240
Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta
[ Ādi-īllā, Ch. 16 ]
SYNONYMS
Ihāṅ —in this connection;  viṣṇu-pāda-padme —in the lotus feet of Lord Viṣṇu;  gaṅgāra —of mother Ganges;  utpattl —beginning;  virodha —contradiction;  alaṅkāra —literary decoration;  ihā —it;  mahā —very great;  camatkṛtl —wonder.
TRANSLATION
“The existence of mother Ganges begins from the lotus feet of the Lord. Although this statement that water comes from a lotus flower is a contradiction, in connection with Lord Viṣṇu it is a great wonder.
TEXT 81
ঈবর-অচিন্ত্যশঙ্ক্ষ্য গঙ্গার প্রকাশ । ইহাতে বিরোধ মাহি, বিরোধ-আভাস ॥ ৮১ ॥
īśvara-acintya-śaktye gaṅgāra prakāśa ihāte virodha nāhi, virodha-ābhāsa
SYNONYMS
īśvara-acintya-śaktye —by the inconceivable potency of the Supreme Lord;  gaṅgāra —of the Ganges;  prakāśa —emanation;  ihāte —in this;  virodha nāhi —there is no contradiction;  virodha-ābhāsa —appears to be a contradiction.
TRANSLATION
“In this birth of the Ganges, by the inconceivable potency of the Lord, there is no contradiction although it appears contradictory.
PURPORT
The central point of all Vaiṣṇava philosophy is to accept the inconceivable potency of Lord Viṣṇu. What sometimes appears contradictory from a material viewpoint is understandable in connection with the Supreme Personality of Godhead because He can perform contradictory activities by dint of His inconceivable potencies. Modern scientists are puzzled. They cannot even explain how such a large quantity of chemicals has formed the atmosphere. Scientists explain that water is a combination of hydrogen and oxygen, but when asked where such a large quantity of hydrogen and oxygen came from and how they combined to manufacture the great oceans and seas, they cannot answer because they are atheists who will not accept that everything comes from life. Their thesis is that life comes from matter.
Where do all these chemicals come from? The answer is that they are produced by the inconceivable energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Living entities are part of the Supreme Godhead, and from their bodies come many chemicals.