God's true greatness lies in intelligence and power to transcend natural law, not bodily form or material advancement.Listen — Srila Prabhupada Uvaca
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.3.22 — September 27, 1972, Los Angeles 720927SB-LOS ANGELES [29:00 Minutes] SB-01.03.22_720927SB-LOS ANGELES Prabhupāda: [leads singing of Jaya Rādhā-Mādhava] [prema-dhvani] Thank you very much.
Devotees: All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda. [devotees offer obeisances] [break] Pradyumna: Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Canto One, Chapter 3, text 22.
[leads chanting of verse] [Prabhupāda and devotees repeat] nara-devatvam āpannaḥ sura-kārya-cikīrṣayā samudra-nigrahādīni cakre vīryāṇy ataḥ param [SB 1.3.22] Prabhupāda: That's all right. Ladies? [ladies chant] That's all right. Now, word meaning.
Pradyumna: [leads chanting of synonyms] nara—human being; devatvam—divinity; āpannaḥ—having assumed the form of; sura—the demigods; kārya—activities; cikīrṣayā—for the purpose of performing; samudra—the Indian Ocean; nigraha-ādīni—controlling, etc.; cakre—did perform; vīryāṇi—superhuman prowess; ataḥ param—thereafter. [11:39] Translation: "In the eighteenth incarnation, the Lord appeared as King Rāma. In order to perform some pleasing work for the demigods, He exhibited superhuman powers by controlling the Indian Ocean and then killing the atheist King Rāvaṇa, who was on the other side of the sea." Prabhupāda: So, Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām [Bg. 4.8]. To kill the miscreants and to protect the devotees, He descends.
That is avatāra. They have two business. Not that avatāra means keeping some long beard or having an artificial helmet. Rascals may be allured by them, but those who are sensible, who have got sense, they will see with reference to the śāstra, the avatāra, every avatāra...
We are reading so many avatāras. The activity of that particular avatāra is also mentioned, that "This avatāra will..., incarnation will appear accepting such and such person as father and mother, and His activities will be like this." So how any rascal can come out and say, "I am the avatāra. I am the incarnation"? So that some other rascals may believe, but those who have sense, they will not accept.
Here it is clearly mentioned, Lord Rāmacandra. He appeared just like ordinary human being. Nara-devatvam āpannaḥ, accepted. There were many other kings as good as Lord Rāmacandra, but why people are after Rāmacandra?