The Transcendental Loving Attitude
“By Me, in My un-manifested form,
this entire universe is pervaded.
All beings are in Me, but I am not in them.
And yet everything that is created does not rest in Me.
Behold My mystic opulence!
Although I am the maintainer of all living entities and
although I am everywhere,
I am not a part of this cosmic manifestation,
for My Self
is the very source of creation.
Understand that as the mighty wind,
blowing everywhere,
rests always in the sky,
all created beings rest in Me.”
From the Gita [Chap 9 verse 4 to 6]
Translated from the Sanskrit by
A.C. Bhakti-vedanta Swami (1896-1977).
The following purport of the above verses are
by A.C. Bhakti-vedanta Swami:
The Supreme Personality of Godhead is not perceivable
through the gross material senses. It is said, Lord Shree Krishna’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.
In the Brahma-samhitaa (5.38) it is stated,
prema-aïjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilo-chanena
santah sadaiva hrida-yeshu viloka-yanti …
one can see the Supreme Personality of Godhead,
Govinda, always within himself and outside himself if
one has developed the transcendental loving
attitude towards Him.
Thus for people in general He is not visible.
Here it is said that although He is all-pervading,
everywhere present, He is not conceivable by the material
senses. This is indicated here by the word avyakta-moortinaa.
But actually, although we cannot see Him, everything is resting
in Him. As we have discussed in the Seventh Chapter, 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 an argument
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 manifestationsthat 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-geetaa:
vishta-bhya-aham idam kritsnam
He is everywhere present by His personal representation,
the diffusion of His different energies.
The Lord says that everything is resting on Him (mat-sthaani
sarva-bhootaani). This should not be misunderstood. The Lord is not
directly concerned with the maintenance and sustenance of this
material manifestation.
Sometimes we see a picture of Atlas holding the globe on his
shoulders; he seems to be very tired, holding this great earthly
planet. Such an image should not be entertained in connection with
Krishna’s upholding this created universe. He says that although
everything is resting on Him, He is aloof. The planetary systems
are floating in space, and this space is the energy of the Supreme
Lord. But He is different from space. He is differently situated.
Therefore the Lord says, “Although they are situated on My
inconceivable energy, as the Supreme Personality of Godhead
I am aloof from them.” This is the inconceivable opulence of the Lord.
In the Nirukti Vedic dictionary it is said,
yuj-yate nena dur-ghate-shu kaarye-shu …
“The Supreme Lord is performing inconceivably wonderful
pastimes, displaying His energy.”
His person is full of different potent energies, and
His determination is itself actual fact.
In this way the Personality of Godhead is to be understood.
We may think of doing something, but there are so many
impediments, and sometimes it is not possible to do as we like.
But when Krishna wants to do something, simply by His willing,
everything is performed so perfectly that one cannot imagine
how it is being done. The Lord explains this fact: although He
is the maintainer and sustainer of the entire material manifestation,
He does not touch this material manifestation. Simply by His
supreme will, everything is created, everything is sustained,
everything is maintained, and everything is annihilated. There is
no difference between His mind and Himself (as there is a
difference between ourselves and our present material mind)
because He is absolute spirit. Simultaneously the Lord is present
in everything; yet the common man cannot understand how He
is also present personally. He is different from this material
manifestation, yet everything is resting on Him. This is explained
here as yogam aish-varam, the mystic power of the Supreme
Personality of Godhead.
For the ordinary person it is almost inconceivable how the
huge material creation is resting in Him. But the Lord is giving
an example which may help us to understand. The sky may be
the biggest manifestation we can conceive. And in that sky the
wind or air is the biggest manifestation in the cosmic world.
The movement of the air influences the movements of everything.
But although the wind is great, it is still situated within the sky;
the wind is not beyond the sky. Similarly, all the wonderful
cosmic manifestations are existing by the supreme will of God,
and all of them are subordinate to that supreme will. As we
generally say, not a blade of grass moves without the will of the
Supreme Personality of Godhead. Thus everything is moving
under His will: by His will everything is being created,
everything is being maintained, and everything is being
annihilated. Still He is aloof from everything, as the sky is
always aloof from the activities of the wind.
In the Upanishads it is stated, yad-bheeshaa vaatah pavate
“It is out of the fear of the Supreme Lord that the wind is blowing.”
(Taittireeya Upanishad 2.8.1)
In the Bhriad-aaran-yaka Upanishad (3.8.9) it is stated,
etasya vaa aksharasya prashaasane gaargi soorya-chandra-masau
vidhritau tishthata etasya vaa aksh-arasya prasha-asane gaargi
dyaav-aaphthivyau vidhri-tau tishtha-tah.
“By the supreme order, under the superintendence of the
Supreme Personality of Godhead, the moon, the sun, and the
other great planets are moving.”
In the Brahma-samhitaa (5.52) also it is stated,
yac-cakshur esha savitaa sakala-grahaaëaam
raajaa samasta-sura-moortir ashesha-tejaah
yasyaajïayaa bhramati sambhrita-kaala-cakro
govindam aadi-purusham tam aham bhajaami
This is a description of the movement of the sun. It is said
that the sun is considered to be one of the eyes of the
Supreme Lord and that it has immense potency to diffuse
heat and light. Still it is moving in its prescribed orbit by
the order and the supreme will of Govinda. So, from the
Vedic literature we can find evidence that this material
manifestation, which appears to us to be very wonderful
and great, is under the complete control of the Supreme
Personality of Godhead. This will be further explained in
the later verses of this chapter.
