Chapter Ten
Bhagavatam Is the Answer to All Questions
TEXT 1
TEXT
sri-suka uvaca
atra sargo visargas ca
sthanam posanam utayah
manvantaresanukatha
nirodho muktir asrayah
SYNONYMS
sri-sukah uvaca--Sri Sukadeva Gosvami said; atra--in this
Srimad-Bhagavatam; sargah--statement of the creation of the universe;
visargah--statement of subcreation; ca--also; sthanam--the planetary systems;
posanam--protection; utayah--the creative impetus; manvantara--changes of
Manus; isa-anukathah--the science of God; nirodhah--going back home, back to
Godhead; muktih--liberation; asrayah--the summum bonum.
TRANSLATION
Sri Sukadeva Gosvami said: In the Srimad-Bhagavatam there are ten
divisions of statements regarding the following: the creation of the universe,
subcreation, planetary systems, protection by the Lord, the creative impetus,
the change of Manus, the science of God, returning home, back to Godhead,
liberation, and the summum bonum.
TEXT 2
TEXT
dasamasya visuddhy-artham
navanam iha laksanam
varnayanti mahatmanah
srutenarthena canjasa
SYNONYMS
dasamasya--of the summum bonum; visuddhi--isolation; artham--purpose;
navanam--of the other nine; iha--in this Srimad-Bhagavatam; laksanam--symptoms;
varnayanti--they describe; maha-atmanah--the great sages; srutena--by Vedic
evidences; arthena--by direct explanation; ca--and; anjasa--summarily.
TRANSLATION
To isolate the transcendence of the summum bonum, the symptoms of the
rest are described sometimes by Vedic inference, sometimes by direct
explanation, and sometimes by summary explanations given by the great sages.
TEXT 3
TEXT
bhuta-matrendriya-dhiyam
janma sarga udahrtah
brahmano guna-vaisamyad
visargah paurusah smrtah
SYNONYMS
bhuta--the five gross elements (the sky, etc.); matra--objects perceived
by the senses; indriya--the senses; dhiyam--of the mind; janma--creation;
sargah--manifestation; udahrtah--is called the creation; brahmanah--of Brahma,
the first purusa; guna-vaisamyat--by interaction of the three modes of nature;
visargah--re-creation; paurusah--resultant activities; smrtah--it is so known.
TRANSLATION
The elementary creation of sixteen items of matter--namely the five
elements [fire, water, land, air and sky], sound, form, taste, smell, touch,
and the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, skin and mind--is known as sarga, whereas
subsequent resultant interaction of the modes of material nature is called
visarga.
PURPORT
In order to explain the ten divisional symptoms of the
Srimad-Bhagavatam, there are seven continuous verses. The first of these under
reference pertains to the sixteen elementary manifestations of earth, water,
etc., with material ego composed of material intelligence and mind. The subsequent
creation is a result of the reactions of the above-mentioned sixteen energies
of the first purusa, the Maha-Visnu incarnation of Govinda, as later explained
by Brahma in his treatise Brahma-samhita (5.47) as follows:
yah karanarnava-jale bhajati sma yoga-
nidram ananta-jagad-anda-sa-roma-kupah
adhara-saktim avalambya param sva-murtim
govindam adi-purusam tam aham bhajami
The first purusa incarnation of Govinda, Lord Krsna, known as the
Maha-Visnu, goes into a yoga-nidra mystic sleep, and the innumerable universes
are situated in potency in each and every hair hole of His transcendental body.
As mentioned in the previous verse, srutena (or with reference to the
Vedic conclusions), the creation is made possible from the Supreme Personality
of Godhead directly by manifestation of His particular energies. Without such a
Vedic reference, the creation appears to be a product of material nature. This
conclusion comes from a poor fund of knowledge. From Vedic reference it is
concluded that the origin of all energies (namely internal, external and
marginal) is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. And as explained hereinbefore,
the illusory conclusion is that creation is made by the inert material nature.
The Vedic conclusion is transcendental light, whereas the non-Vedic conclusion
is material darkness. The internal potency of the Supreme Lord is identical
with the Supreme Lord, and the external potency is enlivened in contact with
the internal potency. The parts and parcels of the internal potency which react
in contact with the external potency are called the marginal potency, or the
living entities.
Thus the original creation is directly from the Supreme Personality of
Godhead, or Parambrahman, and the secondary creation, as a reactionary result
of the original ingredients, is made by Brahma. Thus the activities of the
whole universe are started.
TEXT 4
TEXT
sthitir vaikuntha-vijayah
posanam tad-anugrahah
manvantarani sad-dharma
utayah karma-vasanah
SYNONYMS
sthitih--the right situation; vaikuntha-vijayah--the victory of the Lord
of Vaikuntha; posanam--maintenance; tat-anugrahah--His causeless mercy;
manvantarani--the reign of the Manus; sat-dharmah--perfect occupational duty;
utayah--impetus to work; karma-vasanah--desire for fruitive work.
TRANSLATION
The right situation for the living entities is to obey the laws of the
Lord and thus be in perfect peace of mind under the protection of the Supreme
Personality of Godhead. The Manus and their laws are meant to give right
direction in life. The impetus for activity is the desire for fruitive work.
PURPORT
This material world is created, maintained for some time, and again annihilated
by the will of the Lord. The ingredients for creation and the subordinate
creator, Brahma, are first created by Lord Visnu in His first and second
incarnations. The first purusa incarnation is Maha-Visnu, and the second purusa
incarnation is the Garbhodakasayi Visnu, from whom Brahma is created. The third
purusa avatara is the Ksirodakasayi Visnu, who lives as the Supersoul of
everything in the universe and maintains the creation generated by Brahma. Siva
is one of the many sons of Brahma, and he annihilates the creation. Therefore
the original creator of the universe is Visnu, and He is also the maintainer of
the created beings by His causeless mercy. As such, it is the duty of all
conditioned souls to acknowledge the victory of the Lord and thus become pure
devotees and live peacefully in this world, where miseries and dangers are
always in existence. The conditioned souls, who take this material creation as
the place for satisfaction of the senses and thus are illusioned by the
external energy of Visnu, remain again to be subjected to the laws of material
nature, creation and destruction.
In the Bhagavad-gita it is said that beginning from the topmost planet
of this universe down to the lowest planet, Patalaloka, all are destructible,
and the conditioned souls may travel in space either by good or bad work or by
modern spacecraft, but they are sure to die everywhere, although the duration
of life in different planets is different. The only means to attain eternal
life is to go back home, back to Godhead, where there is no more rebirth as in
the material planets. The conditioned souls, being unaware of this very simple
fact because of forgetting their relationship with the Lord of Vaikuntha, try
to plan out a permanent life in this material world. Being illusioned by the
external energy, they thus become engaged in various types of economic and
religious development, forgetting that they are meant for going back home, back
to Godhead. This forgetfulness is so strong due to the influence of maya that
the conditioned souls do not at all want to go back to Godhead. By sense
enjoyment they become victims of birth and death repeatedly and thus spoil
human lives which are chances for going back to Visnu. The directive scriptures
made by the Manus in different ages and millenniums are called sad-dharma, good
guidance for the human beings, who should take advantage of all the revealed
scriptures for their own interest, to make life's successful termination. The
creation is not false, but it is a temporary manifestation just to give a
chance for the conditioned souls to go back to Godhead. The desire to go back
to Godhead and functions performed in that direction form the right path of
work. When such a regulative path is accepted, the Lord gives all protection to
His devotees by His causeless mercy, while the nondevotees risk their own
activities to bind themselves in a chain of fruitive reactions. The word
sad-dharma is significant in this connection. Sad-dharma, or duty performed for
going back to Godhead and thus becoming His unalloyed devotee, is the only
pious activity; all others may pretend to be pious, but actually they are not.
It is for this reason only that the Lord advises in the Bhagavad-gita that one
give up all so-called religious activities and completely engage in the
devotional service of the Lord to become free from all anxieties due to the
dangerous life of material existence. To work situated in sad-dharma is the
right direction of life. One's aim of life should be to go back home, back to
Godhead, and not be subjected to repeated births and deaths in the material
world by getting good or bad bodies for temporary existence. Herein lies the
intelligence of human life, and one should desire the activities of life in
that way.
TEXT 5
TEXT
avataranucaritam
hares casyanuvartinam
pumsam isa-kathah prokta
nanakhyanopabrmhitah
SYNONYMS
avatara--incarnation of Godhead; anucaritam--activities; hareh--of the
Personality of Godhead; ca--also; asya--of His; anuvartinam--followers;
pumsam--of the persons; isa-kathah--the science of God; proktah--is said; nana--various;
akhyana--narrations; upabrmhitah--described.
TRANSLATION
The science of God describes the incarnations of the Personality of
Godhead and His different activities together with the activities of His great
devotees.
PURPORT
During the course of the existence of the cosmic manifestation, the
chronology of history is created, recording the activities of the living
entities. People in general have a tendency to learn the history and narrations
of different men and times, but due to a lack of knowledge in the science of
Godhead, they are not apt to study the history of the incarnations of the
Personality of Godhead. It should always be remembered that the material
creation is created for the salvation of the conditioned souls. The merciful
Lord, out of His causeless mercy, descends to various planets in the material
world and acts for the salvation of the conditioned souls. That makes the
history and narrations worth reading. Srimad-Bhagavatam offers such
transcendental topics of the Lord in relationship with great devotees.
Therefore the topics of the devotees and the Lord are to be given respectful
aural reception.
TEXT 6
TEXT
nirodho 'syanusayanam
atmanah saha saktibhih
muktir hitvanyatha rupam
sva-rupena vyavasthitih
SYNONYMS
nirodhah--the winding up of the cosmic manifestation; asya--of His;
anusayanam--the lying down of the purusa incarnation Maha-Visnu in mystic
slumber; atmanah--of the living entities; saha--along with; saktibhih--with the
energies; muktih--liberation; hitva--giving up; anyatha--otherwise;
rupam--form; sva-rupena--in constitutional form; vyavasthitih--permanent
situation.
TRANSLATION
The merging of the living entity, along with his conditional living
tendency, with the mystic lying down of the Maha-Visnu is called the winding up
of the cosmic manifestation. Liberation is the permanent situation of the form
of the living entity after he gives up the changeable gross and subtle material
bodies.
PURPORT
As we have discussed several times, there are two types of living
entities. Most of them are ever liberated, or nitya-muktas, while some of them
are ever conditioned. The ever-conditioned souls are apt to develop a mentality
of lording over the material nature, and therefore the material cosmic creation
is manifested to give the ever-conditioned souls two kinds of facilities. One
facility is that the conditioned soul can act according to his tendency to lord
it over the cosmic manifestation, and the other facility gives the conditioned
soul a chance to come back to Godhead. So after the winding up of the cosmic
manifestation, most of the conditioned souls merge into the existence of the
Maha-Visnu Personality of Godhead, lying in His mystic slumber, to be created
again in the next creation. But some of the conditioned souls, who follow the
transcendental sound in the form of Vedic literatures and are thus able to go
back to Godhead, attain spiritual and original bodies after quitting the
conditional gross and subtle material bodies. The material conditional bodies
develop out of the living entities' forgetfulness of their relationship with
Godhead, and during the course of the cosmic manifestation, the conditioned
souls are given a chance to revive their original status of life with the help
of revealed scriptures, so mercifully compiled by the Lord in His different
incarnations. Reading or hearing of such transcendental literatures helps one
become liberated even in the conditional state of material existence. All the
Vedic literatures aim at devotional service to the Personality of Godhead, and
as soon as one is fixed upon this point, he at once becomes liberated from
conditional life. The material gross and subtle forms are simply due to the
conditioned soul's ignorance and as soon as he is fixed in the devotional
service of the Lord, he becomes eligible to be freed from the conditioned
state. This devotional service is transcendental attraction for the Supreme on
account of His being the source of all pleasing humors. Everyone is after some
pleasure of humor for enjoyment, but does not know the supreme source of all
attraction (raso vai sah rasam hy evayam labdhvanandi bhavati). The Vedic hymns
inform everyone about the supreme source of all pleasure; the unlimited
fountainhead of all pleasure is the Personality of Godhead, and one who is
fortunate enough to get this information through transcendental literatures
like Srimad-Bhagavatam becomes permanently liberated to occupy his proper place
in the kingdom of God.
TEXT 7
TEXT
abhasas ca nirodhas ca
yato 'sty adhyavasiyate
sa asrayah param brahma
paramatmeti sabdyate
SYNONYMS
abhasah--the cosmic manifestation; ca--and; nirodhah--and its winding
up; ca--also; yatah--from the source; asti--is; adhyavasiyate--become
manifested; sah--He; asrayah--reservoir; param--the Supreme; brahma--Being;
paramatma--the Supersoul; iti--thus; sabdyate--called.
TRANSLATION
The supreme one who is celebrated as the Supreme Being or the Supreme Soul
is the supreme source of the cosmic manifestation as well as its reservoir and
winding up. Thus He is the Supreme Fountainhead, the Absolute Truth.
PURPORT
Synonyms for the supreme source of all energies, as explained in the
very beginning of the Srimad-Bhagavatam, are janmady asya yatah, vadanti tat
tattva-vidas tattvam yaj jnanam advayam. brahmeti paramatmeti bhagavan iti
sabdyate, called Parambrahma, Paramatma or Bhagavan. The word iti used here in
this verse completes the synonyms and thus indicates Bhagavan. This will be
further explained in the later verses, but this Bhagavan ultimately means Lord
Krsna because the Srimad-Bhagavatam has already accepted the Supreme
Personality of Godhead as Krsna. Krsnas tu bhagavan svayam. The original source
of all energies, or the summum bonum, is the Absolute Truth, which is called
Parambrahma, etc., and Bhagavan is the last word of the Absolute Truth. But
even with the synonyms for Bhagavan, such as Narayana, Visnu and Purusa, the
last word is Krsna, as confirmed in the Bhagavad-gita: aham sarvasya prabhavo
mattah samam pravartate, etc. Besides that, the Srimad-Bhagavatam is the
representation of Lord Krsna as a sound incarnation of the Lord.
krsne sva-dhamopagate
dharma-jnanadibhih saha
kalau nasta-drsam esah
puranarko 'dhunoditah
(Bhag. 1.3.43)
Thus by general conclusion Lord Krsna is the ultimate source of all
energies, and the word Krsna means that. And to explain Krsna or the science of
Krsna, the Srimad-Bhagavatam has been prepared. In the First Canto of
Srimad-Bhagavatam this truth is indicated in the questions and answers by Suta
Gosvami and great sages like Saunaka, and in the First and Second Chapters of
the canto this is explained. In the Third Chapter this subject is more
explicit, and in the Fourth Chapter even more explicit. In the Second Canto the
Absolute Truth as the personality of Godhead is further emphasized, and the
indication is the Supreme Lord Krsna. The summary of Srimad-Bhagavatam in four
verses, as we have already discussed, is succinct. This Supreme Personality of
Godhead in the ultimate issue is confirmed by Brahma in his Brahma-samhita as
isvarah paramah krsnah sac-cid-ananda-vigrahah. So it is concluded in the Third
Canto of the Srimad-Bhagavatam. The complete subject matter is elaborately
explained in the Tenth and Eleventh Cantos of the Srimad-Bhagavatam. In the
matter of the changes of the Manus or manvantaras, such as the
Svayambhuva-manvantara and Caksusa-manvantara, as they are discussed in the
Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and Seventh Cantos of Srimad-Bhagavatam, Lord Krsna
is indicated. In the Eighth Canto the Vaivasvata-manvantara explains the same
subject indirectly, and in the Ninth Canto the same purport is there. In the
Twelfth Canto the same is further explained, specifically regarding the
different incarnations of the Lord. Thus it is concluded by studying the
complete Srimad-Bhagavatam that Lord Sri Krsna is the ultimate summum bonum, or
the ultimate source of all energy. And according to the grades of worshipers,
the indications of the nomenclature may be differently explained as Narayana,
Brahma, Paramatma, etc.
TEXT 8
TEXT
yo 'dhyatmiko 'yam purusah
so 'sav evadhidaivikah
yas tatrobhaya-vicchedah
puruso hy adhibhautikah
SYNONYMS
yah--one who; adhyatmikah--is possessed of the sense organs; ayam--this;
purusah--personality; sah--he; asau--that; eva--also; adhidaivikah--controlling
deity; yah--that which; tatra--there; ubhaya--of both; vicchedah--separation;
purusah--person; hi--for; adhibhautikah--the visible body or the embodied
living entity.
TRANSLATION
The individual person possessing different instruments of senses is called
the adhyatmic person, and the individual controlling deity of the senses is
called adhidaivic. The embodiment seen on the eyeballs is called the
adhibhautic person.
PURPORT
The supreme controlling summum bonum is the personality of Godhead in
His plenary portion of Paramatma, or the Supersoul manifestation. In the
Bhagavad-gita (10.42) it is said:
athava bahunaitena
kim jnatena tavarjuna
vistabhyaham idam krtsnam
ekamsena sthito jagat
All the controlling deities like Visnu, Brahma and Siva are different
manifestations of the Paramatma feature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead
Sri Krsna, who exhibits himself in such manners by entering into each and every
universe generated from Him. But still apparently there are divisions of the
controller and controlled. For example, in the food-controlling department the
controller of food is a person made of the same ingredients as the person who
is controlled. Similarly, each and every individual in the material world is
controlled by the higher demigods. For example, we have our senses, but the
senses are controlled by superior controlling deities. We cannot see without
light, and the supreme controller of light is the sun. The sun-god is in the
sun planet, and we, the individual human beings or any other being on this
earth, are all controlled by the sun-god as far as our eyes are concerned.
Similarly, all the senses we have are controlled by the superior demigods, who
are also as much living entities as we are, but one is empowered while the
other is controlled. The controlled living entity is called the adhyatmic
person, and the controller is called the adhidaivic person. All these positions
in the material world are due to different fruitive activities. Any individual
living being can become the sun-god or even Brahma or any other god in the
upper planetary system by a higher grade of pious work, and similarly one
becomes controlled by the higher demigods by lower grades of fruitive
activities. So every individual living entity is subject to the supreme control
of the Paramatma, who puts everyone in different positions of the controller
and the controlled.
That which distinguishes the controller and controlled, i.e. the
material body, is called the adhibhautic purusa. The body is sometimes called
purusa, as confirmed in the Vedas in the following hymn: sa va esa puruso
'nna-rasamayah. This body is called the anna-rasa embodiment. This body depends
on food. The living entity which is embodied does not eat anything, however,
because the owner is spirit in essence. The material body requires replacement
of matter for the wearing and tearing of the mechanical body. Therefore the
distinction between the individual living entity and controlling planetary
deities is in the anna-rasamaya body. The sun may have a gigantic body, and the
man may have a smaller body, but all these visible bodies are made of matter;
nonetheless, the sun-god and the individual person, who are related as the
controller and the controlled, are the same spiritual parts and parcels of the
Supreme Being, and it is the Supreme Being who places different parts and
parcels in different positions. And thus the conclusion is that the Supreme
Person is the shelter of all.
TEXT 9
TEXT
ekam ekatarabhave
yada nopalabhamahe
tritayam tatra yo veda
sa atma svasrayasrayah
SYNONYMS
ekam--one; ekatara--another; abhave--in the absence of; yada--because;
na--does not; upalabhamahe--perceptible; tritayam--in three stages; tatra--there;
yah--the one; veda--who knows; sah--he; atma--the Supersoul; sva--own;
asraya--shelter; asrayah--of the shelter.
TRANSLATION
All three of the above-mentioned stages of different living entities are
interdependent. In the absence of one, another is not understood. But the
Supreme Being who sees every one of them as the shelter of the shelter is
independent of all, and therefore He is the supreme shelter.
PURPORT
There are innumerable living entities, one dependent on the other in the
relationship of the controlled and the controller. But without the medium of
perception, no one can know or understand who is the controlled and who is the
controller. For example, the sun controls the power of our vision, we can see
the sun because the sun has its body, and the sunlight is useful only because
we have eyes. Without our having eyes, the sunlight is useless, and without
sunlight the eyes are useless. Thus they are interdependent, and none of them
is independent. Therefore the natural question arises concerning who made them
interdependent. The one who has made such a relationship of interdependence
must be ultimately completely independent. As stated in the beginning of the Srimad-Bhagavatam,
the ultimate source of all interdependent objectives is the complete
independent subject. This ultimate source of all interdependence is the Supreme
Truth or Paramatma, the Supersoul, who is not dependent on anything else. He is
svasrayasrayah. He is only dependent on His self, and thus He is the supreme
shelter of everything. Although Paramatma and Brahman are subordinate to
Bhagavan, because Bhagavan is Purusottama or the Superperson, He is the source
of the Supersoul also. In the Bhagavad-gita (15.18) Lord Krsna says that He is
the Purusottama and the source of everything, and thus it is concluded that Sri
Krsna is the ultimate source and shelter of all entities, including the
Supersoul and Supreme Brahman. Even accepting that there is no difference
between the Supersoul and the individual soul, the individual soul is dependent
on the Supersoul for being liberated from the illusion of material energy. The
individual is under the clutches of illusory energy, and therefore although
qualitatively one with the Supersoul, he is under the illusion of identifying
himself with matter. And to get out of this illusory conception of factual
life, the individual soul has to depend on the Supersoul to be recognized as
one with Him. In that sense also the Supersoul is the supreme shelter. And
there is no doubt about it.
The individual living entity, the jiva, is always dependent on the
Supersoul, Paramatma, because the individual soul forgets his spiritual
identity whereas the Supersoul, Paramatma, does not forget His transcendental
position. In the Bhagavad-gita these separate positions of the jiva-atma and
the Paramatma are specifically mentioned. In the Fourth Chapter, Arjuna, the
jiva soul, is represented as forgetful of his many, many previous births, but
the Lord, the Supersoul, is not forgetful. The Lord even remembers when He
taught the Bhagavad-gita to the sun-god some billions of years before. The Lord
can remember such millions and billions of years, as stated in the
Bhagavad-gita (7.26) as follows:
vedaham samatitani
vartamanani carjuna
bhavisyani ca bhutani
mam tu veda na kascana
The Lord in His eternal blissful body of knowledge is fully aware of all
that happened in the past, that which is going on at the present and also what
will happen in the future. But in spite of His being the shelter of both the
Paramatma and Brahman, persons with a poor fund of knowledge are unable to
understand Him as He is.
The propaganda of the identity of cosmic consciousness with the
consciousness of the individual living entities is completely misleading
because even such a person or individual soul as Arjuna could not remember his
past deeds, although he is always with the Lord. And what can the tiny ordinary
man, falsely claiming to be one with the cosmic consciousness, know about his
past, present and future?
TEXT 10
TEXT
puruso 'ndam vinirbhidya
yadasau sa vinirgatah
atmano 'yanam anvicchann
apo 'sraksic chucih sucih
SYNONYMS
purusah--the Supreme Person, Paramatma; andam--the universes;
vinirbhidya--making them each separately situated; yada--when; asau--the same;
sah--He (the Lord); vinirgatah--came out; atmanah--of Himself; ayanam--lying in
place; anvicchan--desiring; apah--water; asraksit--created; sucih--the most
pure; sucih--transcendental.
TRANSLATION
After separating the different universes, the gigantic universal form of
the Lord [Maha-Visnu], which came out of the causal ocean, the place of
appearance for the first purusa-avatara, entered into each of the separate
universes, desiring to lie on the created transcendental water [Garbhodaka].
PURPORT
After analysis of the living entities and the Supreme Lord, Paramatma,
the independent source of all other living beings, Srila Sukadeva Gosvami is
now presenting the prime necessity for devotional service to the Lord, which is
the only occupational business of all living entities. The Supreme Lord Sri
Krsna and all His plenary portions and extensions of plenary portions are
nondifferent from one another, and thus the supreme independence is in each and
every one of them. In order to prove this, Sukadeva Gosvami (as promised to
King Pariksit) describes herein the independence of the purusa-avatara
Personality of Godhead, even in the sphere of the material creation. Such
activities of the Lord are also transcendental, and therefore they are also
lila, or pastimes, of the absolute Lord. Such pastimes of the Lord are very
conducive to the hearers for self-realization in the field of devotional
service. Some may argue, why not then relish the transcendental lila of the
Lord as exhibited in the land of Mathura and Vrndavana, which are sweeter than
anything in the world? Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura replies that the
pastimes of the Lord in Vrndavana are meant to be relished by advanced devotees
of the Lord. Neophyte devotees will misunderstand such supreme transcendental
activities of the Lord, and therefore the Lord's pastimes in the material
sphere related to creation, maintenance and destruction are verily relishable
by the prakrta, or mundane devotees of the Lord. As the yoga system mainly
based on bodily exercises is meant for the person who is too much attached to
the bodily conception of existence, similarly the Lord's pastimes related to
the creation and destruction of the material world are for those who are too
materially attached. For such mundane creatures the functions of the body and
the functions of the cosmic world through physical laws in relationship with
the Lord are also therefore included in understanding of the lawmaker, the
Supreme Personality of Godhead. The scientists explain the material functions
by so many technological terms of material law, but such blind scientists
forget the lawmaker. The Srimad-Bhagavatam points out the lawmaker. One should
not be amazed by the mechanical arrangement of the complicated engine or
dynamo, but one should praise the engineer who creates such a wonderful working
machine. That is the difference between the devotee and the nondevotee.
Devotees are always full with praising the Lord, who directs the physical laws.
In the Bhagavad-gita (9.10) the direction of the Lord upon the material nature
is described as follows:
mayadhyaksena prakrtih
suyate sacaracaram
hetunanena kaunteya
jagad viparivartate
"The material nature full of physical laws is one of My different
energies; therefore it is neither independent nor blind. Because I am
transcendentally all-powerful, simply by My glancing over material nature, the
physical laws of nature work so wonderfully. The actions and reactions of the
physical laws work on that account, and thus the material world is created,
maintained and annihilated again and again."
Men with a poor fund of knowledge, however, become astonished by
studying the physical laws both within the construction of the individual body
and within the cosmic manifestation, and foolishly they decry the existence of
God, taking it for granted that the physical laws are independent, without any
metaphysical control. The Bhagavad-gita (9.11) replies to this foolishness in
the following words:
avajananti mam mudha
manusim tanum asritam
param bhavam ajananto
mama bhuta-mahesvaram
"The foolish men [mudhah] do not know the Personality of Godhead in
His eternal form of bliss and knowledge." The foolish man thinks of the
transcendental body of the Lord as something like his own, and therefore he
cannot think of the unlimited controlling power of the Lord, who is not visible
in the acting of the physical laws. The Lord is, however, visible to the naked
eyes of people in general when He descends Himself by His own personal potency.
Lord Krsna incarnated Himself as He is and played very wonderful parts as the
Lord Himself, and the Bhagavad-gita concerns such wonderful actions and
knowledge. Yet foolish men will not accept Lord Krsna as the Supreme Lord.
Generally they consider the infinitesimal and infinite features of the Lord
because they themselves are unable to become either the infinitesimal or the
infinite, but one should know that the infinite and infinitesimal sizes of the
Lord are not His highest glories. The most wonderful manifestation of the
Lord's power is exhibited when the infinite Lord becomes visible to our eyes as
one of us. Yet His activities are different from those of the finite beings.
Lifting a mountain at the age of seven years and marrying sixteen thousand
wives in the prime of His youth are some of the examples of His infinite
energy, but the mudhas, after seeing them or hearing about them, decry them as
legendary and take the Lord as one of them. They cannot understand that the
Lord Sri Krsna, although in the form of a human being by His own potency, is
still the Supreme Lord with full potency as the supreme controller.
When, however, the mudhas give submissive and aural reception to the
messages of the Lord as in the Srimad Bhagavad-gita or in the Srimad-Bhagavatam
through the channel of disciplic succession, such mudhas also become devotees
of the Lord by the grace of His pure devotees. And for this reason only, either
in the Bhagavad-gita or in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, the pastimes of the Lord in
the material world are delineated for the benefit of those men with a poor fund
of knowledge.
TEXT 11
TEXT
tasv avatsit sva-srstasu
sahasram parivatsaran
tena narayano nama
yad apah purusodbhavah
SYNONYMS
tasu--in that; avatsit--resided;
sva--own; srstasu--in the matter of creation; sahasram--one thousand;
parivatsaran--years of His measurement; tena--for that reason; narayanah--the
Personality of Godhead named Narayana; nama--name; yat--because; apah--water;
purusa-udbhavah--emanated from the Supreme Person.
TRANSLATION
That Supreme Person is not impersonal and therefore is distinctively a
nara, or person. Therefore the transcendental water created from the Supreme
Nara is known as nara. And because He lies down on that water, He is known as
Narayana.
TEXT 12
TEXT
dravyam karma ca kalas ca
svabhavo jiva eva ca
yad-anugrahatah santi
na santi yad-upeksaya
SYNONYMS
dravyam--physical elements; karma--action; ca--and; kalah--time;
ca--also; sva-bhavah jivah--the living entities; eva--certainly; ca--also;
yat--whose; anugrahatah--by the mercy of; santi--exist; na--does not;
santi--exist; yat-upeksaya--by negligence.
TRANSLATION
One should definitely know that all material ingredients, activities, time
and modes, and the living entities who are meant to enjoy them all, exist by
His mercy only, and as soon as He does not care for them, everything becomes
nonexistent.
PURPORT
The living entities are the enjoyers of the material ingredients, time,
modes, etc., because they want to lord it over the material nature. The Lord is
the supreme enjoyer, and the living entities are meant to assist the Lord in
His enjoyment and thus participate in the transcendental enjoyment of everyone.
The enjoyer and the enjoyed both participate in enjoyment, but, deluded by the
illusory energy, the living entities want to become the enjoyer like the Lord,
although they are not meant for such enjoyment. The jivas, the living entities,
are mentioned in the Bhagavad-gita as the Lord's superior nature, or para
prakrti, and so also it is mentioned in the Visnu Purana. Therefore the living
entities are never the purusas, or the factual enjoyers. As such, the spirit of
enjoyment by the living entity in the material world is false. In the spiritual
world the living entities are pure in nature, and therefore they are associates
in the enjoyment of the Supreme Lord. In the material world the spirit of
enjoyment of the living entities by dint of their own actions (karma) gradually
fades by the laws of nature, and thus the illusory energy dictates in the ears
of the conditioned souls that they should become one with the Lord. This is the
last snare of the illusory energy. When the last illusion is also cleared off
by the mercy of the Lord, the living entity again becomes reinstated in his
original position and thus becomes actually liberated. For this attainment of
liberation from the material clutches, the Lord creates the material world,
maintains it for some time (one thousand years of His measurement, as stated in
the previous verse), and then again annihilates it by His will. The living
entities are therefore completely dependent on the mercy of the Lord, and all
their so-called enjoyments by scientific improvement are crushed into dust when
the Lord desires.
TEXT 13
TEXT
eko nanatvam anvicchan
yoga-talpat samutthitah
viryam hiranmayam devo
mayaya vyasrjat tridha
SYNONYMS
ekah--He, one alone; nanatvam--varieties; anvicchan--so desiring;
yoga-talpat--from the bedstead of mystic slumber; samutthitah--thus generated;
viryam--the semina; hiranmayam--golden hue; devah--the demigod; mayaya--by the
external energy; vyasrjat--perfectly created; tridha--in three features.
TRANSLATION
The Lord, while lying on His bed of mystic slumber, generated the
seminal symbol, golden in hue, through external energy out of His desire to
manifest varieties of living entities from Himself alone.
PURPORT
In the Bhagavad-gita (9.7-8) the creation and annihilation of the
material world are stated as follows:
sarva-bhutani kaunteya
prakrtim yanti mamikam
kalpa-ksaye punas tani
kalpadau visrjamy aham
prakrtim svam avastabhya
visrjami punah punah
bhuta-gramam imam krtsnam
avasam prakrter vasat
"At the end of each millennium the creative forces, namely the
material nature and the living entities who struggle in the material nature,
all merge together into the transcendental body of the Lord, and again when the
Lord desires to manifest them, all of them are again displayed by the Lord.
"Therefore the material nature is working under the control of the
Lord. All of them, under the agency of material nature and under the control of
the Lord, are thus repeatedly created and annihilated by the will of the
Lord."
As such, before the creation or manifestation of the material cosmic world,
the Lord exists as total energy (maha-samasti), and thus desiring Himself to be
diffused to many, He expands Himself further into multitotal energy (samasti).
From the multitotal energy He further expands Himself into individuals in three
dimensions, namely adhyatmic, adhidaivic and adhibhautic, as explained before
(vyasti). As such, the whole creation and the creative energies are
nondifferent and different simultaneously. Because everything is an emanation
from Him (the Maha-Visnu or Maha-samasti), nothing of the cosmic energies is
different from Him; but all such expanded energies have specific functions and
display as designed by the Lord, and therefore they are simultaneously
different from the Lord. The living entities are also similar energy (marginal
potency) of the Lord, and thus they are simultaneously one with and different
from Him.
At the stage of nonmanifestation, the living energies remain potent in
the Lord, and when they are let loose in the cosmic manifestation they are
exhibited differently in terms of different desires under the modes of nature.
Such differential manifestations of the living energies are conditional states
of the living entities. The liberated living entities, however, in the sanatana
(eternal) manifestation, are unconditionally surrendered souls, and therefore
they are not subject to the conditions of creation and annihilation. So this
creation takes place by the glance of the Lord from His bedstead of mystic
slumber. And thus all the universes and the lord of the universe, Brahma, are
again and again manifested and annihilated.
TEXT 14
TEXT
adhidaivam athadhyatmam
adhibhutam iti prabhuh
athaikam paurusam viryam
tridhabhidyata tac chrnu
SYNONYMS
adhidaivam--the controlling entities; atha--now; adhyatmam--the
controlled entities; adhibhutam--the material bodies; iti--thus; prabhuh--the
Lord; atha--in this way; ekam--one only; paurusam--of His Lordship;
viryam--potency; tridha--in three; abhidyata--divided; tat--that; srnu--just
hear from me.
TRANSLATION
Just hear from me how the potency of His Lordship divides one into
three, called the controlling entities, the controlled entities and the
material bodies, in the manner mentioned above.
TEXT 15
TEXT
antah sarira akasat
purusasya vicestatah
ojah saho balam jajne
tatah prano mahan asuh
SYNONYMS
antah sarire--within the body; akasat--from the sky; purusasya--of
Maha-Visnu; vicestatah--while so trying, or willing; ojah--the energy of the
senses; sahah--mental force; balam--bodily strength; jajne--generated;
tatah--thereafter; pranah--the living force; mahan asuh--the fountainhead of
everyone's life.
TRANSLATION
From the sky situated within the transcendental body of the manifesting
Maha-Visnu, sense energy, mental force and bodily strength are all generated,
as well as the sum total of the fountainhead of the total living force.
TEXT 16
TEXT
anuprananti yam pranah
pranantam sarva-jantusu
apanantam apananti
nara-devam ivanugah
SYNONYMS
anuprananti--follow the living symptoms; yam--whom; pranah--senses;
pranantam--endeavoring; sarva-jantusu--in all living entities; apanantam--stop endeavoring;
apananti--all others stop; nara-devam--a king; iva--like; anugah--the
followers.
TRANSLATION
As the followers of a king follow their lord, similarly when the total
energy is in motion, all other living entities move, and when the total energy
stops endeavoring, all other living entities stop sensual activities.
PURPORT
The individual living entities are completely dependent on the total
energy of the supreme purusa. No one has independent existence, just as no
electric lamp has independent effulgence. Each and every electrical instrument
depends fully on the total powerhouse, the total powerhouse depends on the
reservoir of water for generating electricity, water depends on the clouds, the
clouds depend on the sun, the sun depends on creation, and the creation depends
on the movement of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Thus the Supreme
Personality of Godhead is the cause of all causes.
TEXT 17
TEXT
pranenaksipata ksut trd
antara jayate vibhoh
pipasato jaksatas ca
pran mukham nirabhidyata
SYNONYMS
pranena--by the living force; aksipata--being agitated; ksut--hunger;
trt--thirst; antara--from within; jayate--generates; vibhoh--of the Supreme;
pipasatah--being desirous to quench the thirst; jaksatah--being desirous to
eat; ca--and; prak--at first; mukham--the mouth; nirabhidyata--was opened.
TRANSLATION
The living force, being agitated by the virat-purusa, generated hunger
and thirst, and when He desired to drink and eat, the mouth opened.
PURPORT
The process by which all living beings in the womb of the mother develop
their sense organs and sense perceptions appears to follow the same principles
in the case of the virat-purusa, the sum total of all living entities. Therefore
the supreme cause of all generation is not impersonal or without desire. The
desires for all kinds of sense perception and sense organs exist in the
Supreme, and thus they take place in the individual persons. This desire is the
nature of the supreme living being, the Absolute Truth. Because He has the sum
total of all mouths, the individual living entities have mouths. Similarly with
all other senses and sense organs. Here the mouth is the symbolic
representation of all sense organs, for the same principles apply to the others
also.
TEXT 18
TEXT
mukhatas talu nirbhinnam
jihva tatropajayate
tato nana-raso jajne
jihvaya yo 'dhigamyate
SYNONYMS
mukhatah--from the mouth; talu--the palate; nirbhinnam--being generated;
jihva--the tongue; tatra--thereupon; upajayate--becomes manifested;
tatah--thereupon; nana-rasah--various tastes; jajne--became manifested;
jihvaya--by the tongue; yah--which; adhigamyate--become relished.
TRANSLATION
From the mouth the palate became manifested, and thereupon the tongue
was also generated. After this all the different tastes came into existence so
that the tongue can relish them.
PURPORT
This gradual process of evolution suggests the explanation of the
controlling deities (adhidaiva) because Varuna is the controlling deity for all
relishable juices. Therefore the mouth becomes the resting place for the
tongue, which tastes all the different juices, of which the controlling deity
is Varuna. This suggests, therefore, that Varuna was also generated along with
the development of the tongue. The tongue and the palate, being instrumental,
are adhibhutam, or forms of matter, but the functioning deity, who is a living
entity, is adhidaiva, whereas the person undergoing the function is adhyatma.
Thus the three categories are also explained as to their birth after the
opening of the mouth of the virat-purusa. The four principles mentioned in this
verse serve to explain the three main principles, namely the adhyatma,
adhidaiva and adhibhutam, as explained before.
TEXT 19
TEXT
vivaksor mukhato bhumno
vahnir vag vyahrtam tayoh
jale caitasya suciram
nirodhah samajayata
SYNONYMS
vivaksoh--when there was a need to speak; mukhatah--from the mouth;
bhumnah--of the Supreme; vahnih--fire or the controlling deity of fire;
vak--vibration; vyahrtam--speeches; tayoh--by both; jale--in the water;
ca--however; etasya--of all these; suciram--a very, very long time;
nirodhah--suspension; samajayata--did continue.
TRANSLATION
When the Supreme desired to speak, speeches were vibrated from the
mouth. Then the controlling deity Fire was generated from the mouth. But when
He was lying in the water, all these functions remained suspended.
PURPORT
The peculiarity of the gradual development of the different senses is
simultaneously supported by their controlling deities. It is to be understood,
therefore, that the activities of the sense organs are controlled by the will
of the Supreme. The senses are, so to speak, offering a license for the
conditioned souls, who are to use them properly under the control of the
controlling deity deputed by the Supreme Lord. One who violates such
controlling regulations has to be punished by degradation to a lower status of
life. Consider, for example, the tongue and its controlling deity, Varuna. The
tongue is meant for eating, and men, animals and birds each have their
different tastes because of different licenses. The taste of human beings and
that of the swine are not on the same level. The controlling deity, however,
awards or certifies a particular type of body when the particular living entity
develops a taste in terms of different modes of nature. If the human being
develops taste without discrimination, as does the swine, then the controlling
deity is certainly certified for the next term to award him the body of a
swine. The swine accepts any kind of foodstuff, including stools, and a human
being who has developed such indiscriminate taste must be prepared for a
degraded life in the next life. Such a life is also God's grace because the
conditioned soul desired a body like that for perfectly tasting a particular
type of foodstuff. If a man gets the body of a swine it must be considered the
grace of the Lord because the Lord awards the facility. After death the next
body is offered by superior control, not blindly. A human being, therefore,
must be on his guard as to what sort of body he is going to have in the next
life. An irresponsible life of indiscrimination is risky, and that is the
declaration of all scriptures.
TEXT 20
TEXT
nasike nirabhidyetam
dodhuyati nabhasvati
tatra vayur gandha-vaho
ghrano nasi jighrksatah
SYNONYMS
nasike--in the nostrils; nirabhidyetam--being developed;
dodhuyati--rapidly blowing; nabhasvati--air respiration; tatra--thereupon;
vayuh--air; gandha-vahah--smelling odor; ghranah--sense of smell; nasi--in the
nose; jighrksatah--desiring to smell odors.
TRANSLATION
Thereafter, when the supreme purusa desired to smell odors, the nostrils
and respiration were generated, the nasal instrument and odors came into existence,
and the controlling deity of air, carrying smell, also became manifested.
PURPORT
The nasal instrument, odor, and the controlling deity air, smelling,
etc., all became manifested simultaneously when the Lord desired to smell. The
Vedic mantras confirm this statement in the Upanisads' statement that
everything is first desired by the Supreme before the subordinate living entity
can act upon it. The living entity can see only when the Lord sees, the living
entity can smell when the Lord smells, and so on. The idea is that the living
entity cannot do anything independently. He can simply think of doing something
independently, but he cannot act independently. This independence in thinking
is there by the grace of the Lord, but the thinking can be given shape by the
grace of the Lord, and therefore the common saying is that man proposes and God
disposes. The whole explanation is on the subject of the absolute dependence of
the living entities and absolute independence of the Supreme Lord. Less
intelligent persons claiming to be on an equal level with God must first prove
themselves to be absolute and independent, and then they must substantiate
their claim to being one with God.
TEXT 21
TEXT
yadatmani niralokam
atmanam ca didrksatah
nirbhinne hy aksini tasya
jyotis caksur guna-grahah
SYNONYMS
yada--while; atmani--unto Himself; niralokam--without any light;
atmanam--His own transcendental body; ca--also other bodily forms;
didrksatah--desired to look upon; nirbhinne--due to being sprouted; hi--for;
aksini--of the eyes; tasya--of Him; jyotih--the sun; caksuh--the eyes;
guna-grahah--the power of seeing.
TRANSLATION
Thus when everything existed in darkness, the Lord desired to see
Himself and all that was created. Then the eyes, the illuminating god Sun, the
power of vision and the object of sight all became manifested.
PURPORT
The universe is by nature dense darkness, and therefore the total
creation is called tamas, or darkness. The night is the real feature of the
universe, for then one cannot see anything, including oneself. The Lord, out of
His causeless mercy, first desired to see Himself and all the creation as well,
and thus the sun became manifested, the power of vision for all living entities
became possible, and the objects of vision were also manifested. This means
that the whole phenomenal world became visible after the creation of the sun.
TEXT 22
TEXT
bodhyamanasya rsibhir
atmanas taj jighrksatah
karnau ca nirabhidyetam
disah srotram guna-grahah
SYNONYMS
bodhyamanasya--desiring to understand; rsibhih--by the authorities;
atmanah--of the Supreme Being; tat--that; jighrksatah--when He desired to take
up; karnau--the ears; ca--also; nirabhidyetam--became manifested; disah--the
direction or the god of air; srotram--the power of hearing; guna-grahah--and the
objects of hearing.
TRANSLATION
By development of the desire of the great sages to know, the ears, the
power of hearing, the controlling deity of hearing, and the objects of hearing
became manifested. The great sages desired to hear about the Self.
PURPORT
As stated in the Bhagavad-gita, by advancement of knowledge one should
try to know about the Supreme Lord, the summum bonum of everything. Knowledge
does not mean knowledge only of the laws of nature or physical knowledge, which
are working by the direction of the Lord. The scientists are eager to hear
about the physical laws working in material nature. They are eager to hear
through the medium of radio and television about things taking place far away
from them on other planets, but they should know that the power of hearing and
the instruments for hearing were given to them by the Lord for hearing about
the Self, or about the Lord. Unfortunately the power of hearing is misused in
hearing the vibrations of mundane affairs. The great sages were interested in
hearing about the Lord through Vedic knowledge and nothing more. That is the
beginning of aural reception of knowledge.
TEXT 23
TEXT
vastuno mrdu-kathinya-
laghu-gurv-osna-sitatam
jighrksatas tvan nirbhinna
tasyam roma-mahi-ruhah
tatra cantar bahir vatas
tvaca labdha-guno vrtah
SYNONYMS
vastunah--of all matter; mrdu--softness; kathinya--hardness;
laghu--lightness; guru--heaviness; osna--warmness; sitatam--coldness;
jighrksatah--desiring to perceive; tvak--the touch sensation;
nirbhinna--distributed; tasyam--in the skin; roma--hairs on the body;
mahi-ruhah--as well as the trees, the controlling deities; tatra--there;
ca--also; antah--within; bahih--outside; vatah tvaca--the sense of touch or the
skin; labdha--having been perceived; gunah--objects of sense perception;
vrtah--generated.
TRANSLATION
When there was a desire to perceive the physical characteristics of
matter, such as softness, hardness, warmth, cold, lightness and heaviness, the
background of sensation, the skin, the skin pores, the hairs on the body and
their controlling deities (the trees) were generated. Within and outside the
skin is a covering of air through which sense perception became prominent.
PURPORT
The physical characteristics of matter, such as softness, are subjects
of sense perception, and thus physical knowledge is the subject matter of the
touch sensation. One can measure the temperature of matter by touching with the
hand, and one can measure the weight of an object by lifting it with the hand
and thus estimate its heaviness or lightness. The skin, the skin pores and the
hairs on the body are all interdependent with the touch sensation. The air
blowing within and outside the skin is also an object of sense perception. This
sense perception is also a source of knowledge, and therefore it is suggested
here that physical or physiological knowledge is subordinate to the knowledge
of the Self, as above mentioned. Knowledge of Self can expand to the knowledge
of phenomena, but physical knowledge cannot lead to knowledge of the Self.
There is, however, an intimate relation between the hairs on the body
and the vegetation on the body of the earth. The vegetables are nourishment for
the skin both as food and medicine, as stated in the Third Canto: tvacam asya
vinirbhinnam vivisur dhisnyam osadhih.
TEXT 24
TEXT
hastau ruruhatus tasya
nana-karma-cikirsaya
tayos tu balavan indra
adanam ubhayasrayam
SYNONYMS
hastau--the hands; ruruhatuh--manifested; tasya--His; nana--various;
karma--work; cikirsaya--being so desirous; tayoh--of them; tu--however;
balavan--to give strength; indrah--the demigod in heaven; adanam--activities of
the hand; ubhaya-asrayam--dependent on both the demigod and the hand.
TRANSLATION
Thereafter when the Supreme Person desired to perform varieties of work,
the two hands and their controlling strength, and Indra, the demigod in heaven,
became manifested, as also the acts dependent on both the hands and the
demigod.
PURPORT
In every item we can note with profit that the sense organs of the
living entity are never independent at any stage. The Lord is known as the Lord
of the senses (Hrsikesa). Thus the sense organs of the living entities are
manifested by the will of the Lord, and each organ is controlled by a certain
type of demigod. No one, therefore, can claim any proprietorship of the senses.
The living entity is controlled by the senses, the senses are controlled by the
demigods, and the demigods are the servants of the Supreme Lord. That is the
arrangement in the system of creation. The whole thing is controlled ultimately
by the Supreme Lord, and there is no independence either of the material nature
or of the living entity. The illusioned living entity who claims to be the lord
of his senses is under the clutches of the external energy of the Lord. As long
as a living entity continues to be puffed up by his tiny existence, he is to be
understood to be under the stringent control of the external energy of the
Lord, and there is no question of liberation from the clutches of illusion
(maya), however much one may declare himself a liberated soul.
TEXT 25
TEXT
gatim jigisatah padau
ruruhate 'bhikamikam
padbhyam yajnah svayam havyam
karmabhih kriyate nrbhih
SYNONYMS
gatim--movement; jigisatah--so desiring; padau--the legs;
ruruhate--being manifested; abhikamikam--purposeful; padbhyam--from the legs;
yajnah--Lord Visnu; svayam--personally Himself; havyam--the duties;
karmabhih--by one's occupational duty; kriyate--caused to be done; nrbhih--by
different human beings.
TRANSLATION
Thereupon, because of His desiring to control movement, His legs became
manifested, and from the legs the controlling deity named Visnu was generated.
By His personal supervision of this act, all varieties of human being are
busily engaged in dutiful occupational sacrifice.
PURPORT
Every human being is engaged in his particular occupational duty, and
such activities are visible as men go hither and thither. This is very
prominently visible in big cities of the world: people are going all over the
cities with great concern, from one place to another. This movement is not
limited only to the cities, but is also visible outside the cities from one
place to another, or from one city to another, by different means of vehicles.
Men are moving by cars and rails on the roads, by subways within the earth and
by planes in the sky for the purpose of business success. But in all these
movements the real purpose is to earn wealth for comfortable life. For this
comfortable life the scientist is engaged, the artist is engaged, the engineer
is engaged, the technician is engaged, all in different branches of human
activity. But they do not know how to make the activities purposeful to fulfill
the mission of human life. Because they do not know this secret, all their
activities are targeted towards the goal of sense gratification without
control, and therefore by all this business they are unknowingly entering into
the deep regions of darkness.
Because they have been captivated by the external energy of the Supreme
Lord, they have completely forgotten the Supreme Lord Visnu, and thus they have
taken it for granted that this life, as presently manifested under the
conditions of material nature, is all in all for enjoying the highest amount of
sense gratification. But such a wrong conception of life cannot give anyone the
desired peace of mind, and thus in spite of all advancement in knowledge by use
of the resources of nature, no one is happy in this material civilization. The
secret is that at every step they should try to execute sacrifices toward the
path of world peace. The Bhagavad-gita (18.45-46) also advises the same secret
in the following verses.
sve sve karmany abhiratah
samsiddhim labhate narah
sva-karma-niratah siddhim
yatha vindati tac chrnu
yatah pravrttir bhutanam
yena sarvam idam tatam
sva-karmana tam abhyarcya
siddhim vindati manavah