Sunday, March 11, 2007

Goodness, Passion and Ignorance

We are conditioned by one of the Three Modes of Nature - Goodness, Passion or Ignorance, and thus we are said to be of a particular faith according to the mode that we acquired, every one has a particular type of faith, regardless of what he is, but his faith is considered good, passionate of ignorant according to the nature he has acquired.

Something really interesting to note here - The real fact is that every living being is originally transcendental to all the modes of material nature, but when he comes in contact with any of these material nature during his life span, he generates his own position by association with different varieties of material nature (goodness, passion or ignorant) and thus he remains trapped in this cycle and acts according to his nature which includes every thing under the sun, his eating habits, his sacrifices, austerities, charity, his worship practices, his actions, reactions, his thoughts, his motive, his ideology everything he does is according to the three modes of nature that he comes in contact with thus he conducts by some impression or some conception of life and thus takes the pleasure and pain accordingly from time to time.

Though his real position is transcendental to all these three modes which means he is "nirguna" or transcendental, had he remained transcendental from all the three modes, there is no suffering, no pain, no artificial or material happiness which is temperory, see its basically like two sides of a coin, the coin has two sides, for eg one side is pleasure and the other all pain, now when you flip the coin, one of the sides is on the upper side, it can never be that only one of the sides always comes up, the best way to avoid the pain side of the coin is not to have the coin itself, you got it? thus the only way to come out of the cycle of pain which is also associated with pleasure is to transcend the three modes of nature, it can really work thats my opinion.

Some thing more interesting to note that even the food that we consume is of three kinds, according to the three modes of our nature that we are in contact with :

  • Food in the mode of goodness increases the duration of life, it purifies ones existence and gives strength, health, happiness and satisfaction. Such foods are sweet, juicy, fattening and palatable.

  • Food that are too bitter, too salty, pungent,dry and hot are liked by people in the mode of passion, such foods cause pain, distress, and disease.

  • Food in the mode of ignorance are the ones cooked more than three hours before being eaten, which is tasteless, stale, putrid, decomposed and unclean, it is liked by people who are in the mode of ignorance.
If we really give a deep thought and try to analyze we may realize that above mentioned is so true in our daily life

64 qualities of Lord Krishna:
  • beautiful features of the entire body
  • marked with all auspicious characteristics
  • extremely pleasing
  • effulgent
  • strong
  • ever youthful
  • wonderful linguist
  • truthful
  • talks pleasingly
  • fluent
  • highly learned
  • highly intelligent
  • a genius
  • artistic
  • extremely clever
  • expert
  • grateful
  • firmly determined
  • an expert judge of time and circumstances
  • sees and speaks on the authority of the scriptures--the Veda
  • pure
  • self-controlled
  • steadfast
  • forbearing
  • forgiving
  • grave
  • self-satisfied
  • possessing equilibrium
  • magnanimous
  • religious
  • heroic
  • compassionate
  • respectful
  • gentle
  • liberal
  • shy
  • protector of surrendered souls
  • happy
  • well-wisher of devotees
  • controlled by love
  • all-auspicious
  • most powerful
  • all-famous
  • popular
  • partial to devotees
  • very attractive to all women
  • all-worshipable
  • all-opulent
  • all-honorable
  • the Supreme controller


These fifty qualities, however, may also be found in varying degrees in some of the jivas or common living entities in this universe. But they are found in Lord Krishna to an unlimited degree. But besides these 50 qualities, there are five more which may also be manifested at times in the forms of Lord Brahma and Shiva. These are:

  • changeless
  • all-cognizant
  • ever-fresh
  • sat-cid-ananda-vigraha--possessing a transcendental form of eternity, full of knowledge and absolute bliss
  • possessing all mystic perfection.


Beyond the above mentioned qualities, which may be seen in other forms of Divinity such as the demigods, Lord Krishna has the following exceptional qualities which are also manifested in the form of Narayana or Vishnu, His form as the Lord of Vaikuntha. These are:

  • inconceivable potency
  • uncountable universes are generated from His body
  • the original source of all incarnations
  • the giver of salvation to the enemies He kills
  • the attractor of liberated souls


Besides the above-mentioned traits, Lord Krishna has four more qualities that are found only in Him, and not even in His forms of Vishnu, not to mention any of the demigods. These are:

  • the performer of wonderful pastimes (especially his childhood pastimes)
  • surrounded by devotees endowed with unsurpassed love of Godhead
  • the attractor of all living entities in all universes through the expert playing of His flute
  • possessor of unexcelled beauty without rival

All of these qualities are those of someone who has a highly developed form and personality.
Even the Bible verifies that God has a most beautiful form and is not formless, as is shown in the next few verses that are very similar to the Vedic description of God’s form: “My beloved is white and ruddy, the chiefest among ten thousand. His head is as the most fine gold, his locks are bushy, and black as a raven. His eyes are as the eyes of doves by the rivers of waters, washed with milk, and fitly set. His cheeks are as a bed of spices, as sweet flowers; his lips like lilies, dropping sweet smelling myrrh. His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl; his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires. His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold; his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars. His mouth is most sweet; yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend.” (Song of Solomon 5.10-16)
Obviously, there is no more elevated truth or higher bliss than the personal form of the Supreme. As Sri Krishna says: “O conqueror of wealth [Arjuna], there is no truth superior to Me.” (Bg.7.7) Many great transcendental scholars have accepted this fact, including Ramanujacharya, Madhvacharya, Vallabhacharya, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Baladeva, as well as Lord Brahma, who, after performing many austerities for spiritual purification, became perfectly self-realized and, getting a glimpse of the Lord’s spiritual nature, composed the Brahma-samhita many thousands of years ago and described what were his confidential realizations. One such verse is the following: “Krishna, who is known as Govinda, is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He has an eternal blissful spiritual body. He is the origin and He is the prime cause of all causes.” (Brahma-samhita 5.1)





Qualities of Rukmini-devi



  • ruciraananaam - whose face is charming

  • hriyaa, vriiDaa - shy

  • satii - exalted, of saintly character

  • buddhi - possessing intelligence

  • lakSana - possessing auspicious bodily markings

  • audaarya - magnanimous

  • Siila - of proper behavior

  • sadRSiiM bhaaryaaM - an ideal wife

  • deviim - the divine goddess

  • asitaapaaNgii - dark-eyed

  • mohiniim - enchanting

  • mahatii - aristocratic

  • dhiiraa - sober-minded

  • kulavatii - of good family

  • lakSaNaabhijn~aa - an expert knower of bodily symptoms

  • aaraadhito - having rendered devotional service

  • mat-paraam, aatmaarpitaS - dedicated exclusively to Krishna

  • anavadyaaNgiim, Sobhaam - of flawless beauty

  • Sucismitaa - sweetly smiling

  • varaaroha - of lovely hips

  • bimba-phala-adhara - glowing bimba red lips

  • Syaamaa - firm breasts

  • calantiim kalahaMsa - walking with the motions of a royal swan

  • su madhyamam - shapely waist

  • govinda-hRtamaanasaa - whose mind is stolen by Krishna

  • gunASrayaam - a repository of all other good qualities