The Supreme Destination (Mundaka Upaniṣad #16)
The Lord is a person, His form is fully transcendental, beyond the reach of the material senses or intelligence. We can conceive this unlimited, perfect form through the descriptions of the scriptures
One who follows the path of truth attains the Supreme destination. What is this Supreme destination? That's the Lord Himself, who is non-different from His abode.
The Lord is a person, and His form is fully transcendental, beyond the reach of the material senses or intelligence. We can first conceive this unlimited, perfect form through the descriptions of the scriptures, and later by direct perception using our spiritual senses, as our spiritual consciousness awakens.
Just as the Lord has a transcendental form, He has also transcendental activities. When we become situated in the transcendental platform, saturated with pure love, we can join these transcendental pastimes. Attaining this level of purity may appear inconceivable in our current state, but when the Lord is pleased by our service, we become endowed with all spiritual qualities. The Lord can take the soul out of material contamination and grant pure devotional service to anyone at any stage, but He does so only when one sincerely desires it. As long as this desire is not there, He respects the free will of the soul.
The Lord is the ultimate giver of all benedictions, therefore everyone should engage in devotional service, whether full of material desires, or completely free from them, desirous to be elevated to higher planets, attaining the impersonal brahmajyoti, or attaining the supreme goal of love of Godhead.
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Text 3.1.4
prāṇo hi eṣa yaḥ sarva-bhūtair vibhāti
vijānan vidvān bhava tenātivādī
ātma-krīḍa ātma-ratiḥ kriyāvān
eṣa brahma-vidām vairṣṭhaḥ
Indeed, the Lord is the Supreme life force behind everything. He shines in all beings and He is the shelter of all. One who realizes that, becomes absorbed in meditation into the Lord and enjoys the transcendental bliss of His association. He teaches others about devotional service and becomes dear to the Lord.
Commentary: When a devotee finally becomes Krsna conscious, as described in the previous verse, he becomes transcendental to the material duality, being elevated to the spiritual platform. This platform is described in the Bhagavad-gita (18.54) as the Brahma-bhuta stage: "One who is thus transcendentally situated at once realizes the Supreme Brahman and becomes fully joyful. He never laments or desires to have anything. He is equally disposed toward every living entity."
However, becoming transcendental does not mean he instantly drops dead. The results of our past actions are divided into two categories: prārabdha and aprārabdha. The aprārabdha karma exists in the form of seeds that are stored for the future, and don't give any results at the present. These seeds of reaction are quickly destroyed when one starts to practice devotional service, just like seeds sterilized by being fried in oil. The prārabdha karma, however, the karma that has already fructified and is giving fruits, continues operating and this maintains one's body. Due to this arrangement, a devotee continues living in this world until his body expires, even after attaining perfection. Why is that?
There are two reasons. The first is that pure devotional service is achieved after the stage of liberation. Although we practice devotional service starting from the first day, pure devotional service starts to be developed after the liberated platform. This means that even after becoming liberated, a devotee still needs time to perfect his devotional service. A second reason is that while perfecting their devotional service, these devotees can teach others.
Srila Madhvācārya interprets the word "prāṇaḥ" as the Lord being the source of power for all powerful beings (such as the demigods), and also as the realization of the devotee in not seeing himself as the cause of his activities, understanding that all activities are ultimately performed by the Lord through His different energies and that he is not an independent worker. Ranga Ramanuja adds that prāṇa indicates that the Lord is the shelter of all beings. The word vibhāti indicates that the Lord shines in all beings as Paramatma, the source of their energy.
When a devotee understands this, he becomes an ativādī. This word has two meanings. Madhvācārya explains "ativadi" as a negative, indicating that one no longer says "I'm the doer". Instead, he starts seeing everything in connection with the Lord and becomes thus absorbed in meditation of Him (ātma-krīḍa ātma-ratiḥ). When he is not absorbed in trance, he becomes active in serving the Lord and teaching others about Him (kriyāvān), helping other seekers to attain the same stage. These activities are the basis for the system of Parampara that Krsna describes in the third chapter of the Bhagavad-gita. One may not be perfect when he receives transcendental knowledge from his spiritual master, but by practicing and teaching this knowledge without change in the essence, he gradually realizes it and is gradually elevated to the highest platform. His students, who may not be perfect at the beginning, gradually progress, and later on also become perfect, teaching their own students, and thus maintaining the chain generation after generation.
Ranga Ramanuja adds another meaning to the word ativadi, interpreting it as one who speaks of the supremacy of the Lord, and who is thus worshipable by all. Such a person associates with the Lord and finds transcendental bliss in this association (ātma-krīḍa ātma-ratiḥ). In this way, he becomes the knower of the Lord (brahma-vidām).
In the Bhagavad-gita (7.3) Krsna says "Out of many thousands among men, one may endeavor for perfection, and of those who have achieved perfection, hardly one knows Me in truth." By spreading the glories of the Lord, he becomes the rare transcendentalist who attains this platform. As He also explains in the Gita (18.68-69): "For one who explains this supreme secret to the devotees, pure devotional service is guaranteed, and at the end he will come back to Me. There is no servant in this world more dear to Me than he, nor will there ever be one more dear."
Text 3.1.5
satyena labhyas tapasā hy eṣa ātmā
samyag jñānena brahmacaryeṇa nityam
antaḥśarīre jyotir mayo hi śubhro
yam paśyanti yatayaḥ kṣīṇa-doṣāḥ
This Supreme Self is attainable through the practice of truth, austerity, perfect knowledge, and constant discipline. Within the body, pure and luminous, the Lord is seen by the ascetics whose impurities have been destroyed.
Commentary: The soul is eternally connected with Krsna. He is not just the origin and the maintainer, but also the closest friend. If one has to go to jail, probably none of his friends will offer to go with Him, but Krsna does. Even if one goes to the body of a hog due to his impious actions, Krsna is still there together with him as Paramatma, life after life. Not only the soul is eternally connected with Krsna, but Krsna is always with us. Since there is nothing apart from Krsna, it is not possible to be separated from Him at any stage. Just like the sun shines everywhere, Krsna is also everywhere. The problem is not that Krsna is not present, but that we are turning our backs on Him. As long as we show our back to a person, seeing him or her is impossible. To see we need to first turn in the other direction.
What exactly does "turn or back to Krsna" mean? It means to accept the covering of the false ego, seeing ourselves as enjoyers of this material world. As long as we live under this conception, we remain covered by material illusion and it is impossible to see Krsna, just like a person locked in a room without windows can't see the sun.
What exactly does it mean to be covered by the material illusion and what is the cause of it? Krsna explains it in the second verse of the catur-sloki in the Srimad Bhagavatam:
ṛte ’rtham yat pratīyeta, na pratīyeta cātmani
tad vidyād ātmano māyām, yathābhāso yathā tamaḥ
"O Brahmā, whatever appears to be of any value, if it is without relation to Me, has no reality. Know it as My illusory energy, that reflection which appears to be in darkness." (SB 2.9.34)
Maya means "what is not". Everything that exists is Krsna, and Maya means to see things as separate from Him. The material manifestation is made from one of Krsna's potencies and is in essence spiritual. However, when we see it as separated from Krsna, it becomes material. Reality becomes thus covered by our own faulty consciousness. Everything that is seen as separated from Krsna is Maya, and everything that is seen as connected with Krsna and used in His service manifests in its true spiritual nature.
As Srila Prabhupada explains in his purport:
"Misconceiving one thing for another thing is called illusion. For example, accepting a rope as a snake is illusion, but the rope is not false. The rope, as it exists in the front of the illusioned person, is not at all false, but the acceptance is illusory. Therefore the wrong conception of accepting this material manifestation as being divorced from the energy of the Lord is illusion, but it is not false. And this illusory conception is called the reflection of the reality in the darkness of ignorance. Anything that appears as apparently not being “produced out of My energy” is called māyā. The conception that the living entity is formless or that the Supreme Lord is formless is also illusion."
Krsna is called "the absolute truth" because there is nothing separate from Him. Anything that exists, at any stage, be it at the creation, maintenance, or destruction of the cosmos, exists in relation to the Lord. Krsna has two energies, yoga-māyā and mahā-māyā. When we see things in the proper perspective, as being connected to the Lord, we act under yoga-māyā, the energy of union. On the other hand, when we try to separate things from the Lord we act under mahā-māyā, material illusion.
Both yoga-māyā and mahā-māyā are energies of the Lord. The difference is that yoga-māyā assists the souls who are connected with the Lord in loving service, while mahā-māyā controls the souls who want to forget Him. Both light and darkness are effects of the sun. Light is the direct effect of the sun, and darkness appears when the light of the sun is absent. Darkness is thus relative to the sun, just like light. Everything is part of the Lord. Things appear to be separated or independent from the Lord only under the influence of mahā-māyā, the Lord's illusory energy.
One may see the light of the sun reflected on a mirror inside a dark room and think that it is separated from the sun, but this is just an illusion. The reflection can't exist separately from the sun, and it appears to be valuable only as long as one is unaware of the sun shining outside. Similarly, the light of the brahmajyoti, the effulgence of Krsna's body is reflected in this world as the light of the sun, fire, electricity, and ultimately as everything attractive. Nothing of it is false, but to see it as separated from Krsna is illusion.
Maya can't cover the Lord, but it can cover the individual soul who desires to forget the Lord. The souls who are thus covered can't see the Lord, or they may think that the Lord is also covered by Maya, but the ones who are liberated, free from the grip of Maya, can see that He is beyond the material covering. Maya is thus a cover that can block the light of the sun only for the people who are under it.
To think there is no God is Maya, to think we are independent from Him is also Maya. To think we are God is Maya, and to think we are not eternally connected with the Lord is Maya. These are all false concepts that are the fruit of a lack of knowledge.
The soul is eternally part and parcel of Krsna, and can't be factually separated from Him. However, under the influence of illusion, we think we are separated from Him, or that we are independent from Him, or that we were never connected with Him. Similarly, we see this material world as separated from Him, a place that exists for our enjoyment. To see things in the proper perspective, that I am an eternal servant of Krsna, and that everything should be used in His service means to gradually reconnect with yoga-māyā, His internal potency, gradually uncovering our eternal nature.
As the verse explains, by following the proper spiritual process and cultivating perfect spiritual knowledge, received through the disciplic succession, we become gradually purified and can eventually directly see the Lord. All spiritual realization manifests automatically as we develop our devotion.
Text 3.1.6
satyam eva jayate nānṛtam
satyena panthā vitato devayānaḥ
yenākramanty ṛṣayo hy āptakāmāḥ
yatra tat satyasya paramam nidhānam
Truth is always victorious. It always prevails over untruth. By practicing the truth one takes the ascending path called devayāna, by which great sages who have exhausted all their material pursuits attain the Supreme destination.
Commentary: Ordinarily, the truth means the opposite of a lie. However, truth in the material world is relative. I may say that I'm the father of such and such, but for how long will I be his father? The statement may sound true now, but it was not true in the past, and it will not be true in the future after I take a new birth. It is thus just a relative truth.
In the Bhagavad-gita (2.16) Krsna defines sat (truth, existing) as everything that is spiritual and eternal, and asat (untruth, non-existing) as everything that is material and thus temporary (nāsato vidyate bhāvo nābhāvo vidyate sataḥ). In his commentary, Srila Madhvācārya deepens our understanding by explaining that Lord Vishnu is called satya because he possesses all auspicious (sat) qualities, and similarly, a devotee who is intensely dedicated to Him is also called satya. On the other hand, asuras are called asatyas because they possess the opposite qualities. This is confirmed in the first verse of the Srimad Bhagavatam: satyam param dhīmahi (I meditate upon Him, for He is the Absolute Truth.)
The Lord is the absolute truth because He is supreme and eternal. Different from the relative truths of this material world, which are true only for a limited period of time, the Lord is always true. The Lord is satya, His pure devotees are satya, the spiritual world is satya and the path to Him is also called satya. The truth mentioned in this verse is the ultimate truth of our eternal relationship with the Lord, and not just some relative temporary truth of this material world.
Truth is always positive and should be practiced at all levels, starting from the ordinary principle of not telling lies. However, we should gradually attain the Absolute truth, speaking about the Lord, meditating on the Lord, working for the Lord, and ultimately reaching the Lord. Surrender and devotional service to the Lord is kalyāṇa, the utmost auspicious activity, and as Krsna promises in the Gita (6.40), one who is engaged in this truth never faces degradation.
This is confirmed by Srila Prabhupada in his purport to SB 6.1.19: "Elsewhere in the Gītā (6.40) the Lord says, na hi kalyāṇa-kṛt kaścid durgatim tāta gacchati: "one who performs auspicious activity is never overcome by evil."
The highest kalyāṇa (auspicious) activity is to surrender to Kṛṣṇa. That is the only path by which to save oneself from falling down into hellish life."
Text 3.1.7
bṛhac ca tad divyam acintya-rūpam
sūkṣmāc ca tat sūkṣmataram vibhāti
dūrāt sudūre tad ihāntike ca
paśyatsv ihaiva nihitam guhāyām
That Supreme Lord shines as great, divine, and inconceivable. He is subtler than the subtle, fully transcendental. He is very far, but at the same time very near. The self-realized transcendentalist can see Him inside the cave of the heart.
Commentary: The previous verse described that the ones who follow the path of truth, the path of devotional service, attain the Supreme destination. This verse describes the nature of this Supreme destination as the Lord Himself.
The verse clearly indicates that the Lord has a personal form (acintya-rūpam), although this form is transcendental, and thus not understandable by material intelligence. We can first conceive the transcendental form of the Lord from the descriptions of the scripture and later by direct realization, as our spiritual consciousness awakens.
Mayavadis accept the idea that Brahman has no material form and that he can't be conceived by using the mind or intellect. However, because of their dogma of Brahman being formless, they fail to understand that the Lord has a spiritual form that is fully transcendental and inconceivable, subtler than any material element or manifestation. In his commentary on this verse, Sankaracarya emphasizes the other words of the verse, mentioning that Brahman is self-luminous and inconceivable to the senses, unthinkable, subletter than the subtlest, unapproachable to the ignorant, etc. but avoids the obvious reference to a personal form given in the verse. Just as in other passages, he gives an interpretation that is not incorrect but that hides the real meaning of the verse. His followers then further interpret his commentary, concluding that Brahman is formless, qualities, etc., and assumes a form only under the influence of illusion, and thus further contradict the verse, which mentions "acintya-rūpam" (the Lord has an inconceivable, spiritual form), and not maya-rupan (an illusory form, made of maya). This is exposed on Bg 9.11, where the Lord mentions:
avajānanti mām mūḍhā, mānuṣīm tanum āśritam
param bhāvam ajānanto, mama bhūta-maheśvaram
"Fools deride Me when I descend in the human form. They do not know My transcendental nature as the Supreme Lord of all that be."
In this verse, the Lord directly defines his form as transcendental (param bhāvam) and defines the attempt to qualify His form as material, manifested from the material modes as ajānantaḥ, the fruit of lack of spiritual knowledge. He then further emphasizes this point by referring to the persons who try to do so as "mūḍhāḥ", foolish men.
Sankaracarya is not to blame because he just fulfilled his mission of explaining Vedic philosophy in a way that was attractive to the people of the time, rescuing them from atheism. His followers, however, failed to understand the real purpose of his teachings, becoming instead Mayavadis, the most blasphemous philosophy.
The Mayavada interpretation is further contradicted in the verse by the words "dūrāt sudūre" (very far, but at the same time very near) and "paśyatsv ihaiva nihitam guhāyām" (He can be seen inside the heart by the self-realized). The Lord is present in His eternal abode, beyond the coverings of the universe and the causal ocean, but at the same time He is present inside the heart, and can be directly seen by the self-realized transcendentalist. In this way, the verse makes clear that the Lord has a form (rūpam), He is present in His eternal abode (su-dūre) and at the same time inside the heart (antike). Not only that, but He can be seen by the self-realized transcendentalist.
Srila Prabhupada further explains these concepts in his commentary on verse five of Sri Isopanisad:
"Here is a description of some of the Supreme Lord's transcendental activities, executed by His inconceivable potencies. The contradictions given here prove the inconceivable potencies of the Lord. "He walks, and He does not walk." Ordinarily, if someone can walk, it is illogical to say he cannot walk. But in reference to God, such a contradiction simply serves to indicate His inconceivable power. With our limited fund of knowledge we cannot accommodate such contradictions, and therefore we conceive of the Lord in terms of our limited powers of understanding. For example, the impersonalist philosophers of the Māyāvāda school accept only the Lord's impersonal activities and reject His personal feature. But the members of the Bhāgavata school, adopting the perfect conception of the Lord, accept His inconceivable potencies and thus understand that He is both personal and impersonal. The bhāgavatas know that without inconceivable potencies there can be no meaning to the words "Supreme Lord."
We should not take it for granted that because we cannot see God with our eyes the Lord has no personal existence. Śrī Īśopaniṣad refutes this argument by declaring that the Lord is far away but very near also. The abode of the Lord is beyond the material sky, and we have no means to measure even this material sky. If the material sky extends so far, then what to speak of the spiritual sky, which is altogether beyond it? That the spiritual sky is situated far, far away from the material universe is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā (15.6). But despite the Lord's being so far away, He can at once, within less than a second, descend before us with a speed swifter than that of the mind or wind. He can also run so swiftly that no one can surpass Him. This has already been described in the previous verse."
Although the Lord's form is inconceivable (acintya), still He can be seen and served even by the neophyte in the form of the deity. This is just another display of His inconceivable spiritual potency. Although His form is transcendental, He can also appear in a form made of material elements to accept the service of His devotees who are living in the material world. This is possible because the so-called material elements are made from his spiritual energy (daivī hy eṣā guṇa-mayī). They appear to be material because, under the influence of illusion, the conditioned souls see them as objects of sense enjoyment. The Lord, however, can easily convert the material into spiritual, just like an electrician can produce both heat and cold out of the same electrical current.
Prabhupada comments on this point in the same purport:
"In our present state of imperfect material existence, we cannot see the Supreme Lord due to imperfect vision. Yet those devotees who want to see Him by means of material vision are favored by the Lord, who appears in a so-called material form to accept His devotees' service. One should not think that such devotees, who are in the lowest stage of devotional service, are worshiping an idol. They are factually worshiping the Lord, who has agreed to appear before them in an approachable way. Nor is the arcā form fashioned according to the whims of the worshiper. This form is eternally existent with all paraphernalia. This can be actually felt by a sincere devotee, but not by an atheist. In the Bhagavad-gītā (4.11) the Lord says that how He treats His devotee depends on the devotee's degree of surrender. The Lord reserves the right not to reveal Himself to anyone and everyone but to show Himself only to those souls who surrender unto Him. Thus for the surrendered soul He is always within reach, whereas for the unsurrendered soul He is far, far away and cannot be approached."