God Is The Cause of all Causes - The Primeval Source of Existence
When human beings observe the complex workings of the universe, the natural scientific inclination is to search for the cause behind the effects. However, empirical science often stops at immediate, material causes—such as chemical interactions or physical forces. The Vedic literatures elevate this search to the ultimate level, declaring that behind every immediate cause lies a remote cause, culminating in the Absolute Truth. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is definitively established as the primeval origin, the cause of all causes (sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam). Śrīla Prabhupāda meticulously unpacks this supreme philosophical conclusion, explaining how the Lord is the uncaused source of both the material and spiritual worlds, how He stands above the impersonal Brahman, and how realizing this truth elevates an ordinary soul to the rare platform of a mahātmā.
The Primeval Cause (Sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam)
The absolute foundation of Vedic knowledge is the recognition of Lord Kṛṣṇa as the primeval origin. Śrīla Prabhupāda heavily references the Brahma-saṁhitā to establish that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the source from whom all energies, personalities, and manifestations eternally emanate.
- The conclusion given in Brahma-samhita (5.1) is this: "Krsna, known as Govinda, is the supreme controller. He has an eternal, blissful, spiritual body. He is the origin of all. He has no other origin, for He is the prime cause of all causes."
- From the Brahma-samhita (5.1) we understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the cause of all causes, sarva-karana-karanam.
- All Vedic literature confirms that Narayana, or Krsna, is the cause of all causes. In the Brahma-samhita (5.1) also it is said that the Supreme Lord is Sri Krsna, Govinda, the delighter of every living being and the primeval cause of all causes.
- He (Brahma) has described expansions of the Supreme Lord, Govinda, in his Brahma-samhita (5.38): I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, who is nondual and infallible. He is the original cause of all causes, even though He expands in many, many forms.
Beyond the Impersonal Brahman
Many philosophers mistake the all-pervading, impersonal Brahman effulgence to be the ultimate truth. However, Śrīla Prabhupāda clarifies that Brahman is merely the immediate cause or the glowing bodily luster of the Lord; the remote, ultimate cause is always the Supreme Person Himself.
- According to this verse, the impersonal Brahman, which is the glowing effulgence of the body of the Supreme Lord, may be called the immediate cause, but the cause of all causes, or the remote cause, is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
- In the Bhagavad-gita the Lord Himself declares that He is the source of impersonal Brahman, and therefore He, the Personality of Godhead, is the ultimate cause of all causes.
- Brahman, the impersonal Absolute Truth, is all-pervading, and Paramatma is locally situated in everyone's heart, but Bhagavan, who is worshipable by the devotees, is the original cause of all causes.
- Although the Supreme Person is the original cause of all causes, His impersonal effulgence, known as Brahman, is the immediate cause of the material manifestation.
The Uncaused Creator
If God created everything, who created God? This common question is answered by the very definition of the Absolute Truth. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that the Supreme Lord is completely self-evident (svarāṭ); He is the origin of all effects, yet He Himself is uncaused and independent.
- My Lord, You are the cause of all causes, but You Yourself have no cause. Therefore You are the wonderful cause of everything.
- Supreme Lord is the cause of all causes, but He is not caused by anyone. That is His supremacy. He is described in the Vedic, svarat, "self-evident." That is God.
- The Lord is the cause of all causes. In other words, since there is nothing that caused Him, He is the original cause. Consequently He enjoys His own Self by manifesting His own internal potency.
- I meditate upon Lord Sri Krsna because He is the Absolute Truth and the primeval cause of all causes of the creation, sustenance and destruction of the manifested universes.
The Source of the Cosmic Manifestation
Atheistic scientists attribute the creation of the universe to mindless material nature. Śrīla Prabhupāda completely refutes this, emphasizing that the cosmic manifestation is simply the display of the Lord's multi-energies, and that the Lord and His expansions are the true efficient and material causes.
- Krsna is the cause of all causes, and the effects are permeated by the original cause. The entire cosmic manifestation should be understood as the expanded energy of the Supreme Lord.
- Balarama and Krsna are the original efficient and material causes of the material world. As Maha-Visnu and the material energy, They enter into the material elements and create the diversities by multi-energies. Thus They are the cause of all causes.
- The conclusion is that nature is not the cause of the material manifestation. The Supreme Lord is the cause of all causes.
- Akhilam jagat means the whole cosmic manifestation is a display of the multi-energies of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So because He is fully energetic, therefore He is attractive and cause of all causes.
Defeating Speculators and Atheists
Philosophers who rely solely on their own brainpower can never deduce the ultimate origin of the universe. Śrīla Prabhupāda points out that atheistic thinkers and mental speculators remain perpetually bewildered because the cause of all causes can only be understood through submissive devotional service, not by the ascending process of speculation.
- According to Srila Jiva Gosvami, such speculators are themselves bewildered, and thus they cannot know that the ultimate cause of all causes is the Supreme Lord, the Personality of Godhead.
- They (atheistic Sankhya philosophers) do not accept the Supreme Personality of Godhead as the cause of all causes.
- They (the demoniac speculators) are kept in constant darkness, birth after birth, and cannot understand the real cause of all causes. This is the reason why there are so many schools of philosophical speculation.
- The cause of all causes, the Absolute Truth, or Supreme Brahman, cannot be understood by philosophical speculation, but He reveals Himself to His devotee because the devotee fully surrenders unto His lotus feet.
The Rarity and Perfection of the Mahātmā
Understanding that the Supreme Lord is the origin of everything is the pinnacle of all knowledge. Śrīla Prabhupāda repeatedly highlights the statements of the Bhagavad-gītā, confirming that when a soul fully realizes this truth and surrenders, they attain the extremely rare and perfected status of a mahātmā.
- As stated by the Lord Himself in Bhagavad-gita (BG 7.19): After many births and deaths, he who is actually in knowledge surrenders unto Me, knowing Me to be the cause of all causes and all that is. Such a great soul is very rare.
- We hear, vasudevah sarvam iti sa mahatma sudurlabhah (Bhagavad-gita 7.19): if one knows that Vasudeva is the original cause of all causes, he becomes a perfect mahatma.
- Only when great minds surrender unto the lotus feet of Vasudeva and know fully that Vasudeva is the cause of all causes, as confirmed in Bhagavad-gita, can they become mahatmas, or truly broad-minded. However, such broad-minded mahatmas are rarely seen.
- When the cause of all causes becomes known, then everything knowable becomes known, and nothing remains unknown. The Vedas say, "yasmin vijnate sarvam eva vijnatam bhavanti."
Conclusion
A systematic study of the Vedic literatures thoroughly protects the sincere seeker from the fragmented conclusions of mundane science and speculative philosophy. As Śrīla Prabhupāda masterfully explains, the material universe is not an accident of dead matter, nor is it the product of an impersonal void. The ultimate truth is sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam—the cause of all causes. This primeval cause is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Kṛṣṇa (Govinda), who possesses an eternal, blissful, and spiritual body. He is completely svarāṭ, meaning He is self-evident and uncaused; everything emanates from Him, yet He emanates from no one. While impersonalists mistakenly believe the Brahman effulgence to be the final reality, the Vedas clarify that Brahman is merely the immediate cause—the glaring luster of the Lord's body. The remote, ultimate cause is always the Supreme Person. Atheists and Sāṅkhya philosophers, relying on their limited ascending process of logic, are utterly incapable of piercing the veil of material nature to see this supreme orchestrator. Consequently, they remain bewildered, generating endless schools of faulty speculation. The Absolute Truth cannot be conquered by brainpower; He can only be known when He voluntarily reveals Himself to a submissive devotee. Therefore, the highest perfection of human life is simply to accept the conclusion of the Bhagavad-gītā (7.19). When, after many births of spiritual evolution, a living entity finally realizes that Lord Vāsudeva is the cause of all causes and the essence of all that is (vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti), they surrender fully at His lotus feet. Such a surrendered soul is recognized as a mahātmā—a truly broad-minded, great soul who has achieved the rarest and most glorious perfection of existence.
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