Superior potency

Expressions researched:
"superior potency"

SB Canto 1

In the Bhagavad-gītā, the living beings are designated as parā-prakṛti, or the superior potency.

SB 1.11.33, Purport: The living beings are by constitution feminine by nature. The male or enjoyer is the Lord, and all manifestations of His different potencies are feminine by nature. In the Bhagavad-gītā, the living beings are designated as parā-prakṛti, or the superior potency. The material elements are aparā-prakṛti, or inferior potency. Such potencies are always employed for the satisfaction of the employer, or the enjoyer. The supreme enjoyer is the Lord Himself, as stated in the Bhagavad-gītā (5.29). The potencies, therefore, when engaged directly in the service of the Lord, revive the natural color, and thus there is no disparity in the relation of the potent and potency.

SB Canto 10.1 to 10.13

SB 10.6.7, Translation: While searching for small children, Pūtanā, whose business was to kill them, entered the house of Nanda Mahārāja unobstructed, having been sent by the superior potency of the Lord. Without asking anyone's permission, she entered Nanda Mahārāja's room, where she saw the child sleeping in bed, His unlimited power covered like a powerful fire covered by ashes. She could understand that this child was not ordinary, but was meant to kill all demons.

CC Madhya-lila

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura says that the word pāsaṇḍī refers to one who considers the living entity under the control of the illusory energy to be equal with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is transcendental to all material qualities. Another kind of pāṣaṇḍī is one who does not believe in the spirit soul, the superior potency of the Lord, and therefore does not distinguish between spirit and matter.

CC Madhya 18.115, Purport: Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura says that the word pāsaṇḍī refers to one who considers the living entity under the control of the illusory energy to be equal with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is transcendental to all material qualities. Another kind of pāṣaṇḍī is one who does not believe in the spirit soul, the superior potency of the Lord, and therefore does not distinguish between spirit and matter. While describing one of the offenses against chanting the holy names, specifically the offense called śruti-śāstra-nindana (blaspheming the Vedic literature), Jīva Gosvāmī states in his Bhakti-sandarbha, yathā pāṣaṇda-mārgeṇa dattātreyarṣabha-devopāsakānāṁ pāṣaṇḍīnām. "Worshipers of impersonalists like Dattātreya are also pāṣaṇḍīs." Concerning the offense of ahaṁ-mama-buddhi, or dehātma-buddhi (considering the body to be the self), Jīva Gosvāmī states, deva-draviṇādi-nimittaka- ‘pāṣaṇḍa’-śabdena ca daśāparādhā eva lakṣyante, pāṣaṇḍa-mayatvāt teṣām: “Those who are overly absorbed in the conception of the body and the bodily necessities are also called pāṣaṇḍīs.”

Renunciation Through Wisdom

The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam also discusses the subject of the Lord's internal potency. This superior potency is quite different form the Lord's inferior, external potency, which is qualified by the three material modes.

Renunciation Through Wisdom 4.1: To refute this impersonal conception of the Absolute, the previously quoted verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam unequivocally states that the Absolute Truth is a person. This transcendental personality is so powerful that He could impart the knowledge of the Vedas even to Lord Brahmā, who then went on to create the material universe. Lord Brahmā did not receive this extraordinary Vedic knowledge after creation but before he began the work of creation. The knowledge that existed before the mundane nature came into being is transcendental and is known as saṁvit. The Viṣṇu Purāṇa delves into the subjects of sandhinī, saṁvit, and hlādinī, the Lord's potencies of existence, knowledge, and pleasure. All together, these are known as the Lord's internal potency, or spiritual potency. The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam also discusses the subject of the Lord's internal potency. This superior potency is quite different form the Lord's inferior, external potency, which is qualified by the three material modes. An example of the Lord's superior, spiritual potency is the jīvas. One who can understand that the jīvas are a product of the Lord's internal potency, not His external potency, can immediately grasp the difference between these two potencies.