All Over the Universe - The Omnipresence of Kṛṣṇa and His Devotees
When we look up at the night sky, we see only a tiny fraction of the immense cosmic manifestation. The Vedic literature provides a complete map of this reality, detailing fourteen planetary systems populated by countless living entities. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that to understand the Absolute Truth, we must expand our vision. By understanding how the Supreme Lord, the conditioned souls, and the pure devotees operate all over the universe, we can break free from our narrow, earthly conceptions and grasp the true magnitude of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
The Omnipresent Energy of the Lord
A common philosophical challenge is understanding how the Supreme Personality of Godhead can maintain a personal form yet be present everywhere. Śrīla Prabhupāda brilliantly resolves this using the analogy of the sun. The sun is a localized planet, yet its sunshine is distributed everywhere. Similarly, Kṛṣṇa is a person, but His divine energy is spread all over the universe, maintaining all existence.
- Just as the sunshine is spread all over the universe, the energy of the Lord is spread all over the creation, and everything is resting in that energy.
- The sun, by its sunshine, is spread all over the universe, and all the planets rest on the sunshine.
- It is also confirmed in the Bhagavad-gita (Bhagavad-Gita 9.4), maya tatam idam sarvam jagad avyakta-murtina: Lord Krsna is spread all over the universe in His impersonal feature. Everything is resting on Him, but that does not mean that everything is He Himself.
- Whatever we see in this universe is but an expansion of the potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, just as the sunshine and heat all over the universe are expansions of the sun.
The Wandering of the Conditioned Soul
Because the spirit soul is eternal and active, it cannot remain stagnant. When a soul rebels against God, it is given the facility to explore the material world. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that driven by karma and unfulfilled desires, the conditioned living entity is forced to travel all over the universe, taking birth in various planetary systems and moving endlessly through 8,400,000 species of life.
- Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the chief exponent of Krsna consciousness in this age, has explained that the living entities in various planetary systems all over the universe are rotating in different species of life.
- The part-and-parcel living entities are entangled in the conditioned life of material existence. Because of their diverse activities they are wandering all over the universe, transmigrating from one body to another and undergoing various miseries.
- As servant of maya, Sometimes he is in heaven and sometimes in hell. Sometimes he is a demigod, and sometimes he is a demon. Sometimes he is a servant, and sometimes he is a master. In this way the living entity wanders all over the universe.
- Soul is one - that is part and parcel of Krsna - but according to karma, according to desire for material enjoyment, we have taken different dresses, and we are wandering all over the universe, according to our karma.
The Universal Preaching of Narada Muni
While the conditioned souls wander in ignorance, the pure devotees travel with a supreme purpose. The greatest example is the space-traveling sage, Nārada Muni. Śrīla Prabhupāda notes that Nārada is not bound by material laws; he travels freely all over the universe, penetrating even the deepest hellish planets, solely to distribute Kṛṣṇa consciousness and rescue the fallen souls.
- Narada Muni is traveling all over the universe. He's going to hell, heaven, everywhere, and trying to make disciples who can become Krsna's devotee. He does not stay anywhere for more than 3 minutes, like that. He's traveling always. This is sama-cittah.
- Narada Muni travels all over the universe for the sole purpose of performing the best welfare activity for the entire universe by teaching everyone how to become a devotee of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
- Narada Muni is always chanting the glories of the Lord, and his engagement is to travel all over the universe and find a devotee or make someone a devotee. Even a hunter was made a devotee by the grace of Narada.
- The great Rsi Narada, who is an empowered incarnation of the Personality of Godhead, propagates devotional service all over the universe. All great devotees of the Lord all over the universe and in different planets and species of life are his disciples.
Mystic Travel vs. Modern Spacecraft
Modern scientists attempt to explore the universe using clumsy, mechanical rockets, which Śrīla Prabhupāda frequently described as futile endeavors. The Vedic histories reveal that advanced yogīs and kings possessed subtle, mystic powers that allowed them to travel instantly all over the universe. For instance, Kardama Muni created a magnificent flying city just to please his wife.
- Bhismadeva was known all over the universes, and during his time interplanetary travel was effected by finer methods than the futile endeavors of mechanical spacecraft.
- We have information from the Srimad Bhagavatam that Kardama Muni, the father of the great sage Kapiladeva, manufactured a huge plane that resembled a great city. It included lakes, gardens, streets, and houses, and the whole city was able to fly all over the universe.
- It is stated that when Kardama Muni created an airplane to carry his wife, Devahuti, all over the universe, the airplane was like a big city, carrying many houses, lakes and gardens.
- There are many yogis. They have got very exalted, extraordinary power. Just like Durvasa Muni. He once traveled all over the space. Not only within this universe - he traveled outside the universe in the spiritual world, and he saw the Supreme Personality of Godhead face to face.
Universal Laws and Systems
People often mistakenly believe that concepts like the caste system (varṇāśrama) are merely local Indian traditions. Śrīla Prabhupāda emphatically corrects this, explaining that the divisions of society based on quality and work (guṇa-karma) are universal laws established by God. Furthermore, the supreme control of Time is an absolute factor operating all over the universe.
- God's creation cannot be stopped. Just like in God's creation there is sun, there is moon, there is seasonal changes. Nobody can stop this. Similarly the catur-varnyam, according to quality and karma, that division prevails all over the universe.
- The caste system created by the Personality of Godhead and referred to in the Bhagavad-gita is universally true at all times and in all parts of the world, and actually, the universe.
- People misunderstand that Indians have created a caste system. No. That caste system is everywhere - sarvam idam jagat. Not only India, all universe is being conducted by that process.
- There are hundreds and thousands of examples all over the world, all over the universe, which are all effects of the influence of time. The conclusion is that there is no powerful living being within the universe who can overcome the influence of time.
The Spread of the Sankirtana Movement
The ultimate purpose of the vast cosmic manifestation is to facilitate the return of the conditioned souls back to Godhead. Śrīla Prabhupāda assures us that the congregational chanting of the holy names, inaugurated by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, is not a sectarian, earthly phenomenon. It is a divine vibration destined to conquer the entire cosmos.
- The sankirtana movement was first set in motion five hundred years ago by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s desire that it spread all over the universe.
- Anyone who attempts to serve Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu sincerely by following in His footsteps and following the instructions of the acaryas will successfully be able to preach the holy names of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra all over the universe.
- The Krsna consciousness movement, in continuity of that same motion (set by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu), is now spreading all over the world, and in this way it will gradually spread all over the universe.
- Srimad-Bhagavatam says that one should try to attain that which cannot be attained by traveling all over the universe. What is that? Kevalaya bhaktya - pure devotion.
Conclusion
Śrīla Prabhupāda teaches us that we do not need to invent mechanical spaceships to escape the miseries of this material world. By simply engaging in pure devotional service and chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, we immediately connect with the Supreme Lord whose potencies are spread all over the universe. Through this spiritual process, the wandering soul finally finds its ultimate, eternal home in the spiritual sky.
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Śrīla Prabhupāda lives within his instructions. This article is a summary of the profound truths found in the Vaniquotes category All Over The Universe. We invite you to visit this link to study the complete compilation and experience the teachings in their direct, verbatim form.