CC Madhya 20.174

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta - Madhya-līlā - Chapter 20: Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu Instructs Sanātana Gosvāmī in the Science of the Absolute Truth

Madhya-līlā 20.173 - Madhya-līlā 20.175

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His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

TEXT 174

vaibhava-prakāśa kṛṣṇera—śrī-balarāma

varṇa-mātra-bheda, saba—kṛṣṇera samāna

SYNONYMS

vaibhava-prakāśa — manifestation of the vaibhava feature; kṛṣṇera — of Lord Kṛṣṇa; śrī-balarāma — Śrī Balarāma; varṇa-mātra — color only; bheda — difference; saba — everything; kṛṣṇera samāna — equal to Kṛṣṇa.

TRANSLATION

“The first manifestation of the vaibhava feature of Kṛṣṇa is Śrī Balarāmajī. Śrī Balarāma and Kṛṣṇa have different bodily colors, but otherwise Śrī Balarāma is equal to Kṛṣṇa in all respects.

PURPORT

To understand the difference between svayaṁ-rūpa, tad-ekātma-rūpa, āveśa, prābhava and vaibhava, Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura has given the following description. In the beginning, Kṛṣṇa has three bodily features: (1) svayaṁ-rūpa, as a cowherd boy in Vṛndāvana; (2) tad-ekātma-rūpa, which is divided into svāṁśaka and vilāsa; and (3) āveśa-rūpa. The svāṁśaka, or expansions of the personal potency, are (1) Kāraṇodakaśāyī, Garbhodakaśāyī, Kṣīrodakaśāyī and (2) incarnations such as the fish, tortoise, boar and Nṛsiṁha. The vilāsa-rūpa has a prābhava division, including Vāsudeva, Saṅkarṣaṇa, Pradyumna and Aniruddha. There is also a vaibhava division, in which there are twenty-four forms, including the second Vāsudeva, Saṅkarṣaṇa, Pradyumna and Aniruddha. For each of these, there are three forms; therefore there are twelve forms altogether. These twelve forms constitute the predominant names for the twelve months of the year as well as the twelve tilaka marks on the body. Each of the four Personalities of Godhead expands into two other forms; thus there are eight forms, such as Puruṣottama, Acyuta, etc. The four forms (Vāsudeva, etc.), the twelve (Keśava, etc.), and the eight (Puruṣottama, etc.) all together constitute twenty-four forms. The forms are differently named in accordance with the placement of the weapons They hold in Their four hands.

Madhya-līlā 20.173 - Madhya-līlā 20.175