In the Vedas it is stated that:
- nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām
- eko bahūnāṁ vidadhāti kāmān
- (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13)
"God is the supreme living being amongst all living beings." Nityo nityanam: "And He's the supreme eternal amongst all the eternals." We are also eternal. Because we are part and parcel of God, we have got all the qualities of God. But because we are minute part and particle of God, therefore all the qualities of God are there in minute particle.
The example is just like the ocean. Ocean water is vast, and drop of ocean water, you analyze chemically, you will find all the chemical ingredients in that drop of water as there is in the water. The difference is of quantity. In the drop of water there is salt, and in the vast mass water in the ocean there is also salt. But the salt containing in the ocean water is very, very big quantity than the salt containing in the drop of water. And another example can be given—these are Vedic examples—just like the fire and the sparks of the fire. We have seen, experienced: when there is fire, sometimes there is some sound, phut!—immediately hundreds and thousands of sparks coming out. Now these sparks, they are also fire, but not as big as the original fire. But they are fire.
Therefore our philosophy, we, following the footsteps of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu: acintya bhedābheda-tattva. The difference is simultaneously we are one with God and different from God. One in quality. God is spirit, we are also spirit. He is Supersoul; we are individual. But God is great, and we are minute fragment. That is difference. Therefore, simultaneously we are one and different, one in quality but different in quantity. You accept also, "God is great." And we say that nobody can be greater than God, neither anyone can be equal to God. That is our philosophy. Asama urdhva. Asama. Sama means equal. Nobody can be equal to God. That is not possible. God is one.
You may have some understanding that in the Vedic literature there is mention of many demigods. But the demigods, they are also living entities—a little more powerful than the human beings, that's all. Just like here, in this world also, we find somebody is more powerful than others. But that does not mean he is God. God is supreme, all-powerful. Here you may be a little more powerful than me, but another may be found who is more powerful than you; another you can find more powerful than him. In this way go on. There is no limit. Anyone, you will find somebody lower than him and higher than him. But nobody can say that, "I am the supreme." Nobody can say. That is not possible.
According to our Vedic literature, Brahmā, the creator of this universe, he is considered to be the highest creature within this universe, but he is also not God. That is stated in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam: tene brahma hṛdā ādi-kavaye muhyanti yat sūrayaḥ (SB 1.1.1). God instructed him to create. Ādi-kavi. He is the original creature within this material world. Somebody may question that "If he is original creature, than how he got this knowledge of creating?" So that is explained: tene brahma hṛdā ādi-kavaye. Hṛdā: "from the heart God instructed." God is situated in everyone's heart. That is called Paramātmā. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānām hṛd-deśe arjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). God has got three features: Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān. Brahman is impersonal feature, and then Paramātmā, the localized feature, and Bhagavān, the personal feature.
- vadanti tat tattva-vidas
- tattvaṁ yaj jñānam advayam
- brahmeti paramātmeti
- bhagavān iti śabdyate
- (SB 1.2.11)
The Absolute Truth is one, advaya-jñāna, without any duality, but according to our capacity, we realize the Absolute Truth from three different angles of vision. So one of them is realization of God in His impersonal Brahman feature, and another realization is to realize Him . . . generally, the jñānīs, the philosophers, the speculators, by dint of their own knowledge, they realize the Absolute Truth in His impersonal Brahman feature. And those who are yogīs, they realize this God, the Supreme Lord, as Paramātmā within the heart. And those who are devotees, they realize the Supreme Personality of Godhead as the Supreme Person. But the Paramātmā and impersonal Brahman and this person God, they are all the same thing.
The example is given, just like the sunshine, the sun planet, and within the sun planet, the sun-god. According to Vedic religion, Vedic conception, every planet contains living entities. That is also very natural to conclude, because within this material world, everything is made of five elements, gross: earth, water, air . . . earth, water, fire, air and sky. These are gross elements. And the subtle elements are mind, intelligence and ego. So in some of the planets earth is prominent, some of the planets water is prominent, some of the planets the fire is prominent. In this way these five elements, gross elements.
Every planet in the material world is made of these five gross elements. So just like here also we can experience that some of the living entities, just like the fishes, they are living in the water very peacefully. But if you are put into the water, you will not be comfortable. Perhaps you will die. Similarly, if the fishes are taken—that also we experienced—from the water, they will die on the land. Here we can see that some of the living entities, they can live comfortably within water. Some of the living entities, they can live comfortably on land, some of them in the air. Similarly, why not some of them in fire? Because after all, fire is also one of the material elements.
So according to Vedic scripture there is life in the sun planet also. They have got fiery bodies. That's all. That is the difference. Just like the fishes here, we see they have got watery bodies, similarly, one may have got fiery body. From logic, from argument, we cannot deny that. So this example, that in the sun planet there is a predominating deity or president or god, whatever you call, he is called sun-god, and his name is also mentioned in the Bhagavad-gītā, Vivasvān. His name is also there. And Kṛṣṇa says:
- imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ
- proktavān aham avyayam
- vivasvān manave prāhur
- manur ikṣvākave 'bravīt
- (BG 4.1)
Kṛṣṇa says that "This instruction, bhakti-yoga instruction of Bhagavad-gītā, was first given, imparted by Me, to the sun-god, Vivasvān." That is mentioned in the Bhagavad-gītā.