Hare Krishna to all Prabhujis and Matajis,
All Glories to His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada.
In the material world also, when a woman dies with her husband, she again unites with him in the next birth. Similarly, Mahārāja Pṛthu and Queen Arci united in the Vaikuṇṭha planets. In the Vaikuṇṭha planets there are husbands and wives, but there is no question of their giving birth to children or having sex life. In the Vaikuṇṭha planets both husbands and wives are extraordinarily beautiful, and they are attracted to one another, but they do not enjoy sex life. Indeed, they consider sex not to be very relishable because both husband and wife are always absorbed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness and in glorifying and chanting the glories of the Lord.
In view of above sloka of Bhagawatam, I am wondering if it is possible that liberated souls being husband and wife in Vaikunth and sometimes husband or sometimes wife has to take birth in the material planets due to rebellious nature towards Krishna. So there is separation between husband and wife also in the Vaikunth planets?
Further, I have also read elsewhere in Bhagwatam or made be one of Srila Prabhupada’s books that soul has no gender like male or female, then how is it mentioned in the aforementioned sholka that in Vaikuntha planets there are husbands and wives.
Please clear my doubts and bring some light in this topic.
Dandavat pranam to all..
Hare Krishna
Replies
Hare Krishna,
Souls who chose to serve Laxmi devi itn Vaikuntam are going to get Laxmi swaroopa and there are souls who wants to serve both Laxmi Narayana pair in all ways get the 4 handed Vaikuntha wasis' forms. Both Laxmi sevika ( sakhi's) and Narayan Sevaks are doing seva of Lord resembling Laxmi Narayan like eternal wife and husband in pairs. That doesn't always mean the mortal wife and husband both go together always. Yes. There are some mortal wives and husband who are very devoted to each other reach the same loka and serve Lord there as couples too.
It is said in BG that a wife will go wherever husband goes. If the husband is a devotee and the wife is committed to him fully surrendered to her pati dev. She can follow him to Vaikunta. If the husband alone is a devotee and wife is non devotee and is got divorced she may not follow him to vaikuntha. But it doesn't mean that all those pairs seen there are wife and husbands of the mortal world. They are working in pairs for the sake of Lord not for being together. All their focus is how best they can do seva for Lord. Sometimes some karmachari's ( sevaks) take the form of ladies and do seva like making bhog for Lord or plucking flowers and making garlands for Lord. or entertaining Lord or mata ji by dancing ...singing whatever muscial instruments playing on them. Some remain in male form do some other activities they look like pairs as if they are husband's and wife of mortal worlds but their main goal is only serving Lord.
Prithu Maharaj and Arci are basically from Vaikunta they are Laxmi Narayan themselves who have taken birth so they returned back.
There are not only devotees of Lord narayan there in this world some devotees of Laxmi ( not money) those who love to be her sevikas also go to Vaikuntam as her intimate dasi's helping her. There are Gaurda and Gaurda's sevaks also. Some devotees who are 4 handed form karmachari's sevaks in Vaikunta as males can suddenly at will want to become a flower to be used in garland making so they transform into flower. Some they transfrom into the lakes and beautiful gardens to give pleasure to Lord. Some become females also. The soul is not having a gender. It can chose to become male or female or even bird ( swan's or fish in the lakes anything ) to give pleasure to the divine couple.
There was this greatest devotee of Laxmi devi who wanted laxmi devi as his child. ( Dharma Dwaja,Kusha dwaja) so he did long tapasya to please her and got the boon that she was born to him as a daughter.
See some selfless devotees of laxmi devi also there. there are many vaikunta planets and many laxmi devi's as well and laxmi ji is the Swamini of Vaikunta planet. It is her husband's place so it is Her place. Just like Swamini of Goloka is Shrimati Radharani. so also there is swamini of Vaikunta planets. And she has own devotees. Some ladies do so many vrats to please laxmi ji alone. They may ask for boon to be able to serve her in her abode like her sevika. Such devotees also there depending on the level of surrender. Some want to serve both couple.
Yes soul certainly has no gender they can even take inanimate forms like stairways or grass roads in vaikuntam so that all pure devotees trample them daily. see Every possible way they want to serve Lord be it male form female form or animal form or inanimate form, bird form.. in all forms they get to work in couples because.. Laxmi narayan are duo. If the soul is in fish form in the pond of vaikunta it will be paired with a female fish but doesn't mean they will reproduce there to give more fishes. They just be there to serve Lord to give pleasure to the Laxmi Narayan duo.
Hare Krishna
I am curious about that too. If we are not this body, then our next birth could be either gender (if even human). Unless we are liberated together, maybe? But even when liberated - which of our millions of bodies will we be? Any thought of spouses or families being together forever feels like sentimentalism and attachment.
Prabhupada did say the spirit has no gender. When a female devotee asked if her advancement was limited because she was female, he answered yes... as long as you see yourself as female. Realize you are not this body, then you make advancement.
If the soul has no gender, why would we think we would be together in the next life?