Srimad Bhagavatam – 11.10.21 | HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj | ISKCON Chennai | April 9, 2021
Om Namo Bhagavate Vāsudevāya
Om Namo Bhagavate Vāsudevāya
Om Namo Bhagavate Vāsudevāya
nama om vishnu-padaya krishna-preshthaya bhu-tale
srimate bhaktivedanta-svamin iti namine
namas te sarasvate deve gaura-vani-pracharine
nirvishesha-shunyavadi-pashchatya-desha-tarine
Jaya Śrī-Kṛṣṇa-Caitanya Prabhu Nityānanda
Śrī-Advaita Gadādhara Śrīvāsādi-Gaura-Bhakta-Vṛnda
Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare,
Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.
Reading from Srimad Bhagavatham Chapter 11, Chapter 10, Verse 21.
SB_11.10.21
śrutaṁ ca dṛṣṭa-vad duṣṭaṁ
spardhāsūyātyaya-vyayaiḥ
bahv-antarāya-kāmatvāt
kṛṣi-vac cāpi niṣphalam
Translation:
Material happiness of which we hear, such as promotion to heavenly planets for celestial enjoyment, is just like that material happiness we have already experienced. Both are polluted by jealousy, envy, decay, and death.
Therefore, just as an attempt to raise crops becomes fruitless, there are many problems like crop disease, insect plague, or drought. Similarly, the attempt to attain material happiness either on earth or on heavenly planets is always fruitless because of innumerable obstacles.
Purport:
Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura comments as follows on this verse. “Ordinarily, if there is no specific impediment, agricultural endeavors will yield their fruits. If, however, there is a defect in the seed, or if the soil is too salty or barren, or if there is drought, plague, excessive rain or heat out of season, or if there are disturbances caused by animals, birds or insects, then agricultural activities will not yield the desired harvest. Similarly, those who are expert in analyzing the material world see that the heavenly situations offered in the Vedas are not basically different from life on the earth. By the interaction of conditioned souls there will inevitably be jealousy as one becomes distinguished as superior and another as inferior. By the power of time these positions are reversed, and therefore violence and intrigue disturb life even on the heavenly planets. In fact, the attempt to promote oneself to the heavenly planets is itself full of problems and disturbances. One should therefore understand that the kingdom of God, Vaikuṇṭha, is transcendental to the limitations and disturbances imposed by the laws of material nature in this world. If one wrongly concludes that such imperfections are also present in the kingdom of God, then one will be polluted by material contamination.”
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj:
So, the statement here is that material happiness is imperfect because all sorts of elements like jealousy or envy or death arise. This, of course, was already explained in the previous verses. There is no perfection in this material world.
So, an example is given. We raise crops to grow things. If the conditions are right, then we get some good results. But if the conditions are not right, in terms of water, sunlight, soil, etc., then we don’t get a good crop. So, we must be very expert as a gardener or a farmer in order to get a good crop. But even the most expert farmer sometimes gets no result. Unpredictably, a big storm may come along and ruin everything. It may get some disease in the crops. Elephants may come and destroy everything. There may be no water for months on end. So, even the most expert farmer can have problems. So, the material world is like that. If you are an expert, then you can get the minimum of problems. But still, the unexpected problems will still arise. And if you are less intelligent and skillful, then you get more problems. So, some people may be satisfied with getting the least amount of problems, even if there is problems, and just accept that.
However, as the scriptures point out, we should strive for a perfect situation. And the point is made here that whatever we think is perfect the material world is also making the same as other situation in the material world. So, for us, we may think Swarga is better. Perhaps in swarga we may think, Brahma Loka is better. If one gets to Brahma Loka and one is intelligent, then one understands even Brahma Loka is not perfect therefore, I should go to the spiritual world.
So, the spiritual world is often called Vaikuntha. Another word used is Paravyoma, which literally means the supreme sky. And of course, Vaikuntha means no restrictions. Vaikuntha does not have the problems mentioned in this verse such as jealousy, envy, decay and death. Vaikuntha does not have the Gunas. The Gunas, of course, mean qualities. They also mean ropes, so they are restrictions. The Gunas limit us in various ways. So the material world is full of limitations. And ultimately, we are limited by a material body. So, in the spiritual world, we don’t have any of these limitations. There are no Gunas. We don’t have birth, death, old age and disease. We don’t have a limited material body. We don’t experience hatred, jealousy, envy, anger, etc. So, in this way, there is no limitation there.
However, some people will say, if you go to Vaikuntha, then you get a spiritual body. Body is a limitation. We have no limitation. We should have no form. Having a particular form means we have a limitation. So, for a human form, then that human form will have eyes and feet and legs. And it has a limitation of certain size. And, of course, people will say this, if that supreme entity is there, He is called Vibhu, He is all-pervading. So, he should have no form, no limitation. So, therefore many people prefer impersonal form. No birth, no death, no old age, no disease, no jealousy, no anger, no karma, no Gunas and no restriction on form.
However, though people may protest in this way, we can also answer by saying, a body does not necessarily mean a limitation. We see the Supreme Lord can take a form like Krishna, who may be four feet tall or whatever, but simultaneously He is infinite. When Mother Yasoda looked in Krishna’s mouth, she saw the universe. But she was holding Krishna in her arms. So, she was holding the whole universe in her arms. But simultaneously she looked around and the universe was around her. So, Krishna, of course, had that limited form who was in Yasoda’s arms. Simultaneously, he was bigger than the whole universe.
So, therefore, the form of the Lord is not a limitation. But these forms manifest the pleasure of the devotee. And with these particular forms of Krishna and His devotees, there are various pastimes. If the devotee and the Lord didn’t have any form, they couldn’t do any activities. If they didn’t have any activities, they couldn’t establish any rasa. If there’s no rasa, there would be no bliss. So, therefore, the form of the Lord and the form of the devotee are necessary for that experience of bliss in the world.
So, of course, some will argue, no, the impersonal also is bliss. I find many statements in Upanishads which say that Brahman is Vijnana and Ananda. So, that means, you can protest and say, well, that means that Brahman has qualities. So, then they’ll have to say, well, no, that doesn’t refer to qualities. It just refers to the fact that the Lord is free of ignorance. He is free of karma. In other words, those words of knowledge and bliss signify absence of anything material. So, does the Brahman experience bliss? How does it experience bliss? If its experience is bliss, we can say that Brahman is blissful. So, therefore, Brahman has experience and Brahman has qualities. But the impersonalists says, no, Brahman doesn’t have any qualities. Therefore, when the words Ananda and Vijnana etc., are used in relation to Brahman, it does not mean any quality or any action or any experience.
However, we will find other shrutis that will talk about the Lord having bliss and the Lord having rasa. And we have the whole Bhagavatam explaining how Krishna has a form, Krishna has qualities and Krishna has everything. So, Krishna is also called Parabrahman. And, of course, He is also called Parabrahman with Nara-akruti, with human form. So, He is a Brahman, but He also has a form. And not only a form, a small form like a human. But, as I said at the same time, He is bigger than the universe. We see that Mahavishnu can emanate all the universes and all the universes like little atoms stuck in the pores of his body, they are so small. Ultimately, we cannot measure the size of the Supreme Lord. But at the same time, He has a human form.
So, therefore, form and qualities and activities in the spiritual world are not a limitation. In the material world, yes, they are a limitation. But in the spiritual world, the same rule does not apply. And the reason is that all these things manifest, not because of karma and material energy, but as a facility for expanding the rasa in the spiritual world. So, therefore, form, qualities and activities do not necessarily mean limitation. So, therefore, when we use the word Vaikuntha, we should understand that it is full of wonderful varieties of forms, qualities and activities but not like material form, qualities and activities with limitation. So, in this way, we should not apply material concepts on the spiritual world or the supreme Lord. So, of course, the opposite of this is the material world. It is full of limitations. You cannot do whatever you want. If you want something, you have to work to get it. But then you may not get it.
In the spiritual world, everybody has this quality called Sathya Sankalpa. So, whatever they desire manifests. So, if Krishna simply thinks, there are some demons coming, the cowherd boy should be protected, then it happens. And Krishna doesn’t even have to think about it. How am I going to save the cowherd boy? The Shakti of the Lord will arrange everything. So, when Yashoda saw the universe in Krishna’s mouth, Krishna didn’t have to think anything. His Aishwarya Shakti simply manifested the whole universe. And if Krishna wants a demon to die, then the Samharsa Shakti, the Shakti of destruction, operates and the demon dies. So, the Lord and the devotees in the spiritual world, they don’t have to put forth effort, but all their desires are fulfilled.
In the material world, that is not so. When we desire something, we don’t necessarily get it. And to obtain the object, we have to put some effort. So, this is a restriction. So, the whole world is full of restriction because of the nature of matter. Material world acts according to certain principles. And we cannot contradict those principles. So, every object has a weight. So, because we have a weight and we have a particular body, we cannot float in the air. Krishna, on the other hand, He can be lighter than the lightest or heavier than the heaviest. When Krishna was carried away by Trinavarta, then He decided well, I have to come down from this high height. So, He got very heavy. And suddenly, Trainavarta had a big weight around his neck. And Krishna would not let go of his neck. So, then Trinavarta fell to the earth and was killed. So, we cannot act like that, because we have limitation of body which is material. To maintain the body, then we have to eat, breathe, take water, etc. We are not independent. We are dependent on so many things in this world. And in the spiritual world, it is described, no hunger, no thirst, etc. We don’t have to maintain the spiritual body by food and water, etc.
So, the whole material world is full of limitations. And the spiritual world is free of limitations. But because the material world has forms, etc., it doesn’t mean that the form is the cause of the limitation. In the Spiritual world, we have form but they are not limited. This is how the devotee should think of the spiritual world beyond all limits. This is the real freedom for the Jiva.
Hare Krsna !
Q&A
1.) Please enlighten me regarding Krishna’s Acinthya Bedha tattva towards jiva. Why Kirishna having these kind of tattva instead of revealing Himself, why does he have to make it inconceivable? Please explain the Achintya Beda abeda Tattva. Krishna, why does he have to have Achintya Veda Veda Tattva? Why shouldn’t he reveal it directly? In other words, why is he making it inconceivable for a Jiva which is limited?
We can say that because the Jiva is limited in one sense, because he is anu, therefore he cannot have the same knowledge as Krishna. The material point of view, it is inconceivable. Oneness and duality are opposite. So, if we have one black cat and two black cats, it is different. We cannot say that one cat is equal to two cats. To say it is actually true, it is inconceivable. We cannot think of how it is possible.
But of course in the spiritual world, everybody accepts that one can also be dual or it can be many. So Krishna is one. He can also be many. He expanded Himself with all the cowherd boys. He was millions of forms and He was still one form. From the spiritual point of view, it is not impossible, because Krishna has the power to do so many things. But it is not subject to material logic.
2.) Are there any permanent residence in Heavenly planets? As most of the living beings go there by punya and when they exhaust their punya, they return back. Here mostly one gets enjoyment. Question is what about birth, death, disease, old age in heavenly planets? Are they predestined? Are there any permanent residents in heavenly planets?
Well it depends on which heavenly planet? If you are on Brahma loka obviously you will live longer than people on Swarga loka, but still obviously even Brahma loka has an end. Swarga Loka has an end. So the Lord, He lives in Swarga Loka and other planets. Of course He is eternal.
3.) Do we understand that demons exist in the spiritual world for the sake of pastime only?
Technically a demon cannot exist in the spiritual world because there are no material bodies or tamo guna etc. So any demon that exists there is an imitation.
4.) In spiritual world, can there be many forms like Radharani, Krishna or other same forms and gopa forms?
In one sense, when Krishna expands in the material world and He appears in a universe, then simultaneously He is on another universe another universe, another universe, another universe…. but in all these universes all His associates also expand so therefore there is Rasa Lila in one universe, another universe, another universes.. in that way we can say there are many expansions of the associates of the Lord also.
5.) Maharaj mentioned about the spiritual body doesn’t have hunger, thirst etc., Then how does it work in the case of few devotees, Nithya Siddhas who come here for a mission?
Usually they come with the Supreme Lord. So all the cowherd boys and all the Gopis, they have spiritual bodies. We have persons like Narada Muni. So they have eternal spiritual bodies and they may appear for pastime.
6.) Maharaj mentioned in Vaikuntha does not have any negative qualities, anger, things like that. However, in the case of Jaya Vijaya, there appears to be some anger. Even in the case of Durvasa, he was angry but still he entered the spiritual world, Maharaj. How to appreciate that?
Jaya, Vijaya are eternal associates of the Lord and whatever anger they display is an arrangement of the Supreme Lord for His pastime. Just as a Pariksit who got angry at the Brahmana because he wouldn’t welcome him, so he put a snake around his neck. These are not faults of the devotee, they are arrangements of the devotee.
So Durvasa is not a pure devotee. So he could approach the Lord temporarily and that was the Vaikuntha within the material world he went there for pastime. But he couldn’t stay there.
7.) In the spiritual world, do they eat or sleep? Is it only for the sake of pastime?
Yes.
8.) Maharaj, you mentioned that spiritual form does not have any limitation. However, in the case of Lord Caitanya, when he wanted to distribute the fruit of Krishna Prem, he said, I am very limited, I cannot distribute much. How to properly understand that?
That’s just a statement of humility.
Thank you Maharaj.
Devotees: Grantharaj Srimad Bhagavatham Ki Jai!!! HH Bhani Swami Maharaj Ki Jai!!! HDG A.C. Bhakti Vedanta Swami Srila Prabhuapd Ki Jai!!