Gross material body

Expressions researched:
"Gross Material Bodies" |"Gross Material Body" |"This gross body is material nature" |"gross and subtle material bodies" |"gross and subtle material body" |"gross body made of material elements" |"material gross and subtle bodies" |"material gross and subtle body" |"material gross body"

BG Chapters 1 - 6

BG 1.41, Purport:

According to the rules and regulations of fruitive activities, there is a need to offer periodical food and water to the forefathers of the family. This offering is performed by worship of Viṣṇu, because eating the remnants of food offered to Viṣṇu can deliver one from all kinds of sinful actions. Sometimes the forefathers may be suffering from various types of sinful reactions, and sometimes some of them cannot even acquire a gross material body and are forced to remain in subtle bodies as ghosts. Thus, when remnants of prasādam food are offered to forefathers by descendants, the forefathers are released from ghostly or other kinds of miserable life. Such help rendered to forefathers is a family tradition, and those who are not in devotional life are required to perform such rituals. One who is engaged in the devotional life is not required to perform such actions. Simply by performing devotional service, one can deliver hundreds and thousands of forefathers from all kinds of misery. It is stated in the Bhāgavatam (11.5.41):

BG 2.1, Purport:

Material compassion, lamentation and tears are all signs of ignorance of the real self. Compassion for the eternal soul is self-realization. The word "Madhusūdana" is significant in this verse. Lord Kṛṣṇa killed the demon Madhu, and now Arjuna wanted Kṛṣṇa to kill the demon of misunderstanding that had overtaken him in the discharge of his duty. No one knows where compassion should be applied. Compassion for the dress of a drowning man is senseless. A man fallen in the ocean of nescience cannot be saved simply by rescuing his outward dress—the gross material body. One who does not know this and laments for the outward dress is called a śūdra, or one who laments unnecessarily. Arjuna was a kṣatriya, and this conduct was not expected from him. Lord Kṛṣṇa, however, can dissipate the lamentation of the ignorant man, and for this purpose the Bhagavad-gītā was sung by Him. This chapter instructs us in self-realization by an analytical study of the material body and the spirit soul, as explained by the supreme authority, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. This realization is possible when one works without attachment to fruitive results and is situated in the fixed conception of the real self.

SB Canto 1

SB 1.2.8, Purport:

There are different occupational activities in terms of man's different conceptions of life. To the gross materialist who cannot see anything beyond the gross material body, there is nothing beyond the senses. Therefore his occupational activities are limited to concentrated and extended selfishness. Concentrated selfishness centers around the personal body—this is generally seen amongst the lower animals. Extended selfishness is manifested in human society and centers around the family, society, community, nation and world with a view to gross bodily comfort. Above these gross materialists are the mental speculators who hover aloft in the mental spheres, and their occupational duties involve making poetry and philosophy or propagating some ism with the same aim of selfishness limited to the body and the mind. But above the body and mind is the dormant spirit soul whose absence from the body makes the whole range of bodily and mental selfishness completely null and void. But less intelligent people have no information of the needs of the spirit soul.

Because foolish people have no information of the soul and how it is beyond the purview of the body and mind, they are not satisfied in the performance of their occupational duties. The question of the satisfaction of the self is raised herein. The self is beyond the gross body and subtle mind. He is the potent active principle of the body and mind. Without knowing the need of the dormant soul, one cannot be happy simply with emolument of the body and mind. The body and the mind are but superfluous outer coverings of the spirit soul. The spirit soul's needs must be fulfilled. Simply by cleansing the cage of the bird, one does not satisfy the bird. One must actually know the needs of the bird himself.

SB 1.2.33, Purport:

There are 8,400,000 species of living beings beginning from the highest intellectual being, Brahmā, down to the insignificant ant, and all of them are enjoying the material world according to the desires of the subtle mind and gross material body. The gross material body is based on the conditions of the subtle mind, and the senses are created according to the desire of the living being. The Lord as Paramātmā helps the living being to get material happiness because the living being is helpless in all respects in obtaining what he desires. He proposes, and the Lord disposes. In another sense, the living beings are parts and parcels of the Lord. They are therefore one with the Lord. In the Bhagavad-gītā the living beings in all varieties of bodies have been claimed by the Lord as His sons. The sufferings and enjoyments of the sons are indirectly the sufferings and enjoyments of the father. Still the father is not in any way affected directly by the suffering and enjoyment of the sons. He is so kind that He constantly remains with the living being as Paramātmā and always tries to convert the living being towards the real happiness.

SB 1.13.46, Translation:

This gross material body made of five elements is already under the control of eternal time (kāla), action (karma) and the modes of material nature (guṇa). How, then, can it, being already in the jaws of the serpent, protect others?

SB Canto 2

SB 2.2.23, Purport:

The materialistic scientist's endeavor to reach other planets by mechanical vehicles is only a futile attempt. One can, however, reach heavenly planets by virtuous activities, but one can never expect to go beyond Svarga or Janaloka by such mechanical or materialistic activities, either gross or subtle. The transcendentalists who have nothing to do with the gross material body can move anywhere within or beyond the material worlds. Within the material worlds they move in the planetary systems of the Mahar-, Janas-, Tapas- and Satya-loka, and beyond the material worlds they can move in the Vaikuṇṭhas as unrestricted spacemen. Nārada Muni is one of the examples of such spacemen, and Durvāsā Muni is one of such mystics. By the strength of devotional service, austerities, mystic powers and transcendental knowledge, everyone can move like Nārada Muni or Durvāsā Muni. It is said that Durvāsā Muni traveled throughout the entirety of material space and part of spiritual space within one year only. The speed of the transcendentalists can never be attained by the gross or subtle materialists.

SB 2.2.28, Purport:

According to Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, all the universes are clustered together up and down, and each and every one of them is separately sevenfold-covered. The watery portion is beyond the sevenfold coverings, and each covering is ten times more expansive than the previous covering. The Personality of Godhead who creates all such universes by His breathing period lies above the cluster of the universes. The water of the Causal Ocean is differently situated than the covering water of the universe. The water that serves as covering for the universe is material, whereas the water of the Causal Ocean is spiritual. As such, the watery covering mentioned herein is considered to be the false egoistic covering of all living entities, and the gradual process of liberation from the material coverings, one after another, as mentioned herein, is the gradual process of being liberated from false egoistic conceptions of the material gross body, and then being absorbed in the identification of the subtle body till the attainment of the pure spiritual body in the absolute realm of the kingdom of God.

SB 2.3.1, Purport:

In human society all over the world there are millions and billions of men and women, and almost all of them are less intelligent because they have very little knowledge of spirit soul. Almost all of them have a wrong conception of life, for they identify themselves with the gross and subtle material bodies, which they are not, in fact. They may be situated in different high and low positions in the estimation of human society, but one should know definitely that unless one inquires about his own self beyond the body and the mind, all his activities in human life are total failures. Therefore out of thousands and thousands of men, one may inquire about his spirit self and thus consult the revealed scriptures like Vedānta-sūtras, Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. But in spite of reading and hearing such scriptures, unless one is in touch with a realized spiritual master, he cannot actually realize the real nature of self, etc. And out of thousands and hundreds of thousands of men, someone may know what Lord Kṛṣṇa is in fact. In the Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya 20.122-123) it is said that Lord Kṛṣṇa, out of His causeless mercy, prepared the Vedic literatures in the incarnation of Vyāsadeva for reading by the intelligent class of men in a human society which is almost totally forgetful of the genuine relation with Kṛṣṇa. Even such an intelligent class of men may be forgetful in their relation with the Lord. The whole bhakti-yoga process is therefore a revival of the lost relation. This revival is possible in the human form of life, which is obtained only out of the evolutionary cycle of 8,400,000 species of life. The intelligent class of human being must take a serious note of this opportunity. Not all human beings are intelligent, so the importance of human life is not always understood. Therefore manīṣiṇām, meaning "thoughtful," is particularly used here.

SB 2.8.20, Purport:

Lord Śiva is the greatest yogī, and he can perform such wonderful things, far beyond the ordinary living beings. The devotees of the Lord, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, do not directly practice the process of mystic powers, but, by the grace of the Lord, His devotee can defeat even a great yogeśvara like Durvāsā Muni, who picked a quarrel with Mahārāja Ambarīṣa and wanted to show the wonderful achievements of his mystic powers. Mahārāja Ambarīṣa was a pure devotee of the Lord, and thus without any effort on his part the Lord saved him from the wrath of Yogeśvara Durvāsā Muni, and the latter was obliged to beg pardon from the King. Similarly, at the time of Draupadī's precarious position, when she was attacked by the Kurus who wanted to see her naked in the open assembly of the royal order, the Lord saved her from being stripped by supplying an unlimited length of sari to cover her. And Draupadī knew nothing of mystic powers. Therefore the devotees are also yogeśvaras by the unlimited power of the Lord, just as a child is powerful by the strength of the parents. They do not try to protect themselves by any artificial means, but are saved by the mercy of the parents.

Mahārāja Parīkṣit inquired from the learned brāhmaṇa Śukadeva Gosvāmī about the ultimate destination of such great mystics or how they attain such extraordinary powers by their own efforts or by the grace of the Lord. He inquired also about their detachment from the subtle and gross material bodies. He inquired also about the purports of the Vedic knowledge. As stated in the Bhagavad-gītā (15.15), the whole purport of all the Vedas is to know the Supreme Personality of Godhead and thus become a transcendental loving servant of the Lord.

SB 2.10.6, Translation:

The merging of the living entity, along with his conditional living tendency, with the mystic lying down of the Mahā-Viṣṇu is called the winding up of the cosmic manifestation. Liberation is the permanent situation of the form of the living entity after he gives up the changeable gross and subtle material bodies.

SB 2.10.6, Purport:

One facility is that the conditioned soul can act according to his tendency to lord it over the cosmic manifestation, and the other facility gives the conditioned soul a chance to come back to Godhead. So after the winding up of the cosmic manifestation, most of the conditioned souls merge into the existence of the Mahā-Viṣṇu Personality of Godhead, lying in His mystic slumber, to be created again in the next creation. But some of the conditioned souls, who follow the transcendental sound in the form of Vedic literatures and are thus able to go back to Godhead, attain spiritual and original bodies after quitting the conditional gross and subtle material bodies. The material conditional bodies develop out of the living entities' forgetfulness of their relationship with Godhead, and during the course of the cosmic manifestation, the conditioned souls are given a chance to revive their original status of life with the help of revealed scriptures, so mercifully compiled by the Lord in His different incarnations. Reading or hearing of such transcendental literatures helps one become liberated even in the conditional state of material existence. All the Vedic literatures aim at devotional service to the Personality of Godhead, and as soon as one is fixed upon this point, he at once becomes liberated from conditional life. The material gross and subtle forms are simply due to the conditioned soul's ignorance and as soon as he is fixed in the devotional service of the Lord, he becomes eligible to be freed from the conditioned state. This devotional service is transcendental attraction for the Supreme on account of His being the source of all pleasing humors. Everyone is after some pleasure of humor for enjoyment, but does not know the supreme source of all attraction (raso vai saḥ rasaṁ hy evāyaṁ labdhvānandī bhavati). The Vedic hymns inform everyone about the supreme source of all pleasure; the unlimited fountainhead of all pleasure is the Personality of Godhead, and one who is fortunate enough to get this information through transcendental literatures like Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam becomes permanently liberated to occupy his proper place in the kingdom of God.

SB Canto 3

SB 3.27.28-29, Purport:

The words liṅgād vinirgame, which are used here, mean "after being freed from the two kinds of material bodies, subtle and gross." The subtle body is made of mind, intelligence, false ego and contaminated consciousness, and the gross body is made of five elements—earth, water, fire, air and ether. When one is transferred to the spiritual world, he gives up both the subtle and gross bodies of this material world. He enters the spiritual sky in his pure, spiritual body and is stationed in one of the spiritual planets. Although the impersonalists also reach that spiritual sky after giving up the subtle and gross material bodies, they are not placed in the spiritual planets; as they desire, they are allowed to merge in the spiritual effulgence emanating from the transcendental body of the Lord. The word sva-saṁsthānam is also very significant. As a living entity prepares himself, so he attains his abode. The impersonal Brahman effulgence is offered to the impersonalists, but those who want to associate with the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His transcendental form as Nārāyaṇa in the Vaikuṇṭhas, or with Kṛṣṇa in Kṛṣṇaloka, go to those abodes, wherefrom they never return.

SB 3.31.41, Purport:

If someone is too attached to his wife, naturally he thinks of his wife at the time of death, and in his next life he takes the body of a woman. Similarly, if a woman thinks of her husband at the time of death, naturally she gets the body of a man in the next life. In the Hindu scriptures, therefore, woman's chastity and devotion to man is greatly emphasized. A woman's attachment to her husband may elevate her to the body of a man in her next life, but a man's attachment to a woman will degrade him, and in his next life he will get the body of a woman. We should always remember, as it is stated in Bhagavad-gītā, that both the gross and subtle material bodies are dresses; they are the shirt and coat of the living entity. To be either a woman or a man only involves one's bodily dress. The soul in nature is actually the marginal energy of the Supreme Lord. Every living entity, being classified as energy, is supposed to be originally a woman, or one who is enjoyed. In the body of a man there is a greater opportunity to get out of the material clutches; there is less opportunity in the body of a woman. In this verse it is indicated that the body of a man should not be misused through forming an attachment to women and thus becoming too entangled in material enjoyment, which will result in getting the body of a woman in the next life. A woman is generally fond of household prosperity, ornaments, furniture and dresses. She is satisfied when the husband supplies all these things sufficiently. The relationship between man and woman is very complicated, but the substance is that one who aspires to ascend to the transcendental stage of spiritual realization should be very careful in accepting the association of a woman. In the stage of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, however, such restriction of association may be slackened because if a man's and woman's attachment is not to each other but to Kṛṣṇa, then both of them are equally eligible to get out of the material entanglement and reach the abode of Kṛṣṇa. As it is confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā, anyone who seriously takes to Kṛṣṇa consciousness—whether in the lowest species of life or a woman or of the less intelligent classes, such as the mercantile or laborer class—will go back home, back to Godhead, and reach the abode of Kṛṣṇa.

SB 3.32.28, Purport:

The formless Brahman conception, however, can be received only by aural reception and not by personal experience. Knowledge is therefore acquired by aural reception. It is confirmed in the Vedānta-sūtra, śāstra-yonitvāt: one has to acquire pure knowledge from the authorized scriptures. So-called speculative arguments about the Absolute Truth are therefore useless. The actual identity of the living entity is his consciousness, which is always present while the living entity is awake, dreaming or in deep sleep. Even in deep sleep, he can perceive by consciousness whether he is happy or distressed. Thus when consciousness is displayed through the medium of the subtle and gross material bodies, it is covered, but when the consciousness is purified, in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, one becomes free from the entanglement of repeated birth and death.

When uncontaminated pure knowledge is uncovered from the modes of material nature, the actual identity of the living entity is discovered: he is eternally a servitor of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The process of uncovering is like this: the rays of sunshine are luminous, and the sun itself is also luminous. In the presence of the sun, the rays illuminate just like the sun, but when the sunshine is covered by the spell of a cloud, or by māyā, then darkness, the imperfection of perception, begins. Therefore, to get out of the entanglement of the spell of nescience, one has to awaken his spiritual consciousness, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, in terms of the authorized scriptures.

SB Canto 4

SB 4.18.18, Purport:

In Bhagavad-gītā (9.25) it is said, pitṟn yānti pitṛ-vratāḥ. Those who are interested in family welfare are called pitṛ-vratāḥ. There is a planet called Pitṛloka, and the predominating deity of that planet is called Aryamā. He is somewhat of a demigod, and by satisfying him one can help ghostly family members develop a gross body. Those who are very sinful and attached to their family, house, village or country do not receive a gross body made of material elements but remain in a subtle body, composed of mind, ego and intelligence. Those who live in such subtle bodies are called ghosts. This ghostly position is very painful because a ghost has intelligence, mind and ego and wants to enjoy material life, but because he doesn't have a gross material body, he can only create disturbances for want of material satisfaction. It is the duty of family members, especially the son, to offer oblations to the demigod Aryamā or to Lord Viṣṇu. From time immemorial in India the son of a dead man goes to Gayā and, at a Viṣṇu temple there, offers oblations for the benefit of his ghostly father. It is not that everyone's father becomes a ghost, but the oblations of piṇḍa are offered to the lotus feet of Lord Viṣṇu so that if a family member happens to become a ghost, he will be favored with a gross body. However, if one is habituated to taking the prasāda of Lord Viṣṇu, there is no chance of his becoming a ghost or anything lower than a human being. In Vedic civilization there is a performance called śrāddha by which food is offered with faith and devotion. If one offers oblations with faith and devotion—either to the lotus feet of Lord Viṣṇu or to His representative in Pitṛloka, Aryamā—one's forefathers will attain material bodies to enjoy whatever material enjoyment is due them. In other words, they do not have to become ghosts.

SB 4.22.37, Translation:

Sanat-kumāra advised the King: Therefore, my dear King Pṛthu, try to understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is living within everyone's heart along with the individual soul, in each and every body, either moving or not moving. The individual souls are fully covered by the gross material body and subtle body made of the life air and intelligence.

SB 4.24.35, Purport:

The whole universe is maintained by the integrating power of the Supreme Lord, who is known in that capacity by the name Saṅkarṣaṇa. The material scientists may have discovered the law of gravity, which maintains the integration of objects within the material energy, yet the master of all integration can create devastation by the disintegrating blazing fire emanating from His mouth. A description of this can be found in the Eleventh Chapter of Bhagavad-gītā, wherein the universal form of the Lord is described. The master of integration is also the destroyer of this world by virtue of His disintegrating energy. Saṅkarṣaṇa is the master of integration and disintegration, whereas Pradyumna, another feature of Lord Vāsudeva, is responsible for universal growth and maintenance. The word sūkṣmāya is significant because within this gross material body there are subtle material bodies—namely mind, intelligence and ego. The Lord in His different features (Vāsudeva, Aniruddha, Pradyumna and Saṅkarṣaṇa) maintains both the gross and subtle material elements of this world. As mentioned in Bhagavad-gītā, the gross material elements are earth, water, fire, air and ether, and the subtle material elements are mind, intelligence and ego. All of them are controlled by the Supreme Personality of Godhead as Vāsudeva, Saṅkarṣaṇa, Pradyumna and Aniruddha, and this will be further explained in the following verse.

SB 4.26.10, Purport:

At present the whole world is on the verge of retiring from a blind materialistic civilization, which may be likened to hunting animals in the forest. People should take advantage of this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement and leave their troublesome life of killing. It is said that the killers of animals should neither live nor die. If they live only to kill animals and enjoy women, life is not very prosperous. And as soon as a killer dies, he enters the cycle of birth and death in the lower species of life. That also is not desirable. The conclusion is that killers should retire from the killing business and take to this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement to make life perfect. A confused, frustrated man cannot get relief by committing suicide because suicide will simply lead him to take birth in the lower species of life or to remain a ghost, unable to attain a gross material body. Therefore the perfect course is to retire altogether from sinful activities and take up Kṛṣṇa consciousness. In this way one can become completely perfect and go back home, back to Godhead.

SB 4.28.23, Purport:

This is confirmed in the Vedas. When the living entity is taken away or arrested by Yamarāja (tam utkrāmantam), the life air also goes with him (prāṇo 'nūtkrāmati), and when the life air is gone (prāṇam anūtkrāmantam), all the senses (sarve prāṇāḥ) also go along (anūtkrāmanti). When the living entity and the life air are gone, the lump of matter produced of five elements—earth, water, air, fire and ether—is rejected and left behind. The living entity then goes to the court of judgment, and Yamarāja decides what kind of body he is going to get next. This process is unknown to modern scientists. Every living entity is responsible for his activities in this life, and after death he is taken to the court of Yamarāja, where it is decided what kind of body he will take next. Although the gross material body is left, the living entity and his desires, as well as the resultant reactions of his past activities, go on. It is Yamarāja who decides what kind of body one gets next in accordance with one's past actions.

SB 4.29.6, Purport:

Because of his desire to enjoy the material world, the living entity is dressed with the material gross and subtle bodies. Thus he is given a chance to enjoy the senses. The senses are therefore the instruments for enjoying the material world; consequently the senses have been described as friends. Sometimes, because of too much sinful activity, the living entity does not get a material gross body, but hovers on the subtle platform. This is called ghostly life. Because of his not possessing a gross body, he creates a great deal of trouble in his subtle body. Thus the presence of a ghost is horrible for those who are living in the gross body. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (15.10):

utkrāmantaṁ sthitaṁ vāpi

bhuñjānaṁ vā guṇānvitam

vimūḍhā nānupaśyanti

paśyanti jñāna-cakṣuṣaḥ

"The foolish cannot understand how a living entity can quit his body, nor can they understand what sort of body he enjoys under the spell of the modes of nature. But one whose eyes are trained in knowledge can see all this."

SB 4.29.70, Purport:

The desires in the subtle body of mind, intelligence and ego cannot be fulfilled without a gross body composed of the material elements earth, water, air, fire and ether. When the gross material body is not manifest, the living entity cannot factually act in the modes of material nature. In this verse it is clearly explained that the subtle activities of the mind and intelligence continue due to the sufferings and enjoyments of the living entity's subtle body. The consciousness of material identification (such as "I" and "mine") still continues because such consciousness has been extant from time immemorial. However, when one transfers to the spiritual world by virtue of understanding Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the actions and reactions of both gross and subtle bodies no longer bother the spirit soul.

SB Canto 6

SB 6.1.55, Purport:

The word prakṛti means material nature, and puruṣa may also refer to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. If one wants to continue his association with prakṛti, the female energy of Kṛṣṇa, and be separated from Kṛṣṇa by the illusion that he is able to enjoy prakṛti, he must continue in his conditional life. If he changes his consciousness, however, and associates with the supreme, original person (puruṣaṁ śāśvatam), or with His associates, he can get out of the entanglement of material nature. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (4.9), janma karma ca me divyam evaṁ yo vetti tattvataḥ: one must simply understand the Supreme Person, Kṛṣṇa, in terms of His form, name, activities and pastimes. This will keep one always in the association of Kṛṣṇa. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti so'rjuna: thus after giving up his gross material body, one accepts not another gross body but a spiritual body in which to return home, back to Godhead. Thus one ends the tribulation caused by his association with the material energy. In summary, the living entity is an eternal servant of God, but he comes to the material world and is bound by material conditions because of his desire to lord it over matter. Liberation means giving up this false consciousness and reviving one's original service to the Lord. This return to one's original life is called mukti, as confirmed in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (muktir hitvānyathā rūpaṁ svarūpeṇa vyavasthitiḥ (SB 2.10.6)).

SB 6.10.11, Translation:

Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: Dadhīci Muni, the son of Atharvā, thus resolved to give his body to the service of the demigods. He placed himself, the spirit soul, at the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and in this way gave up his gross material body made of five elements.

SB 6.10.11, Purport:

As indicated by the words pare bhagavati brahmaṇy ātmānaṁ sannayan, Dadhīci placed himself, as spirit soul, at the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In this regard, one may refer to the incident of Dhṛtarāṣṭra's leaving his body, as described in the First Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.13.55). Dhṛtarāṣṭra analytically divided his gross material body into the five different elements of which it was made—earth, water, fire, air and ether—and distributed them to the different reservoirs of these elements; in other words, he merged these five elements into the original mahat-tattva. By identifying his material conception of life, he gradually separated his spirit soul from material connections and placed himself at the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The example given in this connection is that when an earthen pot is broken, the small portion of the sky within the pot is united with the large sky outside the pot. Māyāvādī philosophers misunderstand this description of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Therefore Śrī Rāmānuja Svāmī, in his book Vedānta-tattva-sāra, has described that this merging of the soul means that after separating himself from the material body made of eight elements—earth, water, fire, air, ether, false ego, mind and intelligence—the individual soul engages himself in devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His eternal form (īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ/ anādir ādir govindaḥ sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam (Bs. 5.1)). The material cause of the material elements absorbs the material body, and the spiritual soul assumes its original position. As described by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, jīvera 'svarūpa' haya-kṛṣṇera 'nitya-dāsa': (CC Madhya 20.108) the constitutional position of the living entity is that he is the eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa. When one overcomes the material body through cultivation of spiritual knowledge and devotional service, one can revive his own position and thus engage in the service of the Lord.

SB 6.17 Summary:

The Supreme Personality of Godhead is the ultimate controller because the material world is created, maintained and annihilated under His control while He nonetheless remains neutral to these different transformations of the material world in time and space. The material, external energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is in charge of this material world. The Lord helps the world by creating situations for the living entities within it."

When Citraketu spoke in this way, all the members in the great assembly in which Lord Śiva and Pārvatī were present were astonished. Then Lord Śiva began speaking about the devotees of the Lord. A devotee is neutral in all conditions of life, whether in the heavenly planets or hellish planets, whether liberated from the material world or conditioned by it, and whether blessed with happiness or subjected to distress. These are all merely dualities created by the external energy. Being influenced by the external energy, the living entity accepts a gross and subtle material body, and in this illusory position he apparently suffers miseries, although everyone is part and parcel of the Supreme Lord. The so-called demigods consider themselves independent lords, and in this way they are misled from understanding that all living entities are part of the Supreme. This chapter concludes by glorifying the devotee and the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

SB Canto 7

SB 7.2.41, Translation:

Every conditioned soul receives a different type of body according to his work, and when the engagement is finished the body is finished. Although the spirit soul is situated in subtle and gross material bodies in different forms of life, he is not bound by them, for he is always understood to be completely different from the manifested body.

SB 7.3.33, Purport:

It is said that the Absolute Truth appears in three features—namely, impersonal Brahman, localized Supersoul and ultimately the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa. The cosmic manifestation is the gross material body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who enjoys the taste of the material mellows by expanding His parts and parcels, the living entities, who are qualitatively one with Him. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, however, is situated in the Vaikuṇṭha planets, where He enjoys the spiritual mellows. Therefore the one Absolute Truth, Bhagavān, pervades all by His material cosmic manifestation, the spiritual Brahman effulgence, and His personal existence as the Supreme Lord.

SB Canto 8

SB 8.3.22-24, Translation:

The Supreme Personality of Godhead creates His minor parts and parcels, the jīva-tattva, beginning with Lord Brahmā, the demigods and the expansions of Vedic knowledge (Sāma, Ṛg, Yajur and Atharva) and including all other living entities, moving and nonmoving, with their different names and characteristics. As the sparks of a fire or the shining rays of the sun emanate from their source and merge into it again and again, the mind, the intelligence, the senses, the gross and subtle material bodies, and the continuous transformations of the different modes of nature all emanate from the Lord and again merge into Him. He is neither demigod nor demon, neither human nor bird or beast. He is not woman, man, or neuter, nor is He an animal. He is not a material quality, a fruitive activity, a manifestation or nonmanifestation. He is the last word in the discrimination of "not this, not this," and He is unlimited. All glories to the Supreme Personality of Godhead!

SB Canto 9

SB 9.6.54, Purport:

At the time of death, fire burns the gross body, and if there is no more desire for material enjoyment the subtle body is also ended, and in this way a pure soul remains. This is confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti (BG 4.9)). If one is free from the bondage of both the gross and subtle material bodies and remains a pure soul, he returns home, back to Godhead, to be engaged in the service of the Lord. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti: he goes back home, back to Godhead. Thus it appears that Saubhari Muni attained that perfect stage.

SB 9.13.11, Purport:

The demigods wanted Mahārāja Nimi to come to life, but Mahārāja Nimi did not want to accept another material body. Under the circumstances, the demigods, having been requested by the saintly persons, gave him the benediction that he would be able to stay in his spiritual body. There are two kinds of spiritual bodies, as generally understood by common men. The term "spiritual body" is sometimes taken to refer to a ghostly body. An impious man who dies after sinful activities is sometimes condemned so that he cannot possess a gross material body of five material elements, but must live in a subtle body of mind, intelligence and ego. However, as explained in Bhagavad-gītā, devotees can give up the material body and attain a spiritual body free from all material tinges, gross and subtle (tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti so 'rjuna (BG 4.9)). Thus the demigods gave King Nimi the benediction that he would be able to stay in a purely spiritual body, free from all gross and subtle material contamination.

The Supreme Personality of Godhead can be seen or unseen according to His own transcendental desire; similarly, a devotee, being jīvan-mukta, can be seen or not, as he chooses. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā, nāhaṁ prakāśaḥ sarvasya yogamāyā-samāvṛtaḥ: (BG 7.25) the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, is not manifest to everyone and anyone. To the common man He is unseen. Ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṇa-nāmādi na bhaved grāhyam indriyaiḥ: (CC Madhya 17.136) (Brs. 1.2.234) Kṛṣṇa and His name, fame, qualities and paraphernalia cannot be materially understood. Unless one is advanced in spiritual life (sevonmukhe hi jihvādau), one cannot see Kṛṣṇa. Therefore the ability to see Kṛṣṇa depends on Kṛṣṇa's mercy. The same privilege of being seen or unseen according to one's own desire was given to Mahārāja Nimi. Thus he lived in his original, spiritual body as an associate of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

SB Canto 10.1 to 10.13

SB 10.7.9, Purport:

We have heard of people's being haunted by ghosts. Having no gross material body, a ghost seeks shelter of a gross body to stay in and haunt. The Śakaṭāsura was a ghost who had taken shelter of the handcart and was looking for the opportunity to do mischief to Kṛṣṇa. When Kṛṣṇa kicked the cart with His small and very delicate legs, the ghost was immediately pushed down to the earth and his shelter dismantled, as already described. This was possible for Kṛṣṇa because He has full potency, as confirmed in the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.32):

aṅgāni yasya sakalendriya-vṛttimanti

paśyanti pānti kalayanti ciraṁ jaganti

ānanda-cinmaya-sad-ujjvala-vigrahasya

govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi

Kṛṣṇa's body is sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha (Bs. 5.1), or ānanda-cinmaya-rasa-vigraha. That is, any of the parts of His ānanda-cinmaya body can act for any other part. Such are the inconceivable potencies of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Supreme Lord does not need to acquire these potencies; He already has them. Thus Kṛṣṇa kicked His little legs, and His whole purpose was fulfilled. Also, when the handcart broke, an ordinary child could have been injured in many ways, but because Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He enjoyed the dismantling of the cart, and nothing injured Him.

SB Cantos 10.14 to 12 (Translations Only)

SB 10.29.10-11, Translation:

For those gopīs who could not go to see Kṛṣṇa, intolerable separation from their beloved caused an intense agony that burned away all impious karma. By meditating upon Him they realized His embrace, and the ecstasy they then felt exhausted their material piety. Although Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Soul, these girls simply thought of Him as their male lover and associated with Him in that intimate mood. Thus their karmic bondage was nullified and they abandoned their gross material bodies.

SB 11.10.10, Translation:

The subtle and gross material bodies are created by the material modes of nature, which expand from the potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Material existence occurs when the living entity falsely accepts the qualities of the gross and subtle bodies as being his own factual nature. This illusory state, however, can be destroyed by real knowledge.

SB 11.11.14, Translation:

A person is considered to be completely liberated from the gross and subtle material bodies when all the functions of his vital energy, senses, mind and intelligence are performed without material desire. Such a person, although situated within the body, is not entangled.

SB 11.13.7, Translation:

In a bamboo forest the wind sometimes rubs the bamboo stalks together, and such friction generates a blazing fire that consumes the very source of its birth, the bamboo forest. Thus, the fire is automatically calmed by its own action. Similarly, by the competition and interaction of the material modes of nature, the subtle and gross material bodies are generated. If one uses his mind and body to cultivate knowledge, then such enlightenment destroys the influence of the modes of nature that generated one's body. Thus, like the fire, the body and mind are pacified by their own actions in destroying the source of their birth.

CC Adi-lila

CC Adi 2.91-92, Purport:

(7) Īśānukathā: scriptural information regarding the Personality of Godhead, His incarnations on earth and the activities of His devotees. Scriptures dealing with these subjects are essential for progressive human life.

(8) Nirodha: the winding up of all energies employed in creation. Such potencies are emanations from the Personality of Godhead who eternally lies in the Kāraṇa Ocean. The cosmic creations, manifested with His breath, are again dissolved in due course.

(9) Mukti: liberation of the conditioned souls encaged by the gross and subtle coverings of body and mind. When freed from all material affection, the soul, giving up the gross and subtle material bodies, can attain the spiritual sky in his original spiritual body and engage in transcendental loving service to the Lord in Vaikuṇṭhaloka or Kṛṣṇaloka. When the soul is situated in his original constitutional position of existence, he is said to be liberated. It is possible to engage in transcendental loving service to the Lord and become jīvan-mukta, a liberated soul, even while in the material body.

(10) Āśraya: the Transcendence, the summum bonum, from whom everything emanates, upon whom everything rests, and in whom everything merges after annihilation. He is the source and support of all. The āśraya is also called the Supreme Brahman, as in the Vedānta-sūtra (athāto brahma jijñāsā, janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1)). Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam especially describes this Supreme Brahman as the āśraya. Śrī Kṛṣṇa is this āśraya, and therefore the greatest necessity of life is to study the science of Kṛṣṇa.

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam accepts Śrī Kṛṣṇa as the shelter of all manifestations because Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the ultimate source of everything, the supreme goal of all.

CC Adi 5.22, Purport:

In Brahmaloka there is an unlimited number of airplanes that are controlled not by yantra (machine) but by mantra (psychic action). Because of the existence of the mind and intelligence on Brahmaloka, its residents have feelings of happiness and distress, but there is no cause of lamentation from old age, death, fear or distress. They feel sympathy, however, for the suffering living beings who are consumed in the fire of annihilation. The residents of Brahmaloka do not have gross material bodies to change at death, but they transform their subtle bodies into spiritual bodies and thus enter the spiritual sky. The residents of Brahmaloka can attain perfection in three different ways. Virtuous persons who reach Brahmaloka by dint of their pious work become masters of various planets after the resurrection of Brahmā, those who have worshiped Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu are liberated with Brahmā, and those who are pure devotees of the Personality of Godhead at once push through the covering of the universe and enter the spiritual sky.

CC Madhya-lila

CC Madhya 8.229, Purport:

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura comments that the word siddha-deha, "perfected spiritual body," refers to a body beyond the material gross body composed of five elements and the subtle astral body composed of mind, intelligence and false ego. In other words, one attains a completely spiritual body fit to render service to the transcendental couple Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa: sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁ tat-paratvena nirmalam (CC Madhya 19.170).

When one is situated in his spiritual body, which is beyond this gross and subtle material body, he is fit to serve Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa. That body is called siddha-deha. The living entity attains a particular type of gross body in accordance with his past activities and mental condition. In this life the mental condition changes in different ways, and the same living entity gets another body in the next life according to his desires. The mind, intelligence and false ego are always engaged in an attempt to dominate material nature. According to that subtle astral body, one attains a gross body to enjoy the objects of one's desires. According to the activities of the present body, one prepares another subtle body. And according to the subtle body, one attains another gross body. This is the process of material existence. However, when one is spiritually situated and does not desire a gross or subtle body, he attains his original spiritual body. As confirmed by the Bhagavad-gītā (4.9): tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti so ’rjuna.

CC Madhya 20.108-109, Purport:

Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura explains these verses as follows: Śrī Sanātana Gosvāmī asked Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, "Who am I?" In answer, the Lord replied, “You are a pure living entity. You are neither the gross material body nor the subtle body composed of mind and intelligence. Actually you are a spirit soul, eternally part and parcel of the Supreme Soul, Kṛṣṇa. Therefore you are His eternal servant. You belong to Kṛṣṇa's marginal potency. There are two worlds—the spiritual world and the material world—and you are situated between the material and spiritual potencies. You have a relationship with both the material and the spiritual world; therefore you are called the marginal potency. You are related with Kṛṣṇa as one and simultaneously different. Because you are spirit soul, you are one in quality with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but because you are a very minute particle of spirit soul, you are different from the Supreme Soul. Therefore your position is simultaneously one with and different from the Supreme Soul. The examples given are those of the sun itself and the small particles of sunshine and of a blazing fire and the small particles of fire.” Another explanation of these verses can be found in Ādi-līlā, Chapter Two, verse 96.

CC Madhya 22.14-15, Purport:

The ever-liberated person who works on Kṛṣṇa's behalf enjoys Lord Kṛṣṇa's company through his engagement. The ever-conditioned soul, provoked by lusty desires to enjoy the material world, is forced to transmigrate from one body to another. Sometimes he is elevated to higher planetary systems, and sometimes he is degraded to hellish planets and subjected to the tribulations of the external energy.

Due to being conditioned by the external energy, the conditioned soul within this material world gets two kinds of bodies—a gross material body and a subtle material body composed of mind, intelligence and ego. Due to the gross and subtle bodies, he is subjected to the threefold miseries (ādhyātmika, ādhibhautika and ādhidaivika), miseries arising from the body and mind, other living entities and natural disturbances caused by demigods from higher planetary systems. The conditioned soul subjected to the threefold material miseries is ceaselessly kicked by māyā, and this is his disease. If by chance he meets a saintly person who works on Kṛṣṇa's behalf to deliver conditioned souls, and if he agrees to abide by his order, he can gradually approach the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa.

Easy Journey to Other Planets

Easy Journey to Other Planets 1:

The antimaterial particle is finer than the finest of material particles. This living force is so powerful that it spreads its influence all over the material body. The antimaterial particle has immense potency in comparison to the material particle, and consequently it cannot be destroyed.

This is but the beginning of the description of the antimaterial particle in the Bhagavad-gītā. It is further explained as follows:

The finest form of the antimaterial particle is encaged within the gross and subtle material bodies. Although the material bodies (both gross and subtle) are subject to destruction, the finer, antimaterial particle is eternal. One's interest, therefore, should be in this eternal principle.

The perfection of science will occur when it is possible for the material scientists to know the qualities of the antimaterial particle and liberate it from the association of nonpermanent, material particles. Such liberation would mark the culmination of scientific progress.

There is partial truth in the scientists' suggestion that there may exist also another world consisting of antimaterial atoms and that a clash between the material and antimaterial worlds will result in the annihilation of both. There is a clash which is continually going on: the annihilation of the material particles is taking place at every moment, and the nonmaterial particle is striving for liberation. This is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā as follows:

Easy Journey to Other Planets 1:

The whole process of transferring oneself to the spiritual sky involves gradually liquidating the material composition of the gross and subtle coverings of the spirit soul. The above-mentioned five items of devotional activities are so spiritually powerful that their performance by a devotee, even in the preliminary stage, can very quickly promote the sincere executor to the stage of bhāva (the stage just prior to love of Godhead), or emotion on the spiritual plane, which is transcendental to mental and intellectual functions. A complete absorption in bhāva, or love of God, makes one fit to be transferred to the spiritual sky just after leaving the material tabernacle. The perfection of love of God by a devotee actually situates him on the spiritual platform, even though he may still maintain a gross material body. He becomes like a red-hot iron which, when in contact with fire, actually ceases to be iron and acts like fire. These things are made possible by the Lord's inscrutable and inconceivable energy, which material science has not the scope to calculate. One should therefore engage himself in devotional service with absolute faith, and to make his faith steadfast one should seek the association of the standard devotees of the Lord by personal association (if possible) or by thinking of them. This association will help one develop factual devotional service to the Lord, which will cause all material misgivings to disappear like a flash of lightning. All these different stages of spiritual realization will be personally felt by the candidate, and this will create in him a firm belief that he is making positive progress on the way to the spiritual sky. Then he will become sincerely attached to the Lord and His abode. Such is the gradual process of evolving love of God, which is the prime necessity for the human form of life.

Renunciation Through Wisdom

Renunciation Through Wisdom 3.2:

According to the Vedas and the sages, the five gross elements are earth, water, fire, air, and ether. Material nature is produced from a combination of false ego (ahaṅkāra), the ingredients of the material energy (mahat-tattva), and the cause of the mahat-tattva (prakṛti). There are five knowledge-gathering senses and five working senses. The mind is the internal sense, the sixth knowledge-gathering sense. Form, taste, smell, touch, and sound are the five sense objects.

We have already enumerated these material ingredients in our description of the Sāṅkhya philosophy of the atheist Kapila. The kṣetra, or "field," is the combination of the twenty-four ingredients mentioned above. When these twenty-four ingredients interact the result is the transformation of material nature, which gives rise to the gross material body composed of five gross elements (pañca-mahābhūta), as a result of material desires, hate, enjoyment, lamentation, and so on. The shadow of consciousness in the form of mind and will are transformations of that field.

What will soon be discussed is that the kṣetra-jña is completely different from the kṣetra and its transformations. But to properly understand the knowledge concerning the kṣetra and the kṣetra-jña, one must first cultivate at least twenty good qualities listed in the Bhagavad-gītā (13.8-12):

Humility; pridelessness; nonviolence; tolerance; simplicity; approaching a bona fide spiritual master; cleanliness; steadiness; self-control; renunciation of the objects of sense gratification; absence of false ego; the perception of the evil of birth, death, old age, and disease; detachment; freedom from entanglement with children, wife, home and the rest; even-mindedness amid pleasant and unpleasant events; constant and unalloyed devotion to Me; aspiring to live in a solitary place; detachment from the general mass of people; accepting the importance of self-realization; and philosophical search for the Absolute Truth—all these I declare to be knowledge, and besides this whatever there may be is ignorance.

Message of Godhead

Message of Godhead 1:

I really possess my temporary material body and mind, and I must not make myself a laughing stock by denying the existence of my body and mind. At the same time, I must always remember that the body and mind are temporary arrangements. However, the spirit encaged by this body and mind is eternal truth and indestructible. No one can destroy the eternal spirit—that is what we need to understand at the present moment. The indestructible spirit is thus above the conception of violence and nonviolence.

Today, the whole world is mad after the culture of knowledge in relation to temporary arrangements for the gross material body and the subtle material mind. But more important than the body and mind is the spirit, which has been set aside without any proper culture of knowledge. As a result, the darkness of nescience has overshadowed the world and has brought about great unrest, disturbance, and distress. How long can one enjoy external happiness? It is like soaping the outer garments without putting any nourishment into the stomach.

But this eternal truth, the indestructible spirit, does exist as the living entity in each and every body. He is very minute and is finer than the finest atom. Learned experts have attempted to make a measurement of this living spirit. They say that the living spirit, the soul proper, can be measured approximately as one ten-thousandth part of the tip of a hair.

This living spirit remains within the body just like a tiny dose of a potent medicine: the soul spreads its presence all over the body. And thus, we can understand, the sensitivity we experience to even the slightest touch on any part of the body is due to the spreading of this living spirit throughout the body. But when this minute quantity of living spark is gone from the body, the body lies dead, prostrate, and it cannot feel the slightest pain—even if hacked by an ax.

Message of Godhead 1:

It is said that the living spirit is eternal, all-pervading, unchangeable, indestructible, and so forth. What is known in India as sanātana-dharma, or "the eternal religion," is meant for this living spirit. That is to say, real spiritualism is transcendental to the various religions that focus on the gross material body or the subtle material mind. This sanātana-dharma, the eternal religion, is never established just for one particular people, place, or time. It is for this reason that sanātana-dharma is also termed all-pervasive. All other religions except the one that is known as sanātana-dharma are meant for the culturing of physical or psychological effects.

The psychological effects of various peoples, places, and times have led us to designate ourselves as Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, Congressites, Luddites, Socialists, Bolsheviks, and so forth. Specifically in the field of religion, we have tried to establish many varieties of ephemeral physical and mental arrangements, varieties of denominations, according to various peoples, places, and times. And precisely for this reason, we can envision ourselves "changing religions." One who is a "Hindu" today may become a "Muhammadan" the next day, or one who is a "Muhammadan" today may become a "Christian" the next day, and so on. But when we attain transcendental knowledge and are established in the actual, eternal religion of the actual living entity—the spirit soul—then and then only can we attain real, undeniable peace, prosperity, and happiness in the world. Until that time, there can be no peace and prosperity for us, because we are not situated on the plane of sanātana-dharma, or the eternal religion of the soul.

Light of the Bhagavata

Light of the Bhagavata 16, Purport:

At night in the rainy season the moving clouds reflecting the moonlight make the moon appear to be moving. This is called illusion. The spirit soul, or the living being, is the root of all the activities of the material body, but because of illusion the spirit soul remains covered by the gross and subtle material bodies. Thus covered, the conditioned soul identifies with the material body and becomes subject to the sense of false ego.

This false ego obliges a living being to consider his material body to be his self, the offspring of the body to be his children, and the land of the birth of the body to be an object of worship. Thus the living being's conception of nationalism is another type of ignorance. Because of ignorance, a living being identifies himself with the land of his birth and moves with the misconceptions of national ideas. In fact, however, a living being does not belong to any nation or species of life. He has nothing to do with the body, as the moon has nothing to do with the moving clouds.

The moon is far away from the clouds and is fixed in its own orbit, but illusion presents a scene in which the moon appears to be moving. A living being should not float with the misconception of the temporary body; he must always know himself to be transcendental to the bodily identity. This is the path of knowledge, and complete knowledge fixes the living being in the orbit of spiritual activities.

Sri Isopanisad

Sri Isopanisad 10, Purport:

(7) In order to approach the platform of self-realization, one must follow the regulative principles enjoined in the revealed scriptures.

(8) One must be fixed in the tenets of the revealed scriptures.

(9) One should completely refrain from practices which are detrimental to the interest of self-realization.

(10) One should not accept more than he requires for the maintenance of the body.

(11) One should not falsely identify himself with the gross material body, nor should one consider those who are related to his body to be his own.

(12) One should always remember that as long as he has a material body he must face the miseries of repeated birth, old age, disease and death. There is no use in making plans to get rid of these miseries of the material body. The best course is to find out the means by which one may regain his spiritual identity.

(13) One should not be attached to more than the necessities of life required for spiritual advancement.

(14) One should not be more attached to wife, children and home than the revealed scriptures ordain.

(15) One should not be happy or distressed over desirables and undesirables, knowing that such feelings are just created by the mind.

(16) One should become an unalloyed devotee of the Personality of Godhead, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, and serve Him with rapt attention.

(17) One should develop a liking for residence in a secluded place with a calm and quiet atmosphere favorable for spiritual culture, and one should avoid congested places where nondevotees congregate.

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 4.10 Festival at Maison de Faubourg -- Geneva, May 31, 1974:

Unless you take shelter of Kṛṣṇa or His representative, there is no possibility of being detached from this material enjoyment. Bahavaḥ. Bahavaḥ means many. Jñāna-tapasā: by knowledge and austerity. Bahavo jñāna-tapasā. (to translator:) Explain. Pūtā. Pūtā means purified. Jñāna-tapasā, purified. Pūtā mad-bhāvam āgatāḥ: "They come to My nature." Mad-bhāvam āgatāḥ.

There are two natures. Just like you can understand, you are combination of two nature, the material nature and the spiritual nature. This gross body is material nature. It is made of earth, fire, water, air, ether, and mind, intelligence and ego. And the spiritual nature is yourself, the spirit soul, the living force, which is sustaining these material bodies. So both these natures, the material nature and the spiritual nature, they are different energies of God. Just like the fire has got two energies, namely, the heat and light, similarly, God has got two nature. One is called material nature and the other is called spiritual nature. So this cosmic manifestation which we experience is combination of material nature and spiritual nature. The material nature is called inferior nature, and the spiritual nature is called the superior nature. The material nature is inferior because the superior nature living entity controls over it. We have got experience. Just like a big machine, computer, or any other machine, it is combination of matter, but it cannot work independently until and unless there is touch of the spiritual nature, a human being. The big airplane is floating in the... (break) ...I mean to say, mechanical arrangement. But unless there is the pilot, it cannot work. Similarly, you try to understand that this material nature, cosmic manifestation, however wonderful it may be, unless there is direction of the Supreme Being, it is useless. So if you have understood the difference between material nature and the spiritual nature, then try to understand that as you have got experience of this material nature, there is another nature, another sky, another planetary system, everything another. That is all made of spiritual nature.

Lecture on BG 4.13 -- Johannesburg, October 19, 1975:

This is called brahma-bhūtaḥ. We are now covered by the material energy. Just like we are covered now by the shirt and coat differently, but if we open our shirt and coat, we are human being, similarly, we are part and parcel of God. Now we are covered by this material body, subtle and gross. Subtle material body is mind, intelligence, and ego, and gross material body means five elements: earth, water, air, fire, ether. So this is our situation.

So all we living entities, those who are within this material world... There are so many. Just like you can see so many planets. In each and every planets and stars there are living entities. Sarva-ga. Don't think that only God has favored this planet full with living entities and others are simply empty showbottle. That is not the fact. They do not know it. They have no perfect knowledge. They say that only this earthly planet is full of living entities. No. Everywhere. That description you'll get from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Fifth Canto. There is vivid description of all the planets and what kind of living entities are there. So some of them are described in this Bhagavad-gītā.

So Bhagavad-gītā is the perfect knowledge. We are now materially contaminated. So you can say, "What is the wrong? If you are materially contaminated, what is the wrong?" That is our lack of knowledge. We cannot understand what is the wrong. The wrong thing we take as pleasing. This is the disease. First of all we must know whether we are happy in this material world. But we have no intelligence. Mūḍha. We have been described as mūḍha.

Lecture on BG 7.4 -- Bombay, February 19, 1974:

Otherwise, why there are so many varieties of body? These are the creation of our mental concoction: "I shall do that, I shall do that, I shall do this, I shall do this." So this is daiva-netreṇa. He gets daiva-netreṇa, by superior... Just like a child insists upon doing something. The father says, "All right, do it. I don't mind." He says, "Don't do it," but he persists, "I must do." "All right, do it." There are many examples.

So there is soul and there is the gross material body and there is the subtle material body. The soul is the basic principle, but to get a body, as I have already explained, the secretion discharged by the father and the mother, they mix up, they are emulsified and forms in the body of a pea. And the soul comes through the semina of the father and he's situated there. Then the body develops. Now, just try to understand. Because the spirit soul is there, therefore matter is developing. If the soul is not there, if the child is dead, no more development. No more development. No dead child develops a body. Everyone knows. Therefore these material elements come from the spirit soul, not that spirit soul comes from the material elements. This is not. This is wrong theory. If it comes from the material combination, then why you cannot produce a living entity in the laboratory? In the laboratory, no, that is not... A material... Because... Material creation is there because I wanted a, such a circumstances, atmosphere, and anumantā, the Supreme Lord, He's the supreme sanction giver—He gives me opportunity to enter into a certain type of mother's body, and the material grows.

Lecture on BG 7.4 -- Bombay, February 19, 1974:

So, so this is the process. This bhūmir āpaḥ, this material, it is not a fact. People are so much attached to this material world. That is called ignorance. Mūḍha. They are called mūḍha. Māyayāpahṛta-jñānāḥ (BG 7.15). Their knowledge has been taken away. These things will be explained in the later verses, that do not try to take knowledge from imperfect person; take knowledge from the perfect person, perfect Supreme Personality. Who is perfect? God is perfect. And who carries the word of God, he is perfect. This is the definition of perfection. So Kṛṣṇa says, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ (BG 7.4). Matter is produced by Kṛṣṇa's energy. It is not automatically produced. Just like I have given the example that this body, this material gross body, is produced out of the soul which is put into the womb of the mother by the semina of the father. These are... These descriptions are there in the Third Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, very nicely, you consult.

So that knowledge is perfect because experimentally... Science means observation and experiment. If you are observing something, then you must experiment. Jñānaṁ vijñānam. In the previous verses we have already studied that jñānaṁ te 'haṁ sa-vijñānam (BG 7.2). Jñānaṁ te 'haṁ sa-vijñānam. Theoretical knowledge, that is observation. And sa-vijñānam means experiment. If you say, if you have observed that life is produced of chemical, then make experiment. Then it is science; otherwise it is hodge-podge. It has no meaning. Life is never produced of matter; matter is produced out of life. This is the... Therefore we are fragmental matter, life. We living entities, small portion, very small portion. That is also given in the śāstras: keśāgra-śata-bhāgasya śatadhā kalpitasya ca (CC Madhya 19.140). One ten-thousandth part of the top of the hair, that is the magnitude of soul.

Lecture on BG 12.13-14 -- Bombay, May 12, 1974:

That is paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśinaḥ (BG 5.18). We should not see to the dress. We should see inside the dress. What is the inside in the dress. Similarly, Kṛṣṇa says to Arjuna that dehino 'smin yathā dehe. Dehino 'smin yathā dehe kaumāraṁ yauvanaṁ jarā (BG 2.13). One has to see, asmin dehe, in this body, there is the dehinaḥ, the proprietor. Dehinaḥ means one possesses the body. That is spiritual vision. The spiritual vision is... One who is advanced in spiritual knowledge, he does not see the outward dress, but he sees within the dress, who is living there. Asmin dehe dehinaḥ. Dehinaḥ. Dehī means the possessor of this body. I am not this body, you are not this body, but you possess this body.

Just like you possess your shirt and coat, similarly, you possess this body also. The gross body made of material elements is your coat, and the subtle body made of finer material elements—mind, intelligence, ego—that is your shirt. And within that coat and shirt, the real living entity is there.

So one who has such vision, one who is learned in spiritual understanding, he is called paṇḍita.

Lecture on BG 18.67 -- Ahmedabad, December 10, 1972:

I am experiencing that I was a baby, and after that baby body is finished, I got a body of child. Then, from child body, I got the body of a boy; then as a young man, then I have got this... Now, why not after changing this body, another body? Where is the reason? In my this experience I get that I have changed so many bodies. But I remember. I am existing. Although my different bodies are finished, I am existing. Similarly, tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati (BG 2.13). Similarly, I shall get another body. So what kind of body I shall get, that is the preparation stage in this life. What kind of body I'm going to get. That is karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa jantur deha upapatti (SB 3.31.1). As you are working here, this is a chance, human body. Here is a chance. You can make your next body as lower animals, or demigods, or go back to home to Godhead. Whatever you like. Yānti deva-vratā devān pitṟn yānti pitṛ-vratāḥ (BG 9.25). These are the instructions of Bhagavad-gītā.

So one has to understand all these things by little tapasya. Because to go back to home, back go Godhead is not very easy thing. Because we are so much entangled with this gross material body and subtle material body. And the subtle material body is creating... Just like a spool, creating another body, another body, desires. Material desires. So we have to change these material desires into spiritual desires. Then we get spiritual body. Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa (SB 3.31.1). There... This is the function of the laws of nature.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 1.2.6 -- Delhi, November 12, 1973:

Then as soon as you understand Kṛṣṇa in truth... That is the real criterion. If you do not understand Kṛṣṇa in truth, simply superficially, then that is not perfection. That is not perfect knowledge. (break) ...paramparā. Then your life is perfect. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma (BG 4.9). That is perfection, if you, if after giving up this body, no more accepting material body. You go back to home, back to God, in your spiritual body. You have got your spiritual body. That is within this body. Just like within this garment or within your coat, your real body is within the coat, so this body is just like coat, and the subtle body is just like shirt. And as a gentleman is within the coat and shirt, real body, similarly, the spiritual body is within this material gross body and subtle body. If you can get out of this material gross and subtle body, you realize, then you go back to home, back to Godhead. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya (BG 4.9). Yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāma paramam... (BG 15.6). Everything is there.

Therefore our request is that you read Bhagavad-gītā, try to understand Bhagavad-gītā as it is. Don't interpret in a foolish way. Everything is clear. There is no need of interpretation. The foolish people simply unnecessarily interpret. Everything is clear. Where is the difficulty to understand when Kṛṣṇa says, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru... (BG 18.65)? But one scholar is saying, "Yes, this is not to Kṛṣṇa the person." Kṛṣṇa says that "You become My devotee," and the scholar says, "It is not to Kṛṣṇa." This is interpretation. This is going on, simply misleading people. You take Bhagavad-gītā as it is and try... (end)

Lecture on SB 1.2.8 -- Vrndavana, October 19, 1972:

Pradyumna: "There are different occupational activities in terms of man's different conceptions of life. To the gross materialist who cannot see anything beyond the gross material body, there is nothing beyond the senses. Therefore his occupational activities are limited to concentrated and extended selfishness. Concentrated selfishness centers around the personal body. This is generally seen amongst the lower animals. Extended selfishness is manifested in human society and centers around the family, society, community, nation, and world with a view to gross bodily comforts."

Prabhupāda: This is very important point. People are very much interested in welfare activities for the human society. So they think that by feeding poor men or giving cloth or opening hospitals, schools, colleges—"These things are required. What is the use of hearing about Kṛṣṇa?" That is their opinion. But these welfare activities are extended selfishness. This word we learned from our Guru Mahārāja: "extended selfishness." Just like I love myself for my sense gratification, and then I extend it to my son. I am gratifying my senses. I have got my wife. And to get my son another wife... The principle is the same. Then my grandchildren, then my great-grandchildren. Or, not only limited with the family, then society, then community, then nationally, then internationally. But they are all extended selfishness. Yes. Without knowing what is the real self-interest. Therefore we find so many faults in such welfare activities. In... They are opening hospitals for the human beings, daridra-nārāyaṇa-sevā, but the poor goats and cows, daridra-nārāyaṇa—they are also daridra-nārāyaṇa according to the definition—but they are being killed. For one daridra-nārāyaṇa, another daridra-nārāyaṇa is being killed.

Lecture on SB 2.3.2-3 -- Los Angeles, May 20, 1972:

Prabhupāda: Blind man leading other blind men. If one has eyes to see, he can lead hundreds and thousands of men, "Please come along with me. I shall cross the road." But if the man leading, he is himself blind, how he can lead others? Andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānāḥ. So Bhāgavata, there is no comparison. There cannot be. It is transcendental science. Andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānās te 'pīśa-tantryām uru-dāmni baddhāḥ (SB 7.5.31). Īśa-tantryām, these blind leaders, they are bound up by the laws of material nature, and they are giving advice. What advice they can give? Then? Go on.

Pradyumna: "Almost all of them have a wrong conception of life, for they identify themselves with the gross and subtle material bodies, which they are not in fact."

Prabhupāda: This is their, I mean to say, less intelligence. Everyone thinks that "I am this body." Or little further off, one thinks, "No, I am not this body. I am mind." There are two bodies, one gross body made of these physical elements: earth, water, air, fire, sky, and another... Just like shirt and coat. You have got your coat, and within the coat there is shirt, and within the shirt, you are. This is gross example. Similarly, we have got this gross body and when the gross body is finished, then I keep myself in this mental body. That is called ghostly body. The ghostly body means one who is living in the subtle body. Ghost is a fact; it is not fictitious. So the subtle body carries me to another gross body. That is called transmigration of the soul. I must have some vehicle. The subtle body... Gross body is finished. That is gone. Now, the subtle body is there; therefore my mentality will create another gross body. If I am dog mentality, then I'll create another body, dog's body. And if I am God mentality, then I'll create another body like God.

Lecture on SB 5.5.2 -- Johannesburg, October 22, 1975:

So the spirit soul is in this way bound up by the material gross body and subtle body. This is our disease. This is... Material existence means we are suffering from this disease. So in the first verse it was suggested by Ṛṣabhadeva to His sons, "My dear sons," tapo putrakā. Tapo divyaṁ putrakā yena śuddhyet sattvaṁ yasmād brahma-saukhyam anantam (SB 5.5.1). Our position is... As I explained the other day, we are part and parcel of God. So God's existence is sac-cid-ānanda vigrahaḥ: (Bs. 5.1) eternal, blissful, knowledge. So we are part and parcel. Our knowledge, our blissfulness, our eternity may be very small, but we possess the same quality. Ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12). In the Vedānta-sūtra it is said that spirit soul or God... God is the supreme spirit, and we are minute. He is vibhu, unlimited; we are aṇu, very small—molecular or atomic. So quality is the same. So our seeking after eternity, seeking after full knowledge and to remain blissful, that is our nature because we are part and parcel of God.

But on account of being covered by these material elements—earth, water, air, fire, ether, mind, intelligence, and ego—we are suffering this disease—janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi (BG 13.9). Janma means birth, and mṛtyu means death. As soon as we take birth, it means we must be prepared for death. I am increasing my age means decreasing my age, not increasing. When a child is born, if some friends asks, "When this child is born?" "Now, one week before," that means the child has already died one week. From his duration of life, make one week minus.

Festival Lectures

Lecture-Day after Sri Gaura-Purnima -- Hawaii, March 5, 1969:

Under Darwin's theory also, like that, "organic matter, inorganic matter." They are studying evolution of this matter, organic matter. But actually that is not the fact. The fact is that use, individual soul, that is the real fact. And that individual soul is the seed, and upon that seed, this body has developed. According to our Vedic understanding, the body develops on the seed. This is very practical. Why we have got different bodies, different types of bodies? Because the condition of the seed is different. The seed is the spirit soul, and by material contact it is covered by finer body, intelligence, mind, and ego. And according to the quality of that ego, we develop different kinds of this material gross body. Therefore somebody has developed the body in the modes of goodness, because material nature is divided into three qualities: goodness, passion, and ignorance. Somebody has developed body in the modes of passion. Somebody has developed body in the modes of ignorance. But the root is the spirit soul. And the finer cover is desire, ego, intelligence, mind. And the gross cover is this body.

So Buddha philosophy simply takes account of this gross body. They do not take account of the mind, because as soon as they go to the platform of mind, then immediately the question will be "Whose mind? Whose intelligence?" Then you have to come to the spirit soul. But the people for whom this Buddha philosophy was preached, they were not very intelligent class of men. Therefore Lord Buddha did not give them the information of the subtle body or the soul. They were unable. Why they were unable? They were gross materialists. The gross materialists, they are animal-killers, gross materialists.

General Lectures

Speech -- New Vrindaban, August 31, 1972:

And I am carried by the subtle body in the womb of another mother by the laws of nature, and I develop another gross body, materials supplied by the mother. And when the body is prepared, I come out of the womb of mother and I work again with that subtle and gross body. And bhāgavata-dharma means that we have to transcend both the gross and subtle body; come to the spiritual body. It is very scientific. And as soon as we come to the spiritual body, mukta saṅga, being freed from the gross and subtle body, we come to our real body, spiritual body, then actually we feel happiness and independence.

So this process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the highest benediction for the human society because it is trying to bring the human being to the platform of spiritual body—transcending the gross and subtle material body. That is the highest perfection. Human life is meant for coming to that platform, the spiritual platform, transcending the gross and material bodily concept of life. That is possible. It is made easy in this age. This age called Kali, it is not very good time. Simply disagreement, fighting, quarreling, misunderstanding. This age is full of that, all these happenings. Therefore to come to the spiritual platform is very difficult in this age. Formerly, it was not so difficult. People were very easily trained up by the Vedic process. But now the people are not interested. They're simply interested with the gross body or, a little more, who is a little advanced, the subtle body. But they have no information of the spiritual body. Although there is advancement of education, there is no education about the spiritual body. They're simply concerned with the gross material and subtle body. Therefore this movement, Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, is very important movement. Those who have taken to this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, they're very, very fortunate.

Lecture at the Hare Krsna Festival at La Salle Pleyel -- Paris, June 14, 1974:

Every one of us can consider that "I had a small body of child. I had a small body of boy. I had a youthful body. Now I have got this old body." By this simple study, I can understand that I am different from the body. And because I am eternal, in all forms of body I was existing. That I can understand also.

Therefore in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre: (BG 2.20) "After the destruction of this body, I, the soul, I am not destroyed. I continue to live." The soul is eternal. That is described in the Bhagavad-gītā: nityaḥ śāśvato 'yaṁ na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). Eternal, very old, still, after the destruction of the body, the soul is never destroyed. Death means destruction of this outer, gross material body. Every day, every night we have got experience: the body lies down on the bed, but with my subtle body—mind, intelligence and ego—I dream and I go somewhere else from my bedroom. So this is going on daily in our experience, that I leave this gross body, I take my subtle body, and I do something else, although my body is here. The conclusion is therefore that I, the soul, am changing my body from the gross to the subtle, from the subtle to the gross. In our daily life we have got experience that I accept this subtle body. The subtle body is there. There is no question of acceptance. But with the subtle body I dream, and again when the dream is over, then I come to this gross body. So death means when the subtle body carries the soul to another gross body, not this gross body, that is called death. So this subtle body—means mind, intelligence and ego—that carries me to another body according to the nature of my mind. At the time of death, as the mind is absorbed, I mean to say, full of thoughts, according to that full of thoughts, we are given another gross body. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, that anta-kale, yaṁ yaṁ vāpi smaran bhāvaṁ tyajaty ante kalevaram (BG 8.6).

Sunday Feast Lecture -- Atlanta, March 2, 1975:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He says if our body should meet death while performing devotional service, will we be protected in transmigrating?

Prabhupāda: There are two kinds of bodies: the gross body and the subtle body. The gross body is a material combination of earth, water, air, fire, ether, and the subtle body is combination of mind, intelligence and ego. So this gross body and subtle body, within that, there is the spirit soul. So that is eternal. And this gross body and subtle body is changing according to the change of the situation. So when you remain in your spiritual body, that is eternal. Therefore to keep in spiritual body is to accept devotional service. Then you are beyond this material gross body and subtle body. You remain in your spiritual body. And if you give up this body at the time of death, means giving up this body, then in spiritual body you go to back to home, back to Godhead. So in order to keep yourself in spiritual body you should always be engaged in devotional service, and that is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā:

māṁ ca vyabhicāriṇi-

bhakti-yogena yaḥ sevate

sa guṇān samatītyaitān

brahma-bhūyāya kalpate

(BG 14.26)

Then you become Brahman or spirit soul. Yes?

Devotee (6): In the Caitanya-caritāmṛta it states that to understand Kṛṣṇa and to improve our relationship with Him we must understand the spiritual master. What is the best way to understand him?

Philosophy Discussions

Philosophy Discussion on Immanuel Kant:

Prabhupāda: No. So God can do it. Just like God says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām e.. (BG 18.66).. Because God says, it has to be accepted. But if some individual soul said, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām, who will do that? Nobody will do it. That's why we are preaching that "You surrender to Kṛṣṇa." We do not say that "You surrender to me." Who will hear me? "Who are you? Why shall I surrender to you?" But if one understands that God wants this surrender, then he will agree.

Hayagrīva: According to the Christian religion, at the end of the world there is a resurrection of the body, that is the gross material body. Kant does not think very much about this. He writes, "For who is so fond of his body that he would wish to drag it about with him through all eternity if he could get on without it?"

Prabhupāda: That is the nature. Even a hog, pig, he is living so abominable. Still, when he is captured for being killed, he cries. He does not think that "My body is so low-grade that I have to eat stool, I live in filthy place, in a very bad smell, and I am trying to save my, this body?" But he cries. So this is called māyā. Although his body is so abominable, he wants to protect it perpetually. This tendency is there because the living entity has actually..., he is perpetual living condition. He wants that, but he wants that in this material body. That is his mistake.

Hayagrīva: He writes that "Man alone can be regarded as nature's own end or highest product, because on earth only man is capable of complying with the categorical imperative, the moral law."

Philosophy Discussion on Carl Gustav Jung:

Hayagrīva: The third type...

Prabhupāda: Another continuation is that the child changes body. So as he was acting in his childhood, he does not act in the same way when he has got the different body of a young man, but the same soul is there. It can be understood very easily.

Hayagrīva: The third type of rebirth listed is called resurrection. Now there are two types of resurrection. He says, "It may be a carnal, that is gross, material body, as in the Christian assumption that this body will be resurrected." That is the Christian doctrine, is that at the end of the world the..., somehow or other, through the miracle of God, the gross body will reassemble itself and ascend into heaven or descend into hell. Somehow survival of the gross body. He says, "On a higher level..."

Prabhupāda: And what he will do in the meantime?

Hayagrīva: I don't know what happens...

Devotee: (indistinct)

Hayagrīva: ...what happens to the material elements. The material elements disintegrate, disintegrate...

Prabhupāda: The material body...

Hayagrīva: They're distributed in nature.

1973 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with Lord Brockway -- July 23, 1973, London:

Prabhupāda: So work is required. But godly persons, they want to live a simple life and high thinking, save time for understanding of God. The demonic people, they are engaged in horrible activities. They have manufactured so many things. So in this way... There are so many descriptions. Actually, by the increase of demoniac people, people are not very happy, and they are missing the ultimate goal of life. That is the defect of the modern civilization. They do not believe that there is an ultimate goal of life, there is life after death, and what kind of body he's going to get next. These things are not, neither in the university education curriculum, neither people are interested. So at the present moment... This is called Kali-yuga. So people are being misled. Actually, the human being, the form of human life, is distinct from animal life. So if we live like animals, then we are missing the chance. At the present moment, this is the position. So we are preaching this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement strictly on the basis of this Bhagavad-gītā. In the Bhagavad-gītā, there is everything explained. So if people take to it, if people are educated, then things will change in a different way. They'll be happy and they will be peaceful, nice. And above, over and above them, they will have next life very blissful, full of knowledge, and eternal. Yad gatvā na nivarta... These things are all very nicely explained. There is eternal life. There is another nature. Paras tasmāt tu bhāvo 'nyo 'vyakto 'vyaktāt sanātanaḥ (BG 8.20). This is material nature, but there is another, spiritual nature. There everything is permanent. Here everything is non-permanent. Just like my body, your body. It is now getting older. And it will vanquish. This body will be finished. It will never come again back. Never come. This exactly type of this body you'll never get. So we have to accept another body. Tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati (BG 2.13). Dehāntara-prāptiḥ. It is exemplified just like we change our shirt and coat and take another set, similarly, this gross body, material gross body, five elements, earth, water, air, fire, sky, and then mind, intelligence, ego, subtle body, within that subtle body the soul is there, and after annihilation of this gross body, the subtle body takes to another gross body.

Room Conversation -- September 2, 1973, London:

Prabhupāda: No, not abstract. These are material. You have no eyes to see.

Guest (1): Well, at present, we can, we have got three different methods of studying intelligence starting from six months onward up to the adult.

Prabhupāda: Anyway, you accept. That is my point. Now you are studying, you accept. That means you accept there is intelligence. So besides this material body, gross material body, there is a subtle body. Subtle body. Just like besides your coat, there is a shirt, or there is a ganjee (?). Similarly, the soul is covered by the subtle body and the gross body. What is known as death, that is annihilation of the gross body. The subtle body remains there. And the subtle body carries him as he desires. The subtle body carries him to a place where he can again grow another material body according to the desire of the mind.

Guest (1): You mean the subtle body or the soul, the same thing?

Prabhupāda: No, soul is different. Soul is different. Soul is finer than intelligence. These things are explained in the Bhagavad-gītā.

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- April 20, 1976, Melbourne:

Prabhupāda: Kṛṣṇa said, sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe, specifically said, "within the heart." The.... Even a germlike, what is called, atom, less than atom, there is heart. Otherwise how Kṛṣṇa says, hṛd-deśe?

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe. Every living entity.

Prabhupāda: Eh? And you say there is no.... You are our student. You are saying there is no heart. That means you do not carefully read.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: No, that's there, but is that the heart of the soul or the heart of the gross material body?

Prabhupāda: Then.... Heart there is, as you have got heart. What you are? The same constitution.

Hariśauri: In the Kaṭha Upaniṣad it describes how they're sitting side by side.

Prabhupāda: The same constitution of the body. Otherwise there is no question of heart.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: You've just challenged the whole field of biology also.

Prabhupāda: Then what is the.... I say they're nonsense, rascals. They say that there is no.... And what is their knowledge? We don't give any value to their knowledge. Kṛṣṇa says clearly, hṛd-deśe 'rjuna. And this body is just like a yantra, machine. So as machine means, moving machine means it must have wheel, it must have sitting place.... Everything is there, machine.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: That would mean that even the plants and trees also have a heart.

Prabhupāda: Everything. That is proved scientifically. Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose has proved. There is a part(?). What is that? Spi...? Begins the word, the machine, the record?

Conversation with Prof. Saligram and Dr. Sukla -- July 5, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Prabhupāda: Just explain.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Too fallen to follow the regulative principles is like saying a diseased man is too diseased to take medicine. So it's actually in our own self interest. We have to become enlightened, to understand what our real interest is. Yajña vai viṣṇu. Now we are thinking that our real interest is to gratify the senses. This is perishable. When we come to the understanding of ātmā, ahaṁ brahmāsmi, then we understand that our real self interest is to follow these regulative principles. As Prabhupāda said, in the beginning it may be painful, undoubtedly, because we are, for so many lifetimes addicted to sense gratification, but gradually more and more ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam (CC Antya 20.12), when the heart becomes cleansed from the dirty misidentification with this gross and subtle material body, gradually more and more it becomes favorable (indistinct). Kṛṣṇa says, "Be happy by this sacrifice." Therefore the sacrifice must be joy-producing, ānandāmbudhi-vardhanam. Simply that because we're presently in diseased condition, it may appear to be displeasing. Prabhupāda gives the example of someone who has jaundice. In the jaundice state, when you take sugar it appears very bitter. The perception is very bitter. But everyone knows that sugar is sweet. So in the same way, the regulative principles are naturally painful for someone who is irregular. For.... Engaged in bodily identification of life. But gradually it becomes more and more pleasing.

Prabhupāda: Practical.

Devotee: When we have Kṛṣṇa conscious (indistinct) struggling for(indistinct). It has to be a struggle.

Prabhupāda: What is struggle? Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, dance and take prasādam. (devotee cheers)

1971 Correspondence

Letter to Paramananda -- Allahabad 27 January, 1971:

I am so glad to hear that your son Premananda is already walking and already chanting Hare Krishna. That is very good. So Krishna has blessed you with a nice Krishna Conscious wife and a devotee son and good atmosphere for raising a family in Krishna Consciousness. You are one of the main members of our New Vrindaban scheme. So be very serious to develop it nicely so that we can show the world how the ideal God-conscious community is working.

So far as your questions are concerned: 1) How the five great elements are a gross representation of the subtle false ego. Where is the problem? By false ego, which is part of the subtle body, we are thinking that we are this gross material body made up of the five great elements. That is all. (2) There are 16 factors—10 senses, 5 sense objects and the mind. When the three modes of nature react, then from these 16 factors the gross and subtle elements come out. The soul is the 17th factor.