In the second canto of the Srimad Bhagavatam, there is a description of the process of meditation in the universal form. Is it something we should practice? Why is this recommended in the Srimad Bhagavatam?
This is a process for ones who have material desires, or are in a gross level of consciousness and are thus not capable of accepting the personal form of the Lord.
“Śukadeva Gosvāmī answered: One should control the sitting posture, regulate the breathing process by the yogic prāṇāyāma and thus control the mind and senses and with intelligence apply the mind to the gross potencies of the Lord [called the virāṭ-rūpa].” (SB 2.1.23)
In this process, one meditates on the different components of the universal creation as well as different planetary systems and demigods as different parts of the form. Sukadeva Goswami describes that the Universal Form is composed of the phenomenal material world as a whole, wherein past, present, and future of material time are experienced.
The Pātāla planetary system constitutes the bottoms of the feet, and the heels and the toes are the Rasātala planets. The ankles are the Mahātala planets, and His shanks constitute the Talātala planets. The knees are the planetary system of Sutala, and the two thighs are the Vitala and Atala planetary systems. The hips are Mahītala, and outer space is the depression of His navel. Visible planets, such as the sun and the moon are situated in His chest, His neck is the Mahar planets, His mouth is the Janas planets, and His forehead is the Tapas planetary system. The topmost planetary system, known as Satyaloka, is the head.
His arms are the demigods headed by Indra, the ten directional sides are His ears, and physical sound is His sense of hearing. His nostrils are the two Aśvinī-kumāras, and material fragrance is His sense of smell. His mouth is the blazing fire. The sphere of outer space constitutes His eyepits, and the eyeball is the sun as the power of seeing. His eyelids are both the day and night, and in the movements of His eyebrows, Brahmā and similar supreme personalities reside. His palate is the director of water, Varuṇa, and the juice or essence of everything is His tongue. The Vedic hymns are the cerebral passage, and His jaws of teeth are Yamaraja, who punishes the sinners. The art of affection is His set of teeth, and the most alluring illusory material energy is His smile.
Modesty is the upper portion of His lips, hankering is His chin, religion is His breast, and irreligion is His back. Lord Brahmā, who generates all living beings in the material world, is His genitals. The ocean is His waist, and the hills and mountains are the stacks of His bones. The rivers are His veins, the trees are the hairs of His body, and the omnipotent air is His breath. The passing ages are His movements, and His activities are the reactions of the three modes of material nature. The clouds which carry water are the hairs on His head, the terminations of days or nights are His dress, and the supreme cause of material creation is His intelligence. His mind is the moon, the reservoir of all changes.
The principle of matter [mahat-tattva] is His consciousness, and Lord Rudra is His ego. The horse, mule, camel, and elephant are His nails and wild animals and all quadrupeds are situated in His belt zone. Varieties of birds are indications of His artistic sense. Manu, the father of mankind, is the emblem of His intelligence, and humanity is His residence. The celestial species of human beings, like the Gandharvas, Vidyādharas, Cāraṇas, and angels, represent His musical rhythm, and the demoniac soldiers are representations of His wonderful prowess. His face is the brāhmaṇas, His arms are the kṣatriyas, His thighs are the vaiśyas, and the śūdras are under the protection of His feet. All the worshipable demigods are also overtaken by Him.
To some, this description of the Universal Form may sound like a kind of pantheism, of seeing the universe and nature as identical to God in an impersonal conception, but it is actually more evolved than this. The meditation on the Universal Form is a kind of purified pantheism that gradually leads to an understanding of the personal form of the Lord. Prabhupada explains this point in his purport to verse 20:
“Pantheism in its higher status does not permit the student to form an impersonal conception of the Absolute Truth, but it extends the conception of the Absolute Truth into the field of the so-called material energy. Everything created by the material energy can be dovetailed with the Absolute by an attitude of service, which is the essential part of living energy. The pure devotee of the Lord knows the art of converting everything into its spiritual existence by this service attitude, and only in that devotional way can the theory of pantheism be perfected.”
This Universal Form is essentially an imaginary form, where different levels of planetary systems and different personalities and elements of the cosmic creation are taken as different parts and limbs of the Universal Form. In one sense, this is so, since the universe is the energy of the Lord, but in the other sense, it’s imaginary since the Lord doesn’t have a material form. To meditate on the universal form of the Lord is thus an indirect form of meditation that can help yogis that are too much absorbed in material consciousness, and thus can’t conceive anything beyond it. Such yogis can’t conceive the existence of the transcendental forms of the Lord, and thus meditation in the universal form is the only feasible process.
A yogi who is already free from material desire, situated in a more advanced stage, can skip meditation in the universal form and go straight to meditation in the Supersoul, the form of the Lord situated in one’s heart, fixing his mind in all the details of the transcendental form of the Lord.
One question an attentive reader could ask is how this universal form described in the Srimad Bhagavatam relates to the Universal Form seen by Arjuna in the Bhagavad-Gita.
Does the universal form, as described in the Srimad Bhagavatam really exist? Yes and no. It exists in the sense that the universe exists, and everything is related to Krsna for being part of His energy. On the other hand, the universal form described in the Srimad Bhagavatam is imaginary in the sense that Krsna doesn’t have a material form. The form the yogis meditate upon is thus more or less imaginary, conceived to foment their spiritual understanding.
The Universal Form observed by Arjuna (and others) on the Bhagavad-Gita is, on the other hand, a form he could observe with his own eyes. When Arjuna asked Krsna to see His Universal form, Krsna answered: “You cannot see Me with your present eyes. Therefore I give you divine eyes. Behold My mystic opulence!”
The transcendental eyes given by Krsna allowed Arjuna to see, from the seat in his chariot, everything that exists in the universe as well as past present, and future. The many different forms Arjuna saw were the forms of the different demigods, demons, and other powerful beings. All these beings are empowered by Krsna to execute their activities, therefore they are part of the Lord’s Universal body. Arjuna’s vision of the universal form devouring the soldiers in both armies where a vision of how the force of Kala, or universal time, would crush them in the near future. Time is an inexorable force that wears out and eventually destroys everything. Everyone and everything in this material world is eventually devoured by time.
Being a devotee, Arjuna immediately connected everything he saw with Krsna, understanding that everything that exists is a manifestation of Krsna’s energy. However, he couldn’t check the feelings that came from such a vision. In this way, his natural relationship of friendship with Krsna was temporarily replaced with a feeling of fear and veneration, in which Arjuna offered prayers. Krsna then showed him His four-armed form as Narayana and finally assumed again His original form with two hands.
The display of the universal form as well as the four-handed form of Narayana form serves as proof of the divinity of Krsna. As Srila Prabhupada mentions, it set the standard for anyone claiming to be an incarnation. If someone claims to be an incarnation of God and is not capable of showing his universal form, he should immediately be rejected as a fraud.
The universal form described in the Srimad Bhagavatam is thus not exactly the same as the form shown to Arjuna. Yogis use their minds and intelligence to try to conceive an imaginary form composed of the different material manifestations encased inside the universe. The level of detail they can conceive will vary according to their intellectual power, but the form remains a product of their imagination. Arjuna on the other hand could directly see everything that exists using the transcendental eyes given to him by Krsna.
This meditation in the universal form described by Sukadeva Goswami is, however, not only useful for mystic yogis, it also has a practical function for us. Although we are chanting the holy names and meditating in the form of the deity, we may have difficulty in seeing Krsna and meditating on Him in other situations, when we are not performing these activities. This meditation on the universal form can thus help us to develop a continuous meditation on Krsna and see Him everywhere.
It may be difficult for us to directly see Krsna everywhere as pure devotees do. Still, we can also see Krsna everywhere if we understand that everything is the energy of Krsna and is therefore non-different from Krsna. Prabhupada explains that even a drunkard can make spiritual advancement if he understands that Krsna is the taste of all liquids and remembers him while drinking his liquor. By seeing everything as part of Krsna’s Universal body, we can see everything as connected with Him and thus see Him everywhere. He himself teaches us this meditation in the Bhagavad-Gita:
“O son of Kuntī, I am the taste of water, the light of the sun and the moon, the syllable oṁ in the Vedic mantras; I am the sound in ether and ability in man. I am the original fragrance of the earth, and I am the heat in fire. I am the life of all that lives, and I am the penances of all ascetics. O son of Pṛthā, know that I am the original seed of all existences, the intelligence of the intelligent, and the prowess of all powerful men. I am the strength of the strong, devoid of passion and desire. I am sex life which is not contrary to religious principles, O lord of the Bhāratas [Arjuna].” (Bg 7.8-11)