Teachings of Lord Kapila, the Son of Devahuti
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Chapter Fourteen
Bhakti as Ultimate Liberation
TLK Vs 31
TEXT 31
maitreya uvaca
viditvartham kapilo matur ittham
jata-sneho yatra tanvabhijatah
tattvamnayam yat pravadanti sankhyam
provaca vai bhakti-vitana-yogam
TRANSLATION
Sri Maitreya said: After hearing His mother’s statement, Kapila could understand her purpose, and He became compassionate toward her because of having been born from her body. He then described the Sankhya system of philosophy, which is a combination of devotional service and mystic realization, as received by disciplic succession.
PURPORT
The philosophy propounded by the atheist Kapila is an analysis of the material elements and is very much appreciated by Western philosophers. The sankhya-yoga explained by Lord Kapiladeva, the son of Devahuti, is practically unknown in the West. The sankhya-yoga propounded herein is actually bhakti. It is stated here that the proper way to receive this knowledge is by disciplic succession, not by philosophical speculation. Speculation is an improper way to understand the Absolute Truth. Generally Western philosophers try to understand the Absolute Truth by the ascending process of mental speculation. This is the process of inductive logic. The other process is the descending process, and this is the parampara process. By this method, knowledge descends from a higher source.
In Bhagavad-gita, many yoga systems are explained, but the bhakti-yoga system is considered highest of all. Ultimately, all yogas end in bhakti-yoga. The ultimate conclusion of jnana-yoga and hatha-yoga is bhakti-yoga. In the Sixth Chapter of Bhagavad-gita, the hatha-yoga system of meditation is explained, and Arjuna, who was highly elevated, said that he could not concentrate his mind in this way. If the hatha-yoga system was so difficult five thousand years ago for a person so elevated that he was Krsna’s friend, how is it possible today? Arjuna frankly said that this system of yoga was impossible to execute because the mind is as difficult to control as the wind.
The hatha-yoga system is basically meant for those who are overly attached to the body; otherwise, the preferred yoga is sankhya-yoga or bhakti-yoga. When Arjuna told Sri Krsna that the hatha-yoga system was too difficult to execute, the Lord pacified him by saying that the first-class yogi is one “who is always thinking of Me.” (Bg. 6.47) Arjuna did not know anything but Krsna, and Arjuna requested that Krsna be present on his side in the battle. When Duryodhana approached Krsna with Arjuna and requested Him to take sides, Krsna said, “I have eighteen military divisions. These divisions will take one side, and I personally will take another. However, I will not fight in this battle.” At first Arjuna thought it wise to take the eighteen divisions with their many thousands of elephants and horses, but then he considered that if he simply had Krsna on his side, that would be sufficient. He would not need ordinary soldiers. Duryodhana, on the other hand, decided to take Krsna’s soldiers. Thus in order to pacify Arjuna, Krsna told him not to worry, although he could not execute the astanga-yoga system.
“The first-class yogi is he who always thinks of Me.” One should always remember that Krsna is within his heart and think of Him. This is the proper system of meditation. If we always chant the Hare Krsna maha-mantra, we will always remember Krsna, and immediately the form of Krsna will be awakened within our hearts. The process of always thinking of Krsna is the process of Krsna consciousness. The first-class yogi is he who is always conscious of Krsna. One can be conscious of Krsna by hearing about Him submissively.
We have to accept Krsna through the disciplic succession. There are four sampradayas, disciplic successions. One comes from Lord Brahma (the Brahma-sampradaya), and another comes from Laksmi, the goddess of fortune, (the Sri-sampradaya). There are also the Kumara-sampradaya and the Rudra-sampradaya. At the present moment, the Brahma sampradaya is represented by the Madhva-sampradaya, and we belong to the Madhva-Gaudiya-sampradaya. Our original sampradaya stems from Madhvacarya. In that sampradaya there was Madhavendra Puri, and Madhavendra Puri’s disciple was Sri Isvara Puri. Sri Isvara Puri’s disciple was Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Thus we are coming in the disciplic succession from Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, and therefore our sampradaya is called the Madhva-Gaudiya-sampradaya. It is not that we have manufactured a sampradaya; rather, our sampradaya stems from Lord Brahma. There is also the Ramanuja-sampradaya, which comes from the Sri-sampradaya, and there is the Visnusvami-sampradaya, which comes from the Rudra-sampradaya. The Nimbaditya-sampradaya comes from the Kumara-sampradaya. If we do not belong to any sampradaya, our conclusion is fruitless. It is not that one should think, “I am a big scholar, and I can interpret Bhagavad-gita in my own way. All these sampradayas are useless.” We cannot manufacture our own comments. There are many commentaries made in this way, and they are all useless. They have no effect. We have to accept the philosophy as it was contemplated by Lord Brahma, Narada, Madhvacarya, Madhavendra Puri and Isvara Puri. These great acaryas are beyond the imperfections of so-called scholars. Mundane scientists and philosophers use the words “perhaps” and “maybe” because they cannot arrive at a proper conclusion. They are simply speculating, and mental speculation cannot be perfect.
Bhakti-yoga is at the top of the stairs of all the yogas. The first step is karma-yoga, and then jnana-yoga and dhyana-yoga, but the ultimate is bhakti-yoga. Everyone is trying to reach the ultimate Absolute Truth, but the other yogas end in partial understanding. The understanding derived from bhakti-yoga is complete, and even if partially executed, it has potency. It is also recommended by the great mahajanas like Lord Brahma, Lord Siva and Kapiladeva. Since the path of perfection is very difficult to understand, the sastras recommend that we follow the mahajanas, who are thus described in Srimad-Bhagavatam (6.3.20):
svayambhur naradah sambhuh
kumarah kapilo manuh
prahlado janako bhismo
balir vaiyasakir vayam
Another name for Lord Brahma is Svayambhu because he was born from a lotus flower emanating from the navel of Lord Visnu. Since he was not born of a father and mother, he is therefore called Svayambhu. Narada Muni is also a mahajana, and Sambhu is Lord Siva. Kumara refers to the four Kumaras—Sanaka, Sanandana, Sanatana and Sanat-kumara. There are twelve authorities following the Sankhya philosophy, or bhakti-yoga, and these include Lord Brahma, Lord Siva, Kapiladeva, Manu, Bhismadeva, Janaka Maharaja, Sukadeva Gosvami and prahlada Maharaja. If we simply accept one of these mahajanas, we will be successful in understanding the Absolute Truth, but if we try to understand the Absolute Truth by logic and argument, we will ultimately be frustrated. One philosopher may be a better logician than another, and one philosophical argument may counteract another, but this process goes on and on. It is simply a useless waste of time. Even if we approach Vedic scriptures, there are difficulties. There are so many scriptures—Yajur Veda, Rg Veda, Sama Veda, Atharva Veda, the Upanisads, the puranas, Brahma-sutra, Ramayana, Mahabharata and so forth. Different people read them and arrive at different conclusions. There are also the Bible and the Koran. According to so many different men, there are so many interpretations. One philosopher defeats another philosopher on the basis of scripture. It is even stated that one cannot become a rsi, a philosopher, unless one propounds a different system of philosophy. Nasav rsir yasya matam na bhinnam. Thus the truth of spiritual life is very complicated and difficult to understand. The conclusion is that one should follow one of these twelve mahajanas in order to be successful. Krsna is the original mahajana, and He instructed Lord Brahma. Lord Brahma is also a mahajana. Actually, Krsna instructed everyone in Bhagavad-gita, and thus everyone has learned from Krsna.
In Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.1.1) it is also stated: tene brahma hrda ya adi-kavaye. Thus Krsna gives His personal instructions just as Kapiladeva gave His personal instructions. There is no contradiction between Krsna’s philosophy in Bhagavad-gita and Kapiladeva’s philosophy. We need only receive the transcendental knowledge through the mahajanas, and the results will be beneficial. Kapiladeva explained this Sankhya philosophy to His mother, and although He had a natural affection for His mother, we should not think that Devahuti was an ordinary woman. She was very submissive, and when Kapiladeva saw this, He became very compassionate. He saw that she was eager to know about the Absolute Truth, and He considered that, after all, He had received His body from her. Therefore He concluded that He should try to give her the ultimate conclusion of philosophical knowledge, which is this Sankhya philosophy.
TLK Vs 32
TEXT 32
sri-bhagavan uvaca
devanam guna-linganam
anusravika-karmanam
sattva evaika-manaso
vrttih svabhaviki tu ya
animitta bhagavati
bhaktih siddher gariyasi
TRANSLATION
Lord Kapila said: The senses are symbolic representations of the demigods, and their natural inclination is to work under the direction of the Vedic injunctions. As the senses are representatives of the demigods, so the mind is the representative of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The mind’s natural duty is to serve. When that spirit of service is engaged in devotion to the Personality of Godhead, without any motive, that is far better than salvation.
PURPORT
The senses of the living entity are always engaged in some occupation, either in activities prescribed in the Vedic injunctions or in material activities. The natural inclination of the senses is to work for something, and the mind is the center of the senses. The mind is actually the leader of the senses; therefore it is called sattva. Similarly, the leader of all the demigods who are engaged in the activities of this material world—in managing the sun, moon, etc.—is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
It is stated in the Vedic literature that the demigods are different limbs of the universal body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Our senses are also controlled by different demigods; our senses are representations of various demigods, and the mind is the representation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The senses, led by the mind, act under the influence of the demigods. When the service is ultimately aimed at the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the senses are in their natural position. The Lord is called Hrsikesa, for He is actually the proprietor and ultimate master of the senses. The senses and the mind are naturally inclined to work, but when they are materially contaminated, they work for some material benefit or for the service of the demigods, although actually they are meant to serve the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The senses are called hrsika, and the Supreme Personality of Godhead is called Hrsikesa. Indirectly, all the senses are naturally inclined to serve the Supreme Lord. That is called bhakti.
Kapiladeva said that in devotional service the senses, without desire for material profit or other selfish motives, are engaged in the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That spirit of service is far better than siddhi, salvation. Bhakti, the inclination to serve the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is in a transcendental position far superior to mukti, or liberation. Thus bhakti is the stage after liberation. Unless one is liberated, one cannot engage the senses in the service of the Lord. When the senses are engaged either in material activities of sense gratification or in the activities of the Vedic injunctions, there is some motive, but when the same senses are engaged in the service of the Lord without ulterior motive, that is called animitta and is the natural inclination of the mind. The conclusion is that when the mind, undeviated either by Vedic injunctions or by material activities, is fully engaged in Krsna consciousness, or devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one is situated far above mere liberation from material entanglement.
Bhakti, devotional service, is transcendental even to mukti, liberation. Generally people are concerned with dharma, artha, kama and moksa. In the beginning, there is dharma (religion), then artha (economic development), kama (sense gratification), then moksa (merging into the Supreme One). However, bhakti is above all these. Mukti is not very important for a bhakta. In the words of Bilvamangala Thakura: muktih svayam mukulitanjali sevate ’smat. “Mukti herself is standing with folded hands, waiting to serve the devotee.” (Krsna-karnamrta 107) This is the experience of Bilvamangala Thakura, who was a very rich South Indian brahmana. Due to bad association, Bilvamangala Thakura became a very staunch prostitute hunter, and he spent all his money on a prostitute named Cintamani. One night, during a terrible rainstorm, Bilvamangala went to see Cintamani, but the prostitute was thinking, “Surely tonight Bilvamangala will not come. This is a terrible storm.” Nonetheless, Bilvamangala came, despite all difficulties. Somehow he managed to cross the raging river, and when he saw the gates of Cintamani’s house closed, he somehow managed to jump over them. Despite all the dangers, he reached Cintamani’s house, and the prostitute, being very astonished, said, “How is it you have come tonight? Oh, you are so attracted to this skin! If you just had this much attraction for Krsna, it would certainly be to your benefit.” Bilvamangala then immediately left the prostitute’s house and went to Vrndavana. The fact was that in his previous life he had executed devotional service up to bhava-bhakti. Thus the prostitute Cintamani actually became his guru. While in Vrndavana, Bilvamangala Thakura wrote a book named Krsna-karnamrta, which has been recommended by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. In that book, Bilvamangala Thakura writes: “If we have devotion fixed on You, My Lord Bhagavan, then we can easily see Your divine form as kaisora-murti, a young boy.”
Another name for Krsna is Kaisora. The word kaisora refers to the age before marriage—that is, it refers to a boy between the ages of eleven and sixteen. Sri Krsna is always kaisora-murti. By devotional service, one can see the kaisora-murti of Krsna very easily.
When Bilvamangala Thakura was going to Vrndavana, he was still attracted to women. One night he stayed at the house of a very rich merchant, and the merchant’s wife told her husband that Bilvamangala Thakura was attracted to her. She asked her husband what to do, and the merchant simply said, “Serve him.” Finally Bilvamangala Thakura came to his senses, and he thought, “These eyes are my enemies.” When the beautiful woman approached him, Bilvamangala Thakura said, “Mother, please give me the pins out of your hair. I am very mad after the beauty of women. So let me pluck out my eyes.” In this way, he blinded himself. Although he could not see, in Vrndavana he was supplied milk by Krsna Himself. Thus he personally realized Krsna through bhakti and wrote of his personal experience. He wrote, “Mukti is not a very important thing. She is always at my service with folded hands, saying, ‘My dear sir, what can I do for you?’ ” Thus a devotee is not very anxious for mukti because he is already liberated. If a man has a million dollars, why should he hanker after ten rupees?
Bhakti should be animitta, without motive. Actually Krsna can fulfill all of our wishes without difficulty because He is almighty and full of all opulences. If we want material happiness from Krsna, it is certainly not difficult for Him to grant it. He can also give us mukti, liberation, but it is foolishness to ask anything from Krsna except bhakti. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura used to say that asking God for mukti or anything else other than bhakti is like going to a rich man and asking for ashes. There is another story, about an old woman who was carrying a bundle of dry wood through the forest. Somehow or other the bundle, which was very heavy, fell to the ground. The old woman became very disturbed, and thought, “Who will help put this bundle back on my head?” She then began to call on God, saying, “God help me.” Suddenly God appeared and said, “What do you want?” She said, “please help me put this bundle back on my head.” So this is our foolishness. When God comes to give us some benediction, we simply ask Him to load us down again with all these material bundles. We ask Him for more material things, for a happy family, for a large amount of money, for a new car or whatever.
Caitanya Mahaprabhu teaches us that we should only beg God for His service life after life. This is the actual meaning of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra. When we are chanting Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama, Rama, Hare Hare, we are actually addressing God and His energy, Hara. Hara is Krsna’s internal potency, Srimati Radharani or Laksmi. Jaya radhe! This is daivi prakrti, and the devotees take shelter of the daivi prakrti, Srimati Radharani. Thus the Vaisnavas worship Radha-Krsna, Laksmi-Narayana and Sita-Rama. In the beginning of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra we first address the internal energy of Krsna, Hare. Thus we say, “O Radharani! O Hare! O energy of the Lord!” When we address someone in this way, he usually says, “Yes, what do you want?” The answer is, “Please engage me in Your service.” This should be our prayer. We should not say, “O energy of the Lord, O Krsna, please give me money. Please give me a beautiful wife. Please give me many followers. Please give me some prestigious position. Please give me the presidency.” These are all material hankerings, which should be avoided. Lord Buddha advocated that we give up all material desires. It is not possible to become desireless, but it is possible to give up material desires. It is the nature of the living entity to desire; it is not possible to be desireless. If one is desireless, he is dead. Desirelessness means purifying one’s desire, and desire is purified when we only desire the service of Krsna.
Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu teaches:
na dhanam na janam na sundarim
kavitam va jagad-isa kamaye
mama janmani janmanisvare
bhavatad bhaktir ahaituki tvayi
“O almighty Lord, I have no desire to accumulate wealth, nor do I desire beautiful women, nor do I want any number of followers. I only want Your causeless devotional service birth after birth.” (Siksastaka 4) He requests Lord Krsna’s service birth after birth. It is not that He is seeking salvation; rather, He simply wants to serve Krsna one life after another. The devotees are not anxious to merge into the existence of the Supreme. The Buddhist philosophy advocates nirvana, the negation of all material desires. Buddha does not offer more than this. Sankaracarya gives a little more, saying that we should become desireless in this material world and then enter into the Brahman effulgence. This is called brahma-nirvana. According to the Vaisnava philosophy, however, we should negate material desires and be situated on the Brahman platform, but in addition we should engage in the devotional service of the Lord. This is called bhakti. Mayavadi philosophers cannot understand this, but Krsna says that this devotional service is on the transcendental platform.
The Sankhya philosophy of the atheist Kapila, which is a material philosophy, is simply the study of the twenty-four elements. However, the real Sankhya philosophy, propounded by Kapiladeva, is transcendental to the twenty-four elements and material activity. Thus in this Sankhya philosophy, which is actually bhakti-yoga, there is no desire for material benefits. On the material platform, a person works for his own personal sense gratification or for some expanded sense gratification. One may work for himself, family, wife, children, society, community, nation or humanity at large. This is simply expanded sense gratification. Whether one steals for himself, family, community or whatever, the fact remains that he is a thief. It is said that when Alexander the Great arrested a common thief, the thief told Alexander, “What is the difference between us? I am a small plunderer, and you are a great plunderer.” Being very sensible, Alexander released him, saying, “Yes, there is no difference.” Regardless whether the sense gratification is for oneself, one’s family, one’s nation or whatever, it is, after all, sense gratification. The quality changes only when we work for the sense gratification of Krsna.
It is noteworthy that Bhagavad-gita or Srimad-Bhagavatam never states that krsna uvaca (“Krsna says”) or kapiladeva uvaca (“Kapiladeva says”). Rather, it states bhagavan uvaca (“the Supreme Personality of Godhead says”). This means that the version is perfect. If we receive knowledge from an ordinary man, there will be many defects. An ordinary person is subject to illusion, and he also has the tendency to cheat. Although an ordinary person may be a very advanced scholar, he does not possess perfect knowledge. Perfection is something totally different from what we find in the material world. Perfection means that there is no mistake, no illusion, no cheating, no imperfection. Therefore it is stated bhagavan uvaca, for Bhagavan is all-perfect. We should therefore take knowledge from Bhagavan or from one who speaks according to the version of Bhagavan.
The Krsna consciousness movement is based on this principle. We are not presenting anything that we ourselves could manufacture. Whatever we manufacture is sure to be defective or deficient. What is the value of my philosophy? What is the value of my thought? Generally, people say, “In my opinion,” thinking that “my opinion” really means something. People do not think, “I am simply a rascal.” People value their opinion, thinking it something very big. Everyone in this material world has imperfect senses; therefore whatever knowledge has been gathered through the senses is necessarily imperfect. As we have stressed over and over, we have to receive knowledge from the disciplic succession. Knowledge has to be received from Bhagavan, the perfect one. If we simply follow this system, we can become a guru for the whole world.
The devotee never thinks that he is a great bhakta. Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami, the author of Caitanya-caritamrta, has stated, purisera kita haite muni se laghistha: “I am lower than the worms in stool.” (Adi 5.205) This is the Vaisnava conception. A Vaisnava is by nature very humble. He never says, “I am the Supreme; I have become God.” Krsna says, “I am God. Worship Me.” The Vaisnava says, “Krsna is God. Worship Krsna.” It is not difficult to become a guru, provided that we repeat what Krsna says. Whatever Krsna states in Bhagavad-gita is dharma. Dharma is one. It cannot be different. Dharma means abiding by the orders of God. However, if we do not know God or His orders, we can only set about manufacturing some rubbish and fighting among ourselves. This is not dharma but philosophical speculation. All of this speculation and manufactured dharma has been kicked out of Srimad-Bhagavatam because it is all cheating. Bhagavata-dharma is not cheating, for it is related to the Supreme Lord. Bhakti can be applied only to Bhagavan, and if there is no Bhagavan, there is no bhakti. If Bhagavan is zero, where is bhakti? Bhakti is the transaction between Bhagavan and the bhakta. Bhagavan is there, and the bhaktas are there, and the bhaktas address Bhagavan, feed Bhagavan, chant Bhagavan’s names, invoke people to hear about Bhagavan, publish books about Bhagavan and worship Bhagavan, and in this way they are constantly absorbed in Bhagavan. This is the process of bhakti.
TLK Vs 33
TEXT 33
jarayaty asu ya kosam
nigirnam analo yatha
TRANSLATION
Bhakti, devotional service, dissolves the subtle body of the living entity without separate effort, just as fire in the stomach digests all that we eat.
PURPORT
Bhakti is in a far higher position than mukti because a person’s endeavor for liberation from the material encagement is automatically realized in devotional service. If the digestive power is sufficient, then whatever we eat will be digested by the fire in the stomach. Similarly, a devotee doesn’t have to try separately to attain liberation. That very service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the process of liberation because to engage in the service of the Lord is to liberate oneself from material entanglement.
For a devotee, liberation is no problem at all. Liberation takes place without separate endeavor. Bhakti, therefore, is far better than mukti or the impersonalist position. The impersonalists undergo severe penances and austerities to attain mukti, but the bhakta, simply by engaging in the bhakti process, especially in chanting Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, immediately develops control over the tongue by chanting, and accepting the remnants of foodstuff offered to the Personality of Godhead. As soon as the tongue is controlled, all other senses are controlled automatically. Sense control is the perfection of the yoga principle, and one’s liberation begins immediately as soon as he engages in the service of the Lord. It is confirmed by Kapiladeva that bhakti, or devotional service, is gariyasi, more glorious than siddhi, liberation.
It is stated in this verse that bhakti dissolves the subtle body. The spirit soul has two coverings—subtle and gross. The gross body is composed of earth, water, fire, air and ether. The subtle body is composed of mind, intelligence and ego. Of the eight material elements, five are gross and three are subtle. We cannot see the subtle, and the soul is even more subtle. Anyone with eyes can see the body, but not everyone can perceive the soul, the actual person. When we understand that the soul, or the person, has left the body, we cry, “Oh, my friend has left.” We can perceive that the body is there, but something is obviously missing. Thus one’s friend is actually different from the body. At the present moment when we say, “This is my friend,” we refer to the body, but that is simply the vision of an animal. Animals think, “This is my dog friend, and this is my mother dog.” They cannot see beyond the gross body. Similarly, we cannot see the soul, and if we cannot see the minute soul, how can we hope to see God with these blunt eyes? We cannot actually see one another. How, then, can we hope to see God? It is stated: atah sri-krsna-namadi na bhaved grahyam indriyaih [BRS. 1.2.234]. “Material senses cannot appreciate Krsna’s holy name, form, qualities and pastimes.”
Our present senses are incapable of seeing God. Generally, at death we can understand that something has gone. We understand that what we were seeing was not actually our friend but a lump of matter. This is knowledge. However, one who understands before death that the body is simply a lump of matter is called a wise man. He sees the soul through the eyes of knowledge. Those who are on the gross platform, who are like animals, can see neither the soul nor Bhagavan. The karmis, the gross fruitive workers, do not understand the distinction between the body and the soul. Out of many millions of karmis, there may be one jnani, one wise man who can understand. The jnani knows that he is not the body, and out of many millions of jnanis, one may be actually liberated. The Mayavadis think that because they are spirit soul, they are one with the Supreme. Being equal in quality does not mean that one is the Supreme Soul. Because the Mayavadis think that they have become one with Narayana, they address one another as Narayana. They say, “You are Narayana, I am Narayana, everyone is Narayana.” From this misconception, the idea of daridra-narayana (poor Narayana) arises. The devotees fully engaged in the service of the lotus feet of the Supreme Lord do not think in this way. They think, “If I am one with the Supreme, how is it I have fallen into this condition?” They know that a drop of seawater is one in quality with the vast ocean, but they also know that a drop of water is never equal to the ocean itself.
Sometimes the Mayavadis worship Lord Visnu, but they do not actually believe in the form of Lord Visnu. They consider His image to be some imaginary form to utilize as a means for self-realization. Mayavadis say that the Absolute Truth has no rupa, no form, but it is stated: isvarah paramah krsnah sac-cid-ananda-vigrahah [Bs. 5.1]. “Krsna, who is known as Govinda, is the supreme controller. He has an eternal, blissful, spiritual body.”
The word vigraha refers to the supreme form, but the Mayavadis do not understand this. There are also many so-called Vaisnavas who worship Lord Visnu with an aim of becoming one with the Supreme. They sometimes give the example of a drop of water merging into the great ocean itself. This is simply nonsense. The ocean is a combination of countless molecules of water, and it is impossible for one molecule to merge into the totality. The sunshine is a combination of countless trillions of small shining particles, and each particle has its individual identity as an atom. Because we do not have the eyes to see the small atomic divisions, we think that they are one, but actually they are not homogeneous. Similarly, although we are very small particles of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, we all have different identities. In Bhagavad-gita (2.12) Sri Krsna says:
na tv evaham jatu nasam
na tvam neme janadhipah
na caiva na bhavisyamah
sarve vayam atah param
“Never was there a time when I did not exist, nor you, nor all these kings; nor in the future shall any of us cease to be.”
Krsna never says that He, Arjuna, and all the soldiers shall eventually become one. Rather, He says that everyone will retain his own individuality.
Those who have complete knowledge never think that in the future they will become one with the Supreme. They simply want to remain in their constitutional position as part and parcel of Krsna. Although we are now covered by the material body, the material body can be easily dissolved by the process of bhakti-yoga. If we are strong in bhakti-yoga, we actually no longer have a material body but a spiritual one. We are free.
When we are baffled, we want to become the husband of goddess Laksmi. The husband of goddess Laksmi is Narayana, God Himself. In this material world, we are hankering after Laksmi, the goddess of fortune, but we are frustrated in our attempts. We think, “Now let me become the husband of Laksmi.” Actually, no one can enjoy Laksmi but Narayana. Even exalted demigods like Lord Brahma and Lord Siva are inferior to Lord Narayana, but we are so foolish that we are thinking of assuming Narayana’s position, or making Narayana into daridra-narayana, the poor man in the street. The sastras never equalize Narayana with anyone, not even Lord Brahma or Lord Siva, what to speak of foolish rascals.
One may ask why Narayana has created us, why it is we are part and parcel of Narayana. Eko bahu-syam. Why has Narayana become many? He has created us for enjoyment. Anandamayo ’bhyasat. He has created us in the same way a gentleman accepts a wife. If one takes on a wife, he
will beget children. A man takes on the responsibility of maintaining a wife and children because he thinks that through them he will enjoy life. In the material world we see that during the evening a man tries to enjoy life with his wife, children and friends. Therefore he takes on so many responsibilities. This is supposed to be ananda, bliss, but because it takes place in the material world, the ananda is converted into something distasteful. However, we can enjoy this ananda when we are with our Supreme Father, Krsna. We are all children of the Supreme Father, and in Bhagavad-gita (14.4) Krsna claims all species of life as His children:
sarva-yonisu kaunteya
murtayah sambhavanti yah
tasam brahma mahad yonir
aham bija-pradah pita
“It should be understood that all species of life, O son of Kunti, are made possible by birth in this material nature, and that I am the seed-giving father.”
The Supreme Father, Sri Krsna, has created us for His enjoyment, not to create distress. Although we are Krsna’s children, we have given up our Supreme Father because we wish to enjoy ourselves independently. Consequently we are suffering. If a rich man’s son gives up his home to try to enjoy life independently, he simply suffers. It is to our benefit to return home, back to Godhead, to enjoy ourselves with our original father, Krsna. This will give us happiness. Krsna is full of all opulence. He possesses in totality wealth, strength, beauty, fame, knowledge and renunciation. He possesses everything in unlimited quantity. If we return to our original father, we can enjoy ourselves with Him unlimitedly. It is not that we can enjoy ourselves independent of Krsna. Nor can we say that to enjoy ourselves we have to become one with Krsna. In the material world, our father gives us our birth, and we are an entity separate from him. If we are suffering, do we say, “My dear father, I am suffering. Will you please once again make me one with you?” Is this a very good proposal? A father says, “I have begotten you separately to enjoy yourself. You remain separate, and I remain separate, and in this way we will enjoy. Now you are asking to become one with me. What is this nonsense?”
The Mayavadis want to become one with the Supreme because they are suffering in the material world. Krsna has created us to enjoy ourselves in His company, but due to our desire for independent enjoyment, we are not doing that. Consequently we are suffering in this material world, and because we are suffering we are thinking of becoming one with our father. It is maya’s business to try to build up the living entity, to puff him up, and maya’s last snare is to make the living entity think that he can become one with God. Mayavadis think that becoming one with the Supreme is the highest perfection, but this is not perfection because our original constitutional position is to enjoy the company of Krsna. Friends sit together in a room and enjoy one another’s company. What enjoyment can one have by himself? Variety is the mother of enjoyment, and real enjoyment is being in Krsna’s company. Therefore devotees never desire to become one with the Supreme. It is Caitanya Mahaprabhu who says:
mama janmani janmanisvare
bhavatad bhaktir ahaituki tvayi
“My dear Lord, I do not want to put an end to the process of birth and death. I am not anxious for mukti. Let Me go ahead and take one birth after another. It doesn’t matter. Simply let Me engage in Your service birth after birth.” (Siksastaka 4) This is real ananda. Unless we are fully qualified devotees, we cannot enter into the Vaikuntha planets. We have to live outside in the brahmajyoti. If we desire this, Krsna will give us the opportunity. After all, Krsna is everything. He is brahmajyoti and Paramatma also. If we want to become one with the Supreme, we will be allowed to live outside the Vaikuntha planets, in the brahmajyoti. However, that position is not eternal. As we have explained before, we cannot live eternally in the brahmajyoti because we want variety. Without variety, there is no enjoyment.
In all conditions, the pure devotee is liberated. He may engage in some occupation or business, but he is always thinking of how to serve Krsna, and in this way he is automatically liberated. It is not that he thinks of becoming one with the Supreme and attaining liberation. Rather, his liberation lies in his personal relationship with the Supreme Lord Himself.