Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 4.31.16
Āśraya· The supreme shelterThe Lord and His Energies
“Just as the sunshine is nondifferent from the sun, the cosmic manifestation is also nondifferent from the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Supreme Personality is therefore all-pervasive within this material creation. When the senses are active, they appear to be part and parcel of the body, but when the body is asleep, their activities are unmanifest. Similarly, the whole cosmic creation appears different and yet nondifferent from the Supreme Person.”
What the purport teaches
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead is simultaneously different and nondifferent from the cosmic manifestation. Sunshine is nondifferent from the sun, yet being in sunshine is not the same as being on the sun.
- Kṛṣṇa is the cause of all causes, and the entire cosmic manifestation is His expanded energy. He is present within everything, although those in the material condition cannot see Him personally.
- Creation is sometimes manifest and sometimes unmanifest, like senses that become inactive during sleep. The Lord’s energy always exists; appearance and disappearance apply only to the cosmic manifestation.
Try this today
Look at the sunshine or a plant today and reflect that the cosmic manifestation is the Supreme Lord’s expanded energy.
Ask yourself
How does seeing the world as the Lord’s energy change my sense of who owns it?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
The study points, practice and question are short summaries drawn from Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport. Read the full purport to go deeper.