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Around five thousand years ago this world was ruled by one emperor, the emperor of Hastinapura. Lord Krishna wants the emperor to be His devotee so that under his rule all the citizens will be provided with all the necessary facilities to make spiritual advancement and by the end of their lives they may go back to Godhead.  Unless the emperor or the king is a devotee of Krishna, the citizens will become misguided and loose the opportunity of spiritual advancement even after getting the most valuable human form. King Dhrtarashtra who was blind by birth was disqualified to occupy the throne and hence his younger brother Pandu became the emperor. Both the brothers got married and had children. Pandu begot five sons from his two wives most famously known as the Pandavas and Dhrtarashtra begot one hundred sons from his wife Gandahari. However, Pandu's eldest son Yudhishthira was eldest among all his brothers and cousins.  After the death of Pandu, the pandava brothers who were too young to occupy the throne along with their mother Kunti devi came under the care and protection of Dhrtarashtra. Till the Pandavas grew up and are well trained to occupy the throne, Dhrtarashtra was enthroned as the emperor even though he was blind. Taking this opportunity, King Dhrtarashtra wanted to somehow kill all the Pandavas and handover the kingdom his own sons headed by Duryodhana. 

Taking advantage of the favor and affection showed by his father Dhrtarashtra, Duryodhana tried many ways to get rid of his cousins by somehow devising plans to kill them, but the pandavas were always protected by the Supreme Lord Krishna who appeared as their cousin. 

In order to usurp the rightful kingdom of the Pandavas, King Dhrtarashtra and Duryodhana challenged the Pandavas to play gambling with them and by tricks the Pandavas lost their kingdom and were sent to the forest to live in exile for thirteen years. After their exile, the Pandavas returned and asked Duryodhana to give back their kingdom which he refused to give. Lord Krishna also went to the Kauravas as a messenger of the Pandavas and proposed that the Pandavas may be given at least five villages to rule over, which Duryodhana refused.

Hence it was decided that their must be a fight to decide who will rule the world. Krings of various provinces joined either of the two parties and they all assembled to fight in the battlefield of Kurukshetra.

Arjuna, one the five Pandavas, was a famous bowman and was a friend and devotee of Lord Krishna. He was in confusion whether to fight the battle against his cousins or not. He wanted to leave the battlefield at live by begging instead of killing his cousins and elders like his grandfather Bhishma and his teachers like Dronacharya. He was grief stricken. He did not know what was the right thing to do. Either fight and gain victory or leave the battlefield and live by begging. He surrendered to Lord Krishna as His disciple and requested Him to give instructions to him for his ultimate good. Lord Krishna is not an ordinary human being. He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He had appeared in the guise as a human being and was living in the human society as the son of Vasudeva and Devaki.

Lord Krishna took compassion on Arjuna and started enlightening him. His teachings became famous as the Bhagavad Gita - the song of sung by the Supreme Lord. The first lesson taught by Lord Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita is that we are not this bodies, but spirit souls living inside this body made of material ingredients. Lord Krishna gives various symptoms of the spirit soul. Spirit soul being part and parcel of the Supreme Lord Krishna is eternal. It cannot be cut into pieces with any weapon or burnt by fire or dried by wind or moistened by water. Material body has a beginning and an end, but the soul remains the same. The spirit soul is unchangeable and indestructible. There was no need for Arjuna to lament over the death of his friends and relatives while executing his unavoidable duty as a kshatriya ruler.

when a man dies, we say "He has gone". But the body is still lying there. Who has gone? It is the spirit soul which has left the body. By no amount of material adjustment can the spirit soul be brought back to the body. The spirit soul accepts a new body according to the laws of material nature or get liberated if he has become a pure devotees of the Lord. In any case the soul is eternal.

Lord Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita (2.20)

na jāyate mriyate vā kadācin nāyaṁ bhūtvā bhavitā vā na bhūyaḥ

ajo nityaḥ śāśvato 'yaṁ purāṇo na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre

"For the soul there is never birth nor death. Nor, having once been, does he ever cease to be. He is unborn, eternal, ever-existing, undying and primeval. He is not slain when the body is slain."

Lord Krishna gives an example to clarify in the Bhagavad Gita (2.22).

vāsāṁsi jīrṇāni yathā vihāya navāni gṛhṇāti naro 'parāṇi

tathā śarīrāṇi vihāya jīrṇāny anyāni saṁyāti navāni dehī 

"As a person puts on new garments, giving up old ones, similarly, the soul accepts new material bodies, giving up the old and useless ones."

It is out of ignorance of the self that we tend to identify ourselves with the material body and are afraid of death. But the reality is we are eternal part of the Supreme Lord Krishna. Lord Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita (15.7)

mamaivāṁśo jīva-loke jīva-bhūtaḥ sanātanaḥ

manaḥ-ṣaṣṭhānīndriyāṇi prakṛti-sthāni karṣati\

"The living entities in this conditioned world are My eternal, fragmental parts. Due to conditioned life, they are struggling very hard with the six senses, which include the mind."

Hence the first lesson for everyone to understand is we are not these material bodies but spirit souls, parts and parts of the Supreme Lord Krishna. 

When we see things around us: beautiful flowers such as lotus, rose, lilies, jasmine, etc., we appreciate its beauty and aroma. We get to see attractive parks, forests, mountains, valleys, rivers, oceans and many more things. One may wonder as to what is the cause of all these beautiful and attractive thins around us?

We human beings have impressive skills and have built structures, made colorful paintings, perform dances and dramas, sing songs and do many impressive things. One may question, what is the cause of all these wonderful skills in us?

If we analyze a flower, it is made of earth, water, fire, air and ether and it requires microbes and earth worms to make manure, gardener to regularly water it and care for it. A rose plant exists because of a combination of material ingredients and living beings such as microbes, earth worms and gardener. Material energy comprises gross material elements such as: earth, water, fir, air and ether and subtle material elements such as mind, intelligence, and false ego. Spiritual energy is the spirit soul in the body.

Similarly, if we analyze a skyscraper, it is made of cement, stone, wood, iron, steel etc., which is made of the material energy such as earth, water, fire, air and ether and the skyscraper is made because of the desire of the proprietor who wanted to have it and invested his money and engaged architects, engineers and construction workers to build it. The cause of the scyscraper is a combination of material energy and spiritual energy.

One may quesiton, what is the cause of the material energy and spiritual energy? Who is the cause of these energies around us?

Lord Krishna says in the Bhagavad Gita (7.4), (7.5):

bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca
ahaṅkāra itīyaṁ me bhinnā prakṛtir aṣṭadhā

"Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and false ego-altogether these eight comprise My separated material energies."

apareyam itas tv anyāṁ prakṛtiṁ viddhi me parām
jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat

"Besides this inferior nature, O mighty-armed Arjuna, there is a superior energy of Mine, which are all living entities who are struggling with material nature and are sustaining the universe."

Lord Krishna is the cause of the material energy and the spiritual energy.

Lord Krishna also says in the Bhagavad Gita (9.10)

mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram
hetunānena kaunteyajagad viparivartate

"This material nature is working under My direction, O son of Kunté, and it is producing all moving and unmoving beings. By its rule this manifestation is created and annihilated again and again."

It is under the direction of Lord Krishna that material nature is working so wonderfully. Hence Lord Krishna is the cause of all causes as He is the Supreme Lord from Whom everything emanates.

The Absolute Truth is one, but He is known in three ways. Some accept Him as impersonal Brahman, some as the Supersoul existing everywhere, and some as Bhagavān, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The central point is the Absolute Truth. In the yoga-śāstras, Krishna is described as follows: kṛṣṇaṁ piśaṅgāmbaram ambujekṣaṇaṁ catur-bhujaṁ śaṅkha-gadādy-udāyudham. Thus the pleasing appearance of the Supreme Personality of Godhead's bodily features, His limbs and His dress are described. The sāṅkhya-śāstra, however, denies the existence of the Lord's transcendental form. The sāṅkhya-śāstra says that the Supreme Absolute Truth has no hands, no legs and no name: hy anāma-rūpa-guṇa-pāṇi-pādam acakṣur aśrotram ekam advitīyam api nāma-rūpādikaṁ nāsti. The Vedic mantras say, apāṇi-pādo javano grahītā: the Supreme Lord has no legs and hands, but He can accept whatever is offered to Him. Actually such statements accept that the Supreme has hands and legs, but deny that He has material hands and legs. This is why the Absolute is called aprākṛta. Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, has a sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha [Brahma samhita 5.1], a form of eternity, knowledge and bliss, not a material form. The Sāṅkhyites, or jñānīs, deny the material form, and the devotees also know very well that the Absolute Truth, Bhagavān, has no material form.

īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ

anādir ādir govindaḥ sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam

[Brahma samhita. 5.1]

"Krishna, who is known as Govinda, is the supreme controller. He has an eternal, blissful, spiritual body. He is the origin of all. He has no other origin, for He is the prime cause of all causes." 

The conception of the Absolute without hands and legs and the conception of the Absolute with hands and legs are apparently contradictory, but they both coincide with the same truth about the Supreme Absolute Person. The personalists and impersonalists have faith in the reality, but are arguing about it from the different viewpoints of material and spiritual identities.  

In this article we will see various verses from the Upanishads that clearly states that the Supreme Absolute Truth is a person and He is Lord Sri Krishna. We will also see verses from the Upanishads that refer to the desires of the Lord, His personal features, His loving relations, His desire to enjoy with His own energies, the spiritual nature of His form, the description of His spiritual abode and the method of understanding the Supreme Absolute Truth as a person.

Any person has the following symptoms:

1)He has knowledge acquiring senses, working senses and subtle mind, intelligence and false ego. 

2)He desires to own some property.

3)He desires to enjoy with friends and relatives.

4)He desires marry and beget children

5)He desires to control others etc.

Just like sparks of a fire has heat and light because fire has heat and light, a drop of ocean water has all the chemicals  the ocean has all those chemicals, similarly we being parts of God have senses, mind, intelligence, false ego, desires to enjoy in various ways mentioned above because the Supreme Lord who is our source also has those qualities.

The Vedānta-sūtra (1.1.2) says: janmādy asya yataḥ “He is the ultimate source of everything” and It is said in the Kaṭha Upaniṣad (2.2.13): nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām eko bahūnāṁ yo vidadhāti kāmān: “He is the supreme eternally conscious person, who maintains all other living entities who are also eternal and conscious persons.” Because the Supreme Lord is a conscious and eternal person, we being parts of the Lord are also conscious and eternal. In this sense we are one with the Lord in quality. But we are not one with the Lord in quantity as it is said in the Kaṭha Upaniṣad (1.2.20) Aṇor aṇīyān mahato mahīyān “The living entities are smaller than the atom, but God is greater than the greatest.” One more difference that we find from Kaṭha Upaniṣad (2.2.13) is eko bahūnāṁ yo vidadhāti kāmān “That one Supreme Lord maintains innumerable living beings”. This means that the Lord is a person who has feelings towards other living beings who has their desires and fulfills their desires. In this way the Lord is different from the innumerable souls who are parts of the Supreme Lord. He is greatest and maintainer of the living beings. These are the personal features the Lord.

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The  Chāndogya Upaniṣad (3.14.1) says: sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma  "There is nothing but the Lord, and He is one without a second." Sri Ishopanishad mantra 1 says: īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam “Everything belongs to the Lord”. From these two verses we see that the Lord claims His ownership over all that exists in the creation. Claiming ownership is a symptom of a person. Dead matter or some impersonal energy cannot claim ownership over anything.  

The Chāndogya Upaniṣad (6.2.3) says: tad aikṣata bahu syām “He alone has expanded into many” and the Taittirīya Upaniṣad (3.1) says: yato vā imāni bhūtāni jāyante yena jātāni jīvanti yat prayanty abhisaṁviśanti “The entire cosmic manifestation emanates from the Absolute Truth, rests upon the Absolute Truth and after annihilation again reenters the body of the Absolute Truth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” These two verses show that everything has emanated from the Supreme Lord. Since the Lord is person and He has some purpose behind expanding Himself into various energies. The Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad (5.1.1) says: pūrṇam adaḥ pūrṇam idaṁ pūrṇāt pūrṇam udacyate “Even though He expands in many ways, He remains the same.” This shows that the Lord is a spiritual person who does not lose His individuality even after expanding Himself into many. Just like a father who has senses, produces many children who are also individual persons and have senses like the father. After producing children, the father continues to exist as an individual. Similarly the Supreme Absolute Truth is the Supreme father from whom all living entities have expanded and even after expanding, the Supreme Lord continues to exist as an individual person with full potencies.

The Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad (6.8) says: 

na tasya kāryaṁ karaṇaṁ ca vidyate

na tat-samaś cābhyadhikaś ca dṛśyate

parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate

svābhāvikī jñāna-bala-kriyā ca

"The Supreme Lord has nothing to do, and no one is found to be equal to or greater than Him, for everything is done naturally and systematically by His multifarious energies." 

Vedānta-sūtra (1.1.12) says: ānanda-mayo ’bhyāsāt “He is by nature the reservoir of all pleasures”.  Taittirīya Upanishad. (2.7) says: raso vai saḥ rasaṁ hy evāyaṁ labdhvānandī bhavati “He is the embodiment of rasa, and the jīva who realizes this rasa becomes fully ecstatic."  These verses explain the purpose of the Lord expanding into many. Since He is a person, He desires to enjoy by interacting with His own energies, who render Him services in various loving relations. The Lord has nothing to do (na tasya kāryaṁ karaṇaṁ ca vidyate); whatever He does is for His pleasure. The Lord has no duty to perform. Nonetheless, He appears to act, such as protecting His devotees, killing the demons, reestablishing religious principles etc. When the Lord wants to take pleasure, He sometimes comes down to this material world in various forms and shows His extraordinary activities that pleases His devotees. The Puruṣa-bodhinī Upaniṣad says: eko devo nitya-līlānurakto bhakta-vyāpī hṛdy antar-ātmā "The one Supreme Personality of Godhead is eternally engaged in many, many transcendental forms in relationships with His unalloyed devotees." Since the Supreme Absolute Truth is a person, He engages in various lilas or pastimes with His pure devotees. This verse shows that the Lord is a person with feelings and discrimination. Just live we like to live and enjoy with our close friends and relatives, the Supreme Lord being a person also likes to enjoy with His bhaktas or devotees and not with non-devotees. Even though the Lord is equal to all, still He discriminates between devotees and non-devotees.

In Bhagavad gita 9.29 Lord Krishna says:

samo 'haṁ sarva-bhūteṣu na me dveṣyo 'sti na priyaḥ

ye bhajanti tu māṁ bhaktyā mayi te teṣu cāpy aham

“I envy no one, nor am I partial to anyone. I am equal to all. But whoever renders service unto Me in devotion is a friend, is in Me, and I am also a friend to him.”

The Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad (6.7-8) says:

tam īśvarāṇāṁ paramaṁ maheśvaraṁ

taṁ devatānāṁ paramaṁ ca daivatam

patiṁ patīnāṁ paramaṁ parastād

vidāma devaṁ bhuvaneśam īḍyam

na tasya kāryaṁ karaṇaṁ ca vidyate

na tat-samaś cābhyadhikaś ca dṛśyate

parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate

svā-bhāvikī jñāna-bala-kriyā ca.

"The Supreme Lord is the controller of all other controllers, and He is the greatest of all the diverse planetary leaders. Everyone is under His control. All entities are delegated with particular power only by the Supreme Lord; they are not supreme themselves. He is also worshipable by all demigods and is the supreme director of all directors. Therefore, He is transcendental to all kinds of material leaders and controllers and is worshipable by all. There is no one greater than Him, and He is the supreme cause of all causes. He does not possess bodily form like that of an ordinary living entity. There is no difference between His body and His soul. He is absolute. All His senses are transcendental. Any one of His senses can perform the action of any other sense. Therefore, no one is greater than Him or equal to Him. His potencies are multifarious, and thus His deeds are automatically performed as a natural sequence." 

Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad, 1.1.1, states: 

brahmā devānāṁ prathamaḥ sambabhūva viśvasya kartā bhuvanasya goptā

sa brahma-vidyāṁ sarva-vidyā-pratiṣṭhām atharvāya jyeṣṭha-putrāya prāha

“Lord Brahmā, the creator and protector of this universe, appeared prior to any other creature and from the lotus sprouting out of the Supreme Lord’s navel. He initiated his eldest son Atharvā in the science of the Absolute Truth, known as brahma-vidyā, the repository of all branches of knowledge.”

Taittirīya Upaniṣad (2.8) says: bhīṣāsmād vātaḥ pavate bhīṣodeti sūryaḥ bhīṣāsmād agniś candraś ca mṛtyur dhāvati pañcamaḥ "It is out of fear of the Supreme Brahman that the wind is blowing, out of fear of Him that the sun regularly rises and sets, and out of fear of Him that fire acts. It is only due to fear of Him that death and Indra, the King of heaven, perform their respective duties."

The Kaṭhopaniṣad (2.13) and Svetāśvatara Upaniṣad (6.10) says: eko bahūnāṁ yo vidadhāti kāmān 

“The Supreme Lord is supplying all the necessities of life for the many other living entities.”

From the above verses we can understand that the Lord has nothing to do, but still out of love for His own parts, the living beings, He has appointed various devatas like Brahma, Surya, Agni, Indra etc., and has empowered them to fulfill the needs of various living entities. 

All these verses show that the Supreme Absolute Truth is a person with feelings and wants to maintain the living beings. Here we may note that Lord Krishna says in the Bhagavad gita (9.17):  pitāham asya jagato mātā dhātā pitāmahaḥ “I am the father of this universe, the mother, the support, and the grandsire.”  He as father and mother of the entire world takes care of everyone’s needs.

 Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad (3.18) says:

apāṇi-pādo javano grahītā

paśyaty acakṣuḥ sa śṛṇoty akarṇaḥ

sa vetti vedyaṁ na ca tasya vettā

tam āhur agryaṁ puruṣaṁ purāṇam

"He has no feet or hands, yet He is the swiftest runner and can grasp anything. Though without eyes or ears, He sees and hears. Nobody knows Him, yet He is the knower and the object of knowledge. Sages describe Him as the supreme, original Personality of Godhead."

When it is explained that the Lord has no feet or hands, yet He is swiftest runner and can grasp anything, it appears contradictory. This means that the Lord has no hand or feet like us which is limited. He has spiritual hands and legs that can perform function of any other senses.

Example 1: When Kamsa sent Keshi demon to Vrindavan to kill Krishna. He had assumed the form of a horse. Lord Krishna fought with the demon and pushed His left arm within the horse’s mouth, and it looked as though a big snake had entered a hole in the field. The horse felt great pain because Kṛṣṇa’s arm felt to him like a hot iron rod. Immediately his teeth fell out. The great horse suffocated and died. No ordinary man’s hand can become like hot iron rod. Since Lord Krishna body is spiritual, His hands are spiritual and He can do anything with His any part of His body.

Example 2:

When Lord Śrī Krishna was lying down underneath the handcart in one corner of the courtyard, and although His little legs were as soft as leaves, when He struck the cart with His legs, it turned over violently and collapsed. This was possible for Krishna has spiritual legs and not material legs like an ordinary living being.

 Sri Ishopanishad mantra 5 says:

tad ejati tan naijati tad dūre tad v antike

tad antar asya sarvasya tad u sarvasyāsya bāhyataḥ

“The Supreme Lord walks and does not walk. He is far away, but He is very near as well. He is within everything, and yet He is outside of everything.”

Here it is explained that the Lord is far away and is very near as well.

Example 1: When Hiranyakashipu questioned his son Prahlada who was a great devotee of Lord Krishna about the Supreme Lord. Prahlada informed him that the Lord is everywhere. To prove the statement of His devotee, the Lord appeared from a pillar in the form of Narasimha deva and killed the demon Hiranyakashipu.

Example 2: When Darupadi was insulted in the open assembly by the kauravas, she pleaded for protection from the elderly members assembled, but none of them protected her. She finally prayed to Lord Krishna to protect her and the Lord immediately appeared and protected her by supplying unlimited length of sari.

Even though the Lord is situated in His spiritual abode, He is everywhere and is aware of everything. When required, He can appear from anything and anywhere. He is a spiritual person with feelings and when His devotees are in danger He protects them.

Aitareya Upaniṣad (3.11) says: sa aikṣata tat tejo 'sṛjata "He glanced at His potency, who then manifested the creation”. Ordinarily, we can only see through our eyes, but the Supreme Lord’s eyes being spiritual can perform the function of manifesting material creation also. This means that the Lord has a form and His senses are spiritual. 

Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad states:  gopa-veśo me puruṣaḥ purastād āvirbabhuva

“The Lord appeared before Brahmā as a cowboy, that is, as the original Personality of Godhead, Lord Śrī Krishna, Govinda.” 

It is stated in the Gopala-tapani, Purva 13.1

gopa-veśaṁ abhrābhaṁ taruṇaṁ kalpa-drumāśritam

sat-puṇḍarīka-nayanaṁ meghābhaṁ vaidyutāmbaram

dvi-bhujaṁ mauna-mudrāḍhyaṁ vana-mālinam īśvaram

“Behold that ever-youthful boy, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Śrī Krishna, dressed as a cowherd boy, with eyes like lotus petals. His complexion is that of fresh monsoon clouds and His aura shines more dazzlingly than the lightning bolt. He wears a brilliant golden yellow dhoti, lower garment. His two-handed form is most exquisite; He is omniscient and a garland of wild flowers adorns His chest. Anyone who meditates upon this wonderful form of the Lord is immediately released from the shackles of saṁsāra.”

In the Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad 1.1 the following statement appears:

sac-cid-ānanda-rūpāya kṛṣṇāyākliṣṭa-kāriṇe

namo vedānta-vedyāya gurave buddhi-sākṣiṇe

"I offer my respectful obeisances unto Krishna, who has a transcendental form of bliss, eternity and knowledge. I offer my respect to Him, because understanding Him means understanding the Vedas and He is therefore the supreme spiritual master." 

Then it is said, kṛṣṇo vai paramaṁ daivatam: "Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead." Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad 1.3 states: Eko vaśī sarva-gaḥ kṛṣṇa īḍyaḥ: "That one Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and He is worshipable."

Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad (1.21) states: Eko 'pi san bahudhā yo 'vabhāti: "Krishna is one, but He is manifested in unlimited forms and expanded incarnations." 

Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad (Pūrva 12):

sat-puṇḍarīka-nayanaṁ meghābhaṁ vaidyutāmbaram

dvi-bhujaṁ mauna-mudrāḍhyaṁ vana-mālinam īśvaram

"The Supreme Lord, appearing in His two-armed form, had divine lotus eyes, a complexion the color of a cloud, and garments that resembled lightning. He wore a garland of forest flowers, and His beauty was enhanced by His pose of meditative silence."

The Puruṣa-bodhinī Upaniṣad states: 

 gokulākhye māthura-maṇḍale dve-parśve candrāvalī rādhikā ca

 “‘In Gokula, a part of the Mathurā district of the spiritual sky, the Supreme Personality of Godhead resides with Śrīmatī Rādhikā on one side and Śrī Candrāvalī on the other.’

The above verse clearly explain that the Supreme Absolute Truth has a spiritual body which is eternal, full of knowledge and blissful, He has a two handed form, His name is Sri Krishna, His abode is Gokula and He enjoys with His pure devotees such as Smt Radhika and Smt Chandravali. He is the only worshipable object.

Lord Krishna proved that He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead right from the time of His birth. Krishna's body is sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha [Bs. 5.1], or ānanda-cinmaya-rasa-vigraha. That is, any of the parts of His ānanda-cinmaya body can act for any other part. Such are the inconceivable potencies of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Supreme Lord does not need to acquire these potencies; He already has them.  

When there was a forest fire in Vrindavan, Krishna swallowed the fire and saved the inhabitants of Vrindavan. This is another example proving that His body is spiritual.

Just as a child is connected to his mother by the umbilical cord, so the first-born living creature, Brahmā, by the supreme will of the Lord, is connected to the Lord by a lotus stem. The goddess of fortune, Lakṣmī, who engages in massaging the legs, ankles and thighs of the Lord, is called the mother of Brahmā, but actually Brahmā is born from the abdomen of the Lord, not from the abdomen of his mother. These are inconceivable conceptions of the Lord. The Lord has transcendental senses.  This means that the Lord is a person with spiritual body and senses. Every part of His body is potent to perform the function of any other part of His body.

His senses are transcendental. He is not under any rule. He can eat through His eyes. If we offer something to Krishna, simply by seeing, He will eat. That is Krishna. But His eating is not like our eating. When we eat, the plate becomes empty but when the Lord eats, the plate remains full.  pūrṇasya pūrṇam ādāya pūrṇam evāvaśiṣyate [Īśo Invocation]. Krishna eats the whole plate; and still the whole plate will remain, for the devotees to relish His prasādam.

Sri Ishopanishad mantra 15 and 16 state:

hiraṇmayena pātreṇa satyasyāpihitaṁ mukham

tat tvaṁ pūṣann apāvṛṇu satya-dharmāya dṛṣṭaye

“O my Lord, sustainer of all that lives, Your real face is covered by Your dazzling effulgence. Kindly remove that covering and exhibit Yourself to Your pure devotee.”

pūṣann ekarṣe yama sūrya prājāpatya

vyūha raśmīn samūha

tejo yat te rūpaṁ kalyāṇa-tamaṁ

tat te paśyāmi yo 'sāv asau puruṣaḥ so 'ham asmi

“O my Lord, O primeval philosopher, maintainer of the universe, O regulating principle, destination of the pure devotees, well-wisher of the progenitors of mankind, please remove the effulgence of Your transcendental rays so that I can see Your form of bliss. You are the eternal Supreme Personality of Godhead, like unto the sun, as am I.”

Here we can clearly understand that the Lord’s form is cover by His dazzling effulgence. It may be notes in this regard that Lord Krishna mentions in the Bhagavad gita 14.27

brahmaṇo hi pratiṣṭhāham amṛtasyāvyayasya ca

śāśvatasya ca dharmasya sukhasyaikāntikasya ca

  “And I am the basis of the impersonal Brahman, which is the constitutional position of ultimate happiness, and which is immortal, imperishable and eternal.”

These verses show that Lord Krishna is the background of the brahmajyoti (brahmaṇo hi pratiṣṭhāham). In the Nirukti, or Vedic dictionary, the import of pratiṣṭhā is mentioned as "that which establishes." So the brahmajyoti is not independent or self-sufficient. Lord Śrī Krishna is ultimately the creator of the brahmajyoti, or the effulgence of the transcendental body of the Lord.

 It is difficult to understand the Supreme Lord by our mental speculation, logic and arguments. Only by pure devotion one can understand the Lord.

Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad (6.23) states:

yasya deve parā bhaktir yathā deve tathā gurau

tasyaite kathitā hy arthāḥ prakāśante mahātmanaḥ

"Only unto one who has unflinching devotion to the Lord and to the spiritual master does transcendental knowledge become automatically revealed."

Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad (3.2.3) states:

nāyam ātmā pravacanena labhyo

na medhasā na bahunā śrutena

yam evaiṣa vṛṇute tena labhyas

tasyaiṣa ātmā vivṛṇute tanuṁ svām

"The Supreme Lord is not obtained by expert explanations, by vast intelligence, or even by much hearing. He is obtained only by one whom He Himself chooses. To such a person, He manifests His own form."

Padma Purāṇa states:

ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṇa-nāmādi na bhaved grāhyam indriyaiḥ

sevonmukhe hi jihvādau svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ

 "No one can understand Krishna as He is by utilizing the blunt material senses. However, the Lord reveals Himself to His devotees, being pleased with them because of their transcendental loving service rendered unto Him."

Lord Krishna says in Bhagavad Gita (11.54):

bhaktyā tv ananyayā śakya aham evaṁ-vidho 'rjuna

jñātuṁ draṣṭuṁ ca tattvena praveṣṭuṁ ca parantapa

“My dear Arjuna, only by undivided devotional service can I be understood as I am, standing before you, and can thus be seen directly. Only in this way can you enter into the mysteries of My understanding.”

The above verses prove that the Lord being a person, is very sensitive to the way we interact and relate with Him. Knowing the personal features of the Lord and developing a loving relation with His is most confidential knowledge of the Vedic scriptures. Just like we disclose confidential information only to intimately related friends and relatives and not with anyone and everyone, similarly the Lord discloses His personal features only to those who have developed pure love and devotion for Him. The Lord reserves the right of not being exposed to everyone because He likes to enjoy pleasure pastimes only with devotees who love Him and serve Him unconditionally. Hence, one has to be a devotee of Lord Krishna to understand His personal features and establish a loving relationship with Him.  The personal features of the Lord can be understood only by the mercy of the supreme Lord. One who is engaged in loving devotional service of the Lord is a suitable candidate to receive the mercy of the Lord.

Upanishads prove that the Supreme Absolute Truth is Lord Sri Krishna who is a person with a spiritual body. Brahmajyoti is the effulgence emanating from His spiritual body and He lives in His spiritual abode Gokula which is beyond brahmajyoti. He is engaged in loving pastime with His pure devotees like Smt Radhika and Chandravali.  One who develops love and devotion to Lord Krishna by practicing bhakti yoga under the guidance of a pure devotee can also go the Krishna’s abode and associate with Krishna and enjoy with Him in a loving relation eternally. 

Understanding Lord Sri Krishna by completely surrendering unto Him and rendering pure devotional service to Him is sum and substance of all Vedic scriptures. This is the supreme perfection of human form life. This is the message of the Upanishads.

Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa has His eternal dhāma, or abode, where He eternally enjoys Himself with His eternal associates and paraphernalia. He eternally enjoys Himself with His associates in the various loving relationships such as:

1. Śānta rasa (neutrality): One may be a devotee in a passive state such as the flute, ornaments worn by Krishna, the various trees, birds, flowers, cows, calves etc..serve the Lord in Shanta rasa.

2. Dāsya rasa (servitorship): One may be a devotee in an active state as a servant such as Raktaka, Patraka, Mandana etc. serve the Lord in Vrindavan. Hanuman serves Lord Ramachandra as His eternal servant.

3. Sakhya rasa (friendship): One may be a devotee as a friend such as Baladeva, Sridhama, Subala etc. serve the Lord in friendly relationship.

4. Vātsalya rasa (parental affection): One may be a devotee as a parent such as Mother Yashoda, Nanda Maharaja, Mother Devaki and Vasudeva etc. who serve the Lord as his parents.

5. Mādhurya rasa (conjugal love): One may be a devotee as a conjugal lover such as Smt Radharani and the other gopies in Vrindavan and there are various Queens of Lord Krishna who serve him as His consorts in Dvaraka.

When the Lord descends on the material world, He displays Himself with all paraphernalia in His internal potency, which is called ātma-māyā to reclaim the fallen souls who are entrapped by the material energy and reestablishes the codes of religion which are directly enacted by Him. Except for God, no one can establish the principles of religion. Either He or a suitable person empowered by Him can dictate the codes of religion. Real religion means to know God, our relation with Him and our duties in relation with Him and to know ultimately our destination after leaving this material body. 

We must hear Rāmāyaṇa from a tattva-darśī

In Tretā yuga the Lord appeared as Lord Śrī Rāmacandra and taught many lessons for mankind by His personal example to enable the human beings to achieve the ultimate goal of life – Love of Godhead or Kṛṣṇa prema.  To achieve love of Godhead, we must approach a self-realized soul, a pure devotee of the Lord and learn the truth from him. In Bhagavad-gītā (4.34) the Supreme Personality of Godhead advises:

tad viddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā

upadekṣyanti te jñānaṁ jñāninas tattva-darśinaḥ

"Just try to learn the truth by approaching a spiritual master. Inquire from him submissively and render service unto him. The self-realized soul can impart knowledge unto you because he has seen the truth." Unless one is tattva-darśī, in complete knowledge of the Absolute Truth, one cannot describe the activities of the Personality of Godhead. Vālmīki is one such tattva-darśī.  The activities of Lord Rāmacandra is composed by him, in his famous literature known as Rāmāyaṇa. Over a period of time many people have tried to describe the activities of Lord Rāmacandra in their own way. Therefore although there are many so-called Rāmāyaṇas, or histories of Lord Rāmacandra's activities, some of them are not actually authoritative. Sometimes Lord Rāmacandra's activities are described in terms of one's own imaginations, speculations or material sentiments. But the characteristics of Lord Rāmacandra should not be handled as something imaginary. While describing the history of Lord Rāmacandra, Śukadeva Gosvāmī told Mahārāja Parīkṣit, "You have already heard about the activities of Lord Rāmacandra." Apparently, therefore, five thousand years ago there were many Rāmāyaṇas, or histories of Lord Rāmacandra's activities, and there are many still. But we must select only those books written by tattva-darśīs (jñāninas tattva-darśinaḥ [Bg. 4.34]), not the books of so-called scholars who claim knowledge only on the basis of a doctorate. This is a warning by Śukadeva Gosvāmī. Ṛṣibhis tattva-darśibhiḥ. Although the Rāmāyaṇa composed by Vālmīki is a huge literature, the same activities are summarized here by tattva-darśī Śukadeva Gosvāmī in a few verses in Śrīmad Bhāgavatam. In this article, teachings of Lord Rāmacandra from Śrīmad Bhāgavatam is presented.

Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī summarizes the entire Rāmāyaṇa in one verse and offers his respects to Lord Rāmacandra as follows:

gurv-arthe tyakta-rājyo vyacarad anuvanaṁ padma-padbhyāṁ priyāyāḥ

pāṇi-sparśākṣamābhyāṁ mṛjita-patha-rujo yo harīndrānujābhyām

vairūpyāc chūrpaṇakhyāḥ priya-viraha-ruṣāropita-bhrū-vijṛmbha-

trastābdhir baddha-setuḥ khala-dava-dahanaḥ kosalendro 'vatān naḥ

“To keep the promise of His father intact, Lord Rāmacandra immediately gave up the position of king and, accompanied by His wife, mother Sītā, wandered from one forest to another on His lotus feet, which were so delicate that they were unable to bear even the touch of Sītā's palms. The Lord was also accompanied by Hanumān [or by another monkey, Sugrīva], king of the monkeys, and by His own younger brother Lord Lakṣmaṇa, both of whom gave Him relief from the fatigue of wandering in the forest. Having cut off the nose and ears of Śūrpaṇakhā, thus disfiguring her, the Lord was separated from mother Sītā. He therefore became angry, moving His eyebrows and thus frightening the ocean, who then allowed the Lord to construct a bridge to cross the ocean. Subsequently, the Lord entered the kingdom of Rāvaṇa to kill him, like a fire devouring a forest. May that Supreme Lord, Rāmacandra, give us all protection.” SB [9.10.4]

Teachings of Lord Rāmacandra

From the description given by Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī about Lord Rāmacandra in  Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, the following teachings are noteworthy:

1) We should be obedient to the superiors

Lord Rāmacandra taught obedience to superiors by carrying out the orders of His father:

yaḥ satya-pāśa-parivīta-pitur nideśaṁ

straiṇasya cāpi śirasā jagṛhe sabhāryaḥ

rājyaṁ śriyaṁ praṇayinaḥ suhṛdo nivāsaṁ

tyaktvā yayau vanam asūn iva mukta-saṅgaḥ

“Carrying out the order of His father, who was bound by a promise to his wife, Lord Rāmacandra left behind His kingdom, opulence, friends, well-wishers, residence and everything else, just as a liberated soul gives up his life, and went to the forest with Sītā.” SB [9.10.8]

Mahārāja Daśaratha had three wives. One of them, Kaikeyī, served him very pleasingly, and he therefore wanted to give her a benediction. Kaikeyī, however, said that she would ask for the benediction when it was necessary. At the time of the coronation of Prince Rāmacandra, Kaikeyī requested her husband to enthrone her son Bharata and send Rāmacandra to the forest. Mahārāja Daśaratha, being bound by his promise, ordered Rāmacandra to go to the forest, according to the dictation of his beloved. And the Lord, as an obedient son, accepted the order immediately. He left everything without hesitation, just as a liberated soul or great yogī gives up his life without material attraction. 

In Raghu-vaṁśa (14.46) there is a description of this point. 

sa śuśruvān mātari bhārgaveṇa pitur niyogāt prahṛtaṁ dviṣad-vat

pratyagṛhīd agraja-śāsanaṁ tad ājñā gurūṇāṁ hy avicāraṇīyā

Being ordered by his father, Paraśurāma killed his mother, Reṇukā, just as if she were an enemy. When Lakṣmaṇa, the younger brother of Lord Rāmacandra, heard of this, He immediately engaged Himself in the service of His elder brother and accepted His orders. The order of the spiritual master must be obeyed without consideration.

Raghu-vaṁśa (14.46)

Lord Rāmacandra’s statement to Sītā:

nirvicāraṁ guror ājñā mayā kāryā mahātmanaḥ

śreyo hy evaṁ bhavatyāś ca mama caiva viśeṣataḥ

The order of a great personality like a father must be executed without consideration because there is good fortune in such an order for both of us. In particular, there is good fortune for Me.

Rāmāyaṇa (Ayodhyā-kāṇḍa 22.9)

Ordinarily, the spiritual master, husband, father, mother or superior relative accepts worship from an inferior relative, but Lord Ṛṣabhadeva forbids this. He says:

gurur na sa syāt sva-jano na sa syāt pitā na sa syāj jananī na sā syāt

daivaṁ na tat syān na patiś ca sa syān na mocayed yaḥ samupeta-mṛtyum

“One who cannot deliver his dependents from the path of repeated birth and death should never become a spiritual master, a father, a husband, a mother or a worshipable demigod.”

SB 5.5.18

We have many instances in history illustrating Ṛṣabhadeva's instructions. Śukrācārya was rejected by Bali Mahārāja due to his inability to save Bali Mahārāja from the path of repeated birth and death. Śukrācārya was not a pure devotee, he was more or less inclined to fruitive activity, and he objected when Bali Mahārāja promised to give everything to Lord Viṣṇu. Actually one is supposed to give everything to the Lord because everything belongs to the Lord. Consequently, the Supreme Lord advises in Bhagavad-gītā (9.27):

yat karoṣi yad aśnāsi yaj juhoṣi dadāsi yat

yat tapasyasi kaunteya tat kuruṣva mad-arpaṇam

"O son of Kuntī, all that you do, all that you eat, all that you offer and give away, as well as all austerities that you may perform, should be done as an offering unto Me." This is bhakti. Unless one is devoted, he cannot give everything to the Supreme Lord. Unless one can do so, he cannot become a spiritual master, husband, father or mother. Similarly, the wives of the brāhmaṇas who were performing sacrifices gave up their relatives just to satisfy Kṛṣṇa. This is an example of a wife rejecting a husband who cannot deliver her from the impending dangers of birth and death. Similarly, Prahlāda Mahārāja rejected his father, and Bharata Mahārāja rejected his mother (jananī na sā syāt). The word daivam indicates a demigod or one who accepts worship from a dependent. Ordinarily, the spiritual master, husband, father, mother or superior relative accepts worship from an inferior relative, but here Ṛṣabhadeva forbids this. First the father, spiritual master or husband must be able to release the dependent from repeated birth and death. If he cannot do this, he plunges himself into the ocean of reproachment for his unlawful activities. Everyone should be very responsible and take charge of his dependents just as a spiritual master takes charge of his disciple or a father takes charge of his son. All these responsibilities cannot be discharged honestly unless one can save the dependent from repeated birth and death.

We have to be obedient to such a superior who takes responsibility to liberate us from the cycle of birth and death and enable us to achieve our eternal relation with the Supreme Lord. Such a superior is worshipable and has to be obeyed.

Lord Rāmacandra set this example to mankind by obeying His father’s order.

2) Sinful and irreligious people have to be punished

Lord Rāmacandra killed many demons to give protection in the arena of sacrifice performed by Viśvāmitra:

viśvāmitrādhvare yena mārīcādyā niśā-carāḥ

paśyato lakṣmaṇasyaiva hatā nairṛta-puṅgavāḥ

“In the arena of the sacrifice performed by Viśvāmitra, Lord Rāmacandra, the King of Ayodhyā, killed many demons, Rākṣasas and uncivilized men who wandered at night in the mode of darkness. May Lord Rāmacandra, who killed these demons in the presence of Lakṣmaṇa, be kind enough to give us protection.” SB [9.10.5]

In this way Lord Rāmacandra killed many demons to establish religious principles. 

Na ca daivāt paraṁ balam: no one can surpass the strength of the Transcendence. Rāvaṇa was so sinful and shameless that he did not know what the result would be of kidnapping mother Sītā, the pleasure potency of Rāmacandra. This is the disqualification of the Rākṣasas. Asatyam apratiṣṭhaṁ te jagad āhur anīśvaram [Bg. 16.8]. The Rākṣasas are unaware that the Supreme Lord is the ruler of the creation. They think that everything has come about by chance or accident and that there is no ruler, king or controller. Therefore the Rākṣasas act independently, as they like, going even so far as to kidnap the goddess of fortune. This policy of Rāvaṇa's is extremely dangerous for the materialist; indeed, it brings ruin to the materialistic civilization. Nonetheless, because atheists are Rākṣasas, they dare to do things that are most abominable, and thus they are punished without fail. Religion consists of the orders of the Supreme Lord, and one who carries out these orders is religious. One who fails to carry out the Lord's orders is irreligious, and he is to be punished.

3) Better not to marry

Materialistic people lead a life of ignorance. They think that we are these bodies and they strive hard to gratify their senses to the fullest extent. Lord Rāmacandra taught by His personal example that happiness centered around sense gratification is miserable.

Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī describes this point in prayers of Hanumān:

martyāvatāras tv iha martya-śikṣaṇaṁ rakṣo-vadhāyaiva na kevalaṁ vibhoḥ

kuto 'nyathā syād ramataḥ sva ātmanaḥ sītā-kṛtāni vyasanānīśvarasya

“It was ordained that Rāvaṇa, chief of the Rākṣasas, could not be killed by anyone but a man, and for this reason Lord Rāmacandra, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, appeared in the form of a human being. Lord Rāmacandra's mission, however, was not only to kill Rāvaṇa but also to teach mortal beings that material happiness centered around sex life or centered around one's wife is the cause of many miseries. He is the self-sufficient Supreme Personality of Godhead, and nothing is lamentable for Him. Therefore why else could He be subjected to tribulations by the kidnapping of mother Sītā?” [SB 5.19.5]

In the above prayer, the point to note is: “Material happiness centered around sex life or centered around one's wife is the cause of many miseries”

This point is again mentioned by Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī in Śrīmad Bhāgavatama as follows:

rakṣo-'dhamena vṛkavad vipine 'samakṣaṁ vaideha-rāja-duhitary apayāpitāyām

bhrātrā vane kṛpaṇavat priyayā viyuktaḥ strī-saṅgināṁ gatim iti prathayaṁś cacāra

“When Rāmacandra entered the forest and Lakṣmaṇa was also absent, the worst of the Rākṣasas, Rāvaṇa, kidnapped Sītādevī, the daughter of the King of Videha, just as a tiger seizes unprotected sheep when the shepherd is absent. Then Lord Rāmacandra wandered in the forest with His brother Lakṣmaṇa as if very much distressed due to separation from His wife. Thus He showed by His personal example the condition of a person attached to women.” [SB 9.10.11]

Srila Shukadeva Goswami says that Rāmacandra wandered in the forest with His brother Lakṣmaṇa as if very much distressed due to separation from His wife. By His personal example, Lord Rāmacandra taught the devotees that it is better not to enter married life, which is certainly followed by many tribulations. As confirmed in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (7.9.45):

yan maithunādi-gṛhamedhi-sukhaṁ hi tucchaṁ

kaṇḍūyanena karayor iva duḥkha-duḥkham

tṛpyanti neha kṛpaṇā bahu-duḥkha-bhājaḥ

kaṇḍūtivan manasijaṁ viṣaheta-dhīraḥ

Kṛpaṇas, those who are not advanced in spiritual knowledge and who are therefore just the opposite of brāhmaṇas, generally take to family life, which is a concession for sex. Thus they enjoy sex again and again, although that sex is followed by many tribulations. This is a warning to devotees. To teach this lesson to devotees and to human society in general, Lord Śrī Rāmacandra, although the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself, underwent a series of tribulations because He accepted a wife, mother Sītā. Lord Rāmacandra underwent these austerities, of course, only to instruct us; actually He never has any reason to lament for anything.

4) Accept only one wife and be faithful to her

Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī describes Eka-patnī-vrata accepted by Lord Rāmacandra:

eka-patnī-vrata-dharo rājarṣi-caritaḥ śuciḥ

sva-dharmaṁ gṛha-medhīyaṁ śikṣayan svayam ācarat

“Lord Rāmacandra took a vow to accept only one wife and have no connection with any other women. He was a saintly king, and everything in His character was good, untinged by qualities like anger. He taught good behavior for everyone, especially for householders, in terms of varṇāśrama-dharma. Thus He taught the general public by His personal activities.” [SB 9.10.54]

Eka-patnī-vrata, accepting only one wife, was the glorious example set by Lord Rāmacandra. One should not accept more than one wife. In those days, of course, people did marry more than one wife. Even Lord Rāmacandra's father accepted more wives than one. But Lord Rāmacandra, as an ideal king, accepted only one wife, mother Sītā. When mother Sītā was kidnapped by Rāvaṇa and the Rākṣasas, Lord Rāmacandra, as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, could have married hundreds and thousands of Sītās, but to teach us how faithful He was to His wife, He fought with Rāvaṇa and finally killed him. The Lord punished Rāvaṇa and rescued His wife to instruct men to have only one wife. Lord Rāmacandra accepted only one wife and manifested sublime character, thus setting an example for householders. A householder should live according to the ideal of Lord Rāmacandra, who showed how to be a perfect person. Being a householder or living with a wife and children is never condemned, provided one lives according to the regulative principles of varṇāśrama-dharma. Those who live in accordance with these principles, whether as householders, brahmacārīs or vānaprasthas, are all equally important.

As Lord Rāmacandra is the ideal husband (eka-patnī-vrata), mother Sītā is the ideal wife. Such a combination makes family life very happy. Mother Sītā had the following qualities:

premṇānuvṛttyā śīlena praśrayāvanatā satī

bhiyā hriyā ca bhāva-jñā bhartuḥ sītāharan manaḥ

Mother Sītā was very submissive, faithful, shy and chaste, always understanding the attitude of her husband. Thus by her character and her love and service she completely attracted the mind of the Lord. [SB 9.10.55]

Yad yad ācarati śreṣṭhas tat tad evetaro janaḥ: whatever example a great man sets, common people follow. If the kings, the leaders, and the brāhmaṇas, the teachers, would set forth the examples we receive from Vedic literature, the entire world would be heaven; indeed, there would no longer be hellish conditions within this material world.

Lord Rāmacandra instructs us that one who accepts a wife must be a faithful husband and give her full protection as a beloved and dutiful husband. Otherwise He had no reason to undergo apparent tribulations. One who strictly follows religious principles must not neglect to provide all facilities for the complete protection of his wife. There may be some suffering because of this, but one must nevertheless endure it. That is the duty of a faithful husband. By His personal example, Lord Rāmacandra demonstrated this duty. Lord Rāmacandra could have produced hundreds and thousands of Sītās from His pleasure energy, but just to show the duty of a faithful husband, He not only rescued Sītā from the hands of Rāvaṇa but also killed Rāvaṇa and all the members of his family.

rāmas tam āha puruṣāda-purīṣa yan naḥ

kāntāsamakṣam asatāpahṛtā śvavat te

tyakta-trapasya phalam adya jugupsitasya

yacchāmi kāla iva kartur alaṅghya-vīryaḥ

“Lord Rāmacandra said to Rāvaṇa: You are the most abominable of the man-eaters. Indeed, you are like their stool. You resemble a dog, for as a dog steals eatables from the kitchen in the absence of the householder, in My absence you kidnapped My wife, Sītādevī. Therefore as Yamarāja punishes sinful men, I shall also punish you. You are most abominable, sinful and shameless. Today, therefore, I, whose attempt never fails, shall punish you.”  SB [9.10.22]

5) The Lord and His devotees are unaffected by material tribulations

Another aspect of the teachings of Lord Rāmacandra is that although Lord Viṣṇu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and His devotees may apparently suffer from material tribulations, they have nothing to do with such tribulations. They are mukta-puruṣas, liberated persons, under all circumstances. It is therefore said in the Caitanya-bhāgavata:

yata dekha vaiṣṇavera vyavahāra duḥkha

niścaya jāniha tāhā paramānanda-sukha

A Vaiṣṇava is always firmly situated in transcendental bliss because of engagement in devotional service. Although he may appear to suffer material pains, his position is called transcendental bliss in separation (viraha). The emotions a lover and beloved feel when separated from one another are actually very blissful, although apparently painful. Therefore the separation of Lord Rāmacandra from Sītādevī, as well as the consequent tribulation they suffered, is but another display of transcendental bliss. That is the opinion of Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura.

Nārāyaṇaḥ paro 'vyaktāt: Nārāyaṇa is beyond the material creation. Because He is the creator of the material world, He is not subject to the conditions of the material world. The separation of Lord Rāmacandra from Sītā is spiritually understood as vipralambha, which is an activity of the hlādinī potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead belonging to the śṛṅgāra-rasa, the mellow of conjugal love in the spiritual world. In the spiritual world the Supreme Personality of Godhead has all the dealings of love, displaying the symptoms called sāttvika, sañcārī, vilāpa, mūrcchā and unmāda. Thus when Lord Rāmacandra was separated from Sītā, all these spiritual symptoms were manifested. The Lord is neither impersonal nor impotent. Rather, He is sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha [Bs. 5.1], the eternal form of knowledge and bliss. Thus He has all the symptoms of spiritual bliss. Feeling separation from one's beloved is also an item of spiritual bliss. 

6) A King should be like a father

Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī gives a beautiful description of Rāma-Rājya in Śrīmad Bhāgavatam canto nine chapter ten as follows:

agrahīd āsanaṁ bhrātrā praṇipatya prasāditaḥ

prajāḥ sva-dharma-niratā varṇāśrama-guṇānvitāḥ

jugopa pitṛvad rāmo menire pitaraṁ ca tam

“Being pleased by the full surrender and submission of Lord Bharata, Lord Rāmacandra then accepted the throne of the state. He cared for the citizens exactly like a father, and the citizens, being fully engaged in their occupational duties of varṇa and āśrama, accepted Him as their father.” [SB 9.10.50]

Lord Rāmacandra ruled His kingdom exactly as a father takes care of his children, and the citizens, being obliged to the good government of Lord Rāmacandra, accepted the Lord as their father. As indicated here by the words sva-dharma-niratā varṇāśrama-guṇān-vitāḥ, the people were good citizens because they accepted the institution of varṇa and āśrama, which arranges society in the varṇa divisions of brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya and śūdra and the āśrama divisions of brahmacarya, gṛhastha, vānaprastha and sannyāsa. This is actual human civilization. People must be trained according to the different varṇāśrama occupational duties. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (4.13), cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ: the four varṇas must be established according to varying qualities and work. The first principle for good government is that it must institute this varṇāśrama system. The purpose of varṇāśrama is to enable people to become God conscious. 

varṇāśramācāra-vatā puruṣeṇa paraḥ pumān

viṣṇur ārādhyate panthā nānyat tat-toṣa-kāraṇam 

“The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Viṣṇu, is worshiped by the proper execution of prescribed duties in the system of varṇa and āśrama. There is no other way to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One must be situated in the institution of the four varṇas and āśramas.”

[Viṣṇu Purāṇa (3.8.9)].

The entire varṇāśrama scheme is intended to enable people to become Vaiṣṇavas. Viṣṇur asya devatā. When people worship Lord Viṣṇu as the Supreme Lord, they become Vaiṣṇavas. Thus people should be trained to become Vaiṣṇavas through the system of varṇa and āśrama, as they were during the reign of Lord Rāmacandra, when everyone was fully trained to follow the varṇāśrama principles.

Simply enforcing laws and ordinances cannot make the citizens obedient and lawful. That is impossible. As there are schools and colleges to train students to become chemical engineers, lawyers or specialists in many other departments of knowledge, there must be schools and colleges to train students to become brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, vaiśyas, śūdras, brahmacārīs, gṛhasthas, vānaprasthas and sannyāsīs. This will provide the preliminary condition for good citizenship (varṇāśrama-guṇān-vitāḥ). Generally speaking, if the king or president is a rājarṣi, the relationship between the citizens and the chief executive will be clear, and there will be no possibility of disruption in the state, because the number of thieves and rogues will decrease. 

People are very fond of the pattern of Rāma-rājya, and even today politicians sometimes form a party called Rāma-rājya, but unfortunately they have no obedience to Lord Rāma. It is sometimes said that people want the kingdom of God without God. Such an aspiration, however, is never to be fulfilled. Good government can exist when the relationship between the citizens and the government is like that exemplified by Lord Rāmacandra and His citizens. 

tretāyāṁ vartamānāyāṁ kālaḥ kṛta-samo 'bhavat

rāme rājani dharma-jñe sarva-bhūta-sukhāvahe

“Lord Rāmacandra became King during Tretā-yuga, but because of His good government, the age was like Satya-yuga. Everyone was religious and completely happy.” [SB 9.10.51]

vanāni nadyo girayo varṣāṇi dvīpa-sindhavaḥ

sarve kāma-dughā āsan prajānāṁ bharatarṣabha

O Mahārāja Parīkṣit, best of the Bharata dynasty, during the reign of Lord Rāmacandra the forests, the rivers, the hills and mountains, the states, the seven islands and the seven seas were all favorable in supplying the necessities of life for all living beings. [SB 9.10.52]

nādhi-vyādhi-jarā-glāni-duḥkha-śoka-bhaya-klamāḥ

mṛtyuś cānicchatāṁ nāsīd rāme rājany adhokṣaje

“When Lord Rāmacandra, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, was the King of this world, all bodily and mental suffering, disease, old age, bereavement, lamentation, distress, fear and fatigue were completely absent. There was even no death for those who did not want it.” [SB 9.10.53]

From the above descriptions we can understand how happy people were under the rule of Lord Rāmacandra. Everyone was happy as they followed the principles of varṇāśrama and accepted Lord Rāmacandra as their father. There were free from all mental and bodily pains. This indicates there was no need of hospitals. Opening super special hospitals is consider a sign of advancement these days. But have no disease at is the actual sign of advancement. People had enough food and riches. Now a days things are so degraded that even drinking water is being sold. It is so difficult to get fresh water to drink. Millions of people are starving for want of food. This is because the head of the state, the government authorities are not devotees of the Lord. They are simply occupying big posts in the government for personal sense gratification only. On the other hand during Lord Rāmacandra’s time mother nature supplied all the essential things for mankind profusely. These are the symptoms of advanced civilization. Advanced civilization accepts the Supremacy of the Lord and surrenders everything for His pleasure. The Lord being pleased by their service takes care of all their needs. Good centered life is the ideal life - A life only meant to glorify the Supreme Lord and nothing else.

It is said in Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (1.10.4):

kāmaṁ vavarṣa parjanyaḥ sarva-kāma-dughā mahī

siṣicuḥ sma vrajān gāvaḥ payasodhasvatīr mudā

During the reign of Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, the clouds showered all the water that people needed, and the earth produced all the necessities of man in profusion. Due to its fatty milk bag and cheerful attitude, the cow used to moisten the grazing ground with milk. 

This is was because Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira and the Pandavas were all pure devotees of the Lord  and hence the citizens were supplied by all the necessities of life by mother nature. This is the sign of a good government. The government authorities must be devotees of the Lord and the government has to conduct its activities based on the instructions given in the Vedic scriptures under the expert guidance of learned Brahmanas and Vaihnavas.

 A similar situation could be introduced immediately, even in this age called Kali, the worst of all ages. It is said, kali-kāle nāma-rūpe kṛṣṇa-avatāra: Kṛṣṇa descends in this Kali-yuga in the form of His holy name—Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa  Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa  Kṛṣṇa  Hare Hare / Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare. If we chant offenselessly the Holy names of the Lord, Rāma and Kṛṣṇa are still present in this age. The kingdom of Rāma was immensely popular and beneficial, and the spreading of this Hare Kṛṣṇa movement can immediately introduce a similar situation, even in this Kali-yuga.

7) Become a sādhu

Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī describes how the inhabitants of Kimpuruṣa-varṣa with Hanumān worship Lord Rāmacandra in Śrīmad Bhāgavatam Fist canto nineteenth chapter as follows:

oṁ namo bhagavate uttamaślokāya nama ārya-lakṣaṇa-śīla-vratāya nama upaśikṣitātmana upāsita-lokāya namaḥ sādhu-vāda-nikaṣaṇāya namo brahmaṇya-devāya mahā-puruṣāya mahā-rājāya nama iti.

“Let me please Your Lordship by chanting the bīja-mantra oṁkāra. I wish to offer my respectful obeisances unto the Personality of Godhead, who is the best among the most highly elevated personalities. Your Lordship is the reservoir of all the good qualities of Āryans, people who are advanced. Your character and behavior are always consistent, and You always control Your senses and mind. Acting just like an ordinary human being, You exhibit exemplary character to teach others how to behave. There is a touchstone that can be used to examine the quality of gold, but You are like a touchstone that can verify all good qualities. You are worshiped by brāhmaṇas who are the foremost of all devotees. You, the Supreme Person, are the King of kings, and therefore I offer my respectful obeisances unto You.” [SB 5.19.3]

In the prayer above, Lord Rāmacandra is addressed as sādhu-vāda-nikaṣaṇāya—the Lord, who is like a stone for examining all the good qualities of a sādhu. Acting just like an ordinary human being, He exhibits exemplary character to teach others how to behave. He wants us to develop good qualities and  become sādhus. He teaches us by His personal example, how to develop all good qualities of a sadhu. 

Qualities of a sadhu is described in Srimad Bhagavatam by Lord Kapila as follows:

titikṣavaḥ kāruṇikāḥ suhṛdaḥ sarva-dehinām

ajāta-śatravaḥ śāntāḥ sādhavaḥ sādhu-bhūṣaṇāḥ

“The symptoms of a sādhu are that he is tolerant, merciful and friendly to all living entities. He has no enemies, he is peaceful, he abides by the scriptures, and all his characteristics are sublime.”

[SB 3.25.21]

mayy ananyena bhāvena bhaktiṁ kurvanti ye dṛḍhām

mat-kṛte tyakta-karmāṇas tyakta-svajana-bāndhavāḥ

“Such a sādhu engages in staunch devotional service to the Lord without deviation. For the sake of the Lord he renounces all other connections, such as family relationships and friendly acquaintances within the world.” [SB 3.25.22]

mad-āśrayāḥ kathā mṛṣṭāḥ śṛṇvanti kathayanti ca

tapanti vividhās tāpā naitān mad-gata-cetasaḥ

“Engaged constantly in chanting and hearing about Me, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the sādhus do not suffer from material miseries because they are always filled with thoughts of My pastimes and activities.” [SB 3.25.23]

ta ete sādhavaḥ sādhvi sarva-saṅga-vivarjitāḥ

saṅgas teṣv atha te prārthyaḥ saṅga-doṣa-harā hi te

“O My mother, O virtuous lady, these are the qualities of great devotees who are free from all attachment. You must seek attachment to such holy men, for this counteracts the pernicious effects of material attachment.” [SB 3.25.24]

The Lord desires that we develop all these qualities and become His pure devotees. In this way, He wants us to be happily engaged in His devotional service eternally.

Conclusion

We have to hear Rāmāyaṇa from self-realized souls or tattva-darśīs like Vālmīki, Śrīla Vyāsadeva and Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī. All other unauthorized descriptions have to be rejected. The Supreme Personality of Godhead Lord Rāmacandra has taught us many lessons by His personal example so that we can develop all good qualities of a sādhu. By doing so, we will become qualified to enter into the spiritual kingdom of the Lord and eternally engage in His service just for His pleasure. When the Lord is pleased everyone is automatically pleased.

Hare Krishna

Devavrata, the son of Śāntanu and mother Gaṅgā was a self-realized devotee, a mahājana (or authority) on par with the great demigods like Brahmā, Nārada and Śiva because of his spiritual perfection. He was famous throughout the universe and was respected by all. Instructed by ṛṣis such as Vasiṣṭa, Shukra and Paraśurāma, Devavrata was proficient in all aspects of Vedic knowledge and was expert in arms and warfare. Devavrata became famously known as Bhīṣmadeva because he took a severe vow of lifelong celibacy, so that his father Śāntanu could marry Satyavati. Being pleased by the vow taken by his son Devavrata, Śāntanu blessed him with icchā maraṇa, a blessing that enabled Bhīṣmadeva to give up his body whenever he desired. 

Bhīṣmadeva was not only a great family head of the Kuru dynasty, but also was a great philosopher and friend to the Pāṇḍavas and their mother Kuntīdevī.  Although Mahārāja Dhṛtarāṣṭra, the elder uncle of Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, was there to look after them, Mahārāja Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s affection was more on the side of his hundred sons, headed by Duryodhana. A colossal clique was fabricated to deprive the five fatherless brothers of their rightful claim of the kingdom of Hastināpura. There was great intrigue, common in imperial palaces, and the five brothers were exiled to the wilderness. But Bhīṣmadeva was always a sincerely sympathetic well-wisher, grandfather, friend and philosopher to Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, even up to the last moment of his life.

Upon returning from exile, the Pāṇḍavas rightfully requested their kingdom from Duryodhana, who bluntly refused to yield it. Duty-bound as princes to serve in public administration, the five Pāṇḍavas reduced their request to a mere five villages. But Duryodhana arrogantly replied that he wouldn’t spare them enough land into which to drive a pin. Throughout all this, the Pāṇḍavas had been consistently tolerant and forbearing. But now war seemed inevitable. Bhīṣmadeva was not at all satisfied to fight against the Pāṇḍavas, who were his beloved fatherless grandchildren. But the kṣatriyas are also very stern people, and therefore he was obliged to take the side of Duryodhana because he was maintained at the expense of Duryodhana. Bhīṣma could not win the Battle of Kurukṣetra because the Lord wanted to show that vice cannot conquer virtue, regardless of who tries to execute it. Bhīṣmadeva was a great devotee of the Lord, but he chose to fight against the Pāṇḍavas by the will of the Lord because the Lord wanted to show that a fighter like Bhīṣma cannot win on the wrong side.

The pious King Yudhiṣṭhira was mortified because of the mass massacre of human beings in the Battle of Kurukṣetra, especially on his account. This mass killing simply to enthrone Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira was too mortifying. Great sages like Vyāsa and the Lord Himself tried to convince  Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira with evidences from histories that the fight was just because the cause was just. But Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira would not be satisfied, even though he was instructed by the greatest personalities of the time. Kṛṣṇa is the performer of superhuman actions, but in this particular instance neither He nor Vyāsa could convince King Yudhiṣṭhira. Does it mean that Kṛṣṇa failed to be a superhuman actor? No, certainly not. The interpretation is that the Lord as īśvara, or the Supersoul in the hearts of both King Yudhiṣṭhira and Vyāsa, performed still more superhuman action because the Lord desired it. As Supersoul of King Yudhiṣṭhira, He did not allow the King to be convinced by the words of Vyāsa and others, including Himself, because He desired that the King hear instructions from the dying Bhīṣmadeva, who was another great devotee of the Lord. The Lord wanted that at the last stage of his material existence the great warrior Bhīṣmadeva see Him personally and see his beloved grandchildren, King Yudhiṣṭhira, etc., now situated on the throne, and thus pass away very peacefully. 

Besides this, the Lord also desired that King Yudhiṣṭhira be pacified by the words of Bhīṣmadeva so that the world could see that Bhīṣmadeva excelled all in knowledge, including the Lord Himself.

Bhīṣmadeva, who was the best amongst the eight Vasus, received and welcomed all the great and powerful ṛṣis who were assembled there, for he knew perfectly all the religious principles according to time and place. 

Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira went to the scene of the massacre along with Vyāsa and other ṛṣis. Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Personality of Godhead, also followed, seated on a chariot with Arjuna.  Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira was inspired by Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa to ask Bhīṣmadeva of the principles of religion in the presence of many great sages, indicating thereby that the Lord's devotee like Bhīṣmadeva, although apparently living as a worldly man, is far superior to many great sages, even Vyāsadeva. 

Another point is that Bhīṣmadeva at that time was not only lying on a deathbed of arrows, but was greatly aggrieved because of that state. One should not have asked him any question at that time, but Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa wanted to prove that His pure devotees are always sound in body and mind by dint of spiritual enlightenment, and thus in any circumstances a devotee of the Lord is in perfect order to speak of the right way of life. 

Yudhiṣṭhira also preferred to solve his problematic questions by asking Bhīṣmadeva rather than ask anyone else present there who was seemingly more learned than Bhīṣmadeva. This is all due to the arrangement of the great wheel-carrier Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, who establishes the glories of His devotee. The father likes to see the son become more famous than himself. The Lord declares very emphatically that worship of His devotee is more valuable than the worship of the Lord Himself.

Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, after hearing Bhīṣmadeva speak in that appealing tone, asked him, in the presence of all the great ṛṣis, about the essential principles of various religious duties. 

At Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira's inquiry, Bhīṣmadeva first defined all the classifications of castes and orders of life in terms of the individual's qualifications. Then he systematically, in twofold divisions, described counteraction by detachment and interaction by attachment. 

While Bhīṣmadeva was describing occupational duties, the sun's course ran into the northern hemisphere. This period is desired by mystics who die at their will. Bhīṣmadeva knew well how to utilize it. He was just waiting for the suitable moment to quit his material body, and the golden opportunity arrived when he was instructing his noble grandsons, the Pāṇḍavas. He thus prepared himself to quit his body before the exalted Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the pious Pāṇḍavas and the great sages headed by Bhagavān Vyāsa, etc., all great souls.

In the momentous hour of leaving his material body, Bhīṣmadeva set the glorious example concerning the important function of the human form of life. Bhīṣmadeva stopped speaking and, being completely freed from all bondage, withdrew his mind from everything else and fixed his wide-open eyes upon the original Personality of Godhead, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, who stood before him, four-handed, dressed in yellow garments that glittered and shined. 

The subject matter which attracts the dying man becomes the beginning of his next life. Therefore, if one is absorbed in thoughts of the Supreme Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, he is sure to go back to Godhead without any doubt. Bhīṣmadeva wanted to see Śrī Kṛṣṇa for a long time out of his spontaneous love for Him. Because he was a pure devotee, he had very little to do with the detailed performance of yogic principles. Simple bhakti-yoga is enough to bring about perfection. Therefore, the ardent desire of Bhīṣmadeva was to see the person of Lord Kṛṣṇa, the most lovable object, and by the grace of the Lord, Śrī Bhīṣmadeva had this opportunity at the last stage of his breathing. Śrī Bhīṣmadeva offered his prayers to Lord Kṛṣṇa.

The prayers offered by Śrī Bhīṣmadeva are described in the Anushana Parva of the Mahabharata. Bhishma Svargaroha Parva Chapter 273

Some of his prayers are as follows:

bhīṣma uvāca

bhagavan-deva-deveśa surāsura namaskṛta |

trivikrama namastubhyaṁ śañkha cakra gadādhara  ||

vāsudevo  hiraṇyātmā puruṣaḥ savitā virāṭ |

jīvabhūto ’nurūpastvaṁ paramātmā sanātanaḥ ||

tvadbhktaṁ tvdgatiṁ śāntam udārama prigraham| 

trāyasva puṇḍrīkākśa puruṣottama nityaśaḥ ||

and so on.

It is interesting to note that Bhīṣmadeva’s prayers are also mentioned in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.9.

Rearding Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Garuḍa Purāṇa states:

artho ‘yaṁ brahma-sūtrāṇāṁ bhāratārtha-vinirṇayaḥ

gāyatrī-bhāṣya-rūpo ‘sau  vedārtha-paribṛṁhitaḥ

purāṇānāṁ sāma-rūpaḥ  sākṣād-bhagavatoditaḥ

dvādaśa-skandha-yukto ‘yaṁ  śata-viccheda-saṁyutaḥ

grantho ‘ṣṭādaśa-sāhasraḥ  śrīmad-bhāgavatābhidhaḥ

“‘The meaning of the Vedānta-sūtra is present in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. The full purport of the Mahābhārata is also there. The commentary of the Brahma-gāyatrī is also there and fully expanded with all Vedic knowledge. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the supreme Purāṇa, and it was compiled by the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His incarnation as Vyāsadeva. There are twelve cantos, 335 chapters and eighteen thousand verses.’

Since Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam gives the full purport of the Mahābhārata as mentioned in the Garuḍa purana, to understand Bhīṣmadeva’s pure devotion, we will now refer to the prayers of Bhīṣmadeva from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam canto one chapter nine.

Pure devotees of the Lord have no desire other than the service of the Lord, and therefore they are called sātvatas. The Lord is the chief amongst such sātvatas. In his prayer Bhīṣmadeva expresses his desire to invest his thinking, feeling and willing in the all-powerful Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa who is the leader of the devotees. 

Bhīṣmadeva  wanted to fixup his mind on Lord Sri Kṛṣṇa at the time of his death. He remembers the transcendental beauty of Lord Kṛṣṇa in the battlefield of Kurukshetra. Bhīṣmadeva remembers the particular dress of Lord Kṛṣṇa which He was wearing as Arjuna's chariot driver. While fighting was going on between Arjuna and Bhīṣma, Bhīṣma's attraction was drawn by the glittering dress of Kṛṣṇa, and indirectly he admired his so-called enemy Arjuna for possessing the Lord as his friend. Arjuna was always a conqueror because the Lord was his friend. Bhīṣmadeva takes this opportunity to address the Lord as vijaya-sakhe (friend of Arjuna) because the Lord is pleased when He is addressed conjointly with His devotees, who are related with Him in different transcendental humors. 

Bhīṣmadeva  prays:

tri-bhuvana-kamanaṁ tamāla-varṇaṁ ravi-kara-gaura-varāmbaraṁ dadhāne

vapur alaka-kulāvṛtānanābjaṁ vijaya-sakhe ratir astu me 'navadyā

‘Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the intimate friend of Arjuna. He has appeared on this earth in His transcendental body, which resembles the bluish color of the tamāla tree. His body attracts everyone in the three planetary systems [upper, middle and lower]. May His glittering yellow dress and His lotus face, covered with paintings of sandalwood pulp, be the object of my attraction, and may I not desire fruitive results.’ SB 1.9.33

While fighting with Arjuna, Bhīṣmadeva had shot many arrows on the Lord causing many wounds on the body of the Lord. This was greatly pleasing the Lord. Bhīṣmadeva meditates on Lord Kṛṣṇa and recalls that particular scene and prays:

yudhi turaga-rajo-vidhūmra-viṣvak-kaca-lulita-śramavāry-alaṅkṛtāsye

mama niśita-śarair vibhidyamāna-tvaci vilasat-kavace 'stu kṛṣṇa ātmā

‘On the battlefield [where Śrī Kṛṣṇa attended Arjuna out of friendship], the flowing hair of Lord Kṛṣṇa turned ashen due to the dust raised by the hoofs of the horses. And because of His labor, beads of sweat wetted His face. All these decorations, intensified by the wounds dealt by my sharp arrows, were enjoyed by Him. Let my mind thus go unto Śrī Kṛṣṇa.’ SB 1.9.34

Śrī Bhīṣmadeva is a great devotee of the Lord in the relation of servitorship. Thus his throwing of sharp arrows at the transcendental body of the Lord is as good as the worship of another devotee who throws soft roses upon Him.

Bhīṣmadeva appreciated the all-merciful attitude of the Lord because He did not leave Arjuna alone, although He was disturbed by the sharpened arrows of Bhīṣmadeva, nor was He reluctant to come before Bhīṣma's deathbed, even though He was ill-treated by him on the battlefield. Bhīṣma's repentance and the Lord's merciful attitude are both unique in this picture.

The Battle of Kurukṣetra was fought on military principles but at the same time in a sporting spirit, like a friend's fight with another friend. Duryodhana criticized Bhīṣmadeva, alleging that he was reluctant to kill Arjuna because of paternal affection. A kṣatriya cannot tolerate insults on the principle of fighting. Bhīṣmadeva therefore promised that the next day he would kill all five Pāṇḍavas with special weapons made for the purpose. Duryodhana was satisfied, and he kept the arrows with him to be delivered the next day during the fight. By tricks Arjuna took the arrows from Duryodhana, and Bhīṣmadeva could understand that this was the trick of Lord Kṛṣṇa. So he took a vow that the next day Kṛṣṇa would have to take up weapons Himself, otherwise His friend Arjuna would die. In the next day's fighting Bhīṣmadeva fought so violently that both Arjuna and Kṛṣṇa were in trouble. Arjuna was almost defeated; the situation was so tense that he was about to be killed by Bhīṣmadeva the very next moment. At that time Lord Kṛṣṇa wanted to please His devotee, Bhīṣma, by keeping Bhīṣma's promise, which was more important than His own. Seemingly He broke His own promise. He promised before the beginning of the Battle of Kurukṣetra that He would remain without weapons and would not use His strength for either of the parties. But to protect Arjuna He got down from the chariot, took up the wheel of the chariot and hurriedly rushed at Bhīṣmadeva in an angry mood, as a lion goes to kill an elephant. He dropped His covering cloth on the way, and out of great anger He did not know that He had dropped it. Bhīṣmadeva at once gave up his weapons and stood to be killed by Kṛṣṇa, his beloved Lord. The fighting of the day was thus ended at that very moment, and Arjuna was saved. Of course there was no possibility of Arjuna's death because the Lord Himself was on the chariot, but because Bhīṣmadeva wanted to see Lord Kṛṣṇa take up some weapon to save His friend, the Lord created this situation, making Arjuna's death imminent. He stood before Bhīṣmadeva to show him that his promise was fulfilled and that He had taken up the wheel. Recalling this incident, Bhīṣmadeva  prays:

sva-nigamam apahāya mat-pratijñām ṛtam adhikartum avapluto rathasthaḥ

dhṛta-ratha-caraṇo 'bhyayāc caladgur harir iva hantum ibhaṁ gatottarīyaḥ

‘Fulfilling my desire and sacrificing His own promise, He got down from the chariot, took up its wheel, and ran towards me hurriedly, just as a lion goes to kill an elephant. He even dropped His outer garment on the way.’ SB 1.9.37

The dealings of Lord Kṛṣṇa and Bhīṣmadeva on the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra are interesting because the activities of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa appeared to be partial to Arjuna and at enmity with Bhīṣmadeva; but factually all this was especially meant to show special favor to Bhīṣmadeva, a great devotee of the Lord. The astounding feature of such dealings is that a devotee can please the Lord by playing the part of an enemy. The Lord, being absolute, can accept service from His pure devotee even in the garb of an enemy. The Supreme Lord cannot have any enemy, nor can a so-called enemy harm Him because He is ajita, or unconquerable. But still He takes pleasure when His pure devotee beats Him like an enemy or rebukes Him from a superior position, although no one can be superior to the Lord. These are some of the transcendental reciprocatory dealings of the devotee with the Lord. And those who have no information of pure devotional service cannot penetrate into the mystery of such dealings. Hence Bhīṣmadeva Prays:

śita-viśikha-hato viśīrṇa-daṁśaḥ kṣataja-paripluta ātatāyino me

prasabham abhisasāra mad-vadhārthaṁ sa bhavatu me bhagavān gatir mukundaḥ

‘May He, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Personality of Godhead, who awards salvation, be my ultimate destination. On the battlefield He charged me, as if angry because of the wounds dealt by my sharp arrows. His shield was scattered, and His body was smeared with blood due to the wounds.’ SB 1.9.38

 Had Bhīṣmadeva been an enemy of the Lord, Lord Kṛṣṇa could have annihilated him without even moving. There was no need to come before Bhīṣmadeva with blood and wounds. But He did so because the warrior devotee wanted to see the transcendental beauty of the Lord decorated with wounds created by a pure devotee. This is the way of exchanging transcendental rasa, or relations between the Lord and the servitor. By such dealings both the Lord and the devotee become glorified in their respective positions. The Lord was so angry that Arjuna checked Him when He was moving towards Bhīṣmadeva, but in spite of Arjuna's checking, He proceeded towards Bhīṣmadeva as a lover goes to a lover, without caring for hindrances. Apparently His determination was to kill Bhīṣmadeva, but factually it was to please him as a great devotee of the Lord. 

The relation of the Lord with Arjuna is praiseworthy for devotees like Bhīṣmadeva, but the relation of the gopīs with the Lord is still more praiseworthy because of their still more purified loving service. By the grace of the Lord, Arjuna was fortunate enough to have the fraternal service of the Lord as chariot driver, but the Lord did not award Arjuna with equal strength. However, by intense ecstasy in loving service, the damsels of Vrajabhūmi attained qualitative oneness with the Lord by dancing with Him on an equal level, embracing Him in nuptial love, smiling at Him in joke, and looking at Him with a loving attitude. The gopīs, practically became one with the Lord by attainment of equal footing with the Lord. Bhīṣma aspired to remember the gopīs to have their mercy also at the last stage of his life. The Lord is satisfied more when His pure devotees are glorified, and therefore Bhīṣmadeva not only glorified the acts of Arjuna, his immediate object of attraction, but he also remembers the gopīs, who were endowed with unrivalled opportunities by rendering loving service to the Lord.

lalita-gati-vilāsa-valguhāsa-praṇaya-nirīkṣaṇa-kalpitorumānāḥ

kṛta-manu-kṛta-vatya unmadāndhāḥ prakṛtim agan kila yasya gopa-vadhvaḥ

‘Let my mind be fixed upon Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, whose motions and smiles of love attracted the damsels of Vrajadhāma [the gopīs]. The damsels imitated the characteristic movements of the Lord [after His disappearance from the rāsa dance].’ SB 1.9.40

Finally Bhīṣmadeva meditates with full concentration upon that one Lord, Śrī Kṛṣṇa who was present before him and gives up his body. The stage attained by Bhīṣmadeva while quitting his material body is called nirvikalpa-samādhi because he merged his self into thinking of the Lord and his mind into remembering His different activities. He chanted the glories of the Lord, and by his sight he began to see the Lord personally present before him, and thus all his activities became concentrated upon the Lord without deviation. 

Bhīṣmadeva, as a pure devotee of the Lord, entered the spiritual realm in one of the Vaikuṇṭha planets where the Lord in His eternal form of Pārtha-sārathi predominates over the unconditioned living beings who are constantly engaged in the service of the Lord. The love and affection which bind the Lord and devotee are exhibited in the case of Bhīṣmadeva. Bhīṣmadeva never forgot the Lord in His transcendental feature as the Pārtha-sārathi, and the Lord was present personally before Bhīṣmadeva while he was passing to the transcendental world. That is the highest perfection of life.

Bhīṣmadeva was respected both by the human beings and by the demigods. When the distant planets were informed of the passing away of Bhīṣmadeva, all the inhabitants of the upper planets as well as of the earth dropped showers of flowers to show due respect to the departed great personality.  Bhīṣmadeva was unique in his activities, and his passing away to the kingdom of God is also unique.

 Hare Krishna