SB 8.3.8-9

Srimad-Bhagavatam - Eighth Canto - Chapter 3: Gajendra's Prayers of Surrender

SB 8.3.7 - SB 8.3.10

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

TEXTS 8-9

na vidyate yasya ca janma karma vā

na nāma-rūpe guṇa-doṣa eva vā

tathāpi lokāpyaya-sambhavāya yaḥ

sva-māyayā tāny anukālam ṛcchati

tasmai namaḥ pareśāya

brahmaṇe 'nanta-śaktaye

arūpāyoru-rūpāya

nama āścarya-karmaṇe

SYNONYMS

na — not; vidyate — there is; yasya — of whom (the Supreme Personality of Godhead); ca — also; janma — birth; karma — activities; vā — or; na — nor; nāma-rūpe — any material name or material form; guṇa — qualities; doṣaḥ — fault; eva — certainly; vā — either; tathāpi — still; loka — of this cosmic manifestation; apyaya — who is the destruction; sambhavāya — and creation; yaḥ — He who; sva-māyayā — by His own potency; tāni — activities; anukālam — eternally; ṛcchati — accepts; tasmai — unto Him; namaḥ — I offer my obeisances; para — transcendental; īśāya — who is the supreme controller; brahmaṇe — who is the Supreme Brahman (Parabrahman); ananta-śaktaye — with unlimited potency; arūpāya — possessing no material form; uru-rūpāya — possessing various forms as incarnations; namaḥ — I offer my obeisances; āścarya-karmaṇe — whose activities are wonderful.

TRANSLATION

The Supreme Personality of Godhead has no material birth, activities, name, form, qualities or faults. To fulfill the purpose for which this material world is created and destroyed, He comes in the form of a human being like Lord Rāma or Lord Kṛṣṇa by His original internal potency. He has immense potency, and in various forms, all free from material contamination, He acts wonderfully. He is therefore the Supreme Brahman. I offer my respects to Him.

PURPORT

In the Viṣṇu Purāṇa it is said, guṇāṁś ca doṣāṁś ca mune vyatīta samasta-kalyāṇa-guṇātmako hi. The Supreme Personality of Godhead has no material form, qualities or faults. He is spiritual and is the only reservoir of all spiritual qualities. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (BG 4.8) by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām. The Lord's activities of saving the devotees and annihilating the demons are transcendental. Anyone annihilated by the Supreme Personality of Godhead gets the same result as a devotee who is protected by the Lord; both of them are transcendentally promoted. The only difference is that a devotee goes directly to the spiritual planets and becomes an associate of the Supreme Lord, whereas demons are promoted to brahmaloka, the impersonal effulgence of the Lord. Both of them, however, are transcendentally promoted. The Lord's killing or annihilating of the demons is not exactly like the killing of this material world. Although He appears to act within the modes of material nature, He is nirguṇa, above the modes of nature. His name is not material; otherwise how could one get liberation by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Rāma? The names of the Lord like Rāma and Kṛṣṇa are nondifferent from the person Rāma and Kṛṣṇa. Thus by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra one constantly associates with Rāma and Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and therefore becomes liberated. A practical example is Ajāmila, who always remained transcendental to his activities simply by chanting the name Nārāyaṇa. If this was true of Ajāmila, what is to be said of the Supreme Lord? When the Lord comes to this material world, He does not become a product of matter. This is confirmed throughout Bhagavad-gītā (janma-karma ca me divyam (BG 4.9), avajānanti māṁ mūḍhāḥ mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam (BG 9.11)). Therefore, when the Supreme Personality of Godhead—Rāma or Kṛṣṇa—descends to act transcendentally for our benefit, we should not consider Him an ordinary human being. When the Lord comes, He does so on the basis of His spiritual potency (sambhavāmy ātma-māyayā (BG 4.6)). Because He is not forced to come by the material energy, He is always transcendental. One should not consider the Supreme Lord an ordinary human being. Material names and forms are contaminated, but spiritual name and spiritual form are transcendental.

SB 8.3.7 - SB 8.3.10