SB 2.3.14

saḥ-He (the Supreme Personality of Godhead); eva-indeed; sva-prakṛtyā-by Your personal energy (mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram); idam-this material world; sṛṣṭvā-after creating; agre-in the beginning; tri-guṇa-ātmakam-made of three modes of energy (sattva-rajas-tamo-guṇa); tat anu-thereafter; tvam-Your Lordship; hi-indeed; apraviṣṭaḥ-although You did not enter; praviṣṭaḥ iva-You appear to have entered; bhāvyase-are so understood.





My Lord, You are the same person who in the beginning created this material world by His personal external energy. After the creation of this world of three guṇas [sattva, rajas and tamas], You appear to have entered it, although in fact You have not.





In Bhagavad-gītā (7.4) the Supreme Personality of Godhead clearly explains:



bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ

khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca

ahaṅkāra itīyaṁ me

bhinnā prakṛtir aṣṭadhā





This material world of three modes of nature-sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa and tamo-guṇa-is a composition of earth, water, fire, air, mind, intelligence and false ego, all of which are energies coming from Kṛṣṇa, yet Kṛṣṇa, being always transcendental, is aloof from this material world. Those who are not in pure knowledge think that Kṛṣṇa is a product of matter and that His body is material like ours (avajānanti māṁ mūḍhāḥ). In fact, however, Kṛṣṇa is always aloof from this material world.



In the Vedic literature, we find the creation described in relationship to Mahā-Viṣṇu. As stated in the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.35):



eko 'py asau racayituṁ jagad-aṇḍa-koṭiṁ

yac-chaktir asti jagad-aṇḍa-cayā yad-antaḥ

aṇḍāntara-stha-paramāṇu-cayāntara-sthaṁ

govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi





"I worship the primeval Lord, Govinda, the original Personality of Godhead. By His partial plenary expansion as Mahā-Viṣṇu, He enters into material nature. Then He enters every universe as Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, and He enters all the elements, including every atom of matter, as Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu. Such manifestations of cosmic creation are innumerable, both in the universes and in the individual atoms." Govinda is partially exhibited as antaryāmī, the Supersoul, who enters this material world (aṇḍāntara-stha) and who is also within the atom. The Brahma-saṁhitā (5.48) further says:



yasyaika-niśvasita-kālam athāvalambya

jīvanti loma-vilajā jagad-aṇḍa-nāthāḥ

viṣṇur mahān sa iha yasya kalā-viśeṣo

govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi





This verse describes Mahā-Viṣṇu as a plenary expansion of Kṛṣṇa. Mahā-Viṣṇu lies on the Causal Ocean, and when He exhales, millions of brahmāṇḍas, or universes, come from the pores of His body. Then, when Mahā-Viṣṇu inhales, all these brahmāṇḍas disappear. Thus the millions of brahmāṇḍas controlled by the Brahmās and other demigods come and go in this material world through the breathing of Mahā-Viṣṇu.



Foolish persons think that when Kṛṣṇa appears as the son of Vasudeva, He is limited like an ordinary child. But Vasudeva was aware that although the Lord had appeared as his son, the Lord had not entered Devakī's womb and then come out. Rather, the Lord was always there. The Supreme Lord is all-pervading, present within and without. praviṣṭa iva bhāvyase: He only seemed to have entered the womb of Devakī and to have now appeared as Vasudeva's child. The expression of this knowledge by Vasudeva indicates that Vasudeva knew how these events took place. Vasudeva was certainly a devotee of the Lord in full knowledge, and we must learn from devotees like him. Bhagavad-gītā (4.34) therefore recommends:



tad viddhi praṇipātena

paripraśnena sevayā

upadekṣyanti te jñānaṁ

jñāninas tattva-darśinaḥ





"Just try to learn the truth by approaching a spiritual master. Inquire from him submissively and render service unto him. The self-realized soul can impart knowledge unto you because he has seen the truth." Vasudeva begot the Supreme Personality of Godhead, yet he was in full knowledge of how the Supreme Lord appears and disappears. He was therefore tattva-darśī, a seer of the truth, because he personally saw how the Supreme Absolute Truth appeared as his son. Vasudeva was not in ignorance, thinking that because the Supreme Godhead had appeared as his son, the Lord had become limited. The Lord is unlimitedly existing and all-pervading, inside and outside. Thus there is no question of His appearance or disappearance.





TEXTS 15–17



yatheme 'vikṛtā bhāvās

tathā te vikṛtaiḥ saha

nānā-vīryāḥ pṛthag-bhūtā

virājaṁ janayanti hi

sannipatya samutpādya



dṛśyante 'nugatā iva

prāg eva vidyamānatvān

na teṣām iha sambhavaḥ

evaṁ bhavān buddhy-anumeya-lakṣaṇair



grāhyair guṇaiḥ sann api tad-guṇāgrahaḥ

anāvṛtatvād bahir antaraṁ na te

sarvasya sarvātmana ātma-vastunaḥ

SYNONYMS



yathā-as; ime-these material creations, made of material energy; avikṛtāḥ-actually not disintegrated; bhāvāḥ-with such a conception; tathā-similarly; te-they; vikṛtaiḥ saha-association with these different elements coming from the total material energy; nānā-vīryāḥ-every element is full of different energies; pṛthak-separated; bhūtāḥ-becoming; virājam-the whole cosmic manifestation; janayanti-create; hi-indeed; sannipatya-because of association with the spiritual energy; samutpādya-after being created; dṛśyante-they appear; anugatāḥ-entered within it; iva-as if; prāk-from the very beginning, before the creation of this cosmic manifestation; eva-indeed; vidyamānatvāt-due to the existence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; na-not; teṣām-of these material elements; iha-in this matter of creation; sambhavaḥ-entering would have been possible; evam-in this way; bhavān-O my Lord; buddhi-anumeya-lakṣaṇaiḥ-by real intelligence and by such symptoms; grāhyaiḥ-with the objects of the senses; guṇaiḥ-with the modes of material nature; san api-although in touch; tat-guṇa-agrahaḥ-are not touched by the material qualities; anāvṛtatvāt-because of being situated everywhere; bahiḥ antaram-within the external and internal; na te-there is no such thing for You; sarvasya-of everything; sarva-ātmanaḥ-You are the root of everything; ātma-vastunaḥ-everything belongs to You, but You are outside and inside of everything.





The mahat-tattva, the total material energy, is undivided, but because of the material modes of nature, it appears to separate into earth, water, fire, air and ether. Because of the living energy [jīva-bhūta], these separated energies combine to make the cosmic manifestation visible, but in fact, before the creation of the cosmos, the total energy is already present. Therefore, the total material energy never actually enters the creation. Similarly, although You are perceived by our senses because of Your presence, You cannot be perceived by the senses, nor experienced by the mind or words [avāṅ-mānasa-gocara]. With our senses we can perceive some things, but not everything; for example, we can use our eyes to see, but not to taste. Consequently, You are beyond perception by the senses. Although in touch with the modes of material nature, You are unaffected by them. You are the prime factor in everything, the all-pervading, undivided Supersoul. For You, therefore, there is no external or internal. You never entered the womb of Devakī; rather, You existed there already.





This same understanding is explained by the Lord Himself in Bhagavad-gītā (9.4):



mayā tatam idaṁ sarvaṁ

jagad-avyakta-mūrtinā

mat-sthāni sarva-bhūtāni

na cāhaṁ teṣv avasthitaḥ





"By Me, in My unmanifested form, this entire universe is pervaded. All beings are in Me, but I am not in them."



The Supreme Personality of Godhead is not perceivable through the gross material senses. It is said that Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa's name, fame, pastimes, etc., cannot be understood by material senses. Only to one who is engaged in pure devotional service under proper guidance is He revealed. As stated in Brahma-saṁhitā (5.38):



premāñjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena

santaḥ sadaiva hṛdayeṣu vilokayanti





One can see the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Govinda, always, within oneself and outside oneself, if one has developed the transcendental loving attitude toward Him. Thus for people in general, He is not visible. In the above-mentioned verse from Bhagavad-gītā, therefore, it is said that although He is all-pervading, everywhere present, He is not conceivable by the material senses. But actually, although we cannot see Him, everything is resting in Him. As discussed in the Seventh Chapter of Bhagavad-gītā, the entire material cosmic manifestation is only a combination of His two different energies, the superior, spiritual energy and the inferior, material energy. Just as the sunshine is spread all over the universe, the energy of the Lord is spread all over the creation, and everything is resting in that energy.



Yet one should not conclude that because He is spread all over He has lost His personal existence. To refute such arguments, the Lord says, "I am everywhere, and everything is in Me, but still I am aloof." For example, a king heads a government which is but the manifestation of the king's energy; the different governmental departments are nothing but the energies of the king, and each department is resting on the king's power. But still one cannot expect the king to be present in every department personally. That is a crude example. Similarly, all the manifestations that we see, and everything that exists, both in this material world and in the spiritual world, are resting on the energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The creation takes place by the diffusion of His different energies, and, as stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, He is everywhere present by His personal representation, the diffusion of His different energies.



One may argue that the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who creates the whole cosmic manifestation simply by His glance, cannot come within the womb of Devakī, the wife of Vasudeva. To eradicate this argument, Vasudeva said, "My dear Lord, it is not very wonderful that You appeared within the womb of Devakī, for the creation was also made in that way. You were lying in the Causal Ocean as Mahā-Viṣṇu, and by Your breathing, innumerable universes came into existence. Then You entered into each of the universes as Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu. Then again You expanded Yourself as Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu and entered into the heart of all living entities and entered even within the atoms. Therefore Your entrance into the womb of Devakī is understandable in the same way. You appear to have entered, but You are simultaneously all-pervading. We can understand Your entrance and nonentrance from material examples. The total material energy remains intact even after being divided into sixteen elements. The material body is nothing but a combination of the five gross elements-namely earth, water, fire, air and ether. Whenever there is a material body, it appears that such elements are newly created, but actually the elements are always existing outside of the body. Similarly, although You appear as a child in the womb of Devakī, You are also existing outside. You are always in Your abode, but still You can simultaneously expand Yourself into millions of forms.



"One has to understand Your appearance with great intelligence because the material energy is also emanating from You. You are the original source of the material energy, just as the sun is the source of the sunshine. The sunshine cannot cover the sun globe, nor can the material energy-being an emanation from You-cover You. You appear to be in the three modes of material energy, but actually the three modes of material energy cannot cover You. This is understood by the highly intellectual philosophers. In other words, although You appear to be within the material energy, You are never covered by it."



We hear from the Vedic version that the Supreme Brahman exhibits His effulgence and therefore everything is illuminated. We can understand from Brahma-saṁhitā that the brahmajyoti, or the Brahman effulgence, emanates from the body of the Supreme Lord. And from the Brahman effulgence, all creation takes place. It is further stated in the Bhagavad-gītā that the Lord is the support of the Brahman effulgence. Originally He is the root cause of everything. But persons who are less intelligent think that when the Supreme Personality of Godhead comes within this material world, He accepts material qualities. Such conclusions are not mature, but are, made by the less intelligent.