XX Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead

in the states of Malaya, it is known as Malayan sandalwood. Similarly,
Krsna the Supreme Personality of Godhead belongs to everyone, but just
as the sun rises from the east, although there are other directions from
which it could rise, so, by His own choice, the Lord appears in a particular
family, and that family becomes famous.

When Krsna appears, all His plenary expansions also appear with Him.
Krsna appeared along with Balarama (Baladeva), who is known as His elder
brother. Balarama is the origin of Sankarsana, of the quadrupal expansion.
Balarama is also the plenary expansion of Krsna. In this book, the attempt
will be made to show how Krsna appeared in the family of the Yadu
dynasty and how He displayed His transcendental characteristics. This is
very vividly described in the Srimad-Bhagavatam—specifically, the Tenth
Canto—and the basis of this book will be Smad. Bhagavatam.

The pastimes of the Lord are generally heard and relished by liberated
souls. Those who are conditioned souls are interested in reading fictional
stories of the material activities of some common man. Narrations de-
scribing the transcendental activities of the Lord are found in Srimad-
Bhagavatam and other Puranas. But, the conditioned souls still prefer to
study ordinary narrations. They are not so interested in studying the
narrations of the pastimes of the Lord, Krsna. And yet, the descriptions of
the pastimes of Lord Krsna are so attractive that they are relishable for all
classes of men. There are three classes of men in this world. One class
consists of liberated souls, another consists of those who are trying to be
liberated, and the third consists of materialistic men. Whether one is
liberated or is trying to be liberated, or is even grossly materialistic, the
pastimes of Lord Krsna are worth studying.

Liberated souls have no interest in materialistic activities. The imper-
sonalist theory that after liberation one becomes inactive and needs hear
nothing does not prove that a liberated person is actually inactive. A living
soul cannot be inactive. He is either active in the conditioned state or in
the liberated state. A diseased person, for example, is also active, but his
activities are all painful. The same person, when freed from the diseased
condition, is still active, but in the healthy condition the activities are full
of pleasure. Similarly, the impersonalists manage to get freed from the \
diseased conditional activities, but they have no information of activities
in the healthy condition. Those who are actually liberated and in full
knowledge take to hearing the activities of Krsna; such engagement is pure
spiritual activity.

It is essential for persons who are actually liberated to hear about the
pastimes of Krsna. That is the supreme relishable subject matter for one in
