Krishna’s explanations of the self, the world we live in, and the source of it all are the most sensible, complete and convincing we’ve ever heard. Don’t just take our word for it, though; judge for yourself:
TRANSLATION
Krishna’s explanations of the self, the world we live in, and the source of it all are the most sensible, complete and convincing we’ve ever heard. Don’t just take our word for it, though; judge for yourself:
TRANSLATION
The Supersoul is the original source of all senses, yet He is without senses. He is unattached, although He is the maintainer of all living beings. He transcends the modes of nature, and at the same time He is the master of all the modes of material nature.
PURPORT (excerpt):
The Supreme Lord, although the source of all the senses of the living entities, doesn’t have material senses like they have. Actually, the individual souls have spiritual senses, but in conditioned life they are covered with the material elements, and therefore the sense activities are exhibited through matter.
The Supreme Lord’s senses are not so covered. His senses are transcendental and are therefore called nirguna. Guna means the material modes, but His senses are without material covering. It should be understood that His senses are not exactly like ours. Although He is the source of all our sensory activities, He has His transcendental senses, which are uncontaminated.
This is very nicely explained in the Svetasvatara Upanishad (3.19) in the verse apani-pado javano grahita. The Supreme Personality of Godhead has no hands which are materially contaminated, but He has His hands and accepts whatever sacrifice is offered to Him. That is the distinction between the conditioned soul and the Supersoul.
He has no material eyes, but He has eyes–otherwise how could He see? He sees everything–past, present and future. He lives within the heart of the living being, and He knows what we have done in the past, what we are doing now, and what is awaiting us in the future. This is also confirmed in Bhagavad-gita: He knows everything, but no one knows Him.
It is said that the Supreme Lord has no legs like us, but He can travel throughout space because He has spiritual legs. In other words, the Lord is not impersonal; He has His eyes, legs, hands and everything else, and because we are part and parcel of the Supreme Lord we also have these things. But His hands, legs, eyes and senses are not contaminated by material nature.
- More about the Bhagavad-gita As It Is
- Download the Bhagavad-gita As It Is audiobook now!
- About the author
- Want daily doses of practical spiritual wisdom in your e-mailbox? Consider joining one of our many eBook clubs
