What does the Puruṣa-sūkta mean?

In the Ṛg Veda, we find the famous Puruṣa-sūkta prayers. These prayers are also mentioned in the Srimad Bhagavatam, in a chapter called "Puruṣa-sūkta confirmed". What are these prayers about?

In the Ṛg Veda, we find the famous Puruṣa-sūkta prayers. These prayers are also mentioned in the Srimad Bhagavatam, in a chapter called "Puruṣa-sūkta confirmed". What are these prayers about?

Being present inside each universe as Gabodakasayi Vishnu and Ksirodakasayi Vishnu, the Lord is the foundation upon which the whole material creation rests. Everything is created and maintained by His energy. The Lord is thus called the virat-purusha, the enjoyer of the cosmic manifestation, since everything is generated from His energy, and ultimately everything exists to satisfy Him. Because the universal form, or virat-rupa, is described as a form of the Lord, the terms virat-rupa and virat-purusha are used more or less interchangeably.

Lord Brahma meditated in the universal form, the virat-rupa, to remember how to create the universe. There are two processes of creation: the primary creation, performed by Lord Maha-Vishnu, and the secondary creation, performed by Lord Brahma. The universal form exists even before the creation of the universe as part of the primary creation, a concept or model that guides the creation of Brahma. By meditating in this form, Brahma obtained all the necessary knowledge to recreate the universe the way it was before.

In the 2nd canto of Srimad Bhagavatam, Lord Brahma describes the universal form, the virat-rupa or virat-purusa, he saw in his meditation, from which he created the universe. This 6th chapter is called "Puruṣa-sūkta confirmed" because the description of Lord Brahma is similar to the description offered in the Puruṣa-sūkta of the Rg Veda, corroborating it.

We can see that although both the 1st and the 6th chapters describe the universal form, the 1st chapter describes the universal form the yogis meditate upon, while the 6th chapter describes the universal form Brahma saw in his meditation, which served as a blueprint for the creation of the universe. At the end of the 5th chapter, he describes that the virāṭ-rūpa has thousands of legs, arms, mouths, heads, etc.

The brāhmaṇas represent His mouth, the kṣatriyas His arms, the vaiśyas His thighs, and the śūdras his legs. The lower planetary systems are situated in His legs, the middle planetary systems in His navel, the higher planetary systems in his chest, and Satyaloka in His head. The mouth of the virāṭ-puruṣa is the generating center of the voice. His skin and six other layers of his body are the generating centers of the Vedic mantras, and His tongue produces all the different types of food that can be eaten and offered in sacrifice. His nostrils are the center of breathing. His acts of smelling generate the Aśvinī-kumāra demigods (the celestial physicians) as well as all kinds of medicinal herbs, and His breathing produces different kinds of fragrances.

His eyes are like the sun and are the generating centers of all kinds of forms and sources of light. His ears hear from all sides and are receptacles for all the Vedas. His sense of hearing is the source of all kinds of sound. The surface of His body is the origin of all auspicious opportunities. His skin is the generating center for the sense of touch and is the place for performing all kinds of sacrifices. The hairs on His body are the cause of all vegetation, the hairs on His head and face are reservoirs for the clouds, and His nails are the breeding ground of electricity, stones, and metals. The Lord’s arms are the source of the great demigods and leaders who protect the general mass of people.

In this way, this description by Lord Brahma helps us to realize how the Lord is the origin of all our powers and abilities, and that therefore they should be used in His service. Food doesn't exist just as a form of sense gratification but has the purpose of being offered in sacrifice and nourishing our bodies so we can serve the Lord and perform our duties, and so on.

All our abilities originate from and depend on the Lord, helping us to see it from the proper perspective. One can only see because of the Lord, one can cure a disease using some herb or other medicine thanks to the Lord, and so on.

The description continues by mentioning that the genitals of the virat-purusha are the origin of liquids and functions of procreation, including water, semen, progeny, rains, and the prajapatis, who populate the universe. They are also the source of sexual pleasure, which can in this way also be seen in connection with the Lord.

In his purport, Prabhupada makes a series of points about the place of sex life in Krsna Consciousness:

a) Sex life should not be encouraged more than necessary.

b) We should beget children with full responsibility for spiritual values.

c) We must adopt family planning with reference to the context of spiritual values, and not otherwise.

d) One should not beget more children than one can properly take care of, but family restriction by use of contraceptives is "the grossest type of material contamination". Instead, one should do family planning by controlling his sexual impulses.

Envy, misfortune, death, and hell also come from the virat-purusa, but from a less prominent part of his body, the rectum. Similarly, frustration, ignorance, and immorality come from the back of the Lord. On the other hand, religious principles, truth, and transcendental knowledge come from the consciousness of the Lord. From His veins flow the great rivers and rivulets, and on His bones are stacked the great mountains.

The belly of the Lord is the resting place for the materially annihilated living entities. This is connected with the cycles of creation and destruction of the universe. At the end of each day of Brahma (4.32 billion years), there is a partial devastation of the universe, and at the end of his life (311.04 trillion years), there is a complete annihilation. The night of Brahma lasts for the same 4.32 billion years as his day, and after his death, there is a period of 311.04 trillion years before a new cycle of creation. During both periods, the souls rest in the belly of Lord Maha-Vishnu, waiting for the opportunity to become active again in their material activities. They are called "materially annihilated" because, in reality, only their bodies are destroyed.

When the universe is destroyed, the subtle bodies of the living entities, including all their material desires, karma, etc., are destroyed, and only the soul remains. All these impressions and desires of the living entities, as well as their respective karma, are stored in a subtle form in the heart of the Lord, who remembers everything and can thus recreate everything at the time of the next creation. The universal creation and especially the human form of life is an opportunity to re-attain our original position as servants of Krsna, and should thus not be wasted.

Everything that exists, starting from Brahma himself, down to the most insignificant living entity, as well as the planets, stars, asteroids, etc., is covered by this virat-rupa. It was like this in the past, and it will continue in the future. No one is separated or independent from the Lord. Everything is part of the universal form and rests on the potency of the Lord, but at the same time, he is aloof, just like the sun is aloof from its rays. This confirms the acintya-bedabheda-tattva philosophy of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. The Lord is also the biggest, but at the same time, He is the smallest, since He enters into everything as Paramatma. The Lord is thus the maintainer of everything.

All the material creation is described as being just one-fourth of the potency of the Lord, while the spiritual sky corresponds to the other three-quarters. Therefore, although the description of the virat-rupa is impressive, the real opulences of the Lord are beyond it, in the spiritual world. Our real existence, characterized by deathlessness, fearlessness, and freedom from the anxieties of old age and disease, exists in this transcendental world, beyond the coverings of the universe. These spiritual planets are meant for liberated souls, who transcend birth and death. On the contrary, the ones who still have material desires and are not ready to be reinstated in their original position as eternal servants of the Lord are forced to remain in this material world. Both ignorance and knowledge come from the Lord, and He gives one or the other to all living entities according to their desires and propensities. When a soul wants to forget Him and become a false enjoyer of this material world, He covers him with ignorance, and when one wants to return home, back to Godhead, the Lord gives him transcendental knowledge.