Shloka 37
Bhakti Yoga: The Three Modes of Devotion, Non-Envy, and Time as the Lord
रूपभेदास्पदं दिव्यं काल इत्यभिधीयते । भूतानां महदादीनां यतो भिन्नदृशां भयम् ॥ ३७ ॥
rūpa-bhedāspadaṁ divyaṁ kāla ity abhidhīyate bhūtānāṁ mahad-ādīnāṁ yato bhinna-dṛśāṁ bhayam
The divine principle that underlies the transformations of material forms is called Time (kāla). Those who see only difference in the mahat-tattva and other elements become fearful of that Time.
Everyone is afraid of the activities of time, but a devotee who knows that the time factor is another representation or manifestation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead has nothing to fear from the influence of time. The phrase rūpa-bhedāspadam is very significant. By the influence of time, so many forms are changing. For example, when a child is born his form is small, but in the course of time that form changes into a larger form, the body of a boy and then the body of a young man. Similarly, everything is changed and transformed by the time factor, or by the indirect control of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Usually, we do not see any difference between the body of a child and the body of a boy or young man because we know that these changes are due to the action of the time factor. There is cause for fear for a person who does not know how time acts.
FAQs
This verse states that divine Time (kāla) is the basis by which forms become differentiated, influencing the manifesting of beings from the mahat-tattva onward.
Fear arises when one sees reality through a divided, dualistic vision (bhinna-dṛṣṭi); under the influence of time and differentiation, beings appear separate, and separation breeds fear.
Train the mind to see unity under the Supreme (through bhakti and spiritual knowledge), replacing “separate-from” vision with “connected-to Bhagavan” vision, which weakens fear.