God Is Not Formless - The Supreme Eternal Person
Śrīla Prabhupāda teaches that one of the greatest philosophical misconceptions is the belief that the Absolute Truth is ultimately an impersonal void. Because the conditioned soul's experience is limited to temporary material bodies, less intelligent men falsely conclude that the Supreme Personality of Godhead must be formless, completely denying His eternal, spiritual identity.
Refuting the Impersonal Illusion
The philosophy that God is ultimately a formless energy is a product of mundane speculation. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that the Absolute Truth is the supreme enjoyer and the original person, possessing an eternal body full of knowledge and bliss (sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha).
- The Supreme Lord Personality of Godhead is neither impersonal nor formless, but His body is nondifferent from Him, and therefore He is known as the embodiment of eternity, knowledge and bliss.
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead is not formless; He is purusam, or the enjoyer, the original person. He is the time element and is all-cognizant. He knows everything - past, present and future - as confirmed in Bhagavad-gita.
- The conception that the living entity is formless or that the Supreme Lord is formless is also illusion.
- Materialistic Mayavadis imagine the form of God in matter, although according to their imagination, God is ultimately formless. This is simply mental speculation.
The Meaning of Nirākāra
When Vedic texts describe God as being without form, one must understand the context through the realized ācāryas. Śrīla Prabhupāda clarifies that terms like nirākāra simply mean that the Lord has no material form; He absolutely possesses a transcendental form that is beyond mundane experience.
- In the Vedic language, when it is said nirakara - nirakara means "Who has no form" - it does not mean that God has no form. He has got form, but His form is different from this form upon which you have got experience.
- Here is a description of the transcendental and eternal form of the Absolute Personality of Godhead. The Supreme Lord is not formless. He has His own transcendental form, which is not at all similar to the forms of the mundane world.
- That the Lord is not formless is experienced by Narada Muni. But His form is completely different from all forms of our material experience.
- Factually, the Lord is not formless, nor does He belong to any of the multiforms experienced within the universal forms. One should try to know the truth about the Lord by following the instruction of Brahmaji.
The Source of the Formless
The all-pervading, impersonal feature of God is often mistaken as the ultimate reality by empiric philosophers. Śrīla Prabhupāda uses a perfect analogy to explain that just as formless sunshine rests upon the localized sun globe, the formless Brahman rests upon the personal form of the Lord.
- Formless is not the actual realization of God. That is the beginning. That may be beginning. To realize the energy of God, that is formless. Just like the sun. The sunshine is formless, but the sun globe is not formless.
- The Mayavada conception that because the Absolute Truth is everything He must be formless is rejected here. Rather, it is confirmed that the Absolute Truth has form, and yet He is all-pervading. Nothing is independent of Him.
- There is no difference between the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vasudeva, and omkara (pranava). We should be careful to understand that omkara does not indicate anything nirakara, or formless.
- The Sun, from millions of years giving us light, giving us heat, but he has not lost its power. If this is possible for a dead matter, then how God will be Form-less after creating unlimited universes with His power?
Revealed to the Pure Devotees
Because the Supreme Lord is fully independent, He reserves the right not to expose Himself to nondevotees. Śrīla Prabhupāda notes that while the Lord remains invisible and seemingly formless to atheists, He personally reveals His beautiful form to those engaged in pure devotional service.
- The Personality of Godhead is never formless. In the material world He may not be visible in His personal form to the less intelligent class of men, and therefore He may sometimes be called formless.
- To the faithful the Lord reveals Himself in His form, quality and pastimes. The Lord is not formless, as wrongly conceived by the impersonalist, but His form is not like one that we have experienced.
- When the Supreme Personality of Godhead reveals Himself to the pure devotee, the devotee has no other duty than to offer Him respectful obeisances. The Absolute Truth reveals Himself to the devotee in His form. He is not formless.
- How can one think of the Lord as being without form? How can one become formless and at the same time have all intelligence and consciousness, direct and indirect? So there are many things for a pure devotee to learn.
Conclusion
To properly understand the Absolute Truth, one must overcome the mundane tendency to project material limitations onto God. Śrīla Prabhupāda concludes that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is never formless; He possesses a fully spiritual, eternal body that is the source of all energies, including the impersonal Brahman effulgence. While Māyāvādī philosophers remain trapped in the illusion of a void or formless reality, the sincere devotee, through the process of pure Kṛṣṇa consciousness, realizes the magnificent, transcendental form of the Lord and engages in His eternal, loving service.
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Śrīla Prabhupāda lives within his instructions. This article is a summary of the profound truths found in the Vaniquotes category God Is Not Formless. We invite you to visit this link to study the complete compilation and experience Śrīla Prabhupāda's teachings in their direct, verbatim form.