The material world is not a perverted reflection of the spiritual world
There is the notion in some bhakti sects that the material world is a perverted reflection of the spiritual world.
The ātman has no free will
First, here is a definition of free will — Free will is the capacity to make a choice independent of any external influence. If we strip the jīva of the mind, body, senses and prāṇa, what is left is the ātman. The ātman, as we have seen before, […]
The role of the ātman in experience and thought
Sri Jiva Goswami lists several properties of the ātman in the Paramātma Sandarbha. Pertinent to this article are its qualities of knowership and experiential capacity. The ātman has the capacity to know. The mind and intelligence, being inert, cannot know. At the same time, the ātman cannot understand […]
The functions of manas, citta and buddhi
To understand human psychology, we have to first understand how the mind operates. The mind is classified into different categories based on function. Here we consider the functions of manas (mind), citta (the part of the mind that we are not conscious of) and buddhi (intelligence; the decision making […]
The five types of anarthas and how to get rid of them
The word anartha means anything that is not artha- or that which is not the goal. Anything which is undesirable for bhakti to Kṛṣṇa is anartha, even though it may fall under dharma, artha, kāma or mokṣa. There are five types of anarthas which progress from the first to […]
The rāsa līlā is to be understood in its व्यंजना (vyañjanā) meaning. Part 2
An example where the primary meaning of scripture can be misleading is Kṛṣṇa’s rāsa līlā described in the Bhāgavatam. Here, there are references to intimate interactions between Kṛṣṇa and the gopīs, which appear sexual in nature in their primary meaning, no different from an ordinary book of romance. And yet, at the end […]
The rāsa līlā is to be understood in its व्यंजना (vyañjanā) meaning. Part 1
In Sanskrit kāvya, words have three kinds of meaning. Kavi-karṇapūra’s Alaṅkāra-kaustubha describes these meanings in detail 1. They are abhidhā-vṛtti, lakṣaṇā-vṛtti and vyañjanā-vṛtti. The meanings of these words are best understood through an example. Consider the words: gaṅgāyāṁ ghoṣaḥ. The abhidhā or primary meaning of these words is […]
Kṛṣṇa teaches the middle path for managing material desires
Misconceptions of how to deal with material desires has led many a beginner to repress desires. However, frustrated desire simply turns into anger as the Gita so eloquently explains (कामात् क्रोधो अभिजायते!), which breeds fanaticism and ambition. Build up of this frustrated energy can also come out in […]
Why understanding is important in bhakti
One-pointed focus is required for success in any sphere of life – whether it is business, academia, politics, law or medicine. Generally it is difficult to focus the mind on something that we do not consider important, or something that we do not like. Therefore it is necessary […]
The qualification for vaidhī sādhanā bhakti
In kārikā 1.2.9, Rupa Goswami writes that vaidhī bhakti is the duty of everyone in varṇāśrama : इति असौ स्याद् विधिर् नित्यौ सर्व-वर्णाश्रमादिषु| नित्यत्वेSपि अस्य निर्णितम् एकादश्यादिवत् फलम्|| This vidhi (vaidhī bhakti) is a compulsory or regular activity (nitya) for all varṇas and āśramas. Even though it is nitya, […]
