661213 - Lecture CC Madhya 20.156-162 - New York

Lectures by Date, 1966

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

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661211CC.NY - December 11, 1966

Prabhupāda:

ete cāṁśa-kalāḥ puṁsaḥ

kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam

indrāri-vyākulaṁ lokaṁ

mṛḍayanti yuge yuge

(CC Madhya 20.156)

jñāna, yoga, bhakti—tina sādhanera vaśe

brahma, ātmā, bhagavān-trividha prakāśe

(CC Madhya 20.157)

So the Absolute Truth is manifested according to the vision of the seer. The Absolute Truth is one without second, but according to the capacity of the seer, the Absolute Truth is manifested either as Brahman, impersonal Brahman, or localized Paramātmā or the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So this point we have discussed. So Lord Caitanya is giving one evidence from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam:

vadanti tat tattva-vidas

tattvaṁ yaj jñānam advayam

brahmeti paramātmeti

bhagavān iti śabdyate

(SB 1.2.11)

In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is said that "The Absolute Truth is one, without any duality. He is simply named in different way." And what are the different names? "Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān."

brahma—aṅga-kānti tāṅra, nirviśeṣa prakāśe

sūrya yena carma-cakṣe jyotirmaya bhāse

(CC Madhya 20.159)

Lord Caitanya says that, "The conception of Brahman is that it is the rays of the body of Kṛṣṇa. Just like the sunshine is the rays of the body of the sun disc, similarly," brahma-aṅga-kānti tāṅra nirviśeṣa prakāśe. And in that brahma-jyoti, or rays, there is no variegatedness. Just like if you all of a sudden see to the sun, you don't find any variegatedness in the sky. It appears just like only dazzling effulgence. But when the sunlight is not there, we can see millions and millions of stars in the firmament. So in the Upaniṣad also, it is prayed that, "My Lord, You kindly move this curtain of glaring effulgence so then I can actually see You."

So one who is dazzled by this glaring effulgence of the rays of Kṛṣṇa, they can realize the Supreme Lord, or the Supreme Absolute Truth, as impersonal. Sūrya yena carma-cakṣe jyotirmaya bhāse. Carma-cakṣe, with our present eyes, defective . . . all our senses are defective. We are very much proud of our eyes. I want to see personally. But we do not know that with these eyes or any sense, they are all defective. They are not perfect. Just like in the glare of the sunshine, oh, we see nothing. We see sometimes darkness. So we cannot believe these eyes or senses. We have to take information of perfect knowledge from the authorities. That is the Vedic way.

So those who want to see God, or the Supreme Absolute Truth, by the agency of their imperfect senses, they say that God is imperson. They're imperfect. That is a realization of the imperfect senses. Perfectly, the perfectly vision, perfect vision of the Supreme Lord is a person. Just like nobody can enter into the sun disc. They can say from distant place, "Oh, there is nothing. It is simply fire." But from scripture we understand, "No, that is a planet." And as in this planet we have got so many variegatedness, similarly, in that planet also, there are . . . in every planet.

There is no reason to disbelieve that in, in the, in other planets there is no life, there is no variegatedness. No. According to Vedic literature, it is not acceptable. Each and every planet, there is variegatedness as we find in this planet. The difference is that in some of the planets earthly matter is prominent, some of the planets fiery elements are prominent. So in the sun, sun planet, fiery elements is very prominent. There the living entities and everything, they are made of fire. So He's giving another evidence from Brahma-saṁhitā:

yasya prabhā prabhavato jagad-aṇḍa-koṭi-

koṭiṣv aśeṣa-vasudhādi-vibhūti-bhinnam

tad brahma niṣkalam anantam aśeṣa-bhūtaṁ

govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi

(Bs 5.40)

"I worship the primeval Lord, Govinda, whose bodily effulgence is brahma-jyoti." The brahma-jyoti, that is nothing but His bodily effulgence. And in that brahma-jyoti . . . yasya prabhā prabhavato jagad-aṇḍa-koṭi. Or that brahma-jyoti being manifested, there are innumerable planets and universes, there are. The same example: just like in the sun, sunshine, there are innumerable planets, so similarly, in the original shine, Kṛṣṇa shine—this is sunshine; the original shine is Kṛṣṇa shining—in that effulgence there are innumerable Vaikuṇṭha planets, spiritual planets. Ekāṁśena sthito jagat (BG 10.42).

In the Bhagavad-gītā, you'll find, all these planetary manifestation is situated in one fourth of His effulgence. Three fourth of the manifestation are in the spiritual sky. Tad brahma niṣkalam anantam aśeṣa-bhūtam. Aśeṣa-bhūtam. It is so much extended that nobody can calculate how far. We cannot calculate even the sunshine, how far it is extended, and what to speak of that original effulgence. So our knowledge is always imperfect. We cannot study even millions and millionth part of the opulence of the Supreme Lord. So it is futile to deny God because we cannot calculate His potencies and expansion of potencies.

paramātmā yeṅho, teṅho kṛṣṇera eka aṁśa

ātmāra 'ātmā' haya kṛṣṇa sarva-avataṁsa

(CC Madhya 20.161)

Now, this localized aspect, Paramātmā . . . in individual soul, living, He's called Paramātmā. So that Paramātmā, Supersoul, is also a part representation. The, the body of Kṛṣṇa is sac-cid-ānanda vigraha (Bs 5.1).

Sac, cid, ānanda—three, three spiritual divisions. Not division actually; they are one. But for our understanding we analyze in that way, sac, cid, ānanda. Sat. Sat means eternity. Brahman realization, impersonal Brahman realization, is realization of eternity; Paramātmā realization means eternity and knowledge; and Bhagavān realization means full realization: eternity, knowledge and bliss.

Simple eternal realization is without factual knowledge and without bliss—impersonal. The impersonalist, they cannot enjoy the transcendental bliss. They simply stay as eternal. That's all. Śānta-rasa. It is called śānta-rasa, peaceful śānta-rasa. There is no exchange. And further development is dāsya-rasa. And further development is sākhya-rasa. And further development is vātsalya-rasa. And further, ultimate development is mādhurya-rasa.

So in the spiritual atmosphere there are different degrees of realization. So this Brahman realization is the first step, and the Paramātmā realization is the second step, and Bhagavān realization, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, that is the ultimate stage.

He's giving some evidences from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and Bhagavad-gītā also:

kṛṣṇam enam avehi tvam

ātmānam akhilātmanām

jagad-dhitāya so'py atra

dehīvābhāti māyayā

(CC Madhya 20.162)

Now, in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam some advanced devotee is indicating Kṛṣṇa, kṛṣṇam enam avehi: "This Kṛṣṇa . . ." When Kṛṣṇa was present in person, many persons studied Him in a different way. But one of them, who is pure devotee, he is describing about Kṛṣṇa that enam, "This Kṛṣṇa, this Kṛṣṇa," kṛṣṇam enam avehi, "you should try to understand." What is that? Tvam ātmānam akhilātmanām. Ātmānam akhilātmanām. Ātmā means the self, or soul.

So we individual soul, we are part and parcel, fragmental part and parcel of the Supreme. Therefore Kṛṣṇa is to be understood as the source of all individual selves. Akhilātmā. Akhila means all. Then jagad-dhitāya: "Now, He has come, He has descended out of His causeless mercy," jagad-dhitāya, "for the benefit of this world, this planet." Dehīva ābhāti. Just like He appears ordinary person. Ābhāti māyayā. Māyā . . . this māyā is not illusion. This māyā means by His internal potency. By His internal potency, He can appear just like us, but He's not like us. He's the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Then:

atha vā bahunaitena

kiṁ jñātena tavārjuna

viṣṭabhyāham idaṁ kṛtsnam

ekāṁśena sthito jagat

(BG 10.42)

Now the Lord says, Kṛṣṇa says, when Arjuna asked Him, "Kṛṣṇa, will You describe something about Your different potencies, by which You are working in this material world?" Then Kṛṣṇa described so many things. Out of that one verse is that atha vā bahunaitena kiṁ jñātena tavārjuna: "My dear Arjuna, I have described in nutshell many of My potencies in displaying in this manifested world, but you can understand one thing, that by one part, by manifestation of one of My part, I am . . . I am entered all the universe and all the hearts of living entities."

Just like by one reflection of the sun, if you put millions of pot with water, by one of the potencies of the sun, you'll find the sun is represented in every pot. During noontime, by one of the potency of the sun, you can feel, five thousand miles away, the sun is just over your head. So as it is possible even for a material object, so this Kṛṣṇa, the supreme spiritual form, He has got many potencies which you cannot calculate. In the Vedic literature it is said, parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate (Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 6.8).

He has got unlimited potencies. (break) (end)