Just like a fire situated in one place distributing unlimitedly, or limitedly, its heats and energies, heats and light, similarly, whatever we are experiencing within our views in this material world, they are simply manifestation of the energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
It is also confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā. Kṛṣṇa says, mayā tatam idaṁ sarvaṁ jagat avyakta-mūrtinā (BG 9.4): "I am all-pervading, spreading, in this material manifestation, jagat, in impersonal feature, avyakta-mūrtinā." Everything . . . avyakta means Kṛṣṇa is not manifested there, but we can feel.
Just like when you see some smoke from a distant place, you can immediately understand that there is fire. It is very easy. Similarly, if everything is going on nicely—the sun is rising exactly in the time; the moon is rising exactly in the time; they are illuminating; they are appearing, disappearing; everything is going on, seasonal changes—so if things are going on so nicely, how you can say: "God is dead"?
If the management is going on nicely, you cannot say that these things are automatically happening. No. There is no such thing within your experience which is automatically managed. We must appreciate there is some brain behind it. Professor Einstein, the greatest scientist, he admitted that, "As we are advancing in scientific research, we are coming to the conclusion that there is a very big brain behind all this." How you can deny that? And we are getting direct information from Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead:
- mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ
- sūyate sa-carācaram
- hetunānena kaunteya
- jagad viparivartate
- (BG 9.10)
So the progress of the material world . . . progress, no. Progress means . . . in the material objects progress means . . . just like a flower: it is in the bud, then it fructifies. That is progress. Again dwindles and vanishes. Ṣaḍ-vikāra. Just like your body, my body—progress means from babyhood, childhood, boyhood, youthhood. That is, up to that, youthhood, progress.
Then as soon as youthhood passed, old age comes in, then dwindling, then finish. That means janma-sthiti-pralaya. It comes into existence, then it remains for some time, and again pralaya, vanishes, vanquish. This is the way of material existence. Bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate (BG 8.19). It takes place . . .
Therefore in the Vedānta-sūtra, Brahman means the original source of appearance, maintenance and disappearance. From Brahman, the Supreme Brahman, everything is emanating, janma. Janmādi. Janmādi means janma, sthiti and pralaya. So it is remaining in Brahman.
Mayā tatam idaṁ sarvam avyakta-mūrtinā, mat-sthāni sarva-bhūtāni (BG 9.4). Everything is existing, maintained by Brahman. And when the whole manifestation annihilates, pralaya-prakṛtiṁ yānti māmikam—it enters into the energy, supreme energy of the Personality of Godhead. That is the way, sṛṣṭi-sthiti-pralaya. From the energy.