Q: Isn’t the jīva a constituent of Śrī Rādhā?
A: No.
Q: How can you be sure?
A: You have to provide proof of this statement. The burden of proof is on you.
Q: [Name redacted] has written this.
A: Proof for us is the writings of the Goswamis or Śrī Viśvanātha. They have not written anything like this.
Q: So what is jīva a constituent of ?
A: Paramātmā.
Q: What is your proof?
A: See Anucchedas 19, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 68, 82, of Paramatma Sandarbha. Now you provide proof from the Sandarbhas.
Q: If we did not choose to be here, then why are we suffering? The mortal coils of maya are a punishment for our choice to come here.
A: We are suffering because of beginningless ignorance. This is explained at many places in the Sandarbhas. There is no mention of a choice anywhere in the Sandarbhas. Priti Sandarbha explains that there is no possibility of a fall from Vaikuntha.
Q: We wanted to lord if over maya, so we fell.
A: No. We are here from beginningless time, so a falling event could never have occurred.
Q: So why are we ignorant, and those in Vaikuntha are in knowledge?
A: Beginningless events have no cause. So your question of ‘why’ is ill-posed.
Q: You are saying we are here but there is no rhyme or reason for it?
A: Yes.
Q: Then why are we punished with suffering?
A: We are not ‘punished’ for any original misdeed. We suffer because of our ignorance.
Q: Doesn’t the word taṭastha mean ‘on the bank’ between acit and cit?
A: So?
Q: So it means that a jiva can sometimes go from cit to acit and sometimes go from acit to cit. It can oscillate. That is free will.
A: That is not the meaning of the term tatastha. The definition of tatastha is discussed here. There is no such thing as free will.
Q: Are you saying that [name redacted] is wrong?
A: I am answering your questions based on Śrī Viśvanātha and Śrī Jīva Goswami. If you have a problem with what they write, you can ask.
Q: Can you reconcile what [name redacted] wrote and what the Goswamis wrote?
A: I am not interested in doing that. It is not my problem.
Leave a Reply