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Although I am unb orn and My trans c end ent al b ody n ev er det eriorat es , Kris hna tells Arjuna in the
Bh ag av ad-git a, I still app ear in ev ery millennium in My origin al trans c end ental form. Kris hna app ears in
this world to deliv er the pious , annih ilat e the mis creants , and rees tab lis h the princ iples of relig ion.
W hen He app ears , He does not c hang e His body lik e a comm on livin g entity, born on e after an other. Rather
He app ears in His origin al, et ern al form, with two hands , hold ing a flute. He s eems to be b orn lik e an
ordin ary c hild an d grow to boy h ood and y outh but He nev er ag es bey ond youth. At the t ime of the Battle
of Kuruks etra, He was more than on e hundr ed y ears old by material c alc ulation, but he look ed lik e a y oung
man. He is the old es t pers on, but neith er His body nor His intellig enc e ev er det erior ates or c hang es .
To k now Kris hna as Bhag av an is a privileg e res erv ed for bhak ti-yogis . I am nev er man ifes t to the foolis h
an d unintellig ent, Kris hna explains (Bg. 7.25). for them I am c over ed by My internal p otenc y, and
theref ore they do n ot k now that I am unborn and inf allib le.
on e c an und ers tand me as I am, as the Supreme P ers onality of God h ead, on ly by dev otion al s ervic e. And
when, by s uc h dev otion, on e is fully c onsc ious of Me, on e c an enter the k ingdom of God. (Bg. 18.55)
Th e Ved ic s criptures dec lar e that Bhag av an Sri Kris hna is the s ourc e of both the Super s oul and Brahm an
an d the origin of all av at ar as . Avataras are s c heduled in c arnations who d es c end from the s piritual w orld to
exec ut e the Lords miss ion of protec ting the dev ot ees and ann ihilating the mis creants . Their des c ent is
foret old in the s criptures s o that unscrupulous people c an be c hec k ed from c laim ing to b e av at ar as . In this
ag e, j ust over five hundr ed y ears ago, the Lord d es c end ed as Sri Caitany a M ah apr abh u to s pread the
c ongreg ation al c hantin g of the Har e Kris hna mah a-m antra for the peac eful d eliv eranc e of both d ev ot ees
an d mis creants.
A c ommon mis c onc eption of uninform ed s tudents of the Bh ag av ad-git a is that Kris hnas univers al form
(des cribed in the elev enth c hapter) is the las t word in God realiz ation. The univ ers al form is mos t
impres s ive and s pec tac ular: if hundreds of thous an ds of s uns were to ris e at onc e into the s k y, their
radianc e might res emble the effulgenc e of the Suprem e Pers on in that univ ers al form. Arj una c ould s e e in
that univ ers al form of the Lord the unlim ited exp ans ions of the univ ers e s ituated in on e plac e alth oug h
divid ed into m any, many thous ands . (bg. 11.13) Yet the univers al form is only a s ub ordin ate feature of the
origin al, humanlik e form of the P ers on ality of Godh ead.
Th e univ ers al form frighten ed Arj una an d bew ild er ed his mind, es pec ially wh en the L ord rev ealed Hims elf
as k ala-rupa, the form of time, dev ouring all the c omb atants on the battlefield. Arj una therefor e requ es ted
Kris hna to withdraw His terrifying univers al form and s how His four -armed Vis nu form. Kris hna agr eed.
Th en, reverting to the two - armed form Arj una was ac c us tomed to s ee, the Lord dec lar ed, this form of
Min e you ar e now s eeing is very diffic ult to beh old. It c ann ot be und ers tood s imply by studying the V ed as ,
nor by und ergoing s eri ous pen anc es , nor by c harity, nor by wors hip. Only by undivid ed d ev otion al s ervic e
c an I be und ers tood as I am, s tanding b efor e y ou, and c an thus be s een direc tly. (bg. 11.53 -4)
Th e k ingdom of God is c alled Vaik untha, the plac e without an xiety, and it lies far bey on d this world of
matter. It is eternal, and ev ery on e of its atoms is fully cons c ious and blis s ful. It is full of c ou ntles s s piritual
plan ets where Kris hnas Vis nu exp ans ions res ide. In the midst of Vaik untha s tands Golok a Vrind av an, a
plan et s hap ed lik e a lotus flow er, where ev ery word is a s ong and ev ery s tep is a danc e, wher e trees fulfill
all d es ires , palac es are m ad e of touc hston e, and trans cen d ent al c ows s upply unlimit ed milk . The orig in al
Kris hna enj oys life as a c owh erd b oy with His lov ing d ev ot ees . Thos e wh o reac h that Suprem e ab od e n ev er
return to the mat erial world.
W hen the j ivas ent er the mat erial en ergy, they are s ubj ec ted to pas t, pres ent, and future. Under tim es
influ enc e, an d ov erp ow er ed by fear, they s uffer greatly. Th e on ly rem edy is to res ume s ervic e to the Lord.
Th e j ivas , how ev er, c ann ot reac h this c onc lus ion by their own efforts , bec aus e they hav e forgotten t heir
real id entity as s prit s ouls . They c ons id er thems elv es prod uc ts of the material en ergy.
As the Suprem e F ather of all j ivas , Kris hna is mos t k ind an d c omp as s ion at e. Theref ore H e p ers on ally
c om es to s peak Bhag av ad-gita, and H e s ends His c onfidential s ervants to ac t as s piritual mas ters. As the
Sup er s oul within ev ery on es hear t, He giv es us discrimination, with whic h we c an ac c ept the Ved as and a
Spiritual M as ter.
Through the s tudy of Bhag av ad-gita, the j iva c om es to und erstand his true pos ition as Kris hnas s ervant.
Th en und er the direc tion of the exp ert Spiritual Mas ter, he eng ag es his s ens es , mind, and intellig enc e in
the s ervic e of Kris hna. Suc h practic e gradu ally rais es him to the platform of trans c end ental lovin g s ervic e
an d c ulminat es in the attainm ent of a blis sful, intimate relations hip with Kris hna the perfec tion of life.
In the Sev enth Chapt er of Bhag av ad-gita (7.6), Kris hna s ays that all c reated
beings hav e th eir origin in two n atures the mat erial an d the s piritual an d that
He is the s ourc es of both natures .
Prak riti, natur e, is ac tually threef old. Nature c ons is ts of a s uperior en ergy (par a),
an inf erior en ergy (ap ara), and a m argin al en ergy. The s up erior en ergy m anif es ts
the s piritual realm. The inf erior en ergy (k nown as nature by sc ientis ts)
man ifes ts the material w orld. And the margin al en ergy, als o s piritual by
c ons titution, c ompris es the infinites im al s parks of c onsc ious n es s k nown as j ivas
that is, all livin g beings . W hen the j ivas c hoos e to as s oc iate with matter and
id entify with the inferior en ergy, they manipulat e it for sens e enj oyment, and thus
the entir e world func tions .
Ev erything that exis ts here is a produc t of matter and s pirit, but s pirit is the b as ic field of creation. Spirit is
not c reated at a c ertain s tag e of mat erial d ev elopm ent. Matter grows around s pirit. For example, a b abys
body grows to c hildh ood and y outh and then maturity bec aus e the s pirit s oul is pres ent within the body.
Similarly, the entir e c os mic manif es tation dev elops bec aus e of the pres enc e of the Suprem e S oul.
Kris hna is the Seed-giving F ath er of all liv ing entities , and material nature is the womb, or moth er. Kris hna
s ays , this material n ature is work ing under My direc tion, produc ing all m oving and n on -m oving beings .
Und er its rule this manif es tation is created and ann ihilat ed ag ain and ag ain. (bg. 9.10) Kris hna inj ec ts
living entities into the wom b of material nature s imply by glanc ing, an d they manifes t in different forms and
s pec ies , dep end ing up on their previous des ires and ac tivities .
Mat erial n ature c ons is ts of eight elem ents : ear th, water, fire, air, s pac e, mind, intellig enc e, and fals e eg o.
Th es e ar e k nown as Kris hnas s ep arat ed m aterial en ergies (bg. 7.4). Another c las s ific ation d es c rib es the
elem ents of the mat erial w orld as twenty-four. First the fiv e gros s elem ents (earth, water, fire, air, and
s pac e). Then the three s ubtle elem ents (mind, intellig en c e, and fals e eg o). Then the ten s ens es fiv e for
work ing (the h ands , legs , stomac h, rec tum, and the g enitals ) and five for ac quiring k nowledg e (the ey es ,
ears , nos e, tongu e, an d sk in). Then there are the fiv e s ens e obj ec ts (form, tas te, s mell, s ound, and touc h),
an d finally c ons c ious n es s. Thes e twenty-four elem ents cons titute the field of ac tivities for the living entity.
Th e mat erial b ody of the j iva is als o c alled the field of ac tivity. It is a miniature univ ers e formed of the
twenty-four univers al elem ents . Though c ov er ed by gros s and s ubtle mat erial elem ents , the s oul retains in
a d ormant s tate its individu ality as an etern al s ervitor of the Lord. The pure s oul in the mat erial w orld
des ires to exp loit mat erial n ature an d the fals e eg o is the id entific ation of the s elf as s ep arat e f rom
Kris hna.
Mat erial n ature is end ow ed with three qu alities or mod es (gunas ): goodn es s , pas s ion, and ign or anc e. W hen
thes e three qu alities c ombin e and p ermutate, they c reate m any v arieties of c ons c ious nes s , j us t as the
c ombin ations of the primary c olors red, yellow, an d blu e creat e man y c olors . Condition ed by the three
mod es , the living entity adh er es to a partic ular type of faith, prefers c ertain k inds of food, and enj oys his
own typ e of und ers tanding, determin ation, happin es s , and k nowledg e. Bh ag av ad - gita (4.13) s ays that
on es tend enc y towards a partic ular type of work is determined by the three mod es of mat erial n ature.
Gen er ally the m od e of goodn es s c onditions on e to h ap pines s ; pas s ion to fruitive ac tion; an d ign oranc e to
mad n es s . All three m od es bind on e to th e c yc le of repeated birth and death. this divin e en ergy of M ine,
c ons is ting of the three mod es of material n ature, is difficult to ov erc om e, kris hna s ays . Non etheles s :
thos e who h av e s urrender ed unto M e c an eas ily c ross bey ond it. (Bg. 7.14)
Mah ar aj a Ik s vak u, the k ing of this earth plan et and foref ath er of the Raghu dyn as ty, in whic h Lord
Ram ac andr a ap p ear ed. Bhag av ad-gita h as therefore exis ted in human s oc iety from the time if Mah araj a
Ik s vak u.
Sp eak ing to Arj una, Lord Kris hna further s aid, This s uprem e sc ienc e was thus r ec eiv ed through the c hain
of dis c iplic s ucc es s ion, and the s aintly k ings unders tood it in that way. But in c ours e of time the s ucc es s ion
was brok en, and ther efor e the s c ienc e as it is app ears to b e los t. (Bg. 4.2) The Lord then explain ed that
s am e sc ienc e ag ain to Arj una five thous and y ears ago, an d it has been brought to us through an unbrok en
c hain of s elf-realiz ed s piritual mas ters , by His Divine Grac e A.C. Bhak tived anta Sw ami Prabh up ad a, the
Found er-Ac arya of the Intern ation al Soc iety for Kris hna Cons c ious nes s .
W hen Kris hna s aid He h ad s pok en millions of years ago to Viv as van, Arjuna rais ed a d oubt: How c ould
Kris hna hav e d on e this ? Lord Kris hna replied: Many, man y births both you an d I hav e p as s ed. I c an
rem emb er all of them, but you c ann ot.(Bg. 4.5) Kris hna rememb er ed ac ts He had p erformed millions of
years befor e, but Arj una c ould n ot rem emb er anything, des pite th e fac t that both Kris hna and Arj una are
et ernal. This is s o bec aus e wh en ev er the Lord app ears He app ears in His origin al trans c end ent al form,
whic h nev er det eriorat es . Any ordin ary pers on, how ev er, trans migrates from on e b od y to an oth er. And from
on e life to the n ext, on e forgets his former identity. But Kris hna, the very princ iple of s ubduing t ime, is
nev er under the c ontrol of time, and thus He rememb ers ev erything at all times . O Arj una, as the Suprem e
Pers on ality of God h ead, I k now ev erything that has hap pen ed in the p as t, all that is happ ening in th e
pres ent, and all things that are yet to c ome. I als o k now all liv ing entities ; but Me no on e k nows . (Bg. 7.26)
Th e Srimad Bh ag av at am c omp ar es time to the dead ly sharp blad e of a Raz or. Bec aus e time imp erc eptib ly
dev ours the duration of life of ev ery on e, on e mus t c arefully us e on es life prop erly. Sinc e time rep res ents
Kris hna, us ing time to s earc h for the Abs olute Truth is the b es t prac tic al us e of time. The Nar ad a
Panc aratra adv is es : By c onc entrating on es attention on the trans c end ent al form of Kris hna, who is allperv ad ing and b ey ond tim e an d s pac e, on e b ec om es ab s orbed in think ing of K ris hna and then attains the
happy s tate of trans c end ent al as s oc iation with Him.
Until on e is lib erat ed from material n ature, on e h as to perform his duty ac c ording to religious prin c iples and
in this way gradu ally ris e to the platform of real k now led ge. Kris hna s ays (bg. 4.13). acc ording to the three
mod es of mat erial n ature an d the work as s oc iated with them, the four divis ions of human s oc iety ar e
created by Me, The four divis ions are the brahm an as , the int ellig ent c las s , s ituated in the m od e of
goodn es s ; the ks atriyas , the military and adminis trative c las s , in the mod e of pas s ion; vais yas , the
merc antile c las s , in mixed p as s ion and ign or anc e; and sudras , the work ing c las s, in the mod e of ignor anc e.
Ev ery c iviliz ed hum an fits into on e of thes e c ateg ories , but not ac c ording to birth; it dep en ds on on es
pers on al qu alities an d work .
by following his qualities of work, every man c an bec ome p erfec t, Kris hna s ays (bg. 18.45). on e w ho
performs his duty without attac hment, s urrend ering the res ults unto the Suprem e L ord, is unaffec ted by
s inful ac tion, as the lotus leaf is untouc hed by wat er. (bg. 5.10) By work direc ted towards the hig h es t
perfec tion of s elf-realiz ation und ers tanding on es c onstitution al p os ition as Kris hnas eternal s ervitor
on es k arma c eas es to exis t.