Leaders must be accepted. Just like father is necessary, similarly, leader is also necessary, guru is also necessary. So according to Vedic verse, Vedic version, we can understand that the supreme leader is Bhagavān, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, God, a person. The conception of Absolute Truth, as given in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate (SB 1.2.11):
"The Absolute Truth is realized from three angles of vision—as the impersonal Brahman, the localized Paramātmā and the Supreme Personality of Godhead." The . . . this Bhagavān, this word, is used at the end in the matter of describing the nature of Absolute Truth.
So those who are trying to understand the Absolute Truth by philosophical speculation, they can reach up to the impersonal Brahman effulgence of the Absolute Truth. Similarly, those who are trying to find out the Absolute Truth within the heart—dhyānāvasthita-tad-gatena manasā paśyanti yaṁ yoginaḥ (SB 12.13.1)—they are generally called yogīs. And the philosophical speculators, they are called jñānīs. So jñānī, yogīs.
So the jñānīs, they reach up to the impersonal Brahman effulgence, and the yogīs, they reach up to the localized aspect of the Supreme Person. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe arjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). Īśvara, the Supreme Person, is within your heart, everyone's heart. Sarva-bhūtānām. Not only human being, but also animals, trees, insects, aquatics. There are 8,400,000 forms of life. So in each and every living entity, within the heart, there is representation of God, who is known as Paramātmā.
So brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate. At last, Bhagavān. Bhaga. Bhaga means opulence, and d means possessing. So the possessor of the opulences in full is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is described in Vedic literature as Kṛṣṇa, "all-attractive." Kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam. There is a list of different incarnation of God. Even Lord Buddha's name is there.
So the con . . . in the conclusive portion it is said, ete cāṁśa-kalāḥ puṁsaḥ kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). All these description of the incarnation, they are plenary portion or portion of the portion of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. But the name we find here as Kṛṣṇa, He is the Supreme. Kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam. Svayam. He is the original Personality of Godhead.
Similarly, we get information from other Vedic literatures, just like Brahmā-saṁhitā. It is written by Lord Brahmā. And when Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu was present on this planet, He collected the copy of this book from South India, Ādi-Keśava Mandira, and presented it to His devotees that, "This is authorized book." There were hundred chapters of this book. Unfortunately, they're missing. This is only the Fifth Chapter. But it contains the essence of theology. So in that book, Brahmā-saṁhitā, the beginning is:
- īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ
- sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ
- anādir ādir govindaḥ
- sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam
- (Bs. 5.1)
The Supreme Person, or Īśvara . . . the word īśvara means controller. So everyone is controller. All of you are present here, to some extent, every one of us is a controller to a limited extent. But here it is mentioned, īśvaraḥ paramaḥ. Parama means ultimate.
We are controller, every one of us, but we are controlled also. That is our position. Nobody can say . . . all the gentlemen, ladies present here, nobody can say that, "I am controller absolute." That is not possible. Everyone is relative controller. But if you try to find out who is the absolute controller, then He's Kṛṣṇa.
That has been analyzed by great scholars in the Vedic śāstras, by the Gosvāmīs, and this is the statement of Lord Brahmā, who's supposed to be the first creature within this universe. So he says, īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ (Bs. 5.1): "Īśvara, the supreme, ultimate controller, is Kṛṣṇa, and He's vigraha." Vigraha means person, with body. Just like we have got body, similarly, the Absolute Supreme Person has also body. But His body is different from ours.
Sac-cit-ānanda-vigraha. His body is eternal. Our body, this material body, is not eternal. Sat cit: His body is full of knowledge. Our this body is full of ignorance. And ānanda: He's full of joyfulness. In the Vedānta-sūtra it is said, ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12): the Supreme Person is always joyful, abhyāsāt, naturally. So our this body is not ānandamaya; it is, rather, always miserable. Therefore we must distinct the body of the Supreme Person from our body.