BG 7 (1968)

Bhagavad Gita As It Is (1968)

BG 6 (1968) - BG 8 (1968)

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

VII

KNOWLEDGE OF THE ABSOLUTE

1:     NOW HEAR, O son of Pritha [Arjuna], how by practicing Yoga in full consciousness of Me, with mind attached to Me, you can know Me in full, free from doubt.

PURPORT

IN THE FIRST six chapters of The Bhagavad Gita, the living entity has been described as non-material spirit soul who is capable of elevating himself to self-realization by different types of Yogas. At the end of the Sixth Chapter, it has been clearly stated that the steady concentration of the mind upon Krishna, or in other words Krishna consciousness, is the highest form of all Yoga. By concentrating one's mind upon Krishna one is able to know the Absolute Truth completely, but not otherwise. Impersonal Brahmajyoti or localized Paramatma is not perfect knowledge of the Absolute Truth because it is partial. Full and scientific knowledge is Krishna, and everything is revealed to the person in Krishna consciousness. In complete Krishna consciousness one knows that Krishna is ultimate knowledge beyond any doubts. Different types of Yoga are only stepping-stones on the path of Krishna consciousness. One who takes directly to Krishna consciousness automatically knows about Brahmajyoti and Paramatma in full. By practice of Krishna-consciousness Yoga, one can know everything in full—namely the Absolute Truth, the living entities, the material Nature—and their manifestations with paraphernalia.

One should therefore begin Yoga practice as directed in the last verse of the Sixth Chapter. Concentration of the mind upon Krishna the Supreme is made possible by prescribed devotional service in nine different forms, of which Sravanam, hearing, is the first and most important. The Lord therefore says to Arjuna, Tat Srnu, or "Hear from me." Nobody can be a greater authority than Krishna, and therefore by hearing from Him one receives the greatest opportunity for progress in Krishna consciousness. One has therefore to learn from Krishna directly, or from a pure devotee of Krishna—and not from a nondevotee upstart, puffed up with academic education.

In The Srimad Bhagwatam this process of understanding Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Absolute Truth, is described in the Third Chapter of the First Canto as follows: "To hear about Krishna from Vedic literature, or to hear from Him directly, through The Bhagavad Gita, is itself righteous activity. And for one who hears about Krishna, Lord Krishna, Who is dwelling in everyone's heart, acts as a well-wishing friend and purifies the devotee." In this way, a devotee naturally develops his dormant transcendental knowledge. As he hears more about Krishna from The Bhagwatam and from the devotees, he becomes fixed in the devotional service of the Lord. By development of devotional service one becomes freed from the modes of ignorance and passion; and thus material lusts and avarice are diminished. When these impurities are wiped away, the candidate remains steady in his position of pure goodness, becomes enlivened by devotional service, and understands the Science of God perfectly. Thus Bhaktiyoga severs the hard knot of material affection and one comes at once to the stage of Asamsayam samagram, understanding of the Supreme Absolute Personality of Godhead.

Therefore, only by hearing from Krishna or from His devotee in Krishna consciousness can one understand the science of Krishna.

2:     I shall now declare unto you in full this knowledge both phenomenal and numinous, by knowing which there shall remain nothing further to be known.

3:     Out of many thousands among men, one may endeavor for perfection; and of those who have achieved perfection, hardly one knows Me in truth.

PURPORT

THERE ARE various grades of men, and out of many thousands one may be sufficiently interested in transcendental realization to try to know what is the self, what is the body, and what is the Absolute Truth. Generally, Mankind is simply engaged in animal propensities: eating, sleeping, defending, and mating, and hardly anyone is interested in transcendental knowledge. The first six chapters of The Gita are meant for those who are interested in transcendental knowledge, in understanding the self, the Superself, and the process of realization by Jnanayoga, Dhyanayoga, and discrimination of the self from matter.

However, Krishna Himself can only be known by persons who are in Krishna consciousness. Other transcendentalists may achieve impersonal Brahman realization, for this is easier than understanding Krishna. Krishna is the Supreme Person, but at the same time He is beyond the knowledge of Brahman and Paramatma. The yogis and jnanis are confused in their attempts to understand Krishna, although the greatest of the impersonalists, Sripada Sankaracharya, has admitted in his Gita commentary that Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. But his followers do not accept Krishna as such, for it is very difficult to know Krishna, even though one has transcendental realization of impersonal Brahman.

Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Cause of all causes, the Primeval Lord Govinda. It is very difficult for the non-devotees to know Him. Although non-devotees declare that the path of Bhakti or devotional service is very easy, they cannot practice it. If the path of Bhakti is so easy, as the nondevotee class of men proclaim, then why do they take up the difficult path? Actually, the path of Bhakti is not easy. The so-called path of Bhakti practiced by unauthorized persons without knowledge of Bhakti may be easy, but when it is practiced factually, according to the rules and regulations, the speculative scholars and philosophers fall away from the path. Srila Rupa Goswami writes in his Bhakti Rasamrita Sindhu: "Pure devotional service of the Lord, that ignores the authorized Vedic literatures like the Upanishads, Puranas, Narada Pancharatra, etc., is simply an unnecessary disturbance in society."

It is not possible for the Brahman-realized impersonalist or the Paramatma-realized yogi to understand Krishna the Supreme Personality of Godhead as the Son of mother Yasoda or the Charioteer of Arjuna. Even the great demigods are sometimes confused about Krishna: "Nobody knows Me as I am," the Lord says. And if anybody knows Him, then: "Such a great soul is very rare." Therefore, unless one practices devotional service to the Lord, he cannot know Krishna as He is, even though he may be a great scholar or philosopher. Only the pure devotees can know something of the inconceivable transcendental qualities in Krishna, in the Cause of all causes, in His omnipotence and opulence, and in His wealth, fame, strength, beauty, knowledge, and renunciation, because Krishna is benevolently inclined to His devotees. He is the last word in Brahman realization and the devotees alone can realize Him as He is. Therefore, it is said: "Nobody can understand Krishna as He is by the blunt material senses. But He reveals Himself to the devotees, being pleased with them for their transcendental loving service unto Him."

4:     Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence, and false ego—altogether these eight comprise My separated material energies.

PURPORT

THE SCIENCE OF GOD analyzes the constitutional position of the Lord and His diverse energies. Material Nature is called prakriti, or the energy of the Lord in His different incarnations (expansions) as described in The Svatvata Tantra: "For material creation, Lord Krishna's plenary expansion assumes three Vishnus: The first one, Mahavishnu, creates the total material energy known as the Maha Tatva. The second, Garbhodaksayee Vishnu, enters into all the universes to create diversities in each of them. The third, Kirodaksayee Vishnu, is diffused as the all-pervading Supersoul in all the universes and is known as Paramatma, Who is present even within the atoms. Anyone who knows these three Vishnus can be liberated from material entanglements."

This material world is a temporary manifestation of one of the energies of the Lord. All the activities of the material world are directed by the above-mentioned three Vishnu expansions of Lord Krishna. These are called incarnations.

5:     Besides this inferior nature, O mighty Arjuna, there is a superior energy of Mine which are all living entities who are struggling with material Nature and who sustain the universe.

PURPORT

HERE IT IS CLEARLY mentioned that living entities belong to the superior nature (or energy) of the Supreme Lord. The inferior energy is matter manifested in different elements, namely earth, water, fire, air, sky, mind, intelligence, and false ego. Both forms of material Nature, namely gross (earth, etc.) and subtle (mind, etc.), are products of the inferior energy. The living entities, who are exploiting these inferior energies for different purposes, are the superior energy of the Supreme Lord. Energies are always controlled by the Energetic, and as such living entities are always controlled by the Lord—they have no independent existence. They are never equally powerful, as men with a poor fund of knowledge think. The distinction between the living entities and the Lord is described in The Srimad Bhagwatam as follows: "Oh Thou Supreme Eternal! If the embodied living entities were eternal and all-pervading like You, then they would not be under Your control. But if the living entities are accepted as minute energies of Your Lordship, then they are at once subjected to Your Supreme control. Therefore, real liberation entails surrender by the living entities to Your control, and that surrender will make them happy. In that constitutional position only can they be controllers. Therefore, men with limited knowledge who advocate the monistic theory that God and the living entities are equal in all respects are actually misleading themselves and others."

The Supreme Lord Krishna is the only Controller, and all living entities are controlled by Him. These living entities are His superior energy because the quality of their existence is one and the same with the Supreme, but they are never equal with the Lord in quantity of power. While exploiting the gross and subtle inferior energy (matter), the superior energy (the living entity) forgets his real spiritual mind and intelligence. This forgetfulness is due to the influence of matter upon the living entity. But when the living entity becomes free from the influence of the illusory material energy, he attains the stage called Mukti, or liberation. The false ego, under the influence of material illusion, thinks, "I am matter and material acquisitions are mine." His actual position is realized when he is liberated from all material ideas, including the conception of his becoming one in all respects with God. Therefore, one may conclude that The Gita confirms the living entity to be only one of the multienergies of Krishna; and when this energy is freed from material contamination, it becomes fully Krishna conscious, or a liberated soul.

6:     Of all that is material and all that is spiritual in this world, know for certain that I am both its origin and dissolution.

7:     O conquerer of wealth [Arjuna], there is no Truth superior to Me. Everything rests upon Me, as pearls are strung on a thread.

8:     O son of Kunti [Arjuna], I am the taste of water, the light of the sun and the moon, the syllable Om in the Vedic mantras; I am the sound in ether and ability in man.

PURPORT

THE TASTE OF WATER is the active principle of water. Nobody likes to drink seawater because the pure taste of water is mixed with salt. Attraction for water depends on the purity of the taste, and this pure taste is one of the energies of the Lord. The irnpersonalist perceives the presence of the Lord in water by its taste, and the personalist also glorifies the Lord for His kindly supplying water to quench man's thirst. That is the way of perceiving the Supreme. Practically speaking, there is no controversy between personalism and impersonalism. One who knows God knows that the impersonal conception and personal conception are simultaneously present in everything and that there is no controversy. Therefore, Lord Chaitanya established His sublime doctrine: simultaneously one and different. The light of the sun and moon are also originally emanating from Brahmajyoti, which is the impersonal effulgence of the Lord. Similarly Pranavah, or the Omkara transcendental sound used in the beginning of every Vedic hymn to address the Supreme Lord, also emanates from Him. Because the impersonalists are very much afraid of addressing the Supreme Lord Krishna by His innumerable Names, they prefer to vibrate the transcendental sound Omkara. But they do not realize that Ornkara is the sound representation of Krishna. The jurisdiction of Krishna consciousness extends everywhere and one who knows Krishna consciousness is blessed. Those who do not know Krishna are in illusion, and so knowledge of Krishna is liberation and ignorance of Him is bondage.

9:     I am the original fragrance of the earth, and I am the light in fire. I am the life of all that lives, and I am the penances of all ascetics.

PURPORT

EVERYTHING IN THE material world has a certain flavor or fragrance, as the flavor and fragrance in a flower, or in the earth, in water, in fire, in air, etc. The uncontaminated flavor, the original flavor which permeates everything, is Krishna. Similarly, everything has a particular original taste, and this taste can be changed by the mixture of chemicals. So everything original has some smell, some fragrance, and some taste. Without fire we cannot run factories, we cannot cook, etc., and that fire is Krishna. The heat in the fire is Krishna. According to Vedic medicine, indigestion is due to a low temperature in the belly. So even for digestion fire is required. In Krishna we become aware that earth, water, fire, air, and every active principle, all chemicals and all material elements, are due to Krishna. The duration of man's life is also due to Krishna. Therefore, by the grace of Krishna man can prolong his life or diminish it. So Krishna consciousness is active in every sphere.

10:     O son of Pritha, know that I am the original seed of all existences, the intelligence of the intelligent, and the prowess of all powerful men.

11:     I am the strength of the strong, devoid of passion and desire. I am sex life which is not contrary to religious principles, O Lord of the Bharatas [Arjuna].

PURPORT

THE STRONG MAN'S strength should be applied to protect the weak, not for personal aggression. Similarly, sex life, according to religious principles (dharma), should be for the propagation of children, not otherwise. The responsibility of parents is then to make their offspring Krishna conscious.

12:     All states of being—be they of goodness, passion, or ignorance—are manifested by My energy. I am, in one sense, everything—but I am independent. I am not under the modes of this material Nature.

13:     Deluded by the three modes (goodness, passion, and ignorance), the whole world does not know Me Who am above them and inexhaustible.

PURPORT

THE WHOLE WORLD is enchanted by three modes of material Nature. Those who are bewildered by these three modes cannot understand that transcendental to this material Nature is the Supreme Lord, Krishna. In this material world everyone is under the influence of these three gunas and is thus bewildered. By nature living entities have particular types of body and particular types of psychic and biological activities accordingly. There are four classes of men functioning in the three material modes of Nature. Those who are purely in the modes of goodness are called Brahmins. Those who are purely in the modes of passion are called Kshatriyas. Those who are in the modes of both passion and ignorance are called Vaisyas. Those who are completely in ignorance are called Sudras. And those who are less than that are animals or animal life. However, these designations are not permanent. I may either be a Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaisya, or whatever—in any case, this life is temporary. But although life is temporary and we do not know what we are going to be in the next life, still, by the spell of this illusory energy, we consider ourselves in the light of this bodily conception of life, and we thus think we are American, Indian, Russian, or Brahmin, Hindu, Muslim, etc. And if we become entangled with the modes of material Nature, then we forget the Supreme Personality of Godhead Who is behind all these modes. So Lord Krishna says that men, deluded by these three modes of Nature, do not understand that behind the material background is the Supreme Godhead.

There are many different kinds of living entities—human beings, demigods, animals, etc.—and each and every one of them is under the influence of material Nature, and all of them have forgotten the transcendent Personality of Godhead. Those who are in the modes of passion and ignorance, and even those who are in the modes of goodness, cannot go beyond the impersonal Brahman conception of the Absolute Truth. They are bewildered before the Supreme Lord in His Supreme Personal Feature, possessing all beauty, opulence, knowledge, strength, fame, and renunciation. When even those who are in goodness cannot understand, what hope is there for those in passion and ignorance? Krishna consciousness is transcendental to all these three modes of material Nature, and those who are truly established in Krishna consciousness are actually liberated.

14:     This divine energy of Mine, consisting of the three modes of material Nature, is difficult to overcome. But those who have surrendered unto Me can easily cross beyond it.

15:     Those miscreants who are grossly foolish, lowest among Mankind, whose knowledge is stolen by illusion, and who are of the atheistic nature of demons, do not surrender unto Me.

PURPORT

IT IS SAID in The Bhagavad Gita that simply by surrendering oneself unto the Lotus Feet of the Supreme Personality Krishna one can surmount the stringent laws of material Nature. At this point a question arises: How is it that educated philosophers, scientists, businessmen, administrators, and all the leaders of ordinary men do not surrender to the Lotus Feet of Sri Krishna, the All-Powerful Personality of Godhead? Mukti, or liberation from the laws of material Nature, is sought by the abovementioned leaders in different ways and with great plans and perseverance for a great many years and births. But if that liberation is possible by simply surrendering unto the Lotus Feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, then why don't these intelligent and hardworking leaders adopt this simple method?

The Gita answers this question very frankly. Those really learned leaders of society like Brahma, Shiva, Kapila, Kumara, Manu, Vyasa, Devala, Ashita, Janaka, Prahlada, Bali, and later on Madhyacharya, Ramanujacharya, Sri Chaitanya, and many others who are faithful philosophers, politicians, educators, scientists, etc., surrender to the Lotus Feet of the Supreme Person, the All-Powerful Authority. Those who are not actually philosophers, scientists, educators, administrators, etc., but who pose themselves as such for material gain, do not accept the plan or path of the Supreme Lord. They have no idea of God; they simply manufacture their own worldly plans and consequently complicate the problems of material existence in their vain attempts to solve them. Because material energy (Nature) is so powerful, it can resist the unauthorized plans of the atheists and baffle the knowledge of "planning commissions."

The atheistic plan-makers are described herein by the word Duskritina, or "miscreants." Kritina means one who has performed meritorious work. The atheist plan-maker is sometimes very intelligent and meritorious also, because any gigantic plan, good or bad, must take intelligence to execute. But because the atheist's brain is improperly utilized in its opposition to the plan of the Supreme Lord, the atheistic plan-maker is called Duskritina, which indicates that his intelligence and efforts are misdirected.

In The Gita it is clearly mentioned that material energy works fully under the direction of the Supreme Lord. It has no independent authority. It works as the shadow moves, in accordance with the movements of the object. But still material energy is very powerful, and the atheist, due to his godless temperament, cannot know how it works; nor can he know the plan of the Supreme Lord. Under illusion and the modes of passion and ignorance, all his plans are baffled, as in the cases of Hiranya Kashipu and Ravana, whose plans were smashed to dust although they were both materially learned as scientists, philosophers, administrators, and educators. These Duskritinas, or miscreants, are of four different patterns, as outlined below:

(1) The Mudhas are those who are grossly foolish, like hardworking beasts of burden. They want to enjoy the fruits of their labor by themselves, and so do not want to part with them for the Supreme. The typical example of the beast of burden is the ass. This humble beast is made to work very hard by his master. The ass does not really know for whom he works so hard day and night. He remains satisfied by filling his stomach with a bundle of grass, sleeping for a while under fear of being beaten by his master, and satisfying his sex appetite at the risk of being repeatedly kicked by the opposite party. The ass sings poetry and philosophy sometimes, but this braying only disturbs others. This is the position of the foolish fruitive worker who does not know for whom he should work. He does not know that Karma (action) is meant for Yajna (sacrifice).

Most often, those who work very hard day and night to clear the burden of self-created duties say that they have not time to hear of the immortality of the living being. To such Mudhas, material gains, which are destructible, are life's all in all—despite the fact that the Mudhas enjoy only a very small fraction of the fruit of labor. Sometimes they spend sleepless days and nights for fruitive gain, and although they may have ulcers or indigestion, they are satisfied with practically no food; they are simply absorbed in working hard day and night for the benefit of illusory masters. Ignorant of their real Master, the foolish workers waste their valuable time serving Mammon. Unfortunately, they never surrender to the Supreme Master of all masters, nor do they take time to hear of Him from the proper sources. The swine who eat the soil do not care to accept sweet meats made of sugar and ghee. Similarly, the foolish worker will untiringly continue to hear of the sense-enjoyable tidings of the flickering mundane force that moves the material world.

(2) Another class of Duskritina is called the Naradhamas, or the lowest of Mankind. Nara means the human being, and Adhama means the lowest. Out of the 8,400,000 different species of living beings, there are 400,000 human species. Out of these there are innumerable lower forms of human life that are mostly uncivilized. Comparatively, there are only a very few classes of men who are actually civilized. The civilized human beings are those who have regulated principles of social, political, and religious life. Those who are socially and politically developed but who have no religious principles must be considered Naradhamas. Nor is religion without God religion, because the purpose of following religious principles is to know the Supreme Truth and man's relation with Him. In The Gita the Personality of Godhead clearly states that there is no authority above Him and that He is the Supreme Truth. The civilized form of human life is meant for man's reviving the lost consciousness of his eternal relation with the Supreme Truth, the Personality of Godhead Sri Krishna, Who is All-Powerful. Whoever loses this chance is classified as a Naradhama. We get information from revealed scriptures that when the baby is in the mother's womb (an extremely uncomfortable situation) he prays to God for deliverance and promises to worship Him alone as soon as he gets out. That is a natural instinct in every living being—to pray to God when he is in difficulty—because he is eternally related with God. But after his deliverance the child forgets the difficulties of birth and forgets his Deliverer also, being influenced by Maya, the illusory energy.

It is the duty of the guardians of children to revive the Divine consciousness dormant in them. The ten processes of reformatory ceremonies, as enjoined in The Manu-Smriti, which is the guide to religious principles, are meant for reviving God consciousness in the system of Varna Ashram. However, no process is strictly followed now in any part of the world, and therefore 99.9 per cent of the population is Naradhama.

Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, in propagating The Bhagwat Dharma, or activities of the devotees, has recommended that people submissively hear the message of the Personality of Godhead. The essence of this message is The Bhagavad Gita. The lowest of human beings can be delivered by this submissive hearing process only, but unfortunately, since they even deny giving an aural reception to these messages, what to speak of surrendering to the Will of the Supreme Lord? Naradhama, or the lowest of Mankind, willfully neglect the prime duty of the human being.

(3) The next class of Duskritina is called Mayaya Apahrita Jnana, or those persons whose erudite knowledge has been nullified by the influence of illusory material energy. They are mostly very learned fellows—great philosophers, poets, litterateurs, scientists, etc.—but the illusory energy misguides them and therefore they disobey the Supreme Lord. When the whole population becomes Naradhama, naturally all their so-called education is made null and void by the all-powerful energy of physical Nature. According to the standard of The Gita, a learned man is he who sees on equal terms the learned Brahmin, the dog, the cow, the elephant, and the dog-eater. That is the vision of a true devotee.

(4) The last class of Duskritina is called Asurabhabamashrita, or those of demonic principles. This class is openly atheistic. Some of them argue that the Supreme Lord can never descend upon this material world, but they are unable to give any tangible reasons as to why not. There are others who make Him subordinate to the impersonal feature, although the opposite is declared in The Gita. Envious of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the atheist will present a number of illicit incarnations manufactured in the factory of his brain. Such persons, whose very principle of life is to decry the Personality of Godhead, cannot surrender unto the Lotus Feet of Sri Krishna.

Sri Jamunacharya Albandru of South India said, "Oh my Lord! You are unknowable to persons involved with atheistic principles, despite Your Uncommon Qualities, Features, and Activities; and despite Your Personality being strongly confirmed by all the revealed scriptures in the quality of goodness; and despite Your being acknowledged by the famous authorities renowned for their depth of knowledge in the transcendental science and situated in the godly qualities."

Therefore, the (1) grossly foolish persons, (2) lowest of Mankind, (3) deluded speculators, and (4) the atheistic people, as above-mentioned, never surrender unto the Lotus Feet of the Personality of Godhead in spite of all scriptural and authoritative advice.

16:     O best among the Bharatas [Arjuna], four kinds of pious men render devotional service unto Me—the distressed, the desirer of wealth, the inquisitive, and he who is searching for knowledge of the Absolute.

PURPORT

UNLIKE THE MISCREANTS, these are adherents of the regulative principles of the scriptures, and they are called Sukritina, or those who obey the rules and regulations of scriptures, the moral and social laws, and who are, more or less, devoted to the Supreme Lord. Out of these there are four classes of men: (1) those who are sometimes distressed; (2) in need of money; (3) sometimes inquisitive; and (4) sometimes searching after knowledge of the Absolute Truth. These persons come to the Supreme Lord for devotional service under different conditions. These are not pure devotees because they have some aspiration to fulfill in exchange for devotional service. Pure devotional service is without aspiration and without desire for material profit. The Bhakti Rasamrita Sindhu defines pure devotion thusly: "One should render transcendental loving service to the Supreme Lord Krishna favorably, and without desire for material profit or gain through fruitive activities or philosophical speculation. That is called pure devotional service."

When these four kinds of persons come to the Supreme Lord for devotional service and are completely purified by the association of a pure devotee, they also become pure devotees. So far as the miscreants are concerned, for them devotional service is very difficult because their life is selfish, irregular, and without spiritual goals. But even some of them, by chance, when they come in contact with a pure devotee, also become pure devotees.

Those who are always busy with fruitive activities come to the Lord in material distress and at that time associate with pure devotees and become, in their distress, devotees of the Lord. Those who are simply frustrated also come sometimes to associate with the pure devotees and become inquisitive to know about God. Similarly, when the dry philosophers are frustrated in every field of knowledge, they sometimes want to learn of God and they come to the Supreme Lord to render devotional service, and thus transcend knowledge of the impersonal Brahman and the localized Paramatma, and come to the personal conception of Godhead by the Grace of the Supreme Lord, or by His pure devotee. On the whole, when the distressed, the inquisitive, the seeker of knowledge, and those who are in need of money are free from all material desires, and when they fully understand that material remuneration has no value for spiritual improvement, then they become pure devotees. So long as such a purified stage is not attained, devotees in transcendental service to the Lord are tainted with fruitive activities, seeking after mundane knowledge, etc. So, one has to transcend all this before one can come to the stage of pure devotional service.

17:     Of these, the wise one who is in full knowledge, in union with Me through pure devotional service, is the best. For I am very dear to him, and he is dear to Me.

18:     All these devotees are undoubtedly magnanimous souls, but he who is situated in knowledge of Me I consider verily to dwell in Me. Being engaged in My transcendental service, he attains Me.

19:     After many births and deaths, he who is actually in knowledge surrenders unto Me, knowing Me to be the Cause of all causes, and all that is. Such a great soul is very rare.

20:     Those whose minds are distorted by material desires surrender unto demigods and follow the particular rules and regulations of worship according to their own natures.

21:     I am in everyone's heart as the Supersoul; and as soon as one desires to worship the demigods, I make his faith steady so that he can devote himself to some particular deity.

PURPORT

GOD HAS GIVEN independence to everyone; therefore, if a person desires to have material enjoyment and wants very sincerely to have such facilities from the material demigods, the Supreme Lord, as Supersoul in everyone's heart, understands and gives facilities to such persons. As Supreme Father of all living entities, He does not interfere with their independence, but gives all facilities so that they can fulfill their material desires. Some may ask why the all-powerful God gives facilities to the living entities for enjoying this material world and so lets them fall into the trap of the illusory energy. The answer is that if the Supreme Lord as Supersoul does not give such facilities, then there is no meaning of independence. Therefore, He gives everyone full independence—whatever one likes—but His ultimate instruction we find in The Bhagavad Gita: Man should give up all other engagements and fully surrender unto Him. That will make him happy. Both the living entity and the demigods are subordinate to the Will of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; therefore the living entity cannot worship the demigod by his own desire, nor can the demigod bestow any benediction without the Supreme Will. As it is said, not a blade of grass moves without the Will of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Generally, persons who are distressed in the material world go to the demigods, as they are advised in the Vedic literature. A person wanting some particular thing may worship such and such a demigod. For example, a diseased person is recommended to worship the Sun-god; a person wanting education may worship the goddess of learning, Saraswati; and a person wanting a beautiful wife may worship the goddess Uma, the wife of Lord Shiva. In this way there are recommendations in the Shastras (Vedic scriptures) for different modes of worship of different demigods. And because a particular living entity wants to enjoy a particular material facility, the Lord inspires him with a strong desire to achieve that benediction from that particular demigod, and so he successfully receives the benediction. The particular mode of the devotional attitude of the living entity toward a particular type of demigod is also arranged by the Supreme Lord. The demigods cannot infuse the living entities with such an affinity; but because He is the Supreme Lord or the Supersoul Who is present in the heart of all living entities, Krishna gives impetus to man to worship certain demigods. The demigods are actually different parts of the universal body of the Supreme Lord; therefore, they have no independence. In the Vedic literature it is said: "The Supreme Personality of Godhead as Supersoul is also present within the heart of the demigod; therefore, He arranges through the demigod to fulfill the desire of the living entity. But both the demigod and the living entity are dependent on the Supreme Will. They are not independent."

22:     Endowed with such a faith, he seeks favors of the demigod and obtains his desires. But in actuality these benefits are bestowed by Me alone.

23:     Men of small intelligence worship the demigods, and their fruits are limited and temporary. Those who worship the demigods go to the planets of the demigods, but My devotees reach My Supreme Abode.

PURPORT

SOME COMMENTATORS on The Gita say that one who worships a demigod can reach the Supreme Lord, but here it is clearly stated that the worshipers of demigods go to the different planetary systems where various demigods are situated, just as a worshiper of the sun achieves the sun or a worshiper of the demigod of the moon achieves the moon. Similarly, if anyone wants to worship a demigod like Indra, he can attain that particular god's planet. It is not that everyone, regardless of whatever demigod is worshiped, will reach the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is denied here, for it is clearly stated that the worshipers of demigods go to different planets in the material world, but the devotee of the Supreme Lord goes directly to the Supreme Planet of the Personality of Godhead.

24:     Unintelligent men, who know Me not, think that I have assumed this Form and Personality. Due to their small knowledge, they do not know My higher nature, which is changeless and supreme.

PURPORT

THOSE WHO ARE WORSHIPERS of demigods have been described as less intelligent persons, and here the impersonalists are similarly described. Lord Krishna in His Personal Form is speaking before Arjuna and still, due to ignorance, they argue that the Supreme Lord ultimately has no Form. Jamunacharya, a great devotee of the Lord, in the disciplic succession from Ramanujacharya, has recited two very nice verses in this connection. He says, "My dear Lord, personalities and devotees like Vyasdeva and Narada know You to be the Personality of Godhead. By understanding different Vedic literatures, Your characteristics, Your Form, and Your activities can be known; and one can thus understand that You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead. But those who are in the modes of passion and ignorance, the demons, the non-devotees, cannot understand You. They are unable to understand You. However expert such non-devotees may be in discussing the Vedantas and the Upanishads and other Vedic literature, it is not possible for them to understand the Personality of Godhead."

25:     I am never manifest to the foolish and unIntelligent. For them I am covered by My eternal creative potency [Maya]; and so the deluded world knows Me not, Who am unborn and infallible.

26:     O Arjuna, as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, I know everything which has happened in the past, all that is happening in the present, and all things that are yet to come. I also know all living entities; but Me no one knows.

PURPORT

HERE THE QUESTION of personality and impersonality is clearly stated. If Krishna, the Form of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is considered by the impersonalists to be Maya, to be material, then He would, like the living entity, change His Body and forget everything in His past life. Anybody with a material body cannot remember his past life, nor can he foretell his future life, nor can he predict the outcome of his present life; therefore, he cannot know what is happening in past, present, and future. Unless one is liberated from material contamination he cannot know past, present, and future. Unlike the ordinary human being, Lord Krishna clearly says that He completely knows what happened in the past, what is happening in the present, and what will happen in the future. In the Fourth Chapter we have seen that Lord Krishna remembers instructing Vivasvan, the Sun-god, millions of years ago. Krishna knows every living entity because He is situated in every living being's heart as the Supreme Soul. But despite His presence in every living entity as Supersoul, and His presence beyond the material sky as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the less intelligent cannot realize Him as the Supreme Person. Certainly the transcendental Body of Sri Krishna is not perishable. He is just like the sun, and Maya is like the cloud. In the material world we can see there is the sun and there are clouds and different stars and planets. The clouds may cover all these in the sky temporarily, but this covering is only apparent to our limited vision. The sun, moon, and stars are not actually covered. Similarly, Maya cannot cover the Supreme Lord. By His internal potency He is not manifest to the less intelligent class of men. As it is stated in the third verse of this chapter, out of millions and millions of men, some try to become perfect in this human form of life, and out of thousands and thousands of such perfected men, one can hardly understand what Lord Krishna is. Even if somebody is perfected by realization of impersonal Brahman or localized Paramatma, he cannot possibly understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Sri Krishna, without being in Krishna consciousness.

27:     O scion of Bharata [Arjuna], O conquerer of the foe, all living entities are born into delusion, overcome by the dualities of desire and hate.

28:     Persons who have acted piously in previous lives and in this life, whose sinful actions are completely eradicated, and who are freed from the duality of delusion, engage themselves in My service with determination.

PURPORT

THOSE ELIGIBLE for elevation to the transcendental position are mentioned in this verse. For those who are sinful, atheistic, foolish, and deceitful, it is very difficult to transcend the duality of desire and hate. Only those who have passed their Iife in practicing the regulative principles of religion, who have acted piously and have conquered sinful reactions, can accept devotional service and gradually rise to the pure knowledge of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Then, gradually, they can meditate in trance on the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is the process of being situated on the spiritual platform. This elevation is possible in Krishna consciousness in the association of pure devotees who can deliver one from delusion. It is stated in The Srimad Bhagwatam that if one actually wants to be liberated he must render service to the devotees; but one who associates with materialistic people is on the path leading to the darkest region of existence. All the devotees of the Lord traverse this earth just to recover the conditioned souls from their delusion. The impersonalists do not know that to forget their constitutional position as subordinate to the Supreme Lord is the greatest violation of God's law, and unless one is reinstated in his own constitutional position it is not possible to understand the Supreme Personality, or to be fully engaged in His transcendental loving service with determination.

29:     Intelligent persons who are endeavoring for liberation from old age and death take refuge in Me in devotional service. They are actually Brahman because they entirely know everything about transcendental activities.

PURPORT

BIRTH, DEATH, OLD AGE, and diseases affect this material body, but not the spiritual body. There is no birth, death, old age, and disease in the spiritual body, so one who attains a spiritual body and becomes one of the associates of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and is engaged in eternal devotional service, is really liberated. Aham Brahmasmi: I am spirit. It is said that one should understand that he is Brahman—spirit soul. This Brahma conception of life is also in devotional service, as described in this verse. The pure devotees are transcendentally situated on the Brahman platform and they know everything about transcendental and material activities.

30:     Those who know Me as the Supreme Lord, as the governing principle of the material manifestation, who know Me as the One underlying all the demigods and as the One sustaining all sacrifices, can, with steadfast mind, understand and know Me even at the time of death.

PURPORT

MANY SUBJECTS have been discussed in this chapter: the man in distress, the inquisitive man, the man in want of material necessities, knowledge of Brahman, knowledge of Paramatma, liberation from birth, death, and diseases; and worship of the Supreme Lord. However, he who is actually elevated in Krishna consciousness doesn't care for the different processes. He simply directly engages himself in activities of Krishna consciousness, and thereby factually attains his constitutional position as eternal servitor of Lord Krishna. In such a disposition he takes pleasure in hearing and glorifying the Supreme Lord in pure devotional service. He is convinced that by doing so, all his objectives will be fulfilled. This determined faith is called dridha vrata, and it is the beginning of Bhaktiyoga or transcendental loving service. That is the verdict of all scriptures. This Seventh Chapter of The Gita is the substance of that conviction.

Thus end the Bhaktivedanta Purports to the Seventh Chapter of The Srimad Bhagavad Gita, in the matter of Knowledge of the Absolute.

BG 6 (1968) - BG 8 (1968)