522
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
[Canto 4, Ch. 12]
for everything of Viṣṇu's is as good as Lord Viṣṇu. Dhruva Mahārāja knew all this very well, as a pure Vaiṣṇava, and he offered his respects to the associates and to the plane before riding in it. But in the meantime, his body changed into spiritual existence, and therefore it was illuminating like molten gold. In this way he also became one with the other paraphernalia of Viṣṇuloka.
Māyāvādī philosophers cannot imagine how this oneness can be achieved even in different varieties. Their idea of oneness is that there is no variety. Therefore they have become impersonalists. As Śiśumāra, Viṣṇuloka or Dhruvaloka are completely different from this material world, so a Viṣṇu temple within this world is also completely different from this material world. As soon as we are in a temple we should know very well that we are situated differently from the material world. In the temple, Lord Viṣṇu, His throne, His room and everything associated with the temple are transcendental. The three modes,  sattva-guṇa ,  rajo-guṇa  and  tamo-guṇa , have no entrance into the temple. It is said, therefore, that to live in the forest is in the mode of goodness, to live in the city is in the mode of passion, and to live in a brothel, liquor shop or slaughterhouse is in the mode of ignorance. But to live in the temple means to live in Vaikuṇṭhaloka. Everything in the temple is as worshipable as Lord Viṣṇu or Kṛṣṇa.
TEXT 30
तदोत्तानपदः पुत्रो ददशन्तकमागतम् । मृत्योर्मूर्ध्नि पदं दत्त्वा आरुतोहाद्धुतं गृहम् ॥३०॥
tadottānapadaḥ putro dadarśāntakam āgatam mṛtyor mūrdhni padam dattvā ārurohādbhutam gṛham
tadā—then; uttānapadaḥ—of King Uttānapāda; putraḥ—son; dadarśa—could see; antakam—death personified; āgatam—approached him; mṛtyoḥ mūrdhni—on the head of death; padam—feet; dattvā—placing; āruroha—got up; adbhutam—wonderful; gṛham—on the airplane which resembled a big house.
TRANSLATION
When Dhruva Mahārāja was attempting to get on the transcendental plane, he saw death personified approach him. Not caring for death, how-