Category:God's Lying Down
Theme Analysis
The philosophical essence of this category focuses on the majestic, foundational pastimes of the Supreme Personality of Godhead expanding as the three puruṣa incarnations (Mahā-Viṣṇu, Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, and Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu) to execute the cosmic manifestation. A recurring motif in these vast universal mechanics is the Lord "lying down" on transcendental waters. Mahā-Viṣṇu, the original cause of material creation, lies down in mystic slumber on the Causal Ocean (Kāraṇa-jala), where He breathes out the innumerable universe-seeds. To facilitate secondary creation, He expands as Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, entering each individual universe and lying down on the water (garbha water) filling its lower half, resting upon the serpent bed of Śeṣa Nāga. From His abdomen, the cosmic lotus flower grows, birthing Lord Brahmā. Finally, He expands as Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, lying down on the ocean of milk within the universe to act as the Supersoul of all beings and the maintainer of cosmic law. Because the Supreme Lord (Nara) lies down on these transcendental waters (nāra), He is universally known as Nārāyaṇa. Beyond the cosmic scale, the Lord's pastimes of lying down—whether appearing as a baby floating on a banyan leaf during devastation, acting as a python like Lord Ṛṣabhadeva to avoid disturbance, or being lovingly put to rest by a devotee on the altar—are constant objects of meditation for advanced yogīs.
- Mahā-Viṣṇu in the Causal Ocean: The material creation begins when Lord Mahā-Viṣṇu lies down on the Causal Ocean (Kāraṇārṇava). While in this mystic slumber, He breathes out innumerable universes from His pores and nostrils.
- Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu: The Lord enters each individual universe and fills the bottom half with the perspiration of His own body. He lies down on this garbha water upon Śeṣa Nāga, sprouting the cosmic lotus from His navel to facilitate Lord Brahmā's creation.
- Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu: Entering the hollow of the universe, the Lord further expands and lies down on the ocean of milk. In this form, He acts as the Paramātmā (Supersoul) of all living entities and accepts the prayers of the demigods.
- The Meaning of Nārāyaṇa: The Supreme Person is called "Nara," and the transcendental water generated from His body is "nāra." Because the Lord eternally lies down upon this water, He is celebrated as Nārāyaṇa.
- Meditation and Deity Worship: The Lord's pastimes of lying down are not merely historical or cosmic facts; they are active meditations for yogīs. Practically, devotees engage in these pastimes by lovingly offering food, massaging the legs, and laying the Deity down to rest each night.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: The Supreme Lord Lying Down to Create the Cosmos.
Pages in category "God's Lying Down"
The following 50 pages are in this category, out of 50 total.
A
- As the creator or original cause of innumerable universes, or the first purusa, who is lying on the Causal Ocean, He is called Maha-Visnu. The three purusas direct the affairs of the material world
- At a certain time, the Personality of Godhead, Karanodakasayi Visnu, lies in the Karana Ocean and produces many thousands of universes from His breathing
- At the creation, the material energy is let loose as mahat-tattva, into which the Lord as His first Purusa incarnation, Maha-Visnu, enters. He lies within the Causal Ocean and breathes out innumerable universes. BG 1972 purports
- At the end of the millennium, when the Personality of Godhead Lord Narayana lay down within the water of devastation, Brahma began to enter into Him along with all creative elements, and I (Narada Muni) also entered through His breathing
- At the time of dissolution the Lord sometimes appears as a small baby lying on a leaf of a banyan tree, floating on the devastating water. Devahuti suggests, "Your lying down within the abdomen of a common woman like me is not so astonishing
B
- Beneath the entire planetary system is the garbha water. Lord Visnu lies on this garbha water, and from His abdomen a lotus stem grows, and all the planets within the universe are floating in the air, being supported by this lotus stem
- Brahma, being the first living creature within this universe, was born directly from the body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead who is known as Garbhodakasayi Visnu, the Visnu form lying down in the ocean at the bottom of the universe
D
H
- He (Garbhodakasayi Visnu) is lying within the half of the universe which is full with the water of His body
- He (God) lies down and generates the universes by His breathing, and by entering into each universe as Garbhodakasayi Visnu, He creates Brahma, Siva and many other demigods for maintenance of the universe and again absorbs the whole thing into His person
- He (Hiranyaksa) addressed Him (the Personality of Godhead) as vana-gocarah, which means "one who is a resident of the forest," but another meaning of vana-gocarah is "one who lies on the water
- He (Maha-Visnu) lies on the ocean of karana, from where He glances over His material nature, and the mahat-tattva is at once created
- He lies down on His own heart spread in the form of the sky, and thus placing the whole creation in that space, He expands Himself into many living entities, which are manifested as different species of life
I
- In each and every universal globe, the same Maha-visnu enters again as Garbhodakasayi Visnu and lies there on the serpentlike Sesa incarnation. From His navel sprouts a lotus stem, and on the lotus, Brahma, the lord of the universe, is born
- In the reservoir of water first created by the perspiration of Garbhodakasayi Visnu, the Lord lies on the Sesa plenary expansion of Visnu, who is described in Srimad-Bhagavatam and in the four Vedas
M
- Maha-Visnu is lying in the Causal Ocean, Karanarnava, and He is breathing, and from His breathing innumerable universes are coming out. And in each and every universe, Maha-Visnu, in His further expansion as Garbhodakasayi-Visnu, He enters
- May Sri Nityananda Rama be the object of my constant remembrance. Sankarsana, Sesa Naga and the Visnus who lie on the Karana Ocean, Garbha Ocean and ocean of milk are His plenary portions and the portions of His plenary portions
T
- That Causal Ocean there is, I mean to say, completely in the whole ocean, big gigantic body is lying down there. That is known as Karanodakasayi Visnu. The Visnu in that gigantic form is sleeping within the water of that Causal Ocean
- That original Personality of Godhead, named Sankarsana, first lies down in the river Viraja, which serves as a border between the material and the spiritual world. As Karanodakasayi Visnu, He is the original cause of the material creation
- That Supreme Person is not impersonal and therefore is distinctively a nara, or person. Therefore the transcendental water created from the Supreme Nara is known as nara. And because He lies down on that water, He is known as Narayana
- The Causal Ocean, Visnu is lying there, sleeping within the ocean, and from His breathing the universes are coming out. This is God. Because He is in a sleeping condition, that is expansion of God. That is not original God
- The Garbhodakasayi Visnu is the Lord of the universe, and although He appears to be lying within the universe, He is always transcendental
- The Laghu-bhagavatamrta says that Garbhodakasayi Visnu has a four-handed form, and when He Himself enters the hollow of the universe and lies down in the ocean of milk He is known as Ksirodakasayi Visnu, who is the Supersoul of all living entities
- The Lord (Maha-visnu), although lying in the Causal Ocean, came out of it, and dividing Himself as Hiranyagarbha, He entered into each universe and assumed the virat-rupa, with thousands of legs, arms, mouths, heads, etc
- The Lord as Garbhodakasayi Visnu lies in the ocean of Garbha within this universe, and from His navel the lotus flower sprouts. Lord Brahma is generated from that lotus flower, and from Lord Brahma the creation of this material world begins
- The Lord then, by His plenary portion as Maha-Visnu, lies down within the water of the mahat-tattva, and the water is called the Causal Ocean - Karana-jala
- The Lord Visnu who lies in the ocean of milk incarnates Himself in various forms to maintain the laws of the cosmos and annihilate the causes of disturbance. Such incarnations are visible in every manv-antara
- The Lord, while lying on His bed of mystic slumber, generated the seminal symbol, golden in hue, through external energy out of His desire to manifest varieties of living entities from Himself alone
- The Maha-Visnu lies down in some part of the spiritual sky by His own free will
- The Padma Purana explains: The same Personality of Godhead, Purusottama, the original person, who is always devoid of material qualities and contamination, can exhibit Himself in various forms and at the same time lie down in one form
- The purusa incarnation lying on the Causal Ocean is called the original purusa in the material creations, and in His virat form, in whom all the planets and their inhabitants live, He has many thousands of legs and hands
- The Purusa-sukta is the standard prayer which the demigods recite to appease the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Ksirodakasayi Visnu. Because He is lying on the ocean of milk, He is called Ksirodakasayi Visnu
- The Supreme Lord, the Personality of Godhead, lies down in the water on the seat of Ananta, with His eyes closed, and the inhabitants of the Janaloka planets offer their glorious prayers unto the Lord with folded hands
- The Visnu who lies on the Causal Ocean is an incarnation of Lord Sankarsana, and, accordingly, the emotion of being a devotee is always present in His heart
- They (universes) are each covered by sevenfold material coverings of water, fire, air, sky, ego, noumenon & material nature, just like a huge football, pumped and covered, floating on the water of the Causal Ocean, wherein the Lord is lying as Maha-Visnu
- They are (sky, air, fire, water and earth) all mutually the cause and effect of one another, but the original cause is the Lord Himself in plenary portion, as Maha-Visnu lying in the causal water of the mahat-tattva
- Thus always merged in devotional service, the yogi visualizes the Lord standing, moving, lying down or sitting within him, for the pastimes of the Supreme Lord are always beautiful and attractive
V
- Visnu lies on the water, so the Supreme Personality of Godhead can be properly addressed in this way
- Visnu means the Maha-visnu, who is lying on the Causal Ocean. By His breathing only all the universes are generated in seeds and gradually develop into gigantic forms with innumerable planets within each and every universe
W
- We can understand from the Vedic literature that this universe is half filled with water, on which Garbhodakasayi Visnu is lying. From His abdomen a lotus flower has grown, and within the stem of that lotus flower all the different planets exist
- When it is necessary to create the material universe, Visnu expands Himself as the Maha-Visnu. This Maha-Visnu lies down on the Causal Ocean and breathes all the universes from His nostrils
- When it is necessary to create the material universes, Visnu expands Himself as Maha-Visnu. Maha-Visnu lies down in the Causal Ocean and breathes all the universes from His nostrils - CC Intro
- When Rsabhadeva saw that He was simply being disturbed by traveling throughout the world, He decided to lie down in one place like a python. Thus He ate, drank, & He passed stool & urine and smeared His body with them so that people would not disturb Him
- When the Deity is laid down, His legs should be massaged. Before laying the Deity down, a pot of milk and sugar should be offered to Him. After taking this thick milk, the Deity should lie down and should be offered betel nuts and spices to chew
- When the Supreme desired to speak, speeches were vibrated from the mouth. Then the controlling deity Fire was generated from the mouth. But when He was lying in the water, all these functions remained suspended