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kala-sanjnam—known as Kali; tada—at that time; devim—the goddess; bibhrat—destructive; saktim—potency; urukramah—the supreme powerful; trayah-vimsati—twenty-three; tattvanam—of the elements; ganam—all of them; yugapat—simultaneously; avisat—entered.

The Supreme Powerful Lord then simultaneously entered into the twenty-three elements with the goddess Kali, His external energy, who alone amalgamates all the different elements.

The ingredients of matter are counted as twenty-three: the total material energy, false ego, sound, touch, form, taste, smell, earth, water, fire, air, sky, eye, ear, nose, tongue, skin, hand, leg, evacuating organ, genitals, speech and mind. All are combined together by the influence of time and are again dissolved in the course of time. Time, therefore, is the energy of the Lord and acts in her own way by the direction of the Lord. This energy is called Kali and is represented by the dark destructive goddess generally worshiped by persons influenced by the mode of darkness or ignorance in material existence. In the Vedic hymn this process is described as mula-prakrtir avikrtir mahadadyah prakrti-vikrtayah sapta sodasakas tu vikaro na prakrtir na vikrtih purusah. The energy which acts as material nature in a combination of twenty-three ingredients is not the final source of creation. The Lord enters into the elements and applies His energy, called Kali. In all other Vedic scriptures the same principle is accepted. In Brahma-samhita (5.35) it is stated:

eko ’py asau racayitum jagad-anda-kotim
yac-chaktir asti jagad-anda-caya yad-antah
andantara-stha-paramanu-cayantara-stham
govindam adi-purusam tam aham bhajami

“I worship the primeval Lord, Govinda, who is the original Personality of Godhead. By His partial plenary expansion [Maha-Visnu], He enters into material nature, and then into each and every universe [as Garbhodakasayi Visnu], and then [as Ksirodakasayi Visnu] into all the elements, including every atom of matter. Such manifestations of cosmic creation are innumerable, both in the universes and in the individual atoms.”

Similarly, this is confirmed in Bhagavad-gita (10.42):

athava bahunaitena
kim jnatena tavarjuna
vistabhyaham idam krtsnam
ekamsena sthito jagat

“O Arjuna, there is no necessity of your knowing about My innumerable energies, which act in various ways. I enter into the material creation by My partial plenary expansion [Paramatma, or the Supersoul] in all the universes and in all the elements thereof, and thus the work of creation goes on.” The wonderful activities of material nature are due to Lord Krsna, and thus He is the final cause, or the ultimate cause of all causes.

SB3.6.3

TEXT 3

so ’nupravisto bhagavams

cestarupena tam ganam

bhinnam samyojayam asa

suptam karma prabodhayan

sah—that; anupravistah—thus entering later on; bhagavan—the Personality of Godhead; cesta-rupena—by His representation of attempt, Kali; tam—them; ganam—all the living entities, including the demigods; bhinnam—separately; samyojayam asa—engaged to work; suptam—sleeping; karma—work; prabodhayan—enlightening.

Thus when the Personality of Godhead entered into the elements by His energy, all the living entities were enlivened into different activities, just as one is engaged in his work after awakening from sleep.

Every individual soul remains unconscious after the dissolution of the creation and thus enters into the Lord with His material energy. These individual living entities are conditioned souls everlastingly, but in each and every material creation they are given a chance to liberate themselves and become free souls. They are all given a chance to take advantage of the Vedic wisdom and find out what is their relationship with the Supreme Lord, how they can be liberated, and what the ultimate profit is in such liberation. By properly studying the Vedas one becomes conscious of his position and thus takes to the transcendental devotional service of the Lord and is gradually promoted to the spiritual sky. The individual souls in the material world engage in different activities according to their past unfinished desires. After the dissolution of a particular body, the individual soul forgets everything, but the all-merciful Lord, who is situated in everyone’s heart as the witness, the Supersoul, awakens him and reminds him of his past desires, and thus he begins to act accordingly in his next life. This unseen guidance is described as fate, and a sensible man can understand that this continues his material bondage in the three modes of nature.

The unconscious sleeping stage of the living entity just after the partial or total dissolution of the creation is wrongly accepted as the final stage of life by some less intelligent philosophers. After the dissolution of the partial material body, a living entity remains unconscious for only a few months, and after the total dissolution of the material creation, he remains unconscious for many millions of years. But when the creation is again revived, he is awakened to his work by the Lord. The living entity is eternal, and the wakeful state of his consciousness, manifested by activities, is his natural condition of life. He cannot stop acting while awake, and thus he acts according to his diverse desires. When his desires are trained in the transcendental service of the Lord, his life becomes perfect, and he is promoted to the spiritual sky to enjoy eternal awakened life.

SB3.6.4

TEXT 4

prabuddha-karma daivena

trayovimsatiko ganah

prerito ’janayat svabhir

matrabhir adhipurusam

prabuddha—awakened; karma—activities; daivena—by the will of the Supreme; trayah-vimsatikah—by the twenty-three principal ingredients; ganah—the combination; preritah—induced by; ajanayat—manifested; svabhih—by His personal; matrabhih—plenary expansion; adhipurusam—the gigantic universal form (visva-rupa).

When the twenty-three principal elements were set in action by the will of the Supreme, the gigantic universal form, or the visvarupa body of the Lord, came into existence.

The virat-rupa or visva-rupa, the gigantic universal form of the Lord, which is very much appreciated by the impersonalist, is not an eternal form of the Lord. It is manifested by the supreme will of the Lord after the ingredients of material creation. Lord Krsna exhibited this virat or visva-rupa to Arjuna just to convince the impersonalists that He is the original Personality of Godhead. Krsna exhibited the virat-rupa; it is not that Krsna was exhibited by the virat-rupa. The virat-rupa is not, therefore, an eternal form of the Lord exhibited in the spiritual sky; it is a material manifestation of the Lord. The arca-vigraha, or the worshipable Deity in the temple, is a similar manifestation of the Lord for the neophytes. But in spite of their material touch, such forms of the Lord as the virat and arca are all nondifferent from His eternal form as Lord Krsna.

SB3.6.5

TEXT 5

parena visata svasmin

matraya visva-srg-ganah

cuksobhanyonyam asadya

yasmin lokas caracarah

parena—by the Lord; visata—thus entering; svasmin—by His own self; matraya—by a plenary portion; visva-srk—the elements of universal creation; ganah—all; cuksobha—transformed; anyonyam—one another; asadya—having obtained; yasmin—in which; lokah—the planets; cara-acarah—movable and immovable.

As the Lord, in His plenary portion, entered into the elements of the universal creation, they transformed into the gigantic form in which all the planetary systems and all movable and immovable creations rest.

The elements of cosmic creation are all matter and have no potency to increase in volume unless entered into by the Lord in His plenary portion. This means that matter does not increase or decrease unless it is spiritually touched. Matter is a product of spirit and increases only by the touch of spirit. The entire cosmic manifestation has not assumed its gigantic form by itself, as wrongly calculated by less intelligent persons. As long as spirit is within matter, matter can increase as needed; but without the spirit, matter stops increasing. For example, as long as there is spiritual consciousness within the material body of a living entity, the body increases to the required size, but a dead material body, which has no spiritual consciousness, stops increasing. In Bhagavad-gita (Chapter Two) importance is given to the spiritual consciousness, not the body. The entire cosmic body increased by the same process that we experience in our small bodies. One should not, however, foolishly think that the individual infinitesimal soul is the cause of the gigantic manifestation of the universal form. The universal form is called the virat-rupa because the Supreme Lord is within it in His plenary portion.

SB3.6.6

TEXT 6

hiranmayah sa purusah

sahasra-parivatsaran

anda-kosa uvasapsu

sarva-sattvopabrmhitah

hiranmayah—the Garbhodakasayi Visnu, who also assumes the virat-rupa; sah—He; purusah—incarnation of Godhead; sahasra—one thousand; parivatsaran—celestial years; anda-kose—within the global universe; uvasa—resided; apsu—on the water; sarva-sattva—all living entities lying with Him; upabrmhitah—so spread.

The gigantic virat-purusa, known as Hiranmaya, lived for one thousand celestial years on the water of the universe, and all the living entities lay with Him.

After the Lord entered each and every universe as the Garbhodakasayi Visnu, half of the universe was filled with water. The cosmic manifestation of the planetary systems, outer space, etc., which are visible to us, is only one half of the complete universe. Before the manifestation takes place and after the entrance of Visnu within the universe, there is a period of one thousand celestial years. All the living entities injected within the womb of the mahat-tattva are divided in all universes with the incarnation of Garbhodakasayi Visnu, and all of them lie down with the Lord until Brahma is born. Brahma is the first living being within the universe, and from him all other demigods and living creatures are born. Manu is the original father of mankind, and therefore, in Sanskrit, mankind is called manusya. Humanity in different bodily qualities is distributed throughout the various planetary systems.

SB3.6.7

TEXT 7

sa vai visva-srjam garbho

deva-karmatma-saktiman

vibabhajatmanatmanam

ekadha dasadha tridha

sah—that; vai—certainly; visva-srjam—of the gigantic virat form; garbhah—total energy; deva—living energy; karma—activity of life; atma—self; saktiman—full with potencies; vibabhaja—divided; atmana—by Himself; atmanam—Himself; ekadha—in oneness; dasadha—in ten; tridha—and in three.

The total energy of the mahat-tattva, in the form of the gigantic virat-rupa, divided Himself by Himself into the consciousness of the living entities, the life of activity, and self-identification, which are subdivided into one, ten and three respectively.

Consciousness is the sign of the living entity, or the soul. The existence of the soul is manifest in the form of consciousness, called jnana-sakti. The total consciousness is that of the gigantic virat-rupa, and the same consciousness is exhibited in individual persons. The activity of consciousness is performed through the air of life, which is of ten divisions. The airs of life are called prana, apana, udana, vyana and samana and are also differently qualified as naga, kurma, krkara, devadatta and dhananjaya. The consciousness of the soul becomes polluted by the material atmosphere, and thus various activities are exhibited in the false ego of bodily identification. These various activities are described in Bhagavad-gita (2.41) as bahu-sakha hy anantas ca buddhayo ’vyavasayinam. The conditioned soul is bewildered into various activities for want of pure consciousness. In pure consciousness the activity is one. The consciousness of the individual soul becomes one with the supreme consciousness when there is complete synthesis between the two.

The monist believes that there is only one consciousness, whereas the satvatas, or the devotees, believe that although there is undoubtedly one consciousness, they are one because there is agreement. The individual consciousness is advised to dovetail with the supreme consciousness, as instructed by the Lord in Bhagavad-gita (18.66): sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja. The individual consciousness (Arjuna) is advised to dovetail with the supreme consciousness and thus maintain his conscious purity. It is foolish to try to stop the activities of consciousness, but they can be purified when they are dovetailed with the Supreme. This consciousness is divided into three modes of self-identification according to the proportion of purity: adhyatmika, or self-identification with the body and mind, adhibhautika, or self-identification with the material products, and adhidaivika, or self-identification as a servant of the Lord. Of the three, adhidaivika self-identification is the beginning of purity of consciousness in pursuance of the desire of the Lord.

SB3.6.8

TEXT 8

esa hy asesa-sattvanam

atmamsah paramatmanah

adyo ’vataro yatrasau

bhuta-gramo vibhavyate

esah—this; hi—certainly; asesa—unlimited; sattvanam—living entities; atma—Self; amsah—part; parama-atmanah—of the Supersoul; adyah—the first; avatarah—incarnation; yatra—whereupon; asau—all those; bhuta-gramah—the aggregate creations; vibhavyate—flourish.

The gigantic universal form of the Supreme Lord is the first incarnation and plenary portion of the Supersoul. He is the Self of an unlimited number of living entities, and in Him rests the aggregate creation, which thus flourishes.

The Supreme Lord expands Himself in two ways, by personal plenary expansions and separated minute expansions. The personal plenary expansions are visnu-tattvas, and the separated expansions are living entities. Since the living entities are very small, they are sometimes described as the marginal energy of the Lord. But the mystic yogis consider the living entities and the Supersoul, Paramatma, to be one and the same. It is, however, a minor point of controversy; after all, everything created rests on the gigantic virat or universal form of the Lord.

SB3.6.9

TEXT 9

sadhyatmah sadhidaivas ca

sadhibhuta iti tridha

virat prano dasa-vidha

ekadha hrdayena ca

sa-adhyatmah—the body and mind with all the senses; sa-adhidaivah—and the controlling demigods of the senses; ca—and; sa-adhibhutah—the present objectives; iti—thus; tridha—three; virat—gigantic; pranah—moving force; dasa-vidhah—ten kinds; ekadha—one only; hrdayena—living energy; ca—also.

The gigantic universal form is represented by three, ten and one in the sense that He is the body and the mind and the senses, He is the dynamic force for all movements by ten kinds of life energy, and He is the one heart where life energy is generated.

In Bhagavad-gita (7.4–5) it is stated that the eight elements earth, water, fire, air, sky, mind, intelligence and false ego are all products of the Lord’s inferior energy, whereas the living entities, who are seen to utilize the inferior energy, originally belong to the superior energy, the internal potency of the Lord. The eight inferior energies work grossly and subtly, whereas the superior energy works as the central generating force. This is experienced in the human body. The gross elements, namely, earth, etc., form the external gross body and are like a coat, whereas the subtle mind and false ego act like the inner clothing of the body.

The movements of the body are first generated from the heart, and all the activities of the body are made possible by the senses, powered by the ten kinds of air within the body. The ten kinds of air are described as follows: The main air passing through the nose in breathing is called prana. The air which passes through the rectum as evacuated bodily air is called apana. The air which adjusts the foodstuff within the stomach and which sometimes sounds as belching is called samana. The air which passes through the throat and the stoppage of which constitutes suffocation is called the udana air. Aid the total air which circulates throughout the entire body is called the vyana air. Subtler than these five airs, there are others also. That which facilitates the opening of the eyes, mouth, etc., is called naga air. The air which increases appetite is called krkara air. The air which helps contraction is called kurma air. The air which helps relaxation by opening the mouth wide (in yawning) is called devadatta air, and the air which helps sustenance is called dhananjaya air.

All these airs are generated from the center of the heart, which is one only. This central energy is superior energy of the Lord, who is seated within the heart with the soul of the body, who acts under the guidance of the Lord. This is explained in Bhagavad-gita (15.15) as follows:

sarvasya caham hrdi sannivisto
mattah smrtir jnanam apohanam ca
vedais ca sarvair aham eva vedyo
vedanta-krd veda-vid eva caham

The complete central force is generated from the heart by the Lord, who is seated there and who helps the conditioned soul in remembering and forgetting. The conditioned state is due to the soul’s forgetfulness of his relationship of subordination to the Lord. One who wants to continue to forget the Lord is helped by the Lord to forget Him birth after birth, but one who remembers Him, by dint of association with a devotee of the Lord, is helped to remember Him more and more. Thus the conditioned soul can ultimately go back home, back to Godhead.

This process of transcendental help by the Lord is described in Bhagavad-gita (10.10) as follows:

tesam satata-yuktanam
bhajatam priti-purvakam
dadami buddhi-yogam tam
yena mam upayanti te

The buddhi-yoga process of self-realization with intelligence transcendental to the mind (devotional service) can alone elevate one from the conditioned state of material entanglement in the cosmic construction. The conditioned state of the living entity is like that of a person who is within the depths of a huge mechanical arrangement. The mental speculators can reach the point of buddhi-yoga after many, many lifetimes of speculation, but the intelligent person who begins from the platform of intelligence above the mind makes rapid progress in self-realization. Because the buddhi-yoga process entails no fear of deterioration or retrogression at any time, it is the guaranteed path to self-realization, as confirmed in Bhagavad-gita (2.40). The mental speculators cannot understand that the two birds (Svetasvatara Upanisad) sitting in one tree are the soul and the Supersoul. The individual soul eats the fruit of the tree, while the other bird does not eat the fruit but only observes the activities of the eating bird. Without attachment, the witnessing bird helps the fruit-eating bird perform fruitful activities. One who cannot understand this difference between the soul and the Supersoul, or God and the living entities, is certainly still in the entanglement of the cosmic machinery and thus must still await the time when he will be free from bondage.

SB3.6.10

TEXT 10

smaran visva-srjam iso

vijnapitam adhoksajah

virajam atapat svena

tejasaisam vivrttaye

smaran—remembering; visva-srjam—of the demigods entrusted with the task of cosmic construction; isah—the Supreme Lord; vijnapitam—as He was prayed for; adhoksajah—the Transcendence; virajam—the gigantic universal form; atapat—considered thus; svena—by His own; tejasa—energy; esam—for them; vivrttaye—for understanding.

The Supreme Lord is the Supersoul of all the demigods entrusted with the task of constructing the cosmic manifestation. Being thus prayed to [by the demigods], He thought to Himself and thus manifested the gigantic form for their understanding.

The impersonalists are captivated by the gigantic universal form of the Supreme. They think that the control behind this gigantic manifestation is imagination. Intelligent persons, however, can estimate the value of the cause by observing the wonders of the effects. For example, the individual human body does not develop from the womb of the mother independently but because the living entity, the soul, is within the body. Without the living entity, a material body cannot automatically take shape or develop. When any material object displays development, it must be understood that there is a spiritual soul within the manifestation. The gigantic universe has developed gradually, just as the body of a child develops. The conception that the Transcendence enters within the universe is, therefore, logical. As the materialists cannot find the soul and the Supersoul within the heart, similarly, for want of sufficient knowledge, they cannot see that the Supreme Soul is the cause of the universe. The Lord is therefore described in the Vedic language as avan-manasa-gocarah, beyond the conception of words and minds.

Due to a poor fund of knowledge, the mental speculators try to bring the Supreme within the purview of words and minds, but the Lord refuses to be so intelligible; the speculator has no adequate words or mind to gauge the infinity of the Lord. The Lord is called adhoksaja, or the person who is beyond perception by the blunt, limited potency of our senses. One cannot perceive the transcendental name or form of the Lord by mental speculation. The mundane Ph.D.’s are completely unable to speculate on the Supreme with their limited senses. Such attempts by the puffed up Ph.D’s are compared to the philosophy of the frog in the well. A frog in a well was informed of the gigantic Pacific Ocean, and he began to puff himself up in order to understand or measure the length and breadth of the Pacific Ocean. Ultimately the frog burst and died. The title Ph.D. can also be interpreted as Plough Department, a title meant for the tillers in the paddy field. The attempt of the tillers in the paddy field to understand the cosmic manifestation and the cause behind such wonderful work can be compared to the endeavor of the frog in the well to calculate the measurement of the Pacific Ocean.

The Lord can reveal Himself only to a person who is submissive and who engages in His transcendental loving service. The demigods controlling the elements and ingredients of universal affairs prayed to the Lord for guidance, and thus He manifested His gigantic form, as He did at the request of Arjuna.

SB3.6.11

TEXT 11

atha tasyabhitaptasya

katidhayatanani ha

nirabhidyanta devanam

tani me gadatah srnu

atha—therefore; tasya—His; abhitaptasya—in terms of His contemplation; katidha—how many; ayatanani—embodiments; ha—there were; nirabhidyanta—by separated parts; devanam—of the demigods; tani—all those; me gadatah—described by me; srnu—just hear.

Maitreya said: You may now hear from me how the Supreme Lord separated Himself into the diverse forms of the demigods after the manifestation of the gigantic universal form.

The demigods are separated parts and parcels of the Supreme Lord, as are all other living entities. The only difference between the demigods and the ordinary living entities is that when the living entities are rich in pious acts of devotional service to the Lord, and when their desire to lord it over material energy has vanished, they are promoted to the posts of demigods, who are entrusted by the Lord with executing the management of the universal affairs.

SB3.6.12

TEXT 12

tasyagnir asyam nirbhinnam

loka-palo ’visat padam

vaca svamsena vaktavyam

yayasau pratipadyate

tasya—His; agnih—fire; asyam—mouth; nirbhinnam—thus separated; loka-palah—the directors of material affairs; avisat—entered; padam—respective positions; vaca—by words; sva-amsena—by one’s own part; vaktavyam—speeches; yaya—by which; asau—they; pratipadyate—express.

Agni, or heat, separated from His mouth, and all the directors of material affairs entered into it in their respective positions. By that energy the living entity expresses himself in words.

The mouth of the gigantic universal form of the Lord is the source of the speaking power. The director of the fire element is the controlling deity, or the adhidaiva. The speeches delivered are adhyatma, or bodily functions, and the subject matter of the speeches is material productions, or the adhibhuta principle.

SB3.6.13

TEXT 13

nirbhinnam talu varuno

loka-palo ’visad dhareh

jihvayamsena ca rasam

yayasau pratipadyate

nirbhinnam—separated; talu—palate; varunah—the deity controlling air; loka-palah—director of the planets; avisat—entered; hareh—of the Lord; jihvaya amsena—with the part of the tongue; ca—also; rasam—tastes; yaya—by which; asau—the living entity; pratipadyate—expresses.

When the palate of the gigantic form was separately manifested, Varuna, the director of air in the planetary systems, entered therein, and thus the living entity has the facility to taste everything with his tongue.

SB3.6.14

TEXT 14

nirbhinne asvinau nase

visnor avisatam padam

ghranenamsena gandhasya

pratipattir yato bhavet

SYNONYMS

nirbhinne—thus being separated; asvinau—the dual Asvinis; nase—of the two nostrils; visnoh—of the Lord; avisatam—entering; padam—post; ghranena amsena—by partially smelling; gandhasya—aroma; pratipattih—experience; yatah—whereupon; bhavet—becomes.

TRANSLATION

When the Lord’s two nostrils separately manifested themselves, the dual Asvini-kumaras entered them in their proper positions, and because of this the living entities can smell the aromas of everything.

SB3.6.15

TEXT 15

nirbhinne aksini tvasta

loka-palo ’visad vibhoh

caksusamsena rupanam

pratipattir yato bhavet

SYNONYMS

nirbhinne—thus being separated; aksini—the eyes; tvasta—the sun; loka-palah—director of light; avisat—entered; vibhoh—of the great; caksusa amsena—by the part of the eyesight; rupanam—of the forms; pratipattih—experience; yatah—by which; bhavet—becomes.

TRANSLATION

Thereafter, the two eyes of the gigantic form of the Lord were separately manifested. The sun, the director of light, entered them with the partial representation of eyesight, and thus the living entities can have vision of forms.

SB3.6.16

TEXT 16

nirbhinnany asya carmani

loka-palo ’nilo ’visat

pranenamsena samsparsam

yenasau pratipadyate

SYNONYMS

nirbhinnani—being separated; asya—of the gigantic form; carmani—skin; loka-palah—the director; anilah—air; avisat—entered; pranena amsena—the part of the breathing; samsparsam—touch; yena—by which; asau—the living entity; pratipadyate—can experience.

TRANSLATION

When there was a manifestation of skin separated from the gigantic form, Anila, the deity directing the wind, entered with partial touch, and thus the living entities can realize tactile knowledge.

SB3.6.17

TEXT 17

karnav asya vinirbhinnau

dhisnyam svam vivisur disah

srotrenamsena sabdasya

siddhim yena prapadyate

SYNONYMS

karnau—the ears; asya—of the gigantic form; vinirbhinnau—being thus separated; dhisnyam—the controlling deity; svam—own; vivisuh—entered; disah—of the directions; srotrena amsena—with the hearing principles; sabdasya—of the sound; siddhim—perfection; yena—by which; prapadyate—is experienced.

TRANSLATION

When the ears of the gigantic form became manifested, all the controlling deities of the directions entered into them with the hearing principles, by which all the living entities hear and take advantage of sound.

PURPORT

The ear is the most important instrument in the body of the living entity. Sound is the most important medium for carrying the message of distant and unknown things. The perfection of all sound or knowledge enters through the ear and makes one’s life perfect. The entire Vedic system of knowledge is received by aural reception only, and thus sound is the most important source of knowledge.

SB3.6.18

TEXT 18

tvacam asya vinirbhinnam

vivisur dhisnyam osadhih

amsena romabhih kandum

yair asau pratipadyate