Introduction a Introduction

particular form that he has developed faith in. As the Supreme Soul of all, I exist within

all created beings, as well as separately in My original form.

Lord Kĺńëa’s Instructions on the Process of Deity Worship


COMMENTARY

685

The main criteria for Deity worship is faith. It is due to the faith of the worshiper that

the Supreme Lord appears within the Deity. The Lord’s appearance as the Deity is His

mercy upon the conditioned souls, who cannot perceive Him with their blunt material

senses. Those who are very materialistic are advised to meditate upon the Lord as the

universal form. The Deity form, arcä, is specifically mentioned in this verse because

Deity worship is essential for making further spiritual progress. With strong faith, when

one becomes further advanced, he can realize the presence of the Lord everywhere.

PURPORT

The Supreme Personality of Godhead is the worshipable Lord of all living entities.

As the Supersoul, He is situated within the heart of all living entities. One should

faithfully worship the Lord in those forms in which he can feel the Lord’s presence.

The Deity form of the Lord is considered one of His incarnations. The Deity attracts

the faith of His worshiper and awards him auspiciousness. Inexperienced persons may

think that the Deity is meant for the sense gratification of the worshiper, because

superficially, the Deity is made of external substances, such as marble or brass. If one

makes a show of worshiping the Supreme Lord while considering Him an order supplier

of one’s sense enjoyment, it is to be understood that he is devoid of faith. It is one’s

duty to faithfully serve the Deity by offering various items, to the best of one’s capacity.

One’s faith will never develop if he thinks that the Deity is different from the Lord

Himself. The Supreme Lord is present within all living entities, and so the conception

that other living entities and objects are meant for our personal enjoyment will distract

one from the path of spiritual advancement. Indeed, such a materialistic conception is

an indication of one’s lack of faith in the Supreme Lord. By faithfully worshiping the

Deity, one can gradually become freed from such materialistic conceptions. Because

neophyte devotees, or kanińöha adhikärés, have such a materialistic conception of life,

they cannot understand the position of an advanced devotee and thus their faith is

limited to the Deity. While faithfully worshiping the Deity, when one realizes that the

Deity is directly the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he can understand the distinction

between the three classes of devotees—uttama, madhyama, and kanińöha. The Supreme

Lord continuously resides within the body of a devotee who is merged in ecstatic love

and never considers a Vaińëava according to his bodily designations.

TEXT 49

Wv&i§-YaaYaaeGaPaQaE>PauMaaNvEidk-TaaiN}akE-> )

AcRŕu>aYaTa>iSaiÖ&MataaeivNdTYa>aqiPSaTaaMa( ))49))

686

UDDHAVA-GÉTÄ

evaŕ kriyä-yoga-pathaiů pumän vaidika-täntrikaiů

arcann ubhayataů siddhiŕ matto vindaty abhépsitäm

By worshiping Me according to the various methods prescribed in the Vedas and

tantras, one achieves his desired perfection from Me, both in this life and the next.
COMMENTARY

The word ubhayathaů means “both in this life and the next.”

PURPORT

If one worships the Supreme Lord according to the rules and regulations prescribed

in the Vedas and Paďcarätras, the Lord fulfills all of his desires. Simply by the practice

of chanting Vedic and Päďcarätrika mantras, one attains the mercy of the Supreme

Lord.

TEXT 50

Madca|SaMPa[iTaďaPYaMaiNdr&k-arYaeŐ*!Ma( )

PauZPaaeŰaNaaiNarMYaai
mad-arcäŕ sampratińöhäpya mandiraŕ kärayed dĺňham

puńpodyänäni ramyäëi püjä-yätrotsaväçritän
The devotee should more firmly establish My Deity worship by constructing a

beautiful temple, along with flower gardens. These gardens should be set aside to provide

flowers for the daily worship of the Deity, as well as for festival occasions.

COMMENTARY

There are many festivals to be observed for the satisfaction of the Lord, such as

Janmastamé and Vasanta Paďcamé. On these days, one should worship the Supreme

Lord with special offerings and great pomp. Wealthy, pious persons should be engaged

in constructing temples and gardens for the pleasure of the Deity.

TEXT 51

PaUJaadqNaa&Pa[vahaQa|MahaPavRSvQaaNvhMa( )

+ae}aaPa
püjädénäŕ pravähärthaŕ mahä-parvasv athänv-aham

kńeträpaëa-pura-grämän dattvä mat-särńöitäm iyät

Lord Kĺńëa’s Instructions on the Process of Deity Worship

687

One who offers the Deity gifts of land, shops, towns, and villages, so that the regular

worship and special festivals may continue in a grand manner, will achieve opulence equal

to My own.
COMMENTARY

Those who are rich and pious will attain incomparable merit if they donate land,

marketplaces, villages, or towns for the service of the Lord, so that His service can go on

very nicely. Indeed, such persons will attain opulence like that of the Lord Himself.

PURPORT

After installing the Deity of the Lord, one should construct a majestic temple and

arrange for flower gardens, so that opulent worship, regular processions, and festivals

can be properly maintained. It is essential to hold festivals on the days of the Lord’s

appearance, and so on. If one donates land, marketplace, or other assets, and constructs

residences for pilgrims so that with the income the worship of the Deity can be

maintained with great pomp, he will achieve opulence that is as good as that of the

Supreme Lord.

TEXT 52

Pa[iTaďYaaSaavR>aaEMa&SaÚNaa>auvNa}aYaMa( )

PaUJaaidNaab]řl/aek&-i}ai>aMaRTSaaMYaTaaiMaYaaTa( ))52))

pratińöhayä särvabhaumaŕ sadmanä bhuvana-trayam

püjädinä brahma-lokaŕ tribhir mat-sämyatäm iyät
By installing the Deity of the Lord, one becomes the ruler of the entire earth. By

constructing a temple for the Lord, one becomes the ruler of the three worlds. By worshiping

and serving the Deity, one attains residence in Brahmaloka, and by performing all three,

one achieves a transcendental form like My own.
COMMENTARY

The result of building a temple, either by one’s own endeavor or with the help

of others, is herein described. Those who arrange for the installation of the Deity of

the Lord, the construction of a temple, and engage in the Deity’s worship, attain a

transcendental form like that of the Lord.

688

UDDHAVA-GÉTÄ

PURPORT

By installing a Deity of the Lord one becomes the ruler of the earth, by constructing a

temple one conquers the three worlds, by worshiping the Deity one achieves Brahmaloka,

and by performing all three activities one attains a transcendental form similar to that

of the Supreme Lord. Mixed devotional service has been recommended for those who

desire such exalted positions. By careful consideration of the following verse, one can

understand that it is also possible to construct a temple and worship the Deity of the

Lord without expecting anything in return.

sälokya-särńöi-sämépya-särüpyaikatvam apy uta

déyamänaŕ na gĺhëanti vinä mat-sevanaŕ janäů
A pure devotee does not accept any kind of liberation—sälokya, särńöi,

sämépya, särüpya or ekatva—even though they are offered by the Supreme

Personality of Godhead. (Çrémad-Bhägavatam 3.29.3)
By worshiping Lord Hari without any material desire, even while engaging in

worldly activities while living within the material world, one is sure to attain the highest

destination.
TEXT 53

MaaMaevNaErPae+Yaeai˘-YaaeGaeNaivNdiTa )

>ai˘-YaaeGa&Sal/>aTa Wv&Ya>PaUJaYaeTaMaaMa( ))53))

mäm eva nairapekńyeëa bhakti-yogena vindati

bhakti-yogaŕ sa labhata evaŕ yaů püjayeta mäm
But one who simply engages in devotional service without consideration of receiving

anything in return, attains Me. Thus, whoever worships Me according to the process I

have described will ultimately attain pure devotional service unto Me.
COMMENTARY

One who worships the Supreme Lord without any ambition, renouncing all desires

for karma and jďäna, certainly attains the platform of loving devotional service. One

who gives wealth, land, marketplaces, and so on, for the service of the Lord, without any

expectation of reward, will surely achieve all-auspiciousness.

Lord Kĺńëa’s Instructions on the Process of Deity Worship


PURPORT

689

The previous two verses were spoken by the Lord to attract those who are interested

in fruitive results. In this verse, the ultimate purpose of worshiping the Supreme Lord

is described. The ultimate goal is Lord Kĺńëa Himself. Love for the Lord is the highest

attainment, although materialistic people cannot understand this. When one engages

in the congregational chanting of the holy names of the Lord, it should be considered

that worship of the Lord is perfectly accomplished, even without engaging so much

paraphernalia. The platform of unalloyed devotional service cannot be attained by those

who have a desire to accumulate wealth, enjoy beautiful women, and gain name and

fame. Pleasing the Supreme Lord, Kĺńëa, is the actual purpose of devotional service.

TEXT 54

Ya>Svdtaa&ParEdRtaa&hreTaSaurivPa[Yaae> )

v*ita&SaJaaYaTaeivĚuGvzaR
yaů sva-dattäŕ parair dattäŕ hareta sura-viprayoů

vĺttiŕ sa jäyate viň-bhug varńäëäm ayutäyutam
One who steals the property of the demigods or brähmaëas, whether donated by him

or someone else, will have to suffer as a worm in stool for one hundred million years.
COMMENTARY

After describing the glorious position of those who help in the worship of the

Supreme Lord, the Lord now describes the fate of a person who steals the property of

the Lord, or the brähmaëas.

PURPORT

When one employs the things that were given for the Lord’s service for one’s personal

sense gratification, he paves his way to hell and thereafter, birth as a worm in stool.
TEXT 55

k-TauRęSaarQaeheRTaaerNauMaaeidTaurevc )

k-MaRaaiGaNa>Pa[eTYa>aUYaae>aUYaiSaTaTf-l/Ma( ))55))

kartuç ca särather hetor anumoditur eva ca

karmaëäŕ bhäginaů pretya bhüyo bhüyasi tat-phalam

690

UDDHAVA-GÉTÄ

Not only the performer of such a theft, but also anyone who assists, intigates, or

simply approves of such an act must share the sinful reaction. According to the degree of

their participation, they must suffer proportionate consequences.
COMMENTARY

Those who help a person usurp the property of the Lord and the brähmaëas must

share the sinful reactions after death because they are directly or indirectly responsible.

Those who provide direct assistance suffer the worst consequences.

PURPORT

Those who utilize money given to the Lord for His worship for their personal

enjoyment, or who approve of such an act, are liable to be punished by Yamaräja after

death.
Thus end the translation of the twenty-first chapter of the Uddhava-géta entitled

“Lord Kĺńëa’s Instructions on the Process of Deity Worship” with the commentaries

of Çréla Viçvanätha Cakravarté Öhäkura and chapter summary and purports by Çréla

Bhaktisiddhänta Sarasvaté Öhäkura.

CHAPTER 22
JĎÄNA-YOGA

CHAPTER SUMMARY
This chapter give a summary of jďäna-yoga, which had been elaborately described

in previous chapters.

Everything within the cosmic manifestation is a product of the three modes of

material nature. Although such products are perceived by the material senses, they are

illusory by nature. Similarly, the conditioned souls’ conceptions of “good” and “bad” that

are given to such products and activities within the universe are illusory. It is better to

avoid condemning or praising anyone, because this confines one to the bodily concept

of life and thus negates superior spiritual understanding. The spirit souls pervade the

entire universe and their nature is transcendental to mundane duality. By cultivating

such an understanding, one can remain detached even while in material existence.

As long as the conditioned soul desires the gratification of his material senses, the

bodily conception of life will continue. Although material existence is illusory, like a

dream, those attached to fruitive action remain entangled in the cycle of repeated birth

and death. All conditions of material existence, such as birth, death, happiness, and

distress are experienced by the false ego, and not the eternal soul. By distinguishing

between matter and spirit, one can gradually renounce the false sense of bodily

identification.

While the material manifestation goes through stages of creation, maintenance, and

annihilation, the changeless Absolute Truth remains undisturbed. While manifested,

the universe rests in the Absolute Truth, which is all-pervading in time and space. The

691



692

UDDHAVA-GÉTÄ

Absolute Truth is not transformed, but this cosmic manifestation is made possible by a

transformation of the mode of passion.

By the mercy of a bona fide spiritual master, one can understand illusory nature

of the material body, and thus distinguish the Absolute Truth from such temporary

existence. When a person renounces all desires for sense enjoyment, he can become

satisfied in the self alone. Just as the sun is undisturbed by the movement of clouds in the

atmosphere, the liberated soul is unaffected by the activities of the material body. Still,

when one is a neophyte in the practice of the devotional service of the Lord, one should

carefully restrict his contact with the objects of the senses. Until one’s determination

becomes fixed, one may fall down as a result of obstacles placed before him on the path

of spiritual advancement. Still, there is no loss for one who is engaged in devotional

service, because in his next life, he will be given a chance to continue his spiritual

practice from where he left off. When one is actually liberated from material existence,

he will never desire to indulge in insignificant material sense pleasures, knowing that

his eternal self is distinct from the illusory material body.

While one is on the path of spiritual realization, if one suffers from disease or other

disturbance, he should not neglect to take proper remedial measures. The best means

for lust and the other enemies of the mind is meditation on the Supreme Personality

of Godhead, especially by the performce of congregational chanting of the Lord’s holy

names. The false ego can best be conquered by rendering selfless service to the pure

devotees of the Lord.

By the practice of yoga, materialistic men hope to keep their body fit for sense

gratification, up to the limit of the attainment of mystic powers and an extended

duration of life. These achievements have no lasting value, however, because they are in

relation to the material body, which is temporary. The devotees of the Lord are therefore

uninterested in attaining the mystic perfections of yoga. Instead, they are keen to take

shelter at the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, knowing this to be

the cause of the eternal cessation of material miseries and engagement in every-blissful

engagement in devotional service.

TEXT 1

é[q>aGavaNauvac

ParSv>aavk-MaaRi

ivěMaek-aMak&-PaXYaNPa[k*-TYaaPauĺze

Jďäna-yoga


çré-bhagavän uväca

para-svabhäva-karmäëi na praçaŕsen na garhayet

viçvam ekämakaŕ paçyan prakĺtyä puruńeëa ca

693

The Supreme Lord said: One should neither praise nor criticize the nature and

activities of others. Rather, one should understand the material world to be working as

a combination of material nature and the conditioned souls, and resting in the Absolute

Truth.
COMMENTARY

After describing different philosophical systems, Lord Çré Kĺńëa now discusses the

philosophy of impersonalism, which preaches that the material creation is false.

What is this material creation? Is it factual or is it false? Does it exist or is it merely

an illusion? The answer to all these questions will be given in this chapter. Impersonal

philosophers are divided into two categories—vivartaväda and pariëämaväda. The

Supreme Lord is both the cause and effect of this universe. If the theory that that the

Absolute Truth transforms to become the material universe (pariëämaväda) is accepted,

then it would appear that the Supreme Lord is changeable. On the other hand, those who

propagate the philosophy of vivartaväda say that the Absolute Truth is unchangeable, and

that this material world is false. According to another opinion, since the material nature

is the energy of the Absolute Truth, even if it is accepted that the material energy is

subject to transformation, the Absolute Truth, being transcendental to material nature,

remains unchanged. There is no objection if the followers of pariëämaväda accept this

opinion. Indeed, this is what has been described by the Supreme Lord, who says that He

is the ingredient cause of this universe, the Supersoul, and time.

Although there is certainly a distinction between the energetic and the energy, the

Supreme Lord, despite manifesting innumerable forms, remains one without a second. Of

the two categories of impersonalists, the Supreme Lord approves the second category. In

this chapter, the Lord describes this understanding of vivartaväda and pariëämaväda.

The word asat is used by the followers of vivartaväda to mean “illusion,” but it is

used by the followers of pariëämaväda to mean “temporary existence.” The vivartavädés

say that all activities are false whereas the pariëämavädés say that they are temporary.

This is the subtle difference between the two groups of impersonalists.

PURPORT

In material existence, we create distinctions between one another due to bodily

designations, sometimes praising and sometimes showing disdain. Those who are trying

to situate themselves on the transcendental platform, however, should not indulge in

694

UDDHAVA-GÉTÄ

such praises and criticisms, knowing that the distinctions between the conditioned souls

are simply a creation of the interaction of the three modes of material nature. Those who

are impersonalists try to nullify the distinction between the seer, the seen, and the act

of seeing, considering the Absolute Truth to be without variegatedness. In this material

world, all varieties are manifestations of the interaction of the three modes of material

nature but in the transcendental abode of the Lord, Vaikuëöha, there is no existence

of the modes of nature. There, the Lord’s spiritual energies have manifested a world

of spiritual variegatedness. Because of the competition of the three modes of material

nature the polluted distinctions between superiority and inferiority predominate.

Therefore, the material atmosphere is permeated with praise and condemnation but

in the transcendental abode of Vaikuëöha, where there is no influence of the material

energy, there are no such distinctions.

TEXT 2

ParSv>aavk-MaaRiPa[Xa&SaiTaiNaNdiTa )

Sa AaXau>a]XYaTaeSvaQaaRdSaTYai>aiNaveXaTa> ))2))

para-svabhäva-karmäëi yaů praçaŕsati nindati

sa äçu bhraçyate svärthäd asaty abhiniveçataů
One who indulges in praising or criticizing others’ natures and activities will deviate

from his own best interest because of his absorption on the platform of duality.
COMMENTARY

One who glorifies or criticizes others’ natures and activities remains absorbed on

the temporary, material platform and thus becomes forgetful of the eternal, spiritual

reality.

PURPORT

One who becomes habituated to finding fault with others instead of chanting the

glories of Lord Hari in the association of devotees will surely exhibit great pride in

himself while belittling others. The act of praising and criticizing others falls within the

jurisdiction of the interaction of the three modes of material nature. The conditioned

souls, being absorbed in duality, have brought about their condition of inauspiciousness.

When one pursues his actual self-interest, which is to elevate one to the spiritual

platform, he avoids thinking of others in terms of material designations and thus refrains

from criticizing or praising others. The activities of this material world are temporary,

Jďäna-yoga