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The Supreme Creator of Individual Souls?
By Jayadvaita Swami
Posted September 17, 2003

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
All glories to
Srila Prabhupada!

Bhagavad-gita As It Is 7.6, purport

First Edition:

...A fragmental part and parcel of the Lord, namely the living entity, may by manipulation of material energy construct a skyscraper, a factory, or city, but he cannot create matter out of nothing, and he certainly cannot construct a planet or a universe. The cause of the universe is the Supersoul, Krsna, the supreme creator of all individual souls and the original cause of all causes, as the Katha Upanisad (2.2.13) confirms. Nityo nityanam cetanas cetananam.

Second Edition:

. . . A fragmental part and parcel of the Lord, namely the living entity, may be the cause of a big skyscraper, a big factory, or even a big city, but he cannot be the cause of a big universe. The cause of the big universe is the big soul, or the Supersoul. And Krsna, the Supreme, is the cause of both the big and small souls. Therefore He is the original cause of all causes. This is confirmed in the Katha Upanisad (2.2.13). Nityo nityanam cetanas cetananam.

Original Manuscript:

A fragmental part and parcel of the Lord namely the living entity may be the cause of a big skycraper, a big factory of even a big city or big body but he cannot be the cause of a big universe. The cause of the big universe is the big soul or the super soul. And Krsna the Supreme is the cause of both the big and small souls and as such He is the Original cause of all causes as it is confirmed in Katha Upanisad"Nitya nityanam cetans cetananam."

Comment:

The point that a living entity "cannot create matter out of nothing" seems to have been created— well, out of nothing; it's not in the original manuscript. And the point that was in the manuscript— that though the living being may create something big, only the Lord can create something cosmically big— was lost.

Oddly, too, it's a critic who supplied the heading for this item. Souls are created? The version which says that is the one the critic favors. In the words of the sages, "Go figure."

Hare Krsna.

Website

This message also appears on the following web page:

http://www.krishna.com/newsite/main.php?id=242

Interested in the differences between the first and second editions of Bhagavad-gita As It Is? You'll find more than 150 examples at this address:

www.krishna.com/newsite/GitaRevsExplained.html

There you'll see the published versions side by side with the text of the original manuscripts. And the graphic format of the web helps you see at a glance what the revisions are and where they're coming from.

For anyone who has concerns about the editing of Bhagavad-gita As It Is, this is a must-see.

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The First and Second Editions of Bhagavad-gita As It Is are © 1972, 1983 by The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. Except where I have included quotations from non-BBT sources, the rest of this message, and of the conference as a whole, is © 1999-2003 by The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International, Inc. All rights reserved.

Hare Krsna.

© dipika.org September 17, 2003

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