Krishna is the speaker of the Bhagavad-gita, recognized
throughout the world as one of mankind’s greatest books of wisdom. In the Gita, as
it is also known, Krishna says repeatedly that He is God Himself, the source of
everything.
Arjuna, to whom Krishna is speaking, accepts Krishna’s
words as true, adding that the greatest spiritual authorities of that time also
confirm that Krishna is God. Traditions that follow in the line of these
authorities have carried Krishna’s teachings down to the present day.
Love for Krishna resides eternally in the heart of every
soul. It is reawakened by hearing and chanting about Krishna. When that love is
awakened and attains its purest stage, the soul returns to Krishna and lives
with Him eternally, never to return to this world again.
Spiritual life is based on the exchange of love, or Bhakti.
Pure Bhakti attracts God. Krishna likes it best when the Bhakti is so pure it
isn’t touched by feelings of awe and reverence toward Him.
That type of love allows for the greatest intimacy. Krishna
is most attracted by intimate love: a love that loves Krishna just because He
is so wonderful, not because He is God and deserves or commands our love.
Each soul has a unique relationship with Krishna in one of
five moods:
- with feelings of
awe and reverence
- as a servant or
one who gives protection
- as a friend
- as a parent or
elder
- as a lover
The personhood of Krishna is not an idea invented by human
beings naively creating a God in their own image. Nor is personhood a limiting
concept when applied to God, or the Absolute Truth. As the source of
everything, Krishna naturally has His own personal identity, just as each of us
does. The Vedas define God as the one supreme conscious being among all other
conscious beings. He is infinite, we are finite, and He maintains us all.
Naturally, the best way to understand God is to learn from
Him. In the Bhagavad-gita (“The Song of God”), Lord Krishna—a
real, transcendental person—tells us that He is God and reveals many things
about Himself.
“Unintelligent men, who do not know Me perfectly, think
that I, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna, was impersonal before and
have now assumed this personality. Due to their small fund of knowledge, they
do not know My higher nature, which is imperishable and supreme.”—Sri Krishna, Bhagavad-gita 7.24
Many people have a hard time conceiving that God can be an
actual person. But the Vedas tell us that God’s unique personal identity is His
highest aspect. Here’s an analogy to show how God has three main features.
Looking at a mountain from a distance, we can make out only
its size and shape. This is compared to comprehending God only as Brahman, His
impersonal energy, which emanates from Him just as light shines out from its
source.
As we move closer, we’ll start to make out more of the
mountain’s characteristics—the colors of its foliage, for example. This is
compared to understanding that God is within our hearts as Paramatma, or the
Supersoul.
Finally, when we arrive at the mountain we can explore its
soil, vegetation, animals, rivers, and so on. This is compared to understanding
God the person, or Bhagavan.
Bhagavan is the source of Brahman and Paramatma and is
therefore, in a sense, one with them. In the Srimad-Bhagavatam,
Brahman, Paramatma and Bhagavan are called the three phases of the Absolute
Truth.
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