I am now getting to the end of my refutations of inherent bhakti-vāda. I have probably written around 30 articles on the topic so far. My understanding of the position of the inherent bhakti-vādis has evolved with each new article. Initially, I thought that I was only refuting […]
The inherent bhakti-vādis claim that the primary meaning of the word ‘tādātmya’ is ‘relationship of something with itself’. They then proceed to argue that the ātmā’s relation with the siddha deha is one of ‘tādātmya’ where tādātmya is defined in the previous sentence. That is, the ātmā is […]
I continue my refutation of the concept that bhakti is inherent and also bestowed on the ātmā. One of the qualities of the ātmā mentioned in the Paramātmā Sandarbha is ānanda which Śrī Jīva Goswami has glossed as duḥkha-pratiyogi. The inherent bhakti-vādis, being apparently unaware of the technical […]
I continue examining the arguments of the inherent bhakti-vādis, who claim that “bhakti is inherent in the ātmā”. While this theory was invented some time in the last two centuries, it has now taken the form that “bhakti is both bestowed on the ātmā and already inherent in […]
I continue to examine the arguments offered by inherent bhakti-vādis to support the claim that bhakti is inherent but dormant inside the ātmā. In this article, I examine the claim that the word ‘śeṣatva’, which according to Śrī Jīva Goswami, is an inherent characteristic of the ātmā, implies […]
In a previous article, I refuted the claim that the dāsa bhūto harer eva implies inherent bhakti in the ātmā. Here I examine citations that are claimed to support inherent bhakti. The first one is from Śrī Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja. I provide the verse and the cited translation below. […]
I continue examining the arguments of the inherent bhakti-vādis. Claim: An intrinsic characteristic of the jīva is that it is a dāsa, i.e. a devotee of Bhagavān. This is stated in the Padma Purāṇa 6.226.37: dāsabhūto harereva nānyasya tu kadācana. This is also stated by Śrī Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja: […]
In a previous article, I presented Śrī Jīva Goswami’s formulation of the jīva’s basic problem that he defines in the Prīti Sandarbha: atha jīvaś ca tadīyo’pi taj-jñāna-saṁsargābhāva-yuktatvena tan-māyā-parābhūtaḥ sann ātma-svarūpa-jñāna-lopān māyā-kalpitopādhy-āveśāc cānādi-saṁsāra-duḥkhena sambadhyata iti paramātma-sandarbhādāv eva nirūpitam asti | The individual living being (jīva), although belonging to the […]
The inherent bhaktivadis claim that intrinsic śaktis of the ātmā like its jñāna-śakti or its ability to know, its ability to act, and so on, become unmanifest when it is conditioned by māyā. To support this, they cite the Prīti Sandarbha. Here I continue to examine the evidence […]
Proponents of inherent bhakti-vāda (bhakti is inherent in the ātmā) claim that without inherent bhakti, the ātmā would not have prīti or love for Bhagavān as its purpose. The opponents of inherent bhakti-vāda, that is us, take the position that the absence of suffering is the ātmā’s inherent […]
Reader Sridhar ji requested a translation of Śrī Baladeva’s commentary on Gītā 2.29. For reference, the verse is below: āścaryavat paśyati kaścid enam āścaryavad vadati tathaiva cānyaḥ | āścaryavac cainam anyaḥ śṛṇoti śrutvāpy enaṁ veda na caiva kaścit || Someone considers the self as amazing, another speaks of […]
Claim: The quality of the jīva of svayam-prakāśatva, discussed in the Paramātmā Sandarbha, means ‘self-manifestation’. This refers to the phenomenon, in which the jīva, upon liberation, ‘self-manifests’ its intrinsic qualities of jñāna-śakti or knowership, its agency or doership, and other qualities, on its own. Further, these śaktis are […]
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