FolioCorpusBhagavad-gītā

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.1.6

నిర్గుణోఽపి హ్యజోఽవ్యక్తో భగవాన్ప్రకృతే: పర: । స్వమాయాగుణమావిశ్య బాధ్యబాధకతాం గత: ॥ ౬ ॥
nirguṇo ’pi hy ajo ’vyakto
[nirguno ’pi hy ajo ’vyakto]
bhagavān prakṛteḥ paraḥ
[bhagavaan prakriteh parah]
sva-māyā-guṇam āviśya
[sva-maayaa-gunam aavishya]
bādhya-bādhakatāṁ gataḥ
[baadhya-baadhakataam gatah]
nirguṇaḥ — without material qualities api — although hi — certainly ajaḥ — unborn avyaktaḥ — unmanifest bhagavān — the Supreme Lord prakṛteḥ — to material nature paraḥ — transcendental sva-māyā — of His own energy guṇam — material qualities āviśya — entering bādhya — obligation bādhakatām — the condition of being obliged gataḥ — accepts.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
nirguṇo ’pi hy ajo ’vyakto
nirguṇaḥ
without material qualities
api
although
hi
certainly
ajaḥ
unborn
bhagavān prakṛteḥ paraḥ
avyaktaḥ
unmanifest
bhagavān
the Supreme Lord
prakṛteḥ
to material nature
paraḥ
transcendental
sva-māyā-guṇam āviśya
sva-māyā
of His own energy
guṇam
material qualities
āviśya
entering
bādhya-bādhakatāṁ gataḥ
bādhya
obligation
bādhakatām
the condition of being obliged
gataḥ
accepts.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu, is always transcendental to material qualities, and therefore He is called nirguṇa, or without qualities. Because He is unborn, He does not have a material body to be subjected to attachment and hatred. Although the Lord is always above material existence, through His spiritual potency He appeared and acted like an ordinary human being, accepting duties and obligations, apparently like a conditioned soul.

So-called attachment, detachment and obligations pertain to the material nature, which is an emanation from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but whenever the Lord descends and acts in this material world, He does so in His spiritual position. Although His activities materially appear different, spiritually they are absolute and nondifferent. Thus it is an imposition upon the Supreme Lord to say that He is envious of anyone or friendly to anyone.

In Bhagavad-gītā (9.11) the Lord clearly says, avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam: “Fools deride Me when I descend in a human form.” Kṛṣṇa appears on this earth or within this universe without any change in His spiritual body or spiritual qualities. Indeed, He is never influenced by the material qualities. He is always free from such qualities, but He appears to act under material influence. This understanding is āropita, or an imposition. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, janma karma ca me divyam: whatever He does, being always transcendental, has nothing to do with material qualities; Evaṁ yo vetti tattvataḥ: only devotees can understand the truth of how He acts. The fact is that Kṛṣṇa is never partial to anyone. He is always equal to everyone, but because of imperfect vision, influenced by material qualities, one imposes material qualities upon Kṛṣṇa, and when one does so he becomes a mūḍha, a fool. When one can properly understand the truth, one becomes devoted and nirguṇa, free from material qualities. Simply by understanding the activities of Kṛṣṇa one can become transcendental, and as soon as one is transcendental he is fit to be transferred to the transcendental world. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti so ’rjuna: one who understands the activities of the Lord in truth is transferred to the spiritual world after he gives up his material body.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
Though the Lord is without material qualities, unborn, unmanifest, and superior to matter, he enters into matter and appears to be cause of subordination or prominence of a guṇa. Situated (adhiṣṭhāya) in the guṇas, he seemed to be the cause of weakness or strength of a guṇa. The quality of unequal vision is imposed on the Lord, the controller of the guṇas.
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