Adi2.68

TEXT 68

saba avatarera kari samanya-laksana

tara madhye krsna-candrera karila ganana

SYNONYMS

saba—all; avatarera—of the incarnations; kari—making; samanya—general; laksana—symptoms; tara—of them; madhye—in the middle; krsna-candrera—of Lord Sri Krsna; karila—did; ganana—counting.

TRANSLATION

The Bhagavatam describes the symptoms and deeds of the incarnations in general and counts Sri Krsna among them.

Adi2.69

TEXT 69

tabe suta gosani mane pana bada bhaya

yara ye laksana taha karila niscaya

SYNONYMS

tabe—then; suta gosani—Suta Gosvami; mane—in the mind; pana—obtaining; bada—great; bhaya—fear; yara—of whom; ye—which; laksana—symptoms; taha—that; karila—he made; niscaya—certainly.

TRANSLATION

This made Suta Gosvami greatly apprehensive. Therefore he distinguished each incarnation by its specific symptoms.

Adi2.70

TEXT 70

avatara saba--purusera kala, amsa

svayam-bhagavan krsna sarva-avatamsa

SYNONYMS

avatara—the incarnations; saba—all; purusera—of the purusa-avataras; kala—parts of plenary portions; amsa—plenary portions; svayam—Himself; bhagavan—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; krsna—Lord Krsna; sarva—of all; avatamsa—crest.

TRANSLATION

All the incarnations of Godhead are plenary portions or parts of the plenary portions of the purusa-avataras, but the primeval Lord is Sri Krsna. He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the fountainhead of all incarnations.

Adi2.71

TEXT 71

purva-paksa kahe--tomara bhala ta’ vyakhyana

paravyoma-narayana svayam-bhagavan

SYNONYMS

purva-paksa—opposing side; kahe—says; tomara—your; bhala—nice; ta’-certainly; vyakhyana—exposition; para-vyoma—situated in the spiritual sky; narayana—Lord Narayana; svayam—Himself; bhagavan—the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

TRANSLATION

An opponent may say, "This is your interpretation, but actually the Supreme Lord is Narayana, who is in the transcendental realm.

Adi2.72

TEXT 72

tenha asi’ krsna-rupe karena avatara

ei artha sloke dekhi ki ara vicara

SYNONYMS

tenha—He (Narayana); asi’-coming; krsna-rupe—in the form of Lord Krsna; karena—makes; avatara—incarnation; ei—this; artha—meaning; sloke—in the verse; dekhi—I see; ki—what; ara—other; vicara—consideration.

TRANSLATION

“He [Narayana] incarnates as Lord Krsna. This is the meaning of the verse as I see it. There is no need for further consideration.”

Adi2.73

TEXT 73

tare kahe--kene kara kutarkanumana

sastra-viruddhartha kabhu na haya pramana

SYNONYMS

tare-to him; kahe-one says; kene-why; kara-you make; ku-tarka-of a fallacious argument; anumana-conjecture; sastra-viruddha-contrary to scripture; artha-a meaning; kabhu-at any time; na-not; haya-is; pramana-evidence.

TRANSLATION

To such a misguided interpreter we may reply, "Why should you suggest such fallacious logic? An interpretation is never accepted as evidence if it opposes the principles of scripture.

Adi2.74

TEXT 74

anuvadam anuktva tu

na vidheyam udirayet

na hy alabdhaspadam kincit

kutracit pratitisthati

SYNONYMS

anuvadam—the subject; anuktva—not stating; tu—but; na—not; vidheyam—the predicate; udirayet—one should speak; na—not; hi—certainly; alabdha-aspadam—without a secure position; kincit—something; kutracit—anywhere; pratitisthati—stands.

TRANSLATION

" ’One should not state a predicate before its subject, for it cannot thus stand without proper support.’

PURPORT

This rhetorical rule appears in the Ekadasi-tattva, Thirteenth Canto, in connection with the metaphorical use of words. An unknown object should not be put before the known subject because the object has no meaning if the subject is not first given.

Adi2.75

TEXT 75

anuvada na kahiya na kahi vidheya

age anuvada kahi, pascad vidheya

SYNONYMS

anuvada—the subject; na kahiya—not saying; na—not; kahi—I say; vidheya—the predicate; age—first; anuvada—the subject; kahi—I say; pascat—afterwards; vidheya—the predicate.

TRANSLATION

"If I do not state a subject, I do not state a predicate. First I speak the former and then I speak the latter.

Adi2.76

TEXT 76

’vidheya’ kahiye tare, ye vastu ajnata

’anuvada’ kahi tare, yei haya jnata

SYNONYMS

vidheya—the predicate; kahiye—I say; tare—to him; ye—that; vastu—thing; ajnata—unknown; anuvada—the subject; kahi—I say; tare—to him; yei—that which; haya—is; jnata—known.

TRANSLATION

"The predicate of a sentence is what is unknown to the reader, whereas the subject is what is known to him.

Adi2.77

TEXT 77

yaiche kahi,--ei vipra parama pandita

vipra--anuvada, ihara vidheya--panditya

SYNONYMS

yaiche—just as; kahi—I say; ei—this; vipra—brahmana; parama—great; pandita—learned man; vipra—the brahmana; anuvada—subject; ihara—of this; vidheya—predicate; panditya—erudition.

TRANSLATION

"For example, we may say: ’This vipra is a greatly learned man.’ In this sentence, the vipra is the subject, and the predicate is his erudition.

Adi2.78

TEXT 78

vipratva vikhyata tara panditya ajnata

ataeva vipra age, panditya pascata

SYNONYMS

vipratva—the quality of being a vipra; vikhyata—well known; tara—his; panditya—erudition; ajnata—unknown; ataeva—therefore; vipra—the word vipra; age—first; panditya—erudition; pascata—afterwards.

TRANSLATION

"The man’s being a vipra is known, but his erudition is unknown. Therefore the person is identified first and his erudition later.

Adi2.79

TEXT 79

taiche inha avatara saba haila jnata

kara avatara?--ei vastu avijnata

SYNONYMS

taiche—in the same way; inha—these; avatara—incarnations; saba—all; haila—were; jnata—known; kara—whose; avatara—incarnations; ei—this; vastu—thing; avijnata—unknown.

TRANSLATION

"In the same way, all these incarnations were known, but whose incarnations they are was unknown.

Adi2.80

TEXT 80

’ete’-sabde avatarera age anuvada

’purusera amsa’ pache vidheya-samvada

SYNONYMS

ete-sabde—in the word ete (these); avatarera—of the incarnations; age—first; anuvada—the subject; purusera—of the purusa-avataras; amsa—plenary portions; pache—afterwards; vidheya—of the predicate; samvada—message.

TRANSLATION

"First the word, ’ete’ [’these’], establishes the subject [the incarnations]. Then ’plenary portions of the purusa-avataras’ follows as the predicate.

Adi2.81

TEXT 81

taiche krsna avatara-bhitare haila jnata

tanhara visesa-jnana sei avijnata

SYNONYMS

taiche—in the same way; krsna—Lord Krsna; avatara-bhitare—among the incarnations; haila—was; jnata—known; tanhara—of Him; visesa-jnana—specific knowledge; sei—that; avijnata—unknown.

TRANSLATION

"In the same way, when Krsna was first counted among the incarnations, specific knowledge about Him was still unknown.

Adi2.82

TEXT 82

ataeva ’krsna’-sabda age anuvada

’svayam-bhagavatta’ piche vidheya-samvada

SYNONYMS

ataeva—therefore; krsna-sabda—the word krsna; age—first; anuvada—the subject; svayam-bhagavatta—being Himself the Supreme Personality of Godhead; piche—afterwards; vidheya—of the predicate; samvada—the message

TRANSLATION

"Therefore first the word ’krsna’ appears as the subject, followed by the predicate, describing Him as the original Personality of Godhead.

Adi2.83

TEXT 83

krsnera svayam-bhagavatta--iha haila sadhya

svayam-bhagavanera krsnatva haila badhya

SYNONYMS

krsnera—of Lord Krsna; svayam-bhagavatta—the quality of being Himself the Supreme Personality of Godhead; iha—this; haila—was; sadhya—to be established; svayam-bhagavanera—of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; krsnatva—the quality of being Lord Krsna; haila—was; badhya—obligatory

TRANSLATION

"This establishes that Sri Krsna is the original Personality of Godhead. The original Personality of Godhead is therefore necessarily Krsna.

Adi2.84

TEXT 84

krsna yadi amsa haita, amsi narayana

tabe viparita haita sutera vacana

SYNONYMS

krsna—Lord Krsna; yadi—if; amsa—plenary portion; haita—were; amsi—the source of all expansions; narayana—Lord Narayana; tabe—then; viparita—the reverse; haita—would have been; sutera—of Suta Gosvami; vacana—the statement.

TRANSLATION

"Had Krsna been the plenary portion and Narayana the primeval Lord, the statement of Suta Gosvami would have been reversed.

Adi2.85

TEXT 85

narayana amsi yei svayam-bhagavan

tenha sri-krsna--aiche karita vyakhyana

SYNONYMS

narayana—Lord Narayana; amsi—the source of all incarnations; yei—who; svayam-bhagavan—Himself the Supreme Personality of Godhead; tenha—He; sri-krsna—Lord Krsna; aiche—in such away; karita—would have made; vyakhyana—explanation.

TRANSLATION

"Thus he would have said: ’Narayana, the source of all incarnations, is the original Personality of Godhead. He has appeared as Sri Krsna.’

Adi2.86

TEXT 86

bhrama, pramada, vipralipsa, karanapatava

arsa-vijna-vakye nahi dosa ei saba

SYNONYMS

bhrama—mistakes; pramada—illusion; vipralipsa—cheating; karana-apatava—imperfectness of the senses; arsa—of the authoritative sages; vijna-vakye—in the wise speech; nahi—not; dosa—faults; ei—these; saba—all.

TRANSLATION

"Mistakes, illusions, cheating and defective perception do not occur in the sayings of the authoritative sages.

PURPORT

Srimad-Bhagavatam has listed the avataras, the plenary expansions of the purusa, and Lord Krsna appears among them. But the Bhagavatam further explains Lord Krsna’s specific position as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Since Lord Krsna is the original Personality of Godhead, reason and argument establish that His position is always supreme.

Had Krsna been a plenary expansion of Narayana, the original verse would have been differently composed; indeed, its order would have been reversed. But there cannot be mistakes, illusion, cheating or imperfect perception in the words of liberated sages. Therefore there is no mistake in this statement that Lord Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Sanskrit statements of Srimad-Bhagavatam are all transcendental sounds. Srila Vyasadeva revealed these statements after perfect realization, and therefore they are perfect, for liberated sages like Vyasadeva never commit errors in their rhetorical arrangements. Unless one accepts this fact, there is no use in trying to obtain help from the revealed scriptures.

Bhrama refers to false knowledge or mistakes, such as accepting a rope as a snake or an oyster shell as gold. Pramada refers to inattention or misunderstanding of reality, and vipralipsa is the cheating propensity. Karanapatava refers to imperfectness of the material senses. There are many examples of such imperfection. The eyes cannot see that which is very distant or very small. One cannot even see his own eyelid, which is the closest thing to his eye, and if one is disturbed by a disease like jaundice, he sees everything to be yellow. Similarly, the ears cannot hear distant sounds. Since the Personality of Godhead and His plenary portions and self-realized devotees are all transcendentally situated, they cannot be misled by such deficiencies.

Adi2.87

TEXT 87

viruddhartha kaha tumi, kahite kara rosa

tomara arthe avimrsta-vidheyamsa-dosa

SYNONYMS

viruddha-artha—contrary meaning; kaha—say; tumi—you; kahite—pointing out; kara—you do; rosa—anger; tomara—your; arthe—in the meaning; avimrsta-vidheya-amsa—of the unconsidered predicate portion; dosa—the fault.

TRANSLATION

"You say something contradictory and become angry when this is pointed out. Your explanation has the defect of a misplaced object. This is an unconsidered adjustment.

Adi2.88

TEXT 88

yanra bhagavatta haite anyera bhagavatta

’svayam-bhagavan’-sabdera tahatei satta

SYNONYMS

yanra—of whom; bhagavatta—the quality of being the Supreme Personality of Godhead; haite—from; anyera—of others; bhagavatta—the quality of being the Supreme Personality of Godhead; svayam-bhagavan-sabdera—of the word svayam-bhagavan; tahatei—in that; satta—the presence.

TRANSLATION

"Only the Personality of Godhead, the source of all other Divinities, is eligible to be designated svayam bhagavan, or the primeval Lord.

Adi2.89

TEXT 89

dipa haite yaiche bahu dipera jvalana

mula eka dipa taha kariye ganana

SYNONYMS

dipa—a lamp; haite—from; yaiche—just as; bahu—many; dipera—of lamps; jvalana—lighting; mula—the original; eka—one; dipa—lamp; taha—that; kariye—I make; ganana—consideration

TRANSLATION

"When from one candle many others are lit, I consider that one the original.

PURPORT

The Brahma-samhita, Chapter Five, verse 46, states that the visnu-tattva, or the principle of the Absolute Personality of Godhead, is like a lamp because the expansions equal their origin in all respects. A burning lamp can light innumerable other lamps that are not inferior, but still one lamp must be considered the original. Similarly, the Supreme Personality of Godhead expands Himself in the plenary forms of the visnu-tattva, but although they are equally powerful, the original powerful Personality of Godhead is considered the source. This example also explains the appearance of qualitative incarnations like Lord Siva and Lord Brahma-According to Srila Jiva Gosvami, sambhos tu tamo-’dhisthanatvat kajjalamaya-suksma-dipa-sikha-sthaniyasya na tatha samyam: “The sambhu-tattva, or the principle of Lord Siva, is like a lamp covered with carbon because of his being in charge of the mode of ignorance. The illumination from such a lamp is very minute. Therefore the power of Lord Siva cannot compare to that of the Visnu principle.”

Adi2.90

TEXT 90

taiche saba avatarera krsna se karana

ara eka sloka suna, kuvyakhya-khandana

SYNONYMS

taiche—in a similar way; saba—all; avatarera—of the incarnations; krsna—Lord Krsna; se—He; karana—the cause; ara—another; eka—one; sloka—verse; suna—please hear; ku-vyakhya—fallacious explanations; khandana—refuting.

TRANSLATION

"Krsna, in the same way, is the cause of all causes and all incarnations. Please hear another verse to defeat all misinterpretations.

Adi2.91-92

TEXTS 91-92

atra sargo visargas ca

sthanam posanam utayah

manvantaresanukatha

nirodho muktir asrayah

dasamasya visuddhy-artham

navanam iha laksanam

varnayanti mahatmanah

srutenarthena canjasa

SYNONYMS

atra—in Srimad-Bhagavatam; sargah—the creation of the ingredients of the universe; visargah—the creations of Brahma; ca—and; sthanam—the maintenance of the creation; posanam—the favoring of the Lord’s devotees; utayah—impetuses for activity; manu-antara—prescribed duties given by the Manus; isa-anukathah—a description of the incarnations of the Lord; nirodhah—the winding up of creation; muktih—liberation; asrayah—the ultimate shelter, the Supreme Personality of Godhead; dasamasya—of the tenth (the asraya); visuddhi-artham—for the purpose of perfect knowledge; navanam—of the nine; iha—here; laksanam—the nature; varnayanti—describe; maha-atmanah—the great souls; srutena—by prayer; arthena—by explanation; ca—and; anjasa—direct.

TRANSLATION

" ’Here [in Srimad-Bhagavatam] ten subjects are described: (1) the creation of the ingredients of the cosmos, (2) the creations of Brahma, (3) the maintenance of the creation, (4) special favor given to the faithful, (5) impetuses for activity, (6) prescribed duties for law-abiding men, (7) a description of the incarnations of the Lord, (8) the winding up of the creation, (9) liberation from gross and subtle material existence, and (10) the ultimate shelter, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The tenth item is the shelter of all the others. To distinguish this ultimate shelter from the other nine subjects, the mahajanas have described these nine, directly or indirectly, through prayers or direct explanations.’

PURPORT

Adi2.93

TEXT 93

asraya janite kahi e nava padartha

e navera utpatti-hetu sei asrayartha

SYNONYMS

asraya—the ultimate shelter; janite—to know; kahi—I discuss; e—these; nava—nine; pada-artha—categories; e—these; navera—of the nine; utpatti—of the origin; hetu—cause; sei—that; asraya—of the shelter; artha—the meaning.

TRANSLATION

"To know distinctly the ultimate shelter of everything that be, I have described the other nine categories. The cause for the appearance of these nine is rightly called their shelter.

Adi2.94

TEXT 94

krsna eka sarvasraya, krsna sarva-dhama

krsnera sarire sarva-visvera visrama

SYNONYMS

krsna—Lord Krsna; eka—one; sarva-asraya—shelter of all; krsna—Lord Krsna; sarva-dhama—the abode of all; krsnera—of Lord Krsna; sarire—in the body; sarva-visvera—of all the universes; visrama—resting place.

TRANSLATION

"The Personality of Godhead Sri Krsna is the shelter and abode of everything. All the universes rest in His body.

Adi2.95

TEXT 95

dasame dasamam laksyam

asritasraya-vigraham

sri-krsnakhyam param dhama

jagad-dhama namami tat

SYNONYMS

dasame—in the Tenth Canto; dasamam—the tenth subject matter; laksyam—to be seen; asrita—of the sheltered; asraya—of the shelter; vigraham—who is the form; sri-krsna-akhyam—known as Lord Sri Krsna; param—supreme; dhama—abode; jagat-dhama—the abode of the universes; namami—I offer my obeisances; tat—to Him.

TRANSLATION

" ’The Tenth Canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam reveals the tenth object, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the shelter of all surrendered souls. He is known as Sri Krsna, and He is the ultimate source of all the universes. Let me offer my obeisances unto Him.’

PURPORT

This quotation comes from Sridhara Svami’s commentary on the first verse of the Tenth Canto, Chapter One, of Srimad-Bhagavatam.

Adi2.96

TEXT 96

krsnera svarupa, ara sakti-traya-jnana

yanra haya, tanra nahi krsnete ajnana

SYNONYMS

krsnera—of Lord Krsna; sva-rupa—the real nature; ara—and; sakti-traya—of the three energies; jnana—knowledge; yanra—whose; haya—there is; tanra—of him; nahi—there is not; krsnete—in Lord Krsna; ajnana—ignorance.

TRANSLATION

"One who knows the real feature of Sri Krsna and His three different energies cannot remain ignorant about Him.

PURPORT

Srila Jiva Gosvami states in his Bhagavat-sandarbha (16) that by His potencies, which act in natural sequences beyond the scope of the speculative human mind, the Supreme Transcendence, the summum bonum, eternally and simultaneously exists in four transcendental features: His personality, His impersonal effulgence, particles of His potency (the living beings), and the principal cause of all causes. The Supreme Whole is compared to the sun, which also exists in four features, namely the personality of the sun-god, the glare of his glowing sphere, the sun rays inside the sun planet, and the sun’s reflections in many other objects. The ambition to corroborate the existence of the transcendental Absolute Truth by limited conjectural endeavors cannot be fulfilled, because He is beyond the scope of our limited speculative minds. In an honest search for truth, we must admit that His powers are inconceivable to our tiny brains. The exploration of space has demanded the work of the greatest scientists of the world, yet there are countless problems regarding even fundamental knowledge of the material creation that bewilder scientists who confront them. Such material knowledge is far removed from the spiritual nature, and therefore the acts and arrangements of the Absolute Truth are, beyond all doubts, inconceivable.

The primary potencies of the Absolute Truth are mentioned to be three: internal, external and marginal. By the acts of His internal potency, the Personality of Godhead in His original form exhibits the spiritual cosmic manifestations known as the eternal Vaikunthalokas, which exist eternally, even after the destruction of the material cosmic manifestation. By His marginal potency the Lord expands Himself as living beings who are part of Him, just as the sun distributes its rays in all directions. By His external potency the Lord manifests the material creation, just as the sun with its rays creates fog. The material creation is but a perverse reflection of the eternal Vaikuntha nature.

These three energies of the Absolute Truth are also described in the Visnu Purana, where it is said that the living being is equal in quality to the internal potency, whereas the external potency is indirectly controlled by the chief cause of all causes. Maya, the illusory energy, misleads a living being as fog misleads a pedestrian by blocking off the light of the sun. Although the potency of maya is inferior in quality to the marginal potency, which consists of the living beings, who are part and parcel of the Lord, it nevertheless has the power to control the living beings, just as fog can block the actions of a certain portion of the sun’s rays although it cannot cover the sun. The living beings covered by the illusory energy evolve in different species of life, with bodies ranging from that of an insignificant ant to that of Brahma, the constructor of the cosmos. The pradhana, the chief cause of all causes in the impersonal vision, is none other than the Supreme Lord, whom one can see face to face in the internal potency. He takes the material all-pervasive form by His inconceivable power. Although all three potencies-namely internal, external and marginal-are essentially one in the ultimate issue, they are different in action, like electric energy, which can produce both cold and heat under different conditions. The external and marginal potencies are so called under various conditions, but in the original, internal potencies there are no such conditions, nor is it possible for the conditions of the external potency to exist in the marginal, or vice versa. One who is able to understand the intricacies of all these energies of the Supreme Lord can no longer remain an empiric impersonalist under the influence of a poor fund of knowledge.

Adi2.97

TEXT 97

krsnera svarupera haya sad-vidha vilasa

prabhava-vaibhava-rupe dvi-vidha prakasa

SYNONYMS

krsnera—of Lord Krsna; svarupera—of the form; haya—there are; sat-vidha—six kinds; vilasa—pastime forms; prabhava-vaibhava-rupe—in the divisions of prabhava and vaibhava; dvi-vidha—two kinds; prakasa—manifestations.

TRANSLATION

"The Personality of Godhead Sri Krsna enjoys Himself in six primary expansions. His two manifestations are prabhava and vaibhava.

PURPORT

Now the author of Sri Caitanya-caritamrta turns to a description of the Personality of Godhead Krsna in His innumerable expansions. The Lord primarily expands Himself in two categories, namely prabhava and vaibhava. The prabhava forms are fully potent like Sri Krsna, and the vaibhava forms are partially potent. The prabhava forms are manifested in relation with potencies, but the vaibhava forms are manifested in relation with excellences. The potent prabhava manifestations are also of two varieties: temporary and eternal. The Mohini, Hamsa and Sukla forms are manifested only temporarily, in terms of a particular age. Among the other prabhavas, who are not very famous according to the material estimation, are Dhanvantari, Rsabha, Vyasa, Dattatreya and Kapila. Among the vaibhava-prakasa forms are Kurma, Matsya, Nara-Narayana, Varaha, Hayagriva, Prsnigarbha, and Baladeva, as well as the manv-antara avataras Yajna, Vibhu, Satyasena, Hari, Vaikuntha, Ajita, Vamana, Sarvabhauma, Rsabha, Visvaksena, Dharmasetu, Sudhama, Yogesvara and Brhadbhanu.