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Chapter 31: Lord Kapila's Instructions on the Movements of the Living Entities

Verse 14 of 47
SB 3.31.14

यः पंचभूतरचिते रहितः शरीरे च्छन्नो ऽयथेन्द्रियगुणार्थचिदात्मको ऽहम् तेनाविकुण्ठमहिमानमृषिं तमेनं वन्दे परं प्रकृतिपूरुषयोः पुमांसम्

yaḥ pañca-bhūta-racite rahitaḥ śarīre cchanno 'yathendriya-guṇārtha-cid-ātmako 'ham tenāvikuṇṭha-mahimānam ṛṣiṁ tam enaṁ vande paraṁ prakṛti-pūruṣayoḥ pumāṁsam

Synonyms

yaḥwho; pañca-bhūtafive gross elements; racitemade of; rahitaḥseparated; śarīrein the material body; channaḥcovered; ayathāunfitly; indriyasenses; guṇaqualities; arthaobjects of senses; citego; ātmakaḥconsisting of; ahamI; tenaby a material body; avikuṇṭha-mahimānamwhose glories are unobscured; ṛṣimall-knowing; tamthat; enamunto Him; vandeI offer obeisances; paramtranscendental; prakṛtito material nature; pūruṣayoḥto the living entities; pumāṁsamunto the Supreme Personality of Godhead..

Translation

I am separated from the Supreme Lord because of my being in this material body, which is made of five elements, and therefore my qualities and senses are being misused, although I am essentially spiritual. Because the Supreme Personality of Godhead is transcendental to material nature and the living entities, because He is devoid of such a material body, and because He is always glorious in His spiritual qualities, I offer my obeisances unto Him.

Purport

The difference between the living entity and the Supreme Personality of Godhead is that the living entity is prone to be subjected to material nature, whereas the Supreme Godhead is always transcendental to material nature as well as to the living entities. When the living entity is put into material nature, then his senses and qualities are polluted, or designated. There is no possibility for the Supreme Lord to become embodied by material qualities or material senses for the reason that He is above the influence of material nature and cannot possibly be put in the darkness of ignorance like the living entities. Because of His full knowledge, He is never subjected to the influence of material nature. Material nature is always under His control, and it is therefore not possible that material nature can control the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Since the identity of the living entity is very minute, he is prone to be subjected to material nature, but when he is freed from this material body, which is false, then he attains the same spiritual nature as the Supreme Lord. At that time there is no qualitative difference between him and the Supreme Lord, but because he is not so quantitatively powerful as to never be put under the influence of material nature, he is quantitatively different from the Lord.

The entire process of devotional service is to purify oneself of this contamination of material nature and put oneself on the spiritual platform where he is qualitatively one with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In the Vedas it is said that the living entity is always free. Asaṅgo hy ayaṁ puruṣaḥ.

Verse 14 of 47
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