Category:Wanting to Lord It Over the Material Nature

Theme Analysis

Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that the fundamental cause of the living entity's material entanglement is the misuse of his minute independence. Originally an eternal servant of the Supreme Lord, the soul sometimes develops an envious desire to imitate God and lord it over material nature. To accommodate this false desire, Kṛṣṇa provides the material cosmos, granting full facilities for the conditioned souls to attempt to enjoy as independent masters. However, this attempt is a complete illusion, known as māyā. Just as a moth is attracted to a fire only to be destroyed, the living entity is attracted to material energy but instead becomes captured and entangled in the dangerous cycle of birth and death. As long as this propensity to lord it over nature remains, there is no possibility of returning back to Godhead. Therefore, the ultimate solution is to shatter these mundane desires by concentrating on the lotus feet of the Lord, giving up the false prestige of mastership, and surrendering to one's constitutional position as an eternal servant.

• The Purpose of Creation: The material world was manifested specifically to provide a field of activity for those living entities who want to imitate the Lord and lord it over material nature.
• Misusing Independence: The living entity possesses minute free will, and the misuse of this independence to seek separate enjoyment is the beginning of his falldown into māyā.
• The Illusion of Mastership: Instead of recognizing himself as an eternal servant, the conditioned soul falsely thinks he is the master of the material world, leading only to entanglement and suffering.
• The Supreme Director: While the Lord gives the nondevotee full facilities to pursue material science and enjoyment, He does not give them the instructions to go back to Godhead until they surrender.
• The Ultimate Cure: To return to the spiritual world, the living entity must completely give up the propensity to lord it over material resources and absorb his mind in the devotional service of the Lord.

• Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: A Living Entity Misuses His Little Independence When He Wants to Lord It Over Material Nature.