We will delve deep into the fundamental questions of life, offering an overview of the vast and penetrating wisdom of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition.
ON ACQUIRING KNOWLEDGE
A philosopher will first ask, "What is the means to know?" In studying this perennial question, the philosophers have categorized all methods of attaining knowledge into three basic categories:
(1) Pratyaksa (sense perception): The knowledge directly perceived by the five sense organs and the mind is known as pratyaksa. The knowledge perceived through the senses can never be fully relied upon due to our inherent human defects. Our senses are limited by time and space, and our mind is biased by various desires. We do not see things very far or very near, and we may see things which hold no substance in reality, such as a mirage or a magician's show -- we mistake it to be something it is not, and we are confused over the reality of the matter. Even the reality of a mundane object can not be known with certainty through the means of sensory perception. How could transcendence then be proven through our material senses?
(2) Anumana (reasoning): Knowledge inferred from our observations is known as anumana. For example, we have seen smoke and fire together. When we observe smoke rising from behind a mountain, we reason there is fire. However, we may have mistaken a cloud for smoke, or a rain cloud may have already extinguished the fire, leaving only the smoke behind, and therefore our conclusion is false. If the reason is mistakenly understood, or there is an exception in the principle, our conclusion will be false. Therefore, reasoning is not an infallible means of acquiring knowledge. Moreover, being limited to our experiences in this world, reasoning lacks a capacity to reach into the specifics of transcendence with any degree of certainty.
(3) Shabda (revealed knowledge): For knowledge to be beyond human limitations, it must descend from beyond the human plane. The scriptures are understood to be apauruseya, or of divine origin. The writings of the sages are born of divine revelation, consisting of knowledge handed down by God, which is then passed on and preserved over the generations to provide an adequate means of insight into the transcendence. Naturally, for accepting the evidence of scripture, an initial leap of faith is required -- but is this not the same in accepting any lesson from anyone? Initial faith is certainly required before understanding literature on any given subject matter, in order to facilitate study and to eventually progress to a stage of personal realization and divine insight.
The Gaudiya school accepts a threefold division of revealed knowledge, namely (1) shastra -- the considerations of the scripture, (2) sadhu -- the considerations of the saints, and (3) guru -- the considerations of one's own guru. There is a relation of interdependence between the three. The guru is a representative of scriptures and the predecessor saints, the saints' teachings must be in harmony with the teachings of scripture and understood with the help of the guru, and the various scriptural statements are properly understood through the teachings of the saints and the guru. If the testimony of one of them is not compatible with the other two, it is not to be accepted as conclusive.
That being said, we may legitimately ask: Why should there be any defect in the scripture, since it is said to originate from God? The scripture itself answers the question: The vast body of Vedic literature is compared to a wish-fulfilling tree offering fruits of choice to one and all to facilitate their spiritual growth according to their inclinations in any given situation of life. What is a valid advice for one may be contrary to the progress of another. Consequently, a tradition of saints and a realized guru who teaches the scripture in a relevant way is necessary for obtaining valid knowledge of that which is beyond the range of sensory perception.
ESSENTIAL CATEGORIES
To begin with, we should determine that which is to be understood. In examining the nature of existence, we divide philosophy into three basic categories:
(1) Sambandha (relationship) -- the nature of and relationships between the individual living entity and the Supreme;
(2) Abhidheya (method of attainment) -- the proper course of action in accordance with the aforementioned understanding;
(3) Prayojana (ultimate perfection) -- the ultimate goal and purpose of the living entity in relation with the Supreme.
Let us reflect on these concepts and their various constituents.
SAMBANDHA -- RELATIONSHIP
There are two fundamental factors in existence: (1) The living entities, who have an eternal relationship with (2) the Supreme Person.
(1) The living entities -- The living entity, an eternal spiritual being, is encaged within a world of matter since beginning less time. On account of ignorance of its essential nature, the eternal living entity identifies itself with various attributes of this world life after life. From childhood to youth, from youth to old age, from old age to death and again to a new birth in accordance with its desires and deeds, the living entity wanders in this world.
Sometimes thinking of himself as a male, sometimes a female, sometimes an American, sometimes an Indian, and sometimes a camel or an ass, the living entity meets happiness and distress among various species of life, birth after birth. Longing to satisfy its unfulfilled desires, the living entity roams about in this world in an endless quest for love and happiness, never to be satisfied. That which is of spirit in nature will never find its peace in a world made of matter.
(2) The Supreme Person -- The Supreme Person is the ultimate manifestation of the Absolute Truth, the original cause of all creation, maintenance and destruction. He is simultaneously transcendent and immanent, being beyond the influence of this world, yet eternally aware of everything therein. Whatever exists in all the material and spiritual worlds consists of Him and His infinite energies only. His various energies are divided in three basic categories:
(1) External energy -- His external energy consists of the material world. This energy is divided into eight basic elements, namely five gross elements, and three subtle elements. They are (1) Earth, or all that is solid, (2) Water, or all that is liquid, (3) Fire, or all energy, (4) Air, or all aeriform substance, (5) Ether, or the space in which everything exists, (6) Mind, or the emotional faculty of the psyche, (7) Intelligence, or the discriminating faculty of the psyche, and (8) False ego, or the faculty of the psyche which forms a mundane conception of personality. This combination of elements known as the material world is temporary in nature.
(2) Marginal energy -- His marginal energy consists of the living entities of this world, the tiny spiritual sparks which are situated in a marginal position between the material world and the spiritual world, having the possibility of choosing between the two in accordance with their desires. The living entities are simultaneously one with and different from the Supreme, just as a ray of sun is one with and different from its origin, the sun.
(3) Internal energy -- His internal energy consists of sandhini (eternity), samvit (consciousness) and hladini (ecstasy), forming the basis of existence in the spiritual world. The feature of eternity is the ingredient of which all spiritual worlds consists, the feature of consciousness is the ingredient from which varieties of awareness arise, and the feature of ecstasy is the ingredient from which divine, blissful loving emotions arise.
The Gaudiya Vaishnava school's concept of Divinity in His infinite aspects, culminating on its ultimate object of worship, the Divine Couple, Radha and Krishna.
Some of the descriptions found on this page are kept rather concise in to limit the bulk of the presentation.
THREE ASPECTS OF DIVINITY
Learned men understand the Divine to manifest in three aspects, which are known as His all-pervading formless aspect, His aspect as the Lord of the heart, and his aspect as the Supreme Person.
(1) Brahman (the All-pervading Spirit): The non-differentiated aspect of the Divine is known as Brahman. This all-pervading spiritual substance is known to be the support of all the worlds, and whatever exists is known to be of Brahman only in its various manifestations. Brahman is understood to be the halo of the Supreme Person.
(2) Paramatma (the Supreme Soul): The localized aspect of the Divine is known as Paramatma. Known as the Lord of the heart, this aspect of the Supreme has expanded within the hearts of all living entities, invoking inspiration, knowledge and forgetfulness in them. He is the silent witness in our hearts, the impartial overseer and permitter of everyone's activities, and the one who keeps the world turning in accordance with the deeds of all living entities. He is an expansion of the Supreme Person for the maintenance of the cosmic manifestation.
(3) Bhagavan (the Supreme Person): The ultimate aspect of the Divine is known as Bhagavan. He is simultaneously transcendent and immanent, being situated in His own divine realm and simultaneously pervading everything through His infinite manifestations. This Supreme Person is the ultimate master, friend, father, son and beloved of all living entities. In His kindness, He manifests to everyone in accordance with their desires to serve Him, while remaining at the same time in His supremely attractive form of Sri Krishna, in whom all beauty and love find its pinnacle.
DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF THE SUPREME PERSON
An ancient prayer in Brahma Samhita says, "I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, whose non-dual, perfect and eternal forms are unlimited, who is the original ancient person, yet in his blossoming youth, and who is beyond access for the Vedas, but very near to those with a pure, devoted heart."
The original Supreme Person, Krishna, expands into various forms to fulfill various purposes within His creation. He is known as Svayam Bhagavan (the Supreme Person Himself) and Lila Purusottama (the Supreme Enjoyer of Pastimes). To taste the full variety of loving exchanges with His devotees, He manifests various forms in both the material and the spiritual worlds.
Within the spiritual world, the Lord manifests Himself in His original form, in multiple forms with identical characteristics (such as in the rasa-dance and in the palaces of Dvaraka), as well as in multiple forms with different moods and characteristics (such as His brother, Balarama), which include the unlimited four-armed Vishnu forms pervading the vast spiritual sky.
When the Lord manifests Himself in the material world, the form which He displays is called "avatara", or "descent", that which descends from the world beyond. These avataras are classified under several categories in accordance with Their purpose. The general purpose of the descents is told to be threefold, namely (1) to bring joy to His devotees, (2) to destroy wicked elements in the world, and (3) to re-establish the principles of religion. These avataras are classified as follows:
(1) Lila-avatara (pastime descents): These forms of the Lord have very distinct features, and they enact unparalleled activities in this world. Some of them are Ramacandra (the ideal king and ruler), Narasimha (half-man half-lion form who saved His devotee Prahlada), and Matsya (the fish-form who swam in the waters of devastation).
(2) Purusa-avatara (descent for creation): There are three forms of the Lord particularly meant for the maintenance of the cosmic manifestation. They are (1) Karanodakasayi Vishnu who manifests all the universes, (2) Garbhodakasayi Vishnu who presides in each universe, and (3) Ksirodakasayi Vishnu, who presides in the hearts of all living entities, and is also known as the Paramatma.
(3) Guna-avatara (descents for controlling the modes of nature): There are three forms of the Lord meant for controlling each of the three modes of nature, namely goodness, passion and ignorance. (1) Brahma, who is generally an empowered living entity, is in charge of the mode of passion, and takes care of creation. (2) Vishnu is in charge of the mode of goodness, and takes care of maintenance. (3) Shiva, who is a transformed form of the Lord, is in charge of the mode of ignorance, and takes care of destruction.
(4) Saktyavesa-avatara (descents endowed with potency): When the power of the Lord for fulfilling a particular purpose is bestowed to a living entity, he is known as a saktyavesa-avatara. The powers bestowed are the power to teach divine wisdom, the power to instill devotion into others, the power to rule the world, and the power to create, among others. They are further divided into those who are directly empowered by the Lord and those who manifest a reflection of the Lord's potency.
(5) Manvantara-avatara (descents for the era of Manu): There are fourteen Manus who rule the humanity during each cosmic day of Brahma, and during each era there is a form of the Lord who descends to this world. The Lord's fourteen descents are known as Yajna, Vibhu, Satyasena, Hari, Vaikuntha Ajita, Vamana, Sarvabhauma, Risabha, Visvaksena, Dharma, Sudharma, Yogesvara and Brihadbhanu. Additionally, each Manu is a descent of the Lord.
(6) Yuga-avatara (descents for the age): There is a form of the Lord who descends in each of the four ages in the cosmic cycle of time, known as Satya, Treta, Dvapara and Kali-yugas. The Lord descends to teach the method of religion relevant for the particular age.
VARIETIES OF LOVING EXCHANGE
Considering the various manifestations of the Supreme Person from the point of view of ontological truth, they are non different from each other, being manifestations of the Lord. However, there are definite differences between His various manifestations in terms of the taste experienced in loving exchanges with Him.
Primary loving relationships with the Supreme Person are known to be five-fold, namely:
(1) Santa-rasa (neutrality): When love for the Supreme is experienced upon beholding His glory, without experiencing a particular impetus for engaging in His service, the relationship is known as santa-rasa.
(2) Dasya-rasa (servitude): When love for the Supreme Person is experienced either as the reverence and submission felt by a servant towards his master, or as the respect and esteem that a son feels for his father, the relationship is called dasya-rasa.
(3) Sakhya-rasa (friendship): When love for the Supreme Person is experienced with feelings of intimacy and equality, devoid of the sense of obligation felt by a servant, the relationship is called sakhya-rasa.
(4) Vatsalya-rasa (parental love): When love for the Supreme Person is experienced as His dependence upon the devotee's nourishing, blessing and looking after Him, the relationship is called vatsalya-rasa.
(5) Madhurya-rasa (amorous love): When love for the Supreme Person is experienced as feelings of amorous love, as experienced between the lover and the beloved, or between the husband and the wife, the relationship is called madhurya-rasa.
Each subsequent relationship has more attributes and an increased feeling of intimacy. To facilitate the compatible existence of various relationships with Him, the Lord manifests His different aspects in different regions of the spiritual sky.
GRADATIONS OF PERFECTION
The spiritual sky is understood as having multiple regions wherein the Supreme Person manifests His pastimes in the company of His loving devotees. The progressive supremacy of these spiritual regions is determined in accordance with the degree of intimacy of love.
To comprehend the hieararchy of the various regions, we need to accustom ourselves with two basic concepts: (1) aisvarya (supernatural might and opulence), and (2) madhurya (natural sweetness and intimacy).
(1) Aisvarya: The Lord's exhibition of supernatural might and opulence which causes a feeling of fearful awe and reverence in the heart of the devotee, is known as aisvarya.
(2) Madhurya: The abundant sweetness of human-like relationships with the Lord, which covers any considerations of His Godhood under the veil of loving intimacy, is known as madhurya.
The more intimate and independent of the status of the object of love the love is, the more complete it is understood to be. Therefore gradations of perfection among the Lord's various features are measured on the scale of the presence of madhurya.
The spiritual sky is known as "Vaikuntha". In the shining realm of Vaikuntha, in the midst of innumerable Vaikuntha-planets, there is a divine planet called Goloka, which is the pinnacle of the spiritual sky. Goloka is further divided into three main sections, namely Dvaraka, Mathura and Vraja. Let us examine them:
(1) Vaikuntha: In Vaikuntha, the Lord is present in His four-armed Vishnu-forms, manifesting His supernatural opulences. The devotees in Vaikuntha-region serve the Lord filled with awe and reverence. Here the Lord is known to be complete.
(2) Dvaraka and Mathura: In Dvaraka and Mathura, the mood of devotion is a mixture of alternating reverence and sweetness. Here the Lord is known to be more complete.
(3) Vraja: In Vraja, the mood of devotion is of pure sweetness, and even the Lord's display of unparalleled majesty does not diminish the natural love of His devotees. Here the Lord is known to be most complete.
When Sri Krishna descends to this world, He manifests three ages: (1) childhood, (2) boyhood, and (3) youth. The first period of five years is filled with pastimes of parental love, the second with pastimes of friendly love, and the third with pastimes of amorous love. This enchanting form saturated with carefree blossoming youth is considered to be the perfection of His being, and the most attractive among all of His forms.
Though the various forms of the Lord are analyzed and hierarchically presented, there is certainly no fault in any of them. They are all eternal, filled with knowledge and ecstasy, and perfect in their position of enabling His experience of the full spectrum of loving interaction.
THE DIVINE COUPLE
The divine counterpart of Sri Krishna is known as Sri Radha. Sri Radha is the complete energy, and Sri Krishna is the complete source of energy. They are nondifferent from each other, just as musk and its scent are inseparable, or as fire and its heat are nondifferent.
Just as Krishna expands Himself to Dvaraka and to Vaikuntha, so Radha expands along with Him to assume the forms of the Queens of Dvaraka and the Laksmi-goddesses of Vaikuntha. The cowherd maidens of Vraja are manifest from Her being to expand the relish of amorous adventures.
Radha and Krishna are one, yet They have assumed two separate forms to enjoy loving pastimes. She is Krishna's own divine potency who accompanies Him in His pleasure sports, being thoroughly imbued with and consisting of love for Him. Since Radha is filled with all divine qualities, She alone is able to fulfill all the desires of Krishna.
Poet Krishnadas Kaviraja has described the unparalleled beauty of the Divine Couple:
"May that Sri Krishna, son of the king of the cowherd men — whose effulgent bodily complexion defeats the luster of a fresh monsoon cloud, collyrium and sapphire, whose yellow cloth is more effulgent than kunkuma, the rising sun and a flash of lightning, and whose entire form is anointed with sandalwood paste mixed with camphor and saffron — bestow upon me the service of His lotus feet!
May that Srimati Radhika — whose bodily complexion snatches away the pride of a golden lotus flower tinged with kunkuma, whose bodily fragrance reproaches the fame of a fragrant lotus sprinkled with saffron powder, and who fulfills all the desires of the prince of Vraja, Sri Krishna — always bestow upon me the service of Her lotus feet!
May that Sri Krishna, son of the king of the cowherd men — who pleases Srimati Radhika and the cowherd maidens with the nectar of His pastimes in the forest groves and in the circle-dance, who nourishes them with His jokes and tricks, and who delights the hearts of everyone with His supernatural love, character, playfulness, and fame — bestow upon me the service of His lotus feet!
May that Srimati Radhika — whose softness defeats the fame of delicate budding flowers, whose body's coolness is worshipable for the moon, sandalwood-paste, the lotus, and camphor, and whose touch dispels the heat of Sri Krishna's amorous desires — always bestow upon me the service of Her lotus feet!"
In the wake of these prayers, Gaudiya Vaishnavas aspire to personally serve the Divine Couple in their amorous pastimes in the role of Sri Radha's manjaris (handmaids), assisting Them in various ways in the fulfillment of Their love.
Having clarified the theoretical basis of everything, let us examine the functional basics for existence.
ABHIDHEYA -- MEANS OF ATTAINMENT
In accordance with their insight or lack thereof, the living entities of this world are engaged in various pursuits. Some are engaged in attempts to produce bodily and mental comfort for theirselves, for the society or for the world at large. However, since we are living in a temporary world, nothing of a permanent nature can be achieved by such endeavors.
Others are engaged in a pursuit for wisdom to negate the joys and grieves of the temporal world, longing for salvation or emancipation. However, in lack of a positive spiritual alternative, how could the individual spiritual being attain the fulfillment of its eternal, individual desires?
The path of bhakti, of loving devotional service to the Supreme Person, is known as the path for attainging the ultimate good. Prayojana, or the ultimate perfection for the living entity, is known as pure, unnalloyed, ecstatic love for the Supreme Person. The path for attaining bhakti is called "sadhana", or "that which leads to the goal".
There are two paths of bhakti in practice -- (1) vaidhi-bhakti, and (2) raganuga-bhakti. They are understood as follows:
(1) Vaidhi-bhakti (devotional practice of rules and regulations) -- When one hears from the saints about the scriptural statements on the duty of all living entities is to serve and worship the Lord, a feeling of obligation and reverence may awaken within the heart. When such a conception acts as the impetus for his pursuing the path of bhakti, his path is called vaidhi-bhakti, or devotional practice following in the wake of scriptural injunctions.
(2) Raganuga-bhakti (devotional practice in search of loving attraction) -- When one hears from the saints about the sweetness of the Lord's pastimes with His associates, a sacred greed for obtaining loving feelings similar to one of His associates may awaken within the heart. When such a conception acts as the impetus for his pursuing the path of bhakti, his path is called raganuga-bhakti, or devotional practice in the wake of loving attachment.
These two paths lead the aspirants to two different goals in the spiritual world. The practice of vaidhi-bhakti leads the aspirant to Vaikuntha, where a sense of awe and reverence towards the Lord prevails, whereas raganuga-bhakti leads the aspirant to Vraja, where natural loving feelings are prominent.
Externally the practices of the sadhaka (practitioner) on both paths look similar. The difference is in the inner motivation. Various practices of sadhana will be discussed in a separate essay on the [practices] page. Let us now examine the gradual ninefold evolution of the aspirant from the beginning of his journey to the perfection of ecstatic love of God.
(1) Sraddha (faith) -- In the beginning, there is faith in the scriptures describing bhakti. This faith arises from contact with saints. In one person faith appears spontaneously, and in another it appears as the result of resolving doubts and misconceptions about the scriptures and the words of the saints.
(2) Sadhu-sanga (association of saints) -- After attaining faith, one naturally seeks the shelter of a spiritual teacher (guru), and inquires from him and receives initiation into the various practices of devotion. Then one receives the fortune of associating with soft-hearted, realized saints who are endowed with similar spiritual aspirations.
(3) Bhajana-kriya (engagement in worship) -- In the course of engaging in various devotional practices, one will undergo various phases in progressing from unsteadiness to steady practices. One will meet with initial enthusiasm, oscillating attention and slackness, indecision, struggling with the uncontrolled senses, inability to uphold vows, and straying after the by-products of advancement arising from the admiration of others, such as profit, fame and adoration.
(4) Anartha-nivritti (cessation of unwanted elements) -- In the course of devotional practices, one will become purified of "anartha", or various undesirable elements which obstruct devotion. They are known as (1) anartha arising from sinful works, (2) anartha arising from pious works, (3) anartha arising from offences, and (4) anartha arising from devotion. These four cause the following obstacles: (1) ignorance, false egotism, attachment, hatred, and entanglement in bodily enjoyment, (2) affection for the pleasures of this world obtained as the fruit of good works, (3) lack of taste, love and affection for the Lord and His name, and (4) various by-products of bhakti, such as profit, fame and adoration, which may lead one astray. By the power of devotional practice, all of the aforementioned unwanted elements will gradually be destroyed.
(5) Nistha (steadiness) -- After overcoming laziness, distraction, inability to engage in devotional practices despite being in a suitable situation, attachment to old bad habits, and the influence of sensual pleasures, one comes to a stage of steadiness in practice. At this point, no obstacles can waver him from his determined practice of devotion.
(6) Ruci (taste) -- The treasure of bhakti illuminated by the fire of devotional practices gives rise to a special taste for all aspects of practice, such as chanting the holy names, hearing the pastimes of Krishna and so on. At this stage, the sadhaka never feels the slightest fatique even by repeated hearing and chanting. This taste gives rise to his intense absorption in the same.
(7) Asakti (attachment) -- When one's taste becomes very thick and mature, one arrives to the stage of attachment. In the stage of ruci, engagement in devotion is the dominant object of taste, but in the stage of asakti, the Lord Himself becomes the dominant object of taste. In the stage of ruci, some effort is required for focusing the mind on the Lord, but in the stage of asakti, this paramount absorption comes about naturally and without separate endeavours.
(8) Bhava (intense emotion) -- Asakti in its extreme maturity is known as bhava, or intense emotion. At this stage, the naturally soft heart of the aspirant melts like butter or honey scorched by the rays of the sun, an unquenchable yearning for meeting the Lord is ever-present in his heart, and he is plunged into a whirlpool of loving emotions. At this point, he attains complete identification with his perfect spiritual form (siddha-deha) in which he has longed to serve the Lord.
(9) Prema (ecstatic love) -- Finally the loving aspirant obtains the fruit of prema, and tastes the joint experience of all divine emotions known as bhakti-rasa or sacred rapture. This prema within the heart of the devotee becomes like a powerful magnet attracting the dark iron-like Krishna. Eventually the Lord reveals to him His most auspicious qualities like beauty, nice odour, sweet voice, His tenderness, nice taste, generosity and compassion, overwhelming all of his senses. All these attributes are most sweet and eternally fresh, and when the devotee begins to relish them with love, this relish increases within his heart at every moment. This causes a powerful eagerness and finally creates an ocean of ecstacy which no poet could properly describe.
The perfection of all devotional endeavours is further described in the following section.
PRAYOJANA -- ULTIMATE PERFECTION
The Lord, while eternally residing in His divine abode in the world beyond, also eternally displays His pastimes in this world, moving about from one universe to another to bless the souls of this world with the nectar of His pastimes. The pastimes of the Lord in the spiritual world are called His unmanifest pastimes, and the pastimes in this world are called His manifest pastimes.
As the aspirant reaches the stage of ecstatic love (prema), attaining direct vision of his beloved Lord, his journey for perfection in this world is completed. As he departs from this world, he is taken to the universe where the Lord displays His pastimes at that time. He takes birth from the womb of a gopi (divine cowherd lady) in the village of Krishna, attaining a spiritual body suitable for further expressions of divine love.
During that life, he or she (depending on the kind of relationship the aspirant has longed for) spends her time with the eternally perfected associates of the Lord who have descended with Him from the unmanifest world, and is acquainted with life in the spiritual world, gradually mastering the expression of all divine emotions. Then, at the end of the Lord's manifest pastimes, she is transferred to the eternal, unmanifest pastimes of the Lord in the spiritual abode.
Now, let us examine the concept of bhakti-rasa, the collective expression of divine love, according to its different constituents, known to be of five kinds.
(1) Sthayi-bhava (permanent emotion) -- Sthayi-bhava is the basis of experiencing bhakti-rasa, and it has five prominent varieties: (1) neutrality, (2) servitude, (3) friendship, (4) parental love, and (5) amorous love.
(2) Vibhava (provoking emotion) -- Vibhava is known to be that which inspires the experience of sthayi-bhava, and is of two varieties, (1) the persons who provoke the exchange of emotions, namely the object of love, Krishna, and the reservoir of love, the devotee, and (2) items connected with Krishna.
(3) Anubhava (consequent emotion) -- Anubhavas are expressions of emotion such as crying, laughing and singing, which naturally follow in the wake of the primary emotion.
(4) Sattvika-bhava (ecstatic emotion) -- Sattvika-bhavas are powerful ecstatic emotions which arise in the devotee without any conscious intention when he is overwhelmed with blissful love. Becoming stunned, fainting and faltering of voice are examples of sattvika-bhava.
(5) Vyabhicari-bhava (surging emotion) -- Vyabhicari-bhavas are surging emotions, which appear on the foundation of sthayi-bhava just as waves rise and fall in the ocean. Excitement, shyness and jubilation are examples of vyabhicari-bhava.
The collective experience of these five emotions is known as bhakti-rasa, or the sacred rapture of devotion. Bhakti-rasa is a complete expression of exquisite love of God, the ultimate goal for all living entities. Initial experience of bhakti-rasa takes place already in this world, but the fullest extent of expression is only possible in a spiritual body of an associate of the Lord in His abode.
This divine abode is described in the ancient words of the Brahma Samhita:
"I worship the divine abode of Goloka, which is rarely reached by the sages of this world. There Sri Krishna, the supreme lover and enjoyer, sports with His divine beloveds. There every tree is a desire tree, the soil consists of wish-fulfilling desire gems, and the water in the rivers and lakes is made of nectar.
In this world, every word is a song, every step is a dance, and the flute is always the Lord's dear companion. Everything is permeated with supreme effulgence of cognizance and bliss, and an ocean of milk flows from the divine surabhi-cows of the Lord. There time certainly does not pass away for even a splinter second, since it is eternally beyond the deteoriating influence of time."
The Lord's abode is further revealed in the prayers of Raghunatha Das Gosvami:
"I take shelter of the pasture fields of Vraja, where even today Krishna, His brother, and His dearest friends are engaged in their pastimes of herding the cows with great affection. The indescribable sweetness of Vraja is manifest in the hearts and minds of the sensitive devotees who are conversant with the mellows of devotion.
I worship the most enchanting abode of Sri Vrindavana, which is made fragrant by the lotus feet of the adolescent Divine Couple, Radha and Krishna, who are surrounded by many laughing and joking girlfriends, who are very expert all varieties of arts of the amorous play. In Vrindavana, the Divine Couple passionately sports day and night in the forest groves surrounded by trees, vines and fresh leaves, as well as in the caves of its mountains."
Thus we conclude our discussion on the philosophical precepts behind the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition, having described the conceptions of the living entities' relationship with the Supreme Person, the supreme goal of life, and the process for its attainment.
HISTORY
The roots of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition lie several millenia in the past of India. The four Vedas, Rig, Sama, Yajur and Atharva, the Purana-epics illustrating the precepts of the Vedas, and the vast Mahabharata narrating the story of Krishna and the Pandava-brothers, in which the famous Bhagavad-gita is included, form the ancient basis of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition.
The Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition is a part of a larger section of Hinduism known as Vaishnavism. The Vaishnavas understand Vishnu, the Almighty Supreme, as the preserving and purpose-giving God of existence. Some Vaishnava-traditions focus on God in his divinely magnificent Vishnu-form, while others accept the all-enchanting form of Krishna as the object of their worship. The devotional religions of India are collectively known as the bhakti-tradition.
THE FOUR VAISNAVA TRADITIONS
The ancient Vaishnava-tradition felt a breeze of renewal around 1000 CE as four great Vaishnava-teachers presented their commentaries on the essence of Vedanta and taught the same to their numerous followers. They were Vishnusvami (born ca. 700 CE) who founded his own school; Ramanuja (1017-1137 CE), who founded a tradition known as the Sri-sampradaya, basing his views on the teachings of the Alvar-saints of the past and forming a theology called visishta-advaita; Nimbarka (ca. 1100 CE), who founded his own tradition; as well as Madhva (1199-1278 CE), who also offered his own interpretation of Vedanta, establishing his own theology known as dvaita.
THE BHAKTI-MOVEMENTS OF THE 16th CENTURY
The renaissance of Vaishnavism began in the early 1600's as Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486-1534 CE) started his bhakti-movement in West Bengal in the district of Nadia. Despite having been initiated in the Madhva-tradition, Sri Chaitanya practically founded his own tradition, having marked differences with the practices and the theology of the Madhvites as he taught of devotion for Radha and Krishna, the divine couple of Vrindavan. The followers of Chaitanya took him to be the embodiment of Radha and Krishna who had descended to this world to show the path for attaining the devotional service of Radha and Krishna, the ultimate goal of life.
Vallabha (1479-1531 CE) was a contemporary of Chaitanya, who founded one of the most influential traditions of Northern India. The Vallabha-tradition claims a connection with the branch of Vishnusvami. The traditions of Chaitanya and Vallabha seem to have had much in common over their first two generations. During these years many others, such as Hit Harivamsha (1502-1553 CE) and Swami Haridas (1480-1575 CE), founded their own traditions, not particularly claiming for a connection with the older traditions. The famous female saint and poet, Mirabai (1498-1547 CE), was influential during this time.
THE ASSOCIATES OF SRI CHAITANYA
Sri Chaitanya spent the first 24 years of his life in Navadvipa, West Bengal. Most of Chaitanya's followers knew him since his early years. For example Advaita (1454-1550 CE), a leading figure among the Vaishnavas of Navadvipa from before Chaitanya's birth, and Nityananda (1473-1545 CE), a charismatic and eccentric saint, arose to key roles in creating the future of Chaitanya's tradition. Gadadhara Pandit and Vakresvara Pandit, Chaitanya's companions since his childhood, Narahari Cakravartin of Sri Khanda, Nityananda's wife Jahnava, along with many others, contributed their share in initiating the tradition. Disciplic lines descending from the associates of Chaitanya form the majority of the modern Gaudiya Vaishnava - tradition.
Chaitanya spent the remainder of his life, another 24 years, in Jagannath Puri in the company of some of his intimate followers, such as Svarupa Damodara and Ramananda Raya, steeped in deep devotional rapture. During those years, he practically demonstrated the pinnacle of devotional attainment in both his words and his deeds.
SRI CHAITANYA AND THE SIX GOSWAMIS OF VRINDAVAN
Sri Chaitanya is not known to have written anything but a series of verses known as the Siksastaka, the eight verses of instruction. He requested a select few among his followers, who later came to be known as the Six Goswamis of Vrindavan, to systematically present in their writings the theology of bhakti he had taught.
These six saints and theologians were Rupa Goswami, Sanatana Goswami, Gopala Bhatta Goswami, Raghunatha Bhatta Goswami, Raghunatha Das Goswami and Jiva Goswami. In his writings, Rupa focused particularly in explaining the principles of the sacred rapture of devotion, Sanatana along with Gopala Bhatta wrote of the rituals of the tradition, Raghunatha Das focused on the esotera of raganuga-bhajan, and Jiva, the most voluminous author among the six, wrote the elaborate theological thesis known as the Sat-sandarbha among other works.
THE NEXT GENERATION OF THE TRADITION
Narottama Das Thakur, Srinivasa Acarya and Syamananda Pandit were among the stalwarts of the second generation of Gaudiya Vaishnavism. Having studied under Jiva, they were instrumental in propagating the teachings of the Goswamis throughout Bengal, Orissa and other regions of Eastern India. Many among their associates, such as Ramacandra Kaviraja and Ganga-narayana Cakravartin, were also eminent teachers in their own right.
The famous festival of Kheturi, presided over by Jahnava Thakurani, the wife of Nityananda, was the first time the leaders of the various branches of Chaitanya's followers assembled together. Through such festivals, members of the loosely organized tradition became acquainted with other branches along with their respective theological and practical nuances. That notwithstanding, the tradition has maintained its plural nature, having no central authority to preside over its matters.
Around these times, the descendants of Nityananda and Advaita, headed by Virabhadra and Krishna Mishra respectively, started their family-lineages (vamsha) to maintain the tradition. The vamsha descending from Nityananda through Virabhadra forms the most prominent branch of the modern Gaudiya tradition, though descendants of Advaita, along with the descendants of many other associates of Chaitanya, maintain their following especially in the rural areas of Bengal.
Gopala Guru Goswami, a young associate of Chaitanya and a follower of Vakreshwar Pandit, founded another branch based in Orissa. The writings of Gopala Guru, along with those of his disciple Dhyanacandra Goswami, have had a substantial influence on the methods of internal worship in the tradition.
17th AND 18th CENTURIES
The period following the earliest generations of the tradition gave rise to many a controversy in its course. Vishwanath Chakravarti, an illustrious teacher whose period of influence began in late 17th century, is credited with resolving major theological conflicts surrounding the practice of raganuga-bhajan and the nature of the amorous relationship between Radha and Krishna. His student, Baladeva Vidyabhushan, hailing from a disciplic line descending from Rasikananda, authored the famous Govinda Bhashya commentary on Vedanta-sutra in defense of the Gaudiya sampradaya in the royal assembly of Jaipur in early 18th century.
Across the 18th century, descendants of the various vamshas of Chaitanya's companions continued their endeavors in furthering Sri Chaitanya's cause in their respective locales around Bengal. During this period, many illustrious saints, among whom perhaps the most influential was Siddha Krishna Das Babaji of Govardhan, guided the community of devotees in Vraja on matters of bhajan, an influence that carries to the present day.
TOWARDS EARLY 20th CENTURY
The 19th century India, now under substantial influence from the West with the establishment of the British rule, reflected on its values and cultural heritage in diverse avenues. Vaishnavism was not unaffected this was to be an era of new movements and revolutionaries.
The need to influence the colonisers was felt strongly among the Bengali intelligentsia. This spirit touched Kedarnath Datta Bhaktivinoda, a deputy magistrate under the British government, who sent an English biography of Chaitanya's he had authored in 1896 to numerous Western universities. The first missionary to cross the ocean was Baba Premananda Bharati, a follower of Jagatbandhu Sundar's, who arrived in the United States in 1902, establishing a Krishna-temple in Los Angeles and, according to some accounts, raising up to 5000 followers. His disciple, Mahanambrata Brahmachari, was to lecture in dozens of universities across the country in the 1930's. Their Western following is said to have later dwindled under religious persecution in their absence.
Radharaman Charan Das Babaji, also known as Boro Baba, was one of the leading characters of the era, gathering a substantial following of his own. This group, popularized further through the efforts of Ramdas Babaji, is known for their "Nitai Gaura Radhe Shyam" chant. Despite some doctrinal disagreements, Boro Baba's followers have gained acceptance among the tradition.
In 1919, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati founded a monastic movement called Gaudiya Matha. Under his inspiration, Bhaktihridoy Bon and Bhaktipradip Tirtha journeyed to England for missionary work, meeting with only limited success. Over the next two decades to follow, until his departure in 1936, Bhaktisiddhanta propagated his reformist movement across India and vocally expressed his dissatisfaction over the current state of the tradition, and purportedly offered sharp critique of both the householder gurus in the vamsha-traditions and the babaji-renunciates. This spirit, accompanied with some theological revisions, led the majority of the tradition to distance itself from the new movement.
As printing presses grew more popular and became more readily available, the old literature of the tradition, earlier available only as hand-written manuscripts, was widely published in a printed form. Perhaps the greatest among publishers was Haridas Dasji of Haribol Kutir, who spent the entirety of his life searching, editing and translating old manuscripts for publication. Other stalwart publishers were Puri Das, known from his days in Gaudiya Matha as Ananta Vasudeva, and Krishna Das Babaji of Kusuma Sarovara.
THE MODERN DAY
The tradition settled on the Western soil for good with the efforts of A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami, who reached the United States in 1965. The people of the love-and-flowers decade, filled with curious subcultures and a search for spirituality, were open for the Swami's message, and the movement spread rapidly across the continents. Bhaktivedanta's movement, ISKCON International Society for Krishna Consciousness otherwise known as the Hare Krishna movement, has translated and published his literature in dozens of languages over the decades.
Inspired by the success, some other followers of Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati have also established their respective movements in the Western hemisphere. Others have, learning of the Gaudiya tradition and often after meeting representatives of the aforementioned movements, traveled to the sacred places of India, such as Vraja in northern India and Navadwipa in Bengal, in search of the roots of the tradition. The classical alignments of the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition are yet to see organized activity on a larger scale in the West quite possibly owing to the trend of priorizing individual spiritual growth over dedicated missionary work.
In its motherland, the diverse branches of the classical tradition are largely going on the way they have been for the past century. With the increased availability of communication facilities, knowledge of these original flag-bearers of the heritage is gradually becoming available for the global audience as well.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
IntroductionTo Gaudiya Vaisnavism: Basic Premises
The presentation given in the Teachings section of krishna.com rests upon these premises.
An absolute reality exists.
For any reasonable discussion to take place, those involved must agree on certain things that cannot be proven. Both science and religion rest on unproven assumptions, some agreeable to both, some not. Premise 1 is generally accepted by both. It states, to put it simply, that reality is what it is. Reality is an objective fact, independent of our subjective beliefs. The statement “Everyone has their own reality” is incorrect. There is one reality, and the scientific method is just one way of trying to comprehend that reality.
True success in life comes only by understanding reality and our place within it.
Because we are part of an objective reality that encompasses everything, for us to wonder where we fit in is natural. Our human nature drives us to pursue happiness and success, but how can we achieve these things without understanding reality? Not seeing the whole picture, we may be inviting harm to ourselves and others. The mere fact that happiness seems so elusive inspires mankind’s perennial search for the meaning of life.
Science gives a limited picture of reality; abundant evidence suggests that part of reality exists beyond the reach of our senses and scientific instruments.
Generally speaking, the scientific quest as we know it today seeks to explain all of reality in terms of fundamental elements and forces and the laws that govern them. According to science, reality is simply matter and energy. Despite this belief, however, scientists have yet to explain convincingly the most important part of reality: consciousness, or the subjective experience of conscious awareness.Science hypothesizes that the brain generates consciousness, but the brain is simply a complex machine, executing huge numbers of operations at every moment. Even if a computer could be programmed to mimic human behavior, there is no reason to believe that it will ever be conscious.Besides consciousness, another aspect of reality that seems to elude scientific investigation and explanation is the realm of the paranormal. Credible experiments by scientists at places like Princeton University have shown that people can do things with their minds that contradict the laws of physics. (For example, with their thoughts, test subjects have been able to influence the output of a computer that generates random numbers.) And many people claim to have had out-of-body experiences, witnessed apparitions, accurately foretold the future, and experienced a number of other things that science can’t explain—and therefore refuses to accept.The world seems to consist of more than the pushes and pulls of sub-atomic particles. To fill in the picture, we need to go to another source.
The scriptures of the world purport to reveal the spiritual aspect of reality, including God, the source of all existence.
We can’t expect our scientific instruments to detect things beyond matter. We need knowledge that comes from the other side. Billions of people accept revealed scripture as that kind of knowledge. God, who is “on the other side,” tells us who we are, why we’re here, what this world is, how to live here, how to relate to Him, and so on.Our own efforts can take us only so far in understanding reality. Beyond the scientific method, we can pursue an internal mystical search through yoga and meditation, and that will get us closer to the truth. But even that endeavor has its limits. Because the Truth is infinitely greater than we are, we can know Him and all that He has created only when He reveals that knowledge to us.
God can reveal Himself to us and explain reality.
Some people contend that God is so great that He’s unknowable. But here’s another way of looking at it: Because God is great, He can find ways to make Himself known to us. We’ll never know Him in full, of course, but He has revealed an immense amount of information about Himself. All we have to do is take advantage of it.
God primarily reveals Himself through scripture, and the scriptures known as the Vedas contain a vast amount of knowledge about God and reality.
The Vedas are books of wisdom that have guided Indian civilization for millennia. While they deal with practically every field of knowledge, the theological and philosophical portions of the Vedas are extremely deep and comprehensive.Among them, the Srimad-Bhagavatam and Bhagavad-gita provide the most focused explanation of God and reality.A survey of the vast Vedic scriptures can be quite daunting. These books are meant to guide human civilization and therefore deal with numerous fields of knowledge. While much of the information may be irrelevant today (such as the intricate rituals of various sacrifices), the theological parts of the Vedas are as important as ever.The Bhagavad-gita is the most concise compendium of Vedic philosophy. Most important, it not only establishes that God is a transcendental person; it reveals His identity. In our quest for knowledge of things beyond matter, we will find no better starting place than the Bhagavad-gita.Where the Bhagavad-gita leaves off, the Srimad-Bhagavatam (or Bhagavata Purana) begins. Early in the book, the author, who edited and organized the Vedic library, is enjoined by his spiritual master to focus this book on the science of God. His masterful presentation is said to have been written when he reached spiritual maturity.The Srimad-Bhagavatam rejects the temporary goals promoted in other Vedic books. It emphatically delivers the message that the perfection of life rests in constant union with God through acts of love and devotion.
Religion should be understood to mean, not faith, but our intrinsic nature and eternal relationship with God.
While reality is one, so also, rightly understood, is religion. Religion is not what we believe to be true. It is our actual relationship with God. Human life should be used to uncover that religion, which is everyone’s natural heritage.
Discovering that relationship is the goal of life, and it is possible by following time-tested, scientific spiritual principles under the guidance of the Vedas and self-realized souls.
The spiritual realm is not simply theoretical. The Vedas prescribe various processes by which one can get in touch with some aspect of the spiritual nature. The highest aspect of spirit is the personal form of God, an objective reality that one can directly perceive, provided one carefully follows the procedure for getting the result.That procedure is the practice of Bhakti yoga, which must be conducted under the careful guidance of a master of the science of Bhakti. A sincere student receives the blessings of the teacher (guru), and of God Himself, and thereby progresses through higher and higher levels of perception. Attaining ever deeper states of love, the student finally attains pure love for God, which awards one His direct audience.
An absolute reality exists.
For any reasonable discussion to take place, those involved must agree on certain things that cannot be proven. Both science and religion rest on unproven assumptions, some agreeable to both, some not. Premise 1 is generally accepted by both. It states, to put it simply, that reality is what it is. Reality is an objective fact, independent of our subjective beliefs. The statement “Everyone has their own reality” is incorrect. There is one reality, and the scientific method is just one way of trying to comprehend that reality.
True success in life comes only by understanding reality and our place within it.
Because we are part of an objective reality that encompasses everything, for us to wonder where we fit in is natural. Our human nature drives us to pursue happiness and success, but how can we achieve these things without understanding reality? Not seeing the whole picture, we may be inviting harm to ourselves and others. The mere fact that happiness seems so elusive inspires mankind’s perennial search for the meaning of life.
Science gives a limited picture of reality; abundant evidence suggests that part of reality exists beyond the reach of our senses and scientific instruments.
Generally speaking, the scientific quest as we know it today seeks to explain all of reality in terms of fundamental elements and forces and the laws that govern them. According to science, reality is simply matter and energy. Despite this belief, however, scientists have yet to explain convincingly the most important part of reality: consciousness, or the subjective experience of conscious awareness.Science hypothesizes that the brain generates consciousness, but the brain is simply a complex machine, executing huge numbers of operations at every moment. Even if a computer could be programmed to mimic human behavior, there is no reason to believe that it will ever be conscious.Besides consciousness, another aspect of reality that seems to elude scientific investigation and explanation is the realm of the paranormal. Credible experiments by scientists at places like Princeton University have shown that people can do things with their minds that contradict the laws of physics. (For example, with their thoughts, test subjects have been able to influence the output of a computer that generates random numbers.) And many people claim to have had out-of-body experiences, witnessed apparitions, accurately foretold the future, and experienced a number of other things that science can’t explain—and therefore refuses to accept.The world seems to consist of more than the pushes and pulls of sub-atomic particles. To fill in the picture, we need to go to another source.
The scriptures of the world purport to reveal the spiritual aspect of reality, including God, the source of all existence.
We can’t expect our scientific instruments to detect things beyond matter. We need knowledge that comes from the other side. Billions of people accept revealed scripture as that kind of knowledge. God, who is “on the other side,” tells us who we are, why we’re here, what this world is, how to live here, how to relate to Him, and so on.Our own efforts can take us only so far in understanding reality. Beyond the scientific method, we can pursue an internal mystical search through yoga and meditation, and that will get us closer to the truth. But even that endeavor has its limits. Because the Truth is infinitely greater than we are, we can know Him and all that He has created only when He reveals that knowledge to us.
God can reveal Himself to us and explain reality.
Some people contend that God is so great that He’s unknowable. But here’s another way of looking at it: Because God is great, He can find ways to make Himself known to us. We’ll never know Him in full, of course, but He has revealed an immense amount of information about Himself. All we have to do is take advantage of it.
God primarily reveals Himself through scripture, and the scriptures known as the Vedas contain a vast amount of knowledge about God and reality.
The Vedas are books of wisdom that have guided Indian civilization for millennia. While they deal with practically every field of knowledge, the theological and philosophical portions of the Vedas are extremely deep and comprehensive.Among them, the Srimad-Bhagavatam and Bhagavad-gita provide the most focused explanation of God and reality.A survey of the vast Vedic scriptures can be quite daunting. These books are meant to guide human civilization and therefore deal with numerous fields of knowledge. While much of the information may be irrelevant today (such as the intricate rituals of various sacrifices), the theological parts of the Vedas are as important as ever.The Bhagavad-gita is the most concise compendium of Vedic philosophy. Most important, it not only establishes that God is a transcendental person; it reveals His identity. In our quest for knowledge of things beyond matter, we will find no better starting place than the Bhagavad-gita.Where the Bhagavad-gita leaves off, the Srimad-Bhagavatam (or Bhagavata Purana) begins. Early in the book, the author, who edited and organized the Vedic library, is enjoined by his spiritual master to focus this book on the science of God. His masterful presentation is said to have been written when he reached spiritual maturity.The Srimad-Bhagavatam rejects the temporary goals promoted in other Vedic books. It emphatically delivers the message that the perfection of life rests in constant union with God through acts of love and devotion.
Religion should be understood to mean, not faith, but our intrinsic nature and eternal relationship with God.
While reality is one, so also, rightly understood, is religion. Religion is not what we believe to be true. It is our actual relationship with God. Human life should be used to uncover that religion, which is everyone’s natural heritage.
Discovering that relationship is the goal of life, and it is possible by following time-tested, scientific spiritual principles under the guidance of the Vedas and self-realized souls.
The spiritual realm is not simply theoretical. The Vedas prescribe various processes by which one can get in touch with some aspect of the spiritual nature. The highest aspect of spirit is the personal form of God, an objective reality that one can directly perceive, provided one carefully follows the procedure for getting the result.That procedure is the practice of Bhakti yoga, which must be conducted under the careful guidance of a master of the science of Bhakti. A sincere student receives the blessings of the teacher (guru), and of God Himself, and thereby progresses through higher and higher levels of perception. Attaining ever deeper states of love, the student finally attains pure love for God, which awards one His direct audience.
Manifesto of Krsna Consciousness
Manifesto of Krsna Consciousness by Srila Prabhupada.
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness is a movement aiming at the spiritual reorientation of mankind through the simple process of chanting the holy names of God. The human life is meant for ending the miseries of material existence. Our present-day society is trying to do so by material progress. However, it is visible to all that in spite of the extensive material progress, the human society is not in peaceful condition. The reason is that a human being is essentially a spirit soul. It is the spirit soul which is the background of development of the material body. However the materialist scientist may deny the spiritual existence in the background of the living force, there is no better understanding than accepting the spirit soul within the body.
The body is changing from one form to another, but the spirit soul is existing eternally. This fact we can experience even in our own life. Since the beginning of our material body in the womb of our mother, the body is transforming from one shape to another in every second and in every minute. This process is generally known as growth, but actually it is change of body. On this earth planet we see change of day and night and of seasons. The more primitive mentality attributes this change to changes occurring in the sun.
For example, in the winter they think the sun is getting weaker, and at night they presume sometimes that the sun is dead. With more advanced knowledge of discovery we see that sun is not changing at all in this way. Seasonal and diurnal changes are attributed to the change of the position of the earth planet. Similarly, we experience bodily changes from embryo to child to youth to maturity to old age and to death. The less intelligent mentality presumes that at the death the spirit soul's existence is forever finished, just like primitive tribes who believe that the sun dies at sunset.
Actually, the sun is rising in another part of the world. Similarly, the soul is accepting another type of body. When the body gets old like the old garments and is no longer usable, then the soul accepts another body just like we accept a new suit of clothes. The modern civilization is practically unaware of this truth. They do not care about the constitutional position of the soul. There are different departments of knowledge in different universities and many technological institutions to study and understand the subtle laws of material nature- medical research laboratories to study the physiological condition of the material body- but there is no institution to study the constitutional position of the soul.
This is the greatest drawback of material civilization, which is external manifestation of the soul. They are enamored by the glimmering manifestation of the cosmic body or the individual body, but they do not try to understand the basic principles of this glimmering situation. The body looks very beautiful working with full energy and exhibiting great traits of talent and wonderful brain work. But as soon as the soul is away from the body, all this glimmering situation of the body becomes useless. Even the great scientists who have discovered many wonderful scientific contributions could not trace out about the personal self, which is the cause of such wonderful discoveries. The Krsna consciousness movement basically is trying to reach this science of the soul- not in any dogmatic way, but in complete scientific and philosophical understanding.
You can find out the background of this body as the soul and the soul's presence as perceived, perceivable by consciousness. Similarly, the presence of Supersoul and superconsciousness in the universal body of cosmic manifestation is perceived by the presence of the Supreme Lord, or the Absolute Truth. The Absolute Truth is systematically experienced in the Vedanta-sutra, generally known as the Vedanta philosophy, which is elaborately explained by a commentary by the same author of the Vedanta-sutras known as the Srimad-Bhagavatam. The Bhagavad-gita is the preliminary study of the Srimad-Bhagavatam to understand the constitutional position of the Supreme Lord, or the Absolute Truth.
The Absolute Truth is realized in three phases of understanding, namely as Brahman, or the impersonal universal soul; Paramatma, or the localized universal soul; and at the end as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. An individual soul is understood in three aspects, namely first in the consciousness pervading all over the body, then as the spirit soul within the heart, and ultimately exhibited as a person. Similarly, the Absolute Truth is first realized as impersonal Brahman, then as localized Supersoul, Paramatma, and at the end as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna.
Krsna means all-inclusive, or, in other words, Krsna is simultaneously Brahman, Paramatma, and the Personality of Godhead. As such, as every one of us is simultaneously consciousness, soul, and person, this individual person and the Supreme Lord Person are qualitatively one but quantitatively different. Just like the drop of sea water and the vast mass of sea water- both are qualitatively one. The chemical composition of the drop of sea water and that of the mass of sea water are one and the same, but the quantity of salt and other minerals in the whole sea is many, many times greater than the quantity of salt and other minerals contained in the drop of sea water. The Krsna consciousness movement maintains the (sic:) speciality of the individual soul and the Supreme Soul. From the Vedic Upanisads we can understand that both the Supreme Person, or God, and the individual person are eternal and living entities. The difference is that the supreme living entity, or Supreme Person, maintains all the innumerable living entities. In the Christian way of understanding, the same principle is admitted because in the Bible it is taught that the individual entities should pray to the supreme father for supplying means of maintenance and giving pardon for their sinful activities.
So it is understood from any source of scriptural injunction that the Supreme Lord, or Krsna, is the maintainer of the individual living entities, and it is the duty of the individual entity to feel obliged to the Supreme Lord. This is the whole background of religious principle. Without this acknowledgement, there is chaos, as it is happening in our daily experience at the present moment. Everyone is trying to become the Supreme Lord, either socially, politically or individually. Therefore there is competition for this false lordship and there is chaos all over the world, individually, nationally, socially or collectively. The Krsna consciousness movement is trying to establish the supremacy of the Absolute Personality of Godhead.
The human society is meant for this understanding because this consciousness makes his life successful. This Krsna consciousness movement is not a new introduction of the mental speculators. Actually this movement was started by Krsna Himself in the Battlefield of Kuruksetra. At least five thousand years ago the movement was presented by Krsna in the Bhagavad-gita. From this Bhagavad-gita we can understand that this system of consciousness was spoken by Him long, long before- He imparted to the sun-god Vivasvan. That calculation goes to show that before the repetition of the Bhagavad-gita in the Battlefield of Kuruksetra, it was once before explained at least forty million years ago.
So this movement is not at all new. It is coming down from disciplic succession, and in India from all great leaders of the Vedic society like Sankaracarya, Ramanujacarya, Madhvacarya, Visnu Swami, Nimbarka, and lately, about 480 years ago, Lord Caitanya. The principle is still being followed today. This Bhagavad-gita is also very widely persued in all parts of the world by great scholars, philosophers, and religionists. But in most cases the principle is not followed as it is. Krsna consciousness movement means to present the principles of the Bhagavad-gita as it is, without any misinterpretation.
In the Bhagavad-gita we can understand five main principles: namely God, the living entity, the material or the spiritual nature, time, and activities. Out of these five items, God, the living entities, nature- material or spiritual- and time are eternal. But activities are not eternal. The activities in the material nature are different from the activities in the spiritual nature. In the material nature, although the spiritual soul is eternal, as we have explained before, the activities are temporary.
Krsna consciousness movement is aiming to place the spirit soul in his eternal activities. The eternal activities can be practiced even when we are materially encaged. It requires simply direction. But it is possible, under the prescribed rules and regulations, to act spiritually. The Krsna consciousness movement teaches these spiritual activities, and if one is trained up in such spiritual activities, one is transferred to the spiritual world, of which we get ample evidence from Vedic literatures and also from the Bhagavad-gita. And the spiritually trained person can be transferred to the spiritual world easily by change of consciousness. The consciousness is always there because it is the symptom of the living spirit soul. But at the present moment the consciousness is materially contaminated.
Just like pouring water down from the cloud is pure, distilled water, but as soon as the water comes in touch with the earth it becomes muddy immediately. Again, by filtering the same water, the original clearness can be regained. Similarly, Krsna consciousness movement is the process of clearing the consciousness, and as soon as the consciousness clear and pure it is transferred to the spiritual world for eternal life of knowledge and bliss, which we are hankering for in this material world, and being frustrated in every step on account of material contamination. Therefore this Krsna consciousness movement should be taken very seriously by the leaders of the human society. (devotees offer obeisances)
So,
utsahan niscayad dhairyattat-tat-karma-pravartanatsato vrtteh sadhu-sangesadbhir bhaktih prasidhyati
This Krsna consciousness movement, or a person's Krsna consciousness, can be progressively improved by six processes. What is that? Utsaha, enthusiasm. Dhairya. Dhairya means patience. Utsahan, dhairyat, and niscayat, firm conviction. Utsahan dhairyat niscayad tat-tat-karma-pravartanat. And following the regulative principles. Sato vrtteh. The profession must be strictly honest and serious. Sato vrtteh. And sadhu-sange, and in the association of the devotees. So you attempted today a press conference, but don't be dejected. We have to become patient, and we must be firmly convinced that our movement shall be successful, provided if we follow the regulative principles. Sato vrtteh and sadhu-sange. Sadhu-sange means in the association of the devotees. So there is nothing to be dejected. You try and follow the principles. It will come out successful without any doubt.
Thank you.
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness is a movement aiming at the spiritual reorientation of mankind through the simple process of chanting the holy names of God. The human life is meant for ending the miseries of material existence. Our present-day society is trying to do so by material progress. However, it is visible to all that in spite of the extensive material progress, the human society is not in peaceful condition. The reason is that a human being is essentially a spirit soul. It is the spirit soul which is the background of development of the material body. However the materialist scientist may deny the spiritual existence in the background of the living force, there is no better understanding than accepting the spirit soul within the body.
The body is changing from one form to another, but the spirit soul is existing eternally. This fact we can experience even in our own life. Since the beginning of our material body in the womb of our mother, the body is transforming from one shape to another in every second and in every minute. This process is generally known as growth, but actually it is change of body. On this earth planet we see change of day and night and of seasons. The more primitive mentality attributes this change to changes occurring in the sun.
For example, in the winter they think the sun is getting weaker, and at night they presume sometimes that the sun is dead. With more advanced knowledge of discovery we see that sun is not changing at all in this way. Seasonal and diurnal changes are attributed to the change of the position of the earth planet. Similarly, we experience bodily changes from embryo to child to youth to maturity to old age and to death. The less intelligent mentality presumes that at the death the spirit soul's existence is forever finished, just like primitive tribes who believe that the sun dies at sunset.
Actually, the sun is rising in another part of the world. Similarly, the soul is accepting another type of body. When the body gets old like the old garments and is no longer usable, then the soul accepts another body just like we accept a new suit of clothes. The modern civilization is practically unaware of this truth. They do not care about the constitutional position of the soul. There are different departments of knowledge in different universities and many technological institutions to study and understand the subtle laws of material nature- medical research laboratories to study the physiological condition of the material body- but there is no institution to study the constitutional position of the soul.
This is the greatest drawback of material civilization, which is external manifestation of the soul. They are enamored by the glimmering manifestation of the cosmic body or the individual body, but they do not try to understand the basic principles of this glimmering situation. The body looks very beautiful working with full energy and exhibiting great traits of talent and wonderful brain work. But as soon as the soul is away from the body, all this glimmering situation of the body becomes useless. Even the great scientists who have discovered many wonderful scientific contributions could not trace out about the personal self, which is the cause of such wonderful discoveries. The Krsna consciousness movement basically is trying to reach this science of the soul- not in any dogmatic way, but in complete scientific and philosophical understanding.
You can find out the background of this body as the soul and the soul's presence as perceived, perceivable by consciousness. Similarly, the presence of Supersoul and superconsciousness in the universal body of cosmic manifestation is perceived by the presence of the Supreme Lord, or the Absolute Truth. The Absolute Truth is systematically experienced in the Vedanta-sutra, generally known as the Vedanta philosophy, which is elaborately explained by a commentary by the same author of the Vedanta-sutras known as the Srimad-Bhagavatam. The Bhagavad-gita is the preliminary study of the Srimad-Bhagavatam to understand the constitutional position of the Supreme Lord, or the Absolute Truth.
The Absolute Truth is realized in three phases of understanding, namely as Brahman, or the impersonal universal soul; Paramatma, or the localized universal soul; and at the end as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. An individual soul is understood in three aspects, namely first in the consciousness pervading all over the body, then as the spirit soul within the heart, and ultimately exhibited as a person. Similarly, the Absolute Truth is first realized as impersonal Brahman, then as localized Supersoul, Paramatma, and at the end as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna.
Krsna means all-inclusive, or, in other words, Krsna is simultaneously Brahman, Paramatma, and the Personality of Godhead. As such, as every one of us is simultaneously consciousness, soul, and person, this individual person and the Supreme Lord Person are qualitatively one but quantitatively different. Just like the drop of sea water and the vast mass of sea water- both are qualitatively one. The chemical composition of the drop of sea water and that of the mass of sea water are one and the same, but the quantity of salt and other minerals in the whole sea is many, many times greater than the quantity of salt and other minerals contained in the drop of sea water. The Krsna consciousness movement maintains the (sic:) speciality of the individual soul and the Supreme Soul. From the Vedic Upanisads we can understand that both the Supreme Person, or God, and the individual person are eternal and living entities. The difference is that the supreme living entity, or Supreme Person, maintains all the innumerable living entities. In the Christian way of understanding, the same principle is admitted because in the Bible it is taught that the individual entities should pray to the supreme father for supplying means of maintenance and giving pardon for their sinful activities.
So it is understood from any source of scriptural injunction that the Supreme Lord, or Krsna, is the maintainer of the individual living entities, and it is the duty of the individual entity to feel obliged to the Supreme Lord. This is the whole background of religious principle. Without this acknowledgement, there is chaos, as it is happening in our daily experience at the present moment. Everyone is trying to become the Supreme Lord, either socially, politically or individually. Therefore there is competition for this false lordship and there is chaos all over the world, individually, nationally, socially or collectively. The Krsna consciousness movement is trying to establish the supremacy of the Absolute Personality of Godhead.
The human society is meant for this understanding because this consciousness makes his life successful. This Krsna consciousness movement is not a new introduction of the mental speculators. Actually this movement was started by Krsna Himself in the Battlefield of Kuruksetra. At least five thousand years ago the movement was presented by Krsna in the Bhagavad-gita. From this Bhagavad-gita we can understand that this system of consciousness was spoken by Him long, long before- He imparted to the sun-god Vivasvan. That calculation goes to show that before the repetition of the Bhagavad-gita in the Battlefield of Kuruksetra, it was once before explained at least forty million years ago.
So this movement is not at all new. It is coming down from disciplic succession, and in India from all great leaders of the Vedic society like Sankaracarya, Ramanujacarya, Madhvacarya, Visnu Swami, Nimbarka, and lately, about 480 years ago, Lord Caitanya. The principle is still being followed today. This Bhagavad-gita is also very widely persued in all parts of the world by great scholars, philosophers, and religionists. But in most cases the principle is not followed as it is. Krsna consciousness movement means to present the principles of the Bhagavad-gita as it is, without any misinterpretation.
In the Bhagavad-gita we can understand five main principles: namely God, the living entity, the material or the spiritual nature, time, and activities. Out of these five items, God, the living entities, nature- material or spiritual- and time are eternal. But activities are not eternal. The activities in the material nature are different from the activities in the spiritual nature. In the material nature, although the spiritual soul is eternal, as we have explained before, the activities are temporary.
Krsna consciousness movement is aiming to place the spirit soul in his eternal activities. The eternal activities can be practiced even when we are materially encaged. It requires simply direction. But it is possible, under the prescribed rules and regulations, to act spiritually. The Krsna consciousness movement teaches these spiritual activities, and if one is trained up in such spiritual activities, one is transferred to the spiritual world, of which we get ample evidence from Vedic literatures and also from the Bhagavad-gita. And the spiritually trained person can be transferred to the spiritual world easily by change of consciousness. The consciousness is always there because it is the symptom of the living spirit soul. But at the present moment the consciousness is materially contaminated.
Just like pouring water down from the cloud is pure, distilled water, but as soon as the water comes in touch with the earth it becomes muddy immediately. Again, by filtering the same water, the original clearness can be regained. Similarly, Krsna consciousness movement is the process of clearing the consciousness, and as soon as the consciousness clear and pure it is transferred to the spiritual world for eternal life of knowledge and bliss, which we are hankering for in this material world, and being frustrated in every step on account of material contamination. Therefore this Krsna consciousness movement should be taken very seriously by the leaders of the human society. (devotees offer obeisances)
So,
utsahan niscayad dhairyattat-tat-karma-pravartanatsato vrtteh sadhu-sangesadbhir bhaktih prasidhyati
This Krsna consciousness movement, or a person's Krsna consciousness, can be progressively improved by six processes. What is that? Utsaha, enthusiasm. Dhairya. Dhairya means patience. Utsahan, dhairyat, and niscayat, firm conviction. Utsahan dhairyat niscayad tat-tat-karma-pravartanat. And following the regulative principles. Sato vrtteh. The profession must be strictly honest and serious. Sato vrtteh. And sadhu-sange, and in the association of the devotees. So you attempted today a press conference, but don't be dejected. We have to become patient, and we must be firmly convinced that our movement shall be successful, provided if we follow the regulative principles. Sato vrtteh and sadhu-sange. Sadhu-sange means in the association of the devotees. So there is nothing to be dejected. You try and follow the principles. It will come out successful without any doubt.
Thank you.
The Force of Life
A lecture in London on August 31, 1973 by HIS DIVINE GRACE SWAMI PRABHUPADA Founder-acharya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.
dehi nityam avadhyo 'yam dehe sarvasya bharatatasmat sarvani bhutani na tvarti socitum arhasi
"O descendant of Bharata, he who dwells in the body can never be slain. Therefore you need not grieve for any living being." (Bhagavadgita 2.30)
In this section of the Bhagavadgita, Krishna is explaining in so many ways that the living entity within the body is eternal, indestructible, immutable. It does not take birth, it does not die, it is always the same.
Here Krishna says, 'dehi nityam avadhyo yam dehe sarvasya bharata' : "Nobody can kill the soul who dwells in all bodies." This is very important. It is not that the soul is simply in the human body and not in other bodies. That theory is rascaldom. Krishna says, 'dehe sarvasya', "in every body". Even within the ant, even within the elephant, even within the gigantic banyan tree and the microbe, the soul is there.
Some rascals say animals have no soul. This is wrong. How can they say animals have no soul? Here is the authoritative statement by Krishna: 'dehe sarvasya', "The soul is in every body". And in another place [Bhagavadgita 14.4] Krishna says, sarva-yonisu kaunteya murtayah sambha-vanti yah: "Of all the embodied beings who appear in all the species of life", ' tasam brahma mahadyonir ' : "the source of their bodies is this material nature". And ' aham bija-pradah pita' : "I am the seed-giving father". Without both a father and a mother, there is no offspring. So the universal father is Krishna, and the mother is either the material nature or the spiritual nature.
There are two natures: the material nature and the spiritual nature, or the inferior nature and the superior nature. (This is explained in the Seventh Chapter of Bhagavadgita.) So, although both the spiritual nature and the material nature come from the same source, the Absolute Truth, still one is superior and one is inferior. What is the difference between the inferior and the superior natures? In the inferior nature, the material nature, God consciousness is almost nil. Persons in the mode of goodness have a little God consciousness, those in the mode of passion have less, and those in the mode of ignorance have no God consciousness - it is completely absent.
Therefore, although this material body comes from the same source as the soul, still it is inferior. And although by nature the soul is superior to the material nature, still, because he is encaged within a body made of the material nature, he forgets Krishna. This is the problem. So those who are not rascals, those who are intelligent and in complete knowledge, do not make any spiritual distinction between a human being and an animal. As Krishna says in Bhagavadgita [5.18],
' vidya-vinaya-sampanne brahmane gavi-hastinisuni caiva sva-pake ca panditah sama-darsinah '
A learned person knows that the spirit soul is present in every body - within the first-class learned brahmana, the cow, the elephant, the dog, and the lowest kind of human being". The soul is present everywhere. It is not that simply in the human beings and the demigods there is a soul but the poor animals have no soul. No, everyone has a soul - 'dehe sarvasya bharata'.
So, what shall we accept - the statement of Krishna, or the statement of some rascal philosopher or so-called religionist? We have to accept the statement of Krishna, the supreme authority, the supreme being. And in many places in the Bhagavadgita, Krishna says the soul is present in every body. Therefore those who are learned do not say that the animals have no soul.
Now, another point Krishna is stressing here is that the soul is eternal, that it cannot be killed. "Therefore," Krishna tells Arjuna, "it is your duty to fight. The bodies of your friends and relatives may be destroyed, but even after the destruction of the body, the soul exists. He will get another body, that's all (tatha dehantara-praptih)."
It is not that anyone can engage in killing others whimsically. However, as will be explained in the next verse, a kshatriya [warrior] can kill his enemies only when he is in a religious fight. His cause must be right; then the fighting is good. When a kshatriya kills his enemies in a religious fight, he's not sinful. Thus Krishna tells Arjuna, "Do your duty. Don't worry that you are killing your kinsmen and grandfather. Take it from Me that you cannot kill the soul; he's eternal."
Now, another important point you should note is that in every living entity, the body grows on the platform of the spirit soul. The body may be very gigantic or very small; it doesn't matter. But it grows on the platform of spirit. It is not that a spirit soul, or living force, comes into existence due to the combination of material elements. No, matter is dependent on spirit (yayedam dharyate jagat), and therefore matter is inferior to spirit. There are two kinds of spirit: atma and Paramatma, ishvara and Parameshvara. The gigantic universe is resting on spirit - either the Supreme Spirit, Krishna, or the small spirit, the living entity. As Krishna explains [Bhagavadgita 7.5],
' apareyam itas tv anyam prakrtimviddhi me paramjiva-bhutam maha-baho yayedam dharyate jagat'
"Besides the inferior, material energy, there are the living entities, who are sustaining the material universe."
Why are the gigantic planets floating weightless in the sky? Krishna says, gam avisya . . . dharayamy aham ojasa: "I sustain the planets by My energy." Just try to understand: A 747 airplane with five or six hundred passengers flies in the sky without any difficulty. Why? Because the pilot is there. Don't think that it is because of the gigantic machine. No. It is because the pilot is there. The machine is also there, but the flying is dependent not on any mechanical arrangement but on the pilot. If the pilot were not there, the whole machine would immediately fall down. Similarly, Krishna enters into all the gigantic planets and sustains them in outer space. Without Krishna's entering into matter, nothing can work. Within the shell of the universe He is present as Garbhodakashayi Vishnu, and therefore the universe exists. And within the body of everyone He is present as Paramatma, the Supersoul.
He is not only within the body of all living entities, but also within the atom: andan-tara-stha-paramanu-cayantara-stham. The scientists are now studying the atom-dividing, dividing, dividing. But they are having difficulty in coming to any conclusion because they cannot find God, or Krishna, in the atom in His form as the Supersoul. So, without Krishna's presence, nothing can exist. Therefore one who is advanced in Krishna consciousness sees only Krishna everywhere, not the outward covering. In the Chaitanya-charitamrta [Madhya 8.274] it is said, ' sthavara-jangama dekhe, na dekhe tara murti/ sarvatra haya nija ista-deva-sphurti'. There are two kinds of entities, the moving and the nonmoving. (Sthavara means "nonmoving" and jarigama means "moving"). A pure devotee of Krishna sees both these kinds of entities, but he does not exactly see their forms. Rather, he sees Krishna, because he knows that within the moving entities is the living force, which is Krishna's energy, and that inert matter is also Krishna's energy. So, in everything he sees only Krishna. The Brahma-samhita [5.38] states, premanjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena santah sadaiva hrdayesu vilo-kayanti: "The devotee whose eyes are anointed with the salve of love of Krishna always sees Him within his heart."
Sometimes people inquire, "Have you seen God?" The answer is that one who is actually an advanced devotee is simply seeing Krishna and nothing else, within and without. The more advanced you are in Krishna consciousness, the more you'll see simply Krishna. And if you become practiced to see Krishna always, then at the time of death you'll think of Him and go back to Godhead. That is Krishna's instruction: man-mana, "Always think of Me."
Now, who can think of Krishna always? Only a devotee can think of Krishna always. Is it a very difficult task? You are seeing Krishna in the temple, chanting Krishna's name, engaging in Krishna's service. Nothing but Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Krishna. And this twenty-four-hour engagement in Krishna consciousness means you are becoming practiced to see Krishna always. This is the purpose of the Krishna consciousness movement - to train people so that they cannot forget Krishna even for a moment. And that is Krishna's instruction in Bhagavadgita [9.34]: 'man-mana bhava mad-bhakto mad-yaji mam namaskuru ', "Think of Me, become My devotee, worship Me, offer obeisances unto Me."
When you see the Deity in the temple, you get the impression within your mind, and when you are out of the temple you can see the Deity within your heart if you have developed love for Krishna. Otherwise, if you only officially come to the temple, as soon as you leave you think, "Oh, it is a botheration: let me forget it." That is another thing.
The process of Krishna consciousness is meant for developing love for Krishna. 'Sa vai pumsam paro dharmo yato bhaktir adhoksaje' : "The first-class religious system enables one to develop love for Krishna". So Krishna consciousness is the first-class, topmost religious system because it is educating people to always think of Krishna, the Supreme Lord, and to love Him. We cannot think of anyone always unless we love him. Suppose a boy and a girl are in love. Then each of them will always think of the other: "Oh, when shall we meet again, when shall we meet again?" Similarly, you can always think of Krishna if you have developed your love for Him. And by devotional service you can develop your love for Krishna. That is required.
So, even in the lower stages of animal life, Krishna is in the heart. As He says here, 'dehe sarvasya bharata'. In another place[Bhagavadgita 13.3] He says, 'ksetra-jnam capi mam viddhi sarva-ksetresu bharata'. The individual soul is 'ksetrajna', the owner of the body, but there is another 'ksetrajna', another owner, and that is Krishna. As the individual soul is within the body, similarly the Supersoul, Krishna, is also there. So Krishna is the owner of all bodies.
Sometimes rascals accuse Krishna: "Why did He dance with others' wives?" But He is actually the proprietor of everyone. We are not the proprietor; He is the proprietor. So if the proprietor dances with His maidservants or devotees, what is wrong there? The individual soul is in every body, but the Supersoul is the real proprietor of the body. Lord Krishna says that 'bhoktaram yajna-tapasam sarva-loka-maheshvaram'. "I am the enjoyer and proprietor of everything" [Bhagavadgita 5.29]. He is 'maheshvaram', the supreme proprietor, and also 'suhrdam sarva-bhutanam', the actual friend of everyone. If you have some lover, you think you are his friend, but actually you are not his friend. His actual friend is Krishna.
So if the gopis dance with their real friend, what is wrong there? But the rascals, those who do not know Krishna, say He is immoral. He is not immoral. He is doing the right thing, because Krishna is the real husband of every woman. He married 16,108 wives. Why only 16,108? If He had married sixteen billion trillion wives, there would have been nothing wrong, since He is every woman's real husband.
Still, those who do not know Krishna, the rascals, accuse Him of being an immoral woman-hunter. They take pleasure in painting pictures of Krishna's affairs with the gopis. But they do not paint pictures of Him killing Kamsa and other demons. These pastimes they do not like. This attitude is called 'sahajiya'. The business of the 'sahajiyas' is debauchery, which they try to justify by citing Krishna's pastimes: "Krishna danced with the gopis. Krishna was immoral, so we can also be immoral. We are great devotees of Krishna because we are immoral". This is going on.
Therefore, to understand Krishna one requires a little better intelligence. Krishna says [Bhagavadgita 7.19],
'bahunam janmanam ante jnanavan mam prapadyatevasudevah sarvam iti sa mahatma su-durlabhah'
"After many births one may become 'jnanavan' ". 'Jnanavan' means "one who possesses first-class intelligence." Then? 'Mam prapadyate' : "He surrenders unto Me", Why? 'Vasudevah sarvam iti' : "He understands that Vasudeva, Krishna, is everything." And, 'sa mahatma sudurlabhah' : "Such an intelligent mahatma is very rare."
There are so many rascal 'mahatmas' who simply change their dress and declare themselves to be God, or Krishna. Kick on their faces. A real 'mahatma' is different from all these rascals because he knows Krishna. If you understand Krishna, you are so fortunate: 'brahmanda bhramite kona bhagyavan jiva/ guru-Krishna-prasade paya bhakti-lata-bija'. There are many, many millions and trillions of living entities within this universe, and they are rotating in 8,400,000 different species of life. They are all unfortunate, simply repeating birth and death, birth and death, in different species. Out of all of them, the most fortunate get the mercy of Krishna and the spiritual master and are given a chance to know Krishna.
By the mercy of the guru and Krishna, one gets the seed of devotional service, which is planted at the time of initiation. And then one must water the seed. Suppose you get a nice seed of a tree. You have to sow it and pour a little water on it. Then it will grow. Similarly, anyone who by great fortune has come into contact with Krishna consciousness, who has received the seed of devotional service, should water it. What is that water? 'Sravana-kirtana': hearing and chanting about Krishna. So, don't be absent from the Srimad-Bhagavatam class. This hearing and chanting of topics about Krishna is watering the seed of devotional service. This is the most important thing hearing and chanting about Krishna.
'Sravana-kirtana' does not mean hearing and chanting about just anything, no. One must hear and chant about Krishna. The rascals have manufactured 'Kali-kirtana'. Where in the scripture is there a mention of 'Kali-kirtana' or 'Shiva-kirtana' ? No, 'kirtana' means glorifying the Supreme Lord, Krishna. That is 'kirtana'. Other so-called 'kirtanas' are all nonsense. Simply hear and chant about Krishna.
dehi nityam avadhyo 'yam dehe sarvasya bharatatasmat sarvani bhutani na tvarti socitum arhasi
"O descendant of Bharata, he who dwells in the body can never be slain. Therefore you need not grieve for any living being." (Bhagavadgita 2.30)
In this section of the Bhagavadgita, Krishna is explaining in so many ways that the living entity within the body is eternal, indestructible, immutable. It does not take birth, it does not die, it is always the same.
Here Krishna says, 'dehi nityam avadhyo yam dehe sarvasya bharata' : "Nobody can kill the soul who dwells in all bodies." This is very important. It is not that the soul is simply in the human body and not in other bodies. That theory is rascaldom. Krishna says, 'dehe sarvasya', "in every body". Even within the ant, even within the elephant, even within the gigantic banyan tree and the microbe, the soul is there.
Some rascals say animals have no soul. This is wrong. How can they say animals have no soul? Here is the authoritative statement by Krishna: 'dehe sarvasya', "The soul is in every body". And in another place [Bhagavadgita 14.4] Krishna says, sarva-yonisu kaunteya murtayah sambha-vanti yah: "Of all the embodied beings who appear in all the species of life", ' tasam brahma mahadyonir ' : "the source of their bodies is this material nature". And ' aham bija-pradah pita' : "I am the seed-giving father". Without both a father and a mother, there is no offspring. So the universal father is Krishna, and the mother is either the material nature or the spiritual nature.
There are two natures: the material nature and the spiritual nature, or the inferior nature and the superior nature. (This is explained in the Seventh Chapter of Bhagavadgita.) So, although both the spiritual nature and the material nature come from the same source, the Absolute Truth, still one is superior and one is inferior. What is the difference between the inferior and the superior natures? In the inferior nature, the material nature, God consciousness is almost nil. Persons in the mode of goodness have a little God consciousness, those in the mode of passion have less, and those in the mode of ignorance have no God consciousness - it is completely absent.
Therefore, although this material body comes from the same source as the soul, still it is inferior. And although by nature the soul is superior to the material nature, still, because he is encaged within a body made of the material nature, he forgets Krishna. This is the problem. So those who are not rascals, those who are intelligent and in complete knowledge, do not make any spiritual distinction between a human being and an animal. As Krishna says in Bhagavadgita [5.18],
' vidya-vinaya-sampanne brahmane gavi-hastinisuni caiva sva-pake ca panditah sama-darsinah '
A learned person knows that the spirit soul is present in every body - within the first-class learned brahmana, the cow, the elephant, the dog, and the lowest kind of human being". The soul is present everywhere. It is not that simply in the human beings and the demigods there is a soul but the poor animals have no soul. No, everyone has a soul - 'dehe sarvasya bharata'.
So, what shall we accept - the statement of Krishna, or the statement of some rascal philosopher or so-called religionist? We have to accept the statement of Krishna, the supreme authority, the supreme being. And in many places in the Bhagavadgita, Krishna says the soul is present in every body. Therefore those who are learned do not say that the animals have no soul.
Now, another point Krishna is stressing here is that the soul is eternal, that it cannot be killed. "Therefore," Krishna tells Arjuna, "it is your duty to fight. The bodies of your friends and relatives may be destroyed, but even after the destruction of the body, the soul exists. He will get another body, that's all (tatha dehantara-praptih)."
It is not that anyone can engage in killing others whimsically. However, as will be explained in the next verse, a kshatriya [warrior] can kill his enemies only when he is in a religious fight. His cause must be right; then the fighting is good. When a kshatriya kills his enemies in a religious fight, he's not sinful. Thus Krishna tells Arjuna, "Do your duty. Don't worry that you are killing your kinsmen and grandfather. Take it from Me that you cannot kill the soul; he's eternal."
Now, another important point you should note is that in every living entity, the body grows on the platform of the spirit soul. The body may be very gigantic or very small; it doesn't matter. But it grows on the platform of spirit. It is not that a spirit soul, or living force, comes into existence due to the combination of material elements. No, matter is dependent on spirit (yayedam dharyate jagat), and therefore matter is inferior to spirit. There are two kinds of spirit: atma and Paramatma, ishvara and Parameshvara. The gigantic universe is resting on spirit - either the Supreme Spirit, Krishna, or the small spirit, the living entity. As Krishna explains [Bhagavadgita 7.5],
' apareyam itas tv anyam prakrtimviddhi me paramjiva-bhutam maha-baho yayedam dharyate jagat'
"Besides the inferior, material energy, there are the living entities, who are sustaining the material universe."
Why are the gigantic planets floating weightless in the sky? Krishna says, gam avisya . . . dharayamy aham ojasa: "I sustain the planets by My energy." Just try to understand: A 747 airplane with five or six hundred passengers flies in the sky without any difficulty. Why? Because the pilot is there. Don't think that it is because of the gigantic machine. No. It is because the pilot is there. The machine is also there, but the flying is dependent not on any mechanical arrangement but on the pilot. If the pilot were not there, the whole machine would immediately fall down. Similarly, Krishna enters into all the gigantic planets and sustains them in outer space. Without Krishna's entering into matter, nothing can work. Within the shell of the universe He is present as Garbhodakashayi Vishnu, and therefore the universe exists. And within the body of everyone He is present as Paramatma, the Supersoul.
He is not only within the body of all living entities, but also within the atom: andan-tara-stha-paramanu-cayantara-stham. The scientists are now studying the atom-dividing, dividing, dividing. But they are having difficulty in coming to any conclusion because they cannot find God, or Krishna, in the atom in His form as the Supersoul. So, without Krishna's presence, nothing can exist. Therefore one who is advanced in Krishna consciousness sees only Krishna everywhere, not the outward covering. In the Chaitanya-charitamrta [Madhya 8.274] it is said, ' sthavara-jangama dekhe, na dekhe tara murti/ sarvatra haya nija ista-deva-sphurti'. There are two kinds of entities, the moving and the nonmoving. (Sthavara means "nonmoving" and jarigama means "moving"). A pure devotee of Krishna sees both these kinds of entities, but he does not exactly see their forms. Rather, he sees Krishna, because he knows that within the moving entities is the living force, which is Krishna's energy, and that inert matter is also Krishna's energy. So, in everything he sees only Krishna. The Brahma-samhita [5.38] states, premanjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena santah sadaiva hrdayesu vilo-kayanti: "The devotee whose eyes are anointed with the salve of love of Krishna always sees Him within his heart."
Sometimes people inquire, "Have you seen God?" The answer is that one who is actually an advanced devotee is simply seeing Krishna and nothing else, within and without. The more advanced you are in Krishna consciousness, the more you'll see simply Krishna. And if you become practiced to see Krishna always, then at the time of death you'll think of Him and go back to Godhead. That is Krishna's instruction: man-mana, "Always think of Me."
Now, who can think of Krishna always? Only a devotee can think of Krishna always. Is it a very difficult task? You are seeing Krishna in the temple, chanting Krishna's name, engaging in Krishna's service. Nothing but Krishna, Krishna, Krishna, Krishna. And this twenty-four-hour engagement in Krishna consciousness means you are becoming practiced to see Krishna always. This is the purpose of the Krishna consciousness movement - to train people so that they cannot forget Krishna even for a moment. And that is Krishna's instruction in Bhagavadgita [9.34]: 'man-mana bhava mad-bhakto mad-yaji mam namaskuru ', "Think of Me, become My devotee, worship Me, offer obeisances unto Me."
When you see the Deity in the temple, you get the impression within your mind, and when you are out of the temple you can see the Deity within your heart if you have developed love for Krishna. Otherwise, if you only officially come to the temple, as soon as you leave you think, "Oh, it is a botheration: let me forget it." That is another thing.
The process of Krishna consciousness is meant for developing love for Krishna. 'Sa vai pumsam paro dharmo yato bhaktir adhoksaje' : "The first-class religious system enables one to develop love for Krishna". So Krishna consciousness is the first-class, topmost religious system because it is educating people to always think of Krishna, the Supreme Lord, and to love Him. We cannot think of anyone always unless we love him. Suppose a boy and a girl are in love. Then each of them will always think of the other: "Oh, when shall we meet again, when shall we meet again?" Similarly, you can always think of Krishna if you have developed your love for Him. And by devotional service you can develop your love for Krishna. That is required.
So, even in the lower stages of animal life, Krishna is in the heart. As He says here, 'dehe sarvasya bharata'. In another place[Bhagavadgita 13.3] He says, 'ksetra-jnam capi mam viddhi sarva-ksetresu bharata'. The individual soul is 'ksetrajna', the owner of the body, but there is another 'ksetrajna', another owner, and that is Krishna. As the individual soul is within the body, similarly the Supersoul, Krishna, is also there. So Krishna is the owner of all bodies.
Sometimes rascals accuse Krishna: "Why did He dance with others' wives?" But He is actually the proprietor of everyone. We are not the proprietor; He is the proprietor. So if the proprietor dances with His maidservants or devotees, what is wrong there? The individual soul is in every body, but the Supersoul is the real proprietor of the body. Lord Krishna says that 'bhoktaram yajna-tapasam sarva-loka-maheshvaram'. "I am the enjoyer and proprietor of everything" [Bhagavadgita 5.29]. He is 'maheshvaram', the supreme proprietor, and also 'suhrdam sarva-bhutanam', the actual friend of everyone. If you have some lover, you think you are his friend, but actually you are not his friend. His actual friend is Krishna.
So if the gopis dance with their real friend, what is wrong there? But the rascals, those who do not know Krishna, say He is immoral. He is not immoral. He is doing the right thing, because Krishna is the real husband of every woman. He married 16,108 wives. Why only 16,108? If He had married sixteen billion trillion wives, there would have been nothing wrong, since He is every woman's real husband.
Still, those who do not know Krishna, the rascals, accuse Him of being an immoral woman-hunter. They take pleasure in painting pictures of Krishna's affairs with the gopis. But they do not paint pictures of Him killing Kamsa and other demons. These pastimes they do not like. This attitude is called 'sahajiya'. The business of the 'sahajiyas' is debauchery, which they try to justify by citing Krishna's pastimes: "Krishna danced with the gopis. Krishna was immoral, so we can also be immoral. We are great devotees of Krishna because we are immoral". This is going on.
Therefore, to understand Krishna one requires a little better intelligence. Krishna says [Bhagavadgita 7.19],
'bahunam janmanam ante jnanavan mam prapadyatevasudevah sarvam iti sa mahatma su-durlabhah'
"After many births one may become 'jnanavan' ". 'Jnanavan' means "one who possesses first-class intelligence." Then? 'Mam prapadyate' : "He surrenders unto Me", Why? 'Vasudevah sarvam iti' : "He understands that Vasudeva, Krishna, is everything." And, 'sa mahatma sudurlabhah' : "Such an intelligent mahatma is very rare."
There are so many rascal 'mahatmas' who simply change their dress and declare themselves to be God, or Krishna. Kick on their faces. A real 'mahatma' is different from all these rascals because he knows Krishna. If you understand Krishna, you are so fortunate: 'brahmanda bhramite kona bhagyavan jiva/ guru-Krishna-prasade paya bhakti-lata-bija'. There are many, many millions and trillions of living entities within this universe, and they are rotating in 8,400,000 different species of life. They are all unfortunate, simply repeating birth and death, birth and death, in different species. Out of all of them, the most fortunate get the mercy of Krishna and the spiritual master and are given a chance to know Krishna.
By the mercy of the guru and Krishna, one gets the seed of devotional service, which is planted at the time of initiation. And then one must water the seed. Suppose you get a nice seed of a tree. You have to sow it and pour a little water on it. Then it will grow. Similarly, anyone who by great fortune has come into contact with Krishna consciousness, who has received the seed of devotional service, should water it. What is that water? 'Sravana-kirtana': hearing and chanting about Krishna. So, don't be absent from the Srimad-Bhagavatam class. This hearing and chanting of topics about Krishna is watering the seed of devotional service. This is the most important thing hearing and chanting about Krishna.
'Sravana-kirtana' does not mean hearing and chanting about just anything, no. One must hear and chant about Krishna. The rascals have manufactured 'Kali-kirtana'. Where in the scripture is there a mention of 'Kali-kirtana' or 'Shiva-kirtana' ? No, 'kirtana' means glorifying the Supreme Lord, Krishna. That is 'kirtana'. Other so-called 'kirtanas' are all nonsense. Simply hear and chant about Krishna.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
