also understand the science of God and can also become like the transcendental pure devotee of the Lord and thus get his liberation back to Godhead, back home for eternal happiness.

So realization of the science of Godhead and relief from the unnecessary, useless struggle for existence are not at all difficult for the willing candidate. But they are very difficult for persons who are not surrendered souls but only simple, profitless speculators.

SB2.7.47

TEXT 47

suddham samam sad-asatah paramatma-tattvam

sabdo na yatra puru-karakavan kriyartho

maya paraity abhimukhe ca vilajjamana

tad vai padam bhagavatah paramasya pumso

brahmeti yad vidur ajasra-sukham visokam

sasvat—eternal; prasantam—without disturbance; abhayam—without fear; pratibodha-matram—a consciousness opposed to the material counterpart; suddham—uncontaminated; samam—without distinction; sat-asatah—of the cause and effect; paramatma-tattvam—the principle of primeval cause; sabdah—speculative sound; na—not; yatra—where there is; puru-karakavan—resulting in fruitive action; kriya-arthah—for the matter of sacrifice; maya—illusion; paraiti—flies away; abhimukhe—in front of; ca—also; vilajjamana—being ashamed of; tat—that; vai—is certainly; padam—ultimate phase; bhagavatah—of the Personality of Godhead; paramasya—of the Supreme; pumsah—of the person; brahma—the Absolute; iti—thus; yat—which; viduh—known as; ajasra—unlimited; sukham—happiness; visokam—without grief.

What is realized as the Absolute Brahman is full of unlimited bliss without grief. That is certainly the ultimate phase of the supreme enjoyer, the Personality of Godhead. He is eternally void of all disturbances and fearless. He is complete consciousness as opposed to matter. Uncontaminated and without distinctions, He is the principle primeval cause of all causes and effects, in whom there is no sacrifice for fruitive activities and in whom the illusory energy does not stand.

The supreme enjoyer, the Personality of Godhead, is the Supreme Brahman or the summum bonum because of His being the supreme cause of all causes. The conception of impersonal Brahman realization is the first step, due to His distinction from the illusory conception of material existence. In other words, impersonal Brahman is a feature of the Absolute distinct from the material variegatedness, just as light is a conception distinct from its counterpart, darkness. But the light has its variegatedness, which is seen by those who further advance in the light, and thus the ultimate realization of Brahman is the source of the Brahman light, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the summum bonum or the ultimate source of everything. Therefore, meeting the Personality of Godhead includes the realization of the impersonal Brahman as realized at first in contrast with material inebriety. The Personality of Godhead is the third step of Brahman realization. As explained in the First Canto, one must understand all three features of the Absolute—Brahman, Paramatma and Bhagavan.

Pratibodha-matram is just the opposite conception of material existence. In matter there are material miseries, and thus in the first realization of Brahman there is the negation of such material inebrieties, and there is a feeling of eternal existence distinct from the pangs of birth and death, disease and old age. That is the primary conception of impersonal Brahman.

The Supreme Lord is the Supreme Soul of everything, and therefore in the supreme conception affection is realized. The conception of affection is due to the relationship of soul to soul. A father is affectionate to his son because there is some relationship of nearness between the son and the father. But that sort of affection in the material world is full of inebriety. When the Personality of Godhead is met, the fullness of affection becomes manifested because of the reality of the affectionate relationship. He is not the object of affection by material tinges of body and mind, but He is the full, naked, uncontaminated object of affection for all living entities because He is the Supersoul, or Paramatma, within everyone’s heart. In the liberated state of affairs, the full-fledged affection for the Lord is awakened.

As such, there is an unlimited flow of everlasting happiness, without the fear of its being broken as we have experienced here in the material world. The relationship with the Lord is never broken; thus there is no grief and no fear. Such happiness is inexplicable by words, and there can be no attempt to generate such happiness by fruitive activities by arrangements and sacrifices. But we must also know that happiness, unbroken happiness exchanged with the Supreme Person, the Personality of Godhead as described in this verse, transcends the impersonal conception of the Upanisads. In the Upanisads the description is more or less negation of the material conception of things, but this is not denial of the transcendental senses of the Supreme Lord. Herein also the same is affirmed in the statements about the material elements; they are all transcendental, free from all contamination of material identification. And also the liberated souls are not devoid of senses; otherwise there cannot be any reciprocation of unhampered spiritual happiness exchanged between them in spontaneous unbroken joy. All the senses, both of the Lord and of the devotees, are without material contamination. They are so because they are beyond the material cause and effects, as clearly mentioned herein (sad-asatah param). The illusory, material energy cannot work there, being ashamed before the Lord and His transcendental devotees. In the material world the sense activities are not without grief, but here it is clearly said that the senses of the Lord and the devotees are without any grief. There is a distinct difference between the material and spiritual senses. And one should understand it without denying the spiritual senses because of a material conception.

The senses in the material world are surcharged with material ignorance. In every way, the authorities have recommended purification of the senses from the material conception. In the material world the senses are manipulated for individual and personal satisfaction, whereas in the spiritual world the senses are properly used for the purpose for which they were originally meant, namely the satisfaction of the Supreme Lord. Such sensual activities are natural, and therefore sense gratification there is uninterrupted and unbroken by material contamination because the senses are spiritually purified. And such satisfaction of the senses is equally shared by the transcendental reciprocators. Since the activities are unlimited and constantly increasing, there is no scope for material attempts or artificial arrangements. Such happiness of transcendental quality is called brahma-saukhyam, which will he clearly described in the Fifth Canto.

SB2.7.48

TEXT 48

sadhryan niyamya yatayo yama-karta-hetim

jahyuh svarad iva nipana-khanitram indrah

sadhryak—artificial mental speculation or meditation; niyamya—controlling; yatayah—the mystics; yama-karta-hetim—the process of spiritual culture; jahyuh—are given up; svarat—fully independent; iva—as; nipana—well; khanitram—trouble for digging; indrah—the controlling demigod supplying rains.

In such a transcendental state there is no need of artificial control of the mind, mental speculation or meditation, as performed by the jnanis and yogis. One gives up such processes, as the heavenly King, Indra, forgoes the trouble to dig a well.

A poor man in want of water digs a well and undertakes the trouble of digging. Similarly, those who are poor in transcendental realization speculate on the mind or meditate by controlling the senses. But they do not know that such control of the senses and achievement of spiritual perfection are simultaneously made possible as soon as one is factually engaged in the transcendental loving service of the Supreme Person, the Personality of Godhead. It is for this reason that the great liberated souls also desire to be associated in hearing and chanting the activities of the Lord. The example of Indra is very appropriate in this connection. King Indra of heaven is the controlling deity or demigod for arranging clouds and supplying rains in the universe, and as such he does not have to take the trouble to dig a well for his personal water supply. For him, digging a well for a water supply is simply ludicrous. Similarly, those who are factually engaged in the loving service of the Lord have attained the ultimate goal of life, and for them there is no need of mental speculation to find out the true nature of God or His activities. Nor do such devotees have to meditate upon the imaginary or real identity of the Lord. Because they are factually engaged in the transcendental loving service of the Lord, the Lord’s pure devotees have already achieved the results of mental speculation and meditation. The real perfection of life is therefore to be engaged in the transcendental loving service of the Lord.

SB2.7.49

TEXT 49

sa sreyasam api vibhur bhagavan yato ’sya

bhava-svabhava-vihitasya satah prasiddhih

dehe sva-dhatu-vigame ’nuvisiryamane

vyomeva tatra puruso na visiryate ’jah

sah—He; sreyasam—all auspiciousness; api—also; vibhuh—the master; bhagavan—the Personality of Godhead; yatah—because; asya—of the living entity; bhava—natural modes; sva-bhava—own constitution; vihitasya—performances; satah—all good work; prasiddhih—ultimate success; dehe—of the body; sva-dhatu—forming elements; vigame—being vanquished; anu—after; visiryamane—having given up; vyoma—sky; iva—like; tatra—thereupon; purusah—the living entity; na—never; visiryate—becomes vanquished; ajah—due to being unborn.

The Personality of Godhead is the supreme master of everything auspicious because the results of whatever actions are performed by the living being, in either the material or spiritual existence, are awarded by the Lord. As such, He is the ultimate benefactor. Every individual living entity is unborn, and therefore even after the annihilation of the material elementary body, the living entity exists, exactly like the air within the body.

so ’yam te ’bhihitas tata

The living entity is unborn and eternal, and as confirmed in the Bhagavad-gita (2.30), the living entity is not exhausted even though the material elementary body is vanquished. As long as the living entity is in material existence, actions performed by him are rewarded in the next life, or even in the present life. Similarly, in his spiritual life also actions are rewarded by the Lord by the five kinds of liberation. Even the impersonalist cannot achieve the desired merging into the existence of the Supreme without being favored by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gita (4.11) that the Lord awards similar results, as one desires, in one’s present life. The living entities are given freedom to make their choice, and the Lord awards them accordingly.

It is the duty of everyone, therefore, to worship devoutly only the Personality of Godhead to achieve his desired goal. The impersonalist, instead of speculating or meditating, can directly execute the routine devotional service of the Lord and thus easily obtain the desired goal.

The devotees, however, are naturally inclined to become associates of the Lord and not merge in the spiritual existence, as conceived by the impersonalist. The devotees, therefore, following their constitutional instincts, achieve the desired goal of becoming servitors, friends, fathers, mothers or conjugal lovers of the Lord. The devotional service of the Lord involves nine transcendental processes, such as hearing and chanting, and by performing such easy and natural devotional services the devotees achieve the highest perfectional results, far, far superior to merging into the existence of Brahman. The devotees are therefore never advised to indulge in speculating upon the nature of the Supreme or artificially meditating on the the void.

One should not, however, mistakenly think that after the annihilation of this present body there is no body by which one can associate with the Lord face to face. The living entity is unborn. It is not that he is manifest with the creation of the material body. On the other hand, it is true that the material body develops only by the desire of the living entity. The evolution of the material body is due to the desires of the living being. According to the desires of the living being, the material body develops. So from the spirit soul the material body comes into existence, generated from the living force. Since the living being is eternal, he exists just like the air within the body. Air is within and without the body. Therefore when the external covering, the material body, is vanquished, the living spark, like the air within the body, continues to exist. And by the direction of the Lord, because He is the ultimate benefactor, the living entity is at once awarded the necessary spiritual body befitting his association with the Lord in the manner of sarupya (equal bodily feature), salokya (equal facility to live on the same planet with the Lord), sarsti (equal possession of opulence like the Lord), and samipya (equal association with the Lord).

The Lord is so kind that even if a devotee of the Lord cannot fulfill the complete course of devotional service unalloyed and uncontaminated by material association, he is given another chance in the next life by being awarded a birth in the family of a devotee or rich man so that without being engaged in the struggle for material existence the devotee can finish the remaining purification of his existence and thus immediately, after relinquishing the present body, go back home, back to Godhead. This is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gita.

In this connection detailed information is available in the Bhagavat-sandarbha of Srila Jiva Gosvami Prabhupada. Once achieving the spiritual existence, the devotee is eternally situated there, as already discussed in the previous verse.

SB2.7.50

TEXT 50

bhagavan visva-bhavanah

samasena harer nanyad

anyasmat sad-asac ca yat

sah—that; ayam—the same; te—unto you; abhihitah—explained by me; tata—my dear son; bhagavan—the Personality of Godhead; visva-bhavanah—the creator of the manifested worlds; samasena—in brief; hareh—without Hari, the Lord; na—never; anyat—anything else; anyasmat—being the cause of; sat—manifested or phenomenal; asat—noumenal; ca—and; yat—whatever there may be.

My dear son, I have now explained in brief the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is creator of the manifested worlds. Without Him, Hari, the Lord, there are no other causes of the phenomenal and noumenal existences.

Since we generally have the experience of the temporary, material world and conditioned souls trying to lord it over the material worlds, Brahmaji explained to Naradadeva that this temporary world is the work of the external potency of the Lord and that the conditioned souls struggling here for existence are the marginal potency of the Supreme Lord, the Personality of Godhead. There is no cause for all these phenomenal activities but Him, Hari, the Supreme Lord, who is the primeval cause of all causes. This does not mean, however, that the Lord Himself is distributed impersonally. He is aloof from all these interactions of the external and marginal potencies. In the Bhagavad-gita (9.4) it is confirmed that by His potencies alone He is present everywhere and anywhere. Everything that is manifested rests on His potency only, but He, as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is always aloof from everything. The potency and the potent are simultaneously one and different from one another.

One should not deprecate the Supreme Lord for the creation of this miserable world, just as one should not blame the king for creating a prisonhouse in the government. The prisonhouse is a necessary institution of the governmental establishment for those who are disobedient to the laws of the government. Similarly, this material world, full of miseries, is a temporary creation of the Lord for those who have forgotten Him and are trying to lord it over the false manifestation. He, however, is always anxious to get the fallen souls back home, back to Godhead, and for this He has given so many chances to the conditioned souls via the authoritative scriptures, His representatives, and personal incarnations also. Since He has no direct attachment to this material world, He is not to be blamed for its creation.

SB2.7.51

TEXT 51

idam bhagavatam nama

yan me bhagavatoditam

sangraho ’yam vibhutinam

tvam etad vipuli kuru