As we have examined elsewhere, the Purāṇas differentiate between material or prākṛt sattva and viśuddha sattva. The distinction between these two is important to understand, because it helps us understand why Bhagavān is not perceivable to us, and how He can be perceived. The definition of viśuddha sattva. […]
Śrī Jīva Goswami spends a large part of the Bhagavat Sandarbha establishing the concept that Śrī Bhagavān’s body is not a temporary product of māyā, but is real and a manifestation of viśuddha-sattva, beyond the material guṇas. In establishing this, he examines the experience of āpta-janas, or reliable […]
Śrī Jīva means something very specific when he uses the words Supreme Absolute Reality. He planned a major part of the Bhagavat Sandarbha in such a way that Kṛṣṇa’s form is ultimately proven as the Supreme Absolute Reality or paraṁ tattva. Five-point syllogism of Nyāya Śrī Jīva writes […]
A major portion of the Bhagavat Sandarbha is occupied with the nature of reality. Śrī Jīva Goswami takes pains to explain that reality is non-dual (advaya). An examination of his presentation leads to the following conclusions. The complete manifestation of tattva or Absolute Truth is Bhagavān. Tattva can […]
As we have seen elsewhere, the absolute truth has to be understood in terms of viśeṣya, viśeṣaṇa and viśiṣṭa. To remind the reader, these words refer to the object to be qualified, the qualifier(s) or attribute(s), and the qualified object respectively. The idea is that perception of any […]
A major problem many have with Bhagavān’s form, is that a form is limiting. The surface of any object with form is its limit or boundary, which separates the universe outside that form from what is inside the form. If Bhagavān has a form, then He is limited. […]
Śrī Jīva discusses absolute reality or tattva with an analysis of the famous verse from the Śrīmad Bhagavatām below (Tattva Sandarbha Anuccheda 51 and 52 and Bhagavat Sandarbha Anuccheda 1): vadanti tat tattva-vidas tattvaṁ yaj jñānam advayam brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate: All those who have realized Absolute reality refer […]
We have examined previously that Bhagavān is the viśiṣṭa tattva. We also saw that Brahman is Bhagavān without attributes, or the viśeṣya tattva. Here we examine what viśiṣṭa tattva means in Śrī Jīva’s theology. Śrī Jīva discusses absolute reality or tattva with an analysis of the famous verse […]
There are differing views on Brahman and Bhagavān. There is one camp, particularly among some Vaiṣṇava sects, which tends to interpret all verses involving Brahman in the Purāṇas as Bhagavān. The camp of the Advaita-vadis considers Bhagavān as material, and only Brahman as the absolute reality. Sri Jiva […]
In the spiritual world, form follows function. This is true of everyone- including Kṛṣṇa’s associates
Śrī Jīva Goswami provides two examples in which the Bhāgavata purāṇa is seen to override other scriptures. The first is from the story of the Syamantaka gem. The sun god had given Satrājit this marvelous jewel, which produced eight bhāras of gold every day and in the proximity […]
Many people are surprised to learn that Kṛṣṇa is Svayaṁ Bhagavān, the original form of Bhagavān and the source of all avataras including Rāma and Visṇu himself. Sri Jiva Goswami in the Kṛṣṇa Sandarbha does an exhaustive analysis to establish Kṛṣṇa as Svayaṁ Bhagavān. Śrī Babaji has recently translated this book (available at the above link) with insightful commentary.