Jagat

As you may well imagine, coming back into a marriage from the place one left off 14 or 15 years ago is an interesting experience. A lot of things have happened in the intervening time and we all undergo changes, for better or worse. Hopefully in my case it was for the better.  Nevertheless, I am a person who seeks meaning in the accidents of life, and what is going on now is certainly one of those.

I have been sitting on the following diagram for several weeks now, but got caught up in various distractions, but lately some additional insights have come and so I now come back to it and share it, for the pleasure of the devotees. I have been working on this concept for some time before becoming aware of the popular Christian use of the triangle image in a similar way. It seems that variations on the concept are quite widespread and you can see both Christian and secular versions of it on Google images . Since the image and symbolic potential of a triangle or pyramid is a simple one, it is not particularly surprising that it has been used so frequently. After all, what is the Star of David but two triangles? The triangle represents synthesis, and there is no spiritual achievement that is not represented by synthesis. It can furthermore blossom into countless other dialectical configurations, as is represented by the Shri Chakra. In the discussion that follows, however, I have ...

Your theory is irrelevant, in my view, where it does not offer a solution to the problem of sustainability in relationships. You insist that this is achieved through incorporating yoga in the routine, but I disagree that it needs even consideration at this stage of the commitment of two bhaktas. Body is not the first priority in our tradition. Let me say that I think that this  sādhana  is at least potentially a solution to the sustainability of relationships. Prema Prayojan Dasji's model of  sādhana  in a couple, i.e. where the husband and wife participate as companions in bhajan of Radha and Krishna, is pretty much right on. I certainly don't think that any relationship can be sustainable if there is not a third point to the triangle , which is the Sacred, which in our case as Vaishnavas means Radha and Krishna. Without that external focus of the Divine Ideal, how can there be sustainability? Even the Catholics say the family that prays together stays...

Here is the formula for Sahaja Bhajan. upāsya-rūpaṁ yugalātmakaṁ vai upāsakatvaṁ yugala-svarūpe | upāsanā śrī-yugalābhidheyaṁ tathopadeṣṭṛ-yugalena prāptam || The worshipable object is the Divine Couple. The ideal worshiper of the Divine Couple is the sadhaka couple. The worship of the Divine Couple is based in the chanting of their Names. The Guru Tattva for this worship also takes the form of a Divine Couple. This formula condenses most of the points that are made on this blog. 1. The worshipable object is the Divine Couple, Radha and Krishna. Needless to say, this is repeated again and again here, most recently in the article Do Radha and Krishna really have nothing to do with human love? Radha and Krishna are the worshipable object of all the rasika sampradayas of Vrindavan, but little thought is given to the implications of the distinction that is made between the Dual form of God as represented by the Divine Couple and any other form of God in either ...

A common prejudice in the Gaudiya sampradaya, represented by ISKCON and the Gaudiya Math in most of the world, is that Radha and Krishna's love is the "highest" while human sexuality is the "lowest." This is commonly used as an argument against the type of sādhanā and philosophy that I am teaching. In my opinion, this just shows how ridiculous and marginal Krishna consciousness has become and how far from the goal of divine love or prema it has sauntered. Let me say it again, for the millionth time, Radha and Krishna have no meaning at all if there is no love in this world between men and women. You would have no ability to understand or relate to Radha and Krishna as the manifestations of the highest and purest love if you did not have some intuitive understanding based on things you have seen, heard and experienced in this world. And, by the same token, since they are the archetype of the purest form of romantic love, they can be seen and realized throug...

Radhe out, Shyama in. That is all. Actually, all such sexual meditations are dependent on a certain amount of built capacity to resist orgasm. If either partner has an orgasm, this results in a break in the meditation and thus a decrease in the pleasure. Krishna enters the kunja where Radha awaits. Radha chants Shyama. Then Radha rushes forth to greet Krishna. Krishna chants Radhe. Start slowly, meditating on the picture of Radha meeting Krisha in the kunja. Feel their bhava. Witness the union of the Divine Couple after you and your manjari companion have achieved the goal of your service and brought them together after a long separation. Feel the sights and sounds, smell the fragrances of their sacred bower. Gradually build up until the chanting of Radha and Shyama's names becomes a all-encompassing explosion absorption in the sound and all else but the names are erased from the consciousness. Continue until exhausted. Then slow down and start again. Or, simply return t...

The Gopāla-campū has a very nice verse, which appears at the beginning of the descriptions of madhura-rasa , when Snigdhakantha and Madhukantha start their recitations in the assembly of Radha and the gopis along with the select priya-narma-sakhas . This is actually part of the maṅgalācaraṇa , but as is often the case with Jiva Goswami, there is a big siddhānta involved. imau gaurī-śyāmau manasi viparītau bahir api sphurat tat-tad-vastrāv iti budha-janair niścitam idam sa ko’py accha-premā vilasad-ubhaya-sphūrtikatayā dadhan mūrti-bhāvaṁ pṛthag apṛthag apy āvirudabhūt Wise persons have determined that [though] these two are of a black and golden hue [respectively], in their minds they are of the opposite colors, so externally, also, are their clothes. This is some pure unblemished love that has become incarnate, taking on this form with a dual manifestation, which is both divided and a unity. Radha and Krishna are absorbed in thoughts of each other, so their minds ha...