Jagat

PrītiS text: "yatra vā asya sarvam ātmaivābhūt, tat kena kaṁ paśyet" [bṛ.ā.u. 2.4.14] iti śrutiś ca | This is confirmed by the Śruti, "Where the Self has become everything, then who would see what, and how?" (BAU 2.4.14). The full quote from Brihadaranyaka is: yatra hi dvaitam iva bhavati, tad itara itaraṁ jighrati, tad itara itaraṁ paśyati, tad itara itaraṁ śṛṇoti, tad itara itaram abhivadati, tad itara itaraṁ manute, tad itara itaraṁ vijānāti |  yatra vā asya sarvam ātmaivābhūt, tat kena kaṁ jighret ? tat kena kaṁ paśyet ? tat kena kaṁ śṛṇuyāt ? tat kena kam abhivadet ? tat kena kaṁ manvīta ? tat kena kaṁ vijānīyāt ? yenedaṁ sarvaṁ vijānāti, taṁ kena vijānīyāt ? vijñātāram are kena vijānīyāt ? iti ||14|| Shankara : yatra tu brahma-vidyayāvidyā nāśam upagamitā, tatra ātma-vyatirekeṇānyasyābhāvaḥ | yatra vai asya brahma-vidaḥ sarvaṁ nāma-rūpādy ātmany eva pravilāpitam ātmaiva saṁvṛttaṁ, yatra evam ātmaivābhūt, tatra kena karaṇena kaṁ ghrātavyaṁ ko jighret ?...

I received the following query on Facebook from Gaura Das: Haribol Jagadananda prabhu, I have a book called Vrndavana Krishna, by a Gopinatham. It is published by the Gaudiya Matha. Do you know of it, and consider it to be in line with siddhanta? I seem to remember Srila Prabhupada criticising some author who made a distinction between a Mathura Krishna, Vrndavana Krishna, and Dwarka Krishna, and these diferent "Krsnas" are mentioned in this book, so I was wondering if this was the book he was thinking to not be bonafide. I don't know what Prabhupada's intention was, but the Gaudiya siddhanta is that Vrindavan Krishna is the highest form of Godhead, superior to Krishna even in Mathura or Dwarka. This is a very significant siddhanta, because it highlights the superiority of parakiya madhura rasa. You cannot really say that they are "different" Krishnas, either. Any more than you can say Allah is different from Krishna. And yet in a very real sense they a...

हरे कृष्ण हरे कृष्ण For people like me, who have a tendency to get lost in the woods of faith and doubt, our Gaudiya Vaishnava dharma has a wonderful fallback position: Acintya-bhedābheda . Brahma-Paramatma-Bhagavan. कृष्ण कृष्ण हरे हरे Brahman is satyam. Sat , existence. We are that. So take a deep, nasal breath. Sit down. Clear your head. Forget all the details that you are supposed to believe in and just be. Let becoming take care of itself. You are that peace, eternity and love. हरे राम हरे राम Brahman is oneness. Paramatman is difference. Bhagavan is inconceivable simultaneous oneness and difference. Be Brahman. Pray to Paramatman. Be one with Bhagavan in love. राम राम हरे हरे Take a deep breath. Forget the details. The Holy Name has no content. It is pure being. It is prayer. It is being one with God in love. Take shelter of the Holy Name. This is the essence. The rest is filler. Jai Sri Radhe Shyam!