7th Jewel Krishna-Tattva Conclusion

শ্রী গৌड़िয-কন্ঠহার

Gaudiya Kanṭhahāra:

The Jeweled Necklace of the Gaudiya Vaishnavas

Being a compendium of quotations from revealed scriptures

concerning the truths about the cult of Chaitanya Mahāprabhu

Compiled under the authority and direction of

His Divine Grace

Bhaktisiddhānta Sāraswāti Goswāmī

Prabhupada

The 7th Jewel:

KṚṢṆA-TATTVA

The Eternal and Transcendental Character of Kṛṣṇa's Birth and Pastimes

७.९८

जन्म कर्म च मे दिव्यम् 

एवं यो वेत्ति तत्त्वतः

त्यक्त्वा देहं पुनर् जन्न 

नैति माम् एत्च् सोऽर्जुन

7.98

janma karma ca me divyam 

evaṁ yo vetti tattvataḥ

tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janna 

naiti mām etc so'rjuna

One who can understand the transcendental character of My birth and pastimes

O Arjuna, will never take birth again in this world. He certainly attains Me.

(Bhagavad-gītā 4.9)

Evidence From the Śrutis About the
Transcendental Character of Kṛṣṇa's Pastimes

७.९९

ता वां वास्तून्युश्मसि गमध्यै यत्र गावो भूरिशृओगा अयासः

अत्राह तदुरुगायस्य वृष्णः परमं पदमवभाति भूरि

7.99

tā vāṁ vāstūnyuśmasi gamadhyai yatra gāvo bhūriśṛogā ayāsaḥ

atrāha tadurugāyasya vṛṣṇaḥ paramaṁ padamavabhāti bhūri

Attaining the transcendental abode of Rādhā- Kṛṣṇa, I shall rejoice. There, in

the midst of the cows, Kṛṣṇa enjoys His loving pastimes, which are allauspicious.

In that supreme abode, Kṛṣṇa enjoys transcendental pastimes, with

His different devotees. 

(Puruṣa-sūkta 1.154.6 Eg Veda)

The Apāṇi-pādaḥ Verse Means That His Body is
Transcendental-

७.१००

ऽपाणि-पादऽ-श्रुति वर्जे ऽप्राकृतऽ पानि चरण पुनः कहे, शीघ्र चले, करे सर्व ग्रहण

7.100

'apāṇi-pāda'-śruti varje 'prākṛta' pāni caraṇa punaḥ kahe, śīghra cale, kare sarva grahaṇa 

The Upaniṣad verse, apāṇi-pādaḥ...means that Kṛṣṇa has no material hands or

legs. It rejects material hands and legs and yet states that the Lord runs very

quickly and accepts everything offered to Him. (Cc. Madhya 6.150)

The Lord's Body is not Material

७.१०१

अजो ऽपि सन्न् अव्ययात्मा भूतानाम् ईश्वरो ऽपि सन् प्रकृतिं स्वाम् अधिष्ठाय सम्भवाम्य् आत्म- मायया

7.101

ajo 'pi sann avyayātmā bhūtānām īśvaro 'pi san prakṛtiṁ svām adhiṣṭhāya sambhavāmy ātma- māyayā

Although I am unborn and My transcendental body never deteriorates, still, I

advent Myself in every millennium by My own transcendental potency.

(Bhagavad-gītā 4.6)

The Transcendental Science Cannot
be Understood by Material Intelligence

৭.১০২

অপ্রাকৃত ৱস্তু নহে প্রাকৃত-গোচর ৱেদ-পুরাণেতে এই কহে নিরন্তর

7.102

aprākṛta vastu nahe prākṛta-gocara veda-purāṇete ei kahe nirantara

The Vedas and Purāṇas repeatedly warn against considering divine or nonmaterial

substance as under material nature. 

(Cc. Madhya 9.194)

७.१०३

अचिन्त्या खलु ये भावा ना तांस् तर्केण योजयेत् प्रकृतिभ्यः 

परं यत् तु तद्-अचिन्त्यस्य लक्षणम्

7.103

acintyā khalu ye bhāvā nā tāṁs tarkeṇa yojayet 

prakṛtibhyaḥ  paraṁ yat tu tad-acintyasya lakṣaṇam

One should not try to understand by logic that which is inconceivable. That

object which is beyond material nature is called inconceivable. 

(Mahābhārāta, Bhīṣma Parva, 5.12)

७.१०४ 

तर्काप्रतिष्ठानात्

7.104 

tarkāpratiṣṭhānāt

The Absolute Truth can never be established through argument. 

(Brahma-sūtra 2.1.11)

७.१०५

अथापि ते देव पदाम्बुज-द्वयप्रसाद- लेशानुगृहीत एव हि

जानाति तत्त्वं भगवन्-महिम्नो न चान्य एको ऽपि चिरं विचिन्वन्

7.105

athāpi te deva padāmbuja-dvayaprasāda- leśānugṛhīta eva hi

jānāti tattvaṁ bhagavan-mahimno na cānya eko 'pi ciraṁ vicinvan

My Lord, if one is favored by even a slight trace of the mercy of Your lotus feet,

He can understand the greatness of Your personality, but those who speculate in

order to understand are unable to know You, even though they study the Vedas

for many years. 

(Bhāg. 10.14.29)

৭.১০৬

অনুমান প্রমাণ নহে ঈশ্ৱর-তত্ত্ৱ-জ্ঞানে কৃপা ৱিনা ঈষ্ৱরেরে কেহ নাহি জানে

7.106

anumāna pramāṇa nahe īśvara-tattva-jñāne kṛpā vinā īṣvarere keha nāhi jāne

One can understand the Supreme Lord only by His mercy, not by guesswork or hypothesis. (Cc. Madhya 6.82)

৭.১০৭

পাণ্ডিত্যাদ্যে ঈশ্ৱর-তত্ত্ৱ-জ্ঞান কভু নহেঽ

7.107

pāṇḍityādye īśvara-tattva-jñāna kabhu nahe' 

One cannot understand the Supreme Lord simply by scholarship. 

(Cc. Madhya 6.87)

७.१०८

त्वां शीलरूपचरितैः परम-प्रकृष्ट

सत्त्वेन सात्त्विकतया प्रबलैश् च शास्त्रैः 

प्रख्यात-दैव-परमार्थ-विदां मतैश् च 

नैवासुर-प्रकृतयः प्रभवन्ति बोद्धुम्

7.108

tvāṁ śīlarūpacaritaiḥ parama-prakṛṣṭa

sattvena sāttvikatayā prabalaiś ca śāstraiḥ 

prakhyāta-daiva-paramārtha-vidāṁ mataiś ca 

naivāsura-prakṛtayaḥ prabhavanti boddhum

O Lord. Those who are demonic are unable to understand You by following

good behaviour, culture of the mode of goodness, doing activties in mode of

goodness, by logic, scripture, or even by the opinion of the famous scholars who

know the essence of the Absolute. 

(Stotra- Ratnam, Yamunācārya, 15)

७.१०९

उल्लंघित-त्रिविध-सीम-समातिशायि सम्भावनं तर परिव्रडिम्-अस्वभावम् 

माया-बलेन भवता ऽपि निगुह्यमानं पश्यन्ति केचिदनिशं त्वद्-अनन्य-भावाः

7.109

ullaṁghita-trividha-sīma-samātiśāyi sambhāvanaṁ 

tara parivraḍim-asvabhāvam māyā-balena bhavatā 'pi 

niguhyamānaṁ paśyanti kecidaniśaṁ tvad-ananya-bhāvāḥ

O Lord, only those devotees who have completely surrendered unto You are able

to see Your opulence continously, although You hide Yourself by Your yogamāyā.

Your opulence is beyond time, space and any material object and there is

nothing equal or superior to it. 

(Stotra-ratnam, Yamunācārya 13)

The Body of the Lord is Transcendental Substance

৭.১১০

ঈশ্ৱরের শ্রী-ৱিগ্রহ সচ্-চিদ্-আনন্দাকার সে-ৱিগ্রহে কহ সত্ত্ৱ-গুণের ৱিকার

শ্রী-ৱিগ্রহ যে না মানে, সেই তঽ পাষণ্ডি অদৃশ্য অস্পৃশ্য, সেই হয যম-দণ্ডী

7.110

īśvarera śrī-vigraha sac-cid-ānandākāra se-vigrahe kaha sattva-guṇera vikāra

śrī-vigraha ye nā māne, sei ta' pāṣaṇḍi adṛśya aspṛśya, sei haya yama-daṇḍī

The Lord's transcendental form is eternal, full of bliss and knowledge. Those

who don't properly regard the Deity of the Lord are atheists. The Lord never

reveals Himself to such persons, but remains invisible. After death such men are

punished by Yamarāja. (Cc. Madhya 6.166,167) 

The Name and Form of the Lord

৭.১১১

ঽনামঽ, ঽৱিগ্রহঽ, ঽস্ৱরূপঽ তিন এক-রূপ তিনে ঽভেদঽ নাহি, তিন ঽচিদ্-আনন্দ-রূপঽ

দেহ-দেহীর, নাম-নামীর কৃষ্ণে নাহি ঽভেদঽ জীৱের ধর্ম নাম-দেহ-স্ৱরূপে 

ঽৱিভেদঽ অতএৱ কৃষ্ণের ঽনামঽ, ঽদেহঽ, ঽৱিলাসঽ প্রাকৃতেন্দ্রিয-গ্রাহ্য নহে, হয স্ৱ-প্রকাশ

7.111

'nāma', 'vigraha', 'svarūpa' tina eka-rūpa tine 'bheda' nāhi, tina 'cid-ānanda-rūpa'

deha-dehīra, nāma-nāmīra kṛṣṇe nāhi 'bheda' jīvera dharma nāma-deha-svarūpe 'vibheda' ataeva kṛṣṇera 'nāma', 'deha', 'vilāsa' prākṛtendriya-grāhya nahe, haya sva-prakāśa

The Lord's holy name, form, and personality are all one and the same. There is

no difference between them. Since all of them are absolute, they are

transcendentally blissful. There is no difference between Kṛṣṇa's body and

Himself, nor between His name and Himself. For conditioned souls everything

is different. One's name is different from one's body, from one's original form,

and so on. The holy name of Kṛṣṇa, as well as His body and His pastimes

cannot be understood by the blunt material senses;

they are self-manifest. 

(Cc. Madhya 17.131,132,134)

One Who Cannot Understand Kṛṣṇa's Form is a
Muḍha, a fool and a rascal

७.११२

अवजानन्ति मां मूढा मानुषीं तनुम् आश्रितम् 

परं भावम् अजानन्तो मम भूत- महेश्वरम्

7.112

avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam 

paraṁ bhāvam ajānanto mama bhūta- maheśvaram

Fools who know Me not think I have assumed this form and personality. They

do not know My Supreme Transcendental nature, which is unborn and limitless.

Nor do they know My supreme dominion over all. 

(Bhagavad-gītā 9.11)

৭.১১৩

পূর্ণানন্দ-চিত্-স্ৱরূপ জগন্নাথ-রায 

তাঙ্রে কৈলি জড-নশ্ৱর-প্রাকৃত-কায!!

পূর্ণ-ষদ্-ঐশ্ৱর্য চৈতন্য স্ৱযং ভগৱান্ 

তাঙ্রে কৈলি ক্ষুদ্র জীৱ স্ফুলিঙ্গ-সমান!!

দুই-ঠাঞি অপরাধে পাইবি দুর্গতি! অতত্ত্ৱ-জ্ঞ ঽতত্ত্ৱঽ ৱর্ণে, তার এই রিতি! 

আর এক করিযাছ পরম ঽপ্রমাদঽ!

দেহ-দেহি-ভেদ ঈশ্ৱরে কৈলে ঽপরাধঽ! 

ঈশ্ৱরের নাহি কভু দেহ-দেহি-ভেদ স্ৱরূপ, দেহ, চিদ্-আনন্দ, নাহিক ৱিভেদ

7.113

pūrṇānanda-cit-svarūpa jagannātha-rāya 

tāṅre kaili jaḍa-naśvara-prākṛta-kāya!!

pūrṇa-ṣad-aiśvarya caitanya svayaṁ bhagavān 

tāṅre kaili kṣudra jīva sphuliṅga-samāna!!

dui-ṭhāñi aparādhe pāibi durgati! atattva-jña 'tattva' varṇe, tāra ei riti! 

āra eka kariyācha parama 'pramāda'!

deha-dehi-bheda īśvare kaile 'aparādha'! 

īśvarera nāhi kabhu deha-dehi-bheda svarūpa, deha, cid-ānanda, nāhika vibheda

Lord Jagannātha is completely spiritual and full of transcendental bliss, but you

have compared Him to a dull destructible body composed of material elements.

You have calculated that Śrī Caitanya, who is Godhead Himself and full in six

opulences, to be on the level of an ordinary living

being. Instead of knowing Him as the Supreme fire, you have accepted Him as a spark. Because of this offense against Lord Jagannātha and Lord

Caitanya you will go to hell. You do not know how to describe the Absolute Truth, nevertheless you have tried to do so, and therefore you must be condemned. You are in complete illusion, for you have distinguished between the body and soul of

Lord Jagannātha and Chaitanya Mahāprabhu. That is a great offense. At no time is there any distinction between the Supreme Lord and His body and soul. His personal identity and His body are made of eternal, blissful spiritual energy. There is no distinction between

them. 

(Cc. Antya 5.118-122)

The Deity Form of the Lord Appears in
Eight Kinds of Material Substances

७.११४

शैली दारु-मयी लौही लेप्या लेख्या च सैकती मनो-मयी मणि-मयी प्रतिमाष्ट-विधा स्मृता

7.114

śailī dāru-mayī lauhī lepyā lekhyā ca saikatī mano-mayī maṇi-mayī pratimāṣṭa-vidhā smṛtā

The Deity form of the Lord appears in eight varieties of material substances:

stone, metal, wood, earth, paint, sand, the mind, and jewels. 

(Bhāg. 11.27.12)

Thus ends the Seventh Jewel of the Gauḍīya Kaṇṭhahāra, entitled Kṛṣṇa-tattva.