SB 03.26.05 gunair vicitrah srjatim... cited

Expressions researched:
"gunair vicitrah srjatim" |"sa iha jnana-guhaya" |"sa-rupah prakrtim prajah" |"vilokya mumuhe sadyah"

SB Canto 3

SB 3.26.5, Translation and Purport:

Divided into varieties by her threefold modes, material nature creates the forms of the living entities, and the living entities, seeing this, are illusioned by the knowledge—covering feature of the illusory energy.

Material energy has the power to cover knowledge, but this covering cannot be applied to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It is applicable only to the prajāḥ, or those who are born with material bodies, the conditioned souls. The different kinds of living entities vary according to the modes of material nature, as explained in Bhagavad-gītā and other Vedic literature. In Bhagavad-gītā (7.12) it is very nicely explained that although the modes of goodness, passion and ignorance are born of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He is not subject to them. In other words, the energy emanating from the Supreme Personality of Godhead cannot act on Him; it acts on the conditioned souls, who are covered by the material energy. The Lord is the father of all living entities because He impregnates material energy with the conditioned souls. Therefore, the conditioned souls get bodies created by the material energy, whereas the father of the living entities is aloof from the three modes.

It is stated in the previous verse that the material energy was accepted by the Supreme Personality of Godhead in order that He might exhibit pastimes for the living entities who wanted to enjoy and lord it over the material energy. This world was created through the material energy of the Lord for the so-called enjoyment of such living entities. Why this material world was created for the sufferings of the conditioned souls is a very intricate question. There is a hint in the previous verse in the word līlayā, which means "for the pastimes of the Lord." The Lord wants to rectify the enjoying temperament of the conditioned souls. It is stated in Bhagavad-gītā that no one is the enjoyer but the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This material energy is created, therefore, for anyone who pretends to enjoy. An example can be cited here that there is no necessity for the government's creation of a separate police department, but because it is a fact that some of the citizens will not accept the state laws, a department to deal with criminals is necessary. There is no necessity, but at the same time there is a necessity. Similarly, there was no necessity to create this material world for the sufferings of the conditioned souls, but at the same time there are certain living entities, known as nitya-baddha, who are eternally conditioned. We say that they have been conditioned from time immemorial because no one can trace out when the living entity, the part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, became rebellious against the supremacy of the Lord.

It is a fact that there are two classes of men—those who are obedient to the laws of the Supreme Lord and those who are atheists or agnostics, who do not accept the existence of God and who want to create their own laws. They want to establish that everyone can create his own laws or his own religious path. Without tracing out the beginning of the existence of these two classes, we can take it for granted that some of the living entities revolted against the laws of the Lord. Such entities are called conditioned souls, for they are conditioned by the three modes of material nature. Therefore the words guṇair vicitrāḥ are used here.

In this material world there are 8,400,000 species of life. As spirit souls, they are all transcendental to this material world. Why, then, do they exhibit themselves in different stages of life? The answer is given here: they are under the spell of the three modes of material nature. Because they were created by the material energy, their bodies are made of the material elements. Covered by the material body, the spiritual identity is lost, and therefore the word mumuhe is used here, indicating that they have forgotten their own spiritual identity. This forgetfulness of spiritual identity is present in the jīvas, or souls, who are conditioned, being subject to be covered by the energy of material nature. Jñāna-gūhayā is another word used. Gūhā means "covering." Because the knowledge of the minute conditioned souls is covered, they are exhibited in so many species of life. It is said in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Seventh Chapter, First Canto, "The living entities are illusioned by the material energy." In the Vedas also it is stated that the eternal living entities are covered by different modes and that they are called tricolored—red, white and blue—living entities. Red is the representation of the mode of passion, white is the representation of the mode of goodness, and blue is the representation of the mode of ignorance. These modes of material nature belong to the material energy, and therefore the living entities under these different modes of material nature have different kinds of material bodies. Because they are forgetful of their spiritual identities, they think the material bodies to be themselves. To the conditioned soul, "me" means the material body. This is called moha, or bewilderment.

It is repeatedly said in the Kaṭha Upaniṣad that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is never affected by the influence of material nature. It is, rather, the conditioned souls, or the minute infinitesimal parts and parcels of the Supreme, who are affected by the influence of material nature and who appear in different bodies under the material modes.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 3.26.5 -- Bombay, December 17, 1974:

Nitāi: "Divided into varieties by her threefold modes, material nature creates the forms of the living entities, and the living entities, seeing this, are illusioned by the knowledge-covering feature of the illusory energy."

Prabhupāda:

guṇair vicitrāḥ sṛjatīṁ

sa-rūpāḥ prakṛtiṁ prajāḥ

vilokya mumuhe sadyaḥ

sa iha jñāna-gūhayā

(SB 3.26.5)

Living entities, they have knowledge. That is the difference between matter and living entities. Living entities, they have got knowledge. The dull matter still requires to be developed. They are also covered knowledge. There is knowledge, but it is covered. Just like the tree: it is also a living entity, but the knowledge is more covered than the moving living entities. There are two kinds of living entities: moving and not moving, sthāvara-jaṅgama. Sthāvara means standing, cannot move. And jaṅgama means moving. So jaṅgama is better than this sthāvara. And amongst the sthāvara, there are varieties. The insects, ants, reptiles, serpents, they are also jaṅgama. But one is better than the other, one is better than the other, and finally we come to this position, human being, moving, but better than all the lower animals, insects. Development, development of consciousness. But originally we are all pure living entities. We are contaminated by the modes of material nature. The more we are contaminated, our consciousness is covered. Therefore it is said, guṇair vicitrāḥ.

Lecture on SB 3.26.5 -- Bombay, December 17, 1974:

So at the present moment our position is contaminated position by the contact of the three modes of material nature. Guṇair vicitrāḥ. Guṇair vicitrāḥ. You see so many varieties of life, different varieties of life. Uccāvaca. Some of them are higher, in higher position; some of them are lower position. But this vicitra, soul, is pure. That is one quality. But this vicitra quality, why? Vicitra means variety. Because guṇaiḥ. Kāraṇaṁ guṇa-saṅgo 'sya (BG 13.22). Why one has become dog and one has become god? God means demigod. They are also living entities within this material world, but they live in higher planetary system. Just like here also we see some of them are living in high skyscraper building, very comfortable apartment, and some are living in the huts, jhupaṛi. In Bombay you can see. Both things are there. Similarly, these demigods—Indra, Candra, Varuṇa, and many others—they are also living very comfortably in higher planets. They are also living entities. But they are in the, mostly in the sattva-guṇa. And here, in this planet or lower than this planet, they are mostly in rajo-guṇa and tamo-guṇa.

That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā: ūrdhvaṁ gacchanti sattva-sthāḥ (BG 14.18). If you develop sattva-guṇa, then gradually you can be elevated to the higher planetary system where the demigods live. Madhye tiṣṭhanti rājasāḥ. If you are affected by the rajo-guṇa, then the middle planetary system, means bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥ... Oṁ bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥ tat savitur vareṇyaṁ bhargo devasya. So..., and lower planet, then Tala, Atala, Vitala, Pātāla, Rasātala, Talātala—there are so many down planetary system. There are fourteen planetary system, seven down, seven up.

So this is going on. This is going on. Therefore it is called guṇair vicitrāḥ. All these living entities and their living condition, their mode of life, standard of life, everything, they are simply contamination of the three guṇas: tri-guṇair vicitrāḥ. Sṛjatīṁ sa-rūpāḥ prakṛtiṁ prajāḥ. Sa-rūpāḥ prakṛtim. They are getting this form according to the tendency of the mind, sa-rūpāḥ. If I contaminate tamo-guṇa, then I get lower-grade life. If I contaminate rajo-guṇa, then middle-grade life. And if we contaminate... That is also contamination, but it is better than the other two.

So all of them are material qualities, and that is unwanted association of the living entity. That is not required, because in the Vedas it is said, asaṅgo 'yaṁ puruṣaḥ: "The living entity has nothing to do with these material qualities." But somehow or other, he has come in contact. Therefore Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura said, anādi karama-phale, paḍi' bhavārṇava-jale. And the Caitanya Mahāprabhu also says like that, ayi nanda-tanuja patitaṁ kiṅkaraṁ māṁ viṣame bhavāmbudhau. "My dear Lord, Nanda-tanuja, the son Nanda Mahārāja, Kṛṣṇa, I am Your eternal servant." Ayi nanda-tanuja patitaṁ kiṅkaraṁ mām: "I am... Somehow or other, I have fallen in this ocean of material existence. Kindly pick me up and make me the dust of Your lotus feet." Just like if you are in the ocean, somehow or other, if you are taken one inch above the water, you immediately feel relief. So we have to become at least one inch above these material qualities. Then you are liberated, immediately.

Lecture on SB 3.26.5 -- Bombay, December 17, 1974:

So because we are duṣkṛtinaḥ, mūḍhāḥ, narādhamāḥ, therefore there are so many varieties of life. Guṇair vicitrāḥ sṛjatīm. And that is being done by the material nature. Kāraṇaṁ guṇa-saṅgo 'sya sad-asad-janma-yoniṣu (BG 13.22). Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ (BG 3.27). Prakṛti, nature's law, it does not... It is so perfect machine... One... We have several times said. Just like there is perfect machinery: if you have contaminated the germs of cholera or smallpox, venereal disease, then you must suffer from that disease. The machine is working. Machine is working. Similarly, the machine of the prakṛti is working very finely. As soon as you contaminate one kind of sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa, then you become contaminated, and your activities and your body and your mode of life—everything according to that contamination.

So in order to save ourself from this contamination, the only process is, as Kṛṣṇa says,

sarva-dharmān parityajya

mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja

ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo

mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ

(BG 18.66)

Here the so-called pious activities, that is also sinful activities. That is our mental concoction. We have made, "This is pious and this is impious." But to remain in this material world is itself impious, because it is contamination. So when you are diseased, contaminated, so where is the difference of pious activities and impious activities? It is simply imagination. In the material world there cannot be any pious activities—because the result is suffering birth and death and old age. Then where is your pious activities? So it is simply concoction.