(a) What was revealed in Chapters (7 – 12) – Krishna reveals in detail the Absolute Truth as the Supreme Personality of Godhead
(b) How to understand this Chapter – Through the process of philosophical speculation
(c) Result of such learning
Freedom from material entanglement
One comes to an understanding of devotional service
(d) Why this knowledge is proclaimed superior to all – because
Understanding the conditioning of the three modes is a powerful tool to assist one on the path of self-realization
By this knowledge many sages attained perfection and transferred to spiritual world
One can attain a transcendental nature like Krishna and thus attains liberation
Whoever understands Chapter 14 will attain perfection
(e) “Attaining transcendental natural like My own” – implies
One acquires qualitative equality with the Supreme Personality of Godhead
Freedom from birth and death
One does not lose his identity as individual soul
Ref. Vedic literatures – Liberated souls in transcendental planets always look to the lotus feet of the Supreme Lord, being engaged in His loving service
(f) Transcendental knowledge defined
Knowledge which is not contaminated by the three modes of material nature
Knowledge of knowing oneself on the same platform (in quality) as the Supreme Person
Lack of this knowledge of spiritual sky – They think liberation means that spiritual identity becomes formless without variegatedness
Conceptions in real knowledge o Form – Spiritual world is also full of variety just like the material world. In spiritual sky one attains a spiritual form o Activity – Spiritual world is full of spiritual activities – situation is called devotional life o That atmosphere is uncontaminated
Qualification – To obtain such knowledge, one must develop all spiritual qualities
Benefit of such qualities – He is not affected by creation and destruction of material world
LINK BETWEEN TEXTS 14.2 & 14.3 : After glorifying the knowledge that He is about to reveal, Krishna begins to explain the relationship between material nature, the conditioned living entities and Himself.
Text 14.3-14.4
COMMON THEME :These verses explain how the soul comes into the material world and is placed within the modes of material nature
Material nature is the mother, supplying living-entity with the body (14.3)
The Lord puts him there by His potent glance and thus impregnates the material nature with the seed
Learnings from Purport 14.3 – 14.4
(a) Material nature is the mother, supplying living-entity with the body (14.3)
The total material substance, called Brahman is the source of birth
Lord impregnates that Brahman with living entities
(b) Analogy: Scorpion lays its eggs in rice, but the rice is not the cause of the scorpion
This refutes that material nature is the cause of the birth of living entities
Actual seed is given by the Supreme Lord himself
(c) Text 14.3 gives an explanation of the world as follows:
Everything that takes place is due to combination of ksetra (body) and ksetra-jna (spirit soul)
This combination of the living-entity is made possible by the Supreme God himself
(d) Mahat-tattva – It is the total cause of the total cosmic manifestation;
Total substance of the material cause, in which there are three modes of material nature, is sometimes called Brahman
Ref. Mundaka Upanisad
(e) ‘Mahad-Brahma’ – Great Brahman refers to the material nature
Constituted by 24 elements which constitute the inferior energy
This Living entity constitutes the superior energy
(f) Living entities are seen everywhere, on all the planets (14.4)
On earth, even within water and fire
Even on the highest planet, where Brahma is situated
(a) What was revealed in Chapters (7 – 12) – Krishna reveals in detail the Absolute Truth as the Supreme Personality of Godhead
(b) How to understand this Chapter – Through the process of philosophical speculation
(c) Result of such learning
Freedom from material entanglement
One comes to an understanding of devotional service
(d) Why this knowledge is proclaimed superior to all – because
Understanding the conditioning of the three modes is a powerful tool to assist one on the path of self-realization
By this knowledge many sages attained perfection and transferred to spiritual world
One can attain a transcendental nature like Krishna and thus attains liberation
Whoever understands Chapter 14 will attain perfection
(e) “Attaining transcendental natural like My own” – implies
One acquires qualitative equality with the Supreme Personality of Godhead
Freedom from birth and death
One does not lose his identity as individual soul
Ref. Vedic literatures – Liberated souls in transcendental planets always look to the lotus feet of the Supreme Lord, being engaged in His loving service
(f) Transcendental knowledge defined
Knowledge which is not contaminated by the three modes of material nature
Knowledge of knowing oneself on the same platform (in quality) as the Supreme Person
Lack of this knowledge of spiritual sky – They think liberation means that spiritual identity becomes formless without variegatedness
Conceptions in real knowledge o Form – Spiritual world is also full of variety just like the material world. In spiritual sky one attains a spiritual form o Activity – Spiritual world is full of spiritual activities – situation is called devotional life o That atmosphere is uncontaminated
Qualification – To obtain such knowledge, one must develop all spiritual qualities
Benefit of such qualities – He is not affected by creation and destruction of material world
LINK BETWEEN TEXTS 14.2 & 14.3 : After glorifying the knowledge that He is about to reveal, Krishna begins to explain the relationship between material nature, the conditioned living entities and Himself.
Text 14.3-14.4
COMMON THEME :These verses explain how the soul comes into the material world and is placed within the modes of material nature
Material nature is the mother, supplying living-entity with the body (14.3)
The Lord puts him there by His potent glance and thus impregnates the material nature with the seed
Learnings from Purport 14.3 – 14.4
(a) Material nature is the mother, supplying living-entity with the body (14.3)
The total material substance, called Brahman is the source of birth
Lord impregnates that Brahman with living entities
(b) Analogy: Scorpion lays its eggs in rice, but the rice is not the cause of the scorpion
This refutes that material nature is the cause of the birth of living entities
Actual seed is given by the Supreme Lord himself
(c) Text 14.3 gives an explanation of the world as follows:
Everything that takes place is due to combination of ksetra (body) and ksetra-jna (spirit soul)
This combination of the living-entity is made possible by the Supreme God himself
(d) Mahat-tattva – It is the total cause of the total cosmic manifestation;
Total substance of the material cause, in which there are three modes of material nature, is sometimes called Brahman
Ref. Mundaka Upanisad
(e) ‘Mahad-Brahma’ – Great Brahman refers to the material nature
Constituted by 24 elements which constitute the inferior energy
This Living entity constitutes the superior energy
(f) Living entities are seen everywhere, on all the planets (14.4)
On earth, even within water and fire
Even on the highest planet, where Brahma is situated
THE LIBERATION AND CONDITIONING OF LIVING ENTITIES
(14.1-14.4)
Text 14.1-14.2
COMMON THEME : Introduction and glorification of Chapter 14
One who understands this chapter attains liberation (not born at creation or disturbed at dissolution) and attains to transcendental nature like “My own” (14.2)
Knowing which all the sages have attained the Supreme perfection (14.1)
Learnings from Purport 14.1 – 14.2
(a) What was revealed in Chapters (7 – 12) – Krishna reveals in detail the Absolute Truth as the Supreme Personality of Godhead
(b) How to understand this Chapter – Through the process of philosophical speculation
(c) Result of such learning
Freedom from material entanglement
One comes to an understanding of devotional service
(d) Why this knowledge is proclaimed superior to all – because
Understanding the conditioning of the three modes is a powerful tool to assist one on the path of self-realization
By this knowledge many sages attained perfection and transferred to spiritual world
One can attain a transcendental nature like Krishna and thus attains liberation
Whoever understands Chapter 14 will attain perfection
(e) “Attaining transcendental natural like My own” – implies
One acquires qualitative equality with the Supreme Personality of Godhead
Freedom from birth and death
One does not lose his identity as individual soul
Ref. Vedic literatures – Liberated souls in transcendental planets always look to the lotus feet of the Supreme Lord, being engaged in His loving service
(f) Transcendental knowledge defined
Knowledge which is not contaminated by the three modes of material nature
Knowledge of knowing oneself on the same platform (in quality) as the Supreme Person
Lack of this knowledge of spiritual sky – They think liberation means that spiritual identity becomes formless without variegatedness
Conceptions in real knowledge o Form – Spiritual world is also full of variety just like the material world. In spiritual sky one attains a spiritual form o Activity – Spiritual world is full of spiritual activities – situation is called devotional life o That atmosphere is uncontaminated
Qualification – To obtain such knowledge, one must develop all spiritual qualities
Benefit of such qualities – He is not affected by creation and destruction of material world
LINK BETWEEN TEXTS 14.2 & 14.3 : After glorifying the knowledge that He is about to reveal, Krishna begins to explain the relationship between material nature, the conditioned living entities and Himself.
Text 14.3-14.4
COMMON THEME :These verses explain how the soul comes into the material world and is placed within the modes of material nature
Material nature is the mother, supplying living-entity with the body (14.3)
The Lord puts him there by His potent glance and thus impregnates the material nature with the seed
Learnings from Purport 14.3 – 14.4
(a) Material nature is the mother, supplying living-entity with the body (14.3)
The total material substance, called Brahman is the source of birth
Lord impregnates that Brahman with living entities
(b) Analogy: Scorpion lays its eggs in rice, but the rice is not the cause of the scorpion
This refutes that material nature is the cause of the birth of living entities
Actual seed is given by the Supreme Lord himself
(c) Text 14.3 gives an explanation of the world as follows:
Everything that takes place is due to combination of ksetra (body) and ksetra-jna (spirit soul)
This combination of the living-entity is made possible by the Supreme God himself
(d) Mahat-tattva – It is the total cause of the total cosmic manifestation;
Total substance of the material cause, in which there are three modes of material nature, is sometimes called Brahman
Ref. Mundaka Upanisad
(e) ‘Mahad-Brahma’ – Great Brahman refers to the material nature
Constituted by 24 elements which constitute the inferior energy
This Living entity constitutes the superior energy
(f) Living entities are seen everywhere, on all the planets (14.4)
On earth, even within water and fire
Even on the highest planet, where Brahma is situated