|
|
Line 1: |
Line 1: |
| <div id="compilation"> | | <div id="compilation"> |
| <div id="facts"> | | <div id="facts"> |
| {{terms|"virat-rupa"}} | | {{terms|"virad-rupa"|"virat form of the Lord"|"virat rupa"|"virat-rupa"}} |
| {{notes|G70}} | | {{notes|}} |
| {{compiler|Labangalatika}} | | {{compiler|Labangalatika}} |
| {{complete|}} | | {{complete|ALL}} |
| {{goal|1003}}
| |
| {{first|21Aug11}} | | {{first|21Aug11}} |
| {{last|21Aug11}} | | {{last|06Feb12}} |
| {{totals_by_section|BG=0|SB=10|CC=0|OB=0|Lec=0|Con=0|Let=0}} | | {{totals_by_section|BG=0|SB=38|CC=0|OB=1|Lec=0|Con=0|Let=0}} |
| {{total|10}} | | {{total|39}} |
| {{toc right}} | | {{toc right}} |
| [[Category:Virat-rupa|1]] | | [[Category:Virat-rupa|1]] |
Line 88: |
Line 87: |
| </div> | | </div> |
| <div class="purport text"><p>To common sense the description in this verse appears to be somewhat contradictory because sometimes the sun has been described as the eyeball and sometimes as the outer space sphere. But there is no room for common sense in the injunctions of the śāstras. We must accept the description of the śāstras and concentrate more on the form of the virāṭ-rūpa than on common sense. Common sense is always imperfect, whereas the description in the śāstras is always perfect and complete. If there is any incongruity, it is due to our imperfection and not the śāstras'. That is the method of approaching Vedic wisdom.</p> | | <div class="purport text"><p>To common sense the description in this verse appears to be somewhat contradictory because sometimes the sun has been described as the eyeball and sometimes as the outer space sphere. But there is no room for common sense in the injunctions of the śāstras. We must accept the description of the śāstras and concentrate more on the form of the virāṭ-rūpa than on common sense. Common sense is always imperfect, whereas the description in the śāstras is always perfect and complete. If there is any incongruity, it is due to our imperfection and not the śāstras'. That is the method of approaching Vedic wisdom.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB2132_6" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_2" book="SB" index="33" link="SB 2.1.32" link_text="SB 2.1.32"> |
| | <div class="heading">The virāṭ-rūpa, as exhibited by Lord Kṛṣṇa to Arjuna, is a challenge to the unbelievers. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 2.1.32|SB 2.1.32, Translation and Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">Modesty is the upper portion of His lips, hankering is His chin, religion is the breast of the Lord, and irreligion is His back. Brahmājī, who generates all living beings in the material world, is His genitals, and the Mitrā-varuṇas are His two testicles. The ocean is His waist, and the hills and mountains are the stacks of His bones.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | <div class="purport text"><p>The Supreme Lord is not impersonal, as misconceived by less intelligent thinkers. Rather, He is the Supreme person, as confirmed in all authentic Vedic literatures. But His personality is different from what we can conceive. It is stated here that Brahmājī acts as His genitals and that the Mitrā-varuṇas are His two testicles. This means that as a person He is complete with all bodily organs, but they are of different types with different potencies. When the Lord is described as impersonal, therefore, it should be understood that His personality is not exactly the type of personality found within our imperfect speculation. One can, however, worship the Lord even by seeing the hills and mountains or the ocean and the sky as different parts and parcels of the gigantic body of the Lord, the virāṭ-puruṣa. The virāṭ-rūpa, as exhibited by Lord Kṛṣṇa to Arjuna, is a challenge to the unbelievers.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB2139_8" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_2" book="SB" index="40" link="SB 2.1.39" link_text="SB 2.1.39"> |
| | <div class="heading">The virāṭ-rūpa, or the gigantic feature of the Supreme Lord, includes everything materially manifested, and therefore the virāṭ or gigantic feature of the Lord is the Supersoul of all living and nonliving entities. But the virāṭ-rūpa is also the manifestation of Nārāyaṇa or Viṣṇu, and going further on and on one will eventually see that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the ultimate Supersoul of everything that be. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 2.1.39|SB 2.1.39, Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="purport text"><p style="display: inline;">The Supreme Lord is one, and His expansions are various. He is therefore the Supersoul of everything. When a man sees anything, he must know that his seeing is secondary and the Lord's seeing is primary. One cannot see anything without the Lord's having first seen it. That is the instruction of the Vedas and the Upaniṣads. So whatever we see or do, the Supersoul of all acts of seeing or doing is the Lord. This theory of simultaneous oneness and difference between the individual soul and the Supersoul is propounded by Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu as the philosophy of acintya-bhedābheda-tattva. The virāṭ-rūpa, or the gigantic feature of the Supreme Lord, includes everything materially manifested, and therefore the virāṭ or gigantic feature of the Lord is the Supersoul of all living and nonliving entities. But the virāṭ-rūpa is also the manifestation of Nārāyaṇa or Viṣṇu, and going further on and on one will eventually see that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the ultimate Supersoul of everything that be. The conclusion is that one should unhesitatingly become a worshiper of Lord Kṛṣṇa, or, for that matter, His plenary expansion Nārāyaṇa, and none else. In the Vedic hymns, it is clearly said that first of all Nārāyaṇa cast a glance over matter and thus there was creation. Before creation, there was neither Brahmā nor Śiva, and what to speak of others. Śrīpāda Śaṅkarācārya has definitely accepted this, that Nārāyaṇa is beyond the material creation and that all others are within the material creation. The whole material creation, therefore, is one with and different from Nārāyaṇa, simultaneously, and this supports the acintya-bhedābheda-tattva philosophy of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Being an emanation from the glancing potency of Nārāyaṇa, the whole material creation is nondifferent from Him. But because it is the effect of His external energy (bahiraṅgā māyā) and is aloof from the internal potency (ātma-māyā), the whole material creation is different from Him at the same time.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB221_9" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_2" book="SB" index="41" link="SB 2.2.1" link_text="SB 2.2.1"> |
| | <div class="heading">If a human being follows the instruction of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and begins to meditate upon the virāṭ-rūpa, then revival of his pure consciousness and counteraction of the tendency to forget his eternal relationship with the Lord can follow simultaneously. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 2.2.1|SB 2.2.1, Translation and Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: Formerly, prior to the manifestation of the cosmos, Lord Brahmā, by meditating on the virāṭ-rūpa, regained his lost consciousness by appeasing the Lord. Thus he was able to rebuild the creation as it was before.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | <div class="purport text"><p>The example cited herein of Śrī Brahmājī is one of forgetfulness. Brahmājī is the incarnation of one of the mundane attributes of the Lord. Being the incarnation of the passion mode of material nature, he is empowered by the Lord to generate the beautiful material manifestation. Yet due to his being one of the numerous living entities, he is apt to forget the art of his creative energy. This forgetfulness of the living being—beginning from Brahmā down to the lowest insignificant ant—is a tendency which can be counteracted by meditation on the virāṭ-rūpa of the Lord. This chance is available in the human form of life, and if a human being follows the instruction of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and begins to meditate upon the virāṭ-rūpa, then revival of his pure consciousness and counteraction of the tendency to forget his eternal relationship with the Lord can follow simultaneously.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB227_10" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_2" book="SB" index="47" link="SB 2.2.7" link_text="SB 2.2.7"> |
| | <div class="heading">In the previous verse it is suggested that one should think of the Supersoul, which is one step higher than the impersonal thought of Brahman, as it was suggested in the case of contemplating the virāṭ-rūpa of the Personality of Godhead. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 2.2.7|SB 2.2.7, Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="purport text"><p style="display: inline;">In the Vedas it is said that persons who are attached to demigods to the exclusion of the Supreme Personality of Godhead are like the animals who follow the herdsman even though they are taken to the slaughterhouse. The materialists, like animals, also do not know how they are being misdirected by neglecting the transcendental thought of the Supreme person. No one can remain vacant of thought. It is said that an idle brain is a devil's workshop because a person who cannot think in the right way must think of something which may bring about disaster. The materialists are always worshiping some minor demigods, although this is condemned in the Bhagavad-gītā (7.20). As long as a person is illusioned by material gains, he petitions the respective demigods to draw some particular benefit which is, after all, illusory and nonpermanent. The enlightened transcendentalist is not captivated by such illusory things; therefore he is always absorbed in the transcendental thought of the Supreme in different stages of realization, namely Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān. In the previous verse it is suggested that one should think of the Supersoul, which is one step higher than the impersonal thought of Brahman, as it was suggested in the case of contemplating the virāṭ-rūpa of the Personality of Godhead.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB2213_11" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_2" book="SB" index="53" link="SB 2.2.13" link_text="SB 2.2.13"> |
| | <div class="heading">Meditation should concentrate on the person of the Supreme Godhead, either in His virāṭ-rūpa, the gigantic universal form, or in His sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha, as described in the scriptures. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 2.2.13|SB 2.2.13, Translation and Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">The process of meditation should begin from the lotus feet of the Lord and progress to His smiling face. The meditation should be concentrated upon the lotus feet, then the calves, then the thighs, and in this way higher and higher. The more the mind becomes fixed upon the different parts of the limbs, one after another, the more the intelligence becomes purified.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | <div class="purport text"><p>The process of meditation recommended in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is not to fix one's attention on something impersonal or void. The meditation should concentrate on the person of the Supreme Godhead, either in His virāṭ-rūpa, the gigantic universal form, or in His sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha (Bs. 5.1), as described in the scriptures. There are authorized descriptions of Viṣṇu forms, and there are authorized representations of Deities in the temples. Thus one can practice meditating upon the Deity, concentrating his mind on the lotus feet of the Lord and gradually rising higher and higher, up to His smiling face.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB2213_12" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_2" book="SB" index="53" link="SB 2.2.13" link_text="SB 2.2.13"> |
| | <div class="heading">Those who are too engrossed in sense gratification cannot be allowed to participate in arcanā or to touch the transcendental form of the Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa or Viṣṇu Deities. For them it is better to meditate upon the gigantic virāṭ-rūpa of the Lord, as recommended in the next verse. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 2.2.13|SB 2.2.13, Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="purport text"><p style="display: inline;">Those who are too engrossed in sense gratification cannot be allowed to participate in arcanā or to touch the transcendental form of the Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa or Viṣṇu Deities. For them it is better to meditate upon the gigantic virāṭ-rūpa of the Lord, as recommended in the next verse. The impersonalists and the voidists are therefore recommended to meditate upon the universal form of the Lord, whereas the devotees are recommended to meditate on the Deity worship in the temple. Because the impersonalists and the voidists are not sufficiently purified in their spiritual activities, arcanā is not meant for them.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB2214_13" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_2" book="SB" index="54" link="SB 2.2.14" link_text="SB 2.2.14"> |
| | <div class="heading">Those who are impersonalists and are unable to render any loving service to the Lord have been advised to meditate upon His impersonal feature, the virāṭ-rūpa, or universal form. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 2.2.14|SB 2.2.14, Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="purport text"><p style="display: inline;">The real purpose of life is to make contact with the Lord and be engaged in His service. That is the natural position of living entities. But those who are impersonalists and are unable to render any loving service to the Lord have been advised to meditate upon His impersonal feature, the virāṭ-rūpa, or universal form. Some way or other, one must try to reestablish one's forgotten relation with the Lord if one at all desires to gain real happiness in life, and to reclaim his natural unfettered condition. For the less intelligent beginners, meditation on the impersonal feature, the virāṭ-rūpa, or universal form of the Lord, will gradually qualify one to rise to personal contact. One is advised herewith to meditate upon the virāṭ-rūpa specified in the previous chapters in order to understand how the different planets, seas, mountains, rivers, birds, beasts, human beings, demigods and all that we can conceive are but different parts and limbs of the Lord's virāṭ form. This sort of thinking is also a type of meditation on the Absolute Truth, and as soon as such meditation begins, one develops one's godly qualities, and the whole world appears to be a happy and peaceful residence for all the people of the world. Without such meditation on God, either personal or impersonal, all good qualities of the human being become covered with misconceptions regarding his constitutional position, and without such advanced knowledge, the whole world becomes a hell for the human being.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB2535_14" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_2" book="SB" index="153" link="SB 2.5.35" link_text="SB 2.5.35"> |
| | <div class="heading">The expansions of the planetary systems within each and every universe are situated in the different parts of the virāṭ-rūpa (universal form) of the Lord. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 2.5.35|SB 2.5.35, Translation and Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">The Lord (Mahā-Viṣṇu), although lying in the Causal Ocean, came out of it, and dividing Himself as Hiraṇyagarbha, He entered into each universe and assumed the virāṭ-rūpa, with thousands of legs, arms, mouths, heads, etc.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | <div class="purport text"><p>The expansions of the planetary systems within each and every universe are situated in the different parts of the virāṭ-rūpa (universal form) of the Lord, and they are described as follows.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB_Canto_3" class="sub_section" sec_index="3" parent="Srimad-Bhagavatam" text="SB Canto 3"><h3>SB Canto 3</h3> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB3429_0" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_3" book="SB" index="136" link="SB 3.4.29" link_text="SB 3.4.29"> |
| | <div class="heading">Here in this verse the word sphītam is also used, which indicates that the Lord left His gigantic universal form called the virāṭ-rūpa, not His primeval, eternal form, because there is hardly any possibility of His changing His form of sac-cid-ānanda. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 3.4.29|SB 3.4.29, Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="purport text"><p style="display: inline;">According to Brahma-saṁhitā, the Lord has many forms. It is stated therein that the Lord has innumerable forms, and when He appears within the vision of the living entities, as Lord Kṛṣṇa actually appeared, all such forms amalgamate with Him. Besides all these infallible forms, He has His universal form, as manifested before Arjuna on the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra. Here in this verse the word sphītam is also used, which indicates that He left His gigantic universal form called the virāṭ-rūpa, not His primeval, eternal form, because there is hardly any possibility of His changing His form of sac-cid-ānanda (Bs. 5.1). This simple understanding is at once realized by the devotees of the Lord, but those who are nondevotees, who perform hardly any devotional service to the Lord, either do not understand this simple fact or purposely raise a controversy to defeat the eternity of the transcendental body of the Lord. This is due to the defect called the cheating propensity of the imperfect living entities.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB3429_1" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_3" book="SB" index="136" link="SB 3.4.29" link_text="SB 3.4.29"> |
| | <div class="heading">The name and form of the Lord cannot be perceived by the material senses, but when He appears within the vision of the mundane people He assumes the form of the virāṭ-rūpa. This is an additional material exhibition of form and is supported by the logic of a subject and its adjectives. In grammar, when an adjective is taken away from the subject, the subject it modifies does not change. Similarly, when the Lord quits His virāṭ-rūpa, His eternal form does not change, although there is no material difference between Himself and any one of His innumerable forms. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 3.4.29|SB 3.4.29, Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="purport text"><p style="display: inline;">By practical experience also, it is seen, up to the present day, that the Lord's transcendental form is worshiped by devotees in different temples, and all the devotees of the Lord factually realize that the form of the Deity in the temple is nondifferent from the form of the Lord. This inconceivable performance of the internal potency of the Lord is described in Bhagavad-gītā (7.25): nāhaṁ prakāśaḥ sarvasya yoga-māyā-samāvṛtaḥ. The Lord reserves the right of not being exposed to everyone. In the Padma Purāṇa it is said, ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṇa-nāmādi na bhaved grāhyam indriyaiḥ ([[Vanisource:CC Madhya 17.136|CC Madhya 17.136]]). The name and form of the Lord cannot be perceived by the material senses, but when He appears within the vision of the mundane people He assumes the form of the virāṭ-rūpa. This is an additional material exhibition of form and is supported by the logic of a subject and its adjectives. In grammar, when an adjective is taken away from the subject, the subject it modifies does not change. Similarly, when the Lord quits His virāṭ-rūpa, His eternal form does not change, although there is no material difference between Himself and any one of His innumerable forms. In the Fifth Canto it will be seen how the Lord is worshiped in different planets in His different forms, even now, and how He is worshiped in different temples of this earth also.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB356_2" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_3" book="SB" index="149" link="SB 3.5.6" link_text="SB 3.5.6"> |
| | <div class="heading">The gigantic sky is the material body of the Lord, called the virāṭ-rūpa, and all material creations are resting on the sky, or the heart of the Lord. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 3.5.6|SB 3.5.6, Translation and Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">He lies down on His own heart spread in the form of the sky, and thus placing the whole creation in that space, He expands Himself into many living entities, which are manifested as different species of life. He does not have to endeavor for His maintenance, because He is the master of all mystic powers and the proprietor of everything. Thus He is distinct from the living entities.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | <div class="purport text"><p>The questions regarding creation, maintenance and destruction, which are mentioned in many parts of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, are in relation to different millenniums (kalpas), and therefore they are differently described by different authorities when questioned by different students. There is no difference regarding the creative principles and the Lord's control over them, yet there are some differences in the minute details because of different kalpas. The gigantic sky is the material body of the Lord, called the virāṭ-rūpa, and all material creations are resting on the sky, or the heart of the Lord. Therefore, beginning from the sky, the first material manifestation to the gross vision, down to the earth, everything is called Brahman. Sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma: "There is nothing but the Lord, and He is one without a second." The living entities are the superior energies, whereas matter is the inferior energy, and the combination of these energies brings about the manifestation of this material world, which is in the heart of the Lord.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB364_3" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_3" book="SB" index="198" link="SB 3.6.4" link_text="SB 3.6.4"> |
| | <div class="heading">The virāṭ-rūpa or viśva-rūpa, the gigantic universal form of the Lord, which is very much appreciated by the impersonalist, is not an eternal form of the Lord. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 3.6.4|SB 3.6.4, Translation and Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">When the twenty-three principal elements were set in action by the will of the Supreme, the gigantic universal form, or the viśvarūpa body of the Lord, came into existence.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | <div class="purport text"><p>The virāṭ-rūpa or viśva-rūpa, the gigantic universal form of the Lord, which is very much appreciated by the impersonalist, is not an eternal form of the Lord. It is manifested by the supreme will of the Lord after the ingredients of material creation. Lord Kṛṣṇa exhibited this virāṭ or viśva-rūpa to Arjuna just to convince the impersonalists that He is the original Personality of Godhead. Kṛṣṇa exhibited the virāṭ-rūpa; it is not that Kṛṣṇa was exhibited by the virāṭ-rūpa. The virāṭ-rūpa is not, therefore, an eternal form of the Lord exhibited in the spiritual sky; it is a material manifestation of the Lord. The arcā-vigraha, or the worshipable Deity in the temple, is a similar manifestation of the Lord for the neophytes. But in spite of their material touch, such forms of the Lord as the virāṭ and arcā are all nondifferent from His eternal form as Lord Kṛṣṇa.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB365_4" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_3" book="SB" index="199" link="SB 3.6.5" link_text="SB 3.6.5"> |
| | <div class="heading">The universal form is called the virāṭ-rūpa because the Supreme Lord is within it in His plenary portion. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 3.6.5|SB 3.6.5, Translation and Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">As the Lord, in His plenary portion, entered into the elements of the universal creation, they transformed into the gigantic form in which all the planetary systems and all movable and immovable creations rest.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | <div class="purport text"><p>The elements of cosmic creation are all matter and have no potency to increase in volume unless entered into by the Lord in His plenary portion. This means that matter does not increase or decrease unless it is spiritually touched. Matter is a product of spirit and increases only by the touch of spirit. The entire cosmic manifestation has not assumed its gigantic form by itself, as wrongly calculated by less intelligent persons. As long as spirit is within matter, matter can increase as needed; but without the spirit, matter stops increasing. For example, as long as there is spiritual consciousness within the material body of a living entity, the body increases to the required size, but a dead material body, which has no spiritual consciousness, stops increasing. In Bhagavad-gītā (Chapter Two) importance is given to the spiritual consciousness, not the body. The entire cosmic body increased by the same process that we experience in our small bodies. One should not, however, foolishly think that the individual infinitesimal soul is the cause of the gigantic manifestation of the universal form. The universal form is called the virāṭ-rūpa because the Supreme Lord is within it in His plenary portion.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB367_5" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_3" book="SB" index="201" link="SB 3.6.7" link_text="SB 3.6.7"> |
| | <div class="heading">The total consciousness is that of the gigantic virāṭ-rūpa, and the same consciousness is exhibited in individual persons. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 3.6.7|SB 3.6.7, Translation and Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">The total energy of the mahat-tattva, in the form of the gigantic virāṭ-rūpa, divided Himself by Himself into the consciousness of the living entities, the life of activity, and self-identification, which are subdivided into one, ten and three respectively.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | <div class="purport text"><p>Consciousness is the sign of the living entity, or the soul. The existence of the soul is manifest in the form of consciousness, called jñāna-śakti. The total consciousness is that of the gigantic virāṭ-rūpa, and the same consciousness is exhibited in individual persons. The activity of consciousness is performed through the air of life, which is of ten divisions. The airs of life are called prāṇa, apāna, udāna, vyāna and samāna and are also differently qualified as nāga, kūrma, kṛkara, devadatta and dhanañjaya. The consciousness of the soul becomes polluted by the material atmosphere, and thus various activities are exhibited in the false ego of bodily identification. These various activities are described in Bhagavad-gītā (2.41) as bahu-śākhā hy anantāś ca buddhayo 'vyavasāyinām. The conditioned soul is bewildered into various activities for want of pure consciousness. In pure consciousness the activity is one. The consciousness of the individual soul becomes one with the supreme consciousness when there is complete synthesis between the two.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB_Canto_4" class="sub_section" sec_index="4" parent="Srimad-Bhagavatam" text="SB Canto 4"><h3>SB Canto 4</h3> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB4644_0" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_4" book="SB" index="218" link="SB 4.6.44" link_text="SB 4.6.44"> |
| | <div class="heading">The whole is the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His virāṭ-rūpa, or universal form. The brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, vaiśyas and śūdras are respectively the mouth, arms, abdomen and legs of the universal form of the Lord. As long as they are engaged in the service of the complete whole, their position is secure, otherwise they fall down from their respective positions and become degraded. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 4.6.44|SB 4.6.44, Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="purport text"><p style="display: inline;">The Vedic system of varṇa and āśrama is never to be neglected, for these divisions are created by the Supreme Lord Himself for the upkeep of social and religious order in human society. The brāhmaṇas, as the intelligent class of men in society, must vow to steadily respect this regulative principle. The tendency in this age of Kali to make a classless society and not observe the principles of varṇa and āśrama is a manifestation of an impossible dream. Destruction of the social and spiritual orders will not bring fulfillment of the idea of a classless society. One should strictly observe the principles of varṇa and āśrama for the satisfaction of the creator, for it is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā by Lord Kṛṣṇa that the four orders of the social system—brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, vaiśyas and śūdras—are His creation. They should act according to the regulative principles of this institution and satisfy the Lord, just as different parts of the body all engage in the service of the whole. The whole is the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His virāṭ-rūpa, or universal form. The brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, vaiśyas and śūdras are respectively the mouth, arms, abdomen and legs of the universal form of the Lord. As long as they are engaged in the service of the complete whole, their position is secure, otherwise they fall down from their respective positions and become degraded.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB4913_1" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_4" book="SB" index="382" link="SB 4.9.13" link_text="SB 4.9.13"> |
| | <div class="heading">Aside from common men, even men who are elevated in terms of spiritual understanding are at the utmost engaged in the service of the virāṭ-rūpa, or, unable to understand the ultimate form of the Lord, they worship voidism by meditation. Dhruva Mahārāja, however, had been blessed by the Supreme Lord. When the Lord touched His conchshell to Dhruva's forehead, real knowledge was revealed from within, and Dhruva could understand the Lord's transcendental form. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 4.9.13|SB 4.9.13, Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="purport text"><p style="display: inline;">Dhruva Mahārāja here compares his previous state of understanding with the perfection of understanding in the presence of the Supreme Lord. The position of a living entity is to render service; unless he comes to the stage of appreciating the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he engages in the service of the various forms of trees, reptiles, animals, Men, demigods, etc. One can experience that one man engages in the service of a dog, another serves plants and creepers, another the demigods, and another humanity, or his boss in the office—but no one is engaged in the service of Kṛṣṇa. Aside from common men, even men who are elevated in terms of spiritual understanding are at the utmost engaged in the service of the virāṭ-rūpa, or, unable to understand the ultimate form of the Lord, they worship voidism by meditation. Dhruva Mahārāja, however, had been blessed by the Supreme Lord. When the Lord touched His conchshell to Dhruva's forehead, real knowledge was revealed from within, and Dhruva could understand the Lord's transcendental form. Dhruva Mahārāja here admits that not only was he ignorant, but by years he was only a child. It would not have been possible for an ignorant child to appreciate the supreme form of the Lord had he not been blessed by the Lord, who had touched His conchshell to Dhruva's forehead.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB_Canto_5" class="sub_section" sec_index="5" parent="Srimad-Bhagavatam" text="SB Canto 5"><h3>SB Canto 5</h3> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB51831_0" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_5" book="SB" index="456" link="SB 5.18.31" link_text="SB 5.18.31"> |
| | <div class="heading">"Since the countless varieties of forms within this cosmic manifestation are simply a display of Your external energy, this virāṭ-rūpa (universal body) is not Your real form." |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 5.18.31|SB 5.18.31, Translation and Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">My dear Lord, this visible cosmic manifestation is a demonstration of Your own creative energy. Since the countless varieties of forms within this cosmic manifestation are simply a display of Your external energy, this virāṭ-rūpa (universal body) is not Your real form. Except for a devotee in transcendental consciousness, no one can perceive Your actual form. Therefore I offer my respectful obeisances unto You.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | <div class="purport text"><p>Māyāvādī philosophers think the universal form of the Lord to be real and His personal form illusory. We can understand their mistake by a simple example. A fire consists of three elements: heat and light, which are the energy of the fire, and the fire itself. Anyone can understand that the original fire is the reality and that the heat and light are simply the fire's energy. Heat and light are the formless energies of fire, and in that sense they are unreal. Only the fire has form, and therefore it is the real form of the heat and light. As Kṛṣṇa states in Bhagavad-gītā (9.4), mayā tatam idaṁ sarvaṁ jagad avyakta-mūrtinā: "By Me, in My unmanifested form. this entire universe is pervaded." Thus the impersonal conception of the Lord is like the expansion of heat and light from a fire. In Bhagavad-gītā the Lord also says, mat-sthāni sarva-bhūtāni na cāhaṁ teṣv avasthitaḥ: the entire material creation is resting on Kṛṣṇa's energy, either material, spiritual or marginal, but because His form is absent from the expansion of His energy, He is not personally present. This inconceivable expansion of the Supreme Lord's energy is called acintya-śakti. Therefore no one can understand the real form of the Lord without becoming His devotee.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB5234_1" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_5" book="SB" index="582" link="SB 5.23.4" link_text="SB 5.23.4"> |
| | <div class="heading">Some yogīs contemplate this imaginary śiśumāra to be swimming in the sky the way a dolphin swims in water. They meditate upon it as the virāṭ-rūpa, the gigantic form of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 5.23.4|SB 5.23.4, Translation and Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">This great machine, consisting of the stars and planets, resembles the form of a śiśumāra (dolphin) in the water. It is sometimes considered an incarnation of Kṛṣṇa, Vāsudeva. Great yogīs meditate upon Vāsudeva in this form because it is actually visible.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | <div class="purport text"><p>Transcendentalists such as yogīs whose minds cannot accommodate the form of the Lord prefer to visualize something very great, such as the virāṭ-puruṣa. Therefore some yogīs contemplate this imaginary śiśumāra to be swimming in the sky the way a dolphin swims in water. They meditate upon it as the virāṭ-rūpa, the gigantic form of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB5239_2" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_5" book="SB" index="587" link="SB 5.23.9" link_text="SB 5.23.9"> |
| | <div class="heading">Summarizing the entire description of the planetary systems of the universe, Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura says that one who is able to meditate upon this arrangement as the virāṭ-rūpa, or viśva-rūpa, the external body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and worship Him three times a day by meditation will always be free from all sinful reactions. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 5.23.9|SB 5.23.9, Translation and Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">The body of the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu, which forms the Śiśumāra-cakra, is the resting place of all the demigods and all the stars and planets. One who chants this mantra to worship that Supreme Person three times a day—morning, noon and evening—will surely be freed from all sinful reactions. If one simply offers his obeisances to this form or remembers this form three times a day, all his recent sinful activities will be destroyed.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | <div class="purport text"><p>Summarizing the entire description of the planetary systems of the universe, Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura says that one who is able to meditate upon this arrangement as the virāṭ-rūpa, or viśva-rūpa, the external body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and worship Him three times a day by meditation will always be free from all sinful reactions. Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura estimates that Dhruvaloka, the polestar, is 3,800,000 yojanas above the sun. Above Dhruvaloka by 10,000,000 yojanas is Maharloka, above Maharloka by 20,000,000 yojanas is Janaloka, above Janaloka by 80,000,000 yojanas is Tapoloka, and above Tapoloka by 120,000,000 yojanas is Satyaloka. Thus the distance from the sun to Satyaloka is 233,800,000 yojanas, or 1,870,400,000 miles. The Vaikuṇṭha planets begin 26,200,000 yojanas (209,600,000 miles) above Satyaloka. Thus the Viṣṇu Purāṇa describes that the covering of the universe is 260,000,000 yojanas (2,080,000,000 miles) away from the sun. The distance from the sun to the earth is 100,000 yojanas, and below the earth by 70,000 yojanas are the seven lower planetary systems called Atala, Vitala, Sutala, Talātala, Mahātala, Rasātala and Pātāla. Below these lower planets by 30,000 yojanas, Śeṣa Nāga is lying on the Garbhodaka Ocean. That ocean is 249,800,000 yojanas deep. Thus the total diameter of the universe is approximately 500,000,000 yojanas, or 4,000,000,000 miles.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB52638_3" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_5" book="SB" index="674" link="SB 5.26.38" link_text="SB 5.26.38"> |
| | <div class="heading">One should hear of the universal position of the virāṭ form of the Lord as described in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. That will help one save himself from material conditional life and gradually elevate him to the path of liberation so that he can go back home, back to Godhead. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 5.26.38|SB 5.26.38, Translation and Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">In the beginning (the Second and Third Cantos of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam) I have already described how one can progress on the path of liberation. In the Purāṇas the vast universal existence, which is like an egg divided into fourteen parts, is described. This vast form is considered the external body of the Lord, created by His energy and qualities. It is generally called the virāṭ-rūpa. If one reads the description of this external form of the Lord with great faith, or if one hears about it or explains it to others to propagate bhāgavata-dharma, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, his faith and devotion in spiritual consciousness, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, will gradually increase. Although developing this consciousness is very difficult, by this process one can purify himself and gradually come to an awareness of the Supreme Absolute Truth.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | <div class="purport text"><p>The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is pushing forward the publication of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, as explained especially for the understanding of the modern civilized man, to awaken him to his original consciousness. Without this consciousness, one melts into complete darkness. Whether one goes to the upper planetary systems or the hellish planetary systems, he simply wastes his time. Therefore one should hear of the universal position of the virāṭ form of the Lord as described in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. That will help one save himself from material conditional life and gradually elevate him to the path of liberation so that he can go back home, back to Godhead.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB52639_4" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_5" book="SB" index="675" link="SB 5.26.39" link_text="SB 5.26.39"> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 5.26.39|SB 5.26.39, Translation]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">One who is interested in liberation, who accepts the path of liberation and is not attracted to the path of conditional life, is called yati, or a devotee. Such a person should first control his mind by thinking of the virāṭ-rūpa, the gigantic universal form of the Lord, and then gradually think of the spiritual form of Kṛṣṇa [sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha [Bs. 5.1]] after hearing of both forms. Thus one's mind is fixed in samādhi. By devotional service one can then realize the spiritual form of the Lord, which is the destination of devotees. Thus his life becomes successful.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB52640_5" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_5" book="SB" index="676" link="SB 5.26.40" link_text="SB 5.26.40"> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 5.26.40|SB 5.26.40, Translation]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">My dear King, I have now described for you this planet earth, other planetary systems, and their lands (varṣas), rivers and mountains. I have also described the sky, the oceans, the lower planetary systems, the directions, the hellish planetary systems and the stars. These constitute the virāṭ-rūpa, the gigantic material form of the Lord, on which all living entities repose. Thus I have explained the wonderful expanse of the external body of the Lord.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB_Canto_6" class="sub_section" sec_index="6" parent="Srimad-Bhagavatam" text="SB Canto 6"><h3>SB Canto 6</h3> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB6432_0" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_6" book="SB" index="171" link="SB 6.4.32" link_text="SB 6.4.32"> |
| | <div class="heading">Jñānīs concentrate on the virāṭ-rūpa, the gigantic universal form of the Lord. This is a good system in the beginning for those who are extremely materialistic, but there is no need to think continuously of the virāṭ-rūpa. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 6.4.32|SB 6.4.32, Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="purport text"><p style="display: inline;">The directions given by the bhakti-śāstra point one in the perfect direction because the Supreme Personality of Godhead says in Bhagavad-gītā, bhaktyā mām abhijānāti: ([[Vanisource:BG 18.55 (1972)|BG 18.55]]) "Only by devotional service am I to be known." The bhaktas know that the Supreme Person has no material form, whereas the jñānīs simply deny the material form. One should therefore take shelter of the bhakti-mārga, the path of devotion; then everything will be clear. Jñānīs concentrate on the virāṭ-rūpa, the gigantic universal form of the Lord. This is a good system in the beginning for those who are extremely materialistic, but there is no need to think continuously of the virāṭ-rūpa. When Arjuna was shown the virāṭ-rūpa of Kṛṣṇa, he saw it, but he did not want to see it perpetually. He therefore requested the Lord to return to His original form as two-armed Kṛṣṇa. In conclusion, learned scholars find no contradictions in the devotees' concentration upon the spiritual form of the Lord (īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ (Bs. 5.1)). In this regard, Śrīla Madhvācārya says that less intelligent nondevotees think that their conclusion is the ultimate, but because devotees are completely learned, they can understand that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the ultimate goal.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB692627_1" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_6" book="SB" index="357" link="SB 6.9.26-27" link_text="SB 6.9.26-27"> |
| | <div class="heading">As stated herein, paraṁ pradhānaṁ puruṣaṁ viśvam anyam: "He is the supreme cause, represented as the male and female creative energies. Although different from this universe, He exists in His universal form (virāṭ rūpa)." |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 6.9.26-27|SB 6.9.26-27, Translation and Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">By His inconceivable internal potency, the Supreme Personality of Godhead expands into various transcendental bodies as Vāmanadeva, the incarnation of strength among the demigods; Paraśurāma, the incarnation among saints; Nṛsiṁhadeva and Varāha, incarnations among animals; and Matsya and Kūrma, incarnations among aquatics. He accepts various transcendental bodies among all types of living entities, and among human beings He especially appears as Lord Kṛṣṇa and Lord Rāma. By His causeless mercy, He protects the demigods, who are always harassed by the demons. He is the supreme worshipable Deity of all living entities. He is the supreme cause, represented as the male and female creative energies. Although different from this universe, He exists in His universal form (virāṭ-rūpa). In our fearful condition, let us take shelter of Him, for we are sure that the Supreme Lord, the Supreme Soul, will give us His protection.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | <div class="purport text"><p>In this verse, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu, is ascertained to be the original cause of creation. Śrīdhara Svāmī, in his commentary Bhāvārtha-dīpikā, replies to the idea that prakṛti and puruṣa are the causes of the cosmic manifestation. As stated herein, paraṁ pradhānaṁ puruṣaṁ viśvam anyam: "He is the supreme cause, represented as the male and female creative energies. Although different from this universe, He exists in His universal form (virāṭ rūpa)." The word prakṛti, which is used to indicate the source of generation, refers to the material energy of the Supreme Lord, and the word puruṣa refers to the living entities, who are the superior energy of the Lord. Both the prakṛti and puruṣa ultimately enter the Supreme Lord, as stated in Bhagavad-gītā (prakṛtiṁ yānti māmikām).</p> |
| | <p>Although prakṛti and puruṣa superficially appear to be the causes of the material manifestation, both are emanations of different energies of the Supreme Lord. Therefore the Supreme Lord is the cause of prakṛti and puruṣa. He is the original cause (sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam (Bs. 5.1)). The Nāradīya Purāṇa says:</p> |
| | :avikāro 'pi paramaḥ |
| | :prakṛtis tu vikāriṇī |
| | :anupraviśya govindaḥ |
| | :prakṛtiś cābhidhīyate |
| | <p>Both the prakṛti and puruṣa, which are inferior and superior energies, are emanations from the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As explained in Bhagavad-gītā (gām āviśya ([[Vanisource:BG 15.13 (1972)|BG 15.13]])), the Lord enters the prakṛti, and then the prakṛti creates different manifestations. The prakṛti is not independent or beyond His energies.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB_Canto_8" class="sub_section" sec_index="8" parent="Srimad-Bhagavatam" text="SB Canto 8"><h3>SB Canto 8</h3> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB8112_0" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_8" book="SB" index="13" link="SB 8.1.12" link_text="SB 8.1.12"> |
| | <div class="heading">In the material condition we have a conception of beginning, end and middle, but for the Supreme Personality of Godhead there are no such things. The universal cosmic manifestation is also the virāṭ-rūpa that was shown to Arjuna in Bhagavad-gītā. Therefore, since the Lord is present everywhere and all the time, He is the Absolute Truth and the greatest. He is complete in greatness. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 8.1.12|SB 8.1.12, Translation and Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">The Supreme Personality of Godhead has no beginning, no end and no middle. Nor does He belong to a particular person or nation. He has no inside or outside. The dualities found within this material world, such as beginning and end, mine and theirs, are all absent from the personality of the Supreme Lord. The universe, which emanates from Him, is another feature of the Lord. Therefore the Supreme Lord is the ultimate truth, and He is complete in greatness.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | <div class="purport text"><p>The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, is described in the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.1):</p> |
| | :īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ |
| | :sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ |
| | :anādir ādir govindaḥ |
| | :sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam |
| | <p>"Kṛṣṇa, known as Govinda, is the supreme controller. He has an eternal, blissful, spiritual body. He is the origin of all. He has no other origin, for He is the prime cause of all causes." For the Lord's existence there is no cause, for He is the cause of everything. He is in everything (mayā tatam idaṁ sarvam ([[Vanisource:BG 9.4 (1972)|BG 9.4]])), He is expanded in everything, but He is not everything. He is acintya-bhedābheda, simultaneously one and different. That is explained in this verse. In the material condition we have a conception of beginning, end and middle, but for the Supreme Personality of Godhead there are no such things. The universal cosmic manifestation is also the virāṭ-rūpa that was shown to Arjuna in Bhagavad-gītā. Therefore, since the Lord is present everywhere and all the time, He is the Absolute Truth and the greatest. He is complete in greatness. God is great, and how He is great is explained here.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB_Canto_9" class="sub_section" sec_index="9" parent="Srimad-Bhagavatam" text="SB Canto 9"><h3>SB Canto 9</h3> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB9232021_0" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_9" book="SB" index="802" link="SB 9.23.20-21" link_text="SB 9.23.20-21"> |
| | <div class="heading">It is said that out of many siddhas, the souls who have already realized the Absolute Truth, one may understand Kṛṣṇa, who exactly resembles a human being (narākṛti). This human form was explained by Kṛṣṇa Himself after He manifested the virāṭ-rūpa. The virāṭ-rūpa is not the original form of the Lord; the Lord's original form is Dvibhuja-śyāmasundara, Muralīdhara, the Lord with two hands, playing a flute (yaṁ śyāmasundaram acintya-guṇa-svarūpam). |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 9.23.20-21|SB 9.23.20-21, Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="purport text"><p style="display: inline;">The majority of transcendentalists understand only the impersonal Brahman or localized Paramātmā, for the Personality of Godhead is very difficult to understand. As the Lord says in Bhagavad-gītā (7.3):</p> |
| | :manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu |
| | :kaścid yatati siddhaye |
| | :yatatām api siddhānāṁ |
| | :kaścin māṁ vetti tattvataḥ |
| | <p>"Out of many thousands among men, one may endeavor for perfection, and of those who have achieved perfection, hardly one knows Me in truth." The yogīs and jñānīs—that is, the mystic yogīs and the impersonalists—can understand the Absolute Truth as impersonal or localized, but although such realized souls are above ordinary human beings, they cannot understand how the Supreme Absolute Truth can be a person. Therefore it is said that out of many siddhas, the souls who have already realized the Absolute Truth, one may understand Kṛṣṇa, who exactly resembles a human being (narākṛti). This human form was explained by Kṛṣṇa Himself after He manifested the virāṭ-rūpa. The virāṭ-rūpa is not the original form of the Lord; the Lord's original form is Dvibhuja-śyāmasundara, Muralīdhara, the Lord with two hands, playing a flute (yaṁ śyāmasundaram acintya-guṇa-svarūpam). The Lord's forms are proof of His inconceivable qualities. Although the Lord maintains innumerable universes within the period of His breath, He is dressed with a form exactly like that of a human being. That does not mean, however, that He is a human being. This is His original form, but because He looks like a human being, those with a poor fund of knowledge consider Him an ordinary man. The Lord says:</p> |
| | :avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā |
| | :mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam |
| | :paraṁ bhāvam ajānanto |
| | :mama bhūta-maheśvaram |
| | <p>"Fools deride Me when I descend in the human form. They do not know My transcendental nature and My supreme dominion over all that be." ([[Vanisource:BG 9.11 (1972)|BG 9.11]]) By the Lord's paraṁ bhāvam, or transcendental nature, He is the all-pervading Paramātmā living in the core of the hearts of all living entities, yet He looks like a human being. Māyāvāda philosophy says that the Lord is originally impersonal but assumes a human form and many other forms when He descends. Actually, however, He is originally like a human being, and the impersonal Brahman consists of the rays of His body (yasya prabhā prabhavato jagad-aṇḍa-koṭi (Bs. 5.40)).</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB_Canto_101_to_1013" class="sub_section" sec_index="10" parent="Srimad-Bhagavatam" text="SB Canto 10.1 to 10.13"><h3>SB Canto 10.1 to 10.13</h3> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB10157_0" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_10.1_to_10.13" book="SB" index="6" link="SB 10.1.5-7" link_text="SB 10.1.5-7"> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 10.1.5-7|SB 10.1.5-7, Translation]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">Taking the boat of Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet, my grandfather Arjuna and others crossed the ocean of the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra, in which such commanders as Bhīṣmadeva resembled great fish that could very easily have swallowed them. By the mercy of Lord Kṛṣṇa, my grandfathers crossed this ocean, which was very difficult to cross, as easily as one steps over the hoofprint of a calf. Because my mother surrendered unto Lord Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet, the Lord, Sudarśana-cakra in hand, entered her womb and saved my body, the body of the last remaining descendant of the Kurus and the Pāṇḍavas, which was almost destroyed by the fiery weapon of Aśvatthāmā. Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, appearing within and outside of all materially embodied living beings by His own potency in the forms of eternal time—that is, as Paramātmā and as virāṭ-rūpa—gave liberation to everyone, either as cruel death or as life. Kindly enlighten me by describing His transcendental characteristics.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="SB1073536_1" class="quote" parent="SB_Canto_10.1_to_10.13" book="SB" index="292" link="SB 10.7.35-36" link_text="SB 10.7.35-36"> |
| | <div class="heading">In His small form, Kṛṣṇa was kind enough to show His mother the virāṭ-rūpa, the universal form, so that she could enjoy seeing what kind of child she had on her lap. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:SB 10.7.35-36|SB 10.7.35-36, Translation and Purport]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="trans text"><p style="display: inline;">O King Parīkṣit, when the child Kṛṣṇa was almost finished drinking His mother's milk and mother Yaśodā was touching Him and looking at His beautiful, brilliantly smiling face, the baby yawned, and mother Yaśodā saw in His mouth the whole sky, the higher planetary system and the earth, the luminaries in all directions, the sun, the moon, fire, air, the seas, islands, mountains, rivers, forests, and all kinds of living entities, moving and nonmoving.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | <div class="purport text"><p>By the arrangement of yogamāyā, Kṛṣṇa's pastimes with mother Yaśodā were all regarded as ordinary. So here was an opportunity for Kṛṣṇa to show His mother that the whole universe is situated within Him. In His small form, Kṛṣṇa was kind enough to show His mother the virāṭ-rūpa, the universal form, so that she could enjoy seeing what kind of child she had on her lap. The rivers have been mentioned here as the daughters of the mountains (nagāṁs tad-duhitṟḥ). It is the flowing of the rivers that makes big forests possible. There are living entities everywhere, some of them moving and some of them not moving. No place is vacant. This is a special feature of God's creation.</p> |
| | </div> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="Other_Books_by_Srila_Prabhupada" class="section" sec_index="3" parent="compilation" text="Other Books by Srila Prabhupada"><h2>Other Books by Srila Prabhupada</h2> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="Krsna_The_Supreme_Personality_of_Godhead" class="sub_section" sec_index="4" parent="Other_Books_by_Srila_Prabhupada" text="Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead"><h3>Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead</h3> |
| | </div> |
| | <div id="KB87_0" class="quote" parent="Krsna,_The_Supreme_Personality_of_Godhead" book="OB" index="91" link="KB 87" link_text="Krsna Book 87"> |
| | <div class="heading">The living entity has a small material body taken in various species and forms, and similarly the whole universe is but the material body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This body is described in the śāstras as virāṭ-rūpa. |
| | </div> |
| | <span class="link">[[Vanisource:KB 87|Krsna Book 87]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="text"><p style="display: inline;">Both the Supreme Lord and the living entities enter into the material nature. The Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, by one of His plenary expansions, manifests as Kāraṇodakaśāyī, Mahā-Viṣṇu, the gigantic Viṣṇu form lying in the Causal Ocean. Then from that gigantic form of Mahā-Viṣṇu, Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu expands and enters into every universe. From Him, Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Śiva expand. Viṣṇu as Kṣīrodakaśāyī enters into the hearts of all living entities, as well as into all material elements, including the atom. The Brahma-saṁhitā says, aṇḍāntara-stha-paramāṇu-cayāntara-stham: (Bs. 5.35) "The Lord is within this universe and also within every atom."</p> |
| | <p>The living entity has a small material body taken in various species and forms, and similarly the whole universe is but the material body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This body is described in the śāstras as virāṭ-rūpa. As the individual living entity maintains his particular body, the Supreme Personality of Godhead maintains the whole cosmic creation, entering within it. As soon as the individual living entity leaves the material body, the body is immediately annihilated, and similarly as soon as Lord Viṣṇu leaves the cosmic manifestation, everything is annihilated. Therefore only when the individual living entity surrenders unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead is his liberation from material existence possible.</p> |
| </div> | | </div> |
| </div> | | </div> |
| </div> | | </div> |