Anuccheda 63

No One Falls from Vaikuṇṭha

(3) No one falls down from that abode (tato’skhalanam).

atho vibhūtiṁ mama māyāvinas tām
aiśvaryam aṣṭāṅgam anupravṛttam
śriyaṁ bhāgavatīṁ vāspṛhayanti bhadrāṁ
parasya me te ‘śnuvate tu loke
(Srimad Bhagavatam, 3.25.37)

Sri Kapiladeva says:Thereafter, they do not hanker after any opulence stored for them by My maya, nor for the eight ensuing yogic paranormal powers, nor even for the transcendental glory of God, and yet these benign gifts become effortlessly available to them in My supreme abode.
(Note that the words mama mayayacitam are used here, while the more commonly available editions, such as the Gita Press edition, use the expression mama mayavinas tam.)

The word athaḥ (thereafter) means, “after the removal of ignorance.” The term “by My maya” (mama mayaya) means, “by My mercy upon the devotee.” Acita (stored) means, made manifest or available for the sake of those devotees. Vibhuti (opulence) refers to paraphernalia appropriate for enjoyment, and aisvarya, to the eight yogic paranormal powers (aṣṭaṅgaisvarya), such as aṇima (atomization). These powers systematically ensue (anupravṛtta), i.e., it is their very nature to be made available [as a consequence of pure devotion].

The devotees do not desire any of the above,´nor even “the transcendental glory of God” (bhagavatiṁ sriyam), which here refers to the majesty known as sarṣṭi, or in other words, those divine opulences that are particular to the Lord Himself. The reason why they don’t desire any such opulence is that they yearn only to expand God’s own bliss through abandonment to all-consuming devotional love and service. Even though they have no desire for any of the above-stated gifts, they certainly enjoy (asnuvate) them, meaning that they become fully available to them, in My supreme abode (loke) known as Vaikuṇṭha.

This shows the Lord’s special affection for His devotees, which is also exemplified in the benediction given to Sudama, the florist in Mathura: Sudama entreated the Lord that he may be blessed with unflinching devotion for Him, the Self of all existence, with heart-felt friendship toward His devotees, and with the broadest and highest compassion for all living beings. The Lord not only granted Sudama all these, but also awarded him ever-increasing prosperity for his family [as well as strength, longevity, fame and beauty].
(SB 10.41.51-52)

Kapiladeva’s verse also shows the devotees’ disinterest in these opulences. The phrases, “after the removal of ignorance” (athaḥ), and, “stored for them by My mercy” (mama mayayacitam), indicate that such opulences are in no way detrimental to them. Furthermore, by saying, “stored by My maya” (mayayacita), Kapiladeva indicates that all opulences, including those of the highest realms like Brahmaloka, are fully available to such devotees, as experiential possibilities, yet they make no use of them, considering them completely devoid of significance or substantiality and thus unsuitable for their use.

Sruti also states: “Just as the enjoyment earned by karma in this world perishes in due course, so does heavenly pleasure, attained by pious deeds” – tad yatheha karma-jito lokaḥ kṣiyate evam evamutra puṇya-jito lokaḥ kṣiyate

And thereafter, “Those who leave their bodies after continuous recognition of the Lord, and of the realities truly worthy of desire, can freely travel in all the worlds.”

Here a doubt is raised: If Vaikuṇṭha is just another planet (loka), undistinguished from other planets [like Siddhaloka, and so on], then sooner or later the experiencer’s enjoyment [of this realm] will come to an end. In response, the following verse is spoken: In that abode of unalterable peace are found only those who know themselves and feel themselves to belong to Me entirely. They will never meet with destruction;

My unblinking wheel never devours those for whom I am the total Beloved, their very Self, son, friend, preceptor, relative, benefactor and worshipable Lord.

na karhicin mat-paraḥ santa-rupe naṅkṣyanti no me’nimiṣo leḍhi hetiḥ
yeṣam ahaṁ priya atma sutas ca sakha guruḥ suhṛdo daivam iṣṭam
(SB 3.25.38)

The phrase santa-rupe (of unalterable peace) refers to the supreme abode, Vaikuṇṭha [mentioned in the previous verse], which is peaceful by nature, meaning that it is free from all change or alteration that could disrupt the continuity of peace. All those who reside there know themselves and feel themselves to belong to Me entirely (mat-paraḥ). They are never destroyed (no naṅkṣyanti), which means they are never bereft of the [aforementioned] experiential possibilities. “My unblinking wheel” (animiṣo me hetiḥ), i.e., My discus in the form of time, does not devour them (no leḍhi).
As stated in the Sruti, “He does not return”

Gita Upaniṣad also declares:

O Arjuna, all planets up to the highest planet, Brahmaloka, are places of return, but one who attains to My abode never takes birth again.

abrahma-bhuvanal lokaḥ punar avartino’rjuna
mam upetya tu kaunteya punar janma na vidyate
(Bhagavat-gita, 8.16)

In commenting on the name Parayaṇa in Sahasra-nama-bhaṣya 75, Saṅkaracarya writes, “That abode is supreme (para), or in other words, most excellent, from which there is no going (ayana), meaning, wherein there is no fear of return (punar-avṛtti-saṅkarahita), and so it is called Parayana.” If the term appears in the masculine gender, then it should be taken as a bahuvrihi compound, i.e., as an epithet of the Lord [rendering this sense, “the Lord, whose supreme abode is free from return”]. – param utkṛṣṭam ayanaṁ sthanaṁ punar-avṛtti-saṅka-rahitam

Freedom from the fear of fall or destruction is not the full extent of the devotees’ glories. Sri Kapila elucidates further in the second half of the verse: “those for whom I am the total Beloved, their very Self, son, friend, preceptor, relative, benefactor and worshipable Lord.”
This means that for such devotees there is no Entity other than Me [the Lord], for whom their love exists. Alternatively, the statement can be taken as a reference to Goloka [instead of Vaikuṇṭha], because only there do the gopas, endowed with the full range of such attitudes, eternally reside. Then again, the last two lines of the verse can be taken as a reply to the question, “What kind of people attain that abode after being freed from ignorance?”

The idea is this: Some people, like the sages described in the Uttara-khaṇḍa of Padma Puraṇa, desire Me as their beloved husband (priya), while others, like the four Kumaras, consider Me as “their very Self ” (atma), i.e., directly as Brahman; yet others relate to Me in the other ways mentioned; only such persons [who know themselves as belonging to Me entirely, through any of these dispositions] can attain Vaikuṇṭha. The word suhṛdaḥ, “bosom friend,” is in the plural, because such friends are of various kinds.

Sri Narada speaks in a similar vein in the Fourth Canto: Those established in unalterable peace, who are equanimous, pure and who please all other living beings, effortlessly go to that abode from which no one falls down (acyuta-padam), for they keep friendship with the dear devotees of the infallible Lord.

santaḥ sama-dṛsaḥ suddhaḥ sarva-bhutanurañjanaḥ
yanty añjasacyuta-padam acyuta-priya-bandhavaḥ
(SB 4.12.3)

Part of the commentary by Srila Satyanarayana das Babaji:

The Lord is eternal; as such, relationships established with Him are also eternal. It is clearly confirmed herein that relationships with Him cannot be destroyed, and thus it follows that opulences stemming from those relationships can also never be destroyed.
To clarify the topic further for those who cling still to doubt, let us assume that a devotee could somehow or other fall from Vaikuṇṭha. The obvious question that arises is, “How could such a thing occur?” One may say that transcendental events are causeless and thus there is no reason. But how can falling be considered transcendental? Transcendental action yields transcendental results, and falling into the material world cannot be considered transcendental. Hence, by the principle of phala-bala-kalpa-nyāya (understanding a cause by its results), it is concluded that such a fall can only be material. Thus, falling has a beginning and end, which characterizes it as a material occurrence; so again, it cannot be regarded as transcendental.
A question that naturally arises in this regard is, “How can a material event originate in the spiritual world?” It has been proven here in many places, specifically in Anucchedas 7 and 50, that Vaikuṇṭha is beyond the material world, free from the influence of time and from the guṇas of nature. In response, one may argue that the origin of this event is not material, but when the living being crosses the boundary, out of Vaikuṇṭha, the action becomes material. This is, of course, absurd.

Transcendental entities do not get converted from spiritual to material. Moreover, Vaikuṇṭha is unlimited—it has no bounds. It is anantam, as stated in the Bhāgavatam:
This abode is truth, consciousness, the unlimited, the indestructible spiritual effulgence that silent sages witness in their trance of spiritual absorption after the material qualities have been effaced. (SB 10.28.15)
Vaikuṇṭha is all-pervading, just like the Supreme Lord, who exists everywhere and never leaves His abode. This means that His abode exists everywhere. The material world cannot contain the extent of His being. Thus, the Śruti asks, “Where is the Lord situated?” and answers, “in His own glory,” meaning in His own abode (ChU 7.24.1).

Objection: But if Vaikuṇṭha is unlimited, how is it that we do not see it or exist in it? And why is it said that when a devotee is liberated, he leaves the material world and enters into the spiritual world?

Answer: We do not experience Vaikuṇṭha because our consciousness is absorbed in and identified with matter. Going to Vaikuṇṭha actually means becoming of the nature of Vaikuṇṭha (sat-cit-ānanda), or in other words, to exist exclusively in and for Kṛṣṇa, to be fully conscious of Him in every arising moment, to radiate His own potency of bliss in order to expand His personal bliss. A television has many channels, yet while tuned to a particular channel, we cannot see programs shown on other channels. Transmission waves of numerous channels are broadcast into the atmosphere and are received by the television; we then choose which one to view, and it appears on the screen. Similarly, there are basically two channels in existence, Vaikuṇṭha andmāyā, and a person views one or the other according to his or her particular state of consciousness.
Everything exists in the Lord and the Lord exists everywhere. The Lord is always situated in His own abode, and so His abode exists everywhere. since matter does not exist there.

If we accept that the jīva falls from Vaikuṇṭha, we must admit it is a material event from beginning to end. Although a material act cannot occur in Vaikuṇṭha, let us assume for the sake of argument that it could somehow happen. Falling can have either a material or a spiritual cause. Below are six conditions often thought to precede a falldown. Following the list, we will discuss each of the conditions in greater detail.

1. The jīva wishes to come to the material world, inspired by his free will;
2. He commits sin;
3. He is cursed by a devotee or the Lord;
4. He offends a devotee;
5. He offends the Lord; or
6. The Lord decides to make him fall, as He is free to do as He likes.

It is not possible for a devotee to fall from Vaikuṇṭha for any of these reasons. Here is why:

(1) The jīva wishes to come to the material world, inspired by his free will

The devotee’s very nature, svarūpa, is to be in undiminishing, unbreakable, all-consuming love for God, to long only for His bliss through naturally arising service in devotion. Such devotees do not desire material or spiritual opulence without devotional service, because, in fact, they desire nothing independent of the Lord. Their will, too, being of the same transcendental nature, exists simply for the pleasure of the Lord. This is the import of Lord Kapila’s statement, quoted above, “They do not hanker even for the transcendental glory of God” (śrīyaṁ bhāgavatiṁ vāspṛhayanti). Furthermore, spiritual opulences, and for that matter, even material opulences, are fully available to them as experiential possibilities at every moment, by the mercy of the Lord (mama māyayācitam, SB 3.25.37). So why yearn for that which eternally sits in the palm of one’s own hand?
Elsewhere, Lord Kapila states:
Without being assured of My service, a pure devotee does not accept any kind of liberation, whether it be residence on the same planet with Me (sālokya), opulence equal to Mine (sārṣṭi), proximity to Me (sāmīpya), endowment with a form identical to Mine (sārūpya) or becoming one with Me (ekatvam), even though I may offer these to him. (SB 3.29.13)
Vinā mat-sevanam here means, “without My service.” This means that a devotee would accept one or more of these different types of liberation only if they prove conducive for his service to the Lord, but not for independent enjoyment. A devotee certainly has no desire to come to the material world. Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī says that devotees have no interest in material enjoyment because they consider it completely devoid of significance or substantiality—tasyātitucchatvena. Why should a discerning person abandon a touchstone to acquire a piece of glass (kāca-maṇi)? On the contrary, a devotee never conceives, even for a moment, of leaving Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet. Everything else is simply of no interest. King Parīkṣit confirms this while speaking to his wisdom teacher:
A person whose heart has been washed clean never abandons Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet. Like a traveler who has arrived home, he is relieved of all distress. (SB 2.8.6)
In Section 7 of Prīti-sandarbha, Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī writes that one should not think that Jaya and Vijaya chose to become enemies of the Lord in order to quickly relieve themselves from the curse of the Kumāras—na ca tayor eva svāparādha-bhoga-śīghra-nistārārtham api tādṛśīcchā jāteti vācyam. Pure devotees of the Lord do not accept even sālokya-mukti if it is bereft of bhakti, and are prepared even to go to hell for the sake of bhakti. Indeed, Jaya and Vijaya’s only request was, “But we pray that Your compassion be invoked on seeing our penitence, so that as we descend ever downward, we will not be overtaken by the bewilderment that causes forgetfulness of the Lord” (SB 3.15.36).
Thus, for a Vaikuṇṭha resident to give up the Lord’s service and voluntarily come to the material world is highly illogical and against scriptural conclusions.
The Lord has endowed the devotees with freedom of will for the purpose of serving Him, not for leaving Him. Lord Kṛṣṇa says that everyone follows his own nature, and that it is very difficult to give it up (Gītā 3.33). This is also commonly experienced by everyone. So, if abandoning one’s acquired, and hence spurious, material nature is so difficult, how much more difficult would it be for a resident of Vaikuṇṭha to give up his eternal, and hence true, nature—the nature to love and serve the all-conscious, all-blissful, all-encompassing Being to whom we eternally belong! Just as fire cannot exist without heat, a pure devotee in Vaikuṇṭha cannot exist without service.

(2) He commits sin

There is no possibility of committing sin in the spiritual world. Sin and piety exist only in the material world, both being products of the guṇas of nature. A devotee in the spiritual world is situated in his eternal inherent nature (svarūpa), free from material covering or ignorance—muktir hitvānyathā-rūpam svarūpeṇa vyavasthitiḥ (SB 2.10.6). Mukti means to give up the subtle and gross bodies and become situated in one’s original nature. In Bhagavad Gītā, Lord Kṛṣṇa explains that all sins are burned in the fire of transcendental knowledge:

Even if you are the most sinful of all sinners, you will be able to cross over the ocean of miseries in the boat of knowledge. As a blazing fire reduces fuel to ashes, O Arjuna, so does the fire of knowledge reduce all karma to ashes. (Gītā 4.36-37)
Some rare souls who are completely devoted to Lord Vāsudeva totally destroy all their sins by their exclusive devotion, just as the sun immediately dissipates fog with its rays. (SB 6.1.15)

This point was also described in Section 47 of Tattva-sandarbha, in regard to the explanation of Vyāsa’s trance:

By hearing this Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, one is blessed with devotion to Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Person. This devotion puts an end to all mourning, bewilderment and fear. (SB 1.7.7)

Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī’s commentary on this verse explains that even the most subtle impressions of sin are destroyed. Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself instructed Śrī Uddhava in this same principle:

Uddhava, just as a blazing fire turns firewood into ashes, devotion to Me completely burns My devotees’ sins to ashes. (SB 11.14.19)

The word kṛtsnaśaḥ (completely) is important. It means that ignorance, which is the root cause of sin, is also completely destroyed along with the external effects of sin.

(3) He is cursed by a devotee or the Lord

There is no possibility that a devotee would curse another devotee in Vaikuṇṭha. A devotee never desires to harm anyone, what to speak of another devotee. Prahlāda Mahārāja says that a devotee is endowed with all auspicious qualities:

All the gods come and invest their qualities in one who is devoted to the Supreme Lord without independent interest or desire. On the other hand, where are the great virtues of a person not devoted to Lord Hari, whose desires lead him to wander about in the superficial and impermanent realm? (SB 5.18.12)

A devotee has no desire to harm even those who consider him their enemy. Prahlāda Mahārāja is the ideal example. He remained concerned about his father’s welfare even though the latter tortured and tried to kill him in various ways. Devotees are peaceful, tolerant, merciful and always disposed toward everyone’s welfare. Lord Kapila confirms this:

Those established in Truth are tolerant, merciful and friendly to all beings; their enemy is never even born, and so they are situated in unalterable peace. Such persons are jewels amongst the virtuous. (SB 3.25.21)

There are some stories in the Purāṇas wherein devotees curse each other, but this is just to set the scene for the unfolding of the līlā, and no truly inimical feelings are present. Even when devotees come to the material world as a result of a curse, they are not placed under the influence of the guṇas of material nature. They remain for the prescribed duration and assist in the Lord’s bhauma-līlā, or manifest pastimes on earth. Jaya and Vijaya’s descent to the earth was not the result of the curse of the Kumāras; it was impelled by the will of the Lord:

The Lord said to His attendants, Jaya and Vijaya, “Go, but fear not. May peace be with you. Though I am capable of stopping the brāhmaṇas’ curse, I do not wish to do so. In fact, I approve of it.” (SB 3.16.29)

Just as those who visit a prison do not become prisoners, so those devotees who are so-called “cursed” to come to this material world to assist the Lord in His līlā are not bound by the guṇas of nature. The associates of the Lord are almost as powerful as the Lord Himself, as stated in the Bhāgavatam:

They saw Him with eyes resembling a pair of full-blown autumn lotuses, and surrounded by His sixteen associates, who appeared exactly like Him, only without the mark of Śrīvatsa and the Kaustubha jewel. (SB 6.9.29)

The word ātma-tulyaiḥ in this verse means that the Lord’s associates are just like His very own Self. This means that they too are merciful, just like Him, and thus they never desire to harm anyone.

(4 and 5) He offends a devotee; He offends the Lord

A perfected devotee never commits an offense. Offenses are committed due to ignorance, resulting from forgetfulness of the Lord. Offense (aparādha) means an act that causes displeasure. A siddha devotee never forgets the Lord, and he never desires to displease the Lord; he thus never commits offenses, knowingly or unknowingly. He is guided by the internal potency of the Lord, just as a conditioned soul is always under the influence of the external energy. The internal energy is always favorable to the Lord.

In Mādhurya-kādambinī, Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura has made a minute analysis of offenses while describing a devotee’s progress from śraddhā to prema. In the third chapter, he explains that when a devotee has attained prema, he is completely free from all types of offenses, and that when he attains the lotus feet of the Lord there is not even the slightest possibility of committing an offense.

For the enlightenment of those who think Mahārāja Citraketu offended Lord Śiva after having attained the darśana of Lord Śaṅkarṣaṇa, Viśvanātha writes that the king did not really offend Lord Śiva. He gives more details on this in his commentary on the 17th chapter of the Sixth Canto. The effect of an offense is that one’s affection for the Lord diminishes, but we see that even after King Citraketu took birth as Vṛtrāsura, he retained his love for the Lord.

According to Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī (BRS 1.3.54), an offense committed to the Lord’s dear devotee can cause one’s bhāva, or permanent devotional disposition of being, to be lost altogether, transmuted into a mere semblance (bhāvābhāsa), or downgraded to a lower bhāva, depending on the gravity of the offense. But none of these things can happen once a devotee has attained the platform of prema. The conclusion is that a perfected devotee who has attained the Lord is free from all offenses. Readers can also refer to Prīti-sandarbha, Section 7, for more details.

(6) The Lord decides to make him fall, as He is free to do as He likes

The last possibility is that the Lord Himself sends a devotee away. This is also impossible, except in cases where He deliberately sends one of His eternal companions to the material world for the purpose of assisting Him in His pastimes. The Lord positively told Durvāsā Muni:
O brāhmaṇa, I am completely under the control of My devotees, as if I had no independence at all. My heart has been fully captivated by My virtuous devotees, for I am their only beloved.
O brāhmaṇa, I have no desire to delight in My own Being, nor to enjoy My eternal opulences, separate from my virtuous devotees, to whom I am the supreme goal of life.
How could I possibly abandon those sādhus who, for My sake, have given up home, wife, children, family members, wealth, life and all hopes for happiness in this world and the next?
I am conquered by the virtuous whose hearts are tied to Me while showing equanimity to all beings, just as a virtuous wife wins over her pious husband’s love.
My devotees are completely satisfied by their service to Me. They have not even the slightest interest in the four kinds of liberation (sālokya, sārupya, sāmīpya and sārṣṭī) automatically available to them as a mere side-effect of their service. How could they yearn for anything that is destroyed by time?
I am the heart of the devotees and they are Mine. They know nothing other than Me, and I, nothing other than them. (SB 9.4.63-68)
These verses lucidly describe the Lord’s intense affection for His devotees. They were spoken with respect to Ambarīṣa Mahārāja, who was in the material world, so imagine how much more they must apply to devotees who are supremely perfect and have been eternally rendering service to the Supreme Lord in transcendental bodies, within the spiritual domain. Kṛṣṇa assured Arjuna in similar fashion:
O son of Kunti! Such a devotee very quickly becomes righteous and attains eternal peace. Therefore, declare it loudly: My devotee will never perish. (Gītā 9.31)
This verse is spoken in reference to devotees in the material world who accidentally engage in abominable action, sudurācāra. Even they do not fall into the material conception of life. Inauspiciousness does not exist for devotees of the Lord (MB 13.149.131).

It has thus been shown that none of the above conditions that could hypothetically lead to a devotee’s falldown exist even as possibilities in Vaikuṇṭha, for it is the place free from all such fear. One may still, however, suspect that there may be non-devotees in Vaikuṇṭha to whom such arguments do not apply. Such persons could fall down due to any of the six aforementioned possibilities, could they not?
We reply that there are no non-devotees in Vaikuṇṭha. As stated earlier, mukti means being free from foreign elements and being situated in one’s own svarūpa. The nature of the living being is spiritual—he is a part of Kṛṣṇa. This means he is a servant of the Being who is his Source. As stated in the Padma Purāṇa, “The living being is exclusively a servant of Lord Hari and nothing else” (PP 6.226.37).

Published here with the permission of Srila Satyanarayana das Babaji

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