CC Madhya 6.151 (1975)
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Below is the 1996 edition text, ready to be substituted with the 1975 one using the compile form.
TEXT 151
- ataeva śruti kahe, brahma—saviśeṣa
- ‘mukhya’ chāḍi’ ‘lakṣaṇā’te māne nirviśeṣa
SYNONYMS
ataeva—therefore; śruti—Vedic mantras; kahe—say; brahma—the Absolute Truth; sa-viśeṣa—personal; mukhya—direct meaning; chāḍi’—giving up; lakṣaṇā’te—by interpretation; māne—accept; nirviśeṣa—impersonal.
TRANSLATION
“All these mantras confirm that the Absolute Truth is personal, but the Māyāvādīs, throwing away the direct meaning, interpret the Absolute Truth as impersonal.
PURPORT
As mentioned above, the Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad (3.19) states:
- apāṇi-pādo javano grahītā
- paśyaty acakṣuḥ sa śṛṇoty akarṇaḥ
- sa vetti vedyaṁ na ca tasyāsti vettā
- tam āhur agryaṁ puruṣaṁ mahāntam
This Vedic mantra clearly states, puruṣaṁ mahāntam. The word puruṣa means “person.” In the Bhagavad-gītā (BG 10.12) Arjuna confirms that this person is Kṛṣṇa when he addresses Kṛṣṇa as puruṣaṁ śāśvatam: “You are the original person.” Thus the puruṣaṁ mahāntam mentioned in the verse from the Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad is Śrī Kṛṣṇa. His hands and legs are not mundane but are completely transcendental. However, when He comes, fools take Him to be an ordinary person (avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam (BG 9.11)). One who has no Vedic knowledge, who has not studied the Vedas from a bona fide spiritual master, does not know Kṛṣṇa. Therefore he is a mūḍha. Such fools take Kṛṣṇa to be an ordinary person (paraṁ bhāvam ajānantaḥ). They do not actually know what Kṛṣṇa is. Manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu kaścid yatati siddhaye (BG 7.3). It is not possible to understand Kṛṣṇa simply by studying the Vedas perfectly. One must have the mercy of a devotee (yat-pādam). Unless one is favored by a devotee, he cannot understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Arjuna also confirms this in the Bhagavad-gītā (BG 10.14): “My Lord, it is very difficult to understand Your personality.” The less intelligent class of men cannot understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead without being favored by His devotee. Therefore the Bhagavad-gītā (BG 4.34) contains another injunction:
- tad viddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā
- upadekṣyanti te jñānaṁ jñāninas tattva-darśinaḥ
One has to approach a bona fide spiritual master and surrender to him. Only then can one understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead as a person.