As the Lord plays the part of a human being in his pastimes, doesn’t it imply that there’s a higher realer feature of the Lord beyond the part he plays in his pastimes?

From Karuna Sindhu P

Sense in the scriptures. But the conceptions are what are being referred.
When the Lord performs His pastimes, He plays the part of a human being and often acts almost like a human being when He has to endeavor to do things. Now, when we understand the Lord is playing a part, then often the question arises that what does He do originally? So, how do we understand that what He is doing as a part, when playing the part of a human being, is itself the highest pastimes and not that there is some other something else that is higher. So, the impersonal Brahman, impersonal Brahman is the higher conception.
So, how do we understand this? Answer, there is, if you consider a negative axis, zero and positive axis. So, in the material world, all of us play different parts. So, I am a soul who am originally a servant of Krishna, but I am playing the part of a male, a brahmachari.
Somebody else will play a different part. And this is how we live. Now, this, the part that we play does not have much to do with our original Swarupa.
But if we play the part according to dharma, do our brahmacharya duties properly, then that reinstates us in our Swarupa gradually and become purified, liberated. Other people may just play their parts according to whatever society has given them a role or may have assumed a role, and that will not help them to return to their original position. Then just keep them karmically entangled.
This is how our parts that we play are distinct from our original position as souls. So, they fall on the negative axis. Now, from the negative axis, we come to the zero point, where we give up all material designations.
But then there is a positive axis, where we assume a spiritual designation. In the spiritual world, I may be a Gopa or a Gopi or a cow or whatever. And in that role, I play my part, I do my part in serving Krishna.
So, now that part is eternal. So, in that sense, it’s not at all a drama, it’s the eternal reality. Generally, when we use the word drama, the idea is that there is some other reality beyond the drama.
But when we come to the spiritual world, the Swarupa that we have is eternal. And in that sense, that is the highest reality. It’s not that sometime in the spiritual world, we give up our Swarupa and we take up some other role.
So, just as there is negative axis and positive axis for our life. So, similarly, there is a positive axis in the spiritual realm with respect to Supreme Lord also. So, when the Supreme Lord is in the supreme position, now, of course, he doesn’t have a negative axis because he doesn’t come to the material world, where I get influenced by material nature and take on any material identity.
He always remains transcendental in that. Gautama naam Ishwaro visaya. He is always the Ishwara, Krishna in 4.6 in the Bhagavad Gita.
But at the same time, he, in the spiritual world, does not delight just in the majesty of his Godhood. But I am God and all of your servants, my servants and more on you. He delights in the intimacy of loving reciprocations.
And for that purpose, he conceals his Godhood. He conceals his Godhood and he takes on a particular role. So, he takes the role of a young cowherd boy and he performs pastimes with Vatsalya das or Madhurya das or Sakhya das.
Now, these are themselves the highest reality because Krishna has taken this up and he voluntarily takes this up and he eternally continues it because he gives an ecstasy eternal. So, in that sense, if you want to analyze, there is analysis from the point of tattva and from the point of rasa. So, from the point of tattva, the absolute truth is the supremely powerful and omnipotent, all pervading, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent being.
So, that is the understanding of tattva point of view. Lila is the means by which rasa is relished. The two are similar.
Then we understand that actually there is not much sweetness in the role of majesty. That sweetness comes more in the role of intimacy where Krishna conceals his Godhood. So, we know that Krishna is the absolute truth.
But from the rasa point of view, Krishna moves down to alarm. Krishna is defeated by his sakhas when they have wrestling matches. So, that is simply the triumph of rasa in which Krishna delights and his devotees delight.
But that does not mean from tattva point of view, Krishna becomes lower than anyone else. So, now when we want to understand the absolute truth, we can approach through analysis. And the Bhagavad Gita starts with that point, 1.1.1 concludes with dhimahi, additive, contemplative.
Dhimahi is the analytical contemplation of the absolute truth. And that leads to sort of passive admiration of the Lord’s greatness. He is so great.
What can I do for him? What does he need from me? He doesn’t need anything. I don’t need to do anything. I just meditate on him.
So, that is the mood of the, those who are primarily in Aishwarya. But there can be impersonalists who may say, oh, there is something higher than the Lord’s pastimes. But actually impersonalists do not understand the absolute truth is a person.
And personality is a higher attribute than impersonal, than just the impersonal existence because only in personality can there be the sweetness of love. So, they consider the, they don’t know about the positive axis. So, they think that the negative axis, we have to go to zero and the zero is the end.
But when we understand the positive axis, then we understand that actually love doesn’t have to be denied. Reciprocation and relationship don’t have to be denied. They have to purify.
So, now the impersonalists don’t know about the positive axis. The bhaktas who are more in the mood of hourly remembrance, they focus more on passive admiration of the Lord because they think, nothing the Lord needs from me. I can’t do anything for you.
So, that is the positive axis. They are not at the zero because they know the personal aspect of the Lord, but they are not very advanced in the positive axis because they don’t know about the rasas that the Lord reciprocates by performing various pastimes, where he takes subordinate role and acts as if he needs something from his demons. So, but when we move deeper into the rasas, 1.1.3 the Bhagavatam says, not Bhimahi, but don’t just do Bhimahi, enjoy bhava, enjoy rasa, become rasika.
Then this relationship of rasa and bhava is possible when there is the sweetness of love and we see, actually in one sense 1.1.1 to 1.1.3 describes the journey of Shukadeva Goswami from being a Atmarama to being a Bhaktyaram, one who divided in bhakti, not just in impersonal meditation. So, that way by understanding conception of a negative axis, zero and positive axis and understanding that when Krishna takes a role, takes a part as a cowherd boy, he has not become influenced by maya. So, that’s why it’s not that there is something higher beyond this.
Rather he has chosen to voluntarily accept something so that he can have a higher intimacy of love. So, there is Mahamaya and there is Yogamaya and Yogamaya actually intensifies the rasa and increases the sweetness of the pastimes. So, when we understand this concept of negative and positive axis, then we understand that the highest truth is Krishna who is performing pastimes and not that we have to go beyond the pastimes to something else.
Krishna also makes it clear, mataha parataram naanam, he has 7.7 reasons, there is no truth higher than me. So, Baldev Jayaputra in his Bhagavad Gita commentary explains that Krishna is pointing to himself, mataha, he is not saying there is some impersonal truth which is highest. I am the highest truth.
That lord who performs his pastimes is the highest absolute truth. Thank you. Hare Krishna.
Hare Krishna.