Volume 7 - Prabhupada

318 Sri Caitanya-caritamrta [Madhya-lila, Ch. 19eita brahmarxfa bhari' ananta jiva-gaQacaurasi-lak?a yonite karaye bhramaf)aSYNONYMSei-ta-in this way; brahmaQt;fa-the whole universe; bhari '-filling; anantaunlimited;jfva-gaQa-living entities; caurasi-/ak?a-8,400,000; yonite-inspecies of life; karaye-do; bhramaQa-wandering.TRANSLATION"In this universe there are limitless living entities in 8,400,000 species, andall are wandering within this universe.PURPORTThis is a challenge to so-called scientists and philosophers who presume thatthere are living entities on this planet only. So-called scientists are going to themoon, and they say that there is no life there. This does not tally with SrT CaitanyaMahaprabhu's version. He says that everywhere within the universe there are unlimitednumbers of living entities in 8,400,000 different forms. In Bhagavad-gita(2.24) we find that the living entities are sarva-gata/:1, which means that they cango anywhere. This indicates that there are living entities everywhere. They existon land, in water, in air, in fire and in ether. Thus there are living entities in all typesof material elements. Since the entire material universe is composed of five elements-earth,water, fire, air and ether-why should there be living entities onone planet and not others? Such a foolish version can never be accepted by Vedicstudents. From the Vedic literatures we understand that there are living entities oneach and every planet, regardless of whether the planet is composed of earth,water, fire or ether. These living entities may not have the same forms that arefound on this planet earth, but they have different forms composed of differentelements. Even on this earth we can see that the forms of land animals are differentfrom the forms of aquatics. According to the circumstance, living conditionsdiffer, but undoubtedly there are living entities everywhere. Why should wedeny the existence of living entities on this or that planet? Those who haveclaimed to have gone to the moon have not gone there, or else their imperfectvision cannot actually perceive the particular type of living entities there.Living entities are described as ananta, or unlimited; nonetheless, they are saidto belong to 8,400,000 species. As stated in the Vi?QU Puraf)a:jalaja nava-lak?aQisthavara lak?a-virilsatikrmayo rudra-sarikhyaka/:1pak?iQaril dasa-/ak?aQam