Bhagavad-gita
Chapter 4 TEXT 7
yadā yadā hi dharmasya
glānir bhavati bhārata
abhyutthānam adharmasya
tadātmānaṁ sṛjāmy aham
SYNONYMS
yadā—whenever; yadā—wherever; hi—certainly; dharmasya—of religion; glāniḥ—discrepancies; bhavati—manifested, becomes; bhārata—O descendant of Bharata; abhyutthānam—predominance; adharmasya—of irreligion; tadā—at that time; ātmānam—self; sṛjāmi—manifest; aham—I.
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The Lord descends whenever there is a decline in religious principles.
TRANSLATION
Whenever and wherever there is a decline in religious practice, O descendant of Bharata, and a predominant rise of irreligion—at that time I descend Myself.
PURPORT
The word sṛjāmi is significant herein. Sṛjāmi cannot be used in the sense of creation, because, according to the previous verse, there is no creation of the Lord's form or body, since all of the forms are eternally existent. Therefore sṛjāmi means that the Lord manifests Himself as He is. Although the Lord appears on schedule, namely at the end of Dvāpara-yuga of the twenty-eighth millennium of the eighth Manu, in one day of Brahmā, still He has no obligation to adhere to such rules and regulations because He is completely free to act in many ways at His will. He therefore appears by His own will whenever there is a predominance of irreligiosity and a disappearance of true religion. Principles of religion are laid down in the Vedas, and any discrepancy in the matter of properly executing the rules of the Vedas makes one irreligious. In the Bhāgavatam it is stated that such principles are the laws of the Lord. Only the Lord can manufacture a system of religion. The Vedas are also accepted as originally spoken by the Lord Himself to Brahmā, from within his heart. Therefore, the principles of dharma, or religion, are the direct orders of the Supreme Personality of Godhead (dharmaṁ tu sākṣāt-bhagavat-praṇītam). These principles are clearly indicated throughout the Bhagavad-gītā. The purpose of the Vedas is to establish such principles under the order of the Supreme Lord, and the Lord directly orders, at the end of the Gītā, that the highest principle of religion is to surrender unto Him only, and nothing more. The Vedic principles push one towards complete surrender unto Him; and, whenever such principles are disturbed by the demonic, the Lord appears. From the Bhāgavatam we understand that Lord Buddha is the incarnation of Kṛṣṇa who appeared when materialism was rampant and materialists were using the pretext of the authority of the Vedas. Although there are certain restrictive rules and regulations regarding animal sacrifice for particular purposes in the Vedas, people of demonic tendency still took to animal sacrifice without reference to the Vedic principles. Lord Buddha appeared to stop this nonsense and to establish the Vedic principles of nonviolence. Therefore each and every avatāra, or incarnation of the Lord, has a particular mission, and they are all described in the revealed scriptures. No one should be accepted as an avatāra unless he is referred to by scriptures. It is not a fact that the Lord appears only on Indian soil. He can advent Himself anywhere and everywhere, and whenever He desires to appear. In each and every incarnation, He speaks as much about religion as can be understood by the particular people under their particular circumstances. But the mission is the same—to lead people to God consciousness and obedience to the principles of religion. Sometimes He descends personally, and sometimes He sends His bona fide representative in the form of His son, or servant, or Himself in some disguised form.
The principles of the Bhagavad-gītā were spoken to Arjuna, and, for that matter, to other highly elevated persons, because he was highly advanced compared to ordinary persons in other parts of the world. Two plus two equals four is a mathematical principle that is true both in the beginner's arithmetic class and in the advanced class as well. Still, there are higher and lower mathematics. In all incarnations of the Lord, therefore, the same principles are taught, but they appear to be higher and lower in varied circumstances. The higher principles of religion begin with the acceptance of the four orders and the four statuses of social life, as will be explained later. The whole purpose of the mission of incarnations is to arouse Kṛṣṇa consciousness everywhere. Such consciousness is manifest and nonmanifest only under different circumstances.
Srimad-bagavatam
10.2 TEXT 20
tāṁ vīkṣya kaṁsaḥ prabhayājitāntarāṁ
virocayantīṁ bhavanaṁ śuci-smitām
āhaiṣa me prāṇa-haro harir guhāṁ
dhruvaṁ śrito yan na pureyam īdṛśī
SYNONYMS
tām—her (Devakī); vīkṣya—after seeing; kaṁsaḥ—her brother Kaṁsa; prabhayā—with the enhancement of her beauty and influence; ajita-antarām—because of keeping Ajita, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu, within herself; virocayantīm—illuminating; bhavanam—the whole atmosphere of the house; śuci-smitām—smiling and brilliant; āha—said to himself; eṣaḥ—this (Supreme Person); me—my; prāṇa-haraḥ—who will kill me; hariḥ—Lord Viṣṇu; guhām—within the womb of Devakī; dhruvam—certainly; śritaḥ—has taken shelter; yat—because; na—was not; purā—formerly; iyam—Devakī; īdṛśī—like this.
TRANSLATION
Because the Supreme Personality of Godhead was within her womb, Devakī illuminated the entire atmosphere in the place where she was confined. Seeing her jubilant, pure and smiling, Kaṁsa thought, “The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu, who is now within her, will kill me. Devakī has never before looked so brilliant and jubilant.”
PURPORT
The Lord says in Bhagavad-gītā (4.7):
yadā yadā hi dharmasya
glānir bhavati bhārata
abhyutthānam adharmasya
tadātmānaṁ sṛjāmy aham
“Whenever and wherever there is a decline in religious practice, O descendant of Bharata, and a predominant rise of irreligion—at that time I descend Myself.” In this age, at the present moment, there are inordinate discrepancies in the discharge of human duties. Human life is meant for God realization, but unfortunately the materialistic civilization is stressing only the senses of the body, not understanding the living force within the body. As clearly stated in Bhagavad-gītā (dehino ’smin yathā dehe [Bg. 2.13]), within the body is the body’s proprietor, the living force, which is more important. But human society has become so fallen that instead of understanding the living force within the body, people have become busy with external things. This is a discrepancy in human duties. Therefore Kṛṣṇa has taken birth or taken shelter within the womb of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Men of Kaṁsa’s class, therefore, are very much afraid and are busy trying to stop this movement, especially in the Western countries. One politician has remarked that the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is spreading like an epidemic and that if not checked immediately, within ten years it may capture governmental power. There is, of course, such potency in the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. As stated by authorities (Cc. Ādi 17.22), kali-kāle nāma-rūpe kṛṣṇa-avatāra: in this age, Kṛṣṇa has appeared in the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is spreading like wildfire all over the world, and it will go on doing so. Men who are like Kaṁsa are very much afraid of the movement’s progress and acceptance by the younger generation, but as Kṛṣṇa could not be killed by Kaṁsa, this movement cannot be checked by men of Kaṁsa’s class. The movement will go on increasing more and more, provided the leaders of the movement remain firmly Kṛṣṇa conscious by following the regulative principles and the primary activities of chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra regularly.
Srimad-bagavatam
10.3 TEXT 22
ayaṁ tv asabhyas tava janma nau gṛhe
śrutvāgrajāṁs te nyavadhīt sureśvara
sa te ’vatāraṁ puruṣaiḥ samarpitaṁ
śrutvādhunaivābhisaraty udāyudhaḥ
SYNONYMS
ayam—this (rascal); tu—but; asabhyaḥ—who is not civilized at all (asura means “uncivilized,” and sura means “civilized”); tava—of Your Lordship; janma—the birth; nau—our; gṛhe—into the home; śrutvā—after hearing; agrajān te—all the brothers born before You; nyavadhīt—killed; sura-īśvara—O Lord of the suras, the civilized persons; saḥ—he (that uncivilized Kaṁsa); te—Your; avatāram—appearance; puruṣaiḥ—by his lieutenants; samarpitam—being informed of; śrutvā—after hearing; adhunā—now; eva—indeed; abhisarati—will come immediately; udāyudhaḥ—with raised weapons.
TRANSLATION
O my Lord, Lord of the demigods, after hearing the prophecy that You would take birth in our home and kill him, this uncivilized Kaṁsa killed so many of Your elder brothers. As soon as he hears from his lieutenants that You have appeared, he will immediately come with weapons to kill You.
PURPORT
Kaṁsa has here been described as asabhya, meaning “uncivilized” or “most heinous,” because he killed the many children of his sister. When he heard the prophecy that he would be killed by her eighth son, this uncivilized man, Kaṁsa, was immediately ready to kill his innocent sister on the occasion of her marriage. An uncivilized man can do anything for the satisfaction of his senses. He can kill children, he can kill cows, he can kill brāhmaṇas, he can kill old men; he has no mercy for anyone. According to the Vedic civilization, cows, women, children, old men and brāhmaṇas should be excused if they are at fault. But asuras, uncivilized men, do not care about that. At the present moment, the killing of cows and the killing of children is going on unrestrictedly, and therefore this civilization is not at all human, and those who are conducting this condemned civilization are uncivilized asuras.
Such uncivilized men are not in favor of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. As public officers, they declare without hesitation that the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa movement is a nuisance, although Bhagavad-gītā clearly says, satataṁ kīrtayanto māṁ yatantaś ca dṛḍha-vratāḥ [Bg. 9.14]. According to this verse, it is the duty of the mahātmās to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra and try to spread it all over the world to the best of their ability. Unfortunately, society is in such an uncivilized state that there are so-called mahātmās who are prepared to kill cows and children and stop the Hare Kṛṣṇa movement. Such uncivilized activities were actually demonstrated in opposition to the Hare Kṛṣṇa movement’s Bombay center, Hare Kṛṣṇa Land. As Kaṁsa was not expected to kill the beautiful child of Devakī and Vasudeva, the uncivilized society, although unhappy about the advancement of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, cannot be expected to stop it. Yet we must face many difficulties in many different ways. Although Kṛṣṇa cannot be killed, Vasudeva, as the father of Kṛṣṇa, was trembling because in affection he thought that Kaṁsa would immediately come and kill his son. Similarly, although the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement and Kṛṣṇa are not different and no asuras can check it, we are afraid that at any moment the asuras can stop this movement in any part of the world.
Srimad-bhagavatam
10.4 TEXT 41
viprā gāvaś ca vedāś ca
tapaḥ satyaṁ damaḥ śamaḥ
śraddhā dayā titikṣā ca
kratavaś ca hares tanūḥ
SYNONYMS
viprāḥ—the brāhmaṇas; gāvaḥ ca—and the cows; vedāḥ ca—and the Vedic knowledge; tapaḥ—austerity; satyam—truthfulness; damaḥ—control of the senses; śamaḥ—control of the mind; śraddhā—faith; dayā—mercy; titikṣā—tolerance; ca—also; kratavaḥ ca—as well as sacrifices; hareḥ tanūḥ—are the different parts of the body of Lord Viṣṇu.
TRANSLATION
The brāhmaṇas, the cows, Vedic knowledge, austerity, truthfulness, control of the mind and senses, faith, mercy, tolerance and sacrifice are the different parts of the body of Lord Viṣṇu, and they are the paraphernalia for a godly civilization.
PURPORT
When we offer our obeisances to the Personality of Godhead, we say:
namo brahmaṇya-devāya
go-brāhmaṇa-hitāya ca
jagad-dhitāya kṛṣṇāya
govindāya namo namaḥ
When Kṛṣṇa comes to establish real perfection in the social order, He personally gives protection to the cows and the brāhmaṇas (go-brāhmaṇa-hitāya ca). This is His first interest because without protection of the brāhmaṇas and the cows, there can be no human civilization and no question of happy, peaceful life. Asuras, therefore, are always interested in killing the brāhmaṇas and cows. Especially in this age, Kali-yuga, cows are being killed all over the world, and as soon as there is a movement to establish brahminical civilization, people in general rebel. Thus they regard the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement as a form of “brainwashing.” How can such envious persons be happy in their godless civilization? The Supreme Personality of Godhead punishes them by keeping them in darkness, birth after birth, and pushing them lower and lower into wretched conditions of hellish life. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement has started a brahminical civilization, but especially when it is introduced in the Western countries, the asuras try to impede it in many ways. Nonetheless, we must push forward this movement tolerantly for the benefit of human society.
Teachings of Lord Caitanya Chapter 7 excerpt
Lord Caitanya also informs Sanātana Gosvāmī that there are different forms of svāṁśa as well, and these are divided into the Saṅkarṣaṇa division and the incarnation division. From the first division come the three puruṣa-avatāras-the Kāraṇodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu and Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu-and from the other division come the līlā-avatāras, such as the Lord's incarnations as a fish, tortoise, etc.
There are six kinds of incarnations: (1) the puruṣa-avatāra, (2) the līlā-avatāra, (3) the guṇa-avatāra, (4) the manvantara-avatāra, (5) the yuga-avatāra, and (6) the śaktyāveśa-avatāra. Out of the six vilāsa manifestations of Kṛṣṇa, there are two divisions based on His age, and these are called bālya and paugaṇḍa. As the son of Nanda Mahārāja, Kṛṣṇa in His original form enjoys both of these childhood aspects-namely bālya and paugaṇḍa.
It is thus safe to conclude that there is no end to the expansions and incarnations of Kṛṣṇa. Lord Caitanya explains some of them to Sanātana just to give him an idea of how the Lord expands and enjoys. These conclusions are also confirmed in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.3.26). There it is said that there is no limit to the incarnations of the Supreme Lord, just as there is no limit to the waves of the ocean.
Kṛṣṇa first incarnates as the three puruṣa-avatāras, namely the Mahā-Viṣṇu or Kāraṇodakaśāyī avatāra, the Garbhodakaśāyī avatāra and the Kṣīrodakaśāyī avatāra. This is confirmed in the Sātvata-tantra. Kṛṣṇa's energies can also be divided into three: His energy of thinking feeling and acting. When He exhibits His thinking energy, He is the Supreme Lord; when He exhibits His feeling energy, He is Lord Vāsudeva; when He exhibits His acting energy, He is Saṅkarṣaṇa Balarāma. Without His thinking, feeling and acting, there would be no possibility of creation. Although there is no creation in the spiritual world-for there the planets are beginningless-there is creation in the material world. In either case, however, both the spiritual and material worlds are manifestations of the energy of acting, in which Kṛṣṇa acts in the form of Saṅkarṣaṇa and Balarāma.
The spiritual world of the Vaikuṇṭha planets and Kṛṣṇaloka, the supreme planet, is situated in His energy of thinking. Although there is no creation in the spiritual world, which is eternal, it is still to be understood that the Vaikuṇṭha planets depend on the thinking energy of the Supreme Lord. This thinking energy is described in Brahma-saṁhitā (5.2), where it is said that the supreme abode, known as Goloka, is manifested like a lotus flower with hundreds of petals. Everything there is manifested by Ananta, the Balarāma or Saṅkarṣaṇa form. The material cosmic manifestation and its different universes are manifest through māyā, or material energy. However, one should not think that material nature or material energy is the cause of this cosmic manifestation. Rather, it is caused by the Supreme Lord, who uses His different expansions through material nature. In other words, there is no possibility of any creation without the superintendence of the Supreme Lord. The form by which the energy of material nature works to bring about creation is called the Saṅkarṣaṇa form, and it is understood that this cosmic manifestation is created under the superintendence of the Supreme Lord.
In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.46.31) it is said that Balarāma and Kṛṣṇa are the origin of all living entities and that these two personalities enter into everything. A list of incarnations is given in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.3), and they are as follows: (1) Kumāras, (2) Nārada, (3) Varāha, (4) Matsya, (5) Yajña, (6) Nara-nārāyaṇa, (7) Kārdami Kapila, (8) Dattātreya, (9) Hayaśīrṣa, (10) Haṁsa, (1 1) Dhruvapriya or Pṛśnigarbha, (12) Ṛṣabha, (13) Pṛthu, (14) Nṛsiṁha, (15) Kūrma, (16) Dhanvantari, (17) Mohinī, (18) Vāmana, (19) Bhārgava (Paraśurāma), (20) Rāghavendra, (21) Vyāsa, (22) Pralambāri Balarāma, (23) Kṛṣṇa, (24) Buddha (25) Kalki. Because almost all of these twenty-five līlā-avatāras appear in one day of Brahmā, which is called a kalpa, they are sometimes called kalpa-avatāras. Out of these, the incarnation of Haṁsa and Mohinī are not permanent, but Kapila, Dattātreya, Ṛṣabha, Dhanvantari and Vyāsa are five eternal forms, and they are more celebrated. The incarnations of the tortoise Kūrma, the fish Matsya, Nara-nārāyaṇa, Varāha, Hayaśīrṣa, Pṛśnigarbha, and Balarāma are considered to be incarnations of vaibhava. Similarly, there are three guṇa-avatāras, or incarnations of the qualitative modes of nature, and these are Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Śiva.
Of the manvantara-avatāras, there are fourteen: (1) Yajña, (2) Vibhu, (3) Satyasena, (4) Hari, (5) Vaikuṇṭha, (6) Ajita, (7) Vāmana, (8) Sārvabhauma, (9) Ṛṣabha, (10) Viṣvaksena, (11) Dharmasetu, (12) Sudhāmā, (13) Yogeśvara, (14) Bṛhadbhānu. Out of these fourteen manvantara-avatāras, Yajña and Vāmana are also līlā-avatāras, and the rest are manvantara-avatāras. These fourteen manvantara-avatāras are also known as vaibhava-avatāras.
The four yuga-avatāras are also described in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. In the Satya-yuga, the incarnation of God is white; in the Tretā-yuga He is red; in the Dvāpara-yuga, He is blackish; and in the Kali-yuga He is also blackish, but sometimes, in a special Kali-yuga, His color is yellowish (as in the case of Caitanya Mahāprabhu). As far as the śaktyāveśa-avatāras are concerned, they include Kapila and Ṛṣabha, Ananta, Brahmā (sometimes the Lord Himself becomes Brahmā), Catuḥsana (the incarnation of knowledge), Nārada (the incarnation of devotional service), King Pṛthu (the incarnation of administrative power), and Paraśurāma (the incarnation who subdues evil principles).
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