Out of the twelve authorities of śāstra, Brahmā is the origin, and he has been explained as Svayambhū, Ātma-bhū, like that.
So this is the Supreme Personality's omnipotency. He does not require the help of another woman to beget child. Even Brahmā, he has given birth to so many children, not through woman but from his different parts of the body. So this we cannot conceive, because we are materially impeded. We cannot understand this is possible. So possibility and impossibility does not depend on our understanding. We have to take knowledge from the authority. Here, in the Vedic literature, we understand that Brahmā was born directly from the father. So we have to accept it. That is called Vedic knowledge. You cannot argue. That is possible. That is omnipotency. All potencies are there.
So Brahmā was approached by the earth, mother earth. She felt overburdened by the sinful activities of the demons. So Brahmā approaches Nārāyaṇa, er, Viṣṇu. Not directly he can see, but he can stand on the bank of the ocean of milk, and from there he can submit his petition. And Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu gives His order. So once upon a time, when the whole world was overburdened—this is the history of Kṛṣṇa's birth—so the earthly planet approached Brahmā to appeal to Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu to have His incarnation to diminish the burden of the world. The world is, of course, it is very heavy. We can understand there are so many oceans and so many big, big hills, besides your skyscraper building, and certainly the whole lump of matter is very heavy. But not only this planet, but many other planets, even the sun planet. It is heavier by fourteen hundred thousand times. Still, they are floating in the air by . . . why? Because Kṛṣṇa enters in each of them.
In each of them . . . gām āviśya . . . dhārayāmy aham ojasā (BG 15.13), Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, that "I enter into each planetary system, each universe, and by My power I hold it. It is floating." Why it is floating? Because Kṛṣṇa is there. The atheist may not believe it, but it is a fact. It is a fact. How? Just like an animal or a man, while he is living, he can float in the air or in the water. That everyone has seen. But if the man is dead, it will not float; it will fall down. Is it not a fact? So why it is floating? Because a very small particle of Kṛṣṇa's spiritual potency is there. That is living entity. Big, big . . . an elephant, he can also float in the water, and the horses, elephant, and what to speak of man? This is practical. Because a small particle of the Supreme is there within this body . . . dehino 'smin yathā dehe (BG 2.13). Very small particle. How much small? One ten-thousandth part of the top of the hair. So small. It has got so power that it can hold the whole body floating in the air. Air . . . there are very, very big, big birds, they are floating in the air—very, very big eagle. They fly from one planet to another. Their resting place is . . . they start from one planet, and they go and rest in other planet. And they lay their eggs while flying. That eggs also become a bird simply by air cohesion. That's all.
Devotee: Friction.
Prabhupāda: Friction, yes. So there are so, so big, big arrangement in the kingdom of God. So it is not very difficult for Him to give birth to Brahmā or to float this whole universe or the planets in the air. We shall have to apply our intelligence by comparative study. So if it is possible to float a big body . . . there are many big bodies. The whale fish, it is as big as a ship—still, it is floating. Why? That small particle of spiritual entity is there, therefore it is floating. Then, if the Supreme Person enters into a big lump of matter, why it will not float? What is the reason? At least I try to understand in this way. Am I wrong or right? What is your opinion? Eh? (chuckles) No, it is . . .
So this is called faith. This is called faith. Unless you have got faith, you cannot understand what is Kṛṣṇa. Ādau śraddhā. Śraddhā: "Yes, Kṛṣṇa can make anything possible." That faith we must maintain. That is the basic. That has been explained by Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī, what is faith. Faith means complete conviction. Śraddhā-śabde viśvāsa kahe sudṛḍha niścaya (CC Madhya 22.62). That is faith. Viśvāsa. If I say something, and if you believe cent percent, that is called faith. That is called faith. Not that, "It may be," or not. No. So śraddhā-śabde viśvāsa. Viśvāsa means faith. How? What kind of faith? Sudṛḍha niścaya: firm faith, without any doubt. Niścaya. And what is that faith? Kṛṣṇe bhakti kaile sarva-karma kṛta haya. If one is surrendered to Kṛṣṇa, then his all duty is done, finished. He has nothing to do. Na tasya kāryaṁ karaṇaṁ ca vidyate (Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 6.8). As Kṛṣṇa has nothing to do—He has got so much potency that things are done very automatically—similarly, if you faith, have faith in Kṛṣṇa, kṛṣṇe bhakti kaile sarva-karma, then everything will be done automatically. Kṛṣṇa will do for him. So what is the difficulty there?
So this big, big lump of matter, earthly planet, they are actually not heavy, but it becomes heavier when there are demons. Demons means material activities. If there is spiritual activity, it remains very light. And if there is too much material activity and materialistic person, it become heavier and troublesome. So such time became possible, and therefore the earthly planet went to Brahmā to appeal to Viṣṇu to take His incarnation. So somebody said that bhārāvatāra . . . tāraṇāya, avatāraṇāya, to diminish the burden. Burden. Just like a bad son is a burden of the father. This has been explained by Cāṇakya Paṇḍita, that a stupid son . . . ko 'rthaḥ putreṇa jātena yo na vidvān na bhaktimān: "What is the use of getting a son who is neither learned nor a devotee? Useless." Ko 'rthaḥ putreṇa jātena: "Such kind of son, what is the use?" The son who is not a devotee . . . two things are required: the son should be a devotee or a learned. Without being learned, nobody can become devotee. If one becomes devotee, he's learned also. But sometimes materially learned, not devotee, it happens. So if one is neither learned nor devotee, what is the use of such son? The example is given, kāṇena cakṣuṣā kiṁ cakṣuḥ pīḍaiva kevalam: "If you have got one eye, cataract, you cannot see, but it is always troublesome." Unless you get it operated, it is simply troublesome. In many places it is said, Cāṇakya Paṇḍita, ko 'rthaḥ putreṇa jātena. Varam eko guṇī putro na ca mūrkha-śatair api: "If you get one son very qualified, that is preferred. What is the use of having many sons and all of them are rascals and fools?" Na ca mūrkha-śatair api.
So as a father becomes perplexed when there are rascal sons, similarly, when there are increase of rascal population the world becomes overburdened. Therefore it is called . . . it is said in the Bhagavad-gītā, varṇa-saṅkara. Varṇa-saṅkara. Now the whole world is practically full of varṇa-saṅkara. First of all, there is no division of varṇas. Cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ (BG 4.13). According to quality, it can be done. But people are not interested. They want hodge-podge. Therefore they are suffering. They cannot systematically do anything. So when the system of varṇa and āśrama is destroyed . . . just like in Western countries there is no such thing as varṇa and āśrama. Therefore the varṇa-saṅkara, the hippies . . . that is varṇa-saṅkara. The varṇa-saṅkara . . . in the Bhagavad-gītā . . . if the varṇa-saṅkara increases, strīṣu duṣṭāsu varṇa-saṅkaro vibhavate. When women become polluted, no fixed-up husband—that is pollution for a woman; no chaste, no chastity—then this varṇa-saṅkara will come out. And when the world is overpopulated by varṇa-saṅkara, it will become a burden. Therefore it so became, atheist, varṇa-saṅkara, demons. So it was unbearable by the earthly planet. And it is said, yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati bhārata, tadātmānaṁ sṛjāmy ahamv (BG 4.7). Therefore mother earth went to appeal, "Please come and save me. I am very much overburdened." Therefore it is said, bhārāvatāraṇāya: "diminish."
So five thousand years ago Kṛṣṇa came to kill some of the demons. Not all of them were demons. But next time when Kṛṣṇa will come, it will be only demons. Only demons. Kalki avatāra. What is that stotra? Keśava dhṛta-kalki-śarīra jaya jagadīśa hare. So at that time Kṛṣṇa will not preach Bhagavad-gītā. Kalki avatāra will simply come to cut the throat only. That will be the preaching. That will be preaching. Mleccha-nivaha-nidhane kalayasi karavālam (Daśāvatāra Stotra 10), karālam. Karālam means death personified. Mleccha-nidhane. Mleccha means meat-eaters. Those who are meat-eaters, fish-eaters, they are mlecchas. Mleccha-yavana, they are called, according to Vedic . . . so people are becoming meat-eaters nowadays. I have . . . there is no secrecy. Formerly, at least in India, the meat-eaters used to eat meat very secretly. We had seen in our childhood, if somebody will meat-eat, it was not allowed within the house. They, formerly, rich men, they used to keep Muslim servants as the caretaker of the horse or the carriage driver. So in the astabal (horse stable) they would secretly cook some meat, and the so-called Babu, zamindar, will eat. It was not allowed. And those who are not rich men—poor men, śūdra class—they would go to Kālī-ghāṭa and get one goat, sacrifice there, and cook there and eat, then come back. Meat-eating was not at all allowed. The higher caste, especially the brāhmaṇas, they would never touch. Still in some provinces, in Maharashtra provinces, in Madras . . . of course, they are now taking.