Section 24
The qualities of the Lord are intrinsic in His nature

          To conclude that all qualities belong to the essential nature of the Lord, to the end of this Sandarbha the internal energy is described again. The prayers of the Personified Vedas explain that the qualities of the Lord are inherent in the svarupa of the Lord (S. B. 10.87.38):

          The material nature attracts the minute living entity to embrace her, and as a result he assumes forms composed of her qualities. Subsequently, he loses all his spiritual qualities and must undergo repeated deaths. You, however, avoid the material energy in the same way that a snake abandons its old skin. Glorious is Your possession of eight mystic perfections, You enjoy unlimited opulences.

          Çrédhara Swämé comments: Because of the influence of Mäyä, the living entity embraces ignorance ajämasuçayéta. Then enjoying the body and senses, he identifies with  them. Thereafter acquiring material qualities his real qualities such as bliss becoming covered, he falls into the cycle of birth and death. But You reject Mäyä.

          The Lord says : How can I reject her, who is situated in Me?

          Answer: Just as a snake sheds its skin.

          The sense is this. Just as the snake does not value its skin much although the skin is part of its body, You regard Mäyä in a similar way. You are indifferent to Mäyä, just as the owner of eternally  blissful, transcendental kämadhenus (wish-fulfilling cows) is indifferent to an insignificant goat. Why is that? Because you are eternally associated with complete opulences. You have the supreme opulence of eight mystic potencies beginning with aëimä. How much opulence? Immeasurable. Your eight types of opulences are not limited by time and place, but they are immeasurable, being completely intrinsic to Yourself. This much is his comment.

          A similar statement was made earlier in the same chapter (S.B.10.87.14), "You contain all opulence in Your personality."

          Or the meaning of tvaka in ahiriva tvacam is the old rejected skin. As the snake never contacts the rejected covering, You never associate with Mäyä. Elsewhere it is stated (S.B. 10.37.22.):

          You are full of pure and perfect spiritual awareness and are always situated in Your original identity. Since Your will is never thwarted, you have already achieved all possible desirable things.

 Similarly Lord Kåñëa informs Uddhava (S.B.11.15.3):

          The masters of the yoga system have declared that there are eighteen types of mystic perfection and meditation, of which eight are primary, having their shelter in Me, and ten are secondary, appearing from the material mode of goodness.

 And later on (S.B.11.15.5):

  My dear gentle Uddhava, these eight mystic perfections are considered to be naturally existing in Me and unexcelled within this world.

 

          Therefore Prahläda Mahäräja said to the sons of the demons (S.B.7.6.23.):

          Lord, the Supreme controller who is the personification of His own bliss appears as devoid of opulence because He is covered with the veil of external energy in the form of material modes.

 

          Çrédhara Svämé comments: A doubt is raised. If only the Supreme exists everywhere, then the qualities like omniscience should be available everywhere. The verse answers: His opulence gets concealed by Mäyä, who manifests the creation consisting of the three modes. This is his comment. In this verse by describing that the Lord's opulence is concealed by Mäyä and by qualifying mäyä with guëa-sarga or creation through the modes, it is revealed that His opulence like His varüpa is transcendental to mäyä. Therefore it should be understood that the adjective parameçvaram, or the Supreme Controller was given along with antarhitaiçvarya.

          The Vedas confirm this (Svet. Up. 4.5.), "There is a red, black, and white she-goat that produces off-spring all of the same nature as herself. There is a ram (jéva) that is captivated and enjoys her, but there is another ram (Paramätmä) who abandons this enjoyed she-goat."

          The manifestation of the Lord's energies is according to the Lord's own nature. What is His nature? He has the nature of knowledge, control and energy. As is stated in the Çvetäçvatara Upaniñad (1.3), "The divine power concealed by His own qualities." Here svaguëaiù, or by His own qualities, means by His own nature as the Viñëu Puräëa states (l.19.76), "Which is beyond speech." In this context one should also study the sixth part of the Viñëu Puräëa  such as (6.5.59), "That which is full of spiritual bliss." along with the comments of Çrédhara Svämé.

 

PURPORT

          The philosophy of the Bhägavatam establishes one Absolute Truth without any peer.  The natural questions that follow are why is there empirical duality and what is the nature of this Absolute Truth that is one without a second?  This is a difficult subject to understand and even more difficult to explain. The different schools of philosophies propagate different doctrines attempting to accommodate empirical duality into the transcendent  Absolute.  Mainly they can be divided in two groups--the impersonalists and the personalists. The first group believes that Absolute Reality is undifferentiated all pervading and impersonal. This mainly includes the Advaitavädis, the followers of Çaìkaräcärya, the Çabda Brahmavädis, the followers of Bhartåhari and the Pratyabhijïavädis of Kashmir.

          The second group that includes the Vaisëavas, who mainly adhere to five philosophies 1.) Viçiñtadvaita-väda of Çré Rämänujäcärya; 2.) Dvaitaväda of Çré Madhväcarya; 3.) Svabhävika Bhedäbehda of Çré Nimbärkäcärya;  4.) Suddhädvaita of Çré Vallabhäcärya; and 5.)Acintya bhedä bheda of Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu. They all accept that Absolute is a person possessing energies which are real. There are subtle nuances of difference how these energies are related to the Supreme Person. These are explained in Sarva-saàvädiné. The main opponents are the impersonalists and among them also the advaitavädis are the leaders. If they are defeated then the other two are naturally defeated. So Çréla Jéva Gosvämé throughout his work tries to refute to their theories which are antagonistic to the personality of the Lord. 

          The followers of Çaìkara hold that the material would is not real in the ultimate sense.  It is like a dream--it appears real as long as one is asleep, but has no factual existence--when one wakes up it is finished.  The only reality is Brahman, which, by definition is an amorphous, non-variegated reality, but it appears as many because of Mäyä.  They have different theories regarding Mäyä and how she manifests this material world. Their explanations are certainy not accepted by the Çrémad Bhägavatam.  This was shown in great detail in the Tattva Sandarbha.

          According to Çréla Jiva Gosvämé the Bhägavatam philosophy propounds the doctrine of acintya bhedä-abhedä.  The Supreme Lord has energies and these energies are simultaneously one and different from Him.  This is inconceivable.  Such inconceivability does not mean it is implausible.  After all, logically, the Absolute Truth has to have such inconceivable features, because it is that plane of existence where all contradictions are reconciled.  Here oneness and difference must co-exist. 

          According to the norms of the widely accepted science of quantum mechanics, we have the at hand an example of such inconceivable but real event in the sub-atomic world.  Here the same phenomenon--the sub-atomic particle--is simultaneously a point and a wave.  This is inconcievable to all logic and defies all explanation other than to state the plain fact.  Hence the concept of simultaneous oneness and difference between the Lord and His energies is not that far-fetched though it may be inexplicable in terms of our mundane experience.

          Since the material world is functioning systematically it must have one underlying Supreme Person.  A multiplicity of Supreme Persons would more likely produce chaos rather than systematic order. This Supreme Person is Bhagavän. He is both the material and efficient cause of the material creation.

          The last few anucchedas has shown how He is the only cause and controller.  All activities originate in Him and the material world is not independent of Him.  He is the fountainhead of all energies, which naturally and eternally exist in Him.  Mäyä is His eternal, natural potency.  She is not a product of someone's dream or imagination.  She is His external potency, however, because He does not use her for His sports. 

          This in turn proves that the internal energy is certainly part of His nature.  His various qualities, all aspects of His internal energy, are therefore natural.  This is the subject of anucchedas 24 to 28.  Çréla Jiva Gosvämé cites from of the prayers of the personified Vedas, which glorify the Personality of Godhead (S.B. 10.87.38).  This verse lucidly describes the Lord, His relation with the internal and external energies, and the conditioning of the living entities.

          First it explains that the living entity is conditioned because its association with the material energy.  He is conscious and blissful by nature, but acquires a lower nature owing to absorption in the material body and senses.  Thus, although knowledgeable and eternal, he gets deluded and experiences death owing to material association.  This implies that he should abandon the wrong association and take good association.  Cäëakya Paëòita advises, tyaja durjana saàsargam bhaja sädhu samägamam, that we should give up bad association and associate with saintly people.  In this verse the word anuçayéta is translated as "to embrace".  It means to be bound by the false designation (upadhi) of Mäyä.

          The question comes, why is the Lord not conditioned by Mäyä?  The verse explains that the Lord abandons her.  This means He does not associate with or try to enjoy her.  She cannot, therefore, have any influence on Him.  A further doubt is raised.  How can the Lord abandon Mäyä, who is His potency?  The verse states that it is like the skin of a snake.  When the snake's skin is old it slackens and only sticks loosely to the snake's body.  At that point, the skin is part of the snake's body and yet not part of its body.  The old skin originated from the snake and is supported by it, yet it feels no loss when it is finally shed.  Similarly, Mäyä is neither independent of the Lord nor part of His internal nature.

          Just as clouds cannot cover the Sun, Mäyä cannot cover the Lord.  Clouds can only cover the vision of the living entity.  The inferior nature of Mäyä does not reflect onto the person of the Lord owing to His inconceivable power.  The meaning of the phrase "He abandons her" is that He does not sport with her and thus considers her insignificant.

          In this Bhagavatam verse (10.87.38) Mäyä is called ajä, because she is beginingless or unborn.  There is a pun, however, as ajä also means "goat".  Lord Kåñëa is a cowherd boy who tends millions of Kämadhenus--desire-fulfilling cows.  So what need is there for Him to keep an insignificant goat?  No need whatsoever! 

          The Kämadhenus are His Personal opulence and they are unlimited.  The verse mentions, añöaguëite'pari meyabhagaù, or eight types of opulences that have no limit.  In the Eleventh Canto of Çrémad Bhägavatam, the Lord explains eighteen types of perfections, eight of which belong predominately to Him (S.B. 11.15.3-8): 

"The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: The masters of the yoga system have declared that there are eighteen types of mystic perfection and meditation, of which eight are primary, having their shelter in Me, and ten are secondary, appearing from the material mode of goodness."

"Among the eight primary mystic perfections, the three by which one transforms one's own body are aëimä, becoming smaller than the smallest; mahimä, becoming greater than the greatest; and laghimä, becoming lighter than the lightest.  Through präpti one has the power of acquiring whatever one desires, and though präkämya-siddhi one can experience any enjoyable object, either in this world or the next.  Though éçitä-siddhi one can manipulate the subpotencies of mäya, and through vaçitä-siddhi one is unimpeded by the three modes of nature.  One who has kämävasyita-siddhi can obtain anything from anywhere to the highest possible limit.  My dear gentle Uddhava, these eight mystic perfections naturally exist in Me and are unexcelled."

          The natural fountainhead of all perfections and opulences is Lord Kåñëa.  The Lord makes this clear (S.B. 11.15.35):

"My dear Uddhava, I am the cause, the protector and the Lord of all mystic perfections, of the yoga system, of analytic knowledge, of pure activity and of the community of learned Vedic teachers."

          The Lord is full of bliss, knowledge, energy, and opulence so why is He not perceived by everyone in all times and places?  Because the jévas have embraced the inferior energy Mäyä.   Although the Lord is present everywhere He is not perceived through material senses (B.g. 7.25):

"I am never manifest to the foolish and unintelligent.  For them I am covered by My Yoga-mäyä, and therefore they do not know that I am unborn and infallible."

          Just as the Sun is always in the sky, but is not always visible, so the Lord is visible only when He manifests His pastimes in the universe at a specific time.  At other times He remains covered with a veil of mäyä, mäyä-javanikäcchanna (S.B. 1.8.19).  When He manifests His pastimes, not everyone can see Him as the Lord owing to the covering of mäyä, just as the sun cannot be seen when clouds cover our vision.  The veil of Mäyä is a manifestation of the three modes.  An inferior object is generally used to conceal a superior object. As cloth is used to hide a gem, or a box of iron used to secure money, similarly the Lord hides Himself with the veil of Mäyä.  This means He is superior to Mäyä, but His abode and attributes are of the same nature as Himself.

          In the fifth chapter of the sixth division of the Viñëu Puraëa Paräsära Muni gives a detailed description of the word Bhagavän.  Some of these verses were discussed in Section Three.  He says that the Lord has natural attributes and potencies which constitute His essential nature.  When bhagavän is used to refer to those other than the Lord, however, it does not carry its original meaning; it simply shows respect.

          The Svetäsvatara Upaniñad (4.5) explains that Mäyä consists of the three modes and that she overpowers the living entity who is attached and wants to enjoy her.  The Lord, who is aja (unborn), abandons this Mäyä called ajä.  This verse also indicates that the Lord, the material energy, and the living entity are eternal.  That the material energy creates progeny, means she supplies material bodies to the living entities and these bodies have the same material nature (svarupa).  The word prajäh (progeny) is in the plural case and indicates the many conditioned souls.  The Lord is only one aja, the other unborn, who takes no interest in Mäyä. Mäyä is also one, ajäm ekäm.

          The alternative explanation of the word mäyä described in this verse (10.37.38) is that she is like the shed skin of a snake. Snakes shed off their skin yearly. The shed skin has no utility for the snake. It belongs to the snake but it is not part of his body. It is his external energy. The shed skin is not false or illusory but it is not conscious like the snake body. This example explains the difference between internal energy and the external energy of the Lord. The qualities of internal enrgy are part of Lord's own svarüpa just as the qualities of the snake's body are part of snakes svarüpa.

          In the following Text Çréla Jéva Gosvämé gives many references from the scriptures which explai that the Lord's qualities are intrinsic to her nature. Impersoalist do not accept the Absolute nature of the Lord's qualities.