Categories: Purports

Placed Yourself, the Spirit Soul, at the Lotus Feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead

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). 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’: 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.

Srimad Bhagavatam 6.10.11 purport

Share:

Follow us

Padmanayana Krsna Dasa

Recent Posts

Taking Care of Krishna’s Cows Course Invitation

ISKCON GLOBAL MINISTRY OF COW PROTECTION AND AGRICULTURE (IMCPA) FEED THE EARTHEDUCATION PROJECT FEED THE…

14 hours ago

ISKCON’s First Stone Temple Construction Update – April 2025

ISKCON's First stone temple | Construction masterpiece to last 1000s of years | Traditional temple…

15 hours ago

Shamanism ends in Vaishnavism: A Vaishnava Perspective on Ayahuasca

Shamanism ends in Vaishnavism: A Vaishnava Perspective on Ayahuasca The subject of this article—ayahuasca—may not…

2 weeks ago

Authorized Dates for Observing the Jagannatha Rathayatra: Presentations and Research Findings by the ISKCON India Scholars Board (IISB)

The ISKCON India Scholars Board (IISB) recently presented a series of research findings and discussions…

4 weeks ago

Meeting between ISKCON India Scholars Board and the Sri Jagannath Temple management authorities

Meeting between ISKCON India Scholars Board Representatives and the Sri Jagannath Temple Management Authorities By…

4 weeks ago

Using Cadmium to Deceive

Don’t Accept Cadmium Stories from a Layman When our parents taught us NOT to accept…

1 month ago