PRAKRTI, PURUSA AND THEIR UNION (13.20 – 13.26)

(a) This verse indicates the result of knowledge – Knowledge of truly understanding the relationship between soul and Supersoul

• Liberation and return to the spiritual world

(b) The purpose of knowledge – To understand how the living entity has fallen into this material world in a precarious condition

(c) Understand your position

• Understand by personal endeavor in association with guru, sadhu and sastra.
• Revert to Krishna consciousness by understanding Bhagavad-gita as it is explained by the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

(a) This verse indicates the result of knowledge – Knowledge of truly understanding the relationship between soul and Supersoul

• Liberation and return to the spiritual world

(b) The purpose of knowledge – To understand how the living entity has fallen into this material world in a precarious condition

(c) Understand your position

• Understand by personal endeavor in association with guru, sadhu and sastra.
• Revert to Krishna consciousness by understanding Bhagavad-gita as it is explained by the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

(a) Monist philosophers take knower of the body to be ‘one’ – They think there is no difference between the Supersoul and the individual soul
Refutation: The Lord says that “He is represented by the Paramatma in every body”

• He is mentioned as “para” which implies transcendental – He is different from the individual soul
• His name is Paramatma and not “atma”.
• Role of supersoul – Supersoul is present not as the finite enjoyer (like individual soul), but as the witness, overseer, permitter and Supreme enjoyer.
• All pervading – Supersoul has legs and hands everywhere.
• Maintainer – Supersoul is “bhokta” (maintainer) and individual soul is “bhukta” (maintained).
• Real friend – Supersoul stays with all living entities as a friend – Present to sanction individual soul’s desires.

(b) Relationship between living entity and Supersoul

• Living entity is eternally part and parcel of Supreme Personality of Godhead
      o Intimately related as friends
• Living entity is marginal entity – Because tendency to reject the Lord’s sanction and act independently to dominate
      o Cause of material strife in material nature – Misuse of independence
• Lord as the Supreme well-wisher
      o In conditioned state of living entity, Lord stays with the living entity to get him back
      o Lord is always instructing from within, trying to convince us that the material world is not conducive to happiness – “Give it up and turn your faith to Me”
      o Instructing from without as Bhagavad-gita

(c) How does an intelligent person act – Places his faith in the Paramatma and begins to advance to a blissful eternal life of knowledge.

(a) Monist philosophers take knower of the body to be ‘one’ – They think there is no difference between the Supersoul and the individual soul
Refutation: The Lord says that “He is represented by the Paramatma in every body”

• He is mentioned as “para” which implies transcendental – He is different from the individual soul
• His name is Paramatma and not “atma”.
• Role of supersoul – Supersoul is present not as the finite enjoyer (like individual soul), but as the witness, overseer, permitter and Supreme enjoyer.
• All pervading – Supersoul has legs and hands everywhere.
• Maintainer – Supersoul is “bhokta” (maintainer) and individual soul is “bhukta” (maintained).
• Real friend – Supersoul stays with all living entities as a friend – Present to sanction individual soul’s desires.

(b) Relationship between living entity and Supersoul

• Living entity is eternally part and parcel of Supreme Personality of Godhead
      o Intimately related as friends
• Living entity is marginal entity – Because tendency to reject the Lord’s sanction and act independently to dominate
      o Cause of material strife in material nature – Misuse of independence
• Lord as the Supreme well-wisher
      o In conditioned state of living entity, Lord stays with the living entity to get him back
      o Lord is always instructing from within, trying to convince us that the material world is not conducive to happiness – “Give it up and turn your faith to Me”
      o Instructing from without as Bhagavad-gita

(c) How does an intelligent person act – Places his faith in the Paramatma and begins to advance to a blissful eternal life of knowledge.

(a) This verse signifies “How a living entity transmigrates from one body to another”

• Transmigration is compared to a change of dress (Bg. 2.22)
• Change of dress is due to “attachment to material existence”
• Desire to lord over put him in undesirable circumstances – Sometimes born as demigod or human, or beast or bird or bug etc

(b) Binding factor to different bodies – Association with the three modes

• In all cases, one thinks himself to be the “Master of his circumstances”, yet he is under material nature.

(c) How Krishna consciousness helps – “Helps to rise above the three modes and be become transcendental”

(d) How this change can be effected – By “hearing from authoritative sources”

• Best example – Arjuna hearing science of God from Krishna.
• How hearing works – If living entity submits to hearing process he loses his long cherished desire to dominate, gradually and proportionately he comes to enjoy spiritual happiness.
• Ref. Vedic mantra – “As one becomes learned in association with Supreme Personality of Godhead, he proportionately relishes eternal blissful life”.

(a) This verse signifies “How a living entity transmigrates from one body to another”

• Transmigration is compared to a change of dress (Bg. 2.22)
• Change of dress is due to “attachment to material existence”
• Desire to lord over put him in undesirable circumstances – Sometimes born as demigod or human, or beast or bird or bug etc

(b) Binding factor to different bodies – Association with the three modes

• In all cases, one thinks himself to be the “Master of his circumstances”, yet he is under material nature.

(c) How Krishna consciousness helps – “Helps to rise above the three modes and be become transcendental”

(d) How this change can be effected – By “hearing from authoritative sources”

• Best example – Arjuna hearing science of God from Krishna.
• How hearing works – If living entity submits to hearing process he loses his long cherished desire to dominate, gradually and proportionately he comes to enjoy spiritual happiness.
• Ref. Vedic mantra – “As one becomes learned in association with Supreme Personality of Godhead, he proportionately relishes eternal blissful life”.

(a) Chapter 13 tells us about the body and differences between the two knowers of the body

• Body is the field and the embodied individual soul is enjoying the activities of the body and therefore called Purusha – living entity is in the category of Lord’s energy
• Supersoul is another knower of the body; in the category of the Lord’s personal expansion

(b) Mystery of material creation

• Similarity – Both living entity and material nature are eternal
  o Material nature is eternal, although specific manifestations of matter are temporary
  o Living entity is eternal because of being Lord’s superior energy
• Difference between material nature and living entity
  o Material nature has constant transformation, but nature of living entity is Nonchanging
• Material nature is absorbed in the Supreme Personality of Godhead, ‘Maha-Vishnu’ and whenever required, it is manifested through the mahat-tattva.
• The Living entity also gets absorbed in ‘Maha-Vishnu’ and with the coming of the material nature they are given a chance to prepare to go back to Godhead.

(c) Why the eternal living entity falls down to material world

• Due to rebellious nature.
• It really does not matter how we came in contact with matter.
• The Supreme Lord knows “how and why” this took place.

(d) What does the Lord focus on in the scriptures

• The living entity attracted by the material nature is undergoing a hard struggle for material existence.
• Know for certain that all “transformations” and “influences of material nature by the three modes” are productions of material nature.
• As far as spirit soul is concerned living entities are all the same and all transformations and varieties are due to the body.

(a) Chapter 13 tells us about the body and differences between the two knowers of the body

• Body is the field and the embodied individual soul is enjoying the activities of the body and therefore called Purusha – living entity is in the category of Lord’s energy
• Supersoul is another knower of the body; in the category of the Lord’s personal expansion

(b) Mystery of material creation

• Similarity – Both living entity and material nature are eternal
  o Material nature is eternal, although specific manifestations of matter are temporary
  o Living entity is eternal because of being Lord’s superior energy
• Difference between material nature and living entity
  o Material nature has constant transformation, but nature of living entity is Nonchanging
• Material nature is absorbed in the Supreme Personality of Godhead, ‘Maha-Vishnu’ and whenever required, it is manifested through the mahat-tattva.
• The Living entity also gets absorbed in ‘Maha-Vishnu’ and with the coming of the material nature they are given a chance to prepare to go back to Godhead.

(c) Why the eternal living entity falls down to material world

• Due to rebellious nature.
• It really does not matter how we came in contact with matter.
• The Supreme Lord knows “how and why” this took place.

(d) What does the Lord focus on in the scriptures

• The living entity attracted by the material nature is undergoing a hard struggle for material existence.
• Know for certain that all “transformations” and “influences of material nature by the three modes” are productions of material nature.
• As far as spirit soul is concerned living entities are all the same and all transformations and varieties are due to the body.