20
Krṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead
The highest blunder committed by the impersonalist is to think that when the incarnation of God comes, He accepts the form of matter in the modes of goodness. Actually the form of Krṣṇa or Nārāyaṇa is transcendental to any material idea. Even the greatest impersonalist, Śaṅkarācārya, has admitted that  nārāyaṇaḥ paro'vyaktāt : the material creation is caused by the  avyakta  impersonal manifestation of matter or the nonphenomenal total reservation of matter, and Krṣṇa is transcendental to that material conception. That is expressed in the  Śrīmad-Bhā  as  śuddha-sattva , or transcendental. He does not belong to the material mode of goodness, and He is above the position of material goodness. He belongs to the transcendental eternal status of bliss and knowledge.
“Dear Lord, when You appear in Your different incarnations, You take different names and forms according to different situations. Lord Krṣṇa is Your name because You are all attractive; You are called Śyāmasundara because of Your transcendental beauty.  Śyāma  means blackish, yet they say that You are more beautiful than thousands of cupids.  Kandarpa-koṭi-kamanīya . Although You appear in a color which is compared to the blackish cloud, because You are transcendental Absolute, Your beauty is many many times more attractive than the delicate body of Cupid. Sometimes You are called Giridhārī because You lifted the hill known as Govardhana. You are sometimes called Nandanandana or Vāsudeva or Devakīnandana because You appear as the son of Mahārāja Nanda or Devakī or Vāsudeva. Impersonalists think that Your many names or forms are according to a particular type of work and quality because they accept You from the position of a material observer.
“Our dear Lord, the way of understanding is not to study Your absolute nature, form and activities by mental speculation. One must engage himself in devotional service; then one can understand Your absolute nature, transcendental form, name and quality. Actually only a person who has a little taste for the service of Your lotus feet can understand Your transcendental nature or form and quality. Others may go on speculating for millions of years, but it is not possible for them to understand even a single part of Your actual position.” In other words, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krṣṇa, cannot be understood by the nondevotees because there is a curtain of  Yogamāyā  which covers Krṣṇa’s actual features. As confirmed in the  Bhagavad-gītā ,  nāham prakāśaḥ sarvasya . The Lord says, “I am not exposed to anyone and everyone.” When Krṣṇa came, He was actually present on the battlefield of Kurukṣetra, and everyone saw Him. But not everyone could understand that He was the Supreme Personality of