SB 10.47.29

“The Lord said” actually means that Uddhava began reciting the words of Kṛṣṇa’s message. The past perfect uvāca indicates that the speaking was completed in the past and that the speaker was not present. One can say “Did I lament (vilalāpa) while I was asleep?” using the past perfect of lament to indicate that one was not aware of the lamenting. Thus the meaning is “I cannot understand what he said (uvāca), but you gopīs should try to understand its meaning.” The apparent meaning of the message is instructions on jñāna. Though this first meaning is used to hide another secret meaning, it appears to pacify lamentation according to conventional means. The Lord used this method after consideration. He considered as follows. They will realize that even for ordinary devotees, jñāna is repulsive. tasmān mad-bhakti-yuktasya yogino vai mad-ātmanaḥ na jñānaṁ na ca vairāgya prāyaḥ śreyo bhaved iha Therefore, for a devotee engaged in bhakti, with mind fixed on me, the cultivation of knowledge and renunciation is generally not beneficial for bhakti. SB 11.20.31 nātyantikaṁ vigaṇayanty api te prasādaṁ kimv anyad arpita-bhayaṁ bhruva unnayais te ye ’ṅga tvad-aṅghri-śaraṇā bhavataḥ kathāyāḥ kīrtanya-tīrtha-yaśasaḥ kuśalā rasa-jñāḥ Persons who have realized you do not regard attainment of impersonal liberation as your mercy, what to speak of attaining a material position like Indra which is subject to fear caused by the Lord raising his eyebrow. O Lord! Those devotees, surrendered to your lotus feet, are expert knowers of rasa derived from narrations about your fame, which should be chanted and which purify everyone like a tīrtha. SB 3.15.48 The gopīs who are totally convinced by their personal experience will then realize the highest level of sweetness of pure prema for me in my sphūrti. I will place the real meaning with the conclusion, which testifies to the experience of prema, within the external message for their perception. But even then, worrying that the gopīs would reach the highest level of longing when realizing only his sphūrti in that experience, he decided there should be a third meaning concerning their eternal pastimes. Realizing this, they would immediately become peaceful. By the power of my instructions that plan will take place. Considering in this way, he then gave his message. The main statement is made in the first line. The first meaning of this is as follows. You are never separated from me because I am the material cause and the antaryāmī. The second meaning is as follows. There is no separation from me, by making all efforts (sarvātmanā), because my sphūrti always exists internally and externally. An example is given. Just as the elements exist in all things, I am the shelter of your qualities such as excellent disposition, your senses, your elements, life airs and minds. Or, I am the shelter of the qualities of your mind, senses life airs and elements. Or just as the elements are the shelter of the guṇas, mind, senses, life airs and elements in your bodies, I dwell there, always appearing there in my form. The third meaning is as follows. There is no separation because of all my appearances (sarvātmanā). But there is separation now in this one manifestation in the material world. There is however union, not separation in the aprakaṭa manifestations. How is this? Just as ether is present invisibly in its effect known as air, I am present in an aprakaṭa form here and there. What form does this take? It is the form which takes shelter in your intelligence, life airs and senses (manaḥ-prāṇa- bhūtendriya-guṇāśrayaḥ): the form of Śyāmasundara, playing the flute. It has been said that Kṛṣṇa eternally exists in Vṛndāvana, Mathurā and Dvārakā. Skanda Purāṇa says tatra vṛndāvanaṁ ramyaṁ vṛndādevī-samāśritam hariṇādhiṣthitaṁ tac ca brahma-rudradi-sevitam In Vṛndāvana, served by Brahmā and Śiva, under the shelter of Vṛndādevī, the Lord resides. vatsair vatsatarībhiś ca sākaṁ krīḍati mādhavaḥ | vṛndāvanāntaragataḥ sarāmo bālakair vṛtaḥ ||431|| Kṛṣṇa plays with the calves and older calves within Vṛndāvana, surrounded by Balarāma and other boys. Padma Purāṇa says: aho abhagyaṁ lokasya na pītaṁ yamunā-jalam go-gopa-gopikā-saṅge yatra krīḍati kaṁsahā People are unfortunate who have not drunk the water of the Yamunā, where the killer of Kaṁsa plays in association with the cows, cowherd boys and gopīs. yamunā-jala-kallole sadā krīḍati mādhavaḥ Kṛṣṇa always plays in the waves of the Yamunā’s water. sarva-deva-mayaś cāhaṁ na tyajāmi vanaṁ kvacit || āvirbhāvas tirobhāvo bhaven me ’tra yuge yuge | tejo-mayam idaṁ ramyam adṛśyaṁ carma-cakṣuṣā || All the devas and the elements exist there in a spiritual form. I, the embodiment of all devas, do not leave that forest for a moment, though I appear and disappear in this world age after age. But this radiant forest full of pleasure is invisible to the material eye. Gautamīya-tantra govindaṁ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaṁ vṛndāvana-sura-bhūruha-talāsīnaṁ satataṁ samarud-gaṇo ’haṁ toṣayāmi I along with the Maruts satisfy Govinda, the form of eternity, knowledge and bliss, who sits beneath a desire tree in Vṛndāvana. Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad janma-jarābhyāṁ bhinnaḥ sthānur ayam acchedyo ’yaṁ yo ’sau saurye tiṣṭhati | yo ’sau goṣu tiṣṭhati, yo ’sau gāḥ pālayati, yo ’sau gopeṣu tiṣṭhati govindān mṛtyur bibheti || He is unchanging, free from birth and old age. He who stays in Vṛndāvana is indivisible. Death fears Govinda who stays with the cows, who protects the cows and who resides with the cowherd people. Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad Ato ‘tidhanyā mathurā yatra sannihito hari Mathurā is most fortunate for there the Lord resides eternally. Ādi-varāha Purāṇa aho madhupurī dhanyā yatra tiṣṭhati kaṁsahā Oh! Mathurā is most fortunate for Kṛṣṇa resides there. Padma Purāṇa catvāriṁśad yojanānāṁ tatas tu mathurā smṛtā yatra devo hariḥ sākṣāt svayaṁ tiṣthati sarvadā Mathurā is twenty for yojanas in size. There the Lord resides personally at all times. Vāyu Purāṇa prāpya mathurāṁ purīṁ ramyāṁ sadā brahmādi-sevitam | śaṅkha-cakra-gadā-śārṅga-rakṣitāṁ muṣalādibhiḥ || yatrāsau saṁsthitaḥ kṛṣṇas tribhiḥ śaktyā samāhitaḥ | rāmāniruddha-pradyumnai rukmiṇyā sahito vibhuḥ || He attained attractive Mathurā always worshipped by Brahmā and others and protected by the conch, cakra, club and bow. There Kṛṣṇa lives with his three śaktis, along with Balarāma, Aniruddha, Pradyumna and Rukmiṇī. Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad rājadhānī tataḥ sābhūt sarva-yādava-bhūbhujām mathurā bhagavān yatra nityaṁ sannihito hariḥ Since that time, the city of Mathurā had been the capital of all the kings of the Yadu dynasty. The city and district of Mathurā are very intimately connected with Kṛṣṇa, for Lord Kṛṣṇa lives there eternally. SB 10.1.28 He resides eternally in Dvārakā as well. dvārakāṁ hariṇā tyaktāṁ samudro ’plāvayat kṣaṇāt varjayitvā mahā-rāja śrīmad-bhagavad-ālayam As soon as Dvārakā was abandoned by the Supreme Lord, the ocean flooded it on all sides, O King, sparing only his palace. nityaṁ sannihitas tatra bhagavān madhusūdanaḥ smṛtyāśeṣāśubha-haraṁ sarva-maṅgala-maṅgalam Madhusūdana, the Supreme Lord, is eternally present in Dvārakā. By remembering that most auspicious of all auspicious places, one destroys all contamination. SB 11.31.23-24 Viṣṇu Purāṇa particularly says yadu-deva-gṛhas tv ekā nāplāvayat: the house of Kṛṣṇa was not covered with water. Kṛṣṇa-krīḍākaraṁ sthānam: Dvārakā is the place of pastimes of Kṛṣṇa. jayati jananivāso devakī-janma-vādo yadu-vara-pariṣat svair dorbhir asyann adharmam | sthira-cara-vṛjina-ghnaḥ susmita-śrī-mukhena vraja-pura-vanitānāṁ vardhayan kāma-devam || Kṛṣṇa lives among the cowherd men and the Yādavas, and is conclusively both the son of Devakī and Yaśodā. He is the guide of the Yadu dynasty and the cowherd men, and with His mighty arms he kills everything inauspicious, in Vraja, Mathurā and Dvārakā. By his presence he destroys all things inauspicious for all living entities, moving and inert, and the suffering of separation of the inhabitants of Vraja and Dvārakā. His blissful smiling face always increases the desires of the gopīs of Vṛndāvana and women of Mathurā and Dvārakā. He remains eternally in this situation. SB 10.90.48 Thus Kṛṣṇa resides in these places eternally. Though it is said that he comes and goes from these places, he actually does this by manifesting different forms (one stays and one goes). Yaśodā realized that Kṛṣṇa is inside and outside of everything during the Dāmodara and eating dirt pastimes. Thus his powers are seen even though he has a human form. Because of his acintya-śakti it is not impossible for him to display opposing qualities in one being. Such matters are accepted on the basis of śrutes tu śabdamūlatvāt: the scriptures are the source of knowledge. (Brahma-sūtra 2.1.27) Since he has all powers, he easily manifests other forms in order to be present at many places simultaneously. But, with manifestations of power and human natures simultaneously, according to his will, one form manifests as many by his acintya-śakti. It is like forms manifesting through a medium, like reflections on water. However, in such an example they only exist because of a medium like water for reflection. One cannot touch the reflections in the same way as the original object. The reflection is an opposite form to the original form, and the images are more limited than the original. Kṛṣṇa however expands his forms simply by a display of his natural śakti. The forms can be touched, they have forms according to his desire, and they have the potency of the original. All these forms exist separately by his acintya-śakti. They have separate activities. There is no contradiction if all the different forms which appear simultaneously have actions like opening and closing of their eyes independently. However the Lord is the person who acts, since he is the shelter of all the forms performing different actions. This is described in many places in Bhāgavatam and other scriptures. Normally such expansions could not give happiness to a person who knew the truth about them. But it the case of Kṛṣṇa this is not so. This shows the outstanding nature of these forms. Thus Nārada says: citraṁ bataitad ekena vapuṣā yugapat pṛthak gṛheṣu dvy-aṣṭa-sāhasraṁ striya eka udāvahat It is astounding that Kṛṣṇa, who is one without a second, expanded himself in sixteen thousand similar forms to marry sixteen thousand queens in their respective homes. SB 10.69.2 Though his form was one, it had many separate manifestations. Each of these forms performed differing actions. This is not possible for sages to perform. Thus Nārada was astonished. Such forms are sometimes called ātmā and sometimes rūpa. For instance the present verse says sarvātmanā kvacit (by all my expanded forms). kṛtvā tāvantam ātmānaṁ yāvatīr gopa-yoṣitaḥ reme sa bhagavāṁs tābhir ātmārāmo ’pi līlayā Expanding himself us many times as there were cowherd women to associate with, the Supreme Lord, though self-satisfied, playfully enjoyed their company. SB 10.33.19 atho muhūrta ekasmin nānāgāreṣu tāḥ striyaḥ yathopayeme bhagavān tāvad-rūpa-dharo ’vyayaḥ Then the imperishable Lord, assuming a separate form for each bride, duly married all the princesses simultaneously, each in her own palace. SB 10.59.42 ity ādiṣṭo bhagavatā kṛṣṇenecchā-śarīriṇā triḥ parikramya taṁ natvā vimānena divaṁ yayau So instructed by the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa, who assumes his body by his own will, the hunter circumambulated the Lord three times and bowed down to him. Then the hunter departed in an airplane that had appeared just to carry him to the spiritual sky. SB 11.30.40 Since each form is the center of activities, there is a separate identity in each of the manifested forms for nourishing the rasa of the pastimes and each is unaware of the other forms. Bhagavān accepts such arrangements by his will. His associates can also assume many forms since they are endowed with his śakti. Thus at the marriage of Kṛṣṇa to sixteen thousand queens, Vasudeva and others assumed many forms to be present at the various weddings. According to the commentary it is said that simultaneously Devakī and others were present in each house. Kṛṣṇa was present with them while he had a separate identity in each wedding, just as Nārada saw separate forms in each palace by the influence of yogamāyā. dīvyantam akṣais tatrāpi priyayā coddhavena ca pūjitaḥ parayā bhaktyā pratyutthānāsanādibhiḥ There he saw the Lord playing at dice with his beloved consort and his friend Uddhava. Lord Kṛṣṇa worshiped Nārada by standing up, offering him a seat. SB 10.69.20 mantrayantaṁ ca kasmiṁścin mantribhiś coddhavādibhiḥ jala-krīḍā-rataṁ kvāpi vāramukhyābalāvṛtam Somewhere he was consulting with royal ministers like Uddhava, and somewhere else he was enjoying in the water, surrounded by many society girls and other young women. SB 10.69.27 There is difference in identity because of different bhāvas in the different forms. One form thinks, “This is the situation and I am here.” At the marriage of sixteen thousand queens Devakī was present with Kṛṣṇa somewhere doing activity and was happy seeing him. And in another place, in his absence, she longed to see him. Sometimes Kṛṣṇa was with Uddhava and sometimes in another expansion in separation. This is the remarkable nature of his expansions. Since there different expansions and different actions and identity because of those different forms, there are different conditions for these forms. Thus there are two types of expansion: prakaṭa and aprakaṭa. The prakaṭa forms manifest in the material world. In the twenty-eighth chapter Goloka was shown: this becomes visible in the material world as Vṛndāvana. Even now there are meetings of the gopīs in their aprakaṭa forms with Kṛṣṇa in his aprakaṭa form. There is at this time separation of the gopīs in their prakaṭa forms from Kṛṣṇa’s prakaṭa form, which has gone to the prakaṭa form of Mathurā, though he was previously situated in the prakaṭa Vṛndāvana. The statement is illustrated in the verse with an example. The first meaning is as follows. Just as the five elements—ether, air, fire, water and earth—are also in objects made of air or earth etc. As the material cause (upādāna), I am in your minds, life airs, bodies, senses and qualities. The second meaning is as follows. Just as the elements exist as the shelter or cause in the effects such as living beings, I also am the shelter of your qualities, mind, life airs, senses and bodies, since you take my sphūrti as your very life. The third meaning is as follows. Just as the elements are present in the effects in aprakaṭa form, I am present with you in an aprakaṭa form, which takes the form present in your minds and life airs: Śyāmasundara with a flute.