God's Influence over All Energies and Living Beings
The Supreme Personality of Godhead exerts absolute influence over every corner of creation through His diverse potencies. This supreme control is entirely different from the fractional capabilities of ordinary living entities.
The Supersoul's Inner Direction
God's influence operates intimately within the heart of every individual as the Supersoul. Memory, knowledge, and forgetfulness are directly dictated by the Lord, rendering the material brain merely an instrument dependent on His grace.
- A common living being cannot extend its influence over another common living being by its all-pervasiveness, but the Supreme Supersoul, the SPG, is unlimitedly able to exert His influence over all places and all times and over all living beings.
- He (the Lord) is dictating or giving intelligence to the individual soul from within. It is clearly stated in the Gita that the Lord gives intelligence to the individual soul and that both memory and forgetfulness are due to the influence of the Supersoul.
- In the Bhagavad-gita (15.15) also the same thing is confirmed; the Lord is present within the heart of every living entity, and all the living entity's consciousness and forgetfulness are influenced by the Lord.
- Since the brain is a lump of matter, it does not have independent power with which to act. It can act only when favored by the influence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is Brahman or Parabrahman.
The Boundless Opulences of the Lord
The Supreme Lord is distinctly defined by His possession of six complete opulences, with supreme influence being a primary characteristic. Śrīla Prabhupāda confirms that these transcendental qualities are nondifferent from God Himself and cannot be fully estimated by anyone.
- In defining the Supreme Personality of Godhead, we say that He is full in all six opulences - wealth, fame, strength, influence, beauty and renunciation.
- In the Visnu Purana it is said that all the qualities attributed to the Supreme Lord, such as knowledge, opulence, beauty, strength and influence, are known to be nondifferent from Him. This is also confirmed in the Padma Purana.
- Lord Brahma prayed: My Lord, You are unlimited, and You possess unending potencies. No one can estimate or calculate Your prowess and wonderful influence, for Your actions are never polluted by the material energy.
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead is full in six opulences. His position is unique, for He possesses all riches, strength, influence, beauty, knowledge and renunciation.
Transcendental Ecstasy and Internal Potency
For the pure devotees, God's influence manifests through His spiritual energy, yogamāyā, which immerses them in divine love and transcendental forgetfulness. This internal potency is celebrated by Śrīla Prabhupāda as the source of unparalleled spiritual bliss and divine interaction.
- Although the Pandavas, because of the influence of Krsna's yogamaya, could not think of their fortunate position, every saintly person, including the great sage Narada, could understand it, and therefore they constantly visited Maharaja Yudhisthira.
- Lord Nityananda Prabhu first influenced all the devotees to dance, and finally He Himself began dancing, thus inundating the entire world in ecstatic love.
- Lord Siva smiled when he joked with his wife in that way, for others cannot speak like that. "The Supreme Lord," Siva continued, "is always exalted in His activities, and here is another example of His wonderful influence upon King Citraketu, His devotee.
- The pleasure feature of the Lord is understood by the pure devotees only, and not by others. The impersonalist is satisfied simply by understanding the all-pervasive influence of the Lord. This is called Brahman realization.
Time and the External Energy
The conditioned souls are completely subjected to the Lord's external energy, māyā, which causes forgetfulness of their original spiritual identity. Śrīla Prabhupāda frequently warns that the material existence is strictly controlled by God's destructive time factor, kāla, creating the illusions of bodily attachments and the fear of death.
- By that confidential knowledge, I (Narada Muni) could understand clearly the influence of the energy of Lord Sri Krsna, the creator, maintainer and annihilator of everything. By knowing that, one can return to Him and personally meet Him.
- It is by the influence of the Supreme Lord's maya that I (mother Yasoda) am wrongly thinking that Nanda Maharaja is my husband, that Krsna is my son (SB 10.8.42.)
- The fear of death is the action of the kala, or the time factor, which represents the influence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Time is destructive. Whatever is created is subject to destruction and dissolution, which is the action of time.
- Sukadeva said: O King, unless one is influenced by the energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, there is no meaning to the relationship of the pure soul in pure consciousness with the material body. That relationship is just like a dreamer's seeing his own body working.
Conclusion
The profound nature of God's influence encompasses all states of being, regulating both the material cosmos and the spiritual realm. Through the external energy, rebellious souls are governed by illusion and time, while surrendered souls are guided from within by the Supersoul. Ultimately, understanding the Lord's unlimited opulences and internal potencies frees one from material bewilderment, opening the path to eternal, ecstatic devotional service.
Dive Deeper into Śrīla Prabhupāda's Vani
Śrīla Prabhupāda lives within his instructions. This article is a summary of the profound truths found in the Vaniquotes category God's Influence. We invite you to visit this link to study the complete compilation and experience Śrīla Prabhupāda's teachings in their direct, verbatim form.