The cause of the creation is called the mahat-tattva, or total material energy, and its effect is the creation itself. But neither cause nor effect existed in the beginning; they emanated from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, as did the energy of time. The source of birth of the cosmic manifestation, or mahat-tattva, is the Personality of Godhead. This is confirmed throughout Srimad-Bhagavatam and the Bhagavad-gita. In the Bhagavad-gita (10.8) the Lord says, "I am the fountainhead of all emanations." The material cosmos, being temporary, is sometimes manifest and sometimes unmanifest, but its energy emanates from the Supreme Absolute Lord. Before the creation there was neither cause nor effect, but the Supreme Personality of Godhead existed with His full opulence and energy.
"The two kinds of senses are the ten external senses and the one internal sense, the mind. Thus there are eleven senses. According to Kapila, material nature is eternal and all-powerful. Originally there is no spirit, and matter has no cause. Matter itself is the chief cause of everything. It is the all-pervading cause of all causes. The Sankhya philosophy regards the total energy (mahat-tattva), the false ego and the five objects of sense perception as the seven diverse manifestations of material nature, which has two features, known as the material cause and efficient cause. The puruṣha, the enjoyer, is without transformation, whereas material nature is always subject to transformation. But although material nature is inert, it is the cause of enjoyment and salvation for many living creatures. Its activities are beyond the conception of sense perception, but still one may guess at them by superior intelligence. Material nature is one, but because of the interaction of the three qualities, it can produce the total energy and the wonderful cosmic manifestation. Such transformations divide material nature into two features, namely the efficient and material causes. The puruṣha, the enjoyer, is inactive and without material qualities, although at the same time He is the master, existing separately in each and every body as the emblem of knowledge."
Everything is resting under the lotus feet of Krishna
Under the lotus feet of Shri Krishna, the entire
mahat-tattva is existing. Since everything is under Shri Krishna's protection, Shri
Krishna is called asraya-tattva. Everything else is called asrita-tattva. The
material creation is also called asrita-tattva. Liberation from material
bondage and the attainment of the spiritual platform are also asrita-tattva. Krishna
is the only asraya-tattva. In the beginning of the creation there are Maha-Viṣhṇu,
Garbhodakasayi Viṣhṇu and Kṣirodakasayi Viṣhṇu. They are also asraya-tattva. Krishna
is the cause of all causes (sarva-karaṇa-karaṇam). To understand Krishna
perfectly, one has to make an analytical study of asraya-tattva and asrita-tattva.
Material nature acts in two capacities as maya and pradhana. Maya is the direct cause, and pradhana refers to the elements of the material manifestation. When the first puruṣha-avatara, Maha-Viṣhṇu, glances over the material nature, material nature becomes agitated, and the puruṣha-avatara thus impregnates matter with living entities. Simply by the glance of the Maha Vishnu, consciousness is created, and this consciousness is known as mahat-tattva, the predominating Deity of the mahat-tattva is Vasudeva. This created consciousness is then divided into three departmental activities according to the three guṇas, or modes of material nature.
After many millions of years, when Lord Brahma comes to the end of his life, the annihilation of the cosmic manifestation takes place. At that time the five elements—namely earth, water, fire, air and ether—enter into the mahat-tattva. The mahat-tattva then enters, by the force of time, into the non-manifested total material energy, the total material energy enters into the energetic pradhana, and the pradhana enters into You. Therefore, after the annihilation of the whole cosmic manifestation, you alone remain with Your transcendental name, form, qualities and paraphernalia.
Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and false ego—all together these eight constitute My separated material energies.
The science of God analyzes the constitutional position of
God and His diverse energies. Material nature is called prakṛuti, or the energy
of the Lord in His different puruṣha incarnations (expansions).
"For material creation, Lord Krishna's plenary
expansion assumes three Viṣhṇus. The first one, Maha Vishnu, creates the total
material energy, known as the mahat-tattva. The second, Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣhṇu,
enters into all the universes to create diversities in each of them. The third,
Kṣirodakasayi Viṣhṇu, is diffused as the all-pervading Super soul in all the
universes and is known as Paramatma. He is present even within the atoms.
Anyone who knows these three Viṣhṇus can be liberated from material
entanglement."
This material world is the manifestation of the inferior energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This has already been explained several times. At the creation, the material energy is let loose as the mahat-tattva, into which the Lord as His first Purusha incarnation, Maha Vishnu, enters. He lies within the Causal Ocean and breathes out innumerable universes, and into each universe the Lord again enters as Garbhodakasayi Vishnu. Each universe is in that way created. He still further manifests Himself as Kṣirodakasayi Viṣhṇu, and that Vihṣṇu enters into everything—even into the minute atom. This fact is explained here. He enters into everything.
The Supersoul, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the source of light in all luminous objects like the sun, moon and stars. In the Vedic literature we find that in the spiritual kingdom there is no need of sun or moon, because the effulgence of the Supreme Lord is there. In the material world that brahmajyoti, the Lord's spiritual effulgence, is covered by the mahat-tattva, the material elements; therefore, in this material world we require the assistance of sun, moon, electricity, etc., for light. But in the spiritual world there is no need of such things. It is clearly stated in the Vedic literature that because of His luminous effulgence, everything is illuminated. It is clear, therefore, that His situation is not in the material world. He is situated in the spiritual world, which is far, far away in the spiritual sky. That is also confirmed in the Vedic literature. He is just like the sun, eternally luminous, but He is far, far beyond the darkness of this material world.
The living beings are predominated enjoyers. But the eternally conditioned souls, forgetful of this constitutional position, have strong aspirations to enjoy. The chance to enjoy matter is given to the conditioned souls in the material world, and side by side they are given the chance to understand their real constitutional position. Those fortunate living entities who catch the truth and surrender unto the lotus feet of Vasudeva after many, many births in the material world join the eternally liberated souls and thus are allowed to enter into the kingdom of Godhead. After this, such fortunate living entities need not come again within the occasional material creation. But those who cannot catch the constitutional truth are again merged into the mahat-tattva at the time of the annihilation of the material creation. When the creation is again set up, this mahat-tattva is again let loose
Will continue discussing on the power of creation
Namasivayam.C
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