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Canto 10

S'rī Krishna Caitanya

 

 

Chapter 14: Brahmā's Prayers to Lord Krishna



(1) S'rī Brahmā said: 'My praise for You, oh Son of the Cowherd King, oh worshipable Lord, whose beauty is characterized by a resplendent face, soft feet, a body as dark as a raincloud, clothes as bright as lightening, guńjā [seed] ornaments [on Your ears], peacock feathers, a garland of forest flowers, a morsel of food [see 10.13: 14], a rod, a bugle and a flute. (2) Oh Godhead so full of mercy for me, even with this body of Yours before me, that to the desire of Your devotees has manifested but at the other hand is not a material product at all, I, Brahmā, with my inward mind cannot directly fathom Your greatness, not to mention the happiness You experience within Yourself. (3) Even though You are Invincible in the three worlds, You surrender to the will of those persons who, in maintaining their material positions, regularly exercise their body, words and mind and [are prepared to] listen to the stories about You the way they are described by the devotees - by those truthful souls who, living simply, offer their obeisances and no longer try to be of any intellectual achievement [apart from You]. (4) The so highly beneficial path of bhakti, oh Almighty Lord, is rejected by those who struggle exclusively for the achievement of knowledge ['enlightenment']. Their efforts though mean nothing but trouble to them, just as empty husks are nothing but a hindrance to those who are threshing. (5) A long time ago, oh Almighty One, there was in this world many a yoga adept who, dedicating all his actions to You, acquired insight by doing his duty. It is indeed so that, by performing devotional service, someone with the presentation [the chanting and reading] of Your stories easily can achieve Your Supreme Destination, oh Infallible One [see also 7.5: 23-24]! (6) Nevertheless, oh Completeness of Existence, only he is able to understand the potency of You as being without material qualities [nirguna], who is of a pure engagement with a mind and senses that are free from agitations. A person is truly free from attachments to this or that form only when he follows Your love without another instruction for himself, and not otherwise. (7) Great scientists in the long run might succeed in counting all the particles of the earth, the sky, the snow and the light of the stars. But who can count all the qualities of You, the Self of All Qualities [gunātma], who descended for the benefit of all living beings [compare 8.5: 6]? (8) Someone who earnestly hopes for Your compassion, endures the consequences of his own actions and offers You his obeisances with his heart, words and body, will lead a life directed at the position of liberation, because he then will be the heir of Your service [see also 1.5: 17, 1.19: 32, 2.1: 12, 3.33: 6, 4.20: 11, 4.29: 38 etc.]. (9) Just see, oh Lord, how I, just to test Your potency, by expanding my illusory power, have behaved myself in an uncivilized manner towards even You, the Deluder of All Deluders, the Unlimited, Original Supersoul. What is my will compared to Yours? But a spark relative to a fire! (10) Therefore, oh Infallible One, I offer You my excuses, I, the passion of the world, who as the unborn one thought himself to be independent from You. My eyes were blinded by the darkness of ignorance. Does someone like me, who accepts You as his master, not deserve Your mercy? (11) What am I with my material nature, with those seven vitasti [± 63 inches] of this body, with this totality of matter, false ego, ether, air, fire, water and earth that surrounds me like a pot? What am I compared to the unlimited universes that like atomic dust move away from the openings and pores of Your body, Your greatness [see also 1.3: 3  and 3: 11]? (12) Oh Lord from the Beyond, does the mother count it as an offense when a child kicks its legs within the womb? What, being labeled with designations as 'real' or 'not real', would there actually be outside of Your abdomen? (13) Have I, the 'selfborn' Brahmā [aja *5], not originated from You? Are the words untrue that state that when the three worlds ended and You, Nārāyana, laid down in the waters of devastation, I have appeared on the lotus of the stem that grew from Your abdomen [see 3: 8]? (14) Are You not Nārāyana, the Soul of all living beings? You are the Teacher Within the Heart, the Witness of All Worlds, the Nāra-ayana: the lead of man and the source from which the waters originated. That is what You truly are and not so much your deluding material energy [māyā] *. (15) If that real transcendental body of Yours, which shelters the entire universe, is situated upon the water, why then did I not see it, oh Supreme Lord [when I was looking for You]? And why did You, when I could not see You clearly in the heart, on the other hand then suddenly become visible again [see 3.8: 22]? (16) In this incarnation, oh Dispeller of Māyā, You [by opening Your mouth] have demonstrated to Your mother the illusory nature of this externally visible manifested universe, that is also in its entirety present inside of You [see 10.7: 35-36 & 10.8: 37-39]. (17) The way all of this, including Yourself, is visible within You, it is also fully present outside. This is only possible because of Your inconceivable potency! (18) Did You not just today show me how this creation, Your lawfulness, is based on Your bewildering potency? First You were there all alone and then You became all of Vraja's boys and calves. Next You even became a same number of four-handed forms, who were served by all [the powers] including me, and then You became an equal number of universes [10.13: 53]. Then You again became the One Infinite Absolute Truth without a second... (19) For those who, unaware of Your position, understand You the material way, You, by expanding Your māyā, appear as Me for the matters of creation, as Yourself for the purpose of maintenance and as the Three-eyed One [Lord S'iva] in the end. (20) You, who are [factually] unborn, oh Lord, take Your birth among the enlightened souls and the seers, as also among the human beings, the animals and the aquatics, oh Master and Creator, to subdue the false pride of the non-devotees and to be of mercy for the devotees [see also B.G. 4: 8]. (21) Who, oh Greatest Supreme Lord, oh Supersoul and Master of Yoga, knows where and how, to what degree or when in the three worlds You expand the play of Your spiritual energy [yoga-māyā], Your pastimes? (22) For that reason this complete whole, which is untrue [asat, temporary] in its form, is just like a dream wherein one's awareness is covered by all kinds of distress. While one inside of You finds Your unlimited forms of consciousness, eternity and happiness [sat, permanent, see also B.G. 2: 16 and **], originated from the material energy that what seems to be true [outside]. (23) You are the One Soul, the Original Personality, the Oldest One, the Truth, the Light from Within without a beginning and an end, the eternally unchangeable, unimpeded happiness free from impurities, the Complete Whole Without a Second that is everlasting and defies all description. (24) They who from the sunlike spiritual master received the perfect vision of the confidential philosophy, can by that description see You as the very Soul, the Supersoul of all souls. It are they who easily cross   ocean of an untrue worldly existence. (25) For those who do not understand You as being the Supreme Soul, for that reason alone a totally material life unfolds that dissolves again with a spiritual vision, just as with a rope [in illusion the image of] a snake may appear and disappear again. (26) Designations of being bound to matter or being liberated, rise from ignorance. When one realizes that the two have no separate existence, one is situated in the true knowledge and unhindered consciousness [as-it-is, free from māyā] of the supreme transcendental self. [They at that time lose their meaning,] just as day and night are matters doubtful to the sun itself. (27) Oh, how ignorant the foolishness is of persons who think of You, the Original Soul, as being something else, and consider the self as something to be looked for [as someone present] in the outside world [see B.G. 18: 16]! (28) The realized devotees [the sages], who reject everything that is not 'that' [see neti neti 7.7: 23], chase You within themselves, oh Unlimited One. How can such a person of discrimination, appreciate the true nature of the 'rope' he sees before him, without rejecting the [therewith associated] illusion of seeing a 'snake' [see also 10.6: 8, and B.G. 18: 37]? (29) It is therefore so, my Lord, that someone who is blessed with but a trace of Your lotus feet, can understand the truth of the glory of Your Supreme Personality, while that is not possible for someone else, however long he might speculate. (30) May it therefore be so, oh Lord, that in this birth, a next one or even another type of birth, there will be that greatest fortune in which I, by becoming one of Your devotees, am fully of service at the lotus buds of Your feet? (31) How fortunate are the cows and the gopīs of Vraja from whom You, to Your full satisfaction in the form of the calves and boys, have been drinking the nectarine breast milk. Oh Almighty Lord, that satisfaction of You could as yet by no Vedic sacrifice be equaled! (32) What a happiness, oh what a fortune it is for Nanda, the gopas and the other inhabitants of Vraja, to have You as their friend, You the Complete, Absolute and Eternal Truth of Transcendental Happiness. (33) However great the good fortune and glory of these people might be, oh Infallible One, we, the eleven [presiding deities of the senses ***], Lord S'iva and the other leading demigods, are very happy to drink, again and again, from the cups of the senses of these devotees, the nectarean beverage of Your sweet lotus feet. (34) Whatever birth I would take here in this forest [even as this or that animal or plant], would bring me the greatest happiness, just because I then would bathe in the dust of the feet of any of them [out here], whose life is completely devoted to the Supreme Lord Mukunda the dust of whose feet even today is sought in the Vedic mantras [the S'rutis]. (35) What but Yourself, the source of all benedictions, oh Godhead, would You grant as a reward to these members of the cowherd community? All of their homes, wealth, friends, dear ones, bodies, children, life-air and minds are dedicated to You. When our mind thinks of anything else it falls in illusion. For did You not even arrange it indubitably so that Pūtanā - who dressed up as a devotee - and also her family members [Bakā and Agha] could reach You, oh divine personality? (36) As long as the people are not Yours, oh Krishna, their attachments and such are all thieves, their home is a prison and their infatuation is as a pair of shackles to their feet. (37) Despite of being completely transcendental You on this earth imitate [and deride] the material ways, oh Master, just to increase the amount of happiness of the people of surrender. (38) Let the people [who claim to know] of Your unlimited potency think what they like - why all these words? That is not my way, oh Master. Your magnificence is not within the range of my mind, body and words [see B.G. 2: 42-44]! (39) Permit me to leave, oh Krishna. You know everything, You see all, You alone are the master of all universes, I put this universe at Your disposal. (40) S'rī Krishna, oh bestower of pleasure of the lotus of the Vrishni dynasty, You are the cause of the development of the seas of demigods, brahmins and animals of this earth. When there are unsound doctrines You dispel the darkness. You are the opponent of the ogres on earth. For as long as the sun shines, till the end of time, I, oh worshipable Supreme Lord, will offer You my obeisances.'



(41) S'rī S'uka said: 'Thus having extolled the Wealth of the World, the creator of the universe returned to his abode, after having circumambulated Him three times and having bowed down to His feet. (42) The Supreme Lord granted the one who had originated from Him permission to leave and then brought the calves back to the riverbank where they had been. There, just as it was before, all His friends were present. (43) Although one year had passed and they, without the Lord of their lives, had been covered by Krishna's māyā, it was to the conception of the boys but half a moment ago, oh King. (44) What do persons whose minds are under the spell of māyā not forget out here? Because of illusion the entire world is perpetually bewildered and forgetful about itself [its soul, its original identity]. (45) The friends said to Krishna: 'You have returned quickly, we have not eaten even a single bite more, please come here and take Your meal as should.' (46) Smiling at them, the Lord of the Senses thereupon took His meal with the cowherd boys whom He, when they returned from the forest to Vraja, showed the skin of the python Aghāsura [see 10.12]. (47) He whose body was decorated with a peacock feather, with flowers and colors from the forest, loudly played the bamboo flute. He called for the calves while the horns sounded and the boys sang about His purifying glories. Thus with His comrades entering the pasture grounds [near Vrindāvana] He was a pleasure to the eyes of the gopīs. (48) In Vraja the boys sang: 'Today we have been saved by the son of Yas'odā and Nanda, who killed a great serpent!'

(49) The king said: 'Please, oh brahmin, explain how there could be such an unprecedented amount of love for the child of someone else, that Krishna was, a love that even exceeded the love [the gopas and gopīs had] for their own offspring?'

(50) S'rī S'uka said: 'One's own self is most dear to every living being, oh ruler of man. All the love for others, children, wealth and so on is based on it. (51) Oh best of kings, the love of embodied beings for their own individual self is therefore not equal to the love they have for that what belongs to them, like sons, wealth, homes and so forth. (52) Persons who speak of the body as being their self [see also ahankāra], oh best of kings, therefore [also] hold their body as most dear and certainly do not attach an equal value to that what [or the other person] they are associated with [see also B.G. 2: 71]. (53) If one considers the body as something that one possesses [though], it consequently will not be as dear as the soul [the true self]. After all, when it grows old the desire to stay alive remains equally strong. (54) [The self of] one's own soul is therefore most dear to all embodied beings. It constitutes in fact the purpose of existence of all the moving and not moving living entities in the universe. (55) In this you should know Krishna as the Soul of all souls [or the Supersoul]. It is He [that Self] who, by His own potency appearing as a human being, is present on this planet for the benefit of the entire universe. (56) They who in this world know Krishna as He really is, understand that the moving and not moving living entities [including inorganic matter] are two different manifestations of the Supreme Lord. He is the Complete Whole, the essence outside of which nothing exists out here [compare B.G. 7: 26]. (57) He is the original cause of all in existence, and even the cause of that unmanifest nature [of the unmanifested matter of pradhāna]. Is there anything that can exist apart from Krishna, the Supreme Lord? (58) His lotus feet, that are like a boat, the feet that for the entire universe [even for the greatest gods] are the refuge of virtue and merit of Him who is so famous as the enemy of Mura [the demon], constitute for those who seek shelter with them the Supreme Abode. In this place [named Vaikunthha] none of the material miseries are found. With each step taken with them the ocean of material existence is [not more than the water in] a calf's hoof-print [compare 10.1: 5-7 and 10.2: 30].

(59) Everything you asked about what the Lord did at His fifth year, and was declared at His sixth, I have now described to you. (60) The person who hears or sings about these pastimes of Lord Murāri annihilating Agha, how He with His friends was taking lunch in an open spot in the forest and about the other-worldly [multiple Vishnu] form that He assumed with the selfborn one who so elaborately offers his prayers, will achieve all the [spiritual] ends he desired.' (61) *4

 

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 Third revised edition, loaded July 9, 2020.

 

 

 

 

Previous Aadhar edition and Vedabase links:

Text 1

S'rī Brahmā said: 'My praise for You, oh Son of the Cowherd King, oh worshipable Lord, whose beauty is characterized by a resplendent face, soft feet, a body as dark as a raincloud, clothes as bright as lightening, guńjā [seed] ornaments [on Your ears], peacock feathers, a garland of forest flowers, a morsel of food [see 10.13: 14], a rod, a bugle and a flute.
S'rī Brahmā said: 'My praise for You, o Son of the Cowherd King, o worshipable Lord whose beauty we may see in the form of a body, a resplendent face and soft feet as dark as a raincloud, clothes as bright as lightening, guńjā [seed] ornaments [at Your ears], peacock feathers, a garland of forest flowers, a morsel of food [see 10.13: 14], a rod, a bugle and a flute. (Vedabase)

 

Text 2

Oh Godhead so full of mercy for me, even with this body of Yours before me, that to the desire of Your devotees has manifested but at the other hand is not a material product at all, I, Brahmā, with my inward mind cannot directly fathom Your greatness, not to mention the happiness You experience within Yourself.

O Godhead so of mercy with me, even with directly before me indeed this body of Yours, that to the desire of Your devotees has manifested but at the other hand is not a product of matter at all, am I, Brahmā, with my inward mind not able to fathom Your greatness, not even mentioning the experience of Your soul of happiness.  Vedabase)

    

Text 3

Even though You are Invincible in the three worlds, You surrender to the will of those persons who, in maintaining their material positions, regularly exercise their body, words and mind and [are prepared to] listen to the stories about You the way they are described by the devotees - by those truthful souls who, living simply, offer their obeisances and no longer try to be of any intellectual achievement [apart from You].

Invincible as You are You nevertheless give Yourselves won to those in the three worlds who regularly exercising their body, words and mind, in keeping their material positions, are eager to hear about the topics relating to You the way they are described by the truthful, the truthful who, living simply, offer their obeisances, no longer trying to accomplish something in the field of spiritual knowledge. (Vedabase)


Text 4

The so highly beneficial path of bhakti, oh Almighty Lord, is rejected by those who struggle exclusively for the achievement of knowledge ['enlightenment']. Their efforts though mean nothing but trouble to them, just as empty husks are nothing but a hindrance to those who are threshing.

The path of bhakti so highly beneficial, that is rejected by those, o Almighty Lord, who struggle exclusively for the achievement of knowledge, means nothing but trouble to them, just as empty husks are nothing but a hindrance to the ones threshing. (Vedabase)

 

Text 5

A long time ago, oh Almighty One, there was in this world many a yoga adept who, dedicating all his actions to You, acquired insight by doing his duty. It is indeed so that, by performing devotional service, someone with the presentation [the chanting and reading] of Your stories easily can achieve Your Supreme Destination, oh Infallible One [see also 7.5: 23-24]!

Long before now, o Greatest, was there in this world many a yoga adept who, dedicating all his actions to You, came to understand what is achieved by one's specific duties; it is indeed so that one by devotional service in the cultivation of the hearing and singing with ease may achieve Your Supreme Destination o Infallible One! [see also 7.5: 23-24] (Vedabase)

 

Text 6

Nevertheless, oh Completeness of Existence, only he is able to understand the potency of You as being without material qualities [nirguna], who is of a pure engagement with a mind and senses that are free from agitations. A person is truly free from attachments to this or that form only when he follows Your love without another instruction for himself, and not otherwise.

Nevertheless, o Complete of Existence, is only he able to understand the potency of You as being without material qualities [nirguna] who is spotless with a mind and senses free from agitations and who, following Your love as someone with no other instruction for himself, verily is unattached to this or that form; and not otherwise.  (Vedabase)

   

Text 7

Great scientists in the long run might succeed in counting all the particles of the earth, the sky, the snow and the light of the stars. But who can count all the qualities of You, the Self of All Qualities [gunātma], who descended for the benefit of all living beings [compare 8.5: 6]?

In time might great scientists succeed in counting all the particles there are in the universe of the earth, the sky, the snow and the light of the stars, but who would be able to count the qualities of You, the Self of All Qualities [gunātma], who descended for the benefit of all beings? [compare 8.5: 6] (Vedabase)

 

Text 8

Someone who earnestly hopes for Your compassion, endures the consequences of his own actions and offers You his obeisances with his heart, words and body, will lead a life directed at the position of liberation, because he then will be the heir of Your service [see also 1.5: 17, 1.19: 32, 2.1: 12, 3.33: 6, 4.20: 11, 4.29: 38 etc.].

Earnestly hoping for Your compassion and enduring the things inevitably resulting from one's fruitive actions, will therefore anyone, who offers You with his heart, words and body his obeisances, lead a life directed at the position of liberation, because one is then a candidate for the mercy [see also 1.5: 17, 1.19: 32, 2.1: 12, 3.33: 6, 4.20: 11, 4.29: 38 etc.]. (Vedabase)

  

Text 9

Just see oh Lord, how I, just to test Your potency, by expanding my illusory power, have behaved myself in an uncivilized manner towards even You, the Deluder of All Deluders, the Unlimited, Original Supersoul. What is my will compared to Yours? But a spark relative to a fire!

Just see, o Controller, how I so contemptible with You, the Unlimited, Primeval Supersoul, just to see the might of You, the Deluder of All Deluders, have expanded my illusory power; was the extent of what I desired indeed not just like a spark relative to the fire? (Vedabase)

 

Text 10

Therefore, oh Infallible One, I offer You my excuses, I, the passion of the world, who as the unborn one thought himself to be independent from You. My eyes were blinded by the darkness of ignorance. Does someone like me, who accepts You as his master, not deserve Your mercy?

Therefore, o Infallible One, my excuses, I, born from passion, indeed am an ignoramus who, not having started a new life, haughtily thought himself to be an independent authority; my eyes were blinded by the darkness of ignorance - does someone like me, in the acceptance of You as his master, not deserve Your mercy? (Vedabase)

 

Text 11

What am I with my material nature, with those seven vitasti [± 63 inches] of this body, with this totality of matter, false ego, ether, air, fire, water and earth that surrounds me like a pot? What am I compared to the unlimited universes that like atomic dust move away from the openings and pores of Your body, Your greatness [see also 1.3: 3 and 3: 11]?

What am I with my material nature, those seven measures of this body of the totality of matter, the false ego, ether, air, fire, water and earth, that surrounds me like a pot? What is this compared to the Unlimited Universes that like atomic dust move from the openings and pores of Your body, Your greatness [see also 1. 3: 3  and 3: 11]? (Vedabase)

   

Text 12

Oh Lord from the Beyond, does the mother count it as an offense when a child kicks its legs within the womb? What, being labeled with designations as 'real' or 'not real', would there actually be outside of Your abdomen?

O Lord from the Beyond, does the mother count it as an offense when a child kicks its legs within the womb - what all that is labeled with designations as 'existent' or 'nonexistent' would there actually be outside of Your abdomen? (Vedabase)

  

Text 13

Have I, the 'selfborn' Brahmā [aja *5] not originated from You? Are the words untrue that state that, when the three worlds ended and You, Nārāyana, laid down in the waters of devastation, I have appeared on the lotus of the stem that grew from Your abdomen [see 3: 8]?

For certain are the words indeed not untrue that state that Brahmā, the 'selfborn' [aja *5], with the three worlds at their end in the oceans of water of the deluge, appeared from the lotus stem which grew from the abdomen of Nārāyana; have I not emanated from You? [see 3.8] (Vedabase)


Text 14

Are You not Nārāyana, the Soul of all living beings? You are the Teacher Within the Heart, the Witness of All Worlds, the Nāra-ayana: the lead of man and the source from which the waters originated. That is what You truly are and not so much your deluding material energy [māyā] *.

Are You not Nārāyana the Soul of all living beings? You are the Teacher Within the Heart, the Witness of all Worlds, the Nārā-yana: the part [or lead] of God relating to man, that source from which the waters originated - that is what You truly are and not so much Your specific form [māyā]. (Vedabase)

 

Text 15

If that real transcendental body of Yours, which  shelters the entire universe, is situated upon the water, why then did I not see it, oh Supreme Lord [when I was looking for You]? And why did You, when I could not see You clearly in the heart, on the other hand then suddenly become visible again [see 3.8: 22]?

If that transcendental body of You sheltering the entire universe is situated upon the water, why then was it not seen by me o Supreme Lord or why were You, when You were not properly seen by me in the heart, at the other hand then suddenly again to be seen [see 3.8: 22]? (Vedabase)

 

Text 16

In this incarnation, oh Dispeller of Māyā, You [by opening Your mouth] have demonstrated to Your mother the illusory nature of this externally visible manifested universe, that is also in its entirety present inside of You [see 10.7: 35-36 & 10.8: 37-39].

In this incarnation indeed do You by Your power over the bewildering material energy scare away the illusion of this entire, created universe that is externally visible and is also there within Your abdomen, the way You factually have demonstrated it to Your mother [by opening Your mouth see 10.7: 35-36 & 10.8: 37-39]. (Vedabase)


Text 17

The way all of this, including Yourself, is visible within You, it is also fully present outside. This is only possible because of Your inconceivable potency!

The way one sees the cosmic complete here manifested externally, could this all, including Yourself, be seen inside of You; this could only happen because of the influence of Your inconceivable potency! (Vedabase)


Text 18

Did You not just today show me how this creation, Your lawfulness, is based on Your bewildering potency? First You were there all alone and then You became all of Vraja's boys and calves. Next You even became a same number of four-handed forms who were served by all [the powers] including me and then You became an equal number of universes [10.13: 53]. Then You again became the One Infinite Absolute Truth without a second...

Have You not just today shown me how, except for Yourselves, this all is based upon Your bewildering potency? First were You there all alone and then You became all of Vraja's boys and calves, You next even became a same number of four-handed ones that together with me were served by all and then You became an equal number of universes [10.13: 53]; and now are You again the One Infinite Absolute Truth without a second... (Vedabase)

 

Text 19

For those who, unaware of Your position, understand You the material way, You, by expanding Your māyā, appear as Me for the matters of creation, as Yourself for the purpose of maintenance and as the Three-eyed One [Lord S'iva] in the end.

To those unaware of Your position understanding it the material way do You, by Yourself expanding Your māyā, appear for the matters of creation as Me, as Yourself for the purpose of maintenance and as the Three-eyed One [Lord S'iva] in the end. (Vedabase)

 

  Text 20

You, who are [factually] unborn, oh Lord, take Your birth among the enlightened souls and the seers, as also among the human beings, the animals and the aquatics, oh Master and Creator, to subdue the false pride of the non-devotees and to be of mercy for the devotees [see also B.G. 4: 8].

Among the enlightened and the seers, o Controller, as well indeed among the human beings, the animals and the aquatics also, do You, who are factually unborn, o Master, o Creator, take birth to be of mercy with the truthful and to chastise the untruthful who are blinded by illusion [see also B.G. 4: 8]. (Vedabase)

 

Text 21

Who, oh Greatest Supreme Lord, oh Supersoul and Master of Yoga, knows where and how, to what degree or when in the three worlds You expand the play of Your spiritual energy [yoga-māyā], Your pastimes?

Who, o Greatest Supreme Lord, o Supersoul and Controller of Yoga, knows where, how, how many or when in the three worlds the pastimes of Your Lordship, the play of Your spiritual energy [yoga-māyā] thus is expanding? (Vedabase)

 

Text 22

For that reason this complete whole, which is untrue [asat, temporary] in its form, is just like a dream wherein one's awareness is covered by all kinds of distress. While one inside of You finds Your unlimited forms of consciousness, eternity and happiness [sat, permanent, see also B.G. 2: 16 and **], originated from the material energy that what seems to be true [outside].

Therefore is this cosmic complete, being untrue [asat, temporary] in its form, just like a dream wherein the awareness is covered by all kinds of miseries; while one within Yourself may find Your unlimited forms of consciousness, eternity and happiness, have we [outside of that] the bewildering energy presenting itself as if it were true [sat, permanent, see also B.G. 2: 16 and **]. (Vedabase)

 

Text 23

You are the One Soul, the Original Personality, the Oldest One, the Truth, the Light from Within without a beginning and an end, the eternally unchangeable, unimpeded happiness free from impurities, the Complete Whole Without a Second that is everlasting and defies all description.

The One Soul You are, the Original Personality, the Oldest, the Truth, the Light from Within without a beginning and an end, the eternally undiminishing, unimpeded happiness free from impurities, the unceasing Complete Without a Second which defies all description. (Vedabase)

 

Text 24

They who from the sunlike spiritual master received the perfect vision of the confidential philosophy, can by that description see You as the very Soul, the Supersoul of all souls. It are they who easily cross over the ocean of an untrue worldly existence.

You as such described indeed are the very Soul of all souls, so may envision those who received from the radiating spiritual master the perfect vision of the confidential philosophy; it is they who easily cross over the ocean of an untrue worldly existence. (Vedabase)

 

Text 25

For those who do not understand You as being the Supreme Soul, for that reason alone a totally material life unfolds that dissolves again with a spiritual vision, just as with a rope [in illusion the image of] a snake may appear and disappear again.

With those who do not understand You indeed as being the Supreme Soul, arises just because of that a totally material life which by means of spiritual knowledge then again disappears, just like with a rope [its appearance as] a snake its body appears and disappears. (Vedabase)


Text 26

Designations of being bound to matter or being liberated, rise from ignorance. When one realizes that the two have no separate existence, one is situated in the true knowledge and unhindered consciousness [as-it-is, free from māyā] of the supreme transcendental self. [They at that time lose their meaning,] just as day and night are matters doubtful to the sun itself.

Designations of being bound to matter or being liberated, rise from not knowing, actually are the two not separate [but the same in the sense of being bound to that what is not an illusion] when one, like with days and nights before the sun, properly distinguishes according the true knowledge of the pure, transcendental, spirit soul of which the awareness is unimpeded [as-it-is, free from māyā]. (Vedabase)

 

Text 27

Oh, how ignorant the foolishness is of persons who think of You, the Original Soul, as being something else, and consider the self as something to be looked for [as someone present] in the outside world [see B.G. 18: 16]!

Oh, how ignorant is the foolishness of persons who think of You, the Original Soul, as being something else and indeed of the Self as something to be looked for [as someone present] in the outside world! [see B.G. 18: 16] (Vedabase)

 

Text 28

The realized devotees [the sages], who reject everything that is not 'that' [see neti neti 7.7: 23], chase You within themselves, oh Unlimited One. How can such a person of discrimination, appreciate the true nature of the 'rope' he sees before him, without rejecting the [therewith associated] illusion of seeing a 'snake' [see also 10.6: 8, and B.G. 18: 37]?

The truthful, from the inside rejecting what is not 'that' [see neti neti 7.7: 23], are indeed looking for You, o Unlimited One; would even a man of truth, caught in the unreal of the 'snake' which is always so near to him, [directly] be able to appreciate the real of the 'rope'? [see also 10.6: 8, and B.G. 18: 37] (Vedabase)

 

Text 29

It is therefore so, my Lord, that someone who is blessed with but a trace of Your lotus feet, can understand the truth of the glory of Your Supreme Personality, while that is not possible for someone else, however long he might speculate.

Therefore is it so my Lord that one, being granted but a trace of the mercy of Your lotus feet, in fact has knowledge of the certain truth of the greatness of the Supreme Personality, but that is not true for anyone else, however long he might speculate. (Vedabase)

 

Text 30

May it therefore be so, oh Lord, that in this birth, a next one or even another type of birth, there will be that greatest fortune in which I, by becoming one of Your devotees, am fully of service at the lotus buds of Your feet?

May it therefore be so o Master, that, in this birth, a next one indeed or even one we rather not think about, there is that greatest fortune by which I, in becoming just one of Your devotees, are fully of service at the lotus buds of Your feet? (Vedabase)

 

Text 31

How fortunate are the cows and the gopīs of Vraja from whom You, to Your full satisfaction in the form of the calves and boys, have been drinking the nectarine breast milk. Oh Almighty Lord, that satisfaction of You could as yet by no Vedic sacrifice be equaled!

How fortunate Vraja, the cows and the gopīs are from whom You, to Your full satisfaction, have been drinking the nectarine breast milk in the form of the calves and boys, o Almighty Lord, whose satiation as yet by no vedic sacrifice could be equaled. (Vedabase)

 

Text 32

What a happiness, oh what a fortune it is for Nanda, the gopas and the other inhabitants of Vraja, to have You as their friend, You the Complete, Absolute and Eternal Truth of Transcendental Happiness.

What a happiness, o what a fortune for Nanda and the gopas and the other inhabitants of Vraja, to have as their friend the Supreme Abode of Bliss, the Complete, Absolute and Eternal Truth. (Vedabase)

 

Text 33

However great the good fortune and glory of these people might be, oh Infallible One, we, the eleven [presiding deities of the senses ***], Lord S'iva and the other leading demigods, are very happy to drink, again and again, from the cups of the senses of these devotees, the nectarean beverage of Your sweet lotus feet.

And however great the good of their fortune all might be, o Infallible One, we, the eleven [***], S'iva and all other gods indeed, o Wonder, are as fortunate as to drink again and again by the cups of the senses of these devotees the nectarean, intoxicating honey of Your lotus feet. (Vedabase)


Text 34

Whatever birth I would take here in this forest [even as this or that animal or plant], would bring me the greatest happiness, just because I then would bathe in the dust of the feet of any of them [out here], whose life is completely devoted to the Supreme Lord Mukunda the dust of whose feet even today is sought in the Vedic mantras [the S'rutis].

Irrespective the birth I would have here in this forest [as this or that animal or plant] would bring me that greatest fortune, merely by bathing in the dust of the feet of any of them whose life truly is completely of the Supreme Lord Mukunda His feet, the feet of which the dust even today is sought by the S'rutis [the Vedas]. (Vedabase)

 

Text 35

What but Yourself, the source of all benedictions, oh Godhead, would You grant as a reward to these members of the cowherd community? All of their homes, wealth, friends, dear ones, bodies, children, life-air and minds are dedicated to You. When our mind thinks of anything else it falls in illusion. For did You not even arrange it indubitably so that Pūtanā - who dressed up as a devotee - and also her family members [Bakā and Agha] could reach You, oh divine personality?

What but Yourselves, the source of all benedictions indeed, o Godhead, would You grant as a reward to these members of the cowherd community whose homes, wealth, friends, dear ones, bodies, children, life-air and minds are all dedicated to You - our mind thinking of anything else falls in illusion, for You even made it undubitably so that Pūtanā who dressed up as a truthful one and also her family members [Bakā and Agha] could reach You, o divine personality. (Vedabase)

 

Text 36

As long as the people are not Yours, oh Krishna, their attachments and such are all thieves, their home is a prison and their infatuation is as a pair of shackles to their feet.

As long as people are not Yours Krishna, are the attachments and such all thieves, is the home a prison and is the infatuation as a set of shackles to their feet. (Vedabase)

 

Text 37

Despite of being completely transcendental, You on this earth imitate [and deride] the material ways, oh Master, just to increase the amount of happiness of the people of surrender.

Even though You're completely transcendental do You mimic on this earth that what is material, o Master, in order to teach the people of surrender about Your different types of spiritual happiness. (Vedabase)

 

Text 38

Let the people [who claim to know] of Your unlimited potency think what they like - why all these words? That is not my way, oh Master. Your magnificence is not within the range of my mind, body and words [see B.G. 2: 42-44]!

There are people who derive their certainty from the use of many words - let them, but of what use is that to us, o my Lord, for Your opulence is found beyond the range of my body, mind and words [see B.G. 2: 42-44]! (Vedabase)

 

Text 39

Permit me to leave, oh Krishna. You know everything, You see all, You alone are the master of all universes, I put this universe at Your disposal.

Permit me to leave o Krishna, You know everything, You see all, You alone are the master of all universes, I put this universe at Your disposal. (Vedabase)

 

Text 40

S'rī Krishna, oh bestower of pleasure of the lotus of the Vrishni dynasty, You are the cause of the development of the seas of demigods, brahmins and animals of this earth. When there are unsound doctrines You dispel the darkness. You are the opponent of the ogres on earth. For as long as the sun shines, till the end of time, I, oh worshipable Supreme Lord, will offer You my obeisances.'

S'rī Krishna, the lotus of the Vrishni-dynasty You lend the happiness; of the seas of the earth, the demigods, the brahmins and the animals are You the cause of their development; when there is a lack of righteousness do You dispel the darkness; of the ogres on earth are You the opponent; for as long as the sun shines, till the end of time, do I, o worshipable Lord Supreme, offer You my obeisances.' (Vedabase)

 

Text 41

S'rī S'uka said: 'Thus having extolled the Wealth of the World, the creator of the universe returned to his abode, after having circumambulated Him three times and having bowed down to His feet.

S'rī S'uka said: 'Thus having extolled the Wealth of the World desired the creator of the universe it, with circumambulating Him three times and bowing down to His feet, to return to his abode. (Vedabase)

 

Text 42

The Supreme Lord granted the one who had originated from Him permission to leave and then brought the calves back to the riverbank where they had been. There, just as it was before, all His friends were present.

The Supreme Lord gave the one who had originated from Him His permission, and then brought the calves from where they had been back to the riverbank where, just as it was before, His friends were all present. (Vedabase)

 

Text 43

Although one year had passed and they, without the Lord of their lives, had been covered by Krishna's māyā, it was to the conception of the boys but half a moment ago, oh King.

Although one year had passed and they, without the Lord of their lives, had been covered by Krishna's māyā, was it to the boys but half a moment, o King.  (Vedabase)

 

Text 44

What do persons whose minds are under the spell of māyā not forget out here? Because of illusion the entire world is perpetually bewildered and forgetful about itself [its soul, its original identity].

What, o what do persons under the spell of māyā not forget in this world; for that reason being deluded in their consciousness does no one in this world understand himself. (Vedabase)

 

Text 45

The friends said to Krishna: 'You have returned quickly, we have not eaten even a single bite more, please come here and take Your meal as should.'

The friends said to Krishna: 'You have returned quickly, we didn't even eat a single bite more, please come here and nicely take Your meal.' (Vedabase)

 

Text 46

Smiling at them, the Lord of the Senses thereupon took His meal with the cowherd boys whom He, when they returned from the forest to Vraja, showed the skin of the python Aghāsura [see 10.12].

Then, smiling, took the Lord of the senses His meal with the cowherd boys whom He, as they from the forest returned home to Vraja, showed the skin of the python Aghāsura [see 10.12]. (Vedabase)

 

Text 47

He whose body was decorated with a peacock feather, with flowers and colors from the forest, loudly played the bamboo flute. He called for the calves while the horns sounded and the boys sang about His purifying glories. Thus with His comrades entering the pasture grounds [near Vrindāvana] He was a pleasure to the eyes of the gopīs.

With the boys loudly playing together the bamboo flute and the horn beautifully and singing His purifying glories, called He, with His body decorated with a peacock feather and with flowers and colors from the forest, out for the calves while He with His comrades entered the pasture grounds [near Gokula]; it offered the gopīs a feast to their eyes. (Vedabase)

 

Text 48

In Vraja the boys sang: 'Today we have been saved by the son of Yas'odā and Nanda, who killed a great serpent!'

'Today has He, the son of Yas'odā and Nanda, freed us from the great snake by killing it', so sang the boys in Vraja.' (Vedabase)

 

Text 49

The king said: 'Please, oh brahmin, explain how there could be such an unprecedented amount of love for the child of someone else, that Krishna was, a love that even exceeded the love [the gopas and gopīs had] for their own offspring?'

The king said: 'Please explain, o brahmin, how could there be so much unprecedented love for the child of someone else that Krishna was, exceeding even the love [the gopas and gopīs had] for their own offspring?' (Vedabase)

 

Text 50

S'rī S'uka said: 'One's own self is most dear to every living being, oh ruler of man. All the love for others, children, wealth and so on is based on it.

S'rī S'uka said: 'For each living being is in truth, o ruler of man, one's own self the dearmost, the love for others, children, wealth and so on are all based on that. (Vedabase)

 

Text 51

Oh best of kings, the love of embodied beings for their own individual self is therefore not equal to the love they have for that what belongs to them, like sons, wealth, homes and so forth.

Therefore o best of kings, is the love of embodied beings self-centered and unequal to the love for that which belongs to them like sons, wealth, homes and so forth. (Vedabase)

 

Text 52

Persons who speak of the body as being their self [see also ahankāra], oh best of kings, therefore [also] hold their body as most dear and certainly do not attach an equal value to that what [or the other person] they are associated with [see also B.G. 2: 71].

To those persons who factually speak of the body as being themselves [see also ahankāra], o best of kings, is the body just as dear and is thus for sure what is related to it not as dear. [see also B.G. 2: 71] (Vedabase)

 

Text 53

If one considers the body as something that one possesses [though], it consequently will not be as dear as the soul [the true self]. After all, when it grows old the desire to stay alive remains equally strong.

If the body [though] figures as a thing possessed will it as a consequence not be as dear as the soul, for when it grows old remains the desire to stay alive equally strong. (Vedabase)

 

Text 54

[The self of] one's own soul is therefore most dear to all embodied beings. It constitutes in fact the purpose of existence of all the moving and not moving living entities in the universe.

Therefore is for all embodied beings [the self of] one's own soul indeed the most dear, in constituting the factual purpose of existence for the entire universe of the moving and not moving entities. (Vedabase)

 

Text 55

In this you should know Krishna as the Soul of all souls [or the Supersoul]. It is He [that Self] who, by His own potency appearing as a human being, is present on this planet for the benefit of the entire universe.

In this you should know Krishna as being the Complete of the Soul of the living beings who, by His own potency appearing as a human being, is here for the benefit of the entire universe. (Vedabase)


Text 56

They who in this world know Krishna as He really is, understand that the moving and not moving living entities [including inorganic matter] are two different manifestations of the Supreme Lord. He is the Complete Whole, the essence outside of which nothing exists out here [compare B.G. 7: 26].

Those who in this world know Krishna as He really is understand the stationary and moving as being forms of the Supreme Lord, the complete, the essence outside of which nothing at all is found here [compare B.G. 7: 26]. (Vedabase)

 

Text 57

He is the original cause of all in existence, and even the cause of that unmanifest nature [of the unmanifested matter of pradhāna]. Is there anything that can exist apart from Krishna, the Supreme Lord?

The Supreme Lord constitutes for all entities indeed the reason to be, from Him they have their stability; whatever thing could exist separate from Krishna?  (Vedabase)


Text 58

His lotus feet, that are like a boat, the feet that for the entire universe [even for the greatest gods] are the refuge of virtue and merit of Him who is so famous as the enemy of Mura [the demon], constitute for those who seek shelter with them the Supreme Abode. In this place [named Vaikunthha] none of the material miseries are found. With each step taken with them the ocean of material existence is [not more than the water in] a calf's hoof-print [compare 10.1: 5-7 and 10.2: 30].

For those who have taken to the shelter of the lotus buds of the feet that are like a boat, the feet that for the greatest even are the refuge of the supreme piety famed for opposing Mura [the demon], constitute these feet the Supreme Abode [of Vaikunthha] where none of the material miseries are found and is with them, with every step taken, the ocean of material existence [not more than the water in] a calf's hoof-print [compare 10.1: 5-7 and 10.2: 30].  (Vedabase)


Text 59

Everything you asked about what the Lord did at His fifth year, and was declared at His sixth, I have now described to you.

All you've been asking for concerning that what the Lord did in His fifth year and was declared at His sixth, I have now described to you. (Vedabase

 

Text 60

The person who hears or sings about these pastimes of Lord Murāri annihilating Agha, how He with His friends was taking lunch in an open spot in the forest and about the other-worldly [multiple Vishnu] form that He assumed with the selfborn one who so elaborately offers his prayers, will achieve all the [spiritual] ends he desired.' (61) *4

The person who hears or sings these pastimes of Lord Murāri annihilating Agha, how He with His friends was taking lunch in an open spot in the forest, and about the other-worldly [multiple-Vishnu]-form He assumed with the selfborn one who so elaborately offers his prayers, will attain the all-inclusive of his interests [spiritual perfection].' (61) *4 (Vedabase)

  

*: Based upon this verse S'rīla Prabhupāda in the Caitanya-Caritāmrita, Ādi-līlā, chapter two, text 30 states that Krishna is considered the real source of all other expansions of the Vishnu forms and other demigods originating from them: 'Lord Krishna is Nārāyana, the father of Brahmā, because Lord Krishna's plenary expansion Garbhodakas'āyī Vishnu, after placing Himself on the Garbha Ocean, created Brahmā from His own body. Mahā-Vishnu in the Causal Ocean and Kshīrodakas'āyī Vishnu, the Supersoul in everyone's heart, are also transcendental expansions of the Supreme Truth."

**: In his commentary on the Vedanta-sūtra,  S'rīla Madhvācārya quotes the following statement from the Vedic s'ruti-mantras: 'satyam hy evedam vis'vam asrijata'. "This universe, created by the Lord, is real."

***: The 'eleven' pertains to the demigods ruling over the senses of action and perception plus the mind: the Digdevatās rule audition, the Vayus rule the tactile sense, Sūrya rules sight, Varuna rules taste, the As'vinī-kumāras rule the olfactory sense, Agni rules speech, Indra rules the hands, Upendra rules the feet, Mitra rules the defecation, Prajāpati rules the organ of generation and Candra rules the mind. S'iva is the god presiding over ahankāra, false ego.

*4: There is a last verse to this chapter identical to the last one of chapter eleven: verse 10.11: 59.
'The two boys thus passed their childhood in the cow-community with different children's games like playing hide and seek, building dams and jumping around like they were monkeys.'

[translated by the pupils of Prabhupāda as]: 'In this way the boys spent their childhood in the land of Vrindāvana playing hide-and-go-seek, building play bridges, jumping about like monkeys and engaging in many other such games.'
This verse present in the original Sanskrit probably does not belong here. It must have accidentally been transferred from chapter 11 in the process of manual copying through the ages.

*5: Brahmā is in this chapter just like Krishna called the unborn one or aja; not to get confused it is here translated with 'selfborn', svāyam-bhu, another name for Brahmā as the one directly born from Nārāyana, while Krishna, contrary to what it seems in His descending in a material form, factually is the never born primeval source [see also footnote *** to the previous chapter].

 

 

 

 

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The text and audio are offered under the conditions of the
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.
The first painting is titled: "Brahmā Offers Homage to Krishna"
Page from a dispersed series of the Bhagavata Purana (Story of the Lord Vishnu), India.c. 1570-75
Source:
Philadelphia Museum of Art
'The second painting is titled: 'Brahmā Salutes Krishna'.
Folio from a Bhagavata Purana (Ancient Stories of the Lord), India, Delhi region or Rajasthan, South Asia, 1525-1550.
Source:
LACMA
Production:
Filognostic Association of The Order of Time.

 

 

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