God Must - The Indisputable Qualifications of the Supreme
Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that the definition of the Supreme Lord is not a product of human imagination or mental concoction. The Vedic literatures clearly outline the absolute qualifications that God must possess. He must be the Complete Whole, He must be a person with a transcendental name and form, and He must have unlimited potencies. By understanding what God must be according to authorized scriptures, a sincere seeker is protected from the deceit of false incarnations and flawed mundane philosophies.
The Complete Whole
If someone is to be accepted as the supreme authority of the universe, they must possess all opulences in full. Śrīla Prabhupāda points out that God must be a person who contains everything within and beyond our material experience, otherwise the very definition of "Supreme" is compromised.
- The Complete Whole must contain everything both within and beyond our experience; otherwise He cannot be complete.
- The Absolute Truth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, educated Lord Brahma from the heart: tene brahma hrda ya adi-kavaye. Therefore the Absolute Truth cannot be dull matter; the Absolute Truth must be the Supreme Person Himself.
- God must have some name. In the Bible also it is said "Hallowed be thy name"? God's name is there. God's name is Christ or Kristo or Krsna. So we can chant combinedly. Where is the difficulty?
- If some rascal inquires, "Why you are keeping so many servants?" And "Because I am big man, I want." Simple philosophy. Similarly, if God is the supreme authority, then He must have so many assistants. Otherwise, how He will manage.
Authenticating the Incarnation
Because people are easily bewildered, many ordinary men attempt to pose as God. Śrīla Prabhupāda clarifies that any genuine incarnation must meet two strict criteria: He must be predicted in the Vedic scriptures, and He must display uncommonly wonderful power.
- Any incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead must be supported by the statements of the sastra and must actually perform wonderful activities.
- Just see the magic, real magic of God. Do not accept cheap God. God must show godly magic. Just like we are showing little magic, floating some airplane or sputnik or jet in the sky.
- Srila Baladeva Vidyabhusana has commented that the material cosmic manifestation is a partial kingdom of God where God must sometimes come to execute a specific function.
- The word saguna does not imply that when the Lord appears with perceivable qualities He must take on a material form and be subject to the laws of material nature.
Defeating Mundane Speculation
Mundane philosophers often try to force God to fit into their tiny intellectual frameworks. Śrīla Prabhupāda rigorously defeats the karma-mīmāṁsā philosophy, which claims God must act as our servant to reward our deeds, and the Māyāvādī philosophy, which claims God must lose His form when He expands.
- The karmis will say: "Let us act nicely," I mean to say: "virtuously. We are karmis. So God must give us the result." This is called karma-mimamsa.
- Predestiny is there but it is cancelled if you surrender to Him, otherwise God is not the controller. Theirs is like karma mimamsa philosophy, that God is our servant and He must reward me according to my activities.
- In this verse, karma has been stressed on the basis of karma-mimamsa philosophy, which says that one must act according to his karma and that a supreme controller must give the results of karma.
- Mayavadi philosophers materialistically think that if the Supreme Truth expands Himself in everything, He must lose His original form. Thus they think that there cannot be any form other than the expansive gigantic body of the Lord.
The Duty of the Believers
Knowledge of the Supreme comes with a profound responsibility. Śrīla Prabhupāda implores that those who genuinely understand the supreme authority of God must not remain passive, but must actively endeavor to spread this knowledge and favor the conditioned souls.
- In this age of a godless civilization, the sages of world-recognized religious sects who believe in God must come out of their secluded places and preach the science of God, the Supreme Will, to the people in general.
- Hindus, Muslims, Christians, and the members of the other sects that have convincing faith in the authority of God must not sit idly now and silently watch the rapid growth of a godless civilization.
- Expecting that Krsna must return to them, they simply engaged in chanting the glories of Sri Krsna - Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.
- When the Supreme Personality of Godhead accepted the abominable form of a fish, He must have done so to favor some devotee. Pariksit Maharaja was eager to know about the devotee for whom the Supreme Lord accepted this form.
Conclusion
Śrīla Prabhupāda conclusively establishes that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the absolute, independent truth, not subject to the speculative demands of ordinary humans. God must be the Complete Whole, retaining His personal form and opulences even while expanding throughout the universe. He is never obliged to reward fruitive workers like an order-supplier, nor must He accept a material body when He descends. Instead, any authentic appearance of the Lord must be confirmed by the authorized scriptures and accompanied by uncommonly wonderful activities. Armed with this perfect understanding, true believers and devotees must take up the vital mission of preaching. They must step out of their secluded places and actively combat the spread of godless civilization, confident in the supreme, indisputable qualifications of the Lord.
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 Must. We invite you to visit this link to study the complete compilation and experience Śrīla Prabhupāda's teachings in their direct, verbatim form.