Five elements means

Expressions researched:
"Five elements means" |"Five elements—means"

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Five elements means the sky, air, then fire, water, and earth.

Lecture on SB 1.3.1-3 -- San Francisco, March 28, 1968: Five elements means the sky, air, then fire, water, and earth. And five senses acquiring knowledge, just like eyes, ear, tongue, smelling. We are acquiring knowledge by these... And working five senses, hands, legs, the genital, and in this way there are five working senses and five knowledge-acquiring senses, and mind is the center.

The five elements means earth, water, fire, air, ether. Other planets are made of the same ingredient, five elements, earth, water, air, fire, and we find innumerable living entities within this planet, and why other planets made of the same ingredient and there is vacant? Why? This is not scientific knowledge.

Lecture on SB 6.1.23 -- Chicago, July 7, 1975: In the Bhagavad-gītā you will find,

yānti deva-vratā devān

pitṟn yānti pitṛ-vratāḥ

bhūtāni yānti bhūtejyā

yānti mad-yājino 'pi mām

[Bg. 9.25]

Now make your choice. There are different planets. These rascals say that only living entities are in this planet, and all planets are vacant. Just see their scientific knowledge. What the other planets have done? It is made of the same ingredient, five elements, earth, water, air, fire, and we find innumerable living entities within this planet, and why other planets made of the same ingredient and there is vacant? Why? This is not scientific knowledge. The other planets are also filled up with living entities. Even in the sun planet. We cannot think... The sun planet is made of fire. How living entities can live there? Yes. Why not? You have to little consider about your rascal senses. What is the fault in the sun planet that there shall be no life? The five elements means earth, water, fire, air, ether. So fire is as good as the earth, one of the elements. Earth, water, fire, air, ether or sky. So we are experiencing that on earth, on the land, there are so many lives. And in the water there are so many lives. In the air there are so many lives. And why not in the fire? What is the reason? You have got some concocted ideas that in fire, nobody can live there. But Bhagavad-gītā says, "No, you can live there."

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures

Whatever we see in this creation, the plants, the trees and living entities, and we are speaking especially of the living entities, and there are 8,400,000 different forms, they are coming from earth. That we can see. It doesn't require great intelligence. Any boy can understand that it is coming out of these five elements—means earth, water...

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.113 -- London, July 23, 1976: Things which are beyond your conception, don't try to understand it by your so-called logic and argument. But one logic, one argument, if we are sincere, then we can accept even by logic and argument, that... That is also stated in śāstra, in Bhagavad-gītā, that Kṛṣṇa says, ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā.

sarva-yoniṣu kaunteya

mūrtayaḥ sambhavanti yāḥ

tāsāṁ brahma mahad yonir

ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā

[Bg. 14.4]

So we find mahad-yoni, mahā-tattva, the material elements, is the mother. Everything is coming out of the womb of the mother. Whatever we see in this creation, the plants, the trees and living entities, and we are speaking especially of the living entities, and there are 8,400,000 different forms, they are coming from earth. That we can see. It doesn't require great intelligence. Any boy can understand that it is coming out of these five elements—means earth, water... The grass is coming out of earth, the fish is coming out of the water. So we have got experiences in two elements. But we have got experience also that living entities coming out of air. So earth, water, air... There are living entities in fire also, but because our knowledge is limited, we do not see. We cannot conceive that in the fire also there can be living entities. And why not? There are five elements, matter. So if earth is producing life, if water is producing life, if air is producing life, why not fire? What is the fault there? Everything is producing life. So the mother produces children. So many children are coming out of the... Tāsāṁ mahad yonir brahma. Yoni, yoni means mother. So the children are there, the mother is there, and where is the father? A commonsense. Is there any mother can produce children without father? Is there any science can prove that a mother without connection with the father has produced child? No. If you say, "I cannot see the father," you do not see your fathers. There are many children nowadays who do not know who is father. But that does not mean there is no father. Common sense. There is father. Similarly, we see so many living entities produced by the mother, material nature—there must be father. And the father personally says, ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā [Bg. 14.4]—"I am the father." So why these rascals, they say that there is no God? There must be God, and He has got inconceivable potencies. Everything is being done by Him. If you say nature is doing, nature is a machine. Nature is not the doer. Mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram [Bg. 9.10].