According to Bhagavad-gītā, the living entities, although they are parts and parcels of the Supreme Lord, they are taken as prakṛti. It is clearly mentioned in the Seventh Chapter of the Bhagavad-gītā, yes, apareyam itas tu viddhi aparā (BG 7.5). This material nature is aparā iyam. Itas tu, and beyond this there is another prakṛti. And what is that prakṛti? Jīva-bhūta, these . . .
So this prakṛti, the constitution of this prakṛti, is constituted by three qualities: the mode of goodness, the mode of passion and mode of ignorance. And above these modes, three different kinds of modes, goodness, passion and, I mean to say, ignorance, there is eternal time. There is eternal time. And by combination of these modes of nature and under the control, under the purview, of this eternal time, there are activities. There are activities, which is called karma.
These activities are being done from time immemorial, and we are suffering or enjoying the fruits of our activities, just like in the present life also, we enjoy the activities, the fruits of our activities. Suppose I am a businessman and I have very . . . worked very hard with intelligence, and I have amassed a vast amount of bank balance. Now I am the enjoyer.
Similarly, suppose I started my business with a vast amount of money, but I failed to make a successful . . . I lost all the money. So I am sufferer. So similarly, in every field of our life we enjoy, we enjoy the result of our work. This is called karma.
So these things, īśvara, jīva, prakṛti, or the Supreme Lord, or the living entity, the material nature, the eternal time, and our different activities, these things are explained in the Bhagavad-gītā. Now out of these five, the Lord, the living entities, and the material nature and time, these four items are eternal. Now manifestation, manifestation of prakṛti, may be temporary, but it is not false.
Some philosophers say that this manifestation of material nature is false, but according to the philosophy of Bhagavad-gītā or according to the philosophy of the Vaiṣṇavas, they do not accept the manifestation of the world as false. They accept that the manifestation is real, but it is temporary.
It is just like a cloud takes place in the sky and the rainy season begins, and after the rainy season there are so many new green vegetation all over the field, we can see. And as soon as the rainy season is finished, then the cloud is vanquished. Generally, gradually, all this vegetation dry up and again the land becomes barren. Similarly, this material manifestation takes place at a certain interval.
We'll understand it, we'll know it, from the pages of the Bhagavad-gītā. Bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate (BG 8.19). This manifestation becomes magnificent at a certain interval, and again it disappears. That is the work of the prakṛti. But it is working eternally, therefore prakṛti is eternal.
It is not false. Because the Lord has accepted, mama prakṛti, "My prakṛti." Apareyam itas tu viddhi me prakṛtiṁ parām (BG 7.5). Bhinnā prakṛti, bhinnā prakṛti, aparā prakṛti, this material nature is a separated energy of the Supreme Lord, and the living entities, they are also energy of the Supreme Lord, but they are not separated. They are eternally related.