Paramatma (CC)

Expressions researched:
"Paramatma" |"Paramatma's" |"Paramatmas"

CC Preface and Introduction

CC Introduction:

And in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta we learn that Lord Caitanya is Kṛṣṇa Himself. In other words, Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya is the basis of the impersonal Brahman. The Paramātmā, or Supersoul, who is present within the heart of every living entity and within every atom of the universe, is but the partial representation of Lord Caitanya. Therefore Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya, being the basis of both Brahman and the all-pervading Paramātmā as well, is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As such, He is full in six opulences: wealth, fame, strength, beauty, knowledge and renunciation. In short, we should know that He is Kṛṣṇa, God, and that nothing is equal to or greater than Him. There is nothing superior to be conceived. He is the Supreme Person.

CC Adi-lila

CC Adi 1.47, Purport:

Śrīla Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī states that the instructing spiritual master is a bona fide representative of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Śrī Kṛṣṇa Himself teaches us as the instructing spiritual master from within and without. From within He teaches as Paramātmā, our constant companion, and from without He teaches from the Bhagavad-gītā as the instructing spiritual master. There are two kinds of instructing spiritual masters. One is the liberated person fully absorbed in meditation in devotional service, and the other is he who invokes the disciple's spiritual consciousness by means of relevant instructions. Thus the instructions in the science of devotion are differentiated in terms of the objective and subjective ways of understanding. The ācārya in the true sense of the term, who is authorized to deliver Kṛṣṇa, enriches the disciple with full spiritual knowledge and thus awakens him to the activities of devotional service.

CC Adi 1.55, Purport:

These elements exist both within and beyond the body. For example, although the sky exists in space, it also enters within the body. Similarly, the Supreme Lord, who is the cause of the material energy, lives within the material world as well as beyond it. Without His presence within the material world, the cosmic body could not develop, just as without the presence of the spirit within the physical body, the body could not develop. The entire material manifestation develops and exists because the Supreme Personality of Godhead enters it as Paramātmā, or the Supersoul. The Personality of Godhead in His all-pervading feature of Paramātmā enters every entity, from the biggest to the most minute. His existence can be realized by one who has the single qualification of submissiveness and who thereby becomes a surrendered soul. The development of submissiveness is the cause of proportionate spiritual realization, by which one can ultimately meet the Supreme Lord in person, as a man meets another man face to face.

CC Adi 2.5, Purport:

Similarly, the Supersoul, which is called the Paramātmā, is a plenary representation of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. The antar-yāmī, the Supersoul in everyone's heart, is the controller of all living entities. This is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā (15.15), wherein Lord Kṛṣṇa says, sarvasya cāhaṁ hṛdi sanniviṣṭaḥ: “I am situated in everyone's heart.” The Bhagavad-gītā (5.29) also states, bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram, indicating that the Supreme Lord, acting in His expansion as the Supersoul, is the proprietor of everything. Similarly, the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.35) states, aṇḍāntara-stha-paramāṇu-cayāntara-stham. The Lord is present everywhere, within the heart of every living entity and within each and every atom as well. Thus by this Supersoul feature the Lord is all-pervading.

CC Adi 2.5, Purport:

The impersonal Brahman is the goal of those who cultivate the study of books of transcendental knowledge, and the Supersoul is the goal of those who perform the yoga practices. One who knows the Supreme Personality of Godhead surpasses realization of both Brahman and Paramātmā because Bhagavān is the ultimate platform of absolute knowledge.

The Personality of Godhead is the complete form of sac-cid-ānanda (full life, knowledge and bliss). By realization of the sat portion of the Complete Whole (unlimited existence), one realizes the impersonal Brahman aspect of the Lord. By realization of the cit portion of the Complete Whole (unlimited knowledge), one can realize the localized aspect of the Lord, the Paramātmā. But neither of these partial realizations of the Complete Whole can help one realize ānanda, or complete bliss. Without such realization of ānanda, knowledge of the Absolute Truth is incomplete.

CC Adi 2.6, Translation:

Impersonal Brahman, the localized Paramātmā and the Personality of Godhead are three subjects, and the glowing effulgence, the partial manifestation and the original form are their three respective predicates.

CC Adi 2.9, Purport:

According to the rules of rhetorical arrangement for efficient composition in literature, a subject should be mentioned before its predicate. The Vedic literature frequently mentions Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān, and therefore these three terms are widely known as the subjects of transcendental understanding. But it is not widely known that what is approached as the impersonal Brahman is the effulgence of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's transcendental body. Nor is it widely known that the Supersoul, or Paramātmā, is only a partial representation of Lord Caitanya, who is identical with Bhagavān Himself. Therefore the descriptions of Brahman as the effulgence of Lord Caitanya, the Paramātmā as His partial representation, and the Supreme Personality of Godhead Kṛṣṇa as identical with Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu must be verified by evidence from authoritative Vedic literatures.

CC Adi 2.9, Purport:

The author wants to establish first that the essence of the Vedas is the viṣṇu-tattva, the Absolute Truth, Viṣṇu, the all-pervading Godhead. The viṣṇu-tattva has different categories, of which the highest is Lord Kṛṣṇa, the ultimate viṣṇu-tattva, as confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā and throughout the Vedic literature. In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam the same Supreme Personality of Godhead Kṛṣṇa is described as Nanda-suta, the son of King Nanda. Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī says that Nandasuta has again appeared as Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and he bases this statement on his understanding that the Vedic literature concludes there is no difference between Lord Kṛṣṇa and Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu. This the author will prove. If it is thus proved that Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the origin of all tattvas (truths), namely Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān, and that there is no difference between Śrī Kṛṣṇa and Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, it will not be difficult to understand that Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is also the same origin of all tattvas. The same Absolute Truth, as He is revealed to students of different realizations, is called Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān.

CC Adi 2.10, Translation:

In terms of His various manifestations, He is known in three features, called the impersonal Brahman, the localized Paramātmā and the original Personality of Godhead.

CC Adi 2.10, Purport:

If the citizens of a state assemble in a fair to enjoy for a short period, the government deputes a special officer to supervise it. Such an officer is invested with all governmental power, and therefore he is identical with the government. When the fair is over, there is no need for such an officer, and he returns home. The Paramātmā is compared to such an officer.

The living beings are not all in all. They are undoubtedly parts of the Supreme Lord and are qualitatively one with Him, yet they are subject to His control. Thus they are never equal to the Lord or one with Him. The Lord who associates with the living being is the Paramātmā, or supreme living being. No one, therefore, should view the tiny living beings and supreme living being to be on an equal level.

The all-pervading truth that exists eternally during the creation, maintenance and annihilation of the material world and in which the living beings rest in trance is called the impersonal Brahman.

CC Adi 2.11, Translation:

Learned transcendentalists who know the Absolute Truth say that it is nondual knowledge and is called impersonal Brahman, the localized Paramātmā and the Personality of Godhead.”

CC Adi 2.11, Purport:

This Sanskrit verse appears as the eleventh verse of the First Canto, Second Chapter, of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, where Sūta Gosvāmī answers the questions of the sages headed by Śaunaka Ṛṣi concerning the essence of all scriptural instructions. Tattva-vidaḥ refers to persons who have knowledge of the Absolute Truth. They can certainly understand knowledge without duality because they are on the spiritual platform. The Absolute Truth is known sometimes as Brahman, sometimes as Paramātmā and sometimes as Bhagavān. Persons who are in knowledge of the truth know that one who tries to approach the Absolute simply by mental speculation will ultimately realize the impersonal Brahman, and one who tries to approach the Absolute through yoga practice will be able to realize Paramātmā, but one who has complete knowledge and spiritual understanding realizes the spiritual form of Bhagavān, the Personality of Godhead.

CC Adi 2.11, Purport:

A pure devotee knows that when he chants the transcendental name "Kṛṣṇa," Śrī Kṛṣṇa is present as transcendental sound. He therefore chants with full respect and veneration. When he sees the forms of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, he does not see anything different from the Lord. If one sees otherwise, he must be considered untrained in absolute knowledge. This lack of absolute knowledge is called māyā. One who is not Kṛṣṇa conscious is ruled by the spell of māyā under the control of a duality in knowledge. In the Absolute, all manifestations of the Supreme Lord are nondual, just as the multifarious forms of Viṣṇu, the controller of māyā, are nondual. Empiric philosophers who pursue the impersonal Brahman accept only the knowledge that the personality of the living entity is not different from the personality of the Supreme Lord, and mystic yogīs who try to locate the Paramātmā accept only the knowledge that the pure soul is not different from the Supersoul. The absolute conception of a pure devotee, however, includes all others. A devotee does not see anything except in its relationship with Kṛṣṇa, and therefore his realization is the most perfect of all.

CC Adi 2.18, Purport:

The authorized scriptures direct the individual souls to revive their relationship with the Supersoul. Indeed, the system of yoga is the process of transcending the influence of the material elements by establishing a connection with the puruṣa known as Paramātmā. One who has thoroughly studied the intricacies of creation can know very easily that this Paramātmā is the plenary portion of the Supreme Being, Śrī Kṛṣṇa.

CC Adi 2.19, Translation:

As the one sun appears reflected in countless jewels, so Govinda manifests Himself (as Paramātmā) in the hearts of all living beings.

CC Adi 2.19, Purport:

The sun is situated in a specific location but is reflected in countless jewels and appears in innumerable localized aspects. Similarly, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, although eternally present in His transcendental abode, Goloka Vṛndāvana, is reflected in everyone's heart as the Supersoul. In the Upaniṣads it is said that the jīva (living entity) and the Paramātmā (Supersoul) are like two birds sitting in the same tree. The Supersoul engages the living being in executing fruitive work as a result of his deeds in the past, but the Paramātmā has nothing to do with such engagements. As soon as the living being ceases to act in terms of fruitive work and takes to the service of the Lord (the Paramātmā), coming to know of His supremacy, he is immediately freed from all designations, and in that pure state he enters the kingdom of God, known as Vaikuṇṭha.

The Paramātmā, or Supersoul, the guide of the individual living beings, does not take part in fulfilling the desires of the living beings, but He arranges for their fulfillment by material nature. As soon as an individual soul becomes conscious of his eternal relationship with the Supersoul and looks only toward Him, he at once becomes free from the entanglements of material enjoyment.

CC Adi 2.19, Purport:

A criminal is first reminded of his misdeeds by witnesses in a law court, and then he is punished. If death is complete forgetfulness, why should a person be punished for his past misdeeds? The conception of the Paramātmā is an invincible answer to these fallacious arguments. The Paramātmā is the witness of the past activities of the individual living being. A man may not remember what he has done in his childhood, but his father, who has seen him grow through different stages of development, certainly remembers. Similarly, the living being undergoes many changes of body through many lives, but the Supersoul is always with him and remembers all his activities, despite his evolution through different bodies.

CC Adi 2.21, Translation:

(Grandfather Bhīṣma said:) "As the one sun appears differently situated to different seers, so also do You, the unborn, appear differently represented as the Paramātmā in every living being. But when a seer knows himself to be one of Your own servitors, no longer does he maintain such duality. Thus I am now able to comprehend Your eternal forms, knowing well the Paramātmā to be only Your plenary portion."

CC Adi 2.21, Purport:

Just as the one sun is the object of vision of many different persons, so the one partial representation of Lord Kṛṣṇa who lives in the heart of every living entity as the Paramātmā is a variously perceived object. One who comes intimately in touch with Lord Kṛṣṇa by engaging in His eternal service sees the Supersoul as the localized partial representation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Bhīṣma knew the Supersoul to be a partial expansion of Lord Kṛṣṇa, whom he understood to be the supreme, unborn transcendental form.

CC Adi 2.22, Purport:

Having described Govinda in terms of His Brahman and Paramātmā features, now the author of Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta advances his argument to prove that Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is the identical personality. The same Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, in the garb of a devotee of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, descended to this mortal world to reclaim the fallen human beings who had misunderstood the Personality of Godhead even after the explanation of the Bhagavad-gītā. In the Bhagavad-gītā the Personality of Godhead Śrī Kṛṣṇa directly instructed that the Supreme is a person, that the impersonal Brahman is His glowing effulgence, and that the Paramātmā is His partial representation. All men were therefore advised to follow the path of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, leaving aside all mundane "isms." Offenders misunderstood this instruction, however, because of their poor fund of knowledge. Thus by His causeless, unlimited mercy Śrī Kṛṣṇa came again as Śrī Caitanya Gosāñi.

CC Adi 2.24, Purport:

(4) From the Hayaśīrṣa Pañcarātra: paramātmā harir devaḥ. "Hari is the Supreme Lord."

CC Adi 2.24, Purport:

"O best of the brāhmaṇas, please tell us of the position of Nārāyaṇa, who is also known as Brahman and Paramātmā."

sthity-udbhava-pralaya-hetur ahetur asya

yat svapna-jāgara-suṣuptiṣu sad bahiś ca

dehendriyāsu-hṛdayāni caranti yena

sañjīvitāni tad avehi paraṁ narendra

"O King, know Him who is causeless and yet is the cause of creation, maintenance and annihilation. He exists in the three states of consciousness—namely waking, dreaming and deep sleep—as well as beyond them. He enlivens the body, the senses, the breath of life, and the heart, and thus they move. Know Him to be supreme."

CC Adi 2.25, Purport:

The sun-god is a person who, although not visible to our eyes, is seen from the higher planets by the demigods, whose eyes are suitable for seeing through the glaring sunshine that surrounds him. Every planet has its own atmosphere according to the influence of the arrangement of material nature. It is therefore necessary to have a particular type of bodily construction to reach a particular planet. The inhabitants of earth may be able to reach the moon, but the inhabitants of heaven can reach even the fiery sphere called the sun. What is impossible for man on earth is easy for the demigods in heaven because of their different bodies. Similarly, to see the Supreme Lord one must have the spiritual eyes of devotional service. The Personality of Godhead is unapproachable by those who are habituated to speculation about the Absolute Truth in terms of experimental scientific thought, without reference to the transcendental vibration. The ascending approach to the Absolute Truth ends in the realization of impersonal Brahman and the localized Paramātmā but not the Supreme Transcendental Personality.

CC Adi 2.26, Translation:

Those who walk the paths of knowledge and yoga worship only Him, for it is Him they perceive as the impersonal Brahman and localized Paramātmā.

CC Adi 2.46, Purport:

Śrī Kṛṣṇa, in His Paramātmā feature, lives in the hearts of all living beings in both the transcendental and mundane creations. As the Paramātmā, He witnesses all actions the living beings perform in all phases of time, namely past, present and future. Śrī Kṛṣṇa knows what the living beings have done for hundreds and thousands of past births, and He sees what they are doing now; therefore He knows the results of their present actions that will fructify in the future. As stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, the entire cosmic situation is created as soon as He glances over the material energy. Nothing can exist without His superintendence. Since He sees even the abode where the collective living beings rest, He is the original Nārāyaṇa.

CC Adi 2.60, Translation:

Not knowing that Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān are all features of Kṛṣṇa, foolish scholars speculate in various ways.

CC Adi 2.63, Translation:

"Learned transcendentalists who know the Absolute Truth say that it is nondual knowledge and is called impersonal Brahman, the localized Paramātmā and the Personality of Godhead."

CC Adi 2.65, Translation:

Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself is the one undivided Absolute Truth, the ultimate reality. He manifests Himself in three features—as Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān.

CC Adi 2.65, Purport:

In the verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam cited above (SB 1.2.11), the principal word, bhagavān, indicates the Personality of Godhead, and Brahman and Paramātmā are concomitants deduced from the Absolute Personality, as a government and its ministers are deductions from the supreme executive head. In other words, the principal truth is exhibited in three different phases. The Absolute Truth, the Personality of Godhead Śrī Kṛṣṇa (Bhagavān), is also known as Brahman and Paramātmā, although all these features are identical.

CC Adi 5.41, Purport:

From Vāsudeva, who is the primary expansion, come Saṅkarṣaṇa, Pradyumna and Aniruddha in that order. Another name of Vāsudeva is Paramātmā, another name of Saṅkarṣaṇa is jīva (the living entity), another name of Pradyumna is mind, and another name of Aniruddha is ahaṅkāra (false ego). Among these expansions, Vāsudeva is considered the origin of the material nature. Therefore Śaṅkarācārya says that Saṅkarṣaṇa, Pradyumna and Aniruddha must be creations of that original cause.

Great souls assert that Nārāyaṇa, who is known as the Paramātmā, or Supersoul, is beyond material nature, and this is in accordance with the statements of the Vedic literature. Māyāvādīs also agree that Nārāyaṇa can expand Himself in various forms. Śaṅkara says that he does not attempt to argue that portion of the devotees' understanding, but he must protest the idea that Saṅkarṣaṇa is produced from Vāsudeva, Pradyumna is produced from Saṅkarṣaṇa, and Aniruddha is produced from Pradyumna, for if Saṅkarṣaṇa is understood to represent the living entities created from the body of Vāsudeva, the living entities would have to be noneternal.

CC Adi 7.102, Purport:

The Absolute Truth is realized in full by the process of devotional service to the Lord, Vāsudeva, or the Personality of Godhead, who is the full-fledged Absolute Truth. Brahman is His transcendental bodily effulgence, and Paramātmā is His partial representation. As such, Brahman or Paramātmā realization of the Absolute Truth is but a partial realization. There are four different types of human beings—the karmīs, the jñānīs, the yogīs and the devotees. The karmīs are materialistic, whereas the other three are transcendental. The first-class transcendentalists are the devotees who have realized the Supreme Person. The second-class transcendentalists are those who have partially realized the plenary portion of the absolute person. And the third-class transcendentalists are those who have barely realized the spiritual focus of the absolute person. As stated in the Bhagavad-gītā and other Vedic literatures, the Supreme Person is realized by devotional service which is backed by full knowledge and detachment from material association. We have already discussed the point that devotional service is followed by knowledge and detachment from material association. As Brahman and Paramātmā realization are imperfect realizations of the Absolute Truth, so the means of realizing Brahman and Paramātmā, i.e., the paths of jñāna and yoga, are also imperfect means of realizing the Absolute Truth. Devotional service which is based on the foreground of full knowledge combined with detachment from material association, and which is fixed by dint of the aural reception of the Vedānta-śruti, is the only perfect method by which the seriously inquisitive student can realize the Absolute Truth. Devotional service is not, therefore, meant for the less intelligent class of transcendentalists.

CC Adi 7.110, Purport:

"My dear wife, hear my explanations of how I have spread ignorance through Māyāvāda philosophy. Simply by hearing it, even an advanced scholar will fall down. In this philosophy, which is certainly very inauspicious for people in general, I have misrepresented the real meaning of the Vedas and recommended that one give up all activities in order to achieve freedom from karma. In this Māyāvāda philosophy I have described the jīvātmā and Paramātmā to be one and the same." How the Māyāvāda philosophy was condemned by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and His followers is described in Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, Second Chapter, verses 94 through 99, where Svarūpa-dāmodara Gosvāmī says that anyone who is eager to understand the Māyāvāda philosophy must be considered insane. This especially applies to a Vaiṣṇava who reads the Śārīraka-bhāṣya and considers himself to be one with God. The Māyāvādī philosophers have presented their arguments in such attractive, flowery language that hearing Māyāvāda philosophy may sometimes change the mind of even a mahā-bhāgavata, or very advanced devotee. An actual Vaiṣṇava cannot tolerate any philosophy that claims God and the living being to be one and the same.

CC Adi 7.111, Purport:

"Learned transcendentalists who know the Absolute Truth call this nondual substance Brahman, Paramātmā or Bhagavān." The Absolute Truth is ultimately understood as Bhagavān, partially understood as Paramātmā and vaguely understood as the impersonal Brahman. Bhagavān, or the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is opulent in all excellence; no one can be equal to or greater than Him. This is also confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā (7.7), where the Lord says, mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya: "O conqueror of wealth (Arjuna), there is no truth superior to Me." There are many other verses which prove that the Absolute Truth in the ultimate sense is understood to be the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa.

CC Adi 7.122, Purport:

How the Supreme Personality of Godhead remains as He is, never changing, is explained in the Īśopaniṣad: pūrṇasya pūrṇam ādāya pūrṇam evāvaśiṣyate (Īśo Invocation). God is complete. Even if a complete manifestation is taken away from Him, He continues to be complete. The material creation is manifested by the energy of the Lord, but He is still the same person. His form, entourage, qualities and so on never deteriorate. Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, in his Paramātma-sandarbha, comments regarding the vivarta-vāda as follows: "Under the spell of vivarta-vāda one imagines the separate entities, namely the cosmic manifestation and the living entities, to be one with Brahman. This is due to complete ignorance regarding the actual fact. The Absolute Truth, or Para-brahman, is always one and always the same. He is completely free from all other conceptions of existence. He is completely free from false ego, for He is the full spiritual identity. It is absolutely impossible for Him to be subjected to ignorance and fall under the spell of a misconception (vivarta-vāda). The Absolute Truth is beyond our conception. One must admit that He has unblemished qualities that He does not share with every living entity. He is never tainted in the slightest degree by the flaws of ordinary living beings. Everyone must therefore understand the Absolute Truth to possess inconceivable potencies."

CC Adi 7.138, Purport:

In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is said that the Absolute Truth is understood in three phases of realization: the impersonal Brahman, the localized Paramātmā and ultimately the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The impersonal Brahman and localized Paramātmā are expansions of the potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is complete in six opulences, namely wealth, fame, strength, beauty, knowledge and renunciation. Since He possesses His six opulences, the Personality of Godhead is the ultimate truth in absolute knowledge.

CC Adi 7.140, Purport:

This verse, which is mentioned in the Īśopaniṣad, Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad and many other Upaniṣads, indicates that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is full in six opulences. His position is unique, for He possesses all riches, strength, influence, beauty, knowledge and renunciation. Brahman means the greatest, but the Supreme Personality of Godhead is greater than the greatest, just as the sun globe is greater than the sunshine, which is all-pervading in the universe. Although the sunshine that spreads all over the universes appears very great to the less knowledgeable, greater than the sunshine is the sun itself, and greater than the sun is the sun-god. Similarly, impersonal Brahman is not the greatest, although it appears to be so. Impersonal Brahman is only the bodily effulgence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but the transcendental form of the Lord is greater than both the impersonal Brahman and localized Paramātmā. Therefore whenever the word "Brahman" is used in the Vedic literature, it is understood to refer to the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

CC Adi 7.140, Purport:

Partial realization of the Absolute Truth as impersonal Brahman denies the complete opulences of the Lord. This is a hazardous understanding of the Absolute Truth. Unless one accepts all the features of the Absolute Truth—namely impersonal Brahman, localized Paramātmā and ultimately the Supreme Personality of Godhead—one's knowledge is imperfect. Śrīpāda Rāmānujācārya, in his Vedārtha-saṅgraha, says, jñānena dharmeṇa svarūpam api nirūpitam, na tu jñāna-mātraṁ brahmeti katham idam avagamyate. He thus indicates that the real identity of the Absolute Truth must be understood in terms of both His knowledge and His characteristics. Simply to understand the Absolute Truth to be full of knowledge is not sufficient. In the Vedic literature (Muṇḍaka Up. 1.1.9) we find the statement yaḥ sarva-jñaḥ sarva-vit, which means that the Absolute Truth knows everything perfectly, but we also learn from the Vedic description parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate (Cc. Madhya 13.65, purport) that not only does He know everything, but He also acts accordingly by utilizing His different energies. Thus to understand that Brahman, the Supreme, is conscious is not sufficient. One must know how He consciously acts through His different energies. Māyāvāda philosophy simply informs us of the consciousness of the Absolute Truth but does not give us information of how He acts with His consciousness. That is the defect of that philosophy.

CC Adi 10.85, Purport:

As far as our information goes, Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī composed and edited at least twenty-five books. They are all very much celebrated, and they are listed as follows: (1) Hari-nāmāmṛta-vyākaraṇa, (2) Sūtra-mālikā, (3) Dhātu-saṅgraha, (4) Kṛṣṇārcā-dīpikā, (5) Gopāla-virudāvalī, (6) Rasāmṛta-śeṣa, (7) Śrī Mādhava-mahotsava, (8) Śrī Saṅkalpa-kalpavṛkṣa, (9) Bhāvārtha-sūcaka-campū, (10) Gopāla-tāpanī-ṭīkā, (11) a commentary on the Brahma-saṁhitā, (12) a commentary on the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, (13) a commentary on the Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi, (14) a commentary on the Yogasāra-stava, (15) a commentary on the Gāyatrī-mantra, as described in the Agni Purāṇa, (16) a description of the Lord's lotus feet derived from the Padma Purāṇa, (17) a description of the lotus feet of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, (18) Gopāla-campū (in two parts) and (19–25) seven sandarbhas: the Krama-, Tattva-, Bhagavat-, Paramātma-, Kṛṣṇa-, Bhakti- and Prīti-sandarbha. After the disappearance of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī and Sanātana Gosvāmī in Vṛndāvana, Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī became the ācārya of all the Vaiṣṇavas in Bengal, Orissa and the rest of the world, and it is he who used to guide them in their devotional service. In Vṛndāvana he established the Rādhā-Dāmodara temple, where, after retirement, we had the opportunity to live from 1962 until 1965, when we decided to come to the United States of America.

CC Adi 14.68, Purport:

The verse quoted in this connection is the twenty-fifth verse of the Twenty-second Chapter, Tenth Canto, of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. The gopīs worshiped goddess Durgā, or Kātyāyanī, but their inner desire was to get Lord Kṛṣṇa as their husband. Kṛṣṇa, as Paramātmā, could realize the ardent desire of the gopīs, and therefore He enjoyed the pastime of vastra-haraṇa. When the gopīs went to bathe in the river Yamunā, they left their garments on the land and dipped into the water completely naked. Taking this opportunity, Kṛṣṇa stole all their garments and sat down in the top of a tree with them, desiring to see the girls naked just to become their husband. The gopīs desired to have Kṛṣṇa as their husband, and since it is only before her husband that a woman can be naked, to fulfill their desire Lord Kṛṣṇa accepted their prayers by this pastime of stealing their garments. When the gopīs received their garments back from Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa recited this verse.

CC Adi 16.89, Purport:

In the Bhagavad-gītā it is clearly said that all intelligence comes from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is situated in everyone's heart as the Paramātmā. The Paramātmā gave the paṇḍita the intelligence to understand that because he was proud of his learning and wanted to defeat even the Supreme Lord, by the will of the Lord and through the agency of mother Sarasvatī he had been defeated. One should not, therefore, be too proud of one's position. Even if one is a greatly learned scholar, if he commits an offense to the lotus feet of the Lord he will not be able to speak properly, in spite of his learning. In every respect, we are controlled. Our only duty, therefore, is to surrender always to the lotus feet of the Lord and not be falsely proud. Mother Sarasvatī created this situation to favor the champion paṇḍita so that he might surrender unto Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

CC Adi 17.76, Purport:

If one wants to understand the Supreme Personality factually, he must take to the path of devotional service and not waste time in profitless philosophical speculation, fruitive activity, mystic yogic practice or severe austerity and penance. Elsewhere in the Bhagavad-gītā (12.5) the Lord confirms, kleśo ’dhikataras teṣām avyaktāsakta-cetasām: "For those whose minds are attached to the unmanifested, impersonal feature of the Supreme, advancement is very troublesome." People who are attached to the impersonal feature of the Lord are obliged to take great trouble, yet nevertheless they cannot understand the Absolute Truth. As explained in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.2.11), brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate. Unless one understands the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the original source of both Brahman and Paramātmā, one is still in darkness about the Absolute Truth.

CC Madhya-lila

CC Madhya 1.43, Purport:

The Bhāgavata-sandarbha is also known as the Ṣaṭ-sandarbha. In the first part, called Tattva-sandarbha, it is proved that Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the most authoritative evidence directly pointing to the Absolute Truth. The second Sandarbha, called Bhagavat-sandarbha, draws a distinction between impersonal Brahman and localized Paramātmā and describes the spiritual world and the domination of the mode of goodness devoid of contamination by the other two material modes. In other words, there is a vivid description of the transcendental position known as śuddha-sattva. Material goodness is apt to be contaminated by the other two material qualities—ignorance and passion—but when one is situated in the śuddha-sattva position, there is no chance for such contamination. It is a spiritual platform of pure goodness.

CC Madhya 1.43, Purport:

The third Sandarbha is called Paramātma-sandarbha, and in this book there is a description of Paramātmā (the Supersoul) and an explanation of how the Supersoul exists in millions and millions of living entities. There are discussions of the differences between the qualitative incarnations, and discourses concerning the living entities, māyā, the material world, the theory of transformation, the illusory energy, the sameness of this world and the Supersoul, and the truth about this material world. In this connection, the opinions of Śrīdhara Svāmī are given. It is stated that the Supreme Personality of Godhead, although devoid of material qualities, superintends all material activities. There is also a discussion of how the līlā-avatāra incarnations respond to the desires of the devotees and how the Supreme Personality of Godhead is characterized by six opulences.

CC Madhya 1.181, Purport:

A monarch is certainly a representative of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, sarva-loka-maheśvaram: (BG 5.29) the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the proprietor of all planetary systems. In each and every planet there must be some king, governmental head or executive. Such a person is supposed to be the representative of Lord Viṣṇu. On behalf of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he must see to the interests of all the people. Therefore Lord Viṣṇu, as Paramātmā, gives the king all intelligence to execute governmental affairs. Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī therefore asked the King what was in his mind concerning Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and indicated that whatever the King thought about Him was correct.

CC Madhya 3.6, Translation:

"(As a brāhmaṇa from Avantī-deśa said:) "I shall cross over the insurmountable ocean of nescience by being firmly fixed in the service of the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. This was approved by the previous ācāryas, who were fixed in firm devotion to the Lord, Paramātmā, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.""

CC Madhya 6.78, Purport:

"Those who are in knowledge of the nondual Absolute Truth know very clearly what is Brahman, what is Paramātmā, and what is the Supreme Personality of Godhead." The Supreme Personality of Godhead is ṣaḍ-aiśvarya-pūrṇa, complete with six opulences. Gopīnātha Ācārya emphasized that all those six opulences were completely existing in Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

CC Madhya 6.139, Purport:

The greatest of everything is Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Lord Kṛṣṇa states in the Bhagavad-gītā (15.15), vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ: "By all the Vedas, I am to be known." In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.2.11) it is said that the Absolute Truth is understood in three phases—namely, Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān, the Supreme Personality of Godhead (brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate). Thus the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the last word in understanding the Absolute Truth, Brahman.

CC Madhya 6.162, Purport:

The Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad completely distinguishes the Lord from the living entities. The living entity is subjected to the reactions of fruitive activity, whereas the Lord simply witnesses such activity and bestows the results. According to the living entity's desires, he is wandering from one body to another and from one planet to another, under the direction of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Paramātmā. However, when the living entity comes to his senses by the mercy of the Lord, he is awarded devotional service. Thus he is saved from the clutches of māyā. At such a time he can see his eternal friend, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and become free from all lamentation and hankering. This is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā (18.54), where the Lord says, brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā na śocati na kāṅkṣati: "One who is thus transcendentally situated at once realizes the Supreme Brahman and becomes fully joyful. He never laments or desires to have anything." Thus it is definitely proved that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the master of all potencies and that the living entities are always subjected to these potencies. That is the difference between māyādhīśa and māyā-vaśa.

CC Madhya 6.168, Purport:

The Māyāvādī philosophers consider Deity worship in devotional service to be pratibimba-vāda, or the worship of a form that is the reflection of a false material form. Thus the Lord's transcendental form, which is eternally blissful and full of knowledge, is unknown to Māyāvādī philosophers. Although the term "Bhagavān" is explicitly described in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, they cannot understand it. Brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate: "The Absolute Truth is called Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān." (SB 1.2.11) The Māyāvādīs try to understand Brahman only, or, at the most, Paramātmā. However, they are unable to understand Bhagavān. Therefore the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, says, māyayāpahṛta-jñānāḥ (BG 7.15). Because of the temperament of the Māyāvādī philosophers, real knowledge is taken from them. Because they cannot receive the mercy of the Lord, they will always be bewildered by His transcendental form.

CC Madhya 8.90, Purport:

In the spiritual world the Absolute Lord is always identical with His name, fame, form, qualities and pastimes. Such identity is impossible in the material world, where the name of a person is different from the person himself. The Supreme Lord has many holy names like Paramātmā, Brahman and "the creator," but one who worships the Lord as the creator cannot understand the relationship between a devotee and the Lord in the five types of transcendental mellows, nor can he understand the conception of Kṛṣṇa. One cannot understand the six transcendental opulences of the Lord simply by understanding the Supreme Personality of Godhead as impersonal Brahman.

Impersonal realization of the Absolute Truth is certainly transcendental, but this does not mean that one who has attained this realization can understand the sac-cid-ānanda form of the Lord. Similarly, Paramātmā realization—realization of the plenary expansion of the Absolute Truth within everyone's heart—is also an incomplete understanding of the Absolute Truth.

CC Madhya 9.245, Purport:

The ācāryas of the Mādhva-sampradāya established Uḍupī as the chief center, and the monastery there was known as Uttararāḍhī-maṭha. A list of the different centers of the Madhvācārya-sampradāya can be found at Uḍupī, and their maṭha commanders are (1) Viṣṇu Tīrtha (Śoda-maṭha), (2) Janārdana Tīrtha (Kṛṣṇapura-maṭha), (3) Vāmana Tīrtha (Kanura-maṭha), (4) Narasiṁha Tīrtha (Adamara-maṭha), (5) Upendra Tīrtha (Puttugī-maṭha), (6) Rāma Tīrtha (Śirura-maṭha), (7) Hṛṣīkeśa Tīrtha (Palimara-maṭha), and (8) Akṣobhya Tīrtha (Pejāvara-maṭha). The disciplic succession of the Madhvācārya-sampradāya is as follows (the dates are those of birth in the Śakābda Era; for Christian era dates, add seventy-eight years.): (1) Haṁsa Paramātmā; (2) Caturmukha Brahmā; (3) Sanakādi; (4) Durvāsā; (5) Jñānanidhi; (6) Garuḍa-vāhana; (7) Kaivalya Tīrtha; (8) Jñāneśa Tīrtha; (9) Para Tīrtha; (10) Satyaprajña Tīrtha; (11) Prājña Tīrtha; (12) Acyuta Prekṣācārya Tīrtha; (13) Śrī Madhvācārya, 1040 Śaka; (14) Padmanābha, 1120; Narahari, 1127; Mādhava, 1136; and Akṣobhya 1159; (15) Jaya Tīrtha, 1167; (16) Vidyādhirāja, 1190; (17) Kavīndra, 1255; (18) Vāgīśa, 1261; (19) Rāmacandra, 1269; (20) Vidyānidhi, 1298; (21) Śrī Raghunātha, 1366; (22) Rayuvarya (who spoke with Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu), 1424; (23) Raghūttama, 1471; (24) Vedavyāsa, 1517; (25) Vidyādhīśa, 1541; (26) Vedanidhi, 1553; (27) Satyavrata, 1557; (28) Satyanidhi, 1560; (29) Satyanātha, 1582; (30) Satyābhinava, 1595; (31) Satyapūrṇa, 1628; (32) Satyavijaya, 1648; (33) Satyapriya, 1659; (34) Satyabodha, 1666; (35) Satyasandha, 1705; (36) Satyavara, 1716; (37) Satyadharma, 1719; (38) Satyasaṅkalpa, 1752; (39) Satyasantuṣṭa, 1763; (40) Satyaparāyaṇa, 1763; (41) Satyakāma, 1785; (42) Satyeṣṭa, 1793; (43) Satyaparākrama, 1794; (44) Satyadhīra, 1801; (45) Satyadhīra Tīrtha, 1808.

CC Madhya 10.168, Purport:

The Supreme Personality of Godhead in His Paramātmā feature is expanded everywhere. The Brahma-saṁhitā says, aṇḍāntara-stha-paramāṇu-cayāntara-stham: (Bs. 5.35) by virtue of His all-pervasive nature, the Supreme Lord is within the universe as well as within all elements of the universe. He is even within the atom. In this way the Supreme Lord Govinda is all-pervasive. On the other hand, the living entities are very, very small. It is said that the living entity is one ten-thousandth of the tip of a hair. Therefore the living entity is localized. Living entities rest on the Brahman effulgence, the bodily rays of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

CC Madhya 10.177, Purport:

In his early life, Bilvamaṅgala Ṭhākura was an impersonalistic monist, and he used to meditate upon the impersonal Brahman effulgence. Later he became a devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa, and his explanation for this change is given in a verse (text 178) that is quoted in the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu. Sometimes a devotee gradually comes to the stage of Bhagavān realization, realization of the Supreme Person, after having attained the lower stages of realization—impersonal Brahman realization and localized Paramātmā realization. The condition of such a devotee is described in the Caitanya-candrāmṛta (5), by Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī:

kaivalyaṁ narakāyate tridaśa-pūr ākāśa-puṣpāyate

durdāntendriya-kāla-sarpa-paṭalī protkhāta-daṁṣṭrāyate

viśvaṁ pūrṇa-sukhāyate vidhi-mahendrādiś ca kīṭāyate

yat-kāruṇya-kaṭākṣa-vaibhava-vatāṁ taṁ gauram eva stumaḥ

Kaivalya, oneness in the effulgence of Brahman, appears hellish to the devotee. The heavenly planets, the abodes of the demigods, appear to a devotee like phantasmagorias. The yogīs meditate for sense control, but for the devotee the senses appear like serpents with broken teeth.

CC Madhya 12.135, Purport:

If one wants to see Kṛṣṇa seated in his heart, he must first cleanse the heart, as prescribed by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu in His Śikṣāṣṭaka: ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam (CC Antya 20.12). In this age, everyone's heart is especially unclean, as confirmed in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam: hṛdy antaḥ-stho hy abhadrāṇi. To wash away all dirty things accumulated within the heart, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu advised everyone to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. The first result will be that the heart is cleansed (ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam (CC Antya 20.12)). Similarly, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.2.17) confirms this statement:

śṛṇvatāṁ sva-kathāḥ kṛṣṇaḥ puṇya-śravaṇa-kīrtanaḥ

hṛdy antaḥ-stho hy abhadrāṇi vidhunoti suhṛt satām

“Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Personality of Godhead, who is the Paramātmā (Supersoul) in everyone's heart and the benefactor of the truthful devotee, cleanses desire for material enjoyment from the heart of the devotee who relishes His messages, which are in themselves virtuous when properly heard and chanted.”

CC Madhya 12.194, Purport:

"Learned transcendentalists who know the Absolute Truth call this nondual substance Brahman, Paramātmā or Bhagavān." (SB 1.2.11)

Absolute knowledge consists of Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān. This conclusion is not the same as that of the monists. Śrīla Advaita Ācārya was given the title of ācārya because He spread the bhakti cult, not the philosophy of monism. The true conclusion of advaita-siddhānta, expressed at the very beginning of the Caitanya-caritāmṛta (CC Adi 1.3), is not the same as the philosophy of the monists. Here advaita-siddhānta means advaya-jñāna, or oneness in variety. Actually Śrīla Nityānanda Prabhu was praising Śrīla Advaita Ācārya through friendly mock fighting. He was giving the Vaiṣṇava conclusion in terms of the Bhāgavatam's conclusive words, vadanti tat tattva-vidaḥ. This is also the conclusion of a mantra in the Chāndogya Upaniṣad, ekam evādvitīyam.

CC Madhya 15.277, Purport:

The Absolute Truth is realized in three phases—impersonal Brahman, Paramātmā and the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Bhagavān. All of these are one and the same truth, but Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān constitute three different features. Whoever understands Brahman is called a brāhmaṇa, and when a brāhmaṇa engages in the Lord's devotional service, he is called a Vaiṣṇava. Unless one comes to understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead, his realization of impersonal Brahman is imperfect. A brāhmaṇa can chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra on the platform of nāmābhāsa, but not on the platform of pure vibration. When a brāhmaṇa engages in the Lord's service, fully understanding his eternal relationship, his devotional service is called abhidheya. When one attains that stage, he is called a bhāgavata, or Vaiṣṇava. This indicates that he is free from contamination and material attachment.

CC Madhya 17.127, Purport:

Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī vilified and blasphemed Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Words like brahma, caitanya, ātmā, paramātmā, jagadīśa, īśvara, virāṭ, vibhu, bhūmā, viśvarūpa and vyāpaka all indirectly indicate Kṛṣṇa. However, the chanter of these names is not actually attracted to the Supreme Personality of Godhead Kṛṣṇa and His transcendental pastimes. One may get a little light from these names, but one cannot understand that the holy name of the Lord is identical with the Lord. One considers the Lord's names material due to a poor fund of knowledge. Māyāvādī philosophers and the pañcopāsakas cannot in the least understand the existence of the spiritual world and the blissful variegatedness there. They cannot understand the Absolute Truth and its spiritual varieties—name, form, qualities and pastimes. Consequently they conclude that Kṛṣṇa's transcendental activities are māyā. To avoid this misconception one has to directly cultivate knowledge about the holy name of the Lord. Māyāvādī philosophers do not know this fact, and therefore they commit great offenses. One should not hear anything about Kṛṣṇa or devotional service from the mouths of Māyāvādī impersonalists.

CC Madhya 19.148, Purport:

In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.2.32) it is said that due to their poor fund of knowledge, the jñānīs are not actually liberated. They simply think that they are liberated. The perfection of knowledge culminates when one comes to the platform of knowing the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate (SB 1.2.11). The Absolute Truth (satya-vastu) is described as Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān. Knowledge of impersonal Brahman and the Supersoul is imperfect until one comes to the platform of knowing the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It is therefore clearly said in this verse, koṭi-mukta-madhye "durlabha" eka kṛṣṇa-bhakta. Those who search after the knowledge of impersonal Brahman or localized Paramātmā are certainly accepted as liberated, but due to their imperfect knowledge they are described in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam as vimukta-māninaḥ. Since their knowledge is imperfect, their conception of liberation is imperfect. Perfect knowledge is possible when one knows the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

CC Madhya 19.183-184, Purport:

The śānta-rati realization of Kṛṣṇa is in the neutral stage between the conception of impersonalism and personalism. This means that one is not very strongly attached to the personal feature of the Lord. An appreciation of the greatness of the Lord is called śānta-rati. This is attachment not to the personal feature but to the impersonal feature. Generally, one in this stage is attached to the Paramātmā feature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

CC Madhya 19.218, Translation and Purport:

“It is the nature of śānta-rasa that not even the smallest intimacy exists. Rather, knowledge of impersonal Brahman and localized Paramātmā is prominent.

Because of an impersonal impression of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, a devotee in the śānta-rasa relationship worships the impersonal Brahman or localized aspect of the Absolute Truth (Paramātmā). He does not develop a personal relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Śrī Kṛṣṇa.

CC Madhya 19.228, Purport:

Although in śānta-rasa there is attachment for Kṛṣṇa in awe and veneration—since the two valuable transcendental qualities of this rasa are attachment for Kṛṣṇa and detachment from material desires—nonetheless the sense of intimacy is lacking. The reason for this is that in śānta-rasa attachment for impersonal Brahman and localized Paramātmā is prominent. In other words, the sense of intimacy by which one thinks of Kṛṣṇa as one's only shelter and friend is absent in śānta-rasa because one accepts Kṛṣṇa as the impersonal Parambrahma or localized Paramātmā. This understanding is based on the speculative knowledge of the jñānī. However, when this knowledge is further developed, one is convinced that the Paramātmā, the Supreme Lord, is the master and that the living entity is His eternal servant. One then attains the platform of dāsya-rasa. In dāsya-rasa the Lord is accepted with awe and veneration.

CC Madhya 20 Summary:

First they discussed the constitutional position of the living entities, and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu explained to Sanātana Gosvāmī how the living entity is one of Lord Kṛṣṇa's energies. After this, the Lord explained the way of devotional service. While discussing the Absolute Truth, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Lord analyzed Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān, as well as the expansions of the Lord called svayaṁ-rūpa, tad-ekātma and āveśa, which are divided into various branches known as vaibhava and prābhava. Thus the Lord described the many forms of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He also described the incarnations of God within the material world, incarnations such as the puruṣa-avatāras, manvantara-avatāras, guṇa-avatāras and śaktyāveśa-avatāras. The Lord also discussed the divisions of Kṛṣṇa's different ages, such as bālya and paugaṇḍa, and the different pastimes of the different ages. He explained how Kṛṣṇa attained His permanent form when He reached youth. In this way Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu explained and described everything to Sanātana Gosvāmī.

CC Madhya 20.157, Translation:

“There are three kinds of spiritual processes for understanding the Absolute Truth—the processes of speculative knowledge, mystic yoga and bhakti-yoga. According to these three processes, the Absolute Truth is manifested as Brahman, Paramātmā or Bhagavān.

CC Madhya 20.158, Translation:

"Learned transcendentalists who know the Absolute Truth call this nondual substance Brahman, Paramātmā or Bhagavān."

CC Madhya 20.158, Purport:

Those who are interested in the impersonal Brahman effulgence, which is not different from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, can attain that goal by speculative knowledge. Those who are interested in practicing mystic yoga can attain the localized aspect of Paramātmā. As stated in the Bhagavad-gītā (18.61), īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe ‘rjuna tiṣṭhati: the Supreme Personality of Godhead is situated within the heart as Paramātmā. He witnesses the activities of the living entities and gives them permission to act.

CC Madhya 20.161, Translation:

The Paramātmā, the Supersoul feature, is a plenary portion of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the original soul of all living entities. Kṛṣṇa is the source of the Paramātmā.

CC Madhya 20.318, Purport:

This is a quotation from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (2.6.32). Lord Brahmā gave this information to Devarṣi Nārada when he was receiving instructions from Lord Brahmā to understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Paramātmā. After describing the universal form of the Lord, Lord Brahmā explained that his position and Lord Śiva's position are controlled by Lord Viṣṇu.

CC Madhya 22.110, Translation:

"O descendant of Bharata! O Mahārāja Parīkṣit! The Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is situated in everyone"s heart as Paramātmā, who is the supreme controller, and who always removes the miseries of the living entities, must always be heard about from reliable sources, and He must be glorified and remembered by one who wishes to become fearless.’

CC Madhya 24.74, Translation:

"Learned transcendentalists who know the Absolute Truth say that it is nondual knowledge and is called impersonal Brahman, localized Paramātmā and the Personality of Godhead."

CC Madhya 24.80, Translation:

The Absolute Truth is the same, but according to the process by which one understands Him, He appears in three forms—as Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

CC Madhya 24.81, Translation:

"Learned transcendentalists who know the Absolute Truth say that it is nondual knowledge and is called impersonal Brahman, localized Paramātmā and the Personality of Godhead."

CC Madhya 24.166, Translation:

"Those who follow the path of great, saintly mystic yogīs take to the yogic gymnastic process and begin worshiping from the abdomen, where it is said that Brahman is located. Such people are called śārkarākṣa, which means that they are situated in the gross bodily conception. There are also followers of the ṛṣi known as Āruṇa. Following his path, they observe the activities of the arteries. Thus they gradually rise to the heart, where subtle Brahman, Paramātmā, is situated. They then worship Him. O unlimited Ananta! Better than these persons are the mystic yogīs who worship You from the top of their heads. Beginning with the abdomen and proceeding through the heart, they reach the top of the head and pass through the brahma-randhra, the hole at the top of the skull. Thus these yogīs attain the perfectional platform and do not enter the cycle of birth and death again."

CC Madhya 24.213, Translation:

"Those who follow the path of great, saintly mystic yogīs take to the yogic gymnastic process and begin worshiping from the abdomen, where it is said that Brahman is located. Such people are called śārkarākṣa, which means that they are situated in the gross bodily conception. There are also followers of the ṛṣi known as Āruṇa. Following his path, they observe the activities of the arteries. Thus they gradually rise to the heart, where subtle Brahman, Paramātmā, is situated. They then worship Him. O unlimited Ananta! Better than these persons are the mystic yogīs who worship You from the top of their heads. Beginning with the abdomen and proceeding through the heart, they reach the top of the head and pass through the brahma-randhra, the hole at the top of the skull. Thus these yogīs attain the perfectional platform and do not enter the cycle of birth and death again."

CC Madhya 25.103, Purport:

Spiritual knowledge means fully understanding the Absolute Truth in three features—impersonal Brahman, localized Paramātmā and the all-powerful Supreme Personality of Godhead. Ultimately when one takes shelter at the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and engages in the Lord's service, the resultant knowledge is called vijñāna, special knowledge, or the practical application of spiritual knowledge. One should be engaged in the Lord's devotional service to achieve the aim of life, called prayojana. The practice of devotional service to attain that goal of life is called abhidheya.

CC Madhya 25.132, Translation:

"The Absolute Truth is known by the self-realized souls as a unified identity known by different names—impersonal Brahman, localized Paramātmā, and Bhagavān, the Supreme Personality of Godhead."

CC Antya-lila

CC Antya 5.122, Purport:

Lord Kṛṣṇa, the son of Nanda Mahārāja, is advaya-jñāna; in other words, there is no distinction between His body and His soul, for His existence is completely spiritual. According to the verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam beginning with the words vadanti tat tattva-vidas tattvam (1.2.11), the Absolute Truth is always to be understood from three angles of vision as Brahman, Paramātmā and Bhagavān. Unlike the objects of the material world, however, the Absolute Truth is always one and always the same. Thus there is no distinction between His body and His soul. His form, name, attributes and pastimes, therefore, are completely distinct from those of the material world. One should know perfectly well that there is no difference between the body and the soul of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. When one conceives of a distinction between His body and His soul, one is immediately conditioned by material nature. Because a person in the material world makes such distinctions, he is called baddha-jīva, a conditioned soul.

CC Antya Concluding Words:

I think that His Divine Grace Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura is always seeing my activities and guiding me within my heart by his words. As it is said in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, tene brahma hṛdā ya ādi-kavaye (SB 1.1.1). Spiritual inspiration comes from within the heart, wherein the Supreme Personality of Godhead, in His Paramātmā feature, is always sitting with all His devotees and associates. It is to be admitted that whatever translation work I have done is through the inspiration of my spiritual master, because personally I am most insignificant and incompetent to do this materially impossible work. I do not think myself a very learned scholar, but I have full faith in the service of my spiritual master, His Divine Grace Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura. If there is any credit to my activities of translating, it is all due to His Divine Grace. Certainly if His Divine Grace were physically present at this time, it would have been a great occasion for jubilation, but even though he is not physically present, I am confident that he is very much pleased by this work of translation. He was very fond of seeing many books published to spread the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Therefore our society, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, has been formed to execute the order of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and His Divine Grace Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura.