Text 17] The Lord in the Heart 89

na yatra kalo ‘nimisaém parah prabhuh
kuto nu deva jagatam ya isire

na yatra sattvam na rajas tamas ca
na vai vikdro na mahan pradhanam

na—not; yatra—wherein; kalah—destructive time; animisam—of the
heavenly demigods; parah—superior; prabhuh—controller; kutah—where is
there; nu—certainly; devah—the demigods; jagatam—the mundane crea-
tures; ye—those; isire—rules; na—no; yatra—therein; sattvam—mundane
goodness; na—nor; rajah—mundane passion; tamah—mundane ignorance;
ca—also;na—nor; vai—certainly ; vikdrah—transformation; na—nor; mahan—
the material causal ocean; pradhdnam— material nature.

TRANSLATION

In that transcendental state of labdhopasanti there is no supremacy of
devastating time, which controls even the celestial demigods (and what to
speak of the demigods themselves?) who are empowered to rule over
mundane creatures. Nor is there the mode of material goodness, nor
passion, nor ignorance, nor even the false ego, nor the material Causal
Ocean, nor the material nature.

PURPORT

Devastating time, which controls even the celestial demigods by its
manifestations of past, present and future, does not act on the transcen-
dental plane. The influence of time is exhibited by the symptoms of birth,
death, old age and disease, and these four principles of material conditions
are present everywhere in any part of the material cosmos up to the
planet Brahmaloka, where the duration of life of the inhabitants appears to
us to be fabulous. Insurmountable time even brings about the death of
Brahma, so what to speak of other demigods like Indra, Candra, Surya,
Vayu, Varuna, etc.? The astronomical influence directed by the different
demigods over mundane creatures is also conspicuous by its absence. In the
material existence, the living entities are afraid of Satanic influence, but
for a devotee on the transcendental plane there is no such fear at all. The
living entities change their material bodies in different shapes and forms
under the influence of the different modes of material nature, but in the
transcendental state the devotee is gundatita, or above the material modes
of goodness, passion or ignorance, and as such the false ego of “Il am the
