Pradhana - an essential subject

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The world we live in has a material nature; it is temporary and was created, is maintained, and will be annihilated by a superior power - God. This material energy has various compositions as stated in the shaastras (Hindu scriptures). Māyā, the external energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is divided into two parts. Māyā is both the cause of this cosmic manifestation, and is the agent who supplies its ingredients. As the cause of the cosmic manifestation she is known as māyā, and as the agent supplying the ingredients of the cosmic manifestation she is known as pradhāna. Therefore the material energy is not the original cause of the material manifestation. Rather, the transcendental glance of Shri Mahā-Viṣṇu (an expansion of Lord Krishna) produces the cosmic manifestation.

Srila Prabhupada's books, lectures, conversations and letters offer a comprehensive presentation of this essential subject as seen in the Vaniquotes Pradhana category. An introduction from his books is given below in the following 8 quotes.

Quotes from Srila Prabhupada's books


vanipedia.org 		This universe, or the universal sky which we can visualize with its innumerable planets, is shaped just like an egg. As an egg is covered by a shell, the universe is also covered by various layers. The first layer is water, the next is fire, then air, then sky, and the ultimate holding crust is pradhāna. Within this egglike universe is the universal form of the Lord as the virāṭ-puruṣa. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.26.52)



vanipedia.org 		The mahat-tattva, or the sum total of the material creation, is to be understood to be the ultimate end of all universes, including all the living entities therein. Brahman is the resort of the mahat-tattva, which includes all material and spiritual entities. It is described in this connection that the Supreme Brahman, the Personality of Godhead, is the master of both pradhāna and puruṣa. Pradhāna means subtle matter, such as ether. puruṣa means the spiritual spark living entities who are entangled in that subtle material existence. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 4.8.78)



vanipedia.org 		This impregnation of material nature is described in Bhagavad-gītā, Fourteenth Chapter, verse 3. Material nature's primal factor is the mahat-tattva, or breeding source of all varieties. This part of material nature, which is called pradhāna as well as Brahman, is impregnated by the Supreme Personality of Godhead and delivers varieties of living entities. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.26.19)



vanipedia.org 		Māyā has two functions. One is called māyā, and the other is called pradhāna. Māyā refers to the efficient cause, and pradhāna refers to the ingredients that create the cosmic manifestation. (Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 20.271)



vanipedia.org 		Māyā, the external energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is divided into two parts. Māyā is both the cause of the cosmic manifestation and the agent who supplies its ingredients. As the cause of the cosmic manifestation she is known as māyā, and as the agent supplying the ingredients of the cosmic manifestation she is known as pradhāna. (Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 5.58)



vanipedia.org 		According to Bhagavad-gītā, the sum total of the twenty-four elements described herein is called the yonir mahad brahma. The sum total of the living entities is impregnated into this yonir mahad brahma, and they are born in different forms, beginning from Brahmā down to the insignificant ant. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and other Vedic literatures, the sum total of the twenty-four elements, pradhāna, is also described as yonir mahad brahma; it is the source of the birth and subsistence of all living entities. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.26.11)



vanipedia.org 		The Lord points out material nature in its subtle stage, which is called pradhāna, and He analyzes this pradhāna. The explanation of pradhāna and prakṛti is that pradhāna is the subtle, undifferentiated sum total of all material elements. Although they are undifferentiated, one can understand that the total material elements are contained therein. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.26.10)



vanipedia.org 		The external energy, composed of pradhāna or prakṛti as the ingredient-supplying portion and māyā as the causal portion, is known as māyā-śakti. Inert material nature is not the actual cause of the material manifestation, for Kāraṇārṇavaśāyī, Mahā-Viṣṇu, the plenary expansion of Kṛṣṇa, activates all the ingredients. It is in this way that material nature has the power to supply the ingredients. (Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 5.61)


Pradhana - explore more within this category.

Vanipedia has now over 903 introductory articles compiled from Srila Prabhupada's books under the series titled Essential Subjects. All these articles can be seen in the Table of Content on the right side of this article and also here in this Umbrella Category. Browse through them to relish the breadth and depth of Srila Prabhupada's teachings - There is a subject for everyone.


   
 

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