Link to purport by A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada

Transcript of Bhakti-Shastri class on this verse by Chaitanya Charan

Now after describing this Krishna will talk about example how He His yogam aiśvaram is

Bg 9.6

yathākāśa-sthito nityaṁ
vāyuḥ sarvatra-go mahān
tathā sarvāṇi bhūtāni
mat-sthānīty upadhāraya

Word for word: 

yathā — just as; ākāśa–sthitaḥ — situated in the sky; nityam — always; vāyuḥ — the wind; sarvatra–gaḥ — blowing everywhere; mahān — great; tathā — similarly; sarvāṇi bhūtāni — all created beings; mat–sthāni — situated in Me; iti — thus; upadhāraya — try to understand.

Translation: 

Understand that as the mighty wind, blowing everywhere, rests always in the sky, all created beings rest in Me.

 

yathākāśa-sthito nityaṁ, Just as situated in the sky ākāśa-sthito, what is situated in the sky? vāyuḥ sarvatra-go mahān, the Vayu the wind sarvatra-go the wind flows everywhere mahan it is great it is powerful, the wind can blow in all directions but still the wind is situated in the sky similarly tathā sarvāṇi bhūtāni, similarly all living beings mat-sthānīty upadhāraya, are situated in Me. So what is this refers to? This refers to restriction not on movement but the perimeter (overall area) of movement, when we talk about the word sky what it is referring to over here? Sometimes word Akash, Kham, these are translated differently, from modern scientist perspective there is no such thing as sky, what we see in the sky is illusion because it is just extending space for ever and ever so Sanskrit terms they are not very easily translatable in English we discussed earlier that the word Avatar cannot be accurately translated as incarnation because it is not in flesh but Srila Prabhupada used familiar handles for unfamiliar concepts so as not to complicate things as we discussed earlier that terms are verbal and concepts are mental so terms are handles for concepts, if I have to carry something if there is a handle I can carry it easily so similarly terms helps us to communicate easily, terms are handles for concepts so generally if the concept is new and the term is also new then it will become more difficult for people to appreciate it so what Srila Prabhupada used to do when foreign concepts has to be conveyed for people that means the concepts are in Vedic thought and they are in Sanskrit terminology then while conveying it Srila Prabhupada will use familiar handles, familiar terms even if those terms are not accurate because those terms have different meaning in English than what was conveyed by Sanskrit meaning So Srila Prabhupada often used that, why? To make sure that people understand the point easily at least get the start of understanding the point. So Srila Prabhupada prefer familiar handles to unfamiliar concept so that understanding would move forward from basic point of view. 

Now the point we talk about Akash and from scientific point of view there is no such thing as sky but in general conversation point of view yes we see a sky, we look up and see the sky, now the air moves around in the sky, if we have a large bowl and we put is upside down so it will be something like a dome which covers things so inside the bowl the air is able to move around in all directions up-down, right-left but its area of movement its perimeter of movement is limited, so like that the souls in this world mat-sthāī. Krishna has used the word mat-sthānīty three times now, in 4th (9.4.c is Mat Sthani Serva Bhutani), 9.5th (9.5.a is Na Ca Mat Sthani Bhutani )& 9.6th (9.6.d is mat-sthānīty upadhāraya – it is actually situated in Me)verses. So Sri Krishna is using it three times here and what is He conveying by this? The apparent contradiction in 4.c and 5.a, Krishna is showing how the higher understanding reconciles it so Sri Krishna says that all living entities are situated in Me, what does it means? Krishna says that I given them freedom within limitation so for living entities there is unlimited freedom with limited framework. What is the meaning of this? For example a horse is tied to a pole so within the radius of pole (or till the rope extends) horse has freedom, it can move right, left, back forth so he is having unlimited freedom but beyond the radius the horse cannot go. So like that living entity has unlimited freedom within limited framework, just as the air can move in all directions but air is contained within the sky so the word Aakash is technically ether because ether is substratum where everything is present and whatever movement happens it happens with that substratum which ether provides but we can use sky in the conversational sense over here 

And similarly

tathā sarvāṇi bhūtāni
mat-sthānīty upadhāraya

All living beings are situated in Me, it means they are given freedom by Me and within the freedom that I give them freedom they can act so they have freedom within limited framework. For example we are seating and discussing this class if one wants he may walk away from here and sleep during this class also or walk away mentally during the class and go anywhere we can do whatever we want we have the freedom but there is a limitation by the human body we have we can go out but we cannot suddenly fly in the sky so there are limitations so we have unlimited freedom but within limited framework that way mat-sthānīty upadhāraya. So Sri Krishna is describing mystical relationship that there is mat-sthānī…na ca mat-sthānī…how that is reconciled by having such some restriction and some freedom and while Krishna doing this He does this based on His compassion, normally when parent maintain a child, parent may be attached to the child but Krishna doesn’t become attached, what Krishna is having is Yogam Ashwarya see my mystical potencies so if it is mystical potency then what is mystical about it? If it can be explained by an example like air and sky then it is no longer inconceivable but actually it is inconceivable because neither the sky nor the air are conscious, when there is consciousness there is attraction then affection and attachment develops, so Krishna doesn’t become attached to living beings although He maintain all living beings He is not attached to them that capacity to maintain without being attached that is the inconceivability of Krishna’s relation with the material world. Now Srila Prabhupada quotes here the point of how the Lord is on control mat-sthānīty, so he quotes several verses he quotes from Taittirīya Upaniṣad 2.8.1, yad-bhīṣā vātaḥ pavate: “It is out of the fear of the Supreme Lord that the wind is blowing.”

yad-bhīṣā, bhīṣā refers to fear vātaḥ pavate, wind blows out of the fear of the Lord. Then Srila Prabhupada quoted from the Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad (3.8.9) etasya vā akṣarasya praśāsane gārgi sūrya-candramasau vidhṛtau tiṣṭhata etasya vā akṣarasya praśāsane gārgi dyāv-āpṛthivyau vidhṛtau tiṣṭhataḥ. “By the supreme order, under the superintendence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the moon, the sun, and the other great planets are moving.” Srila Prabhupada refers Brahma Samhita for the same point.

End of transcription.