Shloka 8
Secondary Creation Begins: Brahmā’s Productions, the Guṇas, and the Emergence of Orders of Beings
सूत उवाच हरेर्धृतक्रोडतनो: स्वमायया निशम्य गोरुद्धरणं रसातलात् । लीलां हिरण्याक्षमवज्ञया हतं सञ्जातहर्षो मुनिमाह भारत: ॥ ८ ॥
sūta uvāca harer dhṛta-kroḍa-tanoḥ sva-māyayā niśamya gor uddharaṇaṁ rasātalāt līlāṁ hiraṇyākṣam avajñayā hataṁ sañjāta-harṣo munim āha bhārataḥ
Sūta said: By His own yogamāyā, Hari assumed the form of Varāha, lifted the earth from Rasātala, and in divine sport slew Hiraṇyākṣa without hesitation. Hearing this, Vidura, descendant of Bharata, rejoiced and then spoke to the sage.
It is stated here that the Lord assumed the form of a boar by His own potency. His form is not actually the form of a conditioned soul. A conditioned soul is forced to accept a particular type of body by the higher authority of material laws, but here it is clearly said that the Lord was not forced to accept the form of a boar by the external power. In Bhagavad-gītā the same fact is confirmed: when the Lord descends to this earth, He assumes a form by His own internal potency. The form of the Lord, therefore, can never consist of material energy. The Māyāvāda version that when Brahman assumes a form the form is accepted from māyā is not acceptable, because although māyā is superior to the conditioned soul, she is not superior to the Supreme Personality of Godhead; she is under the control of the Supreme Godhead, as confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā. Māyā is under His superintendence; māyā cannot overcome the Lord. The Māyāvāda idea that the living entity is the Supreme Absolute Truth but has become covered by māyā is invalid, because māyā cannot be so great that it can cover the Supreme. The covering capacity can be employed on the part and parcel of Brahman, not on the Supreme Brahman.
FAQs
This verse recalls that Hari, by His own divine potency, assumed the boar form and lifted the earth (goḥ) from Rasātala, showing His protective care for creation.
Hearing the Lord’s rescue of the earth and the defeat of the arrogant Hiraṇyākṣa, Vidura became joyful and, inspired by devotion and curiosity, addressed the sage Maitreya to hear further.
It encourages faith that the Divine can lift one from the “subterranean” states of fear and confusion, and it warns against contempt for the sacred—cultivating humility and devotion instead.