View source for Even for material understanding which is beyond our sense perception we have to receive knowledge from authority. Similarly, we cannot understand what is God. But from the authoritative sources we can understand that God is so great

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{{terms|"even for material understanding which is beyond our sense perception we have to receive knowledge from authority. Similarly, we cannot understand what is God. But from the authoritative sources we can understand that God is so great"}}
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[[Category:Even For]]
[[Category:Material Understanding]]
[[Category:Which Is]]
[[Category:Beyond Sense Perception]]
[[Category:We Have To]]
[[Category:Receiving Knowledge]]
[[Category:authority]]
[[Category:similarly]]
[[Category:Cannot Understand God]]
[[Category:What Is God]]
[[Category:Authoritative Sources]]
[[Category:We Can]]
[[Category:Understanding God]]
[[Category:God Is Great]]
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<div id="Lectures" class="section" sec_index="4" parent="compilation" text="Lectures"><h2>Lectures</h2>
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<div id="Bhagavad-gita_As_It_Is_Lectures" class="sub_section" sec_index="0" parent="Lectures" text="Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures"><h3>Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures</h3>
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<div id="LectureonBG85NewYorkOctober261966_0" class="quote" parent="Bhagavad-gita_As_It_Is_Lectures" book="Lec" index="289" link="Lecture on BG 8.5 -- New York, October 26, 1966" link_text="Lecture on BG 8.5 -- New York, October 26, 1966">
<div class="heading">So even for material understanding which is beyond our sense perception we have to receive knowledge from authority. Similarly, we cannot understand what is God. But from the authoritative sources we can understand that God is so great. Just like in the Brahma-saṁhitā it is stated that yasyaika-niśvasita-kālam athāvalambya jīvanti loma-vilajā jagad-aṇḍa-nāthāḥ (Bs. 5.48)—that you see this universe, and in each universe there is a predominating demigod which is called Brahmā, or jagad-aṇḍa-nātha, the master of the universe. That master of the universe is living, only taking the duration of breathing of Mahā-Viṣṇu. Just like you are breathing, inhaling and exhaling. So when Mahā-Viṣṇu exhales, innumerable universes come out.
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<span class="link">[[Vanisource:Lecture on BG 8.5 -- New York, October 26, 1966|Lecture on BG 8.5 -- New York, October 26, 1966]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="text"><p style="display: inline;">Anta-kāle means "at the time of death." "At the time of death, one who remembers Me..." Anta-kāle ca mām eva. Mām eva. Mām eva means... Eva means "certainly," and me means..., mām means "me." "Certainly Me." The Supreme Personality of Godhead says, "Certainly Me." That means Kṛṣṇa, or Kṛṣṇa's expansion, the form—not formless. Mām. Formless... This is explained in the Twelfth Chapter, that kleśo 'dhikataras teṣām avyaktāsakta-cetasām ([[Vanisource:BG 12.5 (1972)|BG 12.5]]). One who is attached to the impersonal Brahman, then his business is troublesome. Kleśa. Kleśa means troublesome. Avyaktā hi gatir duḥkhaṁ dehavadbhir avāpyate. Dehavat. Because we are in this material body and our senses are not able to understand except something form. So if by artificial way I want to think of formless, it becomes a troublesome business.</p>
<p>Actually, God is not formless, but His form is different. Everything has form. Without form, there is nothing. Even the smallest atom, it has got form. Just like in geometry, they describe a point has no length, no breadth—because the point is so small that our instrument, measuring instrument, fails to measure what is its length or breadth. Therefore they give it up, that "It has no length and no breadth." But actually, it is not a fact. It has got length and breadth, but we have no instrument, we have no power to see.</p>
<p>So spirit soul is aṇor aṇīyān mahato mahīyān. Spirit soul is the greater than the greatest and it is the smaller than the smallest. So we cannot see the smallest; we cannot see the greatest. Greater than the greatest. We can think of the greatest, the sky, the expansion of the sky—unlimited. But such skies, God is so great that innumerable, millions and billions of skies are within Him. In the Brahma-saṁhitā it is stated, yasyaika-niśvasita-kālam athāvalambya... (Bs. 5.48). Therefore we have to refer to the authoritative scripture to get knowledge. As I told you the other day, that transcendental knowledge has to be acquired by aural reception. There is no other way. Just like, practical. The geometrical calculation is that the sun, the dimension of the sun is many, many hundred, thousands of..., greater than the earth. But we are seeing just like a disk. So our sense is unable to see how great it is. It is a material thing. So how we can see the greatness of God with these material eyes? It is not possible. As you are understanding about the sun by authoritative statement of the geometry, that this sun globe is so great, so many hundred thousands greater than the... But you are seeing just like a disk. So how to get the knowledge of the sun? By receiving through the ear. That's all. Simply you have to receive the knowledge from the authority. It is not that practically you are experimenting by going to the sun, that it is so great and so long, so broad. That is not possible. You have to receive such knowledge through authority. That's all.</p>
<p>So even for material understanding which is beyond our sense perception we have to receive knowledge from authority. Similarly, we cannot understand what is God. But from the authoritative sources we can understand that God is so great. Just like in the Brahma-saṁhitā it is stated that yasyaika-niśvasita-kālam athāvalambya jīvanti loma-vilajā jagad-aṇḍa-nāthāḥ (Bs. 5.48)—that you see this universe, and in each universe there is a predominating demigod which is called Brahmā, or jagad-aṇḍa-nātha, the master of the universe. That master of the universe is living, only taking the duration of breathing of Mahā-Viṣṇu. Just like you are breathing, inhaling and exhaling. So when Mahā-Viṣṇu exhales, innumerable universes come out. And when He inhales, all these universes go into His body. So just imagine how great He is, how big He is. That is not conceivable with our limited sense. But if we believe, then you get the perfect knowledge. There is no doubt. If you don't believe, there is no other way. You cannot understand what is God, or what is His length, what is His breadth.</p>
<p>So whenever in the scripture it is said that God is without form, that means He has no form which we have got experience. But He has got form. Just the same example. When you cannot measure, you say a point has no length, no breadth. But actually, it is not a fact. The point has length and breadth. We have no instrument to measure it, that's all. Similarly, when as soon as we say "form," we understand this form. Just like I am seeing your form, you are seeing my form. So we understand that God may be a form, and because God also comes in this form also. Just like in Bhagavad-gītā it is said, avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam: ([[Vanisource:BG 9.11 (1972)|BG 9.11]]) "Because I have come in the form of an ordinary human being, they are deriding: 'How He can be God?' " So many scholars, so many philosophers, they deny to accept Kṛṣṇa, God. Why? Because He appears to be just like you and me, a human being. But God can appear in any way because He is all-powerful. He sometimes appears as fish; sometimes He appears as tortoise; sometimes He appears like a boar; sometimes He appears half-lion, half-man. Similarly sometimes He appears man, sometimes He appears as woman.</p>
<p>So we cannot restrict God, that "He cannot be like this. He cannot come here. He cannot take any shape." No. He is not under my restriction. Then how God is great? If I put God under my restricted knowledge or limited knowledge, then God becomes under my understanding. But the Vedic language says, avan mānasa-gocaraḥ. He's beyond the expression of words. He is beyond the conception of mind. He is greatest of the great, and the smallest of the small. How He's the smallest of the... We are also, because we are spirit spark. Now, do we know what is our measurement? That we can find in the śāstra. I have several times mentioned that one ten-thousandth part of the tip of your hair is the measurement of the soul. Now you have no instrument. You cannot measure even the tip of your hair, and what to speak of ten-thousandth part of it. Impossible. Therefore because you cannot find out by dissecting this body where is that spirit spark... There is, but your present eyes cannot find it out. Therefore you say nirākāra, or no form. But actually, it has form.</p>
<p>We get information from the śāstras. Just like we get complete information of the sun globe from geography or from authoritative sources, scientist, astrologer, astronomer, mathematician, so similarly, you can get information what is the form of individual soul, what is the form of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. They are there. But His form is not like your form or my form. The Brahma-saṁhitā says, sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha (Bs. 5.1). His form is full of bliss, and full of knowledge, and eternal. But this body, this body, our body, is neither eternal, neither full of knowledge, neither blissful. So we can distinguish what is the form of God. Sac-cid-ānanda. Sat. Sat means eternal, cit means full of knowledge, and ānanda means full of blissfulness.</p>
<p>So this body is neither blissful, neither eternal, nor full of knowledge. It is full of ignorance and full of miseries and not permanent; temporary. So God hasn't got such body. Therefore sometimes it is said in the Vedic literature: formless. Formless means the form which you can conceive at the present moment, God hasn't got that form. But when He descends like you and me, that is His mercy. Paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām ([[Vanisource:BG 4.8 (1972)|BG 4.8]]). He comes just to..., being visible to our eyes. Just like this picture. This picture is not... It is not to be taken that He's not God, He is picture. The picture of God is also God. Picture of Kṛṣṇa is Kṛṣṇa. The sound, name Kṛṣṇa, that is also Kṛṣṇa. But just to give us facility to understand... You do not think that this picture of Kṛṣṇa is painted by some artist's imagination. No. It is not imagination. There is description in the scripture what is the form of Kṛṣṇa.</p>
:veṇuṁ kvaṇantam aravinda-dalāyatākṣaṁ
:barhāvataṁsam asitāmbuda-sundarāṅgam
:kandarpa-koṭi-kamanīya-viśeṣa-śobhaṁ
:govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi
:(Bs. 5.30)
<p> Veṇu means flute. He is playing on flute. Veṇuṁ kvaṇantam aravinda-dalāyatākṣam. Aravinda means lotus petal. His eyes are so nice, like lotus petal. Veṇuṁ kvaṇantam aravinda-dalāyatākṣaṁ barhāvataṁsam (Bs. 5.30). Barhāvataṁsam means the peacock feather. You'll find Kṛṣṇa and Viṣṇu, He is very fond of this peacock feather. Everywhere you'll find the peacock feather. Barhāvataṁsam asitāmbuda-sundarāṅgam. And His color is a cloud, darkish cloud. Asita, asitāmbuda. Ambuda means cloud and asita means blackish. Sundarāṅgam. But still, He is so beautiful... Veṇuṁ kvaṇantam aravinda-dalāyatākṣaṁ barhāvataṁsam asitāmbuda-sundarāṅgam, kandarpa-koṭi (Bs. 5.30). He is so beautiful that He surpasses the beauty of millions of Cupid. Cupid is supposed to be very beautiful. It impels lust, Cupid. So He is many more thousands times beautiful than Cupid. Kandarpa-koṭi-kamanīya-viśeṣa-śobham (Bs. 5.30). Viśeṣa-śobham. He has got His particular beauty. Govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi **. In this way there are description.</p>
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