Chapter 7 · Class prep
A printable handout for teaching this chapter. For each verse with Personal Guidance, you'll see Prabhupāda's translation, the essence, two or three practical applications, and a discussion prompt. Press ⌘P / Ctrl P to print as a handout.
BG 7.1
Lord Brahmā said: When the unlimitedly powerful Lord assumed the form of a boar as a pastime, just to lift the planet earth, which was drowned in the great ocean of the universe called the Garbhodaka, the first demon [Hiraṇyākṣa] appeared, and the Lord pierced him with His tusk.
Essence. When the earth itself fell into deep waters, the Lord became a boar to lift it up and pierced the first demon. The Lord intervenes when the foundations slip. He doesn't watch from above; He descends into the muck to retrieve us.
BG 7.2
The Prajāpati first begot Suyajña in the womb of his wife Ākūti, and then Suyajña begot demigods, headed by Suyama, in the womb of his wife Dakṣiṇā. Suyajña, as the Indradeva, diminished very great miseries in the three planetary systems [upper, lower and intermediate], and because he so diminished the miseries of the universe, he was later called Hari by the great father of mankind, namely Svāyambhuva Manu.
Essence. Authentic incarnations come with verifiable father, mother, and place — that's how scripture guards against imagined gods. Sanity in spiritual life includes checking sources. Don't accept a 'God' without the references the tradition asks for.
BG 7.3
The Lord then appeared as the Kapila incarnation, being the son of the prajāpati brāhmaṇa Kardama and his wife, Devahūti, along with nine other women [sisters]. He spoke to His mother about self-realization, by which, in that very lifetime, she became fully cleansed of the mud of the material modes and thereby achieved liberation, the path of Kapila.
Essence. Kapila taught his own mother and she became liberated in one lifetime by following his instructions. Scripture works the same way today — if we follow Arjuna, we get what Arjuna got. The path doesn't expire.
BG 7.4
The great sage Atri prayed for offspring, and the Lord, being satisfied with him, promised to incarnate as Atri’s son, Dattātreya [Datta, the son of Atri]. And by the grace of the lotus feet of the Lord, many Yadus, Haihayas, etc., became so purified that they obtained both material and spiritual blessings.
Essence. The sage Atri asked for offspring and got the Lord as his son — relating to God in vātsalya, parental affection. There are many flavors of relationship with God; He responds to whichever you bring with sincerity.
BG 7.5
To create different planetary systems I had to undergo austerities and penance, and the Lord, thus being pleased with me, incarnated in four sanas [Sanaka, Sanatkumāra, Sanandana and Sanātana]. In the previous creation the spiritual truth was devastated, but the four sanas explained it so nicely that the truth at once became clearly perceived by the sages.
Essence. When everything is given in charity to the Lord, He gives Himself back. The four Sanas revived crushed spiritual truth and made it perceivable again. Sometimes a small clear voice restores what whole ages had forgotten.
BG 7.6
To exhibit His personal way of austerity and penance, He appeared in twin forms as Nārāyaṇa and Nara in the womb of Mūrti, the wife of Dharma and the daughter of Dakṣa. Celestial beauties, the companions of Cupid, went to try to break His vows, but they were unsuccessful, for they saw that many beauties like them were emanating from Him, the Personality of Godhead.
Essence. The Lord, as Nara-Nārāyaṇa, showed the path of severe austerity. Even when celestial beauties tried to break His vow, He produced more beauties from Himself than they could compete with. He doesn't run from temptation; He outshines it.
BG 7.7
Great stalwarts like Lord Śiva can, by their wrathful glances, overcome lust and vanquish him, yet they cannot be free from the overwhelming effects of their own wrath. Such wrath can never enter into the heart of Him [the Lord], who is above all this. So how can lust take shelter in His mind?
Essence. Even Lord Śiva could destroy lust by glance but could not free himself from his own anger. The Lord alone is untouched by lust and anger. When Bhṛgu kicked Him He begged the sage's pardon. True strength is unprovokable.
BG 7.8
Being insulted by sharp words spoken by the co-wife of the king, even in his presence, Prince Dhruva, though only a boy, took to severe penances in the forest. And the Lord, being satisfied by his prayer, awarded him the Dhruva planet, which is worshiped by great sages, both upward and downward.
Essence. Dhruva, a five-year-old, took an insult and turned it into severe austerity that won him the eternal pole star. Pain rightly used becomes the spark of something eternal. Don't waste your wounds on resentment.
BG 7.9
Mahārāja Vena went astray from the path of righteousness, and the brāhmaṇas chastised him by the thunderbolt curse. By this King Vena was burnt with his good deeds and opulence and was en route to hell. The Lord, by His causeless mercy, descended as his son, by the name of Pṛthu, delivered the condemned King Vena from hell, and exploited the earth by drawing all kinds of crops as produce.
Essence. When the kṣatriya Vena turned tyrannical, the brāhmaṇas cursed him and the Lord descended as Pṛthu to rescue and to make the earth productive. Right administration depends on guidance by wisdom-bearers, not on the autocrat's whim.
BG 7.10
The Lord appeared as the son of Sudevī, the wife of King Nābhi, and was known as Ṛṣabhadeva. He performed materialistic yoga to equibalance the mind. This stage is also accepted as the highest perfectional situation of liberation, wherein one is situated in one’s self and is completely satisfied.
Essence. Ṛṣabhadeva practiced jaḍa-yoga — becoming as still as a stone under all blows — to be undisturbed by matter. The aim wasn't masochism but to root oneself fully in the Self, free of every material reaction.
BG 7.11
The Lord appeared as the Hayagrīva incarnation in a sacrifice performed by me [Brahmā]. He is the personified sacrifices, and the hue of His body is golden. He is the personified Vedas as well, and the Supersoul of all demigods. When He breathed, all the sweet sounds of the Vedic hymns came out of His nostrils.
Essence. The Lord as Hayagrīva is the personified Vedas and sacrifices themselves. A devotee of the Lord directly is already serving every sacrifice and pleasing every demigod. Going to the root simplifies everything.
BG 7.12
At the end of the millennium, the would-be Vaivasvata Manu, of the name Satyavrata, would see that the Lord in the fish incarnation is the shelter of all kinds of living entities, up to those in the earthly planets. Because of my fear of the vast water at the end of the millennium, the Vedas come out of my [Brahmā’s] mouth, and the Lord enjoys those vast waters and protects the Vedas.
Essence. When the great waters of dissolution come, the Lord as Matsya saves both the beings and the Vedas. Even scripture itself needs the Lord's protection. The wisdom we lean on is sustained by the One it points to.
BG 7.13
The primeval Lord then assumed the tortoise incarnation in order to serve as a resting place [pivot] for the Mandara Mountain, which was acting as a churning rod. The demigods and demons were churning the Ocean of Milk with the Mandara Mountain in order to extract nectar. The mountain moved back and forth, scratching the back of Lord Tortoise, who, while partially sleeping, was experiencing an itching sensation.
Essence. As the tortoise, the Lord became the pivot for the cosmic churning, even enjoying the scratch on His back. He humbly supports what others use to extract nectar. The greatest can take a hidden, supporting role.
BG 7.14
The Personality of Godhead assumed the incarnation of Nṛsiṁhadeva in order to vanquish the great fears of the demigods. He killed the king of the demons [Hiraṇyakaśipu], who challenged the Lord with a club in his hand, by placing the demon on His thighs and piercing him with His nails, rolling His eyebrows in anger and showing His fearful teeth and mouth.
Essence. Hiraṇyakaśipu thought he had loopholed his way to immortality. The Lord as Nṛsiṁha appeared in the very gap he thought he had left — half-man, half-lion, dusk, on a lap, with claws. Pride that builds clever defenses meets defenders that bypass them.
BG 7.15
The leader of the elephants, whose leg was attacked in a river by a crocodile of superior strength, was much aggrieved. Taking a lotus flower in his trunk, he addressed the Lord, saying, “O original enjoyer, Lord of the universe! O deliverer, as famous as a place of pilgrimage! All are purified simply by hearing Your holy name, which is worthy to be chanted.”
Essence. The elephant Gajendra, attacked in water by a crocodile, cried out the Lord's holy name from past devotion. Even from helpless distress, the holy name reaches Him. Past devotion stored quietly can still save you in this life.
BG 7.16
The Personality of Godhead, after hearing the elephant’s plea, felt that the elephant needed His immediate help, for he was in great distress. Thus at once the Lord appeared there on the wings of the king of birds, Garuḍa, fully equipped with His weapon, the wheel [cakra]. With the wheel He cut to pieces the mouth of the crocodile to save the elephant, and He delivered the elephant by lifting him by his trunk.
Essence. The Lord heard the elephant's distress from far-off Vaikuṇṭha and arrived at once on Garuḍa with His cakra. Distance is no problem for Him; sincerity is the only requirement. He shows up when the heart is unmistakably calling.
BG 7.17
The Lord, although transcendental to all material modes, still surpassed all the qualities of the sons of Aditi, known as the Ādityas. The Lord appeared as the youngest son of Aditi. And because He surpassed all the planets of the universe, He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. On the pretense of asking for a measurement of three footsteps of land, He took away all the lands of Bali Mahārāja. He asked simply because without begging, no authority can take one’s rightful possession.
Essence. As Vāmana, the Lord came to Bali begging for three footsteps and ended up taking everything. Sometimes the Lord asks small in order to receive all. Beware of thinking your offering is just a little — He may use it to claim you entirely.
BG 7.18
Bali Mahārāja, who put on his head the water washed from the lotus feet of the Lord, did not think of anything besides his promise, in spite of being forbidden by his spiritual master. The king dedicated his own personal body to fulfill the measurement of the Lord’s third step. For such a personality, even the kingdom of heaven, which he conquered by his strength, was of no value.
Essence. Bali honored his promise to the Lord even against his guru's instructions and offered his body for the third step. When the Lord takes your possessions and gives Himself in exchange, you have not lost; you have been favored.
BG 7.19
O Nārada, you were taught about the science of God and His transcendental loving service by the Personality of Godhead in His incarnation of Haṁsāvatāra. He was very much pleased with you, due to your intense proportion of devotional service. He also explained unto you, lucidly, the full science of devotional service, which is especially understandable by persons who are souls surrendered unto Lord Vāsudeva, the Personality of Godhead.
Essence. The Lord as Haṁsa taught Nārada the science of devotion directly, because Nārada was surrendered. Surrender is the qualification; without willing cooperation, the deeper science doesn't open. The Lord teaches those who say yes first.
BG 7.20
As the incarnation of Manu, the Lord became the descendant of the Manu dynasty and ruled over the miscreant kingly order, subduing them by His powerful wheel weapon. Undeterred in all circumstances, His rule was characterized by His glorious fame, which spread over the three lokas, and above them to the planetary system of Satyaloka, the topmost in the universe.
Essence. As the Manus, the Lord rules over miscreant kings and protects the social order. Even rulership is His incarnational work. The cosmos doesn't drift; it is administered, in the long view, by Him.
BG 7.21
The Lord in His incarnation of Dhanvantari very quickly cures the diseases of the ever-diseased living entities simply by His fame personified, and only because of Him do the demigods achieve long lives. Thus the Personality of Godhead becomes ever glorified. He also exacted a share from the sacrifices, and it is He only who inaugurated the medical science or the knowledge of medicine in the universe.
Essence. As Dhanvantari, the Lord inaugurated medical science. Even the knowledge that heals our endlessly diseased bodies came from Him. Be grateful to the Source of healing, not only to the healer in front of you.
BG 7.22
When the ruling administrators, who are known as the kṣatriyas, turned astray from the path of the Absolute Truth, being desirous to suffer in hell, the Lord, in His incarnation as the sage Paraśurāma, uprooted those unwanted kings, who appeared as the thorns of the earth. Thus He thrice seven times uprooted the kṣatriyas with His keenly sharpened chopper.
Essence. When kṣatriyas became tyrants, the Lord came as Paraśurāma and uprooted them twenty-one times. Rulers exist to lead people to God-realization; when they betray that purpose, history corrects itself, sometimes harshly.
BG 7.23
Due to His causeless mercy upon all living entities within the universe, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, along with His plenary extensions, appeared in the family of Mahārāja Ikṣvāku as the Lord of His internal potency, Sītā. Under the order of His father, Mahārāja Daśaratha, He entered the forest and lived there for considerable years with His wife and younger brother. Rāvaṇa, who was very materially powerful, with ten heads on his shoulders, committed a great offense against Him and was thus ultimately vanquished.
Essence. Lord Rāma exiled Himself for fourteen years at His father's word and went to recover Sītā when Rāvaṇa stole her. Even God Himself models obedience to elders and resolute action when the precious is stolen. Both are dharma.
BG 7.24
The Personality of Godhead Rāmacandra, being aggrieved for His distant intimate friend [Sītā], glanced over the city of the enemy Rāvaṇa with red-hot eyes like those of Hara [who wanted to burn the kingdom of heaven]. The great ocean, trembling in fear, gave Him His way because its family members, the aquatics like the sharks, snakes and crocodiles, were being burnt by the heat of the angry red-hot eyes of the Lord.
Essence. Even the Lord, separated from His beloved, showed sentiment so intense that the ocean trembled and gave way. The Personality of Godhead has full feelings — He is not a cold absolute. Devotion meets a Person, not an idea.
BG 7.25
When Rāvaṇa was engaged in the battle, the trunk of the elephant which carried the King of heaven, Indra, broke in pieces, having collided with the chest of Rāvaṇa, and the scattered broken parts illuminated all directions. Rāvaṇa therefore felt proud of his prowess and began to loiter in the midst of the fighting soldiers, thinking himself the conqueror of all directions. But his laughter, overtaken by joy, along with his very air of life, suddenly ceased with the tingling sound of the bow of Rāmacandra, the Personality of Godhead.
Essence. Rāvaṇa, after one apparent victory, paraded as conqueror of all directions. When the Lord condemns, no power can save; when He protects, no weakness can be crushed. Outer victory means nothing without His sanction.
BG 7.26
When the world is overburdened by the fighting strength of kings who have no faith in God, the Lord, just to diminish the distress of the world, descends with His plenary portion. The Lord comes in His original form, with beautiful black hair. And just to expand His transcendental glories, He acts extraordinarily. No one can properly estimate how great He is.
Essence. When godless kings overburden the world, Kṛṣṇa with His expansion Baladeva descends in His original beautiful black-haired form. No estimate can capture how great He is. The original is more than any incarnation we list.
BG 7.27
There is no doubt about Lord Kṛṣṇa’s being the Supreme Lord. Otherwise, how was it possible for Him to kill a giant demon like Pūtanā when He was just on the lap of His mother, to overturn a cart with His leg when He was only three months old, or to uproot a pair of arjuna trees so high that they touched the sky, when He was only crawling? All these activities are impossible for anyone other than the Lord Himself.
Essence. Killing a giant demoness from a baby's lap, overturning carts as an infant, uprooting twin trees while crawling — Kṛṣṇa's childhood acts establish His divinity beyond debate. God is not voted in or invented; He shows Himself.
BG 7.28
Then also when the cowherd boys and their animals drank the poisoned water of the river Yamunā, and after the Lord [in His childhood] revived them by His merciful glance, just to purify the water of the river Yamunā He jumped into it as if playing and chastised the venomous Kāliya snake, which was lurking there, its tongue emitting waves of poison. Who can perform such herculean tasks but the Supreme Lord?
Essence. When the cowherds and animals drank poisoned river water, Kṛṣṇa revived them with a glance, then jumped into the Yamunā and danced on the venomous snake. He doesn't just rescue; He purifies the source.
BG 7.29
On the very night of the day of the chastisement of the Kāliya snake, when the inhabitants of Vrajabhūmi were sleeping carefreely, there was a forest fire ablaze due to dry leaves, and it appeared that all the inhabitants were sure to meet their death. But the Lord, along with Balarāma, saved them simply by closing His eyes. Such are the superhuman activities of the Lord.
Essence. Kṛṣṇa saved Vraja from a roaring forest fire simply by closing His eyes. The way out of overwhelming circumstance is not greater effort but deeper relationship with Him. He acts; we cannot match Him by trying.
BG 7.30
When the cowherd woman [Kṛṣṇa’s foster mother, Yaśodā] was trying to tie the hands of her son with ropes, she found the rope to be always insufficient in length, and when she finally gave up, Lord Kṛṣṇa, by and by, opened His mouth, wherein the mother found all the universes situated. Seeing this, she was doubtful in her mind, but she was convinced in a different manner of the mystic nature of her son.
Essence. Yaśodā tried to tie Kṛṣṇa with rope and found every rope too short. When He finally opened His mouth she saw the universe inside. The Unbindable allows Himself to be bound by love — but love alone bends Him.
BG 7.31
Lord Kṛṣṇa saved His foster father, Nanda Mahārāja, from the fear of the demigod Varuṇa and released the cowherd boys from the caves of the mountain, for they were placed there by the son of Maya. Also, to the inhabitants of Vṛndāvana, who were busy working during daytime and sleeping soundly at night because of their hard labor in the day, Lord Kṛṣṇa awarded promotion to the highest planet in the spiritual sky. All these acts are transcendental and certainly prove without any doubt His Godhood.
Essence. Kṛṣṇa rescued His foster father from Varuṇa, freed cowherd boys from caves, and gave the simple villagers of Vṛndāvana entry to the highest planet. Constant remembrance of Him, in any occupation, opens the highest destination.
BG 7.32
When the cowherd men of Vṛndāvana, under instruction of Kṛṣṇa, stopped offering sacrifice to the heavenly King, Indra, the whole tract of land known as Vraja was threatened with being washed away by constant heavy rains for seven days. Lord Kṛṣṇa, out of His causeless mercy upon the inhabitants of Vraja, held up the hill known as Govardhana with one hand only, although He was only seven years old. He did this to protect the animals from the onslaught of water.
Essence. When Vraja stopped sacrificing to Indra, Kṛṣṇa held up Govardhana for seven days like a child's umbrella. Direct devotion to the Lord makes secondary sacrifices unnecessary. Serve the One, not the bureaucracy.
BG 7.33
When the Lord was engaged in His pastimes of the rāsa dance in the forest of Vṛndāvana, enlivening the sexual desires of the wives of the inhabitants of Vṛndāvana by sweet and melodious songs, a demon of the name Śaṅkhacūḍa, a rich follower of the treasurer of heaven [Kuvera], kidnapped the damsels, and the Lord severed his head from his trunk.
Essence. Even during the most intimate rāsa dance, when a demon kidnapped damsels, the Lord acted decisively to protect them. Sweetness and severity coexist in Him. Love does not mean softness toward what harms the beloved.
BG 7.34-35
All demonic personalities like Pralamba, Dhenuka, Baka, Keśī, Ariṣṭa, Cāṇūra, Muṣṭika, Kuvalayāpīḍa elephant, Kaṁsa, Yavana, Narakāsura and Pauṇḍraka, great marshals like Śālva, Dvivida monkey and Balvala, Dantavakra, the seven bulls, Śambara, Vidūratha and Rukmī, as also great warriors like Kāmboja, Matsya, Kuru, Sṛñjaya and Kekaya, would all fight vigorously, either with the Lord Hari directly or with Him under His names of Baladeva, Arjuna, Bhīma, etc. And the demons, thus being killed, would attain either the impersonal brahmajyoti or His personal abode in the Vaikuṇṭha planets.
Essence. An endless series of demons — Pralamba, Dhenuka, Keśī, Kaṁsa, Pauṇḍraka — were killed by Kṛṣṇa or His associates, and yet they attained salvation. Even being noticed by Him, even adversely, beats being ignored. Direct contact with God transforms.
BG 7.36
The Lord Himself in His incarnation as the son of Satyavatī [Vyāsadeva] will consider his compilation of the Vedic literature to be very difficult for the less intelligent persons with short life, and thus He will divide the tree of Vedic knowledge into different branches, according to the circumstances of the particular age.
Essence. Vyāsa would compile Vedic literature into branches to help the short-lived, less intelligent people of Kali. Real scholarship cares about the actual capacity of the reader. Good teaching meets people where they are.
BG 7.37
When the atheists, after being well versed in the Vedic scientific knowledge, annihilate inhabitants of different planets, flying unseen in the sky on well-built rockets prepared by the great scientist Maya, the Lord will bewilder their minds by dressing Himself attractively as Buddha and will preach on subreligious principles.
Essence. When atheists weaponize Vedic knowledge to destroy other beings, the Lord as Buddha appears to preach simple non-violence — bewildering the misusers and quieting their reach. Sometimes God redirects through new vocabulary.
BG 7.38
Thereafter, at the end of Kali-yuga, when there exist no topics on the subject of God, even at the residences of so-called saints and respectable gentlemen of the three higher castes, and when the power of government is transferred to the hands of ministers elected from the lowborn śūdra class or those less than them, and when nothing is known of the techniques of sacrifice, even by word, at that time the Lord will appear as the supreme chastiser.
Essence. At Kali's end, even saints and the higher classes will forget the Lord's name; government will fall to the unfit; sacrifice will be forgotten. Notice the symptoms in our own time and don't be sleepy about them.
BG 7.39
At the beginning of creation there are penance, myself [Brahmā] and the Prajāpatis, the great sages who generate; then, during the maintenance of the creation, there are Lord Viṣṇu, the demigods with controlling powers, and the kings of different planets. But at the end there is irreligion, and then Lord Śiva and the atheists full of anger, etc. All of them are different representative manifestations of the energy of the supreme power, the Lord.
Essence. Creation, maintenance, and dissolution are run by different manifestations of the Lord through Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and Śiva. Anger, atheism, and religion are all phases of one larger arrangement. Even the wrap-up is on schedule.
BG 7.40
Who can describe completely the prowess of Viṣṇu? Even the scientist, who might have counted the particles of the atoms of the universe, cannot do so. Because it is He only who in His form of Trivikrama moved His leg effortlessly beyond the topmost planet, Satyaloka, up to the neutral state of the three modes of material nature. And all were moved.
Essence. Even if a scientist could count the atoms of the universe or roll up the sky like a blanket, he still could not measure the Lord's prowess. As Trivikrama, He stepped beyond Satyaloka itself. Awe is the right starting posture.
BG 7.41
Neither I nor all the sages born before you know fully the omnipotent Personality of Godhead. So what can others, who are born after us, know about Him? Even the first incarnation of the Lord, namely Śeṣa, has not been able to reach the limit of such knowledge, although He is describing the qualities of the Lord with ten hundred faces.
Essence. Even Brahmā and the ancient sages don't fully know the Lord, and even Śeṣa with His thousand mouths cannot finish describing Him. Spiritual knowledge is endlessly deep. Beware anyone who claims He has been fully figured out.
BG 7.42
But anyone who is specifically favored by the Supreme Lord, the Personality of Godhead, due to unalloyed surrender unto the service of the Lord, can overcome the insurmountable ocean of illusion and can understand the Lord. But those who are attached to this body, which is meant to be eaten at the end by dogs and jackals, cannot do so.
Essence. Only the unalloyedly surrendered cross the ocean of illusion. Those identified with this dog-and-jackal-bound body simply can't enter the science of God. Bodily identification is the wall; surrender is the door.
BG 7.43-45
O Nārada, although the potencies of the Lord are unknowable and immeasurable, still, because we are all surrendered souls, we know how He acts through yoga-māyā potencies. And, similarly, the potencies of the Lord are also known to the all-powerful Śiva, the great king of the atheist family, namely Prahlāda Mahārāja, Svāyambhuva Manu, his wife Śatarūpā, his sons and daughters like Priyavrata, Uttānapāda, Ākūti, Devahūti and Prasūti, Prācīnabarhi, Ṛbhu, Aṅga the father of Vena, Mahārāja Dhruva, Ikṣvāku, Aila, Mucukunda, Mahārāja Janaka, Gādhi, Raghu, Ambarīṣa, Sagara, Gaya, Nāhuṣa, Māndhātā, Alarka, Śatadhanve, Anu, Rantideva, Bhīṣma, Bali, Amūrttaraya, Dilīpa, Saubhari, Utaṅka, Śibi, Devala, Pippalāda, Sārasvata, Uddhava, Parāśara, Bhūriṣeṇa, Vibhīṣaṇa, Hanumān, Śukadeva Gosvāmī, Arjuna, Ārṣṭiṣeṇa, Vidura, Śrutadeva, etc.
Essence. Past, present, and future devotees — Śiva, Prahlāda, Manu, Bali, Yudhiṣṭhira — know the Lord's potencies through devotion, not microscopes or telescopes. Spiritual instruments are humility, surrender, and chanting, not gadgets.
BG 7.46
Surrendered souls, even from groups leading sinful lives, such as women, the laborer class, the mountaineers and the Siberians, or even the birds and beasts, can also know about the science of Godhead and become liberated from the clutches of the illusory energy by surrendering unto the pure devotees of the Lord and by following in their footsteps in devotional service.
Essence. Even those from groups labeled 'sinful' — women, laborers, mountaineers, even birds and beasts — can come to know God by following pure devotees. No background disqualifies anyone. Spiritual realization is not a privilege of birth.
BG 7.47
What is realized as the Absolute Brahman is full of unlimited bliss without grief. That is certainly the ultimate phase of the supreme enjoyer, the Personality of Godhead. He is eternally void of all disturbances and is fearless. He is complete consciousness as opposed to matter. Uncontaminated and without distinctions, He is the principle primeval cause of all causes and effects, in whom there is no sacrifice for fruitive activities and in whom the illusory energy does not stand.
Essence. The Absolute Brahman is unlimited bliss without grief. The Personality of Godhead is the Source of even this Brahman light. Impersonal realization is a first step; the variegated personal realm is the deeper home.
BG 7.48
In such a transcendental state there is no need of artificial control of the mind, mental speculation or meditation, as performed by the jñānīs and yogīs. One gives up such processes, as the heavenly King, Indra, forgoes the trouble to dig a well.
Essence. When transcendental loving service is engaged, the laborious controls of jñāna and yoga become unnecessary — like Indra's not needing to dig a well. Direct devotion makes round-about practices optional.
BG 7.49
The Personality of Godhead is the supreme master of everything auspicious because the results of whatever actions are performed by the living being, in either the material or spiritual existence, are awarded by the Lord. As such, He is the ultimate benefactor. Every individual living entity is unborn, and therefore even after the annihilation of the material elementary body, the living entity exists, exactly like the air within the body.
Essence. The Lord is the supreme awarder of all results, material and spiritual. The living being is unborn and survives the body's loss. Whatever you aim for in either realm, it is finally He who hands the result.
BG 7.50
My dear son, I have now explained in brief the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is creator of the manifested worlds. Without Him (Hari, the Lord), there are no other causes of the phenomenal and noumenal existences.
Essence. Without Hari there are no other causes of the manifest or unmanifest existence. The material world is His external potency; the souls struggling here are His marginal potency. He stands beyond both, as the cause.
BG 7.51
O Nārada, this science of God, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, was spoken to me in summary by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and it was spoken as the accumulation of His diverse potencies. Please expand this science yourself.
Essence. Brahmā received the seed Bhāgavatam in a few verses directly from the Lord and asked Nārada to expand it. Real spiritual knowledge passes hand to hand; it isn't manufactured by mental speculation. Receive, then expand faithfully.
BG 7.52
Please describe the science of Godhead with determination and in a manner by which it will be quite possible for the human being to develop transcendental devotional service unto the Personality of Godhead Hari, the Supersoul of every living being and the summum bonum source of all energies.
Essence. Describe Godhead so that ordinary humans can develop devotional service to Hari, the Supersoul of all. Kali's four sins — illicit sex, intoxication, gambling, animal-killing — have made man blind to his eternal relation. Restore the relation.
BG 7.53
The Lord’s activities in association with His different energies should be described, appreciated and heard in accordance with the teachings of the Supreme Lord. If this is done regularly with devotion and respect, one is sure to get out of the illusory energy of the Lord.
Essence. Describe and hear the Lord's pastimes both in external and internal energy, with devotion. Fanatics jump only to the internal pastimes and despise the external work; serious students honor both equally.