Eagle

Expressions researched:
"eagle" |"eagles"

SB Canto 1

SB 1.12.20, Purport:

As confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā, the worshiper of the demigods goes to the planets of the demigods (yānti deva-vratā devān (BG 9.25)); so Mahārāja Śibi has become an associate of the great Vaiṣṇava authority Yamarāja on that particular planet. While he was on the earth he became very famous as a protector of surrendered souls and a donor of charities. The King of heaven once took the shape of a pigeon-hunter bird (eagle), and Agni, the fire-god, took the shape of a pigeon. The pigeon, while being chased by the eagle, took shelter on the lap of Mahārāja Śibi, and the hunter eagle wanted the pigeon back from the King. The King wanted to give it some other meat to eat and requested the bird not to kill the pigeon. The hunter bird refused to accept the King's offer, but it was settled later on that the eagle would accept flesh from the body of the King of the pigeon's equivalent weight. The King began to cut flesh from his body to weigh in the balance equivalent to the weight of the pigeon, but the mystic pigeon always remained heavier. The King then put himself on the balance to equate with the pigeon, and the demigods were pleased with him. The King of heaven and the fire-god disclosed their identity, and the King was blessed by them.

SB 1.12.20, Purport:

While he was on the earth he became very famous as a protector of surrendered souls and a donor of charities. The King of heaven once took the shape of a pigeon-hunter bird (eagle), and Agni, the fire-god, took the shape of a pigeon. The pigeon, while being chased by the eagle, took shelter on the lap of Mahārāja Śibi, and the hunter eagle wanted the pigeon back from the King. The King wanted to give it some other meat to eat and requested the bird not to kill the pigeon. The hunter bird refused to accept the King's offer, but it was settled later on that the eagle would accept flesh from the body of the King of the pigeon's equivalent weight. The King began to cut flesh from his body to weigh in the balance equivalent to the weight of the pigeon, but the mystic pigeon always remained heavier. The King then put himself on the balance to equate with the pigeon, and the demigods were pleased with him. The King of heaven and the fire-god disclosed their identity, and the King was blessed by them. Devarṣi Nārada also glorified Mahārāja Śibi for his great achievements, specifically in charity and protection.

SB Canto 4

SB 4.18.23-24, Purport:

There are many carnivorous birds descended from Garuḍa, the winged carrier of Lord Viṣṇu. Indeed, there is a particular type of bird that is very fond of eating monkeys. Eagles are fond of eating goats, and of course many birds eat only fruits and berries. Therefore the words caram, referring to moving animals, and acaram, referring to grasses, fruits and vegetables, are mentioned in this verse.

SB Canto 5

SB 5.23.3, Translation:

When bulls are yoked together and tied to a central post to thresh rice, they tread around that pivot without deviating from their proper positions—one bull being closest to the post, another in the middle, and a third on the outside. Similarly, all the planets and all the hundreds and thousands of stars revolve around the polestar, the planet of Mahārāja Dhruva, in their respective orbits, some higher and some lower. Fastened by the Supreme Personality of Godhead to the machine of material nature according to the results of their fruitive acts, they are driven around the polestar by the wind and will continue to be so until the end of creation. These planets float in the air within the vast sky, just as clouds with hundreds of tons of water float in the air or as the great śyena eagles, due to the results of past activities, fly high in the sky and have no chance of falling to the ground.

SB 5.23.3, Purport:

The question of how the planets and stars are floating is also answered in this verse. It is not because of the laws of gravity. Rather, the planets and stars are enabled to float by manipulations of the air. It is due to such manipulations that big, heavy clouds float and big eagles fly in the sky. Modern airplanes like the 747 jet aircraft work in a similar way: by controlling the air, they float high in the sky, resisting the tendency to fall to earth. Such adjustments of the air are all made possible by the cooperation of the principles of puruṣa (male) and prakṛti (female). By the cooperation of material nature, which is considered to be prakṛti, and the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is considered the puruṣa, all the affairs of the universe are going on nicely in their proper order. prakṛti, material nature, is also described in the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.44)

SB 5.23.3, Purport:

All the demigods are engaged in the service of the Lord, and only by such an arrangement are the affairs of the universe going on.

Regarding the great eagles mentioned in this verse, it is understood that there are eagles so big that they can prey on big elephants. They fly so high that they can travel from one planet to another. They start flying in one planet and land in another, and while in flight they lay eggs that hatch into other birds while falling through the air. In Sanskrit such eagles are called śyena. Under the present circumstances, of course, we cannot see such huge birds, but at least we know of eagles that can capture monkeys and then throw them down to kill and eat them. Similarly, it is understood that there are gigantic birds that can carry off elephants, kill them and eat them.

The two examples of the eagle and the cloud are sufficient to prove that flying and floating can be made possible through adjustments of the air.

SB 5.24.6, Translation:

Below the abodes of the Yakṣas and Rākṣasas by a distance of 100 yojanas (800 miles) is the planet earth. Its upper limits extend as high as swans, hawks, eagles and similar large birds can fly.

SB Canto 6

SB 6.6.27, Translation:

My dear King Parīkṣit, from the womb of Surabhi the buffalo, cow and other animals with cloven hooves took birth, from the womb of Tāmrā the eagles, vultures and other large birds of prey took birth, and from the womb of Muni the angels took birth.

SB Canto 8

SB 8.10.10-12, Translation:

O King, some soldiers fought on the backs of vultures, eagles, ducks, hawks and bhāsa birds. Some fought on the backs of timiṅgilas, which can devour huge whales, some on the backs of śarabhas, and some on buffalo, rhinoceroses, cows, bulls, jungle cows and aruṇas. Others fought on the backs of jackals, rats, lizards, rabbits, human beings, goats, black deer, swans and boars. In this way, mounted on animals of the water, land and sky, including animals with deformed bodies, both armies faced each other and went forward.

Nectar of Devotion

Nectar of Devotion 28:

Perspiration caused by fearfulness was exhibited by Raktaka, one of the servants of Kṛṣṇa. One day Kṛṣṇa dressed Himself just like Abhimanyu, the husband of Rādhārāṇī. Abhimanyu did not like Rādhārāṇī's association with Kṛṣṇa, and therefore when Raktaka saw Kṛṣṇa in the dress of Abhimanyu and thus mistook His identity, he began to strongly rebuke Him. As soon as Raktaka finally understood that it was Kṛṣṇa in the dress of Abhimanyu, he began perspiring. This perspiration was caused by fearfulness.

Perspiration due to anger was exhibited by Garuḍa, the eagle who is the carrier of Viṣṇu. Once the heavenly king, Indra, was sending torrents of rain over Vṛndāvana. Garuḍa was observing the incident from above the clouds, and because of his anger, he began perspiring.

Nectar of Devotion 31:

The devotee said, "My dear kadamba tree, do not be worried. Just after defeating the Kāliya snake in the Yamunā River, Kṛṣṇa will come and satisfy your desire." This is an instance of inappropriate hopelessness in ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa.

Garuḍa the eagle, the carrier of Viṣṇu, once said, "Who can be more pure than I? Where is there a second bird like me, so able and competent? Kṛṣṇa may not like me, He may not wish to join my party, but still He has to take advantage of my wings!" This is an instance of hopelessness in the neutral mood of ecstatic love.

The symptoms of ecstatic love are sometimes grouped under four headings—namely generation, conjunction, aggregation and satisfaction.

Kṛṣṇa once told Rādhārāṇī, "My dear friend, when You tried to meet Me alone in the morning, Your friend Mekhalā remained hungry with envy. Just look at her!"

Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead

Krsna Book 66:

I shall destroy you and your foolish associates, who merely constitute a society of cheaters and the cheated. O foolish King, you will then have to conceal your face in disgrace, and when your head is severed from your body by My disc, it will be surrounded by meat-eating birds like vultures, hawks and eagles. At that time, instead of becoming My shelter, as you have demanded, you will be subject to the mercy of these lowborn birds. At that time your body will be thrown to the dogs, who will eat it with great pleasure.’ ”

The messenger carried the words of Lord Kṛṣṇa to his master, Pauṇḍraka, who patiently heard all these insults. Without waiting any longer, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa immediately started out on His chariot to punish the rascal Pauṇḍraka, the King of Karūṣa. Because at that time he was living with his friend the King of Kāśī, Kṛṣṇa surrounded the whole city of Kāśī.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 1.8.34 -- Mayapur, October 14, 1974:

The atheist may not believe it, but it is a fact. It is a fact. How? Just like an animal or a man, while he is living, he can float in the air or in the water. That everyone has seen. But if the man is dead, it will not float. It will fall down. Is it not a fact? So why it is floating? Because a very small particle of Kṛṣṇa's spiritual potency is there. That is living entity. Big, big... An elephant, he can also float in the water, and the horses, elephant, and what to speak of man? This is practical. Because a small particle of the Supreme is there within this body... Dehino 'smin yathā dehe (BG 2.13). Very small particle. How much small? One ten-thousandth part of the top of the hair, so small. It has got so power that it can hold the whole body floating in the air. Air... There are very, very big, big birds. They are floating in the air, very, very big eagle. They fly from one planet to another. Their resting place is... They start from one planet, and they go and rest in other planet. And they lay their eggs while flying. That eggs also become a bird simply by air cohesion. That's all.

Lecture on SB 3.26.2 -- Bombay, December 14, 1974:

In this life they could not attain the bird's life, but on account of very strong willingness they grow the wings, and next life they become small birds, they fly. So they are better, the small birds, they are better than these insects. Then there are birds, big, big birds, the eagle birds, they can fly very high. In this way, beast life, that is better. In this way, beast life, then human life, uncivilized life, that is better. And then civilized life, that is better. Then civilized life, those who are organized, brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra, they are better. And amongst the brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra, the brāhmaṇa is the best, because they are on the platform of spiritual realization. This is the evolution. Evolution, we are coming in that evolution. Bahu-sambhavānte. Bahu-sambhavam, bahūnāṁ janmanām ante (BG 7.19), bahu-sambhavānte.

Lecture on SB 6.1.1-4 -- Melbourne, May 20, 1975:

As I was explaining aquatics, 900,000, then trees. As the water dries, the vegetation comes. You have got experience. That is the nature's process. And after vegetation, then the flies, insects, moving, up to trees and plants, not moving. Then they move—flies, grasshoppers. And they turn into birds again, very freely flying. And there are many, many big birds in the sky, eagles. Some of the eagles, you have got experience. There are monkey-eating eagles. They capture the monkey. And there are eagles elephant-eating. (laughter) We get all this information. Elephant, they will capture elephant and take it away. (laughter) Just imagine. It is no joking. This is a fact.

So there are so many birds, eagle birds, they fly, and they go from one planet to another. They are resting... Just like a bird you see, they fly from one tree to another tree. So their resting place is one planet to another. Just see. You are trying to go to the moon planet bogusly. I'll say bogusly because you could not go there. The moon planet is far away from the sun planet.

Lecture on SB 6.1.6 -- Bombay, November 6, 1970:

Prabhupāda: There are some birds; they also eat monkeys.

Haṁsadūta: Birds.

Revatīnandana: Big hawks like eagles.

Prabhupāda: Monkey-eaters. I have seen that bird in Los Angeles zoo, monkey-eater bird.

Revatīnandana: They're from Africa, big eagles.

Haṁsadūta: Kīrtanānanda Mahārāja told us about the monkeys in Vṛndāvana.

Prabhupāda: Yes. There are many monkeys.

Himāvatī: Big monkeys.

Prabhupāda: No, no.

Lecture on SB 6.1.45 -- Laguna Beach, July 26, 1975:

Why not devote this life for Kṛṣṇa? I shall go back to home, back to Kṛṣṇa"? This is intelligence. I am suffering so many lives, accepting this fish life or the tree life, the plant life, the moth life, the insect life, the serpent life, the bird's life. And not only bird's life—there are so many varieties of birds, beginning from the eagle. There is a big eagle bird. We have no information. They are very big bird. They are flying in the sky, and their rest is from one planet to another. Just like here you find the birds, they are flying from one tree to another. Similarly, there are so big birds... They are called garuḍa. So garuḍa, these birds, they start their flying from one planet and sits in another planet. Just try to understand what is their flying. Not only that, they also lay eggs while flying, and the eggs, while falling down, it becomes another bird. And these birds can pick up elephants for eating. So this is God's creation. So if you want to become such a big bird, you can become. (laughter) Yes. Ye yathā māṁ prapadyante (BG 4.11). God is so kind.

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- January 12, 1974, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: So you scientists, you are like vultures. (laughter) You have imitated vultures.

Umāpati: The symbol of the United States is an eagle, which is a bird of prey.

Prabhupāda: No, eagle... Our symbol is also Garuḍa, big eagle. Yes. Big eagle, Garuḍa. And you know Garuḍa is not vegetarian. You know that?

Prajāpati: Snakes.

Prabhupāda: Yes. He is not vegetarian. So if one becomes a sincere devotee like Garuḍa, you can allow him to become non-vegetarian. If he cannot give it up. (break)

Nara-nārāyaṇa: Garuḍa is from the jīva-tattva or he is an expansion?

Prabhupāda: No, he is jīva-tattva. Nitya-siddha.

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- July 6, 1975, Chicago:

Prabhupāda: Ācchā? (laughter) Yes. That is for car or...?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Car, yes. (break)

Prabhupāda: ...any bird called thunderbird?

Bahulāśva: Thunderbird? A big bird, big eagle, in the United States.

Prabhupāda: No, big eagle, thunderbird. You have seen in this car?

Brahmānanda: Automobile is called.

Prabhupāda: But actually is there any bird called thunderbird?

Jagadīśa: It's a legendary bird from Indian legend. American Indian.

Prabhupāda: Indian legend?

Morning Walk -- July 25, 1975, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: No, no, he is after woman. That's all.

Yadubara: Afterwards he said his ego was very large. He said he had a big ego.

Prabhupāda: Eagle? Eagle bird.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: No, ego, ego.

Prabhupāda: Ego, oh.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He admitted he had a very big ego.

Prabhupāda: But who cares for you?

Yadubara: He said he was trying to do away with it.

Prabhupāda: But your beard is growing more and more. (break) He said that "I say to my disciples that if you have to take instruction, that is Bhaktivedanta Prabhu." He said that.

Morning Walk -- August 5, 1975, Detroit:

Prabhupāda: Birds who eat monkey. You know that? I have seen in Los Angeles zoo, monkey-eating bird. They capture the monkey by the neck and drop it. And when it falls down it dies, and meat. And I have seen one statue in the Central Park. They are catching goats-eagle. And there are big eagles. They catch up elephant. (break)

Satsvarūpa: Just some person who wants(?) to glorify himself, Dudder.(?) (break) A boy will write his name and his girlfriend's name on some tree.

Prabhupāda: Oh.

Brahmānanda: So their love will live as long as the tree. Maybe they will also become trees. (break)

Prabhupāda: ...thinks of woman at the time of death, he becomes woman. And if a woman thinks of man at the time of death, she becomes man. (break) ...afraid of men?

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- June 10, 1976, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: Another paper was there: "Ambassador of India's culture."

Hari-śauri: Yes, that was the same article, in the Butler Eagle. It shows a photograph of you looking through one of your books.

Hṛdayānanda: Many times the devotees lament that we could not have been there to help you, because there was so much service.

Prabhupāda: Yes, you are helping me. (pause) Who can create such fragrance except Kṛṣṇa? (devotees laugh) Fragrance is coming from here, from the dirt, muddy dirt, and fragrance is coming. Unless there is fragrance, how it came here? The color is coming, the beauty is coming, the fragrance is coming, the arrangement is coming along the stem. Where is that scientist? They are seeing every day, and "There is no God." Just see, how foolish they are. You do it.

Room Conversation -- June 17, 1976, Toronto:

Prabhupāda: In India, especially in Bengal, there is a preparation, it is softer than the puffed rice-khoi, fused rice. That is very good. Light, at the same time soft purgative. That milk mixed with is a very good food for old men.

Hari-śauri: In that newspaper article in the Butler Eagle, that very first article when you just arrived that we saw? They showed that copy in Los Angeles. It mentioned, the reporter there, he quoted you as saying that—you were telling him about milk, how good it was—and he quoted you as saying that milk is the miracle food for babies and old men.

Prabhupāda: Yes. That's a fact. No, it may be there are so many other foods, but cent percent of the human society, everyone, has some way or other taken milk. So morally, cow is our mother. How these mothers are being killed? That is the question. Where is morality? Where is...? And they are drawing last drop of the milk. And there is necessity of milk. "After taking whatever money you have got..., take, I shall kill you." What is this? Horrible society. If I take from you whatever you have got in your pocket and then I kill you.... What is this society?

'Life Comes From Life' Slideshow Discussions -- July 3, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: That is not the direction that we were thinking. We were thinking that we could give some specific examples. We understand that the modes of nature are mixed, but even then... Now let's take birds. A bird like swan likes to be very clean habit, likes to live in a nice environment like lotus and clean water, but on the other hand birds like eagle, very passionate, wants to...

Prabhupāda: Crow.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Crow is rather very ignorant and wants to be very dirty, whereas...

Prabhupāda: So what you will do by such study?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: By this...

Prabhupāda: Generalize the divisions, that's all. But none of the divisions are spiritual. Our aim is to come to the spiritual platform. Traiguṇya-viṣayā vedā nistraiguṇyo bhavārjuna. Not that to increase goodness and keep a less quantity passion and ignorance. Be completely free from all the three qualities, that is required.

'Life Comes From Life' Slideshow Discussions -- July 3, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: The question is, now we want to argue that how is it possible, now you are claiming that life is coming from molecules? If you claim like that, then how is it possible that in the same species, let's say in the birds, that these qualities are spreading? Some birds we see behave like a little influenced by the modes of goodness, though it is mixed. Like swan, we are taking that example. But some are like eagle, very passionate, wants to kill small birds as their food, and on the other hand, birds like crows, they like just to be completely ignorant, or they like to survive in a dirty environment. Why? Is this possible just from the concept of molecular evolution? It's completely, it's failing. They have no explanation along those terms. So we thought to bring up these points, it will be very clear that this evolution is completely wrong. So we want to use that...

Prabhupāda: There is no question of evolution. It is already there. This is a wrong theory. The monkey is there, the man is there. The soul is going from monkey to man. It is not the evolution. Just like you have got apartment, ten rupees, five rupees, twenty rupees, thirty rupees, like that. Now, as you pay, "Come on, here." There is no question of evolution. It is already there. Jantur dehopapattaye. These dehas, these bodies, are already there. So immediately it develops a particular type of desire, "Yes, come here, sit down."

Garden Conversation -- September 3, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: No, aeroplanes. During wartime when they used to come to bombard they used to come in four, five together because the enemies, they used to shot down. So if one is shot down the other will be bombing.

Caraṇāravindam: You wrote in the Bhāgavatam, Śrīla Prabhupāda, that in outer space there are those giant birds like eagle. Very, very big. Giant size. Enormous.

Prabhupāda: They go from one planet to another.

Caraṇāravindam: It is like a big plane. Bigger than jet.

Prabhupāda: And while flying they lay down eggs. And the eggs, while falling down, they become birds. By the, what is called?

Hari-śauri: Friction?

Prabhupāda: No, no. When they, what it is called. Velocity of falling down, it becomes fomented, and then the birds come out. Just like parasites. No? Parachute?

Room Conversation -- September 9, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: No. So I lived with him for twenty-one days. Then I came to New York.

Hari-śauri: Yes, that picture in the Butler Eagle. It's in the Vyāsa-Pūjā book this year.

Prabhupāda: Yes, yes. Butler County, it is good (indistinct), there were many churches (indistinct) people have got so many churches (indistinct) (break) ...some time, that one piece of wire lying in one place, one piece of bamboo was lying in another place, and one dry shell of a squash was lying. So one intelligent man collected. So this dry shell became the tamburā's what is called...

Hari-śauri: I don't know. Like sound chamber. What do you call it?

Prabhupāda: Sound chamber may be called. So with that dry squash he made the sound chamber. The bamboo he fixed up and the wire upon it and then it became a "Tin, tin, tin, tin..." (laughs) Our organization is like that. I was loitering in the street. Somebody was over there, somebody was there. Not combined together, International Society String Band. Yes. Separately we are all useless. Eh?

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Conversation with Svarupa Damodara -- June 21, 1977, Vrndavana:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He also included a letter... You know the former president was Mr. Ford. So he got a letter from Mr. Ford. It says, "Dear Mr. Jacupko"—that's his karmī name—"I wish to thank you for sending me a copy of Bhagavad-gītā As It Is. You were most kind to think of me, and I am deeply grateful for your friendship. With appreciation and best wishes, sincerely, Gerald R. Ford." It's got the US eagle on the letterhead.

Prabhupāda: You can use this letter.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yeah, he says that "I heard..." This is from ex-president Ford. There was some discussion that perhaps he would be a candidate in the 1980 Presidential election here. Anyway, he's an important man. Then he lists some of the people who have gotten your Bhagavad-gītā as well as other small book in Russian or other languages or prasādam. "Mr. Igor Orligalik, Deputy Director (gives list of many Eastern Bloc professors and directors) You see, he keeps a file on all these people, so if ever we go to these countries, we know which people got our books, and these are all highly placed people, very prominent people. Good work.