Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam: Canto 1: “Creation”
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Chapter Six
Conversation Between Nārada and Vyāsadeva
SB1.6.1
TEXT 1
sūta uvāca
evaṁ niśamya bhagavān
devarṣer janma karma ca
bhūyaḥ papraccha taṁ brahman
vyāsaḥ satyavatī-sutaḥ
SYNONYMS
sūtaḥ uvāca—Sūta said; evam—thus; niśamya—hearing; bhagavān—the powerful incarnation of God; devarṣeḥ—of the great sage among the gods; janma—birth; karma—work; ca—and; bhūyaḥ—again; papraccha—asked; tam—him; brahman—O brāhmaṇas; vyāsaḥ—Vyāsadeva; satyavatī-sutaḥ—the son of Satyavatī.
TRANSLATION
Sūta said: O brāhmaṇas, thus hearing all about Śrī Nārada’s birth and activities, Vyāsadeva, the incarnation of God and son of Satyavatī, inquired as follows.
PURPORT
Vyāsadeva was further inquisitive to know about the perfection of Nāradajī, and therefore he wanted to know about him more and more. In this chapter Nāradajī will describe how he was able to have a brief audience with the Lord while he was absorbed in the transcendental thought of separation from the Lord and when it was very painful for him.
SB1.6.2 TEXT 2 vyāsa uvāca bhikṣubhir vipravasite vijñānādeṣṭṛbhis tava vartamāno vayasy ādye tataḥ kim akarod bhavān SYNONYMS vyāsaḥ uvāca—Śrī Vyāsadeva said; bhikṣubhiḥ—by the great mendicants; vipravasite—having departed for other places; vijñāna—scientific knowledge in transcendence; ādeṣṭṛbhiḥ—those who had instructed; tava—of your; vartamānaḥ—present; vayasi—of the duration of life; ādye—before the beginning of; tataḥ—after that; kim—what; akarot—did; bhavān—your good self.
TRANSLATION Śrī Vyāsadeva said: What did you [Nārada] do after the departure of the great sages who had instructed you in scientific transcendental knowledge before the beginning of your present birth? PURPORT Vyāsadeva himself was the disciple of Nāradajī, and therefore it was natural to be anxious to hear what Nārada did after initiation from the spiritual masters. He wanted to follow in Nārada’s footsteps in order to attain to the same perfect stage of life. This desire to inquire from the spiritual master is an essential factor to the progressive path. This process is technically known as sad-dharma-pṛcchā.
SB1.6.3 TEXT 3 svāyambhuva kayā vṛttyā vartitaṁ te paraṁ vayaḥ kathaṁ cedam udasrākṣīḥ kāle prāpte kalevaram SYNONYMS svāyambhuva—O son of Brahmā; kayā—under what condition; vṛttyā—occupation; vartitam—was spent; te—you; param—after the initiation; vayaḥ—duration of life; katham—how; ca—and; idam—this; udasrākṣīḥ—did you quit; kāle—in due course; prāpte—having attained; kalevaram—body.
TRANSLATION O son of Brahmā, how did you pass your life after initiation, and how did you attain this body, having quit your old one in due course? PURPORT Śrī Nārada Muni in his previous life was just an ordinary maidservant’s son, so how he became so perfectly transformed into the spiritual body of eternal life, bliss and knowledge is certainly important. Śrī Vyāsadeva desired him to disclose the facts for everyone’s satisfaction.
SB1.6.4 TEXT 4 prāk-kalpa-viṣayām etāṁ smṛtiṁ te muni-sattama na hy eṣa vyavadhāt kāla eṣa sarva-nirākṛtiḥ SYNONYMS prāk—prior; kalpa—the duration of Brahmā’s day; viṣayām—subject matter; etām—all these; smṛtim—remembrance; te—your; muni-sattama—O great sage; na—not; hi—certainly; eṣaḥ—all these; vyavadhāt—made any difference; kālaḥ—course of time; eṣaḥ—all these; sarva—all; nirākṛtiḥ—annihilation.
TRANSLATION O great sage, time annihilates everything in due course, so how is it that this subject matter, which happened prior to this day of Brahmā, is still fresh in your memory, undisturbed by time? PURPORT As spirit is not annihilated even after the annihilation of the material body, so also spiritual consciousness is not annihilated. Śrī Nārada developed this spiritual consciousness even when he had his material body in the previous kalpa. Consciousness of the material body means spiritual consciousness expressed through the medium of a material body. This consciousness is inferior, destructible and perverted. But superconsciousness of the supramind in the spiritual plane is as good as the spirit soul and is never annihilated.
SB1.6.5 TEXT 5 nārada uvāca bhikṣubhir vipravasite vijñānādeṣṭṛbhir mama vartamāno vayasy ādye tata etad akāraṣam SYNONYMS nāradaḥ uvāca—Śrī Nārada said; bhikṣubhiḥ—by the great sages; vipravasite—having departed for other places; vijñāna—scientific spiritual knowledge; ādeṣṭṛbhiḥ—those who imparted unto me; mama—mine; vartamānaḥ—present; vayasi ādye—before this life; tataḥ—thereafter; etat—this much; akāraṣam—performed.
TRANSLATION Śrī Nārada said: The great sages, who had imparted scientific knowledge of transcendence to me, departed for other places, and I had to pass my life in this way. PURPORT In his previous life, when Nāradajī was impregnated with spiritual knowledge by the grace of the great sages, there was a tangible change in his life, although he was only a boy of five years. That is an important symptom visible after initiation by the bona fide spiritual master. Actual association of devotees brings about a quick change in life for spiritual realization. How it so acted upon the previous life of Śrī Nārada Muni is described by and by in this chapter.
SB1.6.6 TEXT 6 ekātmajā me jananī yoṣin mūḍhā ca kiṅkarī mayy ātmaje ’nanya-gatau cakre snehānubandhanam SYNONYMS eka-ātmajā—having only one son; me—my; jananī—mother; yoṣit—woman by class; mūḍhā—foolish; ca—and; kiṅkarī—maidservant; mayi—unto me; ātmaje—being her offspring; ananya-gatau—one who has no alternative for protection; cakre—did it; sneha-anubandhanam—tied by affectionate bondage.
TRANSLATION I was the only son of my mother, who was not only a simple woman but a maidservant as well. Since I was her only offspring, she had no other alternative for protection: she bound me with the tie of affection. SB1.6.7 TEXT 7 sāsvatantrā na kalpāsīd yoga-kṣemaṁ mamecchatī īśasya hi vaśe loko yoṣā dārumayī yathā SYNONYMS sā—she; asvatantrā—was dependent; na—not; kalpā—able; āsīt—was; yoga-kṣemam—maintenance; mama—my; icchatī—although desirous; īśasya—of providence; hi—for; vaśe—under the control of; lokaḥ—everyone; yoṣā—doll; dāru-mayī—made of wood; yathā—as much as.
TRANSLATION She wanted to look after my maintenance properly, but because she was not independent, she was not able to do anything for me. The world is under the full control of the Supreme Lord; therefore everyone is like a wooden doll in the hands of a puppet master. SB1.6.8 TEXT 8 ahaṁ ca tad-brahma-kule ūṣivāṁs tad-upekṣayā dig-deśa-kālāvyutpanno bālakaḥ pañca-hāyanaḥ SYNONYMS aham—I; ca—also; tat—that; brahma-kule—in the school of the brāhmaṇas; ūṣivān—lived; tat—her; upekṣayā—being dependent on; dik-deśa—direction and country; kāla—time; avyutpannaḥ—having no experience; bālakaḥ—a mere child; pañca—five; hāyanaḥ—years old.
TRANSLATION When I was a mere child of five years, I lived in a brāhmaṇa school. I was dependent on my mother’s affection and had no experience of different lands. SB1.6.9 TEXT 9 ekadā nirgatāṁ gehād duhantīṁ niśi gāṁ pathi sarpo ’daśat padā spṛṣṭaḥ kṛpaṇāṁ kāla-coditaḥ SYNONYMS ekadā—once upon a time; nirgatām—having gone away; gehāt—from home; duhantīm—for milking; niśi—at night; gām—the cow; pathi—on the path; sarpaḥ—snake; adaśat—bitten; padā—on the leg; spṛṣṭaḥ—thus struck; kṛpaṇām—the poor woman; kāla-coditaḥ—influenced by supreme time.
TRANSLATION Once upon a time, my poor mother, when going out one night to milk a cow, was bitten on the leg by a serpent, influenced by supreme time. PURPORT That is the way of dragging a sincere soul nearer to God. The poor boy was being looked after only by his affectionate mother, and yet the mother was taken from the world by the supreme will in order to put him completely at the mercy of the Lord.
SB1.6.10 TEXT 10 tadā tad aham īśasya bhaktānāṁ śam abhīpsataḥ anugrahaṁ manyamānaḥ prātiṣṭhaṁ diśam uttarām SYNONYMS tadā—at that time; tat—that; aham—I; īśasya—of the Lord; bhaktānām—of the devotees; śam—mercy; abhīpsataḥ—desiring; anugraham—special benediction; manyamānaḥ—thinking in that way; prātiṣṭham—departed; diśam uttarām—in the northern direction.
TRANSLATION I took this as the special mercy of the Lord, who always desires benediction for His devotees, and so thinking, I started for the north. PURPORT Confidential devotees of the Lord see in every step a benedictory direction of the Lord. What is considered to be an odd or difficult moment in the mundane sense is accepted as special mercy of the Lord. Mundane prosperity is a kind of material fever, and by the grace of the Lord the temperature of this material fever is gradually diminished, and spiritual health is obtained step by step. Mundane people misunderstand it.
SB1.6.11 TEXT 11 sphītāñ janapadāṁs tatra pura-grāma-vrajākarān kheṭa-kharvaṭa-vāṭīś ca vanāny upavanāni ca SYNONYMS sphītān—very flourishing; jana-padān—metropolises; tatra—there; pura—towns; grāma—villages; vraja—big farms; ākarān—mineral fields (mines); kheṭa—agricultural lands; kharvaṭa—valleys; vāṭīḥ—flower gardens; ca—and; vanāni—forests; upavanāni—nursery gardens; ca—and.
TRANSLATION After my departure, I passed through many flourishing metropolises, towns, villages, animal farms, mines, agricultural lands, valleys, flower gardens, nursery gardens and natural forests. PURPORT Man’s activities in agriculture, mining, farming, industries, gardening, etc., were all on the same scale as they are now, even previous to the present creation, and the same activities will remain as they are, even in the next creation. After many hundreds of millions of years, one creation is started by the law of nature, and the history of the universe repeats itself practically in the same way. The mundane wranglers waste time with archaeological excavations without searching into the vital necessities of life. After getting an impetus in spiritual life, Śrī Nārada Muni, even though a mere child, did not waste time for a single moment with economic development, although he passed towns and villages, mines and industries. He continually went on to progressive spiritual emancipation. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the repetition of history which happened some hundreds of millions of years ago. As it is said herein, only the most important factors of history are picked up to be recorded in this transcendental literature.
SB1.6.12 TEXT 12 citra-dhātu-vicitrādrīn ibha-bhagna-bhuja-drumān jalāśayāñ chiva-jalān nalinīḥ sura-sevitāḥ citra-svanaiḥ patra-rathair vibhramad bhramara-śriyaḥ SYNONYMS citra-dhātu—valuable minerals like gold, silver and copper; vicitra—full of variegatedness; adrīn—hills and mountains; ibha-bhagna—broken by the giant elephants; bhuja—branches; drumān—trees; jalāśayān śiva—health-giving; jalān—reservoirs of water; nalinīḥ—lotus flowers; sura-sevitāḥ—aspired to by the denizens of heaven; citra-svanaiḥ—pleasing to the heart; patra-rathaiḥ—by the birds; vibhramat—bewildering; bhramara-śriyaḥ—decorated by drones.
TRANSLATION I passed through hills and mountains full of reservoirs of various minerals like gold, silver and copper, and through tracts of land with reservoirs of water filled with beautiful lotus flowers, fit for the denizens of heaven, decorated with bewildered bees and singing birds. SB1.6.13 TEXT 13 nala-veṇu-śaras-tanba- kuśa-kīcaka-gahvaram eka evātiyāto ’ham adrākṣaṁ vipinaṁ mahat ghoraṁ pratibhayākāraṁ vyālolūka-śivājiram SYNONYMS nala—pipes; veṇu—bamboo; śaraḥ—pens; tanba—full of; kuśa—sharp grass; kīcaka—weeds; gahvaram—caves; ekaḥ—alone; eva—only; atiyātaḥ—difficult to go through; aham—I; adrākṣam—visited; vipinam—deep forests; mahat—great; ghoram—fearful; pratibhaya-ākāram—dangerously; vyāla—snakes; ulūka—owls; śiva—jackals; ajiram—playgrounds.
TRANSLATION I then passed alone through many forests of rushes, bamboo, reeds, sharp grass, weeds and caves, which were very difficult to go through alone. I visited deep, dark and dangerously fearful forests, which were the play yards of snakes, owls and jackals. PURPORT It is the duty of a mendicant (parivrājakācārya) to experience all varieties of God’s creation by traveling alone through all forests, hills, towns, villages, etc., to gain faith in God and strength of mind as well as to enlighten the inhabitants with the message of God. A sannyāsī is duty-bound to take all these risks without fear, and the most typical sannyāsī of the present age is Lord Caitanya, who traveled in the same manner through the central Indian jungles, enlightening even the tigers, bears, snakes, deer, elephants and many other jungle animals. In this age of Kali, sannyāsa is forbidden for ordinary men. One who changes his dress to make propaganda is a different man from the original ideal sannyāsī. One should, however, take the vow to stop social intercourse completely and devote life exclusively to the service of the Lord. The change of dress is only a formality. Lord Caitanya did not accept the name of a sannyāsī, and in this age of Kali the so-called sannyāsīs should not change their former names, following in the footsteps of Lord Caitanya. In this age, devotional service of hearing and repeating the holy glories of the Lord is strongly recommended, and one who takes the vow of renunciation of family life need not imitate the parivrājakācārya like Nārada or Lord Caitanya, but may sit down at some holy place and devote his whole time and energy to hear and repeatedly chant the holy scriptures left by the great ācāryas like the six Gosvāmīs of Vṛndāvana.
SB1.6.14 TEXT 14 pariśrāntendriyātmāhaṁ tṛṭ-parīto bubhukṣitaḥ snātvā pītvā hrade nadyā upaspṛṣṭo gata-śramaḥ SYNONYMS pariśrānta—being tired; indriya—bodily; ātmā—mentally; aham—I; tṛṭ-parītaḥ—being thirsty; bubhukṣitaḥ—and hungry; snātvā—taking a bath; pītvā—and drinking water also; hrade—in the lake; nadyāḥ—of a river; upaspṛṣṭaḥ—being in contact with; gata—got relief from; śramaḥ—tiredness.
TRANSLATION Thus traveling, I felt tired, both bodily and mentally, and I was both thirsty and hungry. So I took a bath in a river lake and also drank water. By contacting water, I got relief from my exhaustion. PURPORT A traveling mendicant can meet the needs of body, namely thirst and hunger, by the gifts of nature without being a beggar at the doors of the householders. The mendicant therefore does not go to the house of a householder to beg but to enlighten him spiritually.
SB1.6.15 TEXT 15 tasmin nirmanuje ’raṇye pippalopastha āśritaḥ ātmanātmānam ātmasthaṁ yathā-śrutam acintayam SYNONYMS tasmin—in that; nirmanuje—without human habitation; araṇye—in the forest; pippala—banyan tree; upasthe—sitting under it; āśritaḥ—taking shelter of; ātmanā—by intelligence; ātmānam—the Supersoul; ātma-stham—situated within myself; yathā-śrutam—as I had heard it from the liberated souls; acintayam—thought over.
TRANSLATION After that, under the shadow of a banyan tree in an uninhabited forest I began to meditate upon the Supersoul situated within, using my intelligence, as I had learned from liberated souls. PURPORT One should not meditate according to one’s personal whims. One should know perfectly well from the authoritative sources of scriptures through the transparent medium of a bona fide spiritual master and by proper use of one’s trained intelligence for meditating upon the Supersoul dwelling within every living being. This consciousness is firmly developed by a devotee who has rendered loving service unto the Lord by carrying out the orders of the spiritual master. Śrī Nāradajī contacted bona fide spiritual masters, served them sincerely and got enlightenment rightly. Thus he began to meditate.
SB1.6.16 TEXT 16 dhyāyataś caraṇāmbhojaṁ bhāva-nirjita-cetasā autkaṇṭhyāśru-kalākṣasya hṛdy āsīn me śanair hariḥ SYNONYMS dhyāyataḥ—thus meditating upon; caraṇa-ambhojam—the lotus feet of the localized Personality of Godhead; bhāva-nirjita—mind transformed in transcendental love for the Lord; cetasā—all mental activities (thinking, feeling and willing); autkaṇṭhya—eagerness; aśru-kala—tears rolled down; akṣasya—of the eyes; hṛdi—within my heart; āsīt—appeared; me—my; śanaiḥ—without delay; hariḥ—the Personality of Godhead.
TRANSLATION As soon as I began to meditate upon the lotus feet of the Personality of Godhead with my mind transformed in transcendental love, tears rolled down my eyes, and without delay the Personality of Godhead Śrī Kṛṣṇa appeared on the lotus of my heart. PURPORT The word bhāva is significant here. This bhāva stage is attained after one has transcendental affection for the Lord. The first initial stage is called śraddhā, or a liking for the Supreme Lord, and in order to increase that liking one has to associate with pure devotees of the Lord. The third stage is to practice the prescribed rules and regulations of devotional service. This will dissipate all sorts of misgivings and remove all personal deficiencies that hamper progress in devotional service.
When all misgivings and personal deficiencies are removed, there is a standard faith in transcendental matter, and the taste for it increases in greater proportion. This stage leads to attraction, and after this there is bhāva, or the prior stage of unalloyed love for God. All the above different stages are but different stages of development of transcendental love. Being so surcharged with transcendental love, there comes a strong feeling of separation which leads to eight different kinds of ecstasies. Tears from the eyes of a devotee is an automatic reaction, and because Śrī Nārada Muni in his previous birth attained that stage very quickly after his departure from home, it was quite possible for him to perceive the actual presence of the Lord, which he tangibly experienced by his developed spiritual senses without material tinge.
SB1.6.17 TEXT 17 premātibhara-nirbhinna- pulakāṅgo ’tinirvṛtaḥ ānanda-samplave līno nāpaśyam ubhayaṁ mune SYNONYMS premā—love; atibhara—excessive; nirbhinna—especially distinguished; pulaka—feelings of happiness; aṅgaḥ—different bodily parts; ati-nirvṛtaḥ—being fully overwhelmed; ānanda—ecstasy; samplave—in the ocean of; līnaḥ—absorbed in; na—not; apaśyam—could see; ubhayam—both; mune—O Vyāsadeva.
TRANSLATION O Vyāsadeva, at that time, being exceedingly overpowered by feelings of happiness, every part of my body became separately enlivened. Being absorbed in an ocean of ecstasy, I could not see both myself and the Lord. PURPORT Spiritual feelings of happiness and intense ecstasies have no mundane comparison. Therefore it is very difficult to give expression to such feelings. We can just have a glimpse of such ecstasy in the words of Śrī Nārada Muni. Each and every part of the body or senses has its particular function. After seeing the Lord, all the senses become fully awakened to render service unto the Lord because in the liberated state the senses are fully efficient in serving the Lord. As such, in that transcendental ecstasy it so happened that the senses became separately enlivened to serve the Lord. This being so, Nārada Muni lost himself in seeing both himself and the Lord simultaneously.
SB1.6.18 TEXT 18 rūpaṁ bhagavato yat tan manaḥ-kāntaṁ śucāpaham apaśyan sahasottasthe vaiklavyād durmanā iva SYNONYMS rūpam—form; bhagavataḥ—of the Personality of Godhead; yat—as it is; tat—that; manaḥ—of the mind; kāntam—as it desires; śuca-apaham—vanishing all disparity; apaśyan—without seeing; sahasā—all of a sudden; uttasthe—got up; vaiklavyāt—being perturbed; durmanāḥ—having lost the desirable; iva—as it were.
TRANSLATION The transcendental form of the Lord, as it is, satisfies the mind’s desire and at once erases all mental incongruities. Upon losing that form, I suddenly got up, being perturbed, as is usual when one loses that which is desirable. PURPORT That the Lord is not formless is experienced by Nārada Muni. But His form is completely different from all forms of our material experience. For the whole duration of our life we go see different forms in the material world, but none of them is just apt to satisfy the mind, nor can any one of them vanish all perturbance of the mind. These are the special features of the transcendental form of the Lord, and one who has once seen that form is not satisfied with anything else; no form in the material world can any longer satisfy the seer. That the Lord is formless or impersonal means that He has nothing like a material form and is not like any material personality.
As spiritual beings, having eternal relations with that transcendental form of the Lord, we are, life after life, searching after that form of the Lord, and we are not satisfied by any other form of material appeasement. Nārada Muni got a glimpse of this, but having not seen it again he became perturbed and stood up all of a sudden to search it out. What we desire life after life was obtained by Nārada Muni, and losing sight of Him again was certainly a great shock for him.
SB1.6.19 TEXT 19 didṛkṣus tad ahaṁ bhūyaḥ praṇidhāya mano hṛdi vīkṣamāṇo ’pi nāpaśyam avitṛpta ivāturaḥ SYNONYMS didṛkṣuḥ—desiring to see; tat—that; aham—I; bhūyaḥ—again; praṇidhāya—having concentrated the mind; manaḥ—mind; hṛdi—upon the heart; vīkṣamāṇaḥ—waiting to see; api—in spite of; na—never; apaśyam—saw Him; avitṛptaḥ—without being satisfied; iva—like; āturaḥ—aggrieved.
TRANSLATION I desired to see again that transcendental form of the Lord, but despite my attempts to concentrate upon the heart with eagerness to view the form again, I could not see Him any more, and thus dissatisfied, I was very much aggrieved. PURPORT There is no mechanical process to see the form of the Lord. It completely depends on the causeless mercy of the Lord. We cannot demand the Lord to be present before our vision, just as we cannot demand the sun to rise whenever we like. The sun rises out of his own accord; so also the Lord is pleased to be present out of His causeless mercy. One should simply await the opportune moment and go on discharging his prescribed duty in devotional service of the Lord. Nārada Muni thought that the Lord could be seen again by the same mechanical process which was successful in the first attempt, but in spite of his utmost endeavor he could not make the second attempt successful. The Lord is completely independent of all obligations. He can simply be bound up by the tie of unalloyed devotion. Nor is He visible or perceivable by our material senses. When He pleases, being satisfied with the sincere attempt of devotional service depending completely on the mercy of the Lord, then He may be seen out of His own accord.
SB1.6.20 TEXT 20 evaṁ yatantaṁ vijane mām āhāgocaro girām gambhīra-ślakṣṇayā vācā śucaḥ praśamayann iva SYNONYMS evam—thus; yatantam—one who is engaged in attempting; vijane—in that lonely place; mām—unto me; āha—said; agocaraḥ—beyond the range of physical sound; girām—utterances; gambhīra—grave; ślakṣṇayā—pleasing to hear; vācā—words; śucaḥ—grief; praśamayan—mitigating; iva—like.
TRANSLATION Seeing my attempts in that lonely place, the Personality of Godhead, who is transcendental to all mundane description, spoke to me with gravity and pleasing words, just to mitigate my grief. PURPORT In the Vedas it is said that God is beyond the approach of mundane words and intelligence. And yet by His causeless mercy one can have suitable senses to hear Him or to speak to Him. This is the Lord’s inconceivable energy. One upon whom His mercy is bestowed can hear Him. The Lord was much pleased with Nārada Muni, and therefore the necessary strength was invested in him so that he could hear the Lord. It is not, however, possible for others to perceive directly the touch of the Lord during the probationary stage of regulative devotional service. It was a special gift for Nārada. When he heard the pleasing words of the Lord, the feelings of separation were to some extent mitigated. A devotee in love with God feels always the pangs of separation and is therefore always enwrapped in transcendental ecstasy.
SB1.6.21 TEXT 21 hantāsmiñ janmani bhavān mā māṁ draṣṭum ihārhati avipakva-kaṣāyāṇāṁ durdarśo ’haṁ kuyoginām SYNONYMS hanta—O Nārada; asmin—this; janmani—duration of life; bhavān—yourself; mā—not; mām—Me; draṣṭum—to see; iha—here; arhati—deserve; avipakva—immature; kaṣāyāṇām—material dirt; durdarśaḥ—difficult to be seen; aham—I; kuyoginām—incomplete in service.
TRANSLATION O Nārada [the Lord spoke], I regret that during this lifetime you will not be able to see Me anymore. Those who are incomplete in service and who are not completely free from all material taints can hardly see Me. PURPORT The Personality of Godhead is described in the Bhagavad-gītā as the most pure, the Supreme and the Absolute Truth. There is no trace of a tinge of materiality in His person, and thus one who has the slightest tinge of material affection cannot approach Him. The beginning of devotional service starts from the point when one is freed from at least two forms of material modes, namely the mode of passion and the mode of ignorance. The result is exhibited by the signs of being freed from kāma (lust) and lobha (covetousness). That is to say, one must be freed from the desires for sense satisfaction and avarice for sense gratification. The balanced mode of nature is goodness. And to be completely freed from all material tinges is to become free from the mode of goodness also. To search the audience of God in a lonely forest is considered to be in the mode of goodness. One can go out into the forest to attain spiritual perfection, but that does not mean that one can see the Lord personally there. One must be completely freed from all material attachment and be situated on the plane of transcendence, which alone will help the devotee get in personal touch with the Personality of Godhead. The best method is that one should live at a place where the transcendental form of the Lord is worshiped. The temple of the Lord is a transcendental place, whereas the forest is a materially good habitation. A neophyte devotee is always recommended to worship the Deity of the Lord (arcanā) rather than go into the forest to search out the Lord. Devotional service begins from the process of arcanā, which is better than going out in the forest. In his present life, which is completely freed from all material hankerings, Śrī Nārada Muni does not go into the forest, although he can turn every place into Vaikuṇṭha by his presence only. He travels from one planet to another to convert men, gods, Kinnaras, Gandharvas, ṛṣis, munis and all others to become devotees of the Lord. By his activities he has engaged many devotees like Prahlāda Mahārāja, Dhruva Mahārāja and many others in the transcendental service of the Lord. A pure devotee of the Lord, therefore, follows in the footsteps of the great devotees like Nārada and Prahlāda and engages his whole time in glorifying the Lord by the process of kīrtana. Such a preaching process is transcendental to all material qualities.
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