By Syamananda Dasa
“Arjuna, his eyes blazing in anger like two red balls of copper, dexterously arrested the son of Gautami (Ashvatthama) and bound him with ropes like an animal. After binding Ashvatthama, Arjuna wanted to take him to the military camp. The Personality of Godhead Sri Krishna, looking on with His lotus eyes, spoke to Arjuna in an angry mood. (Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.7.33-34) Both Arjuna and Krishna are described here as being very angry. The only difference was that Arjuna’s eyes became like balls of red copper, but the Lord’s eyes remained cool and are hence described as “lotus like.” Thus there is a vast difference between our anger and the one possessed by God. The Lord is Transcendence, and thus He is absolute in any stage. His anger is not like the anger of a conditioned living being within the modes of qualitative material nature. Because He is absolute, both His anger and pleasure are the same.