Both knowledge and ignorance, being products of mAyA are expansions of the Lord's potency : mAyayA vinirmite. Both knowledge and ignorance are beginningless and perpetually award liberation and bondage to embodied living beings. The living entity places himself in the grip of the mundane qualitative potency (guNa-mAyA) and falsely dreams that he is part and parcel of the material world. By the expansion of vidyA or knowledge, a conditioned soul is liberated from the clutches of mAyA and similarly, by the expansion of avidyA or ignorance, the conditioned soul is driven further into illusion and bondage. Both knowledge and ignorance are products of the mighty potency of the Personality of Godhead. The vidyA potency engages the living entities in the Lord's pastimes, whereas the avidyA potency engages the living entities in forgetting the Lord and merging into darkness. Actually, both knowledge and ignorance are eternal alternatives of the marginal potency of the Lord, and in this sense it may be said that the living entity is either eternally conditioned or eternally liberated. "Because the Lord is the absolute Transcendence, all of His forms, names, pastimes, attributes, associates and energies are identical with Him. His transcendental energy acts according to His omnipotency. The same energy acts as His external, internal and marginal energies, and by His omnipotency He can perform anything and everything through the agency of any of the above energies. He can turn the external energy into internal by His will." - as explained by Srila PrabhupAda in his commentary on SB (1.3.34)

In srimadbhagavatha the lifting of the mountain is described thus.

'Ithyukthvaa ekena hasthenakrthvaa govardhanaachalam dhadhaara leelayaa krishnah cchathraakamiva baalakah'

Krishna lifted the mountain by one hand playfully like an umbrella. The same is described by Vedanta Desika beautifully thus.

'Sa leelayaa merumiva dvitheeyam govardhanam gopakula pradheepah navaprroodam nihithaika hastho naago nalasthambham iva ujjahaara.'

The light of the Yadavas,(krishna) lifted playfully the govardhana mountain like a second Meru ,placing it in one hand like an elephant lifting a lotus stalk. He upturned the mountain 'adhomukhaavasthitham' and held it with its bottom up, 'udhanchayath sathvaram oordhvamoolam.' Periazvar describing this incident by 10 verses says that the hand of Krishna looked like adhisesha holding the earth.'padangal palavumudai paambaraiyan padarbhoomiyai thaanga kidappavan pol' as the fingers resembled the hoods of the sesha with his hand opened wide, 'thadangai viralindhum malara vaitthu.'  read more »

Suffering is unnatural and unnecessary because we are constitutionally meant to enjoy unlimited happiness at every minute. The only reason we suffer is that our original pure consciousness is covered by illusion. Therefore those who are fortunate and intelligent dedicate themselves fully to getting free from the influence of the illusory energy.

If one can somehow or other surmount the influence of the illusory energy, his original, natural, pure state of consciousness again becomes fully manifested. This process is wonderfully described as follows in the Srimad Bhagavatam:

yady esoparata devi
maya vaisaradi matih
sampanna eveti vidur
mahimni sve mahiyate

"If the illusory energy subsides and the living entity becomes fully enriched with knowledge by the grace of the Lord, then he becomes at once enlightened with self-realization and thus becomes situated in his own glory."
--Srimad Bhagavatam 1.3.34 --------Sankarshan Dasa Adhikari

   read more »

TEXT

AJauRNa ovac
viÄTaae_h& MaharaJa hir<aa bNDauæiPa<aa )
YaeNa Mae_PaôTa& TaeJaae devivSMaaPaNa& MahTa( )) 5 ))

arjuna uväca

vaïcito 'haà mahä-räja

hariëä bandhu-rüpiëä

yena me 'pahåtaà tejo

deva-vismäpanaà mahat  read more »

TEXT

TaÃœE DaNauSTa wzv" Sa rQaae hYaaSTae
 Saae_h& rQaq Na*PaTaYaae YaTa AaNaMaiNTa )
Sav| +a<aeNa Tad>aUdSadqXair¢&-
 >aSMaNa( huTa& ku-hk-raÖiMavaeáMaUZYaaMa( )) 21 ))

tad vai dhanus ta iñavaù sa ratho hayäs te

so 'haà rathé nåpatayo yata änamanti

sarvaà kñaëena tad abhüd asad éça-riktaà

bhasman hutaà kuhaka-räddham ivoptam üñyäm  read more »

TEXT

MaQauraYaa& TaQaa vJa]& éUrSaeNaPaiTa& TaTa" )
Pa[aJaaPaTYaa& iNaæPYaeiíMaGanqNaiPabdqìr" )) 39 ))

mathuräyäà tathä vajraà

çürasena-patià tataù

präjäpatyäà nirüpyeñöim

agnén apibad éçvaraù

SYNONYMS  read more »

TEXT

YaSYa +a<aivYaaeGaeNa l/aek-ae ùiPa[YadXaRNa" )
oKQaeNa rihTaae ùez Ma*Tak-" Pa[aeCYaTae YaQaa )) 6 ))

yasya kñaëa-viyogena

loko hy apriya-darçanaù

ukthena rahito hy eña

måtakaù procyate yathä

SYNONYMS  read more »