Madhya6.157

TEXT 157

hladini sandhini samvit

tvayy eka sarva-samsraye

hlada-tapa-kari misra

tvayi no guna-varjite

SYNONYMS

hladini—the pleasure potency; sandhini—the eternity potency; samvit—the knowledge potency; tvayi—in You; eka—one spiritual (cit) potency; sarva-samsraye—the shelter of everything; hlada—pleasure; tapa-kari—causing displeasure; misra—mixed; tvayi—in You; na u—not; guna-varjite—devoid of all material qualities.

TRANSLATION

" ’The Supreme Personality of Godhead is sac-cid-ananda-vigraha. This means that He originally has three potencies-the pleasure potency, the potency of eternality and the potency of knowledge. Together these are called the cit potency, and they are present in full in the Supreme Lord. For the living entities, who are part and parcel of the Lord, the pleasure potency in the material world is sometimes displeasing and sometimes mixed. This is not the case with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, because He is not under the influence of the material energy or its modes.’

Madhya6.158

TEXT 158

sac-cid-ananda-maya haya isvara-svarupa

tina amse cic-chakti haya tina rupa

SYNONYMS

sat-cit-ananda-maya—full of eternity, knowledge and bliss; haya—is; isvara—of the Supreme Lord; svarupa—the transcendental form; tina amse—in three parts; cit-sakti—the spiritual potency; haya—becomes; tina—three; rupa—forms.

TRANSLATION

"The Supreme Personality of Godhead in His original form is full of eternity, knowledge and bliss. The spiritual potency in these three portions [sat, cit and ananda] assumes three different forms.

PURPORT

According to the verdict of all Vedic literature, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the living entity and the illusory energy (this material world) constitute the subject matter of knowledge. Everyone should try to understand the relationships among them. First of all, one should try to understand the nature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. From the sastras we understand that the nature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the sum total of eternity, bliss and knowledge. As stated in verse 154 (visnu-saktih para prokta), the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the reservoir of all potencies, and His potencies are all spiritual.

Madhya6.159

TEXT 159

anandamse ’hladini,’ sad-amse ’sandhini’

cid-amse ’samvit’, yare jnana kari mani

SYNONYMS

ananda-amse—in the part of bliss; hladini—the pleasure potency; sat-amse—in the part of eternity; sandhini—the sandhini potency; cit-amse—in the part of knowledge; samvit—the samvit potency; yare—which; jnana—as knowledge; kari mani—we accept.

TRANSLATION

"The three portions of the spiritual potency are called hladini [the bliss portion], sandhini [the eternity portion] and samvit [the knowledge portion]. We accept knowledge of these as full knowledge of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

PURPORT

To acquire knowledge of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one must take shelter of the samvit potency of the Supreme Lord.

Madhya6.160

TEXT 160

antaranga--cic-chakti, tatastha--jiva-sakti

bahiranga--maya,--tine kare prema-bhakti

SYNONYMS

antaranga—the internal potency; cit-sakti—the spiritual potency; tatastha—the marginal potency; jiva-sakti—the living entities; bahiranga—the external potency; maya—the illusory energy; tine—all three of them; kare—do; prema-bhakti—devotional service in love.

TRANSLATION

"The spiritual potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead also appears in three phases-internal, marginal and external. These are all engaged in His devotional service in love.

PURPORT

The spiritual potency of the Lord is manifested in three phases-the internal, or spiritual, potency, the marginal potency, which is the living entities, and the external potency, known as maya-sakti. We must understand that in each of these three phases the original spiritual potencies of pleasure, eternity and knowledge remain intact. When the potencies of spiritual pleasure and knowledge are both bestowed upon the conditioned souls, the conditioned souls can escape the clutches of the external potency, maya, which acts as a cover obscuring one’s spiritual identity. When freed, the living entity awakens to Krsna consciousness and engages in devotional service with love and affection.

Madhya6.161

TEXT 161

sad-vidha aisvarya--prabhura cic-chakti-vilasa

hena sakti nahi mana,--parama sahasa

SYNONYMS

sat-vidha—six kinds; aisvarya—of opulences; prabhura—of the Lord; cit-sakti-vilasa—enjoyment in the spiritual potency; hena sakti—such sublime potencies; nahi—not; mana—you accept; parama sahasa—great impudence.

TRANSLATION

"In His spiritual potency, the Supreme Lord enjoys six kinds of opulence. You do not accept this spiritual potency, and this is due to your great impudence.

PURPORT

The Supreme Personality of Godhead is full with six opulences. All of these potencies are on the transcendental platform. To understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead as impersonal and devoid of potency is to go completely against Vedic information.

Madhya6.162

TEXT 162

’mayadhisa’ ’maya-vasa’--isvare-jive bheda

hena-jive isvara-saha kaha ta’ abheda

SYNONYMS

maya-adhisa—the Lord of energy; maya-vasa—subjected to the influence of maya; isvare—in the Supreme Personality of Godhead; jive—in the living entities; bheda—the difference; hena-jive—such living entities; isvara-saha—with the Supreme Personality of Godhead; kaha—you say; ta’-indeed; abheda—one and the same.

TRANSLATION

"The Lord is the master of the potencies, and the living entity is the servant of them. That is the difference between the Lord and the living entity. However, you declare that the Lord and the living entities are one and the same.

PURPORT

The Supreme Personality of Godhead is by nature the master of all potencies. By nature, the living entities, being infinitesimal, are always under the influence of the Lord’s potencies. According to the Mundaka Upanisad (3.1.1-2):

dva suparna sayuja sakhaya
samanam vrksam parisasvajate
tayor anyah pippalam svadv atty
anasnann anyo ’bhicakasiti

samane vrkse puruso nimagno
’nisaya socati muhyamanah
justam yada pasyaty anyam isam
asya mahimanam eti vita-sokah

Madhya6.163

TEXT 163

gita-sastre jiva-rupa ’sakti’ kari’ mane

hena jive ’bheda’ kara isvarera sane

SYNONYMS

gita-sastre—in the Bhagavad-gita; jiva-rupa—the identity of the living entity; sakti—potency; kari’-making; mane—accepts; hena—such; jive—living entity; bheda—different; kara—you make; isvarera—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; sane—with.

TRANSLATION

"In the Bhagavad-gita the living entity is established as the marginal potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Yet you say that the living entity is completely different from the Lord.

PURPORT

The Brahma-sutra states that according to the principle of sakti-saktimatayor abhedah, the living entity is simultaneously one with and different from the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Qualitatively the living entity and the Supreme Lord are one, but in quantity they are different. According to Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s philosophy (acintya-bhedabheda-tattva), the living entity and the Supreme Lord are accepted as one and different at the same time.

Madhya6.164

TEXT 164

bhumir apo ’nalo vayuh

kham mano buddhir eva ca

ahankara itiyam me

bhinna prakrtir astadha

SYNONYMS

bhumih—earth; apah—water; analah—fire; vayuh—air; kham—ether; manah—mind; buddhih—intelligence; eva—certainly; ca—and; ahankarah—false ego; iti—thus; iyam—this; me—My; bhinna—separated; prakrtih—energy; astadha—eightfold.

TRANSLATION

" ’Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and false ego are My eightfold separated energies.

Madhya6.165

TEXT 165

apareyam itas tv anyam

prakrtim viddhi me param

jiva-bhutam maha-baho

yayedam dharyate jagat

SYNONYMS

apara—inferior; iyam—this; itah—from this; tu—but; anyam—another; prakrtim—nature; viddhi—know; me—My; param—transcendental; jiva-bhutam—existing as the living entities; maha-baho—O mighty-armed one; yaya—by which; idam—this; dharyate—is sustained; jagat—material world.

TRANSLATION

" ’Besides these inferior energies, which are material, there is another energy, a spiritual energy, and this is the living being, O mighty-armed one. The entire material world is sustained by the living entities.’

PURPORT

Madhya6.166

TEXT 166

isvarera sri-vigraha sac-cid-anandakara

se-vigrahe kaha sattva-gunera vikara

SYNONYMS

isvarera—of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; sri-vigraha—the form; sat-cit-ananda-akara—complete in eternity, cognizance and bliss; se-vigrahe—about that form of the Lord; kaha—you say; sattva-gunera—of the quality of material goodness; vikara—transformation.

TRANSLATION

"The transcendental form of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is complete in eternity, cognizance and bliss. However, you describe this transcendental form as a product of material goodness.

Madhya6.167

TEXT 167

sri-vigraha ye na mane, sei ta’ pasandi

adrsya asprsya, sei haya yama-dandi

SYNONYMS

sri-vigraha—the form of the Lord; ye—anyone who; na—not; mane—accepts; sei—he; ta’-indeed; pasandi—agnostic; adrsya—not to be seen; asprsya—untouchable; sei—he; haya—is; yama-dandi—subject to be punished by Yamaraja.

TRANSLATION

"One who does not accept the transcendental form of the Lord is certainly an agnostic. Such a person should be neither seen nor touched. Indeed, he is subject to be punished by Yamaraja.

PURPORT

According to the Vedic instructions, the Supreme Personality of Godhead has His eternal, transcendental form, which is always blissful and full of knowledge. Impersonalists think that “material” refers to the forms within our experience and that “spiritual” refers to an absence of form. However, one should know that beyond this material nature is another nature, which is spiritual. Just as there are material forms in this material world, there are spiritual forms in the spiritual world. This is confirmed by all Vedic literature. The spiritual forms in the transcendental world have nothing to do with the negative conception of formlessness. The conclusion is that a person is an agnostic when he does not agree to worship the transcendental form of the Lord.

Madhya6.168

TEXT 168

veda na maniya bauddha haya ta’ nastika

vedasraya nastikya-vada bauddhake adhika

SYNONYMS

veda—the Vedic literature; na—not; maniya—accepting; bauddha—the Buddhists; haya—are; ta’-indeed; nastika—agnostics; veda-asraya—taking shelter of Vedic civilization; nastikya-vada—agnosticism; bauddhake—even Buddhists; adhika—surpassing.

TRANSLATION

"The Buddhists do not recognize the authority of the Vedas; therefore they are considered agnostics. However, those who have taken shelter of the Vedic scriptures yet preach agnosticism in accordance with the Mayavada philosophy are certainly more dangerous than the Buddhists.

PURPORT

Although the Buddhists are directly opposed to Vaisnava philosophy, it can easily be understood that the Sankarites are more dangerous because they accept the authority of the Vedas yet act contrary to Vedic instruction. Vedasraya nastikya-vada means “agnosticism under the shelter of Vedic culture” and refers to the monistic philosophy of the Mayavadis. Lord Buddha abandoned the authority of the Vedic literature and therefore rejected the ritualistic ceremonies and sacrifices recommended in the Vedas. His nirvana philosophy means stopping all material activities. Lord Buddha did not recognize the presence of transcendental forms and spiritual activities beyond the material world. He simply described voidism beyond this material existence. The Mayavadi philosophers offer lip service to Vedic authority but try to escape the Vedic ritualistic ceremonies. They concoct some idea of a transcendental position and call themselves Narayana, or God. However, God’s position is completely different from their concoction. Such Mayavadi philosophers consider themselves above the influence of karma-kanda (fruitive activities and their reactions). For them, the spiritual world is equated with the Buddhist voidism. There is very little difference between impersonalism and voidism. Voidism can be directly understood, but the impersonalism enunciated by Mayavadi philosophers is not very easily understandable. Of course, Mayavadi philosophers accept a spiritual existence, but they do not know about the spiritual world and spiritual beings. According to Srimad-Bhagavatam (10.2.32):

ye ’nye ’ravindaksa vimukta-maninas
tvayy asta-bhavad avisuddha-buddhayah
aruhya krcchrena param padam tatah
patanty adho ’nadrta-yusmad-anghrayah

The intelligence of the Mayavadis is not purified; therefore even though they practice austerities for self-realization, they cannot remain within the impersonal brahmajyoti. Consequently, they fall down again into this material world.

Madhya6.169

TEXT 169

jivera nistara lagi’ sutra kaila vyasa

mayavadi-bhasya sunile haya sarva-nasa

SYNONYMS

jivera—of the living entities; nistara—deliverance; lagi’-for the matter of; sutra—the Vedanta-sutra; kaila—made; vyasa—Srila Vyasadeva; mayavadi—of the impersonalists; bhasya—commentary; sunile—if hearing; haya—becomes; sarva-nasa—all destruction.

TRANSLATION

"Srila Vyasadeva presented Vedanta philosophy for the deliverance of conditioned souls, but if one hears the commentary of Sankaracarya, everything is spoiled.

PURPORT

Factually, the devotional service of the Lord is described in the Vedanta-sutra, but the Mayavadi philosophers, the Sankarites, prepared a commentary known as Sariraka-bhasya, in which the transcendental form of the Lord is denied. The Mayavadi philosophers think that the living entity is identical with the Supreme Soul, Brahman. Their commentaries on the Vedanta-sutra are completely opposed to the principle of devotional service. Caitanya Mahaprabhu therefore warns us to avoid these commentaries. If one indulges in hearing the Sankarite Sariraka-bhasya, he will certainly be bereft of all real knowledge.

The ambitious Mayavadi philosophers desire to merge into the existence of the Lord, and this may be accepted as sayujya-mukti. However, this form of mukti means denying one’s individual existence. In other words, it is a kind of spiritual suicide. This is absolutely opposed to the philosophy of bhakti-yoga. Bhakti-yoga offers immortality to the individual conditioned soul. If one follows the Mayavadi philosophy, he misses his opportunity to become immortal after giving up the material body. The immortality of the individual person is the highest perfectional stage a living entity can attain.

Madhya6.170

TEXT 170

’parinama-vada’--vyasa-sutrera sammata

acintya-sakti isvara jagad-rupe parinata

SYNONYMS

parinama-vada—the theory of transformation; vyasa-sutrera—of the Vedanta-sutra; sammata—purpose; acintya-sakti—inconceivable power; isvara—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; jagat-rupe—in the form of the cosmic manifestation; parinata—transformed.

TRANSLATION

"The Vedanta-sutra aims at establishing that the cosmic manifestation has come into being by the transformation of the inconceivable potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

PURPORT

For a further explanation of parinama-vada, refer to Adi-lila, Seventh Chapter, verses 121-133.

Madhya6.171

TEXT 171

mani yaiche avikrte prasabe hema-bhara

jagad-rupa haya isvara, tabu avikara

SYNONYMS

mani—the touchstone; yaiche—just as; avikrte—without being transformed; prasabe—produces; hema-bhara—volumes of gold; jagat-rupa—the cosmic manifestation; haya—becomes; isvara—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; tabu—still; avikara—unchanged.

TRANSLATION

"The touchstone, after touching iron, produces volumes of gold without being changed. Similarly, the Supreme Personality of Godhead manifests Himself as the cosmic manifestation by His inconceivable potency, yet He remains unchanged in His eternal, transcendental form.

PURPORT

According to the commentary of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, the purpose of the janmady asya verse in the Vedanta-sutra is to establish that the cosmic manifestation is the result of the transformation of the potencies of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Supreme Lord is the master of innumerable eternal energies, which are unlimited. Sometimes these energies are manifested, and sometimes they are not. In any case, all energies are under His control; therefore He is the original energetic, the abode of all energies. A common brain in the conditioned state cannot conceive of how these inconceivable energies abide in the Supreme Personality of Godhead, how He exists in His innumerable forms as the master of both spiritual and material energies, how He is the master of both manifest and potential powers, and how contradictory potencies can abide in Him. As long as the living entity is within this material world, in the condition of illusion, he cannot understand the activities of the inconceivable energies of the Lord. Thus the Lord’s energies, though factual, are simply beyond the power of the common brain to understand.

When the atheistic philosophers or the Mayavadis, being unable to understand the inconceivable energies of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, imagine an impersonal void, their imagination is only the counterpart of materialistic thinking. Within the material world, there is nothing inconceivable. High-thinking philosophers and scientists can tackle the material energy, but not being able to understand the spiritual energy, they can simply imagine an inactive state, such as the impersonal Brahman. This is simply the negative side of material life. By such imperfect knowledge, the Mayavadi philosophers conclude that the cosmic manifestation is a transformation of the Supreme. Thus they must necessarily also accept the theory of the illusion of the Supreme (vivarta-vada). However, if we accept the inconceivable potencies of the Lord, we can understand how the Supreme Personality of Godhead can appear within this material world without being touched or contaminated by the three modes of material nature.

Madhya6.172

TEXT 172

vyasa--bhranta bali’ sei sutre dosa diya

’vivarta-vada’ sthapiyache kalpana kariya

SYNONYMS

vyasa—Srila Vyasadeva; bhranta—mistaken; bali’-saying; sei—that; sutre—in the Vedanta-sutra; dosa—fault; diya—accusing; vivarta-vada—the theory of illusion; sthapiyache—has established; kalpana—imagination; kariya—doing.

TRANSLATION

"Sankaracarya’s theory states that the Absolute Truth is transformed. By accepting this theory, the Mayavadi philosophers denigrate Srila Vyasadeva by accusing him of error. They thus find fault in the Vedanta-sutra and interpret it to try to establish the theory of illusion.

PURPORT

Madhya6.173

TEXT 173

jivera dehe atma-buddhi--sei mithya haya

jagat ye mithya nahe, nasvara-matra haya

SYNONYMS

jivera—of the living entities; dehe—in the body; atma-buddhi—considering as the self; sei—that; mithya—untruth; haya—is; jagat—the cosmic manifestation; ye—that; mithya—untruth; nahe—not; nasvara-matra—only temporary; haya—is.

TRANSLATION

"The theory of illusion can be applied only when the living entity identifies himself with the body. As far as the cosmic manifestation is concerned, it cannot be called false, although it is certainly temporary.

PURPORT

Madhya6.174

TEXT 174

’pranava’ ye maha-vakya--isvarera murti

pranava haite sarva-veda, jagat-utpatti

SYNONYMS

pranava—omkara; ye—that which; maha-vakya—transcendental vibration; isvarera—of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; murti—the form; pranava—omkara; haite—from; sarva-veda—all Vedic literature; jagat—of the material world; utpatti—production.

TRANSLATION

"The transcendental vibration omkara is the sound form of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. All Vedic knowledge and this cosmic manifestation are produced from this sound representation of the Supreme Lord.

PURPORT

Omkara is the representation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead in sound. This form of His holy name is accepted as the transcendental vibration (maha-vakya), by virtue of which the temporary material manifestation has come into being. If one takes shelter of the sound representation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead (omkara), he can realize his constitutional identity and engage in devotional service even though in conditional life.

Madhya6.175

TEXT 175

’tat tvam asi’--jiva-hetu pradesika vakya

pranava na mani’ tare kahe maha-vakya

SYNONYMS

tat tvam asi—you are the same; jiva-hetu—for the enlightenment of the conditioned soul; pradesika—subsidiary; vakya—vibration; pranava—the omkara incarnation; na—not; mani’-accepting; tare—that; kahe—says; maha-vakya—transcendental vibration.

TRANSLATION

“The subsidiary vibration tat tvam asi [”you are the same“] is meant for the understanding of the living entity, but the principal vibration is omkara. Not caring for omkara, Sankaracarya has stressed the vibration tat tvam asi.”

PURPORT

Tat tvam asi is accepted as the primary vibration by one who does not accept pranava, the transcendental sound incarnation of the holy name of the Lord, as the chief principle in Vedic literature. By word jugglery, Sankaracarya tried to create an illusory presentation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His relationship with the living entities and the cosmic manifestation. Tat tvam asi is a warning to the living entity not to mistake the body for the self. Therefore tat tvam asi is especially meant for the conditioned soul. The chanting of omkara or the Hare Krsna mantra is meant for the liberated soul. Srila Rupa Gosvami has said, ayi mukta-kulair upasyamanam (Namastaka 1). Thus the holy name of the Lord is chanted by the liberated souls. Similarly, Pariksit Maharaja says, nivrtta-tarsair upagiyamanat (Bhag. 10.1.4). The holy name of the Lord can be chanted by those who have fully satisfied their material desires or who are fully situated on the transcendental platform and devoid of material desire. The name of the Lord can be chanted by one who is completely freed from material contamination (anyabhilasita-sunyam jnana-karmady-anavrtam). Sankaracarya has indirectly minimized the value of the principal Vedic mantra (omkara) by accepting a subordinate vibration (tat tvam asi) as the most important Vedic mantra.

Madhya6.176

TEXT 176

ei-mate kalpita bhasye sata dosa dila

bhattacarya purva-paksa apara karila

SYNONYMS

ei-mate—in this way; kalpita—imagined; bhasye—in the commentary; sata—hundreds; dosa—of faults; dila—gave; bhattacarya—Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya; purva-paksa—opposing elements; apara—unlimitedly; karila—manifested.

TRANSLATION

Thus Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu criticized Sankaracarya’s Sariraka-bhasya as imaginary, and He pointed out hundreds of faults in it. To defend Sankaracarya, however, Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya presented unlimited opposition.