Srimad-Bhagavatam Canto 3: Chapter Twenty-nine, Text 34 TRANSLATION: Such a perfect devotee offers respects to every living entity because he is under the firm conviction that the Supreme Personality of Godhead has entered the body of every living entity as the Supersoul, or controller. PURPORT: A perfect devotee, as described above, does not make the mistake of thinking that because the Supreme Personality of Godhead as Paramatma has entered into the body of every living entity, every living entity has become the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is foolishness. Suppose a person enters into a room; that does not mean that the room has become that person. Similarly, that the Supreme Lord has entered into each of the 8,400,000 particular types of material bodies does not mean that each of these bodies has become the Supreme Lord. Because the Supreme Lord is present, however, a pure devotee accepts each body as the temple of the Lord, and since the devotee offers respect to such temples in full knowledge, he gives respect to every living entity in relationship with the Lord. Mayavadi philosophers wrongly think that because the Supreme Person has entered the body of a poor man, the Supreme Lord has become daridra-narayana, or poor Narayana. These are all blasphemous statements of atheists and nondevotees.
Srimad-Bhagavatam Canto 3: Chapter Twenty-nine, Text 21 TRANSLATION: I am present in every living entity as the Supersoul. If someone neglects or disregards that Supersoul everywhere and engages himself in the worship of the Deity in the temple, that is simply imitation.
PURPORT: In purified consciousness, or Krsna consciousness, one sees the presence of Krsna everywhere. If, therefore, one only engages in Deity worship in the temple and does not consider other living entities, then he is in the lowest grade of devotional service. One who worships the Deity in the temple and does not show respect to others is a devotee on the material platform, in the lowest stage of devotional service. A devotee should try to understand everything in relationship with Krsna and try to serve everything in that spirit. To serve everything means to engage everything in the service of Krsna. If a person is innocent and does not know his relationship with Krsna, an advanced devotee should try to engage him in the service of Krsna. One who is advanced in Krsna consciousness can engage not only the living being but everything in the service of Krsna.
TEXT 22
TRANSLATION One who worships the Deity of Godhead in the temples but does not know that the Supreme Lord, as Paramatma, is situated in every living entity’s heart, must be in ignorance and is compared to one who offers oblations into ashes. PURPORTÜd1111 1ÜŒ It is stated clearly herein that the Supreme Personality of Godhead, in His plenary expansion of Supersoul, is present in all living entities. The living entities have 8,400,000 different kinds of bodies, and the Supreme Personality of Godhead is living in every body both as the individual soul and as the Supersoul. Since the individual soul is part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, in that sense the Lord is living in every body, and, as Supersoul, the Lord is also present as a witness. In both cases the presence of God in every living entity is essential. Therefore persons who profess to belong to some religious sect but who do not feel the presence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead in every living entity, and everywhere else, are in the mode of ignorance. If, without this preliminary knowledge of the Lord’s omnipresence, one simply attaches himself to the rituals in a temple, church or mosque, it is as if he were offering butter into ashes rather than into the fire. One offers sacrifices by pouring clarified butter into a fire and chanting Vedic mantras, but even if there are Vedic mantras and all conditions are favorable, if the clarified butter is poured on ashes, then such a sacrifice will be useless. In other words, a devotee should not ignore any living entity. The devotee must know that in every living entity, however insignificant he may be, even in an ant, God is present, and therefore every living entity should be kindly treated and should not be subjected to any violence. In modern civilized society, slaughterhouses are regularly maintained and supported by a certain type of religious principle. But without knowledge of the presence of God in every living entity, any so-called advancement of human civilization, either spiritual or material, is to be understood as being in the mode of ignorance.
TEXT 23
TRANSLATION
One who offers Me respect but is envious of the bodies of others and is therefore a separatist never attains peace of mind, because of his inimical behavior towards other living entities.
PURPORT: In this verse, two phrases, bhutesu baddha-vairasya (“inimical towards others”) and dvisatah para-kaye (“envious of another’s body”), are significant. One who is envious
or inimical towards others never experiences any happiness. A devotee’s vision, therefore, must be perfect. He should ignore bodily distinctions and should see only the presence of the part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, and the Lord Himself in His plenary expansion as Supersoul. That is the vision of a pure devotee. The bodily expression of a particular type of living entity is always ignored by the devotee. It is expressed herein that the Lord is always eager to deliver the conditioned souls, who have been encaged within material bodies. Devotees are expected to carry the message or desire of the Lord to such conditioned souls and enlighten them with Krsna consciousness. Thus they may be elevated to transcendental, spiritual life, and the mission of their lives will be successful. Of course this is not possible for living entities who are lower than human beings, but in human society it is feasible that all living entities can be enlightened with Krsna consciousness. Even living entities who are lower than human can be raised to Krsna consciousness by other methods. For example, Sivananda Sena, a great devotee of Lord Caitanya, delivered a dog by feeding him prasada. Distribution of prasada, or remnants of foodstuffs offered to the Lord, even to the ignorant masses of people and to animals, gives such living entities the chance for elevation to Krsna consciousness. Factually it happened that the same dog, when met by Lord Caitanya at Puri, was liberated from the material condition.
Srimad-Bhagavatam Canto 3: Chapter Twenty-nine, Text 24
TRANSLATION: My dear Mother, even if he worships with proper rituals and paraphernalia, a person who is ignorant of My presence in all living entities never pleases Me by the worship of My Deities in the temple.
PURPORT: This gratitude and love for God is exhibited by a pure devotee, who knows that the Lord lives in every living entity. As such, temple worship necessarily includes distribution of prasada. It is not that one should create a temple in his private apartment or private room, offer something to the Lord, and then eat. Of course, that is better than simply cooking foodstuffs and eating without understanding one’s relationship with the Supreme Lord; people who act in this manner are just like animals. But the devotee who wants to elevate himself to the higher level of understanding must know that the Lord is present in every living entity, and, as stated in the previous verse, one should be compassionate to other living entities. A devotee should worship the Supreme Lord, be friendly to persons who are on the same level and be compassionate to the ignorant. One should exhibit his compassion for ignorant living entities by distributing prasada. Distribution of prasada to the ignorant masses of people is essential for persons who make offerings to the Personality of Godhead.
Srimad-Bhagavatam Canto 4: Chapter Three, Text 22 TRANSLATION: My dear young wife, certainly friends and relatives offer mutual greetings by standing up, welcoming one another and offering obeisances. But those who are elevated to the transcendental platform, being intelligent, offer such respects to the Supersoul, who is sitting within the body, not to the person who identifies with the body.
PURPORT: It may be argued that since Daksa was the father-in-law of Lord Siva, it was certainly the duty of Lord Siva to offer him respect. In answer to that argument it is explained here that when a learned person stands up or offers obeisances in welcome, he offers respect to the Supersoul, who is sitting within everyone’s heart. It is seen, therefore, among Vaisnavas, that even when a disciple offers obeisances to his spiritual master, the spiritual master immediately returns the obeisances because they are mutually offered not to the body but to the Supersoul. Therefore the spiritual master also offers respect to the Supersoul situated in the body of the disciple. The Lord says in Srimad-Bhagavatam that offering respect to His devotee is more valuable than offering respect to Him. Devotees do not identify with the body, so offering respect to a Vaisnava means offering respect to Visnu. It is stated also that as a matter of etiquette as soon as one sees a Vaisnava one must immediately offer him respect, indicating the Supersoul sitting within. A Vaisnava sees the body as a temple of Visnu. Since Lord Siva had already offered respect to the Supersoul in Krsna consciousness, offering respect to Daksa, who identified with his body, was already performed. There was no need to offer respect to his body, for that is not directed by any Vedic injunction.
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