What Makes Krishna's Body Different From Ours?

Question: Swami Ji, if Shri Krishna appears in this world, He must have a body. We also have bodies. So what is the difference between Krishna's body and ours?

Swami Yugal Sharan Ji: The fundamental difference is this:

Our bodies are material. Krishna's body is transcendental.

To understand this, we have to understand what a transcendental body means.

There are three fundamental differences.

1. There Is No Difference Between Krishna's Body and His Being

In our case, there is a distinction between the body and the entity within the body.

We have a Sthula Sharir, the gross body; a Sukshma Sharir, the subtle body; and a Karana Sharir, the causal body.

The subtle body consists of the Manas, Buddhi, Ahamkara, and Chitta: mind, intelligence, ego, and Chitta, according to Sankhya Darshan.

The causal body governs the subtle body, and the subtle body governs the external, gross body.

All three are inert. They receive consciousness through the presence of the soul.

The soul imparts consciousness to the causal body, the causal body to the subtle body, and the subtle body to the external body.

There are therefore several divisions between the different aspects of our existence.

But in the case of God, there is no such difference.

The soul and the body of God are one and the same.

2. Krishna's Senses Are Not Limited

Our senses have specific functions.

Our eyes see.

Our ears hear.

Our nostrils smell.

Each sense has its particular function.

But the transcendental body of God is different.

There is no Svagata Bheda. Each sense can perform the functions of all the other senses.

This is another fundamental characteristic of the transcendental body.

3. Krishna's Body Is Not Made of the Five Material Elements

Our material bodies are constituted of the Pancha Mahabhutas, the five fundamental elements:

Ether, air, fire, water, and earth.

Krishna's transcendental body is not constituted of these five material elements.

Therefore, although Krishna appears in a form that can be seen and experienced, His body is fundamentally different from our material bodies.

These are the three fundamental differences between the material body and the transcendental body of God.

What About the Saints?

Question: What about saints? Are they also bound to material bodies?

Swami Yugal Sharan Ji: Saints who have transcended Maya are different.

They are described as being governed by their own will, Svachchhachari. They are supremely independent and can assume either a material body or a transcendental body.

The document gives examples such as Meera, who merges herself into the idol of Dwarkadhish; Gauranga Mahaprabhu, who merges Himself into the idol of Jagannath Ji or Tota Gopinath; and Rishabh Bhagavan, whose body is said to have been consumed by a wildfire.

The distinction is therefore between individual souls who are under the spell of Maya, God, who is the controller of Maya, and saints who have transcended themselves beyond Maya.

Why Should We Love God?

Question: Swami Ji, why should we love God?

Swami Yugal Sharan Ji: This is one of the most popular questions.

We are constantly searching for happiness.

We accumulate property. We seek name and fame. We acquire knowledge. We want to live longer. We pursue one goal after another.

But these are not ultimately separate goals.

Behind all of them is one common aspiration:

happiness.

Even the different "isms" prevalent in modern society, including empiricism, collectivism, pluralism, idealism, Marxism, Fabianism, and Fascism, ultimately have one common aim: the accumulation and attainment of happiness.

This is the only aim.

The Taittirīya Upaniṣad expresses this beautifully:

“Ānando Brahmeti Vyajānāt, Raso Vai Saḥ.”

God is bliss, and bliss is God.

Therefore, if the happiness we are constantly seeking is ultimately found in God, then attaining God becomes the highest means of attaining that happiness.

And this takes us to another important question.

If God has so many forms and so many incarnations, why is Krishna's appearance considered so special?

That is what we will explore in the final episode of this Janmashtami series.

To be continued...

Radhe Radhe