104 Sri-Caitanya-caritamrta

Bhagavad-gita, which distinctly says, yanti deva-vrata devan. . .yanti mad-yajino'pi
mam: “‘The worshipers of the demigods will be promoted to the respective planets
of the demigods, but devotees of the Supreme Lord will go back home, back to
Godhead.” (Bg. 9.25) Lord Krsna explains very clearly in Bhagavad-gita that His
material energy is very difficult to overcome (daivi hy esd gunamayi mama maya
duratyaya). Maya’s influence is so strong that even learned scholars and
spiritualists are also covered by maya and think themselves to be as good as the
Supreme Personality of Godhead. Actually, however, to free oneself from the
influence of maya one must surrender to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, as
Krsna also states in Bhagavad-gita (mam eva ye prapadyante mayam etam
taranti te). \t is to be concluded, therefore, that Lord Visnu does not belong to this
material creation but to the spiritual world. To misconceive Lord Visnu to have a
material body or to equate Him with the demigods is the most offensive blasphemy
against Lord Visnu, and offenders against the lotus feet of Lord Visnu cannot
advance in spiritual knowledge. They are called mayayapahrta-jnana, or those whose
knowledge has been stolen by the influence of illusion.

One who thinks that there is a difference between Lord Visnu’s body and His
soul dwells in the darkest region of ignorance. There is no difference between Lord
Visnu’s body and Visnu’s soul, for they are advaya-jnana, one knowledge. In this
world there is a difference between the material body and spiritual soul, but in the
spiritual world everything is spiritual, and there are no such differences. The greatest
offense of the Mayavadi philosophers is to consider Lord Visnu and the living
entities to be one and the same. In this connection the Padma Purana states:

arcye visnau Ssiladhir gurusu
nara-matir vaisnave jati-buddhih

“One who considers the arca-murti or worshipable Deity of Lord Visnu to be stone,
the spiritual master to be an ordinary human being, and a Vaisnava to belong to a
particular caste or creed, is possessed of hellish inteltigence.’”” One who follows such
conclusions is doomed.

TEXT 116

TAA SF — A Slee GTA |
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isvarera tattva—yena jvalita jvalana
jivera svarupa—yaiche sphulingera kana
SYNONYMS

isvarera tattva—the truth of the Supreme Personality of Godhead; yena—is like;
jvalita—blazing; jvalana—fire; jivera— of the living entities; svarupa-- identity; yaiche—
is like; sphulingera—of the spark; kana—particle.
