BHAGAVAD-GITA 7:25

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BHAGAVAD-GITA 7:25

 

naham prakasah sarvasya

yoga-maya-samavrtah

mudho 'yam nabhijanati

loko mam ajam avyayam

 

WORD FOR WORD

 

na--nor; aham--I; prakasah--manifest; sarvasya--to everyone;

yoga-maya--by internal potency; samavrtah--covered; mudhah--foolish;

ayam--these; na--not; abhijanati--can understand; lokah--persons;

mam--Me; ajam--unborn; avyayam--inexhaustible.

 

TRANSLATION

 

I am never manifest to the foolish and unintelligent. For them I am

covered by My internal potency, and therefore they do not know that I

am unborn and infallible.

 

PURPORT

 

It may be argued that since Krsna was present on this earth and was

visible to everyone, then why isn't He manifest to everyone now? But

actually He was not manifest to everyone. When Krsna was present there

were only a few people who could understand Him to be the Supreme

Personality of Godhead. In the assembly of Kurus, when Sisupala spoke

against Krsna's being elected president of the assembly, Bhisma

supported Him and proclaimed Him to be the Supreme God. Similarly, the

Pandavas and a few others knew that He was the Supreme, but not

everyone. He was not revealed to the nondevotees and the common man.

Therefore in the Bhagavad-gita Krsna says that but for His pure

devotees, all men consider Him to be like themselves. He was manifest

only to His devotees as the reservoir of all pleasure. But to others,

to unintelligent nondevotees, He was covered by His internal potency.

 

In the prayers of Kunti in the Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.8.19) it is said

that the Lord is covered by the curtain of yoga-maya and thus ordinary

people cannot understand Him. This yoga-maya curtain is also confirmed

in the Isopanisad (mantra 15), in which the devotee prays:

 

hiranmayena patrena

satyasyapihitam mukham

tat tvam pusann apavrnu

satya-dharmaya drstaye

 

"O my Lord, You are the maintainer of the entire universe, and devotional

service to You is the highest religious principle. Therefore, I pray

that You will also maintain me. Your transcendental form is covered by

the yoga-maya. The brahmajyoti is the covering of the internal

potency. May You kindly remove this glowing effulgence that impedes my

seeing Your sac-cid-ananda-vigraha, Your eternal form of bliss and

knowledge." The Supreme Personality of Godhead in His transcendental

form of bliss and knowledge is covered by the internal potency of the

brahmajyoti, and the less intelligent impersonalists cannot see the

Supreme on this account.

 

Also in the Srimad-Bhagavatam (10.14.7) there is this prayer by

Brahma: "O Supreme Personality of Godhead, O Supersoul, O master of

all mystery, who can calculate Your potency and pastimes in this

world? You are always expanding Your internal potency, and therefore

no one can understand You. Learned scientists and learned scholars can

examine the atomic constitution of the material world or even the

planets, but still they are unable to calculate Your energy and

potency, although You are present before them." The Supreme

Personality of Godhead, Lord Krsna, is not only unborn but also

avyaya, inexhaustible. His eternal form is bliss and knowledge, and

His energies are all inexhaustible.

 

Copyright 1983 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International. Used with

permission.