Srimad Bhagavatam #15: The Lord is the cause of all causes
Srimad Bhagavatam #15: The Lord is the cause of all causes
Being present inside each universe as Gabodakasayi Vishnu and Ksirodakasayi Vishnu, the Lord is the foundation upon which the whole material creation rests. Everything is created and maintained by Him
In this part:
Puruṣa-sūkta Confirmed (chapter 2.6)
The Virāṭ-puruṣa
Lord Brahma desires to perform sacrifices
Taking shelter at the feet of the Lord
The Lord’s incarnations
Scheduled Incarnations with Specific Functions (chapter 2.7)
There is no cause beyond the Lord
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Puruṣa-sūkta Confirmed (chapter 2.6)
Being present inside each universe as Gabodakasayi Vishnu and Ksirodakasayi Vishnu, the Lord is the foundation upon which the whole material creation rests. Everything is created and maintained by His energy. The Lord is thus called the virat-purusha, the enjoyer of the cosmic manifestation, since everything is generated from His energy, and ultimately everything exists to satisfy Him.
Because the universal form, or virat-rupa is described as a form of the Lord, the terms virat-rupa and virat-purusha are used more or less interchangeably.
In the first chapter, it was mentioned that Lord Brahma meditated in the universal form, the virat-rupa, to remember how to create the universe. As we also studied, there are two processes of creation: the primary creation, performed by Lord Maha-Vishnu, and the secondary creation, performed by Lord Brahma. The universal form exists even before the creation of the universe as part of the primary creation, a concept or model that guides the creation of Brahma. By meditating in this form, Brahma obtained all the necessary knowledge to recreate the universe the way it was before.
At the end of the 5th chapter, Lord Brahma started a new description of the universal form, which he will continue here in the 6th chapter. This universal form he describes is the virat-rupa or virat-purusa he saw in his meditation, from which he created the universe. This 6th chapter is called “Puruṣa-sūkta confirmed” because the description of Lord Brahma is similar to the description offered in the Puruṣa-sūkta of the Rg Veda, corroborating it.
We can see that although both the 1st and the 6th chapters describe the universal form, the 1st chapter describes the universal form the yogis meditate upon, while the 6th chapter describes the universal form Brahma saw in his meditation, which served as a blueprint for the creation of the universe.
At the end of the 5th chapter, he described that the virāṭ-rūpa has thousands of legs, arms, mouths, heads, etc. The brāhmaṇas represent His mouth, the kṣatriyas His arms, the vaiśyas His thighs, and the śūdras his legs. The lower planetary systems are situated in His legs, the middle planetary systems in His navel, the higher planetary systems in his chest, and Satyaloka in His head. Now he continues with this description.
The Virāṭ-puruṣa
He describes that the mouth of the virāṭ-puruṣa is the generating center of the voice, His skin and six other layers of his body are the generating centers of the Vedic mantras, and His tongue produces all the different types of food that can be eaten and offered in sacrifice. His nostrils are the center of breathing, His acts of smelling generate the Aśvinī-kumāra demigods (the celestial physicians) as well as all kinds of medicinal herbs, and His breathing produces different kinds of fragrances.
His eyes are like the sun and are the generating centers of all kinds of forms and sources of light. His ears hear from all sides and are receptacles for all the Vedas. His sense of hearing is the source of all kinds of sound. The surface of His body is the origin of all auspicious opportunities. His skin is the generating center for the sense of touch and is the place for performing all kinds of sacrifice. The hairs on His body are the cause of all vegetation, the hairs on His head and face are reservoirs for the clouds, and His nails are the breeding ground of electricity, stones, and metals. The Lord’s arms are the source of the great demigods and leaders who protect the general mass.
In this way, this description by Lord Brahma helps us to realize how the Lord is the origin of all our powers and abilities, and that therefore they should be used in His service. Food doesn’t exist just as a form of sense gratification but has the purpose of being offered in sacrifice and nourishing our bodies so we can serve the Lord and perform our duties, and so on. In his purport to 2.6.6, Prabhupada mentions:
“A sane person must know for certain that a living being, however powerful he may be, is neither absolute nor independent. All living beings must accept the origin of their specific power as mentioned in this verse. And if they act accordingly, then simply by discharging their respective occupational duties they can achieve the highest perfection of life, namely eternal life, complete knowledge and inexhaustible blessings. As long as the powerful men of the world do not accept the origin of their respective powers, namely the Personality of Godhead, the actions of māyā (illusion) will continue to act.”
In all the verses, up to verse 22, Lord Brahma continues to describe how all our abilities originate from and depend on the Lord, helping us to see it from the proper perspective. One can only see because of the Lord, one can cure a disease using some herb or other medicine thanks to the Lord, and so on.
Verse seven describes that the lotus feet of the Lord serve as protection from all kinds of fear. In his purport, Prabhupada makes the point that dependence on the lotus feet of the Lord is called pure devotional service. This is the only process that can give us protection from all kinds of fear.
The description continues by mentioning that the genitals of the virat-purusha are the origin of liquids and functions of procreation, including water, semen, progeny, rains, and the prajapatis, who populate the universe. They are also the source of sexual pleasure, which can in this way also be seen in connection with the Lord.
In his purport, Prabhupada makes a series of points about the place of sex life in Krsna Consciousness:
a) Sex life should not be encouraged more than necessary.
b) We should beget children with full responsibility for spiritual values.
c) We must adopt family planning with reference to the context of spiritual values, and not otherwise.
d) One should not beget more children than he can properly take care of, but family restriction by use of contraceptives is “the grossest type of material contamination”. Instead, one should do family planning by controlling his sexual impulses.
Envy, misfortune, death, and hell, also come from the virat-purusa, but from a less prominent part of his body, the rectum. Similarly, frustration, ignorance, and immorality come from the back of the Lord. On the other hand, religious principles, truth, and transcendental knowledge come from the consciousness of the Lord. From His veins flow the great rivers and rivulets, and on His bones are stacked the great mountains.
In verse 11 it’s mentioned that the belly of the Lord is the resting place for the materially annihilated living entities. This is connected with the cycles of creation and destruction of the universe. At the end of each day of Brahma (4.32 billion years) there is a partial devastation of the universe, and at the end of his life (311.04 trillion years) there is a complete annihilation. The night of Brahma lasts for the same 4.32 billion years as his day, and after his death, there is a period of 311.04 trillion years before a new cycle of creation. During both periods, the souls rest in the belly of Lord Maha-Vishnu, waiting for the opportunity to become again active in their material activities. They are called “materially annihilated” because in reality only their bodies are destroyed.
When the universe is destroyed, the subtle bodies of the living entities, including all their material desires, karma, etc. are destroyed, and only the soul remains. All these impressions and desires of the living entities, as well as their respective karma are stored in a subtle form in the heart of the Lord, who remembers everything and can thus recreate everything at the time of the next creation. The universal creation and especially the human form of life is an opportunity to re-attain our original position as servants of Krsna, and should thus not be wasted.
Everything that exists, starting from Brahma himself, down to the most insignificant living entity, as well as the planets, stars, asteroids, etc. are all covered by this virat-rupa. It was like this in the past and it will continue in the future. No one is separated or independent from the Lord. Everything is part of the universal form and rests on the potency of the Lord, but at the same time, he is aloof, just like the sun is aloof from its rays. This confirms the acintya-bedabheda-tattva philosophy of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. The Lord is also the biggest, but at the same time, He is the smallest, since He enters into everything as Paramatma. The Lord is thus the maintainer of everything.
All the material creation is described as being just one-fourth of the potency of the Lord, while the spiritual sky corresponds to the other three-quarters. Therefore, although the description of the virat-rupa is impressive, the real opulences of the Lord are beyond it, in the spiritual world. Our real existence, characterized by deathlessness, fearlessness, and freedom from the anxieties of old age and disease exists in this transcendental world, beyond the coverings of the universe. These spiritual planets are meant for liberated souls, who transcend birth and death. On the opposite, the ones who still have material desires and are not ready to be reinstalled in their original position as eternal servants of the Lord are forced to remain in this material world. Both ignorance and knowledge come from the Lord, and He gives one or the other to all living entities according to their desires and propensities. When a soul wants to forget Him and become a false enjoyer of this material world, He covers him with ignorance, and when one wants to return home, back to Godhead, the Lord gives him transcendental knowledge.
Lord Brahma desires to perform sacrifices
After describing the Virāṭ-puruṣa, Lord Brahma describes the situation after his birth from the lotus flower. Normally, one is born from a mother as a result of a sexual act, but Brahma is called aja (unborn) because he was born from the abdomen of Lord Garbhodakasayi Visnu, without the need for a material father and mother.
“When I was born from the abdominal lotus flower of the Lord [Mahā-Viṣṇu], the great person, I had no ingredients for sacrificial performances except the bodily limbs of the great Personality of Godhead.
Thus I created the ingredients and paraphernalia for offering sacrifice out of the parts of the body of the Supreme Lord, the enjoyer of the sacrifice, and I performed the sacrifice to satisfy the Lord.” (SB 2.6.23,28)
After being born from the lotus flower sprouting from the navel of Lord Vishnu, Lord Brahma desired to perform sacrifices for the satisfaction of the Lord. However, at this point, the universe was still not manifested. There was only darkness around, and no signal of ingredients for performing sacrificial ceremonies.
Being perplexed about what to do, Brahma received inspiration from within to perform austerities and thus became capable of acquiring the different ingredients to perform sacrifices. This process reflects the initial steps of creation when Brahma created his mental sons (Marici, Atri, etc.) as well as the first material planets and other aspects of the universe, and engaged them in performing sacrifices.
In the Brhad Bhagavatamrta is narrated how in Brahmaloka there is the constant performance of elaborate sacrifices for the pleasure of the Lord. This practice started right at the beginning of the universe, with these original sacrifices organized by Brahma.
All the material elements necessary to produce these sacrificial ingredients had to be obtained from the Lord since there is nothing else apart from the Lord and his energies. As Prabhupada mentions in his purport to verse 23: “Thus Brahmā created even the sacrificial ingredients out of the bodily limbs of the Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, which means that the cosmic order was created by Brahmā himself. Also, nothing is created out of nothing, but everything is created from the person of the Lord.”
To perform a sacrifice, one has to possess different ingredients (such as flowers, leaves, straw, utensils, grains, clarified butter, honey, gold, earth, water, and so on), that can be sacrificed for the satisfaction of the Lord. However, Brahma did not process anything. Everything was coming from the Lord, and therefore nothing was his property. This is actually the same situation we are all in. We all perform different sacrifices using things that are obtained from the Lord and are in reality His property. As Prabhupada explains:
“The impersonalists argue that there is no use in worshiping the Lord when everything is nothing but the Lord Himself. The personalist, however, worships the Lord out of a great sense of gratitude, utilizing the ingredients born out of the bodily limbs of the Lord. The fruits and flowers are available from the body of the earth, and yet mother earth is worshiped by the sensible devotee with ingredients born from the earth. Similarly, mother Ganges is worshiped by the water of the Ganges, and yet the worshiper enjoys the result of such worship. Worship of the Lord is also performed by the ingredients born from the bodily limbs of the Lord, and yet the worshiper, who is himself a part of the Lord, achieves the result of devotional service to the Lord. While the impersonalist wrongly concludes that he is the Lord himself, the personalist, out of a great gratitude, worships the Lord in devotional service, knowing perfectly well that nothing is different from the Lord. The devotee therefore endeavors to apply everything in the service of the Lord because he knows that everything is the property of the Lord and that no one can claim anything as one’s own.”
A materialist may think he is sacrificing his possessions in sacrifices, but a humble devotee understands that in reality he doesn’t possess anything, and thus just strives to use the Lord’s energy in His service, offering food, different types of paraphernalia, his thoughts and words, and ultimately his life in the service of the Lord. Srila Prabhupada mentions in his purport that “Human life is thus made successful by pleasing Nārāyaṇa and getting entrance into the direct association of Nārāyaṇa in the spiritual kingdom of Vaikuṇṭha.”.
In verse 29, Brahma mentions: “My dear son, thereafter your nine brothers, who are the masters of living creatures, performed the sacrifice with proper rituals to satisfy both the manifested and nonmanifested personalities.”
The nine brothers mentioned here appear to be Marici, Atri, Angira, Pulastya, Pulaha, Kratu, Bhrgu, Vasistha, and Daksa, who were created by Brahma before Narada Muni. They were engaged by Lord Brahma in performing sacrifices at the beginning of creation, and gradually gave birth to the different living beings who populated the universe. The “manifested” personalities are the different demigods, and the “nonmanifested” personality (avyaktam) is the Lord, who doesn’t have a material form.
This process of sacrifice initiated by Lord Brahma at the beginning of creation was continued by others throughout the ages with the goal of satisfying the Lord, including the Manus, the great sages, the pitas (forefathers), learned scholars, the Daityas and human beings.
In the previous chapter, Narada had asked:
a) The symptoms of this manifest world.
b) What is its background?
c) How is it created?
d) How is it maintained?
e) Under whose control is all this being done?
In this way, Brahma answered these five questions, revealing the existence of a Supreme Lord under whose authority he performs the process of creation. He concludes this explanation in verses 31 to 33:
“All the material manifestations of the universes are therefore situated in His powerful material energies, which He accepts self-sufficiently, although He is eternally without affinity for the material modes.
By His will, I create, Lord Śiva destroys, and He Himself, in His eternal form as the Personality of Godhead, maintains everything. He is the powerful controller of these three energies.
My dear son, whatever you inquired from me I have thus explained unto you, and you must know for certain that whatever there is (either as cause or as effect, both in the material and spiritual worlds) is dependent on the Supreme Personality of Godhead.”
Taking shelter at the feet of the Lord
After speaking about the Lord as the Virāṭ-puruṣa, Brahma will explain more about devotional service to the Lord and His personal forms.
He starts by revealing to Narada Muni about the source of his powers. Not only Lord Brahma but all demigods and other controllers of the universe are awarded their positions because of their devotion to the Lord. Demigods are all great devotees of the Lord who at the same time have strong material desires. The Lord thus puts them in positions where they can serve Him but at the same time live in positions of power and influence. During their long lives, the demigods can gradually satisfy their material desires and eventually go back home, back to Godhead.
Lord Brahma is thus not a separate controller. He is empowered by the Lord to perform his functions, and the reason he is empowered is that he is a great devotee.
“O Nārada, because I have caught hold of the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari, with great zeal, whatever I say has never proved to have been false. Nor is the progress of my mind ever deterred. Nor are my senses ever degraded by temporary attachment to matter.
Although I am known as the great Brahmā, perfect in the disciplic succession of Vedic wisdom, and although I have undergone all austerities and am an expert in mystic powers and self-realization, and although I am recognized as such by the great forefathers of the living entities, who offer me respectful obeisances, still I cannot understand Him, the Lord, the very source of my birth.” (SB 2.6.34-35)
Although Brahma is so powerful, he is unable to fully comprehend the glories of the Lord. Because of his devotion, Brahma can understand to a certain extent, but it’s not possible for anyone to fully understand the opulence of the Lord, since He is simply unlimited. Just like one can’t estimate an unlimited number, one can’t understand the unlimited opulences of the Lord.
The same applies to us. To the extent of our devotion, we may be able to understand the Lord up to a certain extent, and from there we may gradually understand more, but it is not possible for anyone to fully understand Him. Even the Lord’s personal associates who live with Him in the spiritual are constantly amazed by learning new details about the Lord’s qualities and activities.
Can Krsna estimate the extensions of His opulence? As Prabhupada mentions in his purport to 2.3.26, surely He can, but because his potencies are always expanding, immediately there is something new that was not included in His estimation. If Krsna tries to estimate a second time, including the new expansions, immediately something new appears, and so on. Therefore, even Krsna Himself becomes surprised.
In this way, it’s not possible to understand Krsna by experimentation or speculation. What to say about some imperfect scientist or scholar, even a pure devotee is not capable of fully understanding Krsna. The process is thus to abandon the attitude of imagining Krsna as an object we can study and simply surrender to Him. As Lord Brahma concludes, this surrender is all auspicious and allows us to attain unlimited spiritual happiness.
“Therefore it is best for me to surrender unto His feet, which alone can deliver one from the miseries of repeated birth and death. Such surrender is all-auspicious and allows one to perceive all happiness. Even the sky cannot estimate the limits of its own expansion. So what can others do when the Lord Himself is unable to estimate His own limits?” (SB 2.36.36)
The Lord’s incarnations
After describing the process of surrendering to the Lord, Brahma proceeds to explain more about His personal forms. How does He reveal Himself in this material universe? He starts by explaining more about Lord Maha-Vishnu, described in verses 39 to 42. We already studied the Purusha Avataras in the first canto, but the description of Brahma offers us additional detail about the Lord.
a) Lord Maha-Vishnu is the expansion of Krsna who lays down in the Causal Ocean and creates all the material universes. Because he lies on the Karana ocean, He is also called Kāraṇārṇavaśāyī Vishnu.
b) Maha-Vishnu creates the material universes, maintains them for some time, and then absorbs them into himself again. These cycles are associated with his breathing. A full cycle of creation (a kalpa, or a lifetime of Brahma) is just one breath for him.
c) Although engaged in the process of creating the universe, the Lord is completely pure, free from all material contamination. He is the embodiment of perfect knowledge. He is all-pervading, unlimited, and supreme, without rival.
d) The Lord can’t be understood by speculation or arguments, only when one becomes purified by the process of devotional service can he understand the Lord to a certain extent.
e) Maha-Vishnu is the master of all material creation, including time, space, cause and effects, the modes of nature, material ego, and all the subsequent creations, including mind and senses, material elements, the universal form, and all living beings. He is also the origin of Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, who enters into each universe and lies on the Garbodaka ocean.
f) The material creation is not permanent, it is a temporary exhibition of the material energy of the Lord. Just like clay can be transformed into a vase, and later dissolved back into clay, the material energy is repeatedly molded into the material universes and later brought back to its original state.
g) Different powerful beings in the universe, starting with Lord Brahma Himself may be captivating to ordinary people, but they are in reality just a fragment of the transcendental potency of the Lord. As Prabhupada mentions in his purport, in the aboriginal stage one may worship natural forces like the thunder, or even animals and plants. One who is more advanced may worship different demigods, and so on, but one who is advanced in knowledge comes to worship Lord Vishnu.
Scheduled Incarnations with Specific Functions (chapter 2.7)
Continuing his description of the forms of the Lord in response to the questions of Narada Muni, Brahma offers now a description of some of the incarnations of the Lord who appear in this particular universe, like Matsya, Kurma, Varaja, and so on. Some of them were already briefly described in the first canto.
It’s interesting to note that this conversation happened at the beginning of the current day of Brahma. In other words, Brahma is speaking about the future, describing incarnations of the Lord who will appear later. This is possible because Brahma can see both the past and future, just like other perfect souls, like Vyasadeva and Sukadeva Goswami.
From verses 1 to 38, Brahma describes different incarnations of the Lord. This list is different from the list given in the 1st canto. Most of these incarnations will be described in detail later in the Srimad Bhagavatam, so I will focus on describing details of the incarnations that are not thoroughly described:
1- Lord Varaha: The Lord appeared as Lord Varaha to lift the Earth, which had fallen into the depths of the Garbodaka ocean due to the actions of the demons. In the process, he fought and killed Hiranyakasa. Lord Varaja appeared from the nostril of Brahma, which is not surprising since the Lord is present everywhere and can thus manifest from any place at any time.
As Prabhupada explains: “The floating of the planets in the weightless air is due to the inner constitution of the globes, and the modernized drilling of the earth to exploit oil from within is a sort of disturbance by the modern demons and can result in a greatly harmful reaction to the floating condition of the earth. A similar disturbance was created formerly by the demons headed by Hiraṇyākṣa (the great exploiter of the gold rush), and the earth was detached from its weightless condition and fell down into the Garbhodaka Ocean. The Lord, as maintainer of the whole creation of the material world, therefore assumed the gigantic form of a boar with a proportionate snout and picked up the earth from within the water of Garbhodaka.”
There is also another appearance of Lord Varaha in which he lifted Bhu-Mandala. Both will be discussed in the third canto.
2- Suyajña (Yajña): On a day of Brahma, there are 14 Manus, and during the reign of each Manu, the Lord appears once as a Manvantara-avatara. During the reign of the first Manu (Svayambhuva Manu) the Lord appeared as Yajña, to assist him in the administration of the universe. He accepted the post of Indra and begot other demigods with the assistance of his wife, Dakṣiṇā. In this way, the first group of demigods who assisted the first Manu was born. As Indra, Yajña diminished the miseries of the three planetary systems, and because of this, he was also called Hari (the Lord takes away all inauspicious things).
Yajña appeared as the son of Prajapati Ruci and Ākūti (one of the daughters of Svayambhuva Manu, daughter of Devahuti) but he was accepted by Svayambhuva Manu as his son. He is also the cousin of Dhruva Mahārāja and Lord Kapila.
3- Lord Kapila: The pastimes of Lord Kapila are described in the 3rd canto. He appeared as the son of Kardama Muni and Devahuti and taught the system of Sankhya, which describes the material elements and other aspects of the material universe (both gross and subtle) to bring one to the platform of devotional service. The devotional aspects of the Sankhya philosophy, which Lord Kapila explained to his mother, are described in the 3rd canto of Srimad Bhagavatam. Other aspects were described to great sages, who continued to transmit the system through the system of Parampara.
The original Sankhya system was propounded by Lord Kapila during the reign of Svayambhuva Manu at the beginning of the current day of Brahma (about 2 billion years ago). Much later, during the previous Dwapara-yuga, an impostor Kapila appeared to teach an atheistic version of the system. This atheistic Sankhya was refuted by Vyasadeva in the Vedanta Sutra, as part of his effort to reestablish the proper understanding of the Vedas.
4- Dattātreya: Atri Muni was situated in vātsalya Rasa, and thus desired to have the Lord as his son. The Lord accepted his devotion, and thus Dattātreya was born. On SB 4.1.15, Prabhupada explains that Anasūyā, the wife of Atri Muni, gave birth to three very famous sons: Soma, Dattātreya and Durvāsā. Dattātreya was a partial representation of Lord Viṣṇu, Soma was a partial representation of Lord Brahmā and Durvāsā was a partial representation of Lord Śiva.
On SB 1.3.11, Prabhupada mentions a slightly different account from the Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa, which mentions that Anasūyā prayed before the Lords Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and Śiva for the three of them to combine to become her son. This however doesn’t contradict the other version, because in any case, being the Supreme, Lord Vishnu includes the potencies of both Brahma and Shiva. As in other passages of the scriptures, apparent contradictory descriptions should be seen as simply describing different angles of the same facts.
As Dattātreya, the Lord taught the system of mystic yoga to many students across the universe. In particular, the verse mentions that he taught both King Yadu (the father of the Yadu dynasty, in which Krsna took birth) and Haihaya, who achieved perfection in devotional service. In the 11th canto of Srimad Bhagavatam, there is a narration of the teachings of Dattātreya to Yadu, in which he speaks about the 24 Gurus.
5- The four Kumaras: Just like Narada Muni, the four Kumaras are saktyavesa-svataras, empowered incarnations. To assist their father, they explained transcendental knowledge so clearly that all the sages could understand it without difficulty. The Kumaras live in Tapaloka (the planetary system immediately below Brahmaloka) where they practice mystic yoga. In the Brhad Bhagavatamrta, it’s mentioned that Gopa Kumara met them on his way to Brahmaloka. They had a pivotal role in the pastime of Jaya and Vijaya, cursing the two doorkeepers of Vishnu to come to the material world as demons. This led to the pastimes of the Lord killing Hiranyaksa and Hiranyakashipu, as well as Ramana and Kumbakarna, Sisupala and Dantavraka.
6- Nara-Nārāyaṇa Rsi: The sage Narayana is considered an incarnation of Krsna, and Nara, his companion an incarnation of Arjuna. They are always together, teaching the path of austerity by their example. Once the demigods tried to break their vows sending many apsaras to seduce them, but the Lord showed that he is the source of all beautiful women. As Prabhupada mentions: “The Lord, by His pleasure potency, can produce innumerable spiritual beauties and not be the least attracted by the false beauties of material creation.”
7- Prsnigarbha: This is the incarnation of the Lord who appeared in front of Dhruva Maharaja to award him benedictions after he became perfected in his austerities. After being offended by his stepmother, who didn’t allow him to sit on the lap of his father, Dhruva Maharaja became determined to meet the Lord and ask for a kingdom greater than the one of his father or any of his ancestors. On the way, he met Narada Muni, who gave him instructions and initiated him. With the blessings of Narada Muni, Dhruva Maharaja was able to practice unprecedented austerities, and finally, the Lord appeared as an incarnation just to satisfy his desire. This incarnation of Prsnigarbha is also called Dhruvapriya.
8- Pṛthu Maharaja: The story of Prthu is described in the 4th canto of Srimad Bhagavatam. He was an empowered incarnation of the ruling power of the Lord. He was so powerful that when the Earth was not producing enough food, he chastized the predominating deity of the planet, and made her give all kinds of desirable things to increase the opulence of all inhabitants of the universe.
9- Ṛṣabhadeva: The pastimes of Lord Ṛṣabhadeva are narrated in the 5th canto. He taught the path of jaḍa-yoga, which involves practicing becoming like a stone and not being affected by material reactions. Just as a stone is indifferent to all kinds of external situations, one who is advanced in this process practices tolerance of voluntary infliction of pain upon the material body.
Later, King Arhat rejected the Vedas and concocted a system based on the process of jaḍa-yoga (which later led to the appearance of modern Jainism). This was another of the mistaken philosophies that appeared during the last Dwapara Yuga that Vyasadeva had to oppose.
10- Lord Hayagrīva: There are two instances of the appearance of Lord Hayagrīva mentioned in the Srimad Bhagavatam. The first is that at the end of the day of Brahma, ignorance personified assumes the form of the demon Ajnana and steals the Vedas from him, taking them down to the lower planet Rasātala. When this happens, the Lord appears as Hayagrīva to retrieve the Vedas and return them to Lord Brahmā.
The second one is that after appearing from the lotus flower, at the beginning of the millennium, Lord Brahma could not understand what to do. He was then attacked by two demons, called Madhu and Kaiṭabha, who took away Vedic knowledge. The Lord then appeared as Hayagrīva to kill them and entrust the Vedic knowledge back to Brahma (SB 7.9 summary).
One could question how a demon can steal the Vedic knowledge since knowledge is not a physical object that can be moved from one place to another. The point is that as we go to higher levels of existence, there is nothing “physical”, higher beings deal with subtle energies. When we take this into consideration, it’s not difficult to imagine that a certain powerful subtle entity may steal the Vedic knowledge from Brahma, making him forget it. When this happens, Lord Vishnu intervenes, killing such demons and delivering the Vedic knowledge back to him.
In verse 2.7.11, we get a glimpse of the appearance of Lord Hayagrīva. He is the personified sacrifice, and His body’s hue is golden. He is the personified Vedas and the Supersoul of all demigods. When He breaths, all the sweet sounds of the Vedic hymns come from His nostrils.
11- Matsya avatara: The Lord appeared as Matsya, the giant fish incarnation at the end of the reign of Cākṣuṣa Manu (the 6th Manu) to save King Satyavrata from the waters of devastation, as described in the 8th canto. Satyavrata was a great pious ruler, who later became the current Manu (Vaivasvata, the 7th in the sequence). During the same incident, Brahma became fearful of the waters of devastation, and the Vedas came out of his mouth, just to also be saved by the Lord.
Matsya avatara also appeared at the beginning of the current day of Brahma to kill the demon Hayagriva, who had stolen the Vedas from him. This Hayagriva is of course different from the incarnation of the Lord. We can see that there are two pastimes connected with the stealing of the Vedas. Sometimes the Vedas are stolen by the demon Ajnana, who Lord Hayagrīva kills, and sometimes they are stolen by the demon named Hayagriva, who is killed by Matsya Avatara.
12- Kurma: During the pastime of the churning of the milk ocean by the demigods and demons to obtain nectar (narrated in the 8th canto) the Lord appeared as Kurma, the gigantic divine tortoise to help them, serving as a support for the Mandara Mountain, which they used as a churning rod. Lord Kurma is also present at the bottom of the universe, sustaining the whole structure of Bhu-Mandala, of which the Earth is part.
We may think it strange that there can be an ocean of milk somewhere in the universe, and that such an ocean can be churned to obtain a type of nectar that can make one practically immortal, but as Prabhupada mentions, we just have to accept that there are many things about the universe that we don’t know. The Vedas explain that the universe is composed of different dimensions, which are in turn composed of different grades of matter, inhabited by different beings, and with different physical laws. From all these different dimensions we have access to just one, the grossest one. There are many different structures and levels of existence in the universe we can’t even imagine.
13- Nṛsiṁhadeva: The pastime of the Lord appearing as Nṛsiṁhadeva, coming out of the pillar to kill Hiranyakashipu and save Prahlada Maharaja is described in the 7th canto.
14- Hari: The pastime of the elephant Gajendra being bitten by the crocodile and surrendering to the Lord is narrated in the 8th canto. In this pastime, the Lord appeared on the back of Garuda and used his chakra to cut the crocodile’s head and save Gajendra, bringing him back to Godhead. The crocodile was a Gandharva named Huhu who had beem cursed, while the elephant was Indradyumna in his past life. This pastime happened in the 4th Manvantara.
This incarnation of the Lord who came to save Gajendra is called Hari, who is the Manvantara-avatara of this particular millennium. Lord Hari appeared as the son of Harini and Harimedha.
15- Vamandeva: In this incarnation, the Lord appeared as a Brahmana boy to beg three steps of land from Bali Maharaja and thus deliver the three words back to the demigods. This pastime is also described in the 8th canto.
16- Haṁsāvatāra: Once, at the beginning of the day of Brahma, the four Kumaras inquired to Lord Brahma about the supreme goal of the yoga system. However, at the time Brahma was absorbed in the activities of creation, and thus his intelligence was affected and he could not find the perfect answer to their question. Lord Brahma then fixed his mind on the Lord, who became visible to him as Lord Haṁsā, in the form of a swam. In this incarnation, the Lord instructed Brahma and the four Kumaras in the science of yoga. This pastime is described in more detail in the 11th canto.
As verse 19 reveals, Lord Haṁsā also instructed Narada Muni in the science of transcendental loving service, being very much pleased with his devotional attitude. On CC Madhya 9.245 Prabhupada lists Haṁsā as Paramātmā, suggesting that He is an incarnation of Ksirodakasayi Vishnu.
17- The Manvantara-avataras: The Lord appears as an incarnation during the reign of each Manu. Just like there are 14 manus on the day of Brahma, there are also 14 Manvantara-avataras, each one connected to one of the manus. The chronological order is: (1) Yajña, (2) Vibhu, (3) Satyasena, (4) Hari, (5) Vaikuṇṭha, (6) Ajita, (7) Vāmana, (8) Sārvabhauma, (9) Ṛṣabha, (10) Viṣvaksena, (11) Dharmasetu, (12) Sudhāmā, (13) Yogeśvara, (14) Bṛhadbhān. In this incarnation, the Lord assists Manu in ruling over the demigods and earthly kings.
18- Dhanvantari: Lord Dhanvantari appears to deliver the pot of nectar at the end of the pastime of the churning of the milk ocean, and also to inaugurate the Vedic medical science, which has the goal of helping people to live a healthy life and thus have peace of mind to practice the spiritual process. This medical science is not only available on Earth but also on other planets of the universe. By His grace all diseases are cured.
19- Parasurama: As Prabhupada mentions in his purport: “Those going against the prescribed rules and regulations of conditional life are called brahmojjhita-pathas, or persons going against the path of the Absolute Truth, and they are liable to be punished. Lord Paraśurāma, the incarnation of the Personality of Godhead, appeared in such a state of worldly affairs and killed all the miscreant kings twenty-one times. Many kṣatriya kings fled from India to other parts of the world at that time, and according to the authority of the Mahābhārata, the kings of Egypt originally migrated from India because of Paraśurāma’s program of chastisement.”
20- Lord Rama: The pastimes of Lord Rama are described in detail in Ramayana. Because of this, Sukadeva Goswami opted to just give a summary description in the Srimad Bhagavatam (9th canto). The pastime of Lord Rama teaches us an important lesson: Krsna’s energies exist to serve Him, and should be used in His service. Ravana tried to steal Sita, the Lord’s potency, and not only did he get an illusory copy of the real Sita, but he was also killed by His offense. Similarly, a materialist tries to use the material energy for his personal enjoyment, and not only his process of so-called enjoyment is full of inconvenience and anxiety but he has to eventually face death and leave everything behind. A devotee on the other hand aims to unite Sita and Rama by using Krsna’s energy in His service. By this process, a devotee gains eternal life as an associate of the Lord.
21- Krsna: Just like in the first canto, Krsna is listed as one of the incarnations, but at the same time it is indicated He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
It’s very important to note that many translations of the Srimad Bhagavatam offer an incorrect translation for verse 2.7.26, indicating that Krsna is an incarnation of Vishnu. As emphasized by Srila Rupa Goswami, the correct translation for this sentence is “the Lord, with beautiful black hair, descends with His plenary portion.” (Lord Balarama, Kṛṣṇa’s immediate expansion).
The correct translation for the verse is thus:
“When the world is overburdened by the fighting strength of kings who have no faith in God, the Lord, just to diminish the distress of the world, descends with His plenary portion. The Lord comes in His original form, with beautiful black hair. And just to expand His transcendental glories, He acts extraordinarily. No one can properly estimate how great He is.” (SB 2.7.26)
In this way, Krsna is directly described as the original, Supreme Personality of Godhead by Lord Brahma Himself, and Balarama as His immediate expansion. All the other forms of Godhead, including Lord Narayana are expansions of the expansions of Krsna.
Krsna comes in His original form once in a day of Brahma to reveal His pastimes and thus attract the conditioned souls who are ready to join His pastimes in the spiritual world. In other words, He comes to take His faithful devotees with Him, both the ones who take birth to join His pastimes and others who are born later and hear His pastimes from pure devotees. As a secondary activity, He kills the powerful demons who are overburning the universe, also bringing them back to Godhead.
To emphasize that Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Brahma offers a short description of Krsna’s pastimes in verses 27 to 35, describing how he killed Putana and other great demons, chastized Kaliya, curbed the pride of Indra, and so on. Brahma spoke these verses at the beginning of His day, and thus he is speaking of events that for him are still in the future. However, he can see everything in his meditation.
22- Vyasadeva: In each Dwapara-yuga, when the real meaning of the Vedas becomes covered by different interpretations, the Lord comes as Vyasadeva to compile the Vedic knowledge and present it in a way that it can be understood even by the less intelligent people of Kali-yuga. Indirectly, this verse predicts the compilation of the Srimad Bhagavatam, following the advent of Krsna.
23- Buddha: Lord Brahma describes a Lord Buddha different from the one who advent in our times. The Lord Buddha described in this chapter came in a different Kali-yuga when human beings were able to develop spaceships with the help of Maya-Dhanava (the gifted architect who serves the demons on the lower planets) and were attacking other planets. In such a situation, Lord Buddha came to teach non-violence and thus stop the massacre.
There are 1,000 Kali-yugas in a day of Brahma, of which we already passed half. Although Brahma mentions just one advent of each incarnation, these incarnations of the Lord come repeatedly in different cycles of creation, not only in this universe but in other universes as well.
“When the atheists, after being well versed in the Vedic scientific knowledge, annihilate inhabitants of different planets, flying unseen in the sky on well-built rockets prepared by the great scientist Maya, the Lord will bewilder their minds by dressing Himself attractively as Buddha and will preach on subreligious principles.” (SB 2.7.37)
It’s mentioned that Lord Buddha preaches “subreligious principles” because he speaks about non-violence and meditation, without directly speaking about God. Real religion means to become a devotee of the Lord. Without this, just non-violence and moral instructions are not considered dharma, but just upadharma, or subreligious principles.
24- Kalki: At the end of each Kali-yuga, Kalki comes to annihilate all the rulers and sinful people and thus prepare the planet for the start of a new Satya-yuga. At this point, after 432,000 years of Kali-yuga, nothing is left of the religious principles taught in the Vedas and human beings are almost indistinguishable from the animals.
There is no cause beyond the Lord
Concluding his teachings to his son, Lord Brahma makes the point that the Lord is the cause of all causes. One may apply material logic in trying to understand Krsna, and ask that if Krsna is the cause of everything that exists, what is the cause of Krsna? Brahma answers this question by stating that there is no there is no cause beyond Him. The process of finding the cause of different causes ends when we reach Krsna. He is Supreme and there is nothing beyond Him.
“At the beginning of creation there are penance, myself [Brahmā] and the Prajāpatis, the great sages who generate; then, during the maintenance of the creation, there are Lord Viṣṇu, the demigods with controlling powers, and the kings of different planets. But at the end there is irreligion, and then Lord Śiva and the atheists full of anger, etc. All of them are different representative manifestations of the energy of the supreme power, the Lord.” (SB 2.7.39)
Although it may be attractive for souls captivated by the material energy, the cosmic manifestation is just a temporary show that has the goal of giving us a chance of liberation from the clutches of Maya. The universe is created starting by Brahma and the great sages, and the different incarnations of the Lord appear to teach devotional service. However, when time passes and the souls don’t take the opportunity, Lord Shiva and His associates take charge of the process of destruction.
“Who can describe completely the prowess of Viṣṇu? Even the scientist, who might have counted the particles of the atoms of the universe, cannot do so. Because it is He only who in His form of Trivikrama moved His leg effortlessly beyond the topmost planet, Satyaloka, up to the neutral state of the three modes of material nature. And all were moved.
Neither I nor all the sages born before you know fully the omnipotent Personality of Godhead. So what can others, who are born after us, know about Him? Even the first incarnation of the Lord, namely Śeṣa, has not been able to reach the limit of such knowledge, although He is describing the qualities of the Lord with ten hundred faces.
But anyone who is specifically favored by the Supreme Lord, the Personality of Godhead, due to unalloyed surrender unto the service of the Lord, can overcome the insurmountable ocean of illusion and can understand the Lord. But those who are attached to this body, which is meant to be eaten at the end by dogs and jackals, cannot do so.” (SB 2.7.40-42)
Lord Sesa lives at the bottom of the universe and is absorbed in constantly describing the glories of the Lord. However, although he has glorified the Lord for billions of years with his millions of heads, still he can’t find an end to them. By the mercy of the Lord, even the most sinful persons can become liberated by surrendering to Krsna’s devotees and following their footsteps.
The Lord is uncontaminated and without material distinctions. He is the cause of all causes and the illusory energy can’t stand before Him. When we approach the Lord, Maya automatically stops acting over us. As Lord Brahma states:
“In such a transcendental state there is no need of artificial control of the mind, mental speculation or meditation, as performed by the jñānīs and yogīs. One gives up such processes, as the heavenly King, Indra, forgoes the trouble to dig a well.”
Just like digging a well to get water will sound ludicrous to Indra, who controls the rain, mental control or mystical perfections are automatically attained by a pure devotee who fully dedicates himself to the service of the Lord.
At the end of his discourse, Brahma asks Narada to expand this explanation of devotional service in a manner that it can be understood by the audience since this is the solution for our material conditioning:
“O Nārada, this science of God, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, was spoken to me in summary by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and it was spoken as the accumulation of His diverse potencies. Please expand this science yourself.
Please describe the science of Godhead with determination and in a manner by which it will be quite possible for the human being to develop transcendental devotional service unto the Personality of Godhead Hari, the Supersoul of every living being and the summum bonum source of all energies.
The Lord’s activities in association with His different energies should be described, appreciated and heard in accordance with the teachings of the Supreme Lord. If this is done regularly with devotion and respect, one is sure to get out of the illusory energy of the Lord.” (2.7.51-53)