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Agni and the Fire of Self-Inquiry Published in the Mountain Path of the Sri Ramasramam (Ramana Maharshi) By David Frawley Self-inquiry (Atma-vichara), such as taught by Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi, is regarded as the simplest and most direct path to Self-realization. However, Self-inquiry is also very subtle and can be hard to accomplish even after years of dedicated practice. It depends upon a great power of concentration and acuity of mind along with an intense longing for liberation. One might say metaphorically that Self-inquiry requires a certain flame. It requires that we ourselves become a flame and that our lives become an offering to it. Without such an inner fire, Self-realization may elude us whatever else we may attempt. Therefore, it is important to look at Self-inquiry not simply as a mental practice but as an energetic movement of consciousness like the rising up of a great fire. The Search for the Universal Self In this psychological age, particularly seekers coming from the West tend to confuse Self-inquiry with a kind of psychological self-examination, a looking into our temporal, bodily or ego self and its fears and desires as constituting a true search for the higher Self. One examines ones personal traumas and sorrows and looks for a psychological state of peace, clarity and joy, which is a kind state of personal integration, as if it were true Self-realization. However, according to Vedanta, the true Self that we are seeking to realize is not our human self but the universal Self, the Self that is present in all beings, in all bodies and in the entire world. It is the Self that is the witness of all time and space and transcends our psychology, which consists mainly of the incidentals and peculiarities of our personal circumstances and proclivities in life. The true Self resembles more the great powers of nature like fire, wind or sun than it does our personal thoughts and feelings. The search for this transcendent Self is very different than any psychological self-examination, which is at best a preliminary stage in its approach. Other seekers with a more intellectual background tend to approach the Self in a conceptual or philosophical way, as if it were some category of cosmic existence to be appreciated by the rational mind. This too generally misses the living reality of the Self which has the power to consume the mind and cannot be approached by any mere logic or dialectic. To question deeply about who we really are is to create a friction at the core of the mind that naturally gives rise to an inner fire. The inquiry ‘Who Am I?’ is the ultimate stirring of the mind that brings forth an inner flame that can consume all other questions and doubts, like a fire burning dry grass. It takes us back to the core fire at the core of the mind, which is the inextinguishable light of the supreme I AM. That universal Self of pure light and consciousness shining deep within us is the real goal of our search. Self Inquiry as a Yajna or Fire Sacrifice The Self in the Vedas and Upanishads is often symbolized by fire (Agni). The Rig Veda begins with the worship of Agni, who is the deity of the sacrifice. But who is this Agni and what is the nature of the sacrifice to be offered to it? There are many forms of Agni in Vedic thought. Agni outwardly as fire and light and inwardly as life and consciousness pervades all things in the universe. In the Vedic view, Agni has three main cosmic (adhidaivic) or world forms as fire, lightning and sun which are the ruling forces in the three worlds of earth, atmosphere and heaven. These are the three lights in the world of nature and the three manifestations of Paramatman, the Supreme Self that is the Divine Light and the light of all the worlds. In addition, Agni has three main internal (adhyatmic) forms as speech (vak), prana and intelligence (buddhi), which are the ruling forces in the three aspects of our being as body, life and mind. They are the three lights of our internal nature and the three manifestations of the Soul or Jivatman, the consciousness or light principle within us. These three internal forms of Agni create the three main paths of Yoga practice. Agni’s speech form is the basis of Mantra Yoga or the repetition of sacred sounds like OM or longer prayers like the Gayatri mantra. Mantra practice creates an internal fire that helps purify the subconscious mind and make the mind receptive to meditation. Agni’s prana form is the basis of Prana Yoga or yogic breathing practices of pranayama. Pranayama increases the fire of prana (Pranagni) within us that cleanses the nadis of the subtle body and helps unloosen the knots or granthis of the heart. Agni’s mind form is the basis of Dhyana Yoga or the yoga of meditation. The mind form of Agni or the buddhi is the discriminating part of the mind that allows us to distinguish truth from falsehood, reality from unreality and the Self from the not Self. These three forms of Agni and their related yogic paths take us to the Jivatman or our individual Self and help us understand its basis in the Paramatman or Supreme Self. There are many Vedic yajnas or fire-sacrifices both external and internal. External yajnas consist of offerings of special substances of wood, ghee, milk or rice into the sacred fire. Internal yajnas consist of offerings of speech (mantra), breath (prana), and mind (meditation) into our internal fires. Vedic Yoga practices of mantra, pranayama and meditation are the main internal yajnas. Yoga itself is the inner sacrifice in all of its forms. The fourth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita explains these different internal sacrifices which reflect the different practices of Yoga including pranayama (Prana-yajna), pratyahara (Indriya-yajna), dharana (Mano-yajna) and dhyana (Buddhi-yajna). Each relates to a different form or aspect of Agni on the levels of body, breath and mind. The highest Yajna is the Atma-Yajna or Self-sacrifice in which we offer the ego into the Self. This is the also the highest form of meditation or the mind-sacrifice, as the ego is the root of the mind. For this Yajna, the Agni is the Atman or true Self in the heart. Self-inquiry is perhaps the ultimate form of this Atma-Yajna or Self-sacrifice, in which the ego can be directly consumed. It is also called the knowledge-sacrifice (Jnana-yajna) that proceeds through the power of the fire of Self-knowledge (Jnanagni) As the Gita states: Preferable to the material sacrifices is the knowledge-sacrifice (Jnana-yajna). All actions are comprehended in knowledge. As a fire when enkindled burns up dry wood and turns it to ashes, so the fire of knowledge (Jnana-agni) turns all our karmas to ashes. Bhagavad Gita IV. 33, 37 In this Self-sacrifice, the Self is not only the offering; the Self is the offerer and the fire in which the offering is given. In this regard we are again reminded of the words of the Gita. Brahman is the process of offering. Brahman is the substance offered. Brahman is the offerer, who places the offering into the fire of Brahman. Brahman alone is attained by this action of absorption in Brahman. Gita IV.24. If we look at Self-inquiry as a Self-sacrifice or Atma-yajna, we gain a new perspective to take our practice to a deeper level beyond the complications of the outer mind. The Flame in the Heart The Vedas not only equate the Self with fire, they also equate the heart, which is the seat of the Self, with fire. The Self is said to exist like a flame the size of a thumb in the heart. This small flame in the heart is the real person, power and presence that allows the body and mind to function. It is like the pilot light in a stove that lights all the other burners on the stove. The light of the Self lights all the other fires of the body, prana, senses and mind. Even the digestive fire can only work with its support. This flame of the Self sustains us through all our states of waking, dream and deep sleep and through the entire process of birth or death. Even prana or the life-force is but its manifestation or shadow. This flame leaves the body at death and carries the samskaras that propel us on to another birth. Only for those who are fully Self-realized, who have totally merged into their inner fire, are able to escape this process. This Self in the heart is clearly explained in the Narayana Sukta which states: "In the middle of the heart is a great fire (Mahan Agni) that carries all light and looks to every side. It is the first eater and dwells apportioning our food, the undecaying seer. He gives heat to the entire body from the feet to the head. In the middle of this fire is the subtle crest of a flame pointed upwards, shining like a streak of lightning from a dark blue rain cloud. In the middle of the crest of this flame the Paramatman dwells. He is Brahma (Creator), Shiva (Transformer), Vishnu (Preserver), Indra (Ruler), OM and the supreme Lord." The great fire (Mahan Agni) in the heart is the subtle body (or linga) and the being behind it of lightning-like appearance is the individual soul or Jivatman. At its core is the atomic point of the Supreme Self which is the doorway into the infinite light, the Sun of suns, the God of Gods. Indeed we could say that the hridaya or heart that Ramana emphasizes is also this flame that dwells there. The heart, Agni and Atman are ultimately three ways of looking at the same supreme truth. Ramana, Agni and Skanda Not surprisingly as the great teacher of Self-Inquiry, Ramana himself was regarded as an incarnation of Agni. He was identified with Skanda, the younger son of Shiva and Parvati, who himself is the child of fire or Agni. Skanda is born of Agni and carries his form and his powers. Skanda is also called Kumara, the Divine fire child. This six day old child has the power to destroy all the negative forces of time and ignorance symbolized by the demon Taraka. He is also called Guha or the one who dwells in the cavity of the heart. To find him, we must trace our way back to the cavity of the heart, which is to trace our thoughts back to their origin in the I behind the I. This process is explained as early as the Rig Veda I. 65-73 in the hymns of the great Rishi Parashara, though in cryptic Vedic mantras. In the Vedas, Agni is called Jatavedas or the knower of all births as he knows the births of all creatures as their indwelling Self. Jatavedas is the Jiva or the individual soul hidden in the body. This Jiva when awakened discovers its unity with the Supreme. Then it becomes Vaishvanara or the universal person, which symbolizes the liberated soul. Jatavedas or the individual fire becomes Vaishvanara, the fire of the universal Self, which is the other main Vedic name of Agni (not to be confused with Vaishvanara as merely the soul of the waking state in later Vedantic thought). Vaishvanara is this Divine child who has realized its unity with the Divine Father, Shiva. Ganapati Muni, Ramana’s disciple and spiritual brother, the great mantric seer who knew both the Vedas and the Puranas, not only lauded Ramana as Skanda, he spoke of the unity of Skanda and Agni, and identified Ramana with Agni. He states in his Agni-Devata-Tattva-Nirupanam (The elucidation of the truth of the deity Agni) that "Agni Vaishvanara, who dwells in the cave of the heart, is indeed Ramana. Ramana is not different from Kumara. Vaishvanara is Sanat Kumara. " This means that Agni, Skanda and Ramana are the same. Skanda as Kumara is also Sanat Kumara or the eternal child. Sanat Kumara is the primal or adi guru for humanity in Vedic and Upanishadic thought. He is the guru of all gurus and the inner guru that we must all eventually contact. Ramana is the incarnation of that supreme Guru within us. This all-seeing flame in the heart is the true Guru of all that took a wonderful outer manifestation in the form of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi. As the guru of the heart, Ramana did not put much emphasis on outer formalities. As the incarnation of the inner fire he showed how all teachings and practices could be consumed like fuel in the great fire of Self-knowledge. Cultivating the Inner Fire Self-inquiry is a lot like cultivating a fire. Our awareness grows by offering our speech, breath and mind into the witnessing Self that is the eternal and inextinguishable flame within us. It is the quality and consistency of our offering that is the main factor in growing this flame, not any outer formulas or formalities. We must maintain our awareness like a fire, keeping it from going out even for an instant by continually offering our mental modifications into it as its fuel. Indeed we could say that the modifications of the mind are nothing but the smoke coming forth from an improperly burning fire of awareness. When that inner flame burns cleans and consistently then there is only pure light and the mind itself gets merged in its source. For Self-inquiry to be a living process we must invoke and incarnate that inner flame of knowing in our daily lives. Self-inquiry is not a matter of ordinary thinking or logic. It is not a matter of emotion or feeling either. It is not a matter of just blanking or stopping the mind as it is. Nor is it some esoteric intuition. It is the most fundamental form of knowledge, perception or consciousness that we have. It is cultivating the pure light behind all the glitter and shadow of the mind and senses. The Self is the mind behind the mind, the eye behind the eye, the speech behind speech and the prana behind prana as the Upanishads so eloquently state. Behind all of our senses through which we perceive the external world is a more primary internal sense of self-being through which we know that we exist and through which we are one with all existence. This self-sense is more immediate than all the outer senses which are only possible through it. But it is so immediate and given, our very sense of being, that we take it for granted and ignore it. In the maze of sensory information we lose track of who we really are. We get caught in the movements of the body and the mind and forget our true nature that transcends them and for which alone they work. We must remember this very subtle inner fire through which the mind and senses shine and reveal their objects of perception. Cultivating this direct awareness of the Self (aparoksha anubhava of Vedanta) is a lot like conducting a fire sacrifice. Behind all of our states of mind, even the most ignorant or confused, like a flame hidden in darkness, the Self shines as the eternal witness of all. What is important is to bring that flame out, like a fire hidden in wood, through the friction of inquiry. This Self within the heart transcends all the worlds. As the supreme Agni or digestive power, it has the capacity to eat or absorb the entire universe. As the Taittiriya Upanishad ends; I am food. I am food. I am food. I am the eater of food. I am the eater of food. I am the eater of food. I consume the entire universe. My light is like the sun!

Heres a loving Veda Vyasa Stotra

DASAVATHARAM - AN INTRODUCTION PURANIC LORE OF VISHNU Long long ago in this ancient land of ours, great and simple men lived in the forest spending their time in contemplation and devotion. They created various systems of science and philosophy, many of which are valued and accepted even today. Consider the concept of time. Today we think of time as a linear movement, with the birth of Christ as marking point. But time is in fact a cyclic process, repeating endlessly and infinitely. This may seem strange to us, but five hundred years ago many thought the earth was flat, and the roundness of the earth seemed equally strange! Anyway, in the ancient Indian system, time is conceived as a cycle in this cycles. Days and nights follow cyclically, seasons come and go cyclically, stars and planets move cyclically every sixty years, and many thousands of such cycles make a Yuga. There are four Yugas and these four Yugas come and go cyclically in kalpas, thousands of such kalpas follow in endless cycles into eternity. The first Yuga is Krita Yuga, the second Yuga is Treta Yuga, the third is Dvarpara Yuga and the fourth is Kaliyuga. We are now living in the first lag of Kaliyuga which began in 3102 BC. The Lord is seated on his majestic throne in Vaikuntha. He lies reclining on a sergent bed Adi Sesha in the ocean of milk. He has descended into this world to protect the good and destroy evil as many as ten times as his avataras. His ten avataras are Matsya- the fish, Kurma-the tortoise, Varaha-the boar, Narasimha-the man-lion, Vamana-the dwarf, Parasurama-the axe wielder, Rama-the bow wielder, Balarama-the plough wielder, Krishna- the complete Avatara and Kalki who is yet to come.

Shri Ghanshyamji Date of Birth: 13th day of the dark half of Kartik in 1628 Family: He was the seventh son of Shri Vitthalnathji. He was born by Padmavatiji, second wife of Shri Vitthalnathji. Special features: His nickname was ‘Pranvallabh’. Episodes: He was fully dedicated in the service of his deity. He used to fan his deity throughout the night in summer with closed eyes. Once upon a time some thieves entered the temple with a view to taking away Madanmohanlalji and Swaminiji, the deities. Some movement was heard but he didn’t open his eyes. When he opened his eyes in the morning he found the absence of both deities. He was deeply grieved and stopped taking water as well as food. He ended his life in the grief of his deity after seven days and entered into an eternal abode of Lord Shri Krishna. Granthas: Commentary on Madhurashtakam Commentary on Guptarasah

http://www.dvaita.org/stotra/template.html#vyasastuti1.gif Heres a wonderful stuti stotra dedicated to Lord Veda Vyasa.

prabhuji, i am gonna add more about "Nityananda" in my "enclyopedia of Gaudiya Vaishnavam" as you requested. so please come & check my enclyopedia daily. gee /images/graemlins/smile.gif /images/graemlins/smile.gif JAI SHRI KRISHNA

prabuji, i have a query. does "shri lakshmipathi" is direct disciple of "Sri Vyaasa thirtha" ? please tell.

I saw guru parampara mentioned in "bhagavath gita as it is" by Srila Prabhupada. Among them Is "Lakshmipathi" direct disciple of "Sri Vyaasa Thirtha" ? /images/graemlins/smile.gif Jai Shri Krishna

Hare Krishna Maha-mantra Srila Prabhupada once announced, "The chanting of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's name is more essential than the chanting of the Hare Krishna maha-mantra." (1) One smart devotee then inquired whether we should therefore chant rounds of the Panca-tattva mantra to which Srila Prabhupada replied, "No — because Lord Caitanya's instruction was to chant Hare Krishna." Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare The Hare Krishna maha-mantra is a very simple mantra consisting of only three words: Hare, Krishna, and Rama. Hare means unto Mother Hara (i.e. Lord Krishna's personal pleasure potency, Srimati Radharani). Krishna means the all-attractive Lord. Rama means the source of all enjoyment. When we chant Hare Krishna we are praying: "O energy of the Lord (Hare), O Lord (Krishna and Rama) please engage me in Your service!" Maha-mantra means it is the Great Mantra Of Deliverance. Lord Caitanya and the Vedas both recommend this process: hare krishna hare krishna krishna krishna hare hare hare rama hare rama rama rama hare hare iti sodasakam namnam kali-kalmasa-nasanam natah parataropayah sarva-vedesu drsyate The sixteen words of the Hare Krishna mantra are especially meant for counteracting the contaminating influence of the age of Kali. After searching through all the Vedic literature, one cannot find a better method. Footnote (1) There are offenses to be considered in chanting the Hare Krishna maha-mantra, but there are no such considerations in chanting the names of Gaura-Nityananda. Therefore, if one chants the Hare Krishna maha-mantra but his life is still full of sinful activities, it will be very difficult for him to achieve the platform of loving service to the Lord. But if in spite of being an offender one chants the holy names of Gaura-Nityananda, he is very quickly freed from the reactions to his offenses. Therefore, one should first approach Lord Caitanya and Nityananda, or worship Guru-Gauranga, and then come to the stage of worshiping Radha-Krishna. One should first take shelter of Gaura-Nityananda in order to reach, ultimately, Radha-Krishna. … It should be noted in this connection that the holy names of Lord Krishna and Gaurasundara are both identical with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore one should not consider one name to be more potent than the other. Considering the position of the people of this age, however, the chanting of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s name is more essential than the chanting of the Hare Krishna maha-mantra because Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is the most magnanimous incarnation and His mercy is very easily achieved. Therefore one must first take shelter of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu by chanting Sri-Krishna-Caitanya Prabhu Nityananda Sri Advaita Gadadhara Srivasadi Gaura Bhakta-Vrnda. (Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Adi 8.31 purport)

Hare Krishna Maha-mantra Srila Prabhupada once announced, "The chanting of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's name is more essential than the chanting of the Hare Krishna maha-mantra." (1) One smart devotee then inquired whether we should therefore chant rounds of the Panca-tattva mantra to which Srila Prabhupada replied, "No — because Lord Caitanya's instruction was to chant Hare Krishna." Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare The Hare Krishna maha-mantra is a very simple mantra consisting of only three words: Hare, Krishna, and Rama. Hare means unto Mother Hara (i.e. Lord Krishna's personal pleasure potency, Srimati Radharani). Krishna means the all-attractive Lord. Rama means the source of all enjoyment. When we chant Hare Krishna we are praying: "O energy of the Lord (Hare), O Lord (Krishna and Rama) please engage me in Your service!" Maha-mantra means it is the Great Mantra Of Deliverance. Lord Caitanya and the Vedas both recommend this process: hare krishna hare krishna krishna krishna hare hare hare rama hare rama rama rama hare hare iti sodasakam namnam kali-kalmasa-nasanam natah parataropayah sarva-vedesu drsyate The sixteen words of the Hare Krishna mantra are especially meant for counteracting the contaminating influence of the age of Kali. After searching through all the Vedic literature, one cannot find a better method. Footnote (1) There are offenses to be considered in chanting the Hare Krishna maha-mantra, but there are no such considerations in chanting the names of Gaura-Nityananda. Therefore, if one chants the Hare Krishna maha-mantra but his life is still full of sinful activities, it will be very difficult for him to achieve the platform of loving service to the Lord. But if in spite of being an offender one chants the holy names of Gaura-Nityananda, he is very quickly freed from the reactions to his offenses. Therefore, one should first approach Lord Caitanya and Nityananda, or worship Guru-Gauranga, and then come to the stage of worshiping Radha-Krishna. One should first take shelter of Gaura-Nityananda in order to reach, ultimately, Radha-Krishna. … It should be noted in this connection that the holy names of Lord Krishna and Gaurasundara are both identical with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore one should not consider one name to be more potent than the other. Considering the position of the people of this age, however, the chanting of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s name is more essential than the chanting of the Hare Krishna maha-mantra because Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is the most magnanimous incarnation and His mercy is very easily achieved. Therefore one must first take shelter of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu by chanting Sri-Krishna-Caitanya Prabhu Nityananda Sri Advaita Gadadhara Srivasadi Gaura Bhakta-Vrnda. (Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Adi 8.31 purport)

Hymn to the Earth from the Atharva Veda High Truth, unyielding Order, Consecration, Ardor and Prayer and Holy Ritual uphold the Earth, may she, the ruling Mistress of what has been and what will come to be, for us spread wide a limitless domain. Untrammeled in the midst of men, the Earth, adorned with heights and gentle slopes and plains, bears plants and herbs of various healing powers. May she spread wide for us, afford us joy! On whom are ocean, river, and all waters, on whom have sprung up food and plowman's crops, on whom moves all that breathes and stirs abroad - Earth, may she grant to us the long first draught! To Earth belong the four directions of space. On her grows food; on her the plowman toils. She carries likewise all that breathes and stirs. Earth, may she grant us cattle and food in plenty! On whom the men of olden days roamed far, on whom the conquering Gods smote the demons, the home of cattle, horses, and of birds, may Earth vouchsafe to us good fortune and glory! Bearer of all things, hoard of treasures rare, sustaining mother, Earth the golden-breasted who bears the Sacred Universal Fire, whose spouse is Indra - may she grant us wealth! Limitless Earth, whom the Gods, never sleeping, protect forever with unflagging care, may she exude for us the well-loved honey, shed upon us her splendor copiously! Earth, who of yore was Water in the oceans, discerned by the Sages' secret powers, whose immortal heart, enwrapped in Truth, abides aloft in the highest firmament, may she procure for us splendor and power, according to her highest royal state! On whom the flowing Waters, ever the same, course without cease or failure night and day, may she yield milk, this Earth of many streams, and shed on us her splendor copiously! May Earth, whose measurements the Asvins marked, over whose breadth the foot of Vishnu strode, whom Indra, Lord of power, freed from foes, stream milk for me, as a mother for her son! Your hills, O Earth, your snow-clad mountain peaks, your forests, may they show us kindliness! Brown, black, red, multifarious in hue and solid is this vast Earth, guarded by Indra. Invincible, unconquered, and unharmed, I have on her established my abode. Impart to us those vitalizing forces that come, O Earth, from deep within your body, your central point, your navel, purify us wholly. The Earth is mother; I am son of Earth. The Rain-giver is my father; may he shower on us blessings! The Earth on which they circumscribe the altar, on which a band of workmen prepare the oblation, on which the tall bright sacrificial posts are fixed before the start of the oblation - may Earth, herself increasing, grant us increase! That man, O Earth, who wills us harm, who fights us, who by his thoughts or deadly arms opposes, deliver him to us, forestalling action. All creatures, born from you, move round upon you. You carry all that has two legs, three, or four. To you, O Earth, belong the five human races, those mortals upon whom the rising sun sheds the immortal splendor of his rays. May the creatures of earth, united together, let flow for me the honey of speech! Grant to me this boon, O Earth. Mother of plants and begetter of all things, firm far-flung Earth, sustained by Heavenly Law, kindly and pleasant is she. May we ever dwell on her bosom, passing to and fro!... Do not thrust us aside from in front or behind, from above or below! Be gracious, O Earth. Let us not encounter robbers on our path. Restrain the deadly weapons! As wide a vista of you as my eye may scan, O Earth, with the kindly help of Sun, so widely may my sight be never dimmed in all the long parade of years to come! Whether, when I repose on you, O Earth, I turn upon my Right side or my left, or whether, extended flat upon my back, I meet your pressure from head to foot, be gentle, Earth! You are the couch of all! Whatever I dig up of you, O Earth, may you of that have quick replenishment! O purifying One, may my thrust never reach Right into your vital points, your heart! Your circling seasons, nights succeeding days, your summer, O Earth, your splashing rains, your autumn, your winter and frosty season yielding to spring--- may each and all produce for us their milk!... From your numberless tracks by which mankind may travel, your roads on which move both chariots and wagons your paths which are used by the good and the bad, may we choose a way free from foes and robbers! May you grant us the blessing of all that is wholesome! She carries in her lap the foolish and also the wise. She bears the death of the wicked as well as the good. She lives in friendly collaboration with the boar, offering herself as sanctuary to the wild pig.... Peaceful and fragrant, gracious to the touch, may Earth, swollen with milk, her breasts overflowing, grant me her blessing together with her milk! The Maker of the world sought her with oblations when she was shrouded in the depth of the ocean. A vessel of gladness, long cherished in secret, the earth was revealed to mankind for their joy. Primeval Mother, disperser of men, you, far-flung Earth, fulfill all our desires. Whatever you lack, may the Lord of creatures, the First-born of Right, supply to you fully! May your dwellings, O Earth, free from sickness and wasting, flourish for us! Through a long life, watchful, may we always offer to you our tribute! O Earth, O Mother, dispose my lot in gracious fashion that I be at ease. In harmony with all the powers of Heaven set me, O Poet, in grace and good fortune!

Sri Tattva-muktavali or Mayavada-sata-dusani The Pearl Necklace of Truths or 100 Refutations of the Mayavada Fallacy by Srila Madhvacarya (translation Kusakratha prabhu) The Life of Srila Madhvacarya Sripada Madhvacarya took his birth at Udupi, which is situated in the South Kanada district of South India, just west of Sahyadri. This is the chief city of the South Kanada province and is near the city of Mangalore, which is situated to the south of Udupi. In the city of Udupi is a place called Pajaka-ksetra, where Madhvacarya took his birth in a sivalli-brahmana dynasty as the son of Madhyageha Bhatta, in the year 1040 of sakabda (A.D. 1118). According to some, he was born in the year 1160 sakabda (A.D. 1238). In his childhood Madhvacarya was known as Vasudeva, and there are some wonderful stories surrounding him. It is also said that his father piled up many debts, and Madhvacarya converted tamarind seeds into actual coins to pay them off. When he was five years old, he was offered the sacred thread. One demon named Maniman lived near his abode in the form of a snake, and at the age of five Madhvacarya killed that snake with the toe of his left foot. When his mother was very disturbed, he would appear before her in one jump. He was a great scholar even in childhood and, although his father did not agree, he accepted sannyasa at the age of twelve. After receiving sannyasa from Acuyta Preksa, he received the name Purnaprajqa Tirtha. After traveling all over India, he finally discussed scriptures with Vidyasankara, the exalted leader of Srngeri Matha. Vidyasankara was actually diminished in the presence of Madhvacarya. Accompanied by Satya Tirtha, Madhvacarya went to Badarikasrama. It was there that he met Vyasadeva and explained his commentary on Bhagavad-gita before him. Thus he became a great scholar by studying before Vyasadeva. By the time he came to the Ananda Matha from Badarikasrama, Madhvacarya had finished his commentary on Bhagavad-gita. His companion Satya Tirtha wrote down the entire commentary. When Madhvacarya returned from Badarikasrama, he went to Ganjama, which is on the bank of the river Godavari. He met there with two learned scholars named Sobhana Bhatta and Svami Sastri. Later these scholars became known in the disciplic succession of Madhvacarya as Padmanabha Tirtha and Narahari Tirtha. When he returned to Udupi, he would sometimes bathe in the ocean. On such an occasion he composed one prayer in five chapters. Once, while sitting beside the sea engrossed in meditation upon Lord Krsna, he saw that a large boat containing goods from Dvaraka was in danger. He showed some signs by which the boat could approach the shore, and it was saved. The owners of the boat wanted to give him a present and at the time Madhvacarya agreed to take some gopi-candana and, as it was being brought to him, it broke apart and revealed a large Deity of Lord Krsna. The Deity had a stick in one hand and a lump of food in the other. As soon as Madhvacarya received the Deity of Krsna in this way, he composed a prayer. The Deity was so heavy that not even thirty people could raise it. Madhvacarya personally brought this Deity to Udupi. Madhvacarya had eight disciples, all of whom took sannyasa from him and became directors of his eight monasteries. Worship of the Lord Krsna Deity is still going on at Udupi, according to the plans Madhvacarya established. Madhvacarya then for the second time visited Badarikasrama. While he was passing through Maharastra, the local king was digging a big lake for the public benefit. As Madhvacarya passed through that area with his disciples, he was also obliged to help in the excavation. After some time, when Madhvacarya visited the king, he engaged the king in that work and departed with his disciples. Often in the province of Ganga Pradesh there were fights between the Hindus and the Mohammedans. The Hindus were on one bank of the river and the Mohammedans were on the other. Due to the community tension, no boat was available for crossing the river. The Mohammedan soldiers were always stopping passengers on the other side, but Madhvacarya did not care for these soldiers. He crossed the river anyway and, when he met the soldiers on the other side, he was brought before the king. The Mohammedan king was so pleased with him that he wanted to give him a kingdom and some money, but Madhvacarya refused. While walking on the road, he was attacked by some dacoits but by his bodily strength he killed them all. When his companion Satya Tirtha was attacked by a tiger, Madhvacarya separated them by virtue of his great strength. When he met Vyasadeva, he received from him the salagrama-sila known as Asta-murti. After this he summarized the Mahabharata. Madhvacaryas devotion to the Lord and his erudite scholarship are known throughout India. Because of this, the owners of the Srngeri Matha established by Sankaracarya became a little perturbed. At that time the followers of Sankaracarya were afraid of Madhvacaryas rising power and they began to tease Madhvacaryas disciples in many ways. There was even an attempt to prove that the disciplic succession of Madhvacarya was not in line with the Vedic principles. One persona named Pundarika Puri, a follower of the Mayavada philosophy of Sankaracarya, came before Madhvacarya to discuss the sastras. It is said that all of Madhvacaryas books were taken away, but later they were found with the help of King Jayasimha, ruler of Kumla. In discussion, Pundarika Puri was defeated by Madhvacarya . A great personality named Trivikramacarya, who was a resident of Visnumangala, became Madhvacaryas disciple and his son later became Narayanacarya, the composer of Sri Madhvavijaya. After the death of Trivikramacarya, the younger brother of Narayanacarya took sannyasa and later became known as Visnu Tirtha. At that time it was reputed that there was no limit to the bodily strength of Purnaprajqa, Madhvacarya. There was a person named Kadaqjari who was famed for possessing the strength of thirty men. Madhvacarya placed the big toe of his foot upon the ground and asked the man to separate it from the ground, but the great strong man could not do so even after great effort. Srila Madhvacarya passed from this material world at the age of eighty while writing a commentary on the Aitareya Upanisad. For further information about Madhvacarya one should read Madhva- vijaya by Narayanacarya. --His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada Text 1 All glories to Lord Krsna, who is simultaneously the protector of the faithful devotees and the devastating eternal time factor destroying the cruel demon kings. Krsna, the son of Maharaja Nanda, is as splendid as a young tamala tree. He is the source of the limitless Brahman effulgence. He is the master of all potencies. He is decorated with a vaijayanti flower garland, and His forehead is splendidly decorated with tilaka. Text 2 A devotee has full faith in the words of the Puranas. Every morning he faithfully and happily studies the Puranas, and in this way his mind penetrates the actual meaning of the scriptures. Text 3 A certain imaginative Vedanta commentator has presented a false theory that the individual spirit soul and the Supreme Personality of Godhead are one in all respects. A devotee scholar, learned in the Puranas, rejects this fallacy and, with expert logic, establishes the eternal distinction between the individual spirit soul and the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Quoting abundant evidence from the sruti and smrti, the devotee scholar presents many arguments to conclusively prove the difference between the individual spirit soul and the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Text 4 The individual spirit soul is always limited. The Supreme is always unlimited. The difference is clearly established in the descriptions of Vedic literature. Because the natures of the Supreme and the individual spirit soul are so different, it must be concluded that they are eternally different entities. They cannot be the same. Text 5 The Mayavadis may object: "The individual spirit souls are not different from the Supreme, just as the air in a pot and the air in the sky are not different. Indeed, simply by citing this analogy, I have proved that the individual spirit souls are identical with the Supreme." To this statement I reply: "This is not a very good argument. The Supreme is unlimited and cannot be compared to any limited material manifestation, such as the material sky. He is not at all like the material sky and, therefore, your analogy is not very good evidence to support your views." Text 6 The Mayavadi commentator on the Vedanta claimed that the words tat tvam asi are the maha-vakya, the most important statement in the Vedas. According to this explanation, tat means "the Supreme," tvam means "you," and asi means "are." He interpreted the phrase to mean "you are the Supreme" and he claimed that there is no difference between the Supreme and the individual spirit souls. The Vaisnava commentator on Vedanta interpreted these words in a different way, saying that tat-tvam is a possessive compound word (sasthi-tatpurusa-samasa). According to his explanation, tat means "of the Supreme," and the entire phrase means "you are the servant of the Supreme." In this way the proper meaning of the scriptural statement is clearly shown. Text 7 O friend, the Supreme is all-knowing and He sees everything. From Him, this entire astonishing and variegated material cosmos has emanated. He creates, maintains, and destroys the entire universe by slightly moving His eyebrow. O friend, you are not like Him. You are ignorant of so many things and your vision is limited, although you wish to see everything. The Supreme is full of all opulences, and He is the ultimate witness who observes everyone. O friend, the individual living entities are numerous, but the Supreme is one only. You are stunted and impure by material contact, but He remains always pure and free from the touch of matter. O friend, your nature is completely different from His in these ways. Text 8 The objection may be raised: "The Vedas say brahmaham asmi (I am Brahman). The word brahman is certainly in the nominative case (prathama vibhakti). You cannot say it is possessive (sasthi) and thus change the meaning. How is it that you have foolishly interpreted tat tvam asi as a possessive compound (sasthi-tatpurusa-samasa)? How can you avoid interpreting the quote api ca so yam devadattah (O Devadatta, you are that) in the nominative (prathama) and try to make it genitive (sasthi)?" To this I reply: "When the scriptures explain that the individual spirit soul is Brahman, the proper understanding is that the individual souls are like tiny sparks that have emanated from the great fire of the Supreme Brahman. As far as the possessive compound (sasthi-tatpurusa) interpretation of tat tvam asi: you may not like it, but it is certainly grammatically sound. Why do you not accept it?" Text 9 Accustomed to speak in metaphors, poets say: "This youthful brahmana is a blazing fire,This beautiful face is the disc of the full moon,These breasts are Mount Meru," or "These hands are blossoming twigs." The charm of these metaphors lies in considering two things, which are actually different, to be completely equal because they have one common feature. The poetic author of the Vedas has used this device in the phrase brahmaham asmi. The spiritual living entities have emanated from the Supreme Brahman, but they are not equal to Him in all respects. Text 10 Innumerable waves splash within the great ocean and, in the same way, countless spirit souls exist within the Supreme Brahman. A single wave can never become the ocean. O individual spirit soul, how do you think you will become the Supreme Brahman? Text 11 Everywhere in the Vedic scriptures pairs of opposites are described. Spiritual enlightenment and spiritual darkness, religion and irreligion, knowledge and ignorance are all described as different. The Vedic scriptures also describe the Supreme Brahman and the individual spirit soul as different in the same way. O saintly audience, how can anyone, with an honest heart, claim that the individual spirit soul and the Supreme Brahman are identical in all respects? Text 12 The Supreme Personality of Godhead is the foundation upon which everything rests. He is the supreme monarch and the independent controller of the illusory potency (maya). O individual spirit soul, you are simply a reflection of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Only one moon shines in the sky, although innumerable reflections of that moon may appear in the water or other places. O individual spirit soul, the Supreme Personality of Godhead is like that single original moon, and the individual spirit souls are like innumerable reflections of Him. Just as the reflections remain always distinct from the moon itself, in the same way the individual spirit souls remain eternally different from their original source, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. O individual spirit soul, this is the eternal distinction between you and the Supreme. Text 13 The Vedic scriptures say that the Supreme Brahman is immeasurable, inconceivable, and without any material activities or duty. O individual spirit soul, you are very easily perceivable by the material mind and describable by material words. How is it possible, then, that you are the same as the inconceivable Supreme Brahman? Text 14 O individual spirit soul, your intelligence has been stolen by the darkness of the Mayavada theory, and for this reason you continually mutter brahmaham asmi ("I am the Supreme Brahman") as if you have become mad. I say to you, "If you are the Supreme Brahman, where is you unparalleled opulence? Where is you supreme dominion over all? If you are the Supreme Brahman, where is you all-pervasiveness and all-knowledge? Your equality with the Supreme Brahman is like the equality of a mustard seed with Mount Meru!" Text 15 O individual spirit soul, you are by nature very limited, but the Supreme Lord is unlimited. You can only be at one place at one time, but the Supreme is eternally everywhere. At one moment you enjoy, and at another moment you suffer. In this way, your happiness and suffering is all temporary, but the Supreme Lord experiences the perfection of transcendental bliss at every moment. O individual spirit soul, why are you not embarrassed to speak these words so ham ("I am the Supreme")? Text 16 Glass is glass. A jewel is a jewel. An oyster is an oyster. Silver is silver. They will never lose their nature and become each other. If one thinks that glass is a jewel, or an oyster is silver, he is mistaken. Impelled by the same kind of illusion, the individual spirit soul imagines he is the same as the Supreme Brahman. Illusioned in this way, the spirit soul propounds the Mayavada interpretation of tat tvam asi and other statements of the Vedas. Text 17 The Vedic statement tat tvam asi should be interpreted in the following way: tat means "the Supreme Brahman who is like a nectar ocean of perfect transcendental bliss." Tvam means "the distressed individual spirit soul, whose mind is anguished by the fears produced by continued residence in the material world." Because the natures of the individual spirit soul and the Supreme Brahman are different in this way, they cannot be equated. In reality the Supreme Brahman is the supreme object of worship for innumerable universes, and the individual spirit soul is His servant. This is the actual meaning of tat-tvam asi. Text 18 The Mayavadis claim that when the Supreme Person is described in the Vedic literatures, one should reject the literal meanings of such descriptions, and instead accept them allegorically, or not in the sense conveyed by the primary meaning of the words. Text 19 O Mayavadis, if you insist on interpreting the Vedic description of the Supreme in an allegorical, or indirect, sense, then please tell us why you abandon the direct literal meaning in favor of this indirect interpretation? Text 20 There are three reasons for rejecting a words primary meaning and accepting a secondary meaning instead. They are: 1. If the primary meaning makes no sense; 2. If tradition or common usage supplants the primary meaning with a generally accep ted secondary meaning; 3. If an authorized commentary explains that a secondary meaning should be understood. In these circumstances one may reject the primary meaning and accept the secondary meaning of a word. Text 21 If the primary meaning is senseless, one must find a secondary meaning that makes sense. Text 22 One should not accept the primary meaning if it makes no sense. For example, the primary meaning of grama is "village," but if the grama is described as unlimited, one must reject the primary meaning and accept a secondary one ("multitude"). In the same way, the primary meaning of putra is "son," but if the putra is described as appearing without a father, the primary meaning should be rejected and a secondary one ("that which rescues from hell") should be accepted. Text 23 The sentence kumbha-khadga-dhanur-banah pravisanti is an example of the use of secondary meaning. Pravisanti means "enter" and kumbha, khadga, dhanuh, and bana mean "pitchers, swords, bows and arrows" respectively. The primary meaning of the sentence is "pitchers, swords, bows, and arrows enter." This interpretation clearly makes no sense. In these circumstances, the secondary meaning should be accepted. If the first two words are accepted as bahuvrihi-samasas, then the secondary interpretation "men carrying pitchers, swords, bows, and arrows enter" may be accepted to replace the rejected primary meaning. Text 24 The sentence gangayam ghosah is another example of the use of secondary meaning. The primary meaning here is "the River Ganges spoke." This primary meaning should be rejected because a body of water cannot speak. Here the secondary interpretation "he spoke the word Ganges" is more appropriate. Text 25 The sentence ayur ghrtam is another example of the use of secondary meaning. Taken literally, the sentence means, "Clarified butter is identical with long life." In this sentence clarified butter and long life are equated although they are not at all the same thing. In this sentence, the secondary interpretation "Eating foods prepared with clarified butter prolongs ones life" must be accepted if the sentence is to make sense. Text 26 A text may be interpreted in three ways: 1. The literal (primary) meaning may be accepted; 2. One may reject the literal meaning and accept a secondary, not so commonly used, meaning of the words, or 3. One may accept the statements as metaphorical or allegorical. In order to establish their theory, the Mayavadis have diligently rejected the literal interpretation of the Vedic statements and have put forward an interpretation based on accepting the secondary meanings of the words. Text 27 Taken literally, the Vedic statements do not at all support the theory that the individual spirit soul is the same as the Supreme Brahman. For this reason, the Mayavadis have rejected the literal meaning of the texts and concocted a figurative interpretation based on accepting obscure definitions of words and rejecting the commonly used meanings of words. How do the Mayavadis expect to understand the truth about Brahman if they adopt this devious policy? Text 28 The Vedas directly state that the Supreme Brahman is the original creator of the universe (jagat-karta). >From this statement it is only logical to infer that the one Supreme is the cause of the many living entities. The many living entities thus have the Supreme as their creator. This is the direct meaning of the Vedic statement. Text 29 The sruti and smrti give abundant evidence to support this interpretation: that the one Supreme Brahman is the creator of the many living entities. That the Vedas describe the distinct individuality of the one Supreme Brahman and the many individual spirit souls is confirmed by Lord Krsna in Bhagavad-gita, where He said (15.15): vedais ca sarvair aham eva vedyah ("by all the Vedas I am to be known"). Text 30 The Mayavadis claim that the Vedas say that the material world is unreal. O Mayavadis, even if this is so, how can you infer from it that the Supreme Brahman, who is full of all opulences and the origin of all moving and unmoving entities is also unreal? Text 31 The Mayavadis may say that the Vedic scriptures clearly state that the Supreme cannot be understood by the mind or described in words. To this I respond: "O Mayavadis, please hear my reply. This statement means that the Supreme cannot be understood by the mental gymnastics of foolish speculators. The Supreme can only be understood when one hears about Him from the right source and with the proper devotional spirit. Furthermore, because the Supreme Brahman possesses infinite and unfathomable transcendental qualities, no one is able to completely know or describe Him." Text 32 The Mayavadis claim that the Vedic statement avan- manasa-gocaram ("the Supreme cannot be understood by the mind or described in words") proves that the Supreme cannot be described or understood. To this I reply: "This description may apply to ordinary words or thoughts, but not to the words of the Vedas. The Vedas elaborately describe the Supreme Brahman. Please do not think that the statements of the Vedas are like a limping cripple who cannot describe the Supreme." Text 33 O proud Mayavadis, you think yourselves to be great scholars although you actually have no place in the company of the learned. The Vedas say, sabda-brahmani nisnatah para-brahmadhigacchati ("expert in understanding the Supreme, they who are actually learned attain the spiritual realm"). There is no error in these words of the Vedic sages. Please do not say that no one can understand or describe the Supreme. Text 34 The word ghata has a specific meaning, and the word pata also has a specific meaning. Various words indicate specific objects. In the Vedas the words sat ("eternity"), cit ("knowledge"), and ananda ("bliss") are used to directly indicate the Supreme Brahman. Text 35 Words have both primary and secondary meanings. If the meaning of a word is ambiguous, then in the course of the conversation the proper meaning will become clear by the context. If one enters a conversation when someone asks a boy, "please bring the saindhava," the meaning of the mans statement may be unclear, for the word saindhava may mean either "salt" or "horse." However, when the boy returns with the saindhava the persons intention will be at once understood. In the same way, the proper meaning of ambiguous words in the Vedas become clear when the serious student studies the entire body of Vedic literature and sees the ambiguous statement in the proper perspective. Text 36 By repeatedly hearing the words of the spiritual master and by thoroughly studying the Vedic literature, the sincere student will be able to understand the proper meaning of brahman and the other words in the Vedic vocabulary. Text 37 The Supreme Personality of Godhead is also the supreme controller and the supreme performer of activities and, therefore, His form is perfect and eternal. A performer of activities always has a form. No one has ever seen a formless performer of activities. Text 38 If the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is also the supreme controller, has a form and is not formless, then we may easily conclude that He has a human-like form similar to the forms that we ourselves bear. This may be concluded because al performers of activity have forms that are quite similar. We do not see why the Supreme Personality of Godhead should be an exception in this regard. Text 39 There is a difference between the one all-powerful Supreme Personality of Godhead and the many living entities. The living entities are continually beset by the six waves (beginning with hunger and thirst) of material existence. In order to accomplish something, the living entities have to work very hard, holding shovels, plows, and scythes in their hands. In this way, very fatigued by working hard, the living entities become morose at heart. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is not at all like the individual living entities in this matter. Simply by moving an eyebrow the Supreme Personality of Godhead can attain whatever He wishes. Text 40 The Supreme Personality of Godhead is able to effortlessly do anything, change anything, or destroy anything. This is a very great difference between the Supreme and the tiny jivas (individual spirit souls). Text 41 Someone may say: "If the living entities in the material world sometimes suffer and sometimes enjoy because of their bodies, then, if the Supreme has a body, He must also suffer and enjoy in the same way." To this I reply: "The conditioned living entities possess material forms subject to six changes (growth, decay, death, etc.). The spiritual body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, because He is the master of all opulences, is not at all like these material forms. The Lords spiritual body is never subjected to old-age, decay, and death, and His happiness never diminishes." Text 42 Someone may object: "Every living entity attains a certain body because of his past karma and, therefore, when the Supreme manifests a body, He has also attained that body as a karmic reaction." To this I reply: "The Supreme is the ultimate controller, and it is He who awards the karmic results to us living entities. As the ultimate administrator of the laws of karma, He is not under their jurisdiction. That is the relationship between Him and us." Text 43 Someone may object: "All bodies are temporary. Therefore, the body of the Supreme must also be a temporary manifestation." To this I reply: "No! The body of the Supreme is eternal. Just as earth assumes various temporary shapes, although the atoms that are the source of the earth element remain eternal, in the same way, the eternal living entity accepts different material bodies because of his karma. The original spiritual forms of both the Supreme and the subordinate living entities remain eternal, although the conditioned soul may accept different material coverings because of his karma." Text 44 The Vedic literatures explain that under ordinary circumstances the conditioned living entity cannot negate the results of his past karma. In order to maintain the truth of this statement, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who holds the Sudarsana cakra in His hand, pretends to be bound by the reactions of past pious and impious deeds when He appears in this world disguised as an ordinary person. Text 45 I have heard in the Puranas that this entire universe came into existence from the lotus flower sprouted from the navel of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Are we then to conclude that the Supreme has only a disembodied navel and not a complete body? If the Supreme Lord has a navel, then He must have a body complete with all limbs and senses also. Text 46 The transcendental form of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is elaborately described in all the Vedas. That celebrated form is very handsome, and it completely delights the senses of all the devotees. That transcendental form is endowed with the six opulences of all beauty, strength, fame, knowledge, wealth, and renunciation. The sacred Ganges river is the water that has washed the Lords lotus feet. Text 47 Whenever, by the force of time, irreligion increases and religion declines, the Supreme Personality of Godhead protects the saintly devotees and destroys the demons. Text 48 The Supreme Personality of Godhead manifests Himself in two features: 1. In His original form as the source of all incarnations; 2. In His many visnu-tattva incarnations. The many living entities may also be divided into two groups: 1. The devotees (who are free from the influence of the illusory energy); 2. The nondevotees (who are bound by the illusions of maya). Text 49 Some theorists claim that the individual spirit souls are actually the Supreme, just as reflections on water are the same as the reflected object. By simply fabricating this analogy, these foolish persons do not at all establish the identity of the individual spirit soul and the Supreme. Text 50 How is it possible that the individual spirit souls are reflections of the Supreme and equal to Him in all respects? The individual spirit souls are not equal to the Supreme. If they are equal, then why is the Supreme described as unlimited, all-pervading, and free from material contamination? Why are the individual living entities described as being conditioned, subject to material illusion, engaged in the pious and impious deeds described in the Vedas, and thus experiencing the ..religion.vaisnava

Shri Yadunathji Date of Birth: 6th day of bright half of Chaitra in 1615. Family: He was the Sixth son of Shri Vitthalanathaji. Special Features : His nickname was ‘Maharajaji’. Granthas: Vallabha-digvijaya

when i studied the guru-parampara chain in "Bhagavath gita as it is" By Srila Prabhupada. There i saw Lakshmipathi next to Sri Vyaasa thirtha. i want to know whether "Sri Lakshmipathi" was direct disciple of "Sri Vyaasa Thirtha" ? was sri lakshmipathi directly instructed by sri vyaasa thirtha ? pls tell /images/graemlins/smile.gif Jai Shri krishna

Was "Shri Lakshmipathi" direct disciple of "Sri Vyasa thirtha" . please tell. /images/graemlins/smile.gif Jai Shri Krishna

Gayatri We meditate upon that adorable effulgence of the resplendent Savitur, the life giver. May he stimulate our intellects. (Rig Veda II.62.10) Worship Obeisance is all powerful. I perform obeisance. Obeisance is the pillar of the earth and the heaven. Obeisance to the gods. Obeisance wins them over. With obeisance I rectify the wrongs, I might have done to them. (Rig Veda VI.51.8)

1 - The Veda By Sri Aurobindo (1920) The arts which appeal to the soul through the eye are able to arrive at a peculiarly concentrated expression of the spirit, the aesthesis and the creative mind of a people, but it is in its literature that we must seek for its most flexible and many-sided self-expression, for it is the word used in all its power of clear figure or its threads of suggestion that carries to us most subtly and variably the shades and turns and teeming significances of the inner self in its manifestation. The greatness of a literature lies first in the greatness and worth of its substance, the value of its thought and the beauty of its forms, but also in the degree to which, satisfying the highest conditions of the art of speech, it avails to bring out and raise the soul and life or the living and the ideal mind of a people, an age, a culture, through the genius of some of its greatest or most sensitive representative spirits. And if we ask what in both these respects is the achievement of the Indian mind as it has come down to us in the Sanskrit and other literatures, we might surely say that here at least there is little room for any just depreciation and denial even by a mind the most disposed to quarrel with the effect on life and the character of the culture. The ancient and classical creations of the Sanskrit tongue both in quality and in body and abundance of excellence, in their potent originality and force and beauty, in their substance and art and structure, in grandeur and justice and charm of speech and in the height and width of the reach of their spirit stand very evidently in the front rank among the world's great literatures. The language itself, as has been universally recognised by those competent to form a judgment, is one of the most magnificent, the most perfect and wonderfully sufficient literary instruments developed by the human mind, at once majestic and sweet and flexible, strong and clearly-formed and full and vibrant and subtle, and its quality and character would be of itself a sufficient evidence of the character and quality of the race whose mind it expressed and the culture of which it was the reflecting medium. The great and noble use made of it by poet and thinker did not fall below the splendour of its capacities. Nor is it in the Sanskrit tongue alone that the Indian mind has done high and beautiful and perfect things, though it couched in that language the larger part of its most prominent and formative and grandest creations. It would be necessary for a complete estimate to take into account as well the Buddhistic literature in Pali and the poetic literatures, here opulent, there more scanty in production, of about a dozen Sanskritic and Dravidian tongues. The whole has almost a continental effect and does not fall so far short in the quantity of its really lasting things and equals in its things of best excellence the work of ancient and mediaeval and modern Europe. The people and the civilisation that count among their great works and their great names the Veda and the Upanishads, the mighty structures of the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, Kalidasa and Bhavabhuti and Bhartrihari and Jayadeva and the other rich creations of classical Indian drama and poetry and romance, the Dhammapada and the Jatakas, the Panchatantra, Tulsidas, Vidyapati and Chandidas and Ramprasad, Ramdas and Tukaram, Tiruvalluvar and Kamban and the songs of Nanak and Kabir and Mirabai and the southern Shaiva saints and the Alwars, - to name only the best-known writers and most characteristic productions, though there is a very large body of other work in the different tongues of both the first and the second excellence, - must surely be counted among the greatest civilisations and the world's most developed and creative peoples. A mental activity so great and of so fine a quality commencing more than three thousand years ago and still not exhausted is unique and the best and most undeniable witness to something extraordinarily sound and vital in the culture. A criticism that ignores or belittles the significance of this unsurpassed record and this splendour of the self-expressing spirit and the creative intelligence, stands convicted at once of a blind malignity or an invincible prejudice and does not merit refutation. It would be a sheer waste of time and energy to review the objections raised by our devil's advocate: for nothing vital to the greatness of a literature is really in dispute and there is only to the credit of the attack a general distortion and denunciation and a laborious and exaggerated cavilling at details and idiosyncracies which at most show a difference between the idealising mind and abundant imagination of India and the more realistically observant mind and less rich and exuberant imagination of Europe. The fit parallel to this motive and style of criticism would be if an Indian critic who had read European literature only in bad or ineffective Indian translations, were to pass it under a hostile and disparaging review, dismiss the Iliad as a crude and empty semi-savage and primitive epos, Dante's great work as the nightmare of a cruel and superstitious religious fantasy, Shakespeare as a drunken barbarian of considerable genius with an epileptic imagination, the whole drama of Greece and Spain and England as a mass of bad ethics and violent horrors, French poetry as a succession of bald or tawdry rhetorical exercises and French fiction as a tainted and immoral thing, a long sacrifice on the altar of the goddess Lubricity, admit here and there a minor merit, but make no attempt at all to understand the central spirit or aesthetic quality or principle of structure and conclude on the strength of his own absurd method that the ideals of both Pagan and Christian Europe were altogether false and bad and its imagination afflicted with a “habitual and ancestral” earthiness, morbidity, poverty and disorder. No criticism would be worth making on such a mass of absurdities, and in this equally ridiculous philippic only a stray observation or two less inconsequent and opaque than the others perhaps demands a passing notice. But although these futilities do not at all represent the genuine view of the general European mind on the subject of Indian poetry and literature, still one finds a frequent inability to appreciate the spirit or the form or the aesthetic value of Indian writing and especially its perfection and power as an expression of the cultural mind of the people. One meets such criticisms even from sympathetic critics as an admission of the vigour, colour and splendour of Indian poetry followed by a conclusion that for all that it does not satisfy, and this means that the intellectual and temperamental misunderstanding extends to some degree even to this field of creation where different minds meet more readily than in painting and sculpture, that there is a rift between the two mentalities and what is delightful and packed with meaning and power to the one has no substance, but only a form, of aesthetic or intellectual pleasure for the other. This difficulty is partly due to an inability to enter into the living spirit and feel the vital touch of the language, but partly to a spiritual difference in similarity which is even more baffling than a complete dissimilarity and otherness. Chinese poetry for example is altogether of its own kind and it is more possible for a Western mentality, when it does not altogether pass it by as an alien world, to develop an undisturbed appreciation because the receptivity of the mind is not checked or hampered by any disturbing memories or comparisons. Indian poetry on the contrary, like the poetry of Europe, is the creation of an Aryan or Aryanised national mind, starts apparently from similar motives, moves on the same plane, uses cognate forms, and yet has something quite different in its spirit which creates a pronounced and separating divergence in its aesthetic tones, type of imagination, turn of self-expression, ideative mind, method, form, structure. The mind accustomed to the European idea and technique expects the same kind of satisfaction here and does not meet it, feels a baffling difference to whose secret it is a stranger, and the subtly pursuing comparison and vain expectation stand in the way of a full receptivity and intimate understanding. At bottom it is an insufficient comprehension of the quite different spirit behind, the different heart of this culture that produces the mingled attraction and dissatisfaction. The subject is too large to be dealt with adequately in small limits: I shall only attempt to bring out certain points by a consideration of some of the most representative master works of creative intuition and imagination taken as a record of the soul and mind of the Indian people. The early mind of India in the magnificent youth of the nation, when a fathomless spiritual insight was at work, a subtle intuitive vision and a deep, clear and greatly outlined intellectual and ethical thinking and heroic action and creation which founded and traced the plan and made the permanent structure of her unique culture and civilisation, is represented by four of the supreme productions of her genius, the Veda, the Upanishads and the two vast epics, and each of them is of a kind, a form and an intention not easily paralleled in any other literature. The two first are the visible foundation of her spiritual and religious being, the others a large creative interpretation of her greatest period of life, of the ideas that informed and the ideals that governed it and the figures in which she saw man and Nature and God and the powers of the universe. The Veda gave us the first types and figures of these things as seen and formed by an imaged spiritual intuition and psychological and religious experience; the Upanishads constantly breaking through and beyond form and symbol and image without entirely abandoning them, since always they come in as accompaniment or undertone, reveal in a unique kind of poetry the ultimate and unsurpassable truths of self and God and man and the world and its principles and powers in their most essential, their profoundest and most intimate and their most ample realities, - highest mysteries and clarities vividly seen in an irresistible, an unwalled perception that has got through the intuitive and psychological to the sheer spiritual vision. And after that we have powerful and beautiful developments of the intellect and the life and of ideal, ethical, aesthetic, psychic, emotional and sensuous and physical knowledge and idea and vision and experience of which the epics are the early record and the rest of the literature the continuation; but the foundation remains the same throughout, and whatever new and often larger types and significant figures replace the old or intervene to add and modify and alter the whole ensemble, are in their essential build and character transmutations and extensions of the original vision and first spiritual experience and never an unconnected departure. There is a persistence, a continuity of the Indian mind in its literary creation in spite of great changes as consistent as that which we find in painting and sculpture. The Veda is the creation of an early intuitive and symbolical mentality to which the later mind of man, strongly intellectualised and governed on the one side by reasoning idea and abstract conception, on the other hand by the facts of life and matter accepted as they present themselves to the senses and positive intelligence without seeking in them for any divine or mystic significance, indulging the imagination as a play of the aesthetic fancy rather than as an opener of the doors of truth and only trusting to its suggestions when they are confirmed by the logical reason or by physical experience, aware only of carefully intellectualised intuitions and recalcitrant for the most part to any others, has grown a total stranger. It is not surprising therefore that the Veda should have become unintelligible to our minds except in its most outward shell of language, and that even very imperfectly known owing to the obstacle of an antique and ill-understood diction, and that the most inadequate interpretations should be made which reduce this great creation of the young and splendid mind of humanity to a botched and defaced scrawl, an incoherent hotch-potch of the absurdities of a primitive imagination perplexing what would be otherwise the quite plain, flat and common record of a naturalistic religion which mirrored only and could only minister to the crude and materialistic desires of a barbaric life mind. The Veda became to the later scholastic and ritualistic idea of Indian priests and pundits nothing better than a book of mythology and sacrificial ceremonies; European scholars seeking in it for what was alone to them of any rational interest, the history, myths and popular religious notions of a primitive people, have done yet worse wrong to the Veda and by insisting on a wholly external rendering still farther stripped it of its spiritual interest and its poetic greatness and beauty. But this was not what it was to the Vedic Rishis themselves or to the great seers and thinkers who came after them and developed out of their pregnant and luminous intuitions their own wonderful structures of thought and speech built upon an unexampled spiritual revelation and experience. The Veda was to these early seers the Word discovering the Truth and clothing in image and symbol the mystic significances of life. It was a divine discovery and unveiling of the potencies of the word, of its mysterious revealing and creative capacity, not the word of the logical and reasoning or the aesthetic intelligence, but the intuitive and inspired rhythmic utterance, the mantra. Image and myth were freely used, not as an imaginative indulgence, but as living parables and symbols of things that were very real to their speakers and could not otherwise find their own intimate and native shape in utterance, and the imagination itself was a priest of greater realities than those that meet and hold the eye and mind limited by the external suggestions of life and the physical existence. This was their idea of the sacred poet, a mind visited by some highest light and its forms of idea and word, a seer and hearer of the Truth, kavayah satyashrutah . The poets of the Vedic verse certainly did not regard their function as it is represented by modern scholars, they did not look on themselves as a sort of superior medicine-men and makers of hymn and incantation to a robust and barbarous tribe, but as seers and thinkers, rishi, dhira. These singers believed that they were in possession of a high, mystic and hidden truth, claimed to be the bearers of a speech acceptable to a divine knowledge, and expressly so speak of their utterances, as secret words which declare their whole significance only to the seer, kavaye nivacana ninya vacamsi . And to those who came after them the Veda was a book of knowledge, and even of the supreme knowledge, a revelation, a great utterance of eternal and impersonal truth as it had been seen and heard in the inner experience of inspired and semi-divine thinkers. The smallest circumstances of the sacrifice around which the hymns were written were intended to carry a symbolic and psychological power of significance, as was well known to the writers of the ancient Brahmanas. The sacred verses, each by itself held to be full of a divine meaning, were taken by the thinkers of the Upanishads as the profound and pregnant seed-words of the truth they sought and the highest authority they could give for their own sublime utterances was a supporting citation from their predecessors with the formula, tad esha ricabhyukta, “This is that word which was spoken by the Rig Veda.” Western scholars choose to imagine that the successors of the Vedic Rishis were in error, that, except for some later hymns, they put a false and non-existent meaning into the old verses and that they themselves, divided from the Rishis not only by ages of time but by many gulfs and separating seas of an intellectualised mentality, know infinitely better. But mere common sense ought to tell us that those who were so much nearer in both ways to the original poets had a better chance of holding at least the essential truth of the matter and suggests at least the strong probability that the Veda was really what it professes to be, the seeking for a mystic knowledge, the first form of the constant attempt of the Indian mind, to which it has always been faithful, to look beyond the appearances of the physical world and through its own inner experiences to the godheads, powers, self-existence of the One of whom the sages speak variously - the famous phrase in which the Veda utters its own central secret, ekam sad vipra bahudha vadanti. The real character of the Veda can best be understood by taking it anywhere and rendering it straightforwardly according to its own phrases and images. A famous German scholar rating from his high pedestal of superior intelligence the silly persons who find sublimity in the Veda, tells us that it is full of childish, silly, even monstrous conceptions, that it is tedious, low, commonplace, that it represents human nature on a low level of selfishness and worldliness and that only here and there are a few rare sentiments that come from the depths of the soul. It may be made so if we put our own mental conceptions into the words of the Rishis, but if we read them as they are without any such false translation into what we think early barbarians ought to have said and thought, we shall find instead a sacred poetry sublime and powerful in its words and images, though with another kind of language and imagination than we now prefer and appreciate, deep and subtle in its psychological experience and stirred by a moved soul of vision and utterance. Hear rather the word itself of the Veda. States upon states are born, covering over covering [Or, “the coverer of the coverer”.] awakens to knowledge: in the lap of the mother he wholly sees. They have called to him, getting a wide knowledge, they guard sleeplessly the strength, they have entered into the strong city. The peoples born on earth increase the luminous (force) of the son of the White Mother; he has gold on his neck, he is large of speech, he is as if by (the power of) this honey wine a seeker of plenty. He is like pleasant and desirable milk, he is a thing uncompanioned and is with the two who are companions and is as a heat that is the belly of plenty and is invincible and an overcomer of many. Play, O Ray, and manifest thyself.* Footnote: Literally, “become towards us”. Or again in the succeeding hymn, - Those (flames) of thee, the forceful (godhead), that move not and are increased and puissant, uncling the hostility and crookedness of one who has another law. O Fire, we choose thee for our priest and the means of effectuation of our strength and in the sacrifices bringing the food of thy pleasure we call thee by the word. . . . O god of perfect works, may we be for the felicity, for the truth, revelling with the rays, revelling with the heroes. And finally let us take the bulk of the third hymn that follows couched in the ordinary symbols of the sacrifice, - As the Manu we set thee in thy place, as the Manu we kindle thee: O Fire, O Angiras, as the Manu sacrifice to the gods for him who desires the godheads. O Fire, well pleased thou art kindled in the human being and the ladles go to thee continually. . . . Thee all the gods with one pleasure (in thee) made their messenger and serving thee, O seer, (men) in the sacrifices adore the god. Let the mortal adore the divine Fire with sacrifice to the godheads. Kindled, flame forth, O Bright One. Sit in the seat of Truth, sit in the seat of peace.* Footnote: I have translated these passages with as close a literalness as the English language will admit. Let the reader compare the original and judge whether this is not the sense of the verses. That, whatever interpretation we choose to put on its images, is a mystic and symbolic poetry and that is the real Veda. The character of Vedic poetry apparent from these typical verses need not surprise or baffle us when we see what will be evident from a comparative study of Asiatic literature, that though distinguished by its theory and treatment of the Word, its peculiar system of images and the complexity of its thought and symbolised experience, it is in fact the beginning of a form of symbolic or figurative imagery for the poetic expression of spiritual experience which reappears constantly in later Indian writing, the figures of the Tantras and Puranas, the figures of the Vaishnava poets, - one might add even a certain element in the modern poetry of Tagore, - and has its kindred movements in certain Chinese poets and in the images of the Sufis. The poet has to express a spiritual and psychical knowledge and experience and he cannot do it altogether or mainly in the more abstract language of the philosophical thinker, for he has to bring out, not the naked idea of it, but as vividly as possible its very life and most intimate touches. He has to reveal in one way or another a whole world within him and the quite inner and spiritual significances of the world around him and also, it may well be, godheads, powers, visions and experiences of planes of consciousness other than the one with which our normal minds are familiar. He uses or starts with the images taken from his own normal and outward life and that of humanity and from visible Nature, and though they do not of themselves actually express, yet obliges them to express by implication or to figure the spiritual and psychic idea and experience. He takes them selecting freely his notation of images according to his insight or imagination and transmutes them into instruments of another significance and at the same time pours a direct spiritual meaning into the Nature and life to which they belong, applies outward figures to inner things and brings out their latent and inner spiritual or psychic significance into life's outward figures and circumstances. Or an outward figure nearest to the inward experience, its material counterpart, is taken throughout and used with such realism and consistency that while it indicates to those who possess it the spiritual experience, it means only the external thing to others, - just as the Vaishnava poetry of Bengal makes to the devout mind a physical and emotional image or suggestion of the love of the human soul for God, but to the profane is nothing but a sensuous and passionate love poetry hung conventionally round the traditional human-divine personalities of Krishna and Radha. The two methods may meet together, the fixed system of outward images be used as the body of the poetry, while freedom is often taken to pass their first limits, to treat them only as initial suggestions and transmute subtly or even cast them aside or subdue into a secondary strain or carry them out of themselves so that the translucent veil they offer to our minds lifts from or passes into the open revelation. The last is the method of the Veda and it varies according to the passion and stress of the sight in the poet or the exaltation of his utterance. The poets of the Veda had another mentality than ours, their use of their images is of a peculiar kind and an antique cast of vision gives a strange outline to their substance. The physical and the psychical worlds were to their eyes a manifestation and a twofold and diverse and yet connected and similar figure of cosmic godheads, the inner and outer life of man a divine commerce with the gods, and behind was the one spirit or being of which the gods were names and personalities and powers. These godheads were at once masters of physical Nature and its principles and forms their godheads and their bodies and inward divine powers with their corresponding states and energies born in our psychic being because they are the soul powers of the cosmos, the guardians of truth and immortality, the children of the Infinite, and each of them too is in his origin and his last reality the supreme Spirit putting in front one of his aspects. The life of man was to these seers a thing of mixed truth and falsehood, a movement from mortality to immortality, from mixed light and darkness to the splendour of a divine Truth whose home is above in the Infinite but which can be built up here in man's soul and life, a battle between the children of light and the sons of Night, a getting of treasure, of the wealth, the booty given by the gods to the human warrior, and a journey and a sacrifice; and of these things they spoke in a fixed system of images taken from Nature and from the surrounding life of the war-like, pastoral and agricultural Aryan peoples and centred round the cult of Fire and the worship of the powers of living Nature and the institution of sacrifice. The details of outward existence and of the sacrifice were in their life and practice symbols, and in their poetry not dead symbols or artificial metaphors, but living and powerful suggestions and counterparts of inner things. And they used too for their expression a fixed and yet variable body of other images and a glowing web of myth and parable, images that became parables, parables that became myths and myths that remained always images, and yet all these things were to them, in a way that can only be understood by those who have entered into a certain order of psychic experience, actual realities. The physical melted its shades into the lustres of the psychic, the psychic deepened into the light of the spiritual and there was no sharp dividing line in the transition, but a natural blending and intershading of their suggestions and colours. It is evident that a poetry of this kind, written by men with this kind of vision or imagination, cannot either be interpreted or judged by the standards of a reason and taste observant only of the canons of the physical existence. The invocation “Play, O Ray, and become towards us” is at once a suggestion of the leaping up and radiant play of the potent sacrificial flame on the physical altar and of a similar psychical phenomenon, the manifestation of the saving flame of a divine power and light within us. The Western critic sneers at the bold and reckless and to him monstrous image in which Indra son of earth and heaven is said to create his own father and mother; but if we remember that Indra is the supreme spirit in one of its eternal and constant aspects, creator of earth and heaven, born as a cosmic godhead between the mental and physical worlds and recreating their powers in man, we shall see that the image is not only a powerful but in fact a true and revealing figure, and in the Vedic technique it does not matter that it outrages the physical imagination since it expresses a greater actuality as no other figure could have done with the same awakening aptness and vivid poetical force. The Bull and Cow of the Veda, the shining herds of the Sun lying hidden in the cave are strange enough creatures to the physical mind, but they do not belong to the earth and in their own plane they are at once images and actual things and full of life and significance. It is in this way that throughout we must interpret and receive the Vedic poetry according to its own spirit and vision and the psychically natural, even if to us strange and supranatural, truth of its ideas and figures. The Veda thus understood stands out, apart from its interest as the world's first yet extant Scripture, its earliest interpretation of man and the Divine and the universe, as a remarkable, a sublime and powerful poetic creation. It is in its form and speech no barbaric production. The Vedic poets are masters of a consummate technique, their rhythms are carved like chariots of the gods and borne on divine and ample wings of sound, and are at once concentrated and wide-waved, great in movement and subtle in modulation, their speech lyric by intensity and epic by elevation, an utterance of great power, pure and bold and grand in outline, a speech direct and brief in impact, full to overflowing in sense and suggestion so that each verse exists at once as a strong and sufficient thing in itself and takes its place as a large step between what came before and what comes after. A sacred and hieratic tradition faithfully followed gave them both their form and substance, but this substance consisted of the deepest psychic and spiritual experiences of which the human soul is capable and the forms seldom or never degenerate into a convention, because what they are intended to convey was lived in himself by each poet and made new to his own mind in expression by the subtleties or sublimities of his individual vision. The utterances of the greatest seers, Vishwamitra, Vamadeva, Dirghatamas and many others, touch the most extraordinary heights and amplitudes of a sublime and mystic poetry and there are poems like the Hymn of Creation that move in a powerful clarity on the summits of thought on which the Upanishads lived constantly with a more sustained breathing. The mind of ancient India did not err when it traced back all its philosophy, religion and essential things of its culture to these seer-poets, for all the future spirituality of her people is contained there in seed or in first expression. It is one great importance of a right understanding of the Vedic hymns as a form of sacred literature that it helps us to see the original shaping not only of the master ideas that governed the mind of India, but of its characteristic types of spiritual experience, its turn of imagination, its creative temperament and the kind of significant forms in which it persistently interpreted its sight of self and things and life and the universe. It is in a great part of the literature the same turn of inspiration and self-expression that we see in the architecture, painting and sculpture. Its first character is a constant sense of the infinite, the cosmic, and of things as seen in or affected by the cosmic vision, set in or against the amplitude of the one and infinite; its second peculiarity is a tendency to see and render its spiritual experience in a great richness of images taken from the inner psychic plane or in physical images transmuted by the stress of a psychic significance and impression and line and idea colour; and its third tendency is to image the terrestrial life often magnified, as in the Mahabharata and Ramayana, or else subtilised in the transparencies of a larger atmosphere, attended by a greater than the terrestrial meaning or at any rate presented against the background of the spiritual and psychic worlds and not alone in its own separate figure. The spiritual, the infinite is near and real and the gods are real and the worlds beyond not so much beyond as immanent in our own existence. That which to the Western mind is myth and imagination is here an actuality and a strand of the life of our inner being, what is there beautiful poetic idea and philosophic speculation is here a thing constantly realised and present to the experience. It is this turn of the Indian mind, its spiritual sincerity and psychic positivism, that makes the Veda and Upanishads and the later religious and religio-philosophic poetry so powerful in inspiration and intimate and living in expression and image, and it has its less absorbing but still very sensible effect on the working of the poetic idea and imagination even in the more secular literature. /images/graemlins/smile.gif Jai Shri Krishna

What is Dvaita? Dvaita, or Maadhva siddhaanta, is the name for the doctrine of Vedanta that asserts the eternal and immutable difference between the individual soul, or jiiva, and the Supreme Lord, or Iishvara (also known as Vishnu). -- Why is Dvaita known as Tattvavaada? Because that is the correct, and preferred name; the doctrine asserts five differences, not just the one referred to above, and its scholars and proponents call it the "doctrine of reality," where the three kinds of entities in the universe (insentient or jaDa, sentient or chetana, and Vishnu or Iishvara) are all real, and the differences between any two are also real. Hence, 'tattva' means real entity, and 'Tattvavaada' means "doctrine of real entities." Some have also referred to Tattvavaada as Bheda-vaada (doctrine of difference), and also as Bimba-pratibimba-vaada (doctrine of object and image -- to be explained later), etc. These names are not in normal use. -- What are the five differences in Tattvavaada? Simple -- by considering the three types of entities in pairwise fashion, one can derive the list of differences between them, which are: (i) jiiva-Iishvara-bheda, or difference between the soul and Vishnu; (ii) jaDa-Iishvara-bheda, or difference between the insentient and Vishnu; (iii) mitha-jiiva-bheda, or difference between any two souls; (iv) jaDa-jiiva-bheda, or difference between insentient and the soul; and (v) mitha-jaDa-bheda, or difference between any two insentients. Here, "insentient" is used to refer to _all_ entities which are not 'chit' or having consciousness, such as matter, energy, etc. -- including so-called "living bodies" of creatures, and also such other insentients as space, linguistic or mathematical entities and their symbols, etc. To clarify: Iishvara is a sentient Being, and the jiiva is sentient also. However, this does not imply that both are fully alike; Iishvara is totally independent, while the jiiva is completely dependent. It is the energization by the Iishvara that is the responsible for the activity of the jiiva. -- Why are the five differences important? The understanding of these five differences is seemingly trivial, but upon careful consideration, one sees that to properly understand all of them, one needs to know the significant properties of every kind of entity in the whole universe! Thus, such understanding is not easily gained, and it is said that all misery and unhappiness is due to one's lack of understanding of one or more of these differences. For instance, if one acts in ignorance of the Supremacy of Lord Vishnu, and suffers as a consequence, then one can be said to have falsely arrogated to oneself His unique and irreproducible properties like independence, potency, etc. Similarly, the grief one experiences due to loss of physical beauty, strength, vitality, etc., or due to the passing of a loved one, is due to the false identification of the insentient and ever-changing body with the sentient, immutable soul. In the mundane world, mistaking copper for gold, glass for diamond, etc., which are also failures to perceive difference, are known to bring grief. One who correctly and fully perceives and understands all the five differences can be said to have attained knowledge, and to be fit for mukti (liberation). -- Who is the founder of Tattvavaada? As has been noted in the general FAQ, no school of Vaishnavism can be said to have been "founded" in a true sense; in historical times, the doctrine of Tattvavaada was revived by Ananda Tiirtha (1239-1319), also known as Sukha Tiirtha, PuurNa-bodha, and PuurNa-pragnya. Srimad Ananda Tiirtha is identified with Madhva, the third avataara (incarnation) of Mukhya PraaNa, the god of life. This identification comes from the BaLitthaa Suukta of the Rg Veda. Srimad Ananda Tiirtha is also referred to by his devotees as Srimad Acharya, and by everyone as Sri MadhvAcharya, based on the identification with the Vedic deity Mukhya PraaNa, the god of life, who is also known as Vaayu. -- What are the tenets of Tattvavaada? There are nine important points-of-note, given by a verse by Sri Vyaasa Tiirtha: which translates approximately as: "In Shriiman Madhva's school, (i) Hari (Vishnu) is supreme; (ii) the universe is real; (iii) the [five] differences are real [and are the properties of the differents]; (iv) the leagues of jiivas are cohorts of Hari; (v) and are with superiority and inferiority [among themselves]; (vi) mukti (salvation) is the experience of [the jiiva's] own innate joy; (vii) that is achieved by flawless devotion to the Supreme and correct knowledge; (viii) the three pramaaNas are aksha, etc., (pratyaksha, anumaana, aagama - sense-perception, logic, and scripture); (ix) Hari is the only entity [primarily] described in all Aamnaayas (Shrutis or Vedas)." A slightly more detailed treatment of the verse can be seen here. -- Why does Tattvavaada emphasize debate with and denunciation of other doctrines? Can it not just just state its own tenets? In order to correctly understand the tenets of any worthwhile doctrine, is it essential that one be exposed to conflicting views, and be convinced of the truth of said doctrine. Therefore, Srimad Acharya's school has always held that one needs must understand all relevant countervailing hypotheses, and must reject them only after careful analyses and consideration. Mere dogmatic repetition of facts that are accepted too readily either by accident of birth or inability to think, is not acceptable as such cannot lead to conviction; a critical examination of all Tattvavaada precepts with a detailed analysis of alternative theories in each case -- to arrive at the truth based on valid proof -- is itself part of the tradition of Srimad Ananda Tiirtha's school. Though this practice has been followed earlier by Sri ShankarAcharya and Sri RamanujAcharya also in essence, their criticisms of rival theories were not complete and comprehensive. -- Isn't Dvaita the mere opposite of Advaita? Such misperception is one of the reasons why some reject the use of 'Dvaita' to refer to the doctrine of Tattvavaada. While it is true that Advaita and Tattvavaada have had many debates over hundreds of years, and that the latter denies the jagan-mithyatva (illusory nature of the universe) that is one of the fundamental tenets of Advaita, it is certainly not the case that there is disagreement everywhere, nor is it the case that one can derive Tattvavaada merely by taking the opposite of everything claimed by Advaita. But it can be said with full certainty that on most fundamental issues such as the nature of Iishvara, jiiva, attainment of mukti, etc., the two have total and irreconcilable differences. -- Isn't Dvaita the first step towards learning Advaita? If it is, then it is a quite large, reverse, first step! While adherents of Advaita say that by nature and everyday experience one believes in the reality of the universe, etc., and that such belief must be got rid if one is to attain complete union with the nirguNa-Brahman, no serious scholar of Advaita claims that studying Tattvavaada is a first step towards learning Advaita. For one thing, it is a rule of all learning that things learned first must not contradict things learned later; for another, Tattvavaada specifically examines and denounces many Advaita concepts, and hence, one who has learned Tattvavaada first cannot possibly accept Advaita later. In fact Advaita has not built up a credible system of analysis where the puurva paksha or the initial proposition of Tattvavaada is examined and rejected thereby establishing Advaita. The exact reverse obtains today. -- Why are scholars and devotees of Sri MadhvAcharya's school referred to as "prachchhanna taarkika"? This tongue-in-cheek appellate was allegedly affixed by some followers of Advaita, who were piqued at being called "prachchhanna bauddha" (disguised Buddhists). This latter designation was used because of the great similarity between Buddhism and Advaita (both schools do not accept the reality of the universe, both deny that the Creator is an eternal real, etc.). In turn, Advaitis labeled devotees of Srimad Acharya as "prachchhanna taarkika" (disguised logicians) because of the latters' use of logic to show that Advaita is inconsistent. -- How does worship by Maadhvas differ from other Vaishnava worship? According to Sri MadhvAcharya, Vishnu is "worshippable by all (other) deities, and by everyone, to their best ability." Thus, in common with other Vaishnava traditions, Maadhvas worship other deities only as iconic representatives of the Lord, and not as independently authoritative figures. However, Maadhvas believe that all deities except for Vishnu's eternal consort Lakshmi, are amukta-jiivas (un-liberated souls) performing service to Him. Tattvavaada also does not acknowledge that worship of other claimed deities or prophets, besides those authorized by shaastra, is useful. Maadhvas have a "taaratamya" or divine hierarchy of deities after Vishnu, which is derived from shaastra sources, and said hierarchy is very important in considerations of worship, since each lesser deity is worshipped as the iconic representative of the next higher one, with the idea being that all worship is ultimately meant for Vishnu only. Thus, Maadhvas acknowledge a hierarchy of worth among deities other than Vishnu, and say that each lesser deity is akin to an image in a mirror, of the one higher. This concept of images captures both the notion of difference (since the object and its image are not identical) and an hierarchy of worth (since the image is never of the same worth as the object), and is what causes Tattvavaada to also be referred to as Bimba-pratibimba-vaada (doctrine of object and image, as mentioned previously). Worship according to Srimad Acharya's tradition also differs from certain other kinds of worship, since the icons or images used for worship are considered to be completely distinct from the Deity who is the actual object of worship. The icon is an adhishThaana, or location symbol, while the Deity is invoked for purposes of worship. Tattvavaada emphasizes that it is important to understand the difference between the adhishThaana (Image) and the aavaahita (invoked Diety), and to keep it in mind at all times -- one should never worship the icon itself as the Lord, as that would be violative of jaDa-Iishvara-bheda, one of the five kinds of difference. According to Srimad Ananda Tiirtha, icons are of two kinds: "chala-pratimaa" or "moving icon," and "achala pratimaa" or "non-moving icon." The "chala" icons are one's elders, Gurus, other deities besides Vishnu, etc., while the "achala" icons are statues, statuettes, pictures, saaligramas etc., that may also be used as icons for worship. Of the two kinds of icons, the "chala" have a naturally higher rank than the "achala" -- therefore, service to elders, one's Gurus, etc., when performed as worship of the Lord, is of greater importance than the worship of stationary symbols. However, at all times, it is important to be aware that the object or person to whom one offers service or respect, is not the Lord Himself, nor is authoritative independently of Him, but is merely His icon. A detailed account of worship at the Krishna temple in Udupi can be seen here. -- What is the Tattvavaada concept of moksha? Under Tattvavaada, the soul upon liberation does not lose his distinct identity, which is different from Vishnu, nor does he become equal to Him in any respect. While the mukta does become free of all suffering, his enjoyment is not of the same caliber as His, nor does said mukta become independent of Him. The mukta experiences the joy which is his own nature, in mukti; whereas in daily life, joy derives from the contact of senses with sense-objects, joy in mukti is due to the jiiva's own immutable nature. And because such joy is the jiiva's own nature, it does not fluctuate or end, and it is not mixed with pain. Since the nature of the jiiva is different from that of Iishvara, his joy is also of a different nature than His, even upon mukti. Even the joy which is intrinsic to the nature of the jiiva can only be realised due to the grace of the Supreme being. -- Why does Tattvavaada deny jiivan-mukti? Because a mukta, or liberated person, should not even be physically present in the material universe, unlike the un-liberated. A person who is living in the world cannot be said to be free of sorrow born of material contact, and also cannot be said to experience the joy of his own nature at all times. The very act of living in a gross material body entails things such as eating, sleeping, pleasure and pain, etc., which cannot be accepted in a mukta. -- What is the concept of scripture, according to Tattvavaada? The apowrusheya-aagamas, or unauthored scriptures, are the primary sources of all knowledge of the atiindriya (extra-sensory) entities. Only those powrusheya-aagamas or authored scriptures that closely adhere to the former have value as explanatory sources of knowledge about the atiindriya. Independent powrusheya texts are considered to bring ignorance and delusion, if used to learn about the atiindriya. In common with other schools of Vaishnavism, Tattvavaada considers the prasthaana-traya (the triad of the Brahma-Suutra, the Bhagavad Gita, and the Vedas and Upanishads) to be canonical texts. Srimad Ananda Tiirtha however denies claims that part of the Vedas, the so-called "karma-kaaNDa" or "mantra" portions, are of no use as scripture, and claims that even those parts are only meant to educate us about Hari. His school, following his lead, also does not accept that any part of the Vedas teach anything but the truth, and says that arbitration of apowrusheya texts, as "true-saying" and "false-saying" is impermissible logically and spiritually. All canonical texts must be considered, and a coherent meaning found without imposing one's own biases upon the evidence obtained. A comparison of Tattvavaada's treatment of scripture with the monists' can be seen here. Here is a detailed disquisition upon the BaLitthA Suukta of the Rg Veda. -- Who are some of the leading scholars of Tattvavaada? Historically, there have been many great scholars and saints in the tradition of Srimad Acharya. Some of them are: Sri Vaadiraaja Tiirtha -- is considered the senior-most scholar of Tattvavaada after Srimad Ananda Tiirtha himself; his works include the Yukti-Mallikaa, the RukmiNiisha-Vijaya, etc., and a number of well-known stotras; he has also translated Srimad Acharya's Mahaabhaarata-taatparya-nirNaya into Kannada, and has composed a number of devotional songs in that language. Sri Jayatiirtha -- has written commentaries on a number of Srimad Acharya's works, and is known for his extremely pleasing style of writing and argument; his work, the Nyaaya-Sudhaa, which is an exposition of Shriiman MadhvAcharya's Anu-Vyaakhyaana commentary on the Brahma-Suutra, is an outstanding example of his scholarship, and is certainly one of the greatest works in Vedanta. Sri Purandara Daasa -- is widely renowned as the father of Carnatic music; is less widely known as the founder of the Hari-Daasa tradition, that seeks to propagate the doctrine of Tattvavaada through music, in a language that ordinary people can understand. A contemporary of Sri Vaadiraaja Tiirtha and Sri Vyaasa Tiirtha, he is regarded by Maadhvas as an outstanding scholar and devotee. Sri Vyaasa Tiirtha -- wrote further commentaries on the works of Sri Jayatiirtha and Srimad Ananda Tiirtha; is known for his extra-ordinary ability to run any opponent down by force of argument; he ranks as one of the most renowned polemical scholars of Vedanta. Sri Raghavendra Tiirtha -- is widely known today, thanks to his excellent reputation for providing succor in times of major crises. Although he ranks as one of the greatest scholars of Tattvavaada, he is better known and worshipped by millions, as an infallible source of support when one is faced with dire circumstances. -- What are the Maadhva institutions of the present day? The most important one is probably the temple of Krishna at Udupi, in south-western Karnataka, India. There are eight maTha-s, called the Udupi-ashhTa-maTha-s, that are dedicated to serving Krishna, at Udupi and elsewhere. Besides these, there are several other important maThas, like the Uttaraadi MaTha (which is claimed to be the institution of Sri Jayatiirtha), and the MaThas of Sri Vyaasa Tiirtha and Sri Raghavendra Tiirtha, known by their names. -- Where can I get more information? One place to look would be the Dvaita Home Page (www.dvaita.org), which, although not nearly as complete or exhaustive as its supporters would like, still offers some information. In particular, it has some biographical information about Srimad Ananda Tiirtha and some other scholars of his school, and some bibliographical information as well. Besides these, a number of books have been written in English, especially by B. N. Krishnamurti Sharma, of which one, The History of the Dvaita School of Vedanta and its Literature, Motilal Banarsidass, 1981, is considered quite broad-based, if not completely authoritative. Another work by Dr. Sharma that may be of some interest is 'Madhva's teachings in his own words'. Appendix A: terms commonly used in Tattvavaada. Canonical definitions, where known, are given within square brackets. General terms: pramaana ["yathaarthaM pramaaNam.h"] -- something that describes as-is, is called a pramaaNa. This can be of two types: kevala-pramaaNa ["yathaartha-GYaanaM kevalam.h"] -- knowledge of something as-is, is called kevala-pramaaNa. anu-pramaaNa ["tat-saadhanaM anu-pramaaNam.h"] -- the source of the previous, is called an anu-pramaaNa, which can be of three types: pratyaksha ["vishayaan.h prati-sthitaM hi aksham.h"] - flawless interaction between a sense of perception (like sight), and an object or entity in its domain, is called pratyaksha. anumaana ["tarkaH adushhTaH"] -- inference without flaw constitutes logic. Flaws of inference are described below. aagama ["adushhTa vaakya"] -- sentences, or bodies of sentences (texts) without flaw, are called aagama. Also of interest are: pramaataa ["pramaavaan.h pramaataa"] -- a person in whom pramaa exists, is the pramaataa. prameya ["pramaavishayaH prameyaH"] -- the subject of pramaa is the prameya. pramaa ["yathaarthaGYaanaM pramaa"] -- knowledge of something as-is is called pramaa. Note: pramaa thus means the same thing as kevala-pramaaNa, except that it is used in a singular sense, to denote one piece of correct knowledge, etc.; the latter is more often used to indicate a body of correct knowledge, and such. -- hetu -- antecedent, in an inference. saadhya -- consequence, likewise. upa-jiivya -- anu-pramaaNa by which hetu is known. upa-jiivaka -- anu-pramaaNa fed by, or created by, saadhya. -- Error terms. Semantic errors (shabda-dosha): virodha ["yogyataaviraho virodhaH"] -- This can loosely be translated as 'opposition,' and the definition reads loosely as: "Lack of ability is opposition." What the definition means to say is that if a statement runs counter to one already accepted, and is unable to force its own way, then it must be rejected, for being opposed to a known fact. asangati ["aakaaN^kshaaviraho asangatiH"] -- This can be translated as 'irrelevance,' and the definition reads: "Lack of fulfillment of expectation is irrelevance." In a discussion, if a reply given, a point raised, or a statement made, is not in accordance with the expectation that it be pertinent to the matter under discussion, then it is irrelevant. nyuunataa ["vivakshitaa.asaMpuurtirnyuunataa"] -- This can read as 'nullity,' with the definition reading loosely as: "Non-satisfaction of the claim constitutes nullity." In a discussion, if someone makes a claim, and later gives evidence that does not support the claim in full, then such evidence suffers from nullity, with respect to the claim. Another type is where a definition given does not cover all cases of the objects or entities to be defined. aadhikyam : ["saN^gataavadhikatvamaadhikyam.h"] -- This can be translated as 'superfluity,' and the definition as: "An excess over what is relevant, constitutes superfluity." In a discussion, if someone takes the meaning or definition of something to cover more than what it should, then such is superfluous. Another type is where a definition given covers more than the object, entity, or set to be defined. Note: nyuunataa and aadhikya have also been referred to, in special cases, as a-vyaapti (non-domination), and ati-vyaapti (over-domination). The latter, ati-vyaapti, is the error responsible for Russell's paradox. -- Logical errors (tarka-dosha): aatmaashraya : This can loosely be translated as "assuming the consequence," in some cases. More generally, however, if something "rests on itself," in the sense that an object or entity is stated to have a property such as presence within itself, support of itself, etc., then this flaw exists. A standard example is "sva-skandha-aarohaNa" or "mounting one's own shoulder." anyonyaashraya : Loosely, "mutual reliance." If a statement is proved by another, and the latter by the former, then this error exists. chakrakaashraya : "circular reliance," a.k.a. circular reasoning. A more general case of the above; if instead of two, we have 'n' number of disputed statements, that are tied in a circle so that each one proves the next, then circular reasoning is shown. anavasthaa : Infinite regress. If the proof of a statement requires an assumption, and proof of that assumption requires another, and proof of that still another, and so on, then infinite regress is said to occur. pramaa-haana : "neglect of evidence," as in, when a statement neglects to take into account the fact that it is in opposition to accepted evidence. This itself has various forms: shruta-haana (neglect of Shruti), dR^ishhTa-haana (neglect of pratyaksha), etc. kalpanaa-gaurava : "Respect for imagination." If a statement must be assumed without proof, so that an inference based upon it may be accepted, then the inference is subject to the respect that has been accorded to one's imagination, and is unacceptable. Economy in assumptions is a virtue. upajiivya-virodha : "Opposition to upajiivya." If an inference is made where the consequence runs counter to the source of knowledge by which the antecedent is known, then the inference is considered incorrect, for opposing the source of its own antecedent, and the error made is known as upajiivya virodha; as has already been noted, 'upajiivya' is the name given to the anu-pramaaNa from which the antecedent is known. apa-siddhaanta : "Invalid thesis." If a doctrine or a claim made is of such nature that its acceptance would render the doctrine itself false or without basis, then apa-siddhaanta-doshha -- the error of an invalid thesis -- is said to occur. Note: upajiivya virodha is actually a form of pramaa-haana, but is often referred to separately. Similarly, apa-siddhaanta-doshha is a form of upajiivya-virodha, but is referred to separately.

Shri Raghunathji Date of Birth: 12th day of Kartik in 1611 Family: He was the fifth son of Shri Vitthalanathaji Special Features : His nickname was ‘Ramchandra’. He was extremely attached to Shri Vitthalnathji Different aspects of personalities: As a son: As a son, he was very much attached to Shri Vitthalnathji, his father. His attachment towards him was so much that he used to see his father’s face first after waking up. Once he was struck by the lower rod of the door on his forehead while going to his father’s room with eyes closed.

Om Namo Venkatasaya "Oh! Lord Venkateswara! Thou art more akin to my soul. Thou art the ocean of mercy.Thou makest all our miseries disappear. None else but Venkateswara is the Lord of this universe. I meditate on Him and pray for his protection. I pray to Him to forgive all my mistakes which are the outcome of my ignorance.

if you are not a shaivate then why are you so tensed in seeing my messages . First of all theres no such as religion as Hinduism. The word "Hindu" means people living in banks of River Indus. This term is labelled by foriegn invaders. So no such thing as Hinduism. Its just a myth. Your words prove your ignorance. Dont shout too much. Your throat may burst. have a cool lemon juice & chant Gods name. cool down baby. dont expose your ignorance too much

"Oh! Lord Venkateswara! Thou art more akin to my soul. Thou art the ocean of mercy.Thou makest all our miseries disappear. None else but Venkateswara is the Lord of this universe. I meditate on Him and pray for his protection. I pray to Him to forgive all my mistakes which are the outcome of my ignorance.

"Oh! Lord Venkateswara! Thou art more akin to my soul. Thou art the ocean of mercy.Thou makest all our miseries disappear. None else but Venkateswara is the Lord of this universe. I meditate on Him and pray for his protection. I pray to Him to forgive all my mistakes which are the outcome of my ignorance.

Bhagwan Swaminarayan Teenage Yogi: In the Puranas, the name Neelkanth is associated with Lord Shiva, who drank the world's poison to redeem it. In the process, the poison turned his throat blue; Neel meaning blue, kanth, the neck. Ghanshyam's sojourns, through the forests of India, also attributed Him the name Neelkanth, for His pilgrimage was to redeem. He first visited sacred Haridwar - 'the gateway to Hari', on the holy river Ganga. The sacred shrines of the Himalayas open up after Haridwar. From here He arrived in Sripur where He encountered the first of many enticements. The head of the mandir urged Him to lodge inside the walled area, safe from wild animals. Neelkanth declined. He neither feared wild animals nor death. He then sat in deep meditation under a tree. At night, a lion hunting in the forest approached Him. The lion licked His feet, circumambulated Him and then sat there. The inmates of the ashram observed this extraordinary spectacle. In the morning, with a wave from Neelkanth, the lion disappeared into the forest. The mahant then prostrated at the feet of this eleven year old Yogi. He offered Him the mahantship of the shrine, with its yearly income of one hundred thousand rupees. Neelkanth explained that He neither craved for mahantship nor money. He had come to redeem. Declining the offer, He left for Kedarnath. From here, He trudged up and down mountain slopes, arriving in Badrinath during Diwali, in mid October 1792. The priest at Badrinath perceiving Neelkanth's divinity, offered Him prasad. For the next six months the mandir closed down, since Badrinath would be snow bound. The murtis of Nar Narayan in the shrine would be ceremoniously paraded on an elephant, down to Joshimath. The priest urged Neelkanth to sit in the palanquin with the murtis and stay at Joshimath, in his personal bungalow. Neelkanth accepted the invitation to Joshimath, but declined to stay there. From Joshimath, He climbed the treacherous mountain terrain to visit sacred Manasarovar - the lake of the Creator's mind. This pristine lake, at a height of 14,950 feet, lies secluded in the far reaches of Tibet, now controlled by China. Sven Hedin, a Swedish explorer, extolled the glory of this lake in his diary: 'Celebrated in grand hymns by the poets of remote antiquity, a dwelling-place of mighty gods, a mirror beneath the paradise of Brahma and the heaven of Siva, the goal of innumerable yearning pilgrims, the most wondrous lake on earth lies dreaming among the snow-clad summits of lofty mountains.... The sight of the lake makes the stranger involuntarily meditative.'1 Wearing only a loincloth, without a compass, guide, food, mountaineering equipment, insulated clothing or boots, this part of His travels ranks as a superhuman feat. As fiercely as the howling winds of the Himalayan winter pierced His frail body, as snow and ice crunched and cracked under His bare feet, Neelkanth trudged over the mountains alone, just as doggedly. Ritually bathing in the ice covered lake, Neelkanth then returned; reaching Badrinath in mid-April 1793. The priest had returned with the murtis and Neelkanth took His first meal since leaving Badrinath in Diwali, six months ago! Here, Ranjit Singh, the Maharajah of Punjab, later to be famed as the last and toughest adversary of the British, approached Neelkanth. Only thirteen, one year older than Neelkanth, his heart reached out to the Yogi. Drawn by His divinity, the king requested His permanent company. This being impossible, Neelkanth promised to meet him again. Later, when Neelkanth descended to Haridwar, He met the king who offered some food. Gifting him a few words of spiritual wisdom, about the ephemeral nature of material life, Neelkanth advised the king to recall His murti, for peace and redemption. Placing His hands on the king's head, He blessed him and left. From Haridwar, His route led back to Ayodhya. He passed through the city, without entertaining the slightest wish to return home. Later, He reached Vanshipur. Despite the grim emaciation caused by His self-imposed austerities, His divine countenance captivated many. Here, the king and queen enchanted by Neelkanth, offered their two princesses in marriage. To the extremely insistent queen, Neelkanth explained His mission to redeem infinite others. He then left Vanshipur. His next goal lay in a bleak and chilly valley in Muktinath, Nepal. Here in a shrine, He performed austerities standing on one leg, in meditation for two and a half months, without food and water. Still in Nepal, He then visited Butol (Butwal). Here, King Mahadatt Sen and his sister Mayadevi, experienced profound enlightenment from Neelkanth's stay and teachings. To prevent Him leaving, they placed guards on all exit roads. Their love and devotional service kept Him for five months, after which He stole away; in a hurry to proceed further. Remaining aloof from the mundane enticements, His lifework lay in uplifting those engulfed by them. Kingdoms, women and wealth failed to allure Him. Years later, in His teachings, He revealed, 'It is not in My nature to reconcile with great men of the world, since they possess ego of their kingdom and wealth. I, on My part, indulge in the diametrically opposite attributes of, Vairagya (detachment) and Bhakti (devotion). Worldly gifts are worthless to Me... On closing My eyes to meditate on God, the happiness arising from the kingship of the fourteen worlds pales into insignificance, in comparison to the unfathomable bliss of God.'2 Two Morals During His travels, He bore the morals of two stories from the scriptures, at the forefront of His mind; that of Bharatji (5/7-8) and Puranjan (4/25-29) from the Shrimad Bhagvatam. Out of mercy in raising an orphaned fawn, Bharatji became attached to it and so faltered from his spiritual quest. Consequently, he was born a deer in the next birth. In his third birth, as a man named Jadbharat, he then remained extremely wary, lest he became attached to anybody or any object and so fall from the path of liberation. Symbolically, Puranjan, an aspirant looked upon his Atma as a king; the body as a kingdom and the mind and sense organs (indriyas) as the citizens. If the king weakened, losing control over his people, they would overcome him. In the same vein, an aspirant - the Atma, should ever remain vigilant over the mind and sense organs. Constantly aware of these morals, Neelkanth remained ever vigilant. Perilous Journey Neelkanth's route through the forests of the Himalayas and later, the Sunderbans of Bengal, undoubtedly entailed dangers from wild animals. We get a glimpse of the fauna from the British. Col. Kirkpatrick, who visited Nepal two years prior to Neelkanth, in 1793, noted that, elephants, rhinoceroses and tigers infested these forests.3 We get another account of the dangers in the Himalayan foothills from Jim Corbett during the British Raj. Tigers and leopards which had turned into man-eaters, had wreaked terror amongst the forest inhabitants of the Kumaon region. Corbett, a civilian who grew up in the Himalayan jungle, was then appointed to hunt down the predators. On foot, Corbett had stalked and shot scores of man-eating tigers and leopards during the day and at night, for over thirty years. Two of his notable successes included shooting the man-eating leopards of Panar and Rudraprayag. Between them, they killed and ate 525 human beings, during the first quarter of this century. The latter picked off pilgrims walking to Kedarnath, in addition to dragging people away from their houses, thus receiving publicity worldwide . Even a seasoned hunter such as Corbett experienced fear and describes one memorable ordeal: 'I have been frightened times without number, but never as I was that night, when the unexpected rain came down and robbed me of all my defences (rifle soaked) and left me for protection a knife.'4 Besides tigers and leopards, other dangers lurking in the forest, that Neelkanth probably encountered, included: bears, snow leopards, pythons, cobras, scorpions, wild bees and amongst the flora, stinging nettles. In 1864, a forest surveyor, Thomas Webber, on a survey expedition of these highlands and rivers, noted the occurrence of the above, and was exasperated by: '....big yellow gadflies stuck swords in through one's clothing, little flies called moras light on the under sides of your hands and exposed places and will insert a poison under the skin, which makes a round red blister.... mosquitoes abounded... and house flies swarmed in myriads.' Regarding the forest floor, especially the banks of rivers and streams, he observed: 'Here there are leeches on every stone, which fasten on your legs and suck your blood with great avidity, if you do not use precautions in the shape of thick puttees for protection. One of us, wearing only stockings, had thirty bites and lost half a pint and from tearing off the venomous brutes, suffered a good deal of irritation.'5 Later, Neelkanth's route coursed through Bengal. Here, in the forests of Sunderbans, tigers and wild elephants abounded.6 Among Ganga's deltas, there lurked other dangers: river thugs, alligators, buffaloes, hyaenas, wolves and jackals.7 When He entered southern Gujarat, the dense jungles surrounding Dharampur teemed with tigers and leopards.8 Further north, He traversed through the ravines of the river Mahi, another tiger habitat.9 Later, His route led through southern Kathiawad, the haven of the Asiatic lion. Other fauna here included: hyenas, wolves, jackals, the wild cat, foxes and porcupine.10 Barefooted and barely clad by a loin cloth, Neelkanth's precautions against the dangers of the pristine wilderness, lay in their singular absence. It is all the more remarkable that despite such formidable dangers, He remained undaunted, continuing His journey with a relentlessness that can only be regarded as divine. Mastering Ashtang Yoga In the forests of Nepal, Neelkanth arrived at the hermitage of an aged yogic master named Gopal Yogi. He accepted his guruship to practice Ashtang yoga - eight fold yoga, revealing His earnest desire to master this formidable yoga. His yearning, so immutable, He informed Gopal Yogi that He would be undaunted even if the body perished in the process. He had subdued the fear of death since leaving Ayodhya. Simultaneously, He studied the Gita daily, paying special emphasis to the second chapter, regarding the attributes of the Atma and the Sthitapragna purush - a person with a spiritually stable consciousness. In only nine months, Neelkanth became proficient and mastered Ashtang yoga. For others, it would have taken a life time of ceaseless endeavours. As a gift to the guru, Neelkanth revealed His divine form. This crowned the guru's yogic and spiritual quest. Thus fulfilled and redeemed, he left his body with his yogic powers. After performing his cremation rites, Neelkanth left. A year with Gopal Yogi, made this, Neelkanth's longest stay at any one place during His sojourns. He then proceeded to Kathmandu, in December 1795. Here, He met the young king, Run Bahadur Shah. Suffering from an incurable stomach illness, Run Bahadur used to demand a magical cure from visiting ascetics. Hitherto, all had failed. Consequently he imprisoned them. To Neelkanth, he made a similar demand. Pained by the plight of the ascetics, Neelkanth cured the king and also explained to him the perishable nature of the human body. He then requested him to release the ascetics. Leaving Kathmandu, He crossed the Himalayan mountain chain eastwards to Kamakshi (Guwahati) This area of eastern India was then frequented by ascetics adept in tantra.11 One such powerful tantric named Pibek confronted Neelkanth, casting evil spells and summoning deities to kill Him. Instead, the deities pummelled Pibek senseless. He then surrendered to Neelkanth12. Moving on, He passed through the fearful Sunderbans forests of Bengal. From here, He coursed southwards to Jagannathpuri where He spent six months. During this period, He projected Himself in the shrine's murti and observed the deceitful behaviour of the priests. He then resumed His journey southwards. To the heads of monasteries and schools of philosophy in every holy place, Neelkanth enquired about the nature of the five eternal realities - Jiva, Ishwar, Maya, Brahman and Parabrahman. (These are dealt with in chapter nine.) Nowhere did He receive a satisfactory reply. Observing the level of religious and moral decadence in many sacred shrines, He noted the degradation of the priests and heads, who in the name of religion, propagated unethical and immoral practices amongst the masses. On His way south to Rameshwar, Neelkanth met a sadhu named Sevakram, who suffering from bloody dysentery was extremely weakened. With nobody to serve him, he began to grieve. Neelkanth was in a hurry to proceed. But on learning that he was knowledgeable in the Shrimad Bhagvatam - which extols Lord Krishna's glory - He comforted, nursed and prepared a bed of banana leaves for him. Daily, Neelkanth cleaned up the ill sadhu's fluid excreta about twenty to thirty times a day. From the jungle, He brought herbs to control the dysentery. Sevakram gave Neelkanth gold coins to buy flour and grain from a nearby village. Neelkanth also cooked for him. While he gorged this food; Neelkanth begged for alms. Often He received none for days. He served sincerely; Sevakram responded spitefully. Two months later, Sevakram recovered. He then made Neelkanth carry his one maund (20 kg.) baggage. Finally, convinced of his ungratefulness, and wanting to resume His journey, Neelkanth left Sevakram. For those who would follow Him in the generations to come, Neelkanth had set the ideal principles of seva - selfless service. MAP Further south, in Totadri (Nanguneri), Neelkanth visited the main seat of Ramanujacharya, whose Vishishtadvaita philosophy He favoured. He met Jiyar Swami, the seat's head and studied Ramanuja's philosophy for two months. Though wishing to study further, but unable to bear seeing sadhus of the ashram freely mixing with women, He left. Arrival in Gujarat Travelling southwards to Kanya Kumari, the tip of the sub-continent, Neelkanth then turned north. After visiting over 17713 shrines, sacred places and monasteries in His travels, He arrived in the Kathiawad peninsula of Gujarat in 1799. In the seven years, and over 12,000 kms. of arduous walking, He had walked for four years, remaining stationary for three. The effects of the austerities at the physical level had been devastating. Recollecting His travels many years later, He revealed the condition of His body, that if the skin was punctured, only water (plasma) exuded, but no blood.14 This yogic achievement, though seemingly impossible, has a parallel in the Hindu scriptures; Kartik Swami, the elder brother of Lord Ganpati, had similarly persevered to dry up his blood. Neelkanth's sojourn was a planned pilgrimage to redeem. Far from being an aimless wandering, He bestowed His grace on countless yogis in the Himalayas and aspirants elsewhere, who had been offering devotion and performing austerities to receive the Lord's grace. Added to this, He visited the most important sacred shrines in India, to observe the prevailing level of Dharma. In Loj, a village near Mangrol in southern Kathiawad, He meditated, lotus-postured, next to a step-well. Though reduced to skin and bone, He radiated a tremendous aura of divinity. This divinity, ineluctably attracted the women of the village coming to fill their water pots at daybreak. An aged sadhu named Sukhanand, similarly captivated by the teenager, was rooted to the spot. After Sukhanand broke out of this mystically blissful experience, he approached the Yogi. He invited Him to his guru's ashram, to meet Muktanand Swami, the acting head. Neelkanth obliged. The ashram belonged to Swami Ramanand, a notable sadhu in the state. To Muktanand, Neelkanth posed His questions regarding the five eternal realities. The Swami's answers impressed Him. These, coupled with his saintly disposition, induced Neelkanth to stay, until the arrival of the guru, who was touring Kutch at the time. Humble Servitude In the ashram, Neelkanth served by performing menial tasks such as washing utensils and the sadhus' robes. He begged alms and collected cow dung to make fuel cakes. To the fifty sadhus in the ashram including Muktanand, He also taught Ashtang Yoga. The contrast between Muktanand Swami and Neelkanth was intriguing. The Swami, a middle aged ascetic; Neelkanth, a teenage Yogi. The Swami, fair-skinned and handsome; Neelkanth, emaciated, yet lustrous. Muktanand, the guru; Neelkanth, the disciple. And yet, at times, the roles reversed; Neelkanth, the guru and Muktanand, the disciple. Soon after residing in the ashram, Neelkanth remarked to the Swami, that the hole in the common wall between the ashram and a devotee's house, for exchanging burning embers to light the kitchen fire, was in essence a hole in Dharma. There would often be female members in the house. This could potentially hamper the sadhus' strict observance of brahmacharya. He requested the Swami to have the hole sealed. Amazed at Neelkanth's foresight, he gladly agreed. The guru obeyed the pupil. When Neelkanth introduced separate seating arrangements for men and women while they listened to the sadhus' scriptural discourses, The Swami concurred. Impatient to have the darshan of the guru, Neelkanth requested the Swami to sit in meditation and visualise the physical body of Ramanand Swami. Neelkanth then projected Himself into the Swami's mind, enjoyed the darshan and then described the details to an astonished Muktanand! Meanwhile, Ramanand Swami, whilst preaching in Kutch, commanded his disciples to visit Loj, to have Neelkanth's darshan : He who is greater than me, greater than Dattatreya, Rushabhadeva, and greater than Ramchandra. Just as Krishna is greater than all other incarnations, He is even greater than Krishna. He is verily the cause of all incarnations.15 He reminded them of his oft repeated proclamation of himself as a mere drum beater, heralding the arrival of the chief player. Now, that player had indeed arrived. Source References Viharilalji, Maharaj Acharya. Shri Harililamrutam. Amdavad: Swaminarayan Aksharpith, 1997, Neelkanth, the lion and declining mahantship in Sripur - 4/3/41-42. Adharanand Swami. Haricharitramrut Sagar. Gandhinagar: Shri Swaminarayan Sahitya Prakashan Mandir, 2nd. ed.,1995, Vol.I., Forest sojourns. 1 Hedin, Sven. Trans-Himalaya. Vol.III. Stockholm, 1912, Reprinted edition, 1990, New Delhi: Gian Publishing House, Manasarovar, pp..236-7. Varma, Rommel & Sadhana. The Himalaya-Kailasa-Manasarovar. Switzerland: Lotus Books, 1985. 2 Shri Swaminarayan's Vachanamritam. Amdavad: Swaminarayan Aksharpith, 3rd. ed., 1992, Vadtal 16. 3 Kirkpatrick, Col. An Account of the Kingdom of Nepaul: (in 1793). New Delhi: Manjushri Publishing House, rpt. 1969, Wild fauna in Nepal, p.19. Corbett, Jim. Man-eating Leopard of Rudraprayag. Oxford University Press, 1954, p.159 4 Hawkins. R.E. Jim Corbett's India. Oxford University Press 1978, p.100 5 Webber, Thomas. The Forests of Upper India and their Inhabitants, London: Edward Arnold, 1902, Himalayan fauna & flora, pp. 76-77. 6 Hunter, W.W. Annals of Rural Bengal. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1872, pp.85, 86. 7 Bacon, Lieut. Thomas. First Impressions of Hindostan. Vol. I. London: W.H. Allen & Co., 1837, pp.305, 306, 309. 8 Dumasia, Naoroji, M. Dharampur. Bombay: The Times Press,1928, p.72. 9 Majmudar, M.R. Cultural History of Gujarat. Bombay:Popular Prakashan.1965, p.28. 10 Jacob, George Le Grand.,et.al. Province of Kattywar. Bombay Education Society's Press, 1856, p.38. Regmi,D.R.Modern Nepal.Vol.I.Calcutta:Firma K.L.Mukhopadhyay, 1961, Run Bahadur Shah's illness, p.580. 11 Ghosh, J.M. Sannyasins & Fakir Raiders in Bengal. Calcutta: Bengal Secretariat Book Depot. n.d. 12 Dave, H.T. op.cit. Vol.I., pp. 231-237. 13 Akshardham CD ROM. Amdavad: Swaminarayan Aksharpith, 1998. 14 Vachanamritam, op.cit., Kariyani 3. 15 Harililamrutam, op.cit., 3/12.

Shri Kalyanraiji Date of Birth: 7th day of the dark half of month Margashirsha in V.S. 1625. Family: He was the son of the second son of Shri Vitthalanatha-prabhucharana, Shri Govindraiji and father of well known Acharya Shri Hariraiji and Shri Gopeshwarji. Episodes: The incident of Shri Keshavapuri in his regard is well known. One of Shri Vallabhacharya’s brothers had taken Sannyas and was named Shri Keshavapuri. Once Keshavpuri came to Gokul to see Shri Vitthalanatha-Prabhucharana with a view to adopt one of his sons to his Ashram as his successor. Shri Kalyanaraiji heard that talk. Being of tender age he remained worried whole night. The next morning he requested Shri Vitthalnatha-prabhucharana by a historical Kirtan with full heart “Hon Vraja Manganoju Vraja taja anat na jaun” (Let me forgive I don’t go away from Vraj, I beg my living in Vraj from you). Hearing this, Shri Vitthalanatha-prabhucharana took him to his lap very lovingly and assured him not to hand him over to anyone. Post Balya Avastha: Granthas: Commentary on Shodashagrantha Siddhantamuktavali Pushtipravahamaryada Siddhantarahasya Krshnashraya Bhaktivardhini Jalabheda Sevaphalam