Abduction—Also called retroduction. It is the acceptance of a philosophical premise on the basis of its power to account for causation with logic and evidence. Abduction is the rational justification of a deduction. Deduction per se is the acceptance of a premise on authority. The term abduction was put forward by C.S. Peirce (1839-1914). Srila Prabhupada termed a similar method of Vedic thought philosophical speculation. See Deduction, Induction, Logic.
Absolute—The root comes from the Latin absolutus, the perfect or the completed (derived from the verbum absolvere, to detach, to free, to acquit). The term was introduced into Western philosophy in the fifteenth century by Nicholas of Cusa (1401-1464). The absolute is the ultimate, underlying and all-inclusive reality that depends upon nothing else for its existence. All other things depend upon it. The absolute is substance as it is, rather than as we perceive it. See Brahman, Reality, Relativism, Substance.
Acintya-bhedabheda-tattva—Lord Caitanya's "simultaneously one and different" doctrine, which establishes the inconceivable, simultaneous oneness and difference of the Lord and His expansions
Adhoksaja— /skr./Revealed knowledge. The fourth of the five stages of Vedic knowledge.
Advaita—/skr./Oneness (from a, not and dvaita, duality). The system of Vedanta philosophy put forward by Sankaracarya is known as Advaita Vedanta. It argues for a monistic, impersonal absolute truth. See Dvaita, Four Vaisnava Sampradayas and Siddhantas, Sankaracarya, Vedanta; nondual; without differentiation
Agnihotra-yajna—/skr./the ceremonial fire sacrifice offered to the demigod Agni performed in Vedic rituals.
Agnistoma—/skr./a sacrifice performed by a person who wants go to heaven. A minimum of sixteen priests are required for this sacrifice, which lasts five days.
Ahankara—/skr./false ego, by which the soul misidentifies with the material body. See false ego.
Analysis—A term similar in meaning to the Sanskrit Sankhya. It comes from the Greek an (up) plus lyein (to loosen, to untie), meaning to resolve into its elements. Analysis is the procedure of separating a problem into its component parts in order to 1) study the parts separately, 2) study their interrelationships, or 3) study how they relate to the whole. See Elements, Sankhya.
Anthropomorphism—From the Greek anthropos (man) and morph (form, shape, figure), it is an induction of the Supreme Being's form, emotions, interests, etc. drawn from human experience: God in the image of man, instead of man in the image of God. See Induction, Mechanomorphism.
Anumana—Reason, thought, philosophical speculation. The second of the three Vaisnava pramanas. See Pramana, Pratyaksa, Rationalism, Reflective thinking, Sabda.
Apara-vidya—Vedic knowledge of mind and matter that includes logic, grammar, astrology, medicine, social organization, martial arts, music, dance and so on (as distinct from para-vidya, the science of God). The karma-kanda and Jnana-kanda scriptures make up the apara-vidya of the Vedas. See Avidya, Jnana-kanda, Karma-kanda, Para-vidya; material knowledge
Aparoksa—/skr./ Direct knowledge. The third of the five stages of Vedic knowledge.
Apauruseya—/skr./ not made by man (that is, revealed by God); A term to describe the divine origin of the Vedas.
Aprakrita—/skr./ spiritual, or antimaterial, transcendental to material nature; The fifth of the five stages of Vedic knowledge.
Arcana naturae —/lat./The secrets of nature. See New Philosophy.
Aristotle—Greek philosopher who taught in the fourth century before Christ (384-322 BC). Aristotle studied under Plato for almost twenty years, then went on to start his own school of thought. He was very interested in what the Bhagavad-gita calls the field of knowledge, which he analyzed minutely according to his own system. He was less concerned with the knower of the field, the soul. He defined the soul as What it is to be for a body of the character just assigned (De anima, 412b). In other words, if an axe was a product of nature, then its characteristic body or form would be its soul. (The axe example is Aristotle's own.)
Arjuna—the third son of Pandu and intimate friend of Lord Krsna. After Pandu was cursed by a sage, Kunti used a special mantra to beget children and called for the demigod Indra. By the union of Indra and Kunti, Arjuna was born. In his previous life he was Nara, the eternal associate of Lord Narayana. Krsna became his chariot driver and spoke the Bhagavad-gita to him on the battlefield of Kuruksetra; An eternal associate of Krsna.
Aroha/Avaroha - /skr./ Ascending and descending, or deductive and inductive process of knowledge. See Deduction, Induction.
Asaya - /skr./ Intention, culture.
Atheism—From the Greek theos (a, not and thes, God). In it most blatant form, atheism argues that God does not exist. The proof of that claim is that He is not available to our sensory inspection. Also, religious doctrines that oppose theism are not theistic, hence atheistic. As explained in the entry for theism, the Vedic account of Lord Krsna's immanence and transcendence is the clearest demonstration of the standard definition of theism. To oppose Vaisnava philosophy is therefore to court atheism. Much of what passes for religion is actually atheism in pious disguise. Atheism disguised as religion is called Deism, Semi-deism, Dualism, Henotheism, Kathenotheism, Panpsychism, Pantheism, and Polytheism. These entries, together with the entry for Theism, may be consulted for a clearer understanding.
Authoritarianism—The view that knowledge cannot be questioned, as opposed to the free spirit of inquiry.
Avatara—literally means "one who descends." A partially or fully empowered incarnation of the Lord who descends from the spiritual sky to the material universe with a particular mission described in scriptures; When Krsna descends from the world of spirit into the world of matter, His appearance here is called Avatara. The Sanskrit term Avatara (one who descends) is often rendered into English as incarnation. It is wrong, however, to think that Krsna incarnates in a body made of physical elements. The Seventh and Eighth Chapters of Bhagavad-gita distinguish at length between the material nature (apara-prakriti), visible as the temporary substances of earth, water, fire, air and ethereal space, and God's own spiritual nature (para-prakriti), which is invisible (avyakta), eternal (sanatana) and infallible (aksara). When the Lord descends, by His mercy the invisible becomes visible. As He Himself states in Bg. 4.6, I descend by My own nature, appearing in My form of spiritual energy (prakritià svam adhisöhaya sambhavamy atma-mayaya). In Bg. 4.9 He declares, janma karma ca me divyam, My appearance and activities are divine. God has many Avataras. But of all of them, that form described in Bg. 11.50 as the most beautiful (saumya-vapu) is His own original form (svakam rupam). This is the eternal form of Sri Krsna, the all-charming lotus-eyed youth whose body is the shape of spiritual ecstasy. SB 1.3.28 confirms that Krsna is the original form of Visnu: ete camsa-kalah puàsah Krsnas tu bhagavan svayam indrari-vyakulaà lokam mrdayanti yuge yuge, which means, All of the incarnations of Visnu listed in the scriptures are expansions of the Lord. Lord Sri Krsna is the original Personality of Godhead. All Avataras appear in the world whenever there is a disturbance created by the atheists. The Lord incarnates to protect the theists. The Srimad-Bhagavatam also provides us with the authorized list of scheduled incarnations of Godhead, of whom the Dasavatara (ten Avataras) are particularly celebrated. The ten are 1) Matsya (the Lord's form of a gigantic golden fish), 2) Kurma (the turtle), 3) Varaha (the boar), 4) Sri Nrsiàha (the half-man, half-lion form), 5) ParaçuRama (the hermit who wields an axe), 6) Vamana (the small Brahmana boy), 7) Sri Ramacandra (the Lord of Ayodhya), 8) Sri Baladeva (Lord Krsna's brother), 9) Buddha (the sage who cheated the atheists), and 10) Kalki (who will depopulate the world of all degraded, sinful men at the end of the present age of Kali). There are two broad categories of Avataras. Some, like Sri Krsna, Sri Rama and Sri Nrisimha, are Visnu-tattva, i.e. direct forms of God Himself, the source of all power. Others are individual souls (jiva-tattva) who are empowered by the Lord in one or more of the following seven ways: with knowledge, devotion, creative ability, personal service to God, rulership over the material world, power to support planets, or power to destroy rogues and miscreants. This second category of Avatara is called Saktyavesa. Included herein are Buddha, Christ and Muhammed. The Mayavadis think that form necessarily means limitation. God is omnipresent, unlimited and therefore formless, they argue. When He reveals His Avatara form within this world, that form, being limited in presence to a particular place and time, cannot be the real God. It is only an indication of God. But the fact is that it is not God's form that is limited. It is only the Mayavadis' conception of form that is limited, because that conception is grossly physical. God's form is of the nature of supreme consciousness. Being spiritual, it is called sükñma, most subtle. There is no contradiction between the omnipresence of something subtle and its having form. The most subtle material phenomena we can perceive is sound. Sound may be formless (as noise) or it may have form (as music). Because sound is subtle, its having form does not affect its ability to pervade a huge building. Similarly, God's having form does not affect His ability to pervade the entire universe. Since God's form is finer than the finest material subtlety, it is completely inappropriate for Mayavadis to compare His form to gross hunks of matter. Because they believe God's form is grossly physical, Mayavadis often argue that any and all embodied creatures may be termed Avataras. Any number of living gods are being proclaimed within India and other parts of the world today. Some of these gods are mystics, some are charismatics, some are politicians, and some are sexual athletes. But none of them are authorized by the Vedic scriptures. They represent only the mistaken Mayavadi idea that the one formless unlimited Truth appears in endless gross, physical human incarnations, and that you and me and I and he are therefore all together God. And since each god has a different idea of what dharma is, the final truth, according to Mayavada philosophy, is that the paths of all gods lead to the same goal. This idea is as unenlightened as it is impractical. When ordinary people proclaim themselves to be God, and that whatever they are doing is Vedic dharma, that is called dharmasya glaniù, a disturbance to eternal religious principles. Therefore Krsna came again, 500 years ago, as the Golden Avatara, Caitanya Mahaprabhu. He established the yuga-dharma, the correct form of sanatana-dharma for our time (sankirtana). Lord Caitanya's appearance was predicted in SB 11.5.32: In this Age of Kali, people who are endowed with sufficient intelligence will worship the Lord, who is accompanied by His associates, by congregational chanting of the holy names of God. See Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Krsna.
Avidya— /skr./ nescience, ignorance; the illusory energy of the Supreme Lord; Ignorance or non-Vedic knowledge, as opposed to apara-vidya and para-vidya. See Apara-vidya, Para-vidya.
Ayer, A.J.—British philosopher (1910-1989), a twentieth century advocate of Hume's scepticism towards religion, and one of the founders of logical positivism. In his younger years he was a phenomenalist, but later he drew back from that position. See Logical positivism.
Baladeva Vidyabhusana—Born in the 18th century in the Baleswar district of Orissa, he was initially a learned scholar of the Madhva-Sampradaya. He was converted to Gaudiya Vaiñëavism and became the ardent follower of Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura. He is especially renowned for his commentary on Vedanta-sutra called Govinda-bhasya; Srila Baladeva Vidyabhusana was a highly renounced pure devotee. For the spiritual benefit of mankind, he presented many transcendental literatures to the world. The details of his early life are not known for sure, as he never mentioned his birth place or his family background. Historians have estimated that he was born sometime in the eighteenth century, most probably in Orissa (possibly near Remuna). At a very early age, Baladeva finished his studies of grammar, poetry, rhetoric and logic and then went on pilgrimage. During his travels he spent some time with the Tattvavadis in South India and thus became conversant with the teachings of Sri Madhvacarya. He became a powerful exponent of this philosophy throughout India. Later he was initiated into the Gaudiya Vaisnava Sampradaya by Radha-Damodara Deva, and went to Vrndavana to study under the great acarya Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura. Baladeva's defeat of an assembly of Ramanandi scholars is celebrated in Indian philosophical history. It was on this occasion that he composed the Govinda-bhasyacommentary on the Vedanta-sutra. Actually, it was dictated to him by the Sri Govinda Deva Deity; hence, it is named after the Lord. The commentary so astonished the scholars that they bestowed upon Baladeva the title Vidyabhusana (ornament of learning).
Bhagavad-gita - This most essential text of spiritual knowledge, The Song of the Lord, contains Krsna's instructions to Arjuna at Kurukñetra. It is found in the Mahabharata. The Mahabharata is classified as smriti-sastra, a supplement of the sruti-sastra. Sruti, the core Vedic literature, includes the four Vedas (Åg, Sama, Yajur and Atharva) and the Upanisads. Sruti advances the understanding of the absolute. Bhagavad-gita is also known as Gitopanisad, or a Sruti text spoken by the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself. Therefore, Srila Prabhupada wrote in a letter, the Gita should be taken as Sruti. But they take it as smriti because it is part of the smriti (Mahabharata). In one sense it is both Sruti and smriti. In only 700 verses, the Bhagavad-gita summarizes all Vedic knowledge about the soul, God, sanatana-dharma, sacrifice, yoga, karma, reincarnation, the modes of material nature, Vedanta and pure devotion. See Arjuna, Caitanya-caritamrita, Krsna, Mahabharata, Srimad-Bhagavatam.
Bhagavan— /skr./ The Personality of Godhead, the possessor (van) of six opulences (bhaga) in unlimited fullness: wealth (aisvarya), strength (virya), fame (yasaù), beauty (sriyah), knowledge (jnana), and renunciation (vairagya). See Krsna.
Bhakti - /skr./ Love and devotion to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Krishna. The formal sistematization of bhakti is called bhakti-yoga. See Bhakti Yoga, Krishna.
Bhakti-yoga—/skt./ The process of devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Krsna. According to a famous verse in Srimad-Bhagavatam, it consists of nine aìgas or parts: aravaëam kirtanaà viñnoh smaranam pada-sevanam-arcanaà vandanaà dasyaà sakhyam atma-nivedanam 1) Hearing and 2) chanting about the transcendental holy name, form, qualities, paraphernalia and pastimes of Lord Krsna, 3) remembering them, 4) serving the lotus feet of the Lord, 5) offering the Deity of the Lord respectful worship with sixteen types of paraphernalia, 6) offering prayers to the Lord, 7) serving His mission, 8) making friends with the Lord, and 9) surrendering everything unto Him (in other words, serving Him with the body, mind and words)these nine processes are accepted as pure devotional service. (SB 7.5.23)
Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura- The transcendentally empowered son of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura appeared in this world on February 6, 1874. His father was deputy magistrate of Jagannatha Puri in Orissa at this time. Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura had been very concerned about unauthorized pseudo-Vaisnavas who were usurping the pure teachings of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu, and therefore had begun a revival of the sankirtana mission. Though very busy with his profession, he wrote profusely about all aspects of Krsna consciousness. He prayed constantly for someone to boldly preach his writings. Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura's prayers were answered in Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura. When he was six months old, the Ratha-yatra festival of chariots was held in Puré. Lord Jagannatha's chariot stopped in front of Srila Bhaktivinoda's house, which was on the main road between the temple and the Guëòicä mandira. The chariot stayed there for three days. On the third day, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta's mother brought the child out to see the Lord. The pujaris picked him up and put him on the cart. He crawled to the base of Lord Jagannatha, touching His lotus feet. Simultaneously a garland fell from the neck of the Lord and landed around the child. The pujaris exclaimed that this child was especially blessed by the Lord. The boy grew up to be a great scholar in many fields of learning. But when he reached twenty-two, he left his studies at college, vowing to never take to householder life. For three years, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura held the post of raja-pandita (royal scholar) of the Vaisnava king of Tripura. Thereafter he took initiation from Srila Gaurakisora dasa Babaji. Srila Gaurakisora was a Vaisnava renunciate who had fully absorbed himself in the worship of Krsna at Vrndavana for a long time. Then he settled at the holy city of Navadvipa on the bank of the Ganges. By this time Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura had retired from his government work and was worshiping Lord Krsna in a small house near Navadvipa, at Godruma. Every day he gave Srimad-Bhagavatamclass there. Srila Gaurakisora used to attend these classes. Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura told his son, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, to accept Srila Gaurakisora as his initiating spiritual master. He received the name Varsabhanavi-devi-dayitaya dasa. Thereafter Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura gave up all other activities to chant 194 rounds daily for seven years. He stayed in a kuöira (hut) but did not take time to repair the roof; if it rained, he just used an umbrella. In 1918 he opened the first center of the Gaudiya Mission in Ultadanga Road in Calcutta. He was then forty-four. All across India he established Lord Caitanya's teachings as the most excellent spiritual philosophy. He started his mission in the midst of war and political agitation for national liberation. He was uncompromising in his disregard of such mundane concerns. The most important thing is to invoke the spirit of devotion to the Supreme Lord; this concern lies far above any material consideration. Many leaders objected that he was diverting too many young men from India's national interests, but he paid them no heed. In this period, Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada visited Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakuraon the rooftop at Ultadanga Road. Srila Prabhupada, at that time known as Abhay Caran De, was an adherent of Gandhi's svaräja movement. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura convinced him in just one sitting of the vital necessity of Lord Caitanya's mission over everything else. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura departed this world in 1936. Two weeks before leaving his body, he instructed Srila Prabhupada to introduce the sankirtana mission to the Western world. See Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Bhaktivinoda Thakura, Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Krsna.
Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada - His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada is the foremost Vaisnava acarya in the modern age. In 1896, he appeared in this world as Abhay Caran De in Calcutta, where he received an English-language education. He first met his spiritual master, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, in 1922. At their first meeting, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakurarequested Srila Prabhupada to broadcast Vedic knowledge through the English language. In 1933, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakurainitiated Srila Prabhupada as Abhaya Caraëäravinda däsa. In the years that followed, he wrote a commentary on the Bhagavad-gita, assisted the Gaudiya Mission in its work, and in 1944 started Back to Godhead, an English fortnightly magazine, still continued by his disciples today. He received the title Bhaktivedanta in 1947 from the Gaudiya Vaisnava Society. In the 1950's, Srila Prabhupada retired from family life, accepting the vanaprastha order. Thus he was able to devote more time to his studies and writing. He came to Vrndavana to live humbly at the historic medieval temple of Rädhä-Dämodara. After several years of deep absorption in Krsna consciousness, Srila Prabhupada accepted the order of Sannyasa from his Godbrother Kesava Prajna Maharaja, in 1959. It was then that he began to work on his life's masterpiece: a multivolume translation of and commentary on the eighteen-thousand verse Srimad-Bhagavatam. After publishing three volumes of the Bhägavatam in India, Srila Prabhupada came to the United States in 1965. After great difficulty, with no initial financial resources, he established the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in New York in July, 1966. The residents of that great metropolis of materialism were astounded as the youthful American followers of Srila Prabhu-päda danced and chanted the Hare Krsna maha-mantra in their midst, that eternal Vedic sound echoing between the glass and steel skyscraper canyon walls. The Krsna consciousness movement soon spread to San Francisco, where the Ratha-yatra festival of the chariots was held for the first time outside of India. A group of American disciples started a branch in London, where George Harrison of the Beatles became a life-long follower of Srila Prabhupada. From England the movement went to Germany, Holland, France, and other European countries. It likewise flourished in Canada, Latin America, Australia and Africa. Simultaneously, Srila Prabhupada personally established several multi-million-dollar ISKCON temple and guesthouse projects in India at Bombay, Vrndavana, Mayapur and Hyderabad. But Srila Prabhupada considered his most significant contribution to be his books, which form a veritable library of Vedic philosophy, religion, culture and literature. Highly respected by the academic community for their authority, depth and clarity, they serve as standard textbooks in numerous college courses. His writings have been translated into more than eighty languages. The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, established in 1972 to publish his works, is the world's largest publisher in the field of Vedic studies. In the twelve years after his first arrival in America up to his departure from this world in 1977, Srila Prabhupada circled the globe fourteen times on lecture tours that took him to six continents. Even in his physical absence, his great mission continues to move forward. With the collapse of the Soviet Empire that Srila Prabhupada predicted during his 1972 visit to Moscow, Krsna consciousness is vigorously blossoming throughout Eastern Europe, Russia, and the Far East. ISKCON's Mayapur project is growing into a modern spiritual city on the bank of the holy Ganges. 1996, the year of Srila Prabhupada's centennial, saw the opening of grand temple projects in Delhi, Bangalore and Baroda. See Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, Bhaktivinoda Thakura, Caitanya Mahaprabhu, ISKCON, Krsna.
Bhaktivinoda Thakura—Appearing in this world in 1838 and departing it in 1914, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura is one of the great teachers of Krsna consciousness in the disciplic succession of spiritual masters. He is famous in Bengal for having located the exact site of the birthplace of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. This site at Sridhäma Mayapur, near the city of Navadvipa about 90 miles north of Calcutta, had been lost for centuries due to the shifting course of the Ganges river. The Thakura's discovery rapidly transformed Mayapur into an important place of pilgimage for Krsna devotees. The Gaura-Visnupriya temple he founded in 1891 was the first of many holy places of worship now visible at Mayapur. In 1896, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura announced the sankirtana mission to the Western world by sending a copy of one of his small books Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu: His Life and Precepts to McGill University in Canada. Many of his Bengali songs are available in Songs of the Vaisnava acaryas, published by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura predicted that the sankirtana movement would spread from India to the great cities of the Western world. See Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, Bhaktivedanta Swami Pra-bhupäda, Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Krsna.
Bohr, Niels—Danish physicist of great fame in the twentieth century (1885-1962). He has been called the spiritual father of all quantum physicists. Einstein was not happy with Bohr's idea that the universe is as it is purely by chance. He admonished Bohr, God does not play dice. Einstein's criticisms so bothered Bohr that he sometimes used to pace back and forth while chanting Einstein ... Einstein ... Einstein ... to himself.
Brahma— The first living being in the universe, Brahma was born not of a womb but the lotus that grows from Lord Visnu's navel. He is the forefather and guru of the demigods, the giver of the Vedas, and the director of the vaikåta or secondary phase of cosmic creation by which all species of plants, animals, human beings and demigods come into existence. Thus he takes charge of the creative rajo-guna, just as Siva takes charge of the destructive tamo-guna. Brahma is usually a jiva, though rarely, when there is no qualified jiva to assume this post, the Supreme Lord expands Himself as Brahma. See Demigods, Modes of nature.
Brahmacari— /skr./ A celibate student of a spiritual master; A member of the first spiritual devision of life, according to the Vedic social system of four asramas. See Grihasta, Sannyasi, Vanaprastha.
Brahmajyoti— /skr./ From Krsna's transcendental personal form of eternity, knowledge and bliss emanates a shining effulgence called the brahmajyoti (light of Brahman). The material prakriti, the jivas who desire to enjoy matter, and kala (time), are situated within this brahmajyoti, which is pure existence devoid of difference and activity. It is the impersonal Brahman of the Mayavadis, and the Clear Light of some Buddhist sects. For many mystics and philosophers the world over, the brahmajyoti is the indefinable One from which all things emerge in the beginning and merge into at the end. The brahmajyoti is Krsna's feature of sat (eternality) separated from cit (knowledge) and ananda (bliss). See Brahman, Buddhism, Impersonalism, Life after death, Mayavada philosophy, Modes of nature, Mysticism, Sac-cid-ananda, Vedanta.
Brahman—This Sanskrit term comes from the root båh, which means to grow or to evolve. In the Chandogya Upaniñad 3.14, Brahman is described as tajjalan, as that (tat) from which the world arises (ja), into which it returns (la), and by which is is supported and lives (an). Impersonalists equate Brahman with the brahmajyoti. But in its fullest sense, Brahman is the vastu, the actual substance of the world: 1) Visnu as the Supreme Soul (paraà brahman), 2) the individual self as the subordinate soul (jiva-brahman), and 3) matter as creative nature (mahad-brahman). Visnu is accepted by all schools of Vaisnava Vedanta as the transcendental, unlimited Puruñottama (Supreme Person), while the individual souls and matter are His conscious and unconscious energies (cid-acid-sakti). See Absolute, Brahmajyoti, Four Vaisnava Sampradayas and Siddhantas, Krsna, Life after death, Modes of nature, Supersoul, Vedanta, Visnu.
Brahmana—Literally, “knower of Brahman”. A member of the most intelligent, priestly class of man, according to the four Vedic occupational divisions of society (varnas). A genuine brahmana is wise in Vedic knowledge, fixed in goodness and knowledgeable of Brahman, the Absolute Truth.
Buddha— Two thousand five hundred years ago, Lord Visnu sent forth an empowered jiva known as the Buddha (the Enlightened One). Assuming the guise of Siddhartha Gautama, he took birth in Kapilavastu (present-day Nepal) as the son of King Suddhodana. At age twenty-nine he renounced the world and embarked upon a mission to preach ahimsa (nonviolence) and çünyatä (extinction of the self). He especially opposed the prevailing karma-mimamsa philosophy of his time, which distorted Vedic knowledge and promoted unnecessary animal sacrifice. The Buddha's teaching rests on four principles: 1) material existence is duhkha, miserable. 2) There is samudäya, a cause of material existence. 3) Because there is a cause, there is also nirodha, a way to remove material existence. 4) That way is märga, the path of righteousness that the Buddha himself exemplified. But as he circumvented the distortion of Vedic sacrifice in leading people away from the sin of animal slaughter, he denied the Vedas, the soul, and God. After the Buddha's disappearance, many schools of Buddhism came into being. See Avatara (Saktyavesa), Buddhism.
Buddhi—Discernment, intelligence; in Greek dinoia. According to SB 3.26.30, it has five functions: saàçaya (doubt), viparyäsa (misapprehension), niçcaya (correct apprehension), smriti (memory), and sväpa (sleep, dreaming). See Intellect.
Buddhism—Vaisnava Vedantist acaryas such as Ramanuja, Madhva and Baladeva have analyzed four types of Buddhist doctrine. These four are held, respectively, by schools known as the Sautrantikas, Vaibhañikas, Yogacaras and Madhyamikas. The first doctrine views mind and matter as having real but momentary existencei.e. with each moment, the reality of mind and matter changes. The second views matter as being knowable only through the mind; mind and the matter known through it are momentarily real. The third views matter as unreal, mind as absolute, and the perception of matter as momentary imagination. The fourth, known as Sunyavada, views the previous three doctrines as useless attempts at explaining what cannot be put into words. See Buddha, Mayavada philosophy, Nirvana, Scepticism, Six systems, Voidism.
Caitanya-caritamrita—Written by Srila Krsnadäsa Kaviräja Gosvämé, this biography of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu is the single most important text of Gaudiya Vaisnava philosophy. Caitanya-caritamrita means the immortal character of the living force. It is the postgraduate study of spiritual knowledge, and so is not intended for the novice. Ideally, one begins with Bhagavad-gita and advances through Srimad-Bhagavatam to the Sri Caitanya-caritamrita. Although alI these great scriptures are on the same absolute level, for the sake of comparative study Sri Caitanya-caritamrita is considered to be on the highest platform. See Bhagavad-gita, Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Gaudiya Vaisnava, Srimad-Bhagavatam.
Caitanya Mahaprabhu—The Golden Avatara of the Supreme Personality of Godhead who descended into the material world 500 years ago at Sridhama Mayapur. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu inaugurated the yuga-dharma of sankirtana. Together with His associates Nityananda, Advaita, Gadadhara and Srivasa, Lord Caitanya is worshiped by the Gaudiya Vaisnavas as the Panca-tattva (five-fold Absolute Truth). Within the Panca-tattva, Mahaprabhu is the isa-tattva, the Supreme Lord. Nityananda is the prakasa-tattva, the feature of Isvara who controls the kriya-sakti, out of which the kala and karma potencies expand. Advaita is the Avatara-tattva, the incarnation. Gadadhara is sakti-tattva, a feature of the original, spiritual prakriti. Srivasa is jiva-tattva. See Avatara, Gaudiya Vaisnava, Isvara, Sankirtana.
Causa (Lat.)—Reason or motive for something happening (in Gr. aitai). Aristotle proposed four causes to explain how creation occurs: causa materialis (the material cause), causa formalis (the formal cause), causa efficiens (the efficient cause), and causa finalis (the final cause).
Chauvinism—A term derived from the name of a legendary French soldier, Nicolas Chauvin, chavinism originally meant fanatical patriotism, but lately means a prejudiced belief in the superiority of one's own group; for example, male chauvinism.
Chaos—Greek term for gap or chasm, derived from chainein, gape. In Greek philosophy, chos is the confused, formless and undifferentiated state of primal matter; the condition of the universe before reason appeared and brought the world into order. The Sanskrit equivalent is Pradhana, the unmanifest material nature. See Modes of nature.
Christ—See Avatara (Saktyavesa).
Circulus vitiosus (Lat.)—A vicious circle, i.e. the fallacy of proving a proposition from another which depends on the first for its own proof. See Fallacy, Logic.
Cogito ergo sum (Lat.)—I think, therefore I am. The famous maxim of Descartes that conveys his certitude about his own existence.See Descartes.
Consciousness—This term is derived from the Latin conscire, to know or be aware of. The equivalent Sanskrit term is cetana. Consciousness is the irreducible symptom of the self. It knows, it feels, and it wills. There are many theories about the relation of consciousness to matter (see Mind/body problem), but all of them are conceived in the conscious mind. Take away consciousness and theories are impossible. Then what is the use of speculation about dead matter as the source of consciousness? Subtle mind, intelligence and false ego are imposed upon consciousness by the three modes of nature. Similarly, due to these modes, wakefulness, dreaming and swoon occur against the background of consciousness. But though the modes cover it, consciousness remains essentially pure, eternally. In the liberated state, consciousness displays a non-material mind, intelligence, pure ego and perfect form. There are two orders of consciousness: vibhu and anu. The first is the level of God's consciousness, which is all-pervading. God knows everything in totality and everything in particular. His consciousness is never influenced by matter, although matter cannot exist apart from His consciousness. The anu (limited) order of consciousness belongs to the jiva. Because it is limited, matter can cover it, unless the jiva remains under the shelter of the Supreme Consciousness. See Ecstasy, False ego, Gross body, Intellect, Jiva, Mind, Mind/body problem, Modes of nature, Soul, Subtle body, Supersoul.
Contradiction—This term is formed from the Latin contra (against) and dicere (speak); hence, a statement that speaks against itself is contradictory. In Aristotilian logic, contradictions are violations of the second of the Three Laws of Thought: 1) The Law of Identity if a thing exists, it exists. If it does not exist, it does not exist. Whatever is, is. 2) The Law of Noncontradiction something cannot be itself and not be itself at the same time. Nothing can both be and not be. 3) The Law of the Excluded Middlesomething that exists is real and true, and something that does not exist is unreal and not true. There is no middle ground between these two positions. Things must either be or not be.
Cratylus—Athenean philosopher, a contemporary of Socrates and Plato. Cratylus taught a radical form of scepticism. He was a disciple of Heraclitus, whose most famous aphorism is You cannot step in the same river twice. Cratylus amended that aphorism, making it You cannot step into the same river once. He believed there is no point even to speak, because as we speak we and the world change, rendering all that we say into useless babble about nothing real. See Scepticism.
Daivi prakriti—Daivi in Sanskrit means divine, and prakriti means nature. This term refers to the original spiritual nature, out of which matter (guna-Maya), personified as goddess Durga, manifests (see Bg. 7.14). The word daivi is closely related to deva, God. Daivi-prakriti is therefore nature that is abhinna, not separate from God. A synonym for daivi-prakriti is para-prakriti (superior nature, see Bg. 7.5). Srila Prabhupada explained the daivi-prakriti to be the person of Srimati Radharani: ... Just like we are trying to be under the guidance of Radharani, daivi-prakriti. Prakriti means woman, and daivi means transcendental woman. (SB lecture in Los Angeles, August 19, 1972) See Prakriti, Radharani.
Daksa—The Sanskrit word Daksa literally means expert. A son of Brahma, Daksa was expert in kamya-karma, activities full of lusty desire. As a prajapati or progenitor of living beings, he had the facility for unlimited sexual intercourse. Blinded by pride in the course of performing Vedic sacrifices, he offended Siva. After a great fight with Siva's ghostly associates, Daksa's head was replaced with that of a goat. Then Daksa gave up his life because of his degraded condition. Attaining a new demigod form, Daksa followed the same path as before and offended Narada Muni.
Darsana—the act of seeing and being seen by the Deity in the temple or by a spiritually advanced person. A verbal noun meaning the act of beholding or seeing. It also translates as 'audience'. When one goes to the temple of the Lord to have His audience and to behold Him, one is said to have the Lord's Darsana; This Sanskrit term literally means a vision. It may mean a vision of something difficult to see (e.g. Brahma's vision of Vaikuntha), or knowledge of something difficult to know (e.g. Vedanta-Darsana). See sad-Darsana, Six systems.
Darwin, Charles—British naturalist of the nineteenth century (1809-1882) who presented the world his version of the theory of evolution in On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection; or The Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life (1859). In fact, the theory that living forms in earlier times were not what they are now, but were simpler organisms that evolved in complexity, was proposed by Anaximander (610-546 BC), who studied fossils in a cliffside. His theory was rejected in ancient Greece, but was revived in the nineteenth century, principally by Darwin. All areas of modern Western thought continue to be influenced by Darwinism. Philosophers and scientists have grown increasingly divided over his theory. One section of scientists argues there is no certain law of evolution it happened completely by chance. Another section holds that the evolutionary process is encoded in some sort of cosmic algorithm. A recent trend in philosophy, called postmodernism, views Darwinism as simply a matter of historical interpretation: it is a metaphor for capitalism and a white male-centered power structure. There is a growing feeling that the ideas of Darwin, like those of Marx and Freud, are obsolete. See Samsara.
Davies, Paul—British-born professor of mathematical physics at the University of Adelaide in Australia. He is the author of some twenty books on science.
Deduction—A form of reason that comprehends the cause of an effect from authoritative testimony or a priori knowledge. See Abduction, aroha/Avaroha, Hypothetico-deduction, Induction, Logic.
Deism—A term first used by the Calvinists in the seventeenth century, deism is the belief in God as the first cause of the universe, who created the laws by which the universe is governed, but who is in no way immanent in His creation. God's maintenance of the world means nothing more than the permanence of natural laws. Nature follows a regular course. The sole purpose of the world is to be the habitat of mankind. The deists opposed mystical and supernatural interpretations of scripture; human reason is the true measure of scriptural understanding. Many of the Founding Fathers of the United States of America (e.g. Adams, Jefferson and Paine) were of deistic inclination. See Atheism, Semi-deism, Theism.
Deity—As Lord Krsna appears in the sound of His holy name, so also He appears within the arcä-Avatara, His incarnation as the Deity worshiped in the temple. The central focus of every ISKCON temple around the world is the worship of Krsna's Deity form as represented in stone, metal, wood or as painted pictures. Through ceremonial services (puja) conducted according to Vedic tradition, the devotees fulfill the Lord's injunction in Bg. 9.27: Whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer or give away, and whatever austerities you perform do that, O son of Kunti, as an offering to Me. This puja purifies the minds and senses of the devotees and connects them to Krsna in an attitude of love. Mayavadis decry service to the Deity as idol worship. They argue that God is not present within the Deity, because He is everywhere. But if He is everywhere, then why is He not within the Deity as well? Moisture is also everywhere, even within the air. But when one needs a drink of water, he cannot get it from the air. He must drink the water from where water tangibly avails itself to be drunk: from a faucet, a well, or a clear stream. Similarly, although God is everywhere, it is in His Deity form that He makes Himself tangibly available for worship. See Avatara, Krsna.
De omnibus est dubitandum (Lat.)—Doubt is everything. See Scepticism.
Descartes, Ren—French rationalist philosopher of the seventeenth century (1596-1650), called the father of modern philosophy. He broke free of Scholasticism, the Christian re-interpretation of ancient Greek and Roman philosophy that had long held sway in European schools. Descartes is an important founder of the modern scientific attitude. He viewed the material world as a mechanism wholly describable by numerical values. Modern science, more Cartesii (after the manner of Descartes), tries to describe everything in terms of mathematics. Descartes strongly believed that science can help mankind become masters and possessors of nature. Through scientific advancement we might rid ourselves of an infinity of maladies, both of body and mind, and even perhaps the enfeeblement brought on by old age, if we had sufficiently ample knowledge of their causes, and of all the remedies provided for us by nature. Convinced that his revolutionary approach to knowledge would at least free himself from an infinity of maladies, Descartes wrote at age forty-two that he would be surprised if he lived less than over a hundred years. Unfortunately, he died at age fifty-four. See Cogito ergo sum, Rationalism.
Demigods—The Sanskrit equivalent is deva or devata. Demigods are jivas whom the Isvara empowers to represent Him in the management of the universe. The first of the demigods is Brahma. Indra is the demigod of rain, Surya of the sunshine, Candra of the moonshine, Varuna of water. There are thirty-three million demigods in all. They live in the upper regions of the universe called svarga, or heaven. Less intelligent people worship the demigods through karma-kanda rituals to get material blessings in this life, and to be granted entrance into svarga in the next life. In the Bhagavad-gita, Lord Krsna condemns demigod worship as being avidhi-purvaka, against the true purpose of the Vedas. See Tri-loka.
Deus sive natura - /Lat./ “The identity of God and nature”. See Modes of nature.
Deva—See Demigod
Dharma—The Sanskrit term dharma is variously translated as duty, virtue, morality, righteousness, or religion, but no single English word conveys the whole meaning of dharma. The Vedic sage Jaimini defined dharma as a good which is of the nature of a command that leads to the attainment of the highest good. In Bg. 18.66, Lord Krsna commands us to give up all other dharmas and surrender to Him. This is the paro-dharma, or supreme command (good, duty, virtue, etc.) of the Vedas.
Dianoia—Greek term for discernment or intellect, similar to the Sanskrit buddhi. See Intellect.
Discernment—See Buddhi, Dinoia, Intellect.
Dravya—Matter, material (physical) objects, material possessions.
Dualism—From the Latin dualis, containing two. There are two types of dualism in Western thought: metaphysical and religious. Metaphysical dualism is covered under the entry for the Mind/body problem. As a religious term, it was introduced in 1700 by Thomas Hyde in his work The Ancient Persian Religions. He characterized as dualism the conflict between the two principle gods of Zoroastrianism, the good Ormazd and the evil Ahriman. Zoroastrian dualism strongly influenced Judaism, Christianity and Islam. All three adhere to a doctrine of eternal struggle between God and Satan. But dualism, in the words of philosopher G.C. Nayak, is not an attempt to solve the problem of evil within the theistic concept. (From Evil and the Retributive Hypothesis, 1993, p. 44) Hence, none of the above religions, insofar as they are dualistic, can be considered truly theistic. See Atheism, Dvaita, Metaphysics, Mind/body problem, Problem of Evil, Theism.
Ecstasy—For a devotee of Krsna, freedom from birth and death is gained by purifying consciousness and desires until the ecstasy of pure Krsna consciousness is achieved. As the term ecstasy indicates (Gr. kstasis, standing outside [the body]), God consciousness transports the soul beyond identification with the material body. After the steady practice of the nine methods of bhakti-yoga awakens love of Krsna in the devotee's heart, Krsna appears before the devotee. At that time all the senses of the devotee (the eyes, nose, ears, tongue, sense of touch) become the receptacles of the auspicious qualities of Krsna: His supreme beauty, fragrance, melody, youthfulness, tastefulness, munificence and mercy. The Lord reveals first His beauty to the eyes of the devotee. Due to the sweetness of that beauty, all the senses and the mind take on the quality of eyes. From this the devotee swoons. To console the devotee, the Lord next reveals His fragrance to the nostrils of the devotee, and by this, the devotee's senses take on the quality of the nose in order to smell. Again the devotee swoons in bliss. The Lord then reveals His sonorous voice to the devotee's ears. All the senses become like ears to hear, and for the third time the devotee faints. The Lord then mercifully gives the touch of His lotus feet, His hands and His chest to the devotee, and the devotee experiences the Lord's fresh youthfulness. To those who love the Lord in the mood of servitude, He places His lotus feet on their heads. To those in the mood of friendship, He grasps their hands with His. To those in the mood of parental affection, with His hand He wipes away their tears. Those in the conjugal mood He embraces, touching them with His hands and chest. Then the devotee's senses all take on the sense of touch and the devotee faints again. In this way, the devotee attains his rasa (spiritual relationship) with Krsna. See Bhakti-yoga, Live after death, Rasa.
Eddington, Arthur Stanley—British astronomer and mathematician (1882-1944) who proved Einstein's theory of relativity. He was an advocate of phenomenalism. See Phenomenalism.
Egalitarianism—The view that all humans are socially, politically and in some schools, economically equal. According to the Vedic understanding, all humans and in fact all living beings are spiritually equal. But due to the rule of the three modes of nature over the universe, material equality is impossible.
Einstein, Albert—German-born physicist (1879-1955), certainly the most famous scientist of the twentieth century. In a book entitled Sidelights on Relativity, he wrote: As far as the laws of mathematics refer to reality, they are not certain; and as far as they are certain, they do not refer to reality. See Relativity theory.
Elements - From the Latin elementa, the first principles of things. Some ancient Greek philosophers proposed four elements: water, air, fire and earth. This idea dominated European thought until the seventeenth century. To Arjuna, Lord Krsna says there are five gross and three subtle material elements (see Bg. 7.4). The five include the four counted by the Greeks, plus akasa or ethereal space. The three subtle elements are mind, intelligence and false ego, which are manifestations of the three gunas (modes), goodness, passion and ignorance respectively. To Uddhava, Lord Krsna says, I personally approve of that knowledge by which one sees the combination of nine, eleven, five and three elements in all living entities, and ultimately one element within those twenty-eight. (SB 11.19.14) The nine are material nature, the living entity, the mahat-tattva, false ego, and the five objects of sense perception (sound, touch, form, taste and aroma). The eleven are the five karmendriya or working senses (the voice, hands, legs, genitalia and rectum) plus the five jnanendriya or knowledge-acquiring senses (the ears, touch, eyes, tongue and nostrils), along with the coordinative sense, the mind. The five are the physical elements of earth, water, fire, air and akasa or sky, and the three are the modes of material nature (gunas). The one within all twenty-eight elements is the Supersoul. See Analysis, Gross body, Modes of nature, Subtle body, Supersoul.
Emerson, Ralph Waldo (1803-1882)—an American poet, lecturer and essayist who was the leading member of the Transcendentalists, a group of New England idealists. His view was an eclectic one, and he was much influenced by his studies of Vedic thought.
Epistemology—This term comes from the Greek epistme (knowledge) and lgos (the study of). Epistemology is one of the four main branches of philosophy (besides ethics, logic and metaphysics). It asks questions regarding knowledge: What is knowledge? Where does it come from? How is it formulated, expressed and communicated? Is sense experience necessary for all types of knowledge? What part does reason play in knowledge? Is there knowledge derived only from reason? What is the difference between belief, knowledge, opinion, fact, reality, error, imagining, conceptualization, idea, truth, possibility and certainty? See Ethics, Logic, Metaphysics, Ontology, Philosophy.
Ethics—This is one of the four main branches of philosophy (besides epistemology, logic and metaphysics). Ethics (also called moral philosophy) asks questions like: what sort of life is good? Which goals are worthy? Whose intentions are respectable? How are right and wrong defined? How to choose between right and wrong? See Epistemology, Logic, Metaphysics, Philosophy.
Evolution—See Darwin, Samsara.
Existentialism—A rationalist trend of many theoretical shades. It was started in the nineteenth by the Danish Christian thinker Sören Kierkegaard (1813-1855), and the German critic of Christianity, Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900). But it is usually identified with the twentieth century French atheist Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980). In Sartre's version, existence is the essence of everything. In other words, the ultimate meaning of a thing is that it simply is. An individual is nothing other than his or her power of choice. The universe has no rational direction or scheme. It is meaningless and absurd. Therefore individuals have complete freedom of choice. See Rationalism.
Experientia (Lat.)—Trial, knowledge resulting from observation. Root of the English term experience. The Sanskrit equivalent is pratyakña, sense perception; the Greek equivalent is empeira. See Pratyakña.
Experimentum (Lat.)—Trial, test, action undertaken to discover or test something. Root of the English term experiment. An experimentum fructiferum is a fruitive experiment designed to produce a particular effect or useful purpose. An experimentum luciferum is a experiment of light meant to uncover nature's occult qualities. See New Philosophy, Occult.
Fallacy—An error in reasoning. An argument is called fallacious if it does not follow the formal structures and rules of logic. It is also fallacious if it is not adequately supported and/or does not necessarily lead to the conclusion that the proponent of the argument wants to establish. An example is begging the question (petitio principi). This is also known as circular reasoning, by which one arrives at a conclusion from statements that are themselves questionable and have to be proved. For instanceMajor premise: Genuine yogis live in the forest and only eat fruit. Minor premise: This monkey lives in the forest and only eats fruit. Conclusion: This monkey is a genuine yogi. See Circulus vitiosus, Infinite regress, Logic.
False ego— In Sanskrit, it is termed ahankara. False ego is a soul's wrong identification with matter in two ways: I (as, for instance, I am this body) and mine (this land is mine). The primal stage of the false ego is tamasa-buddhi, intelligence in ignorance. This occurs when the original consciousness of the spirit soul comes into contact with the mahad-brahman, the unmanifest prakriti. From out of tamasa-buddhi, the three modes make their appearance. These take shape as the mind (mode of goodness), the senses (mode of passion) and the sense objects (mode of ignorance). The ahankara identifies the self with these, according to the predominance of one mode over another (the three modes constantly compete with one another to control the living entity). Thus a person in goodness identifies with the mind. A person in passion identifies with the senses. A person in ignorance identifies with the sense objects. But all these are the result of the intelligence being absorbed in primal ignorance: ignorance of Krsna. In the Eleventh Canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam, Krsna says to Uddhava that the false ego is cid-acin-mayaù, that which encompasses both spirit and matter, because it binds the cid (conscious soul) to the acid (unconscious matter). The cultivation of the innate goodness of the mind is the essence of the Vedic method of yoga, summarized by Krsna as follows. The mind can be controlled when it is fixed on the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Having achieved a stable situation, the mind becomes free from polluted desires to execute material activities; thus as the mode of goodness increases in strength, one can completely give up the modes of passion and ignorance, and gradually one transcends even the material mode of goodness. When the mind is freed from the fuel of the modes of nature, the fire of material existence is extinguished. Then one achieves the transcendental platform of direct relationship with the object of his meditation, the Supreme Lord. (SB 11.9.12) See Buddhi, Consciousness, Intellect, Mind, Modes of nature, Soul, Subtle body, Supersoul.
Feminism—The promotion of the rights of females in human society.
Feyerabend, Paul Karl—Austrian-born American philosopher of science who is a self-professed intellectual anarchist (1924-1994). According to him, the mark of creativity in science is the proliferation of theories.
Four Vaisnava Sampradayas and Siddhantas—There are four Vaisnava schools (Sampradayas) of Vedanta. These are 1) the Sri Sampradaya, whose acarya is Ramanuja; 2) the Brahma Sampradaya, whose acarya is Madhva; 3) the Rudra Sampradaya, whose acarya is Visnusvami, and 4) the Kumara Sampradaya, whose acarya is Nimbarka. Opposed to these is the non-Vaisnava Vedantist school of Sankaracarya. Every Vedantist school is known for its siddhanta or essential conclusion about the relationships between God and the soul, the soul and matter, matter and matter, matter and God, and the soul and souls. Sankaracarya's siddhanta is Advaita, nondifference (i.e. everything is one, therefore these five relationships are unreal). All the other Siddhantas support the reality of these relationships from various points of view. Ramanuja's siddhanta is Visistadvaita, qualified nondifference. Ma-dhva's siddhanta is Dvaita, difference. Visnusvami's siddhanta is Suddhadvaita, purified nondifference. And Nimbarka's siddhanta is Dvaita-advaita, difference-and-identity. The Bengali branch of Madhva's Sampradaya is known as the Brahma-Madhva-Gaudiya Sampradaya, or the Caitanya Sampradaya. In the 1700's this school presented Indian philosophers with a commentary on Vedanta-sutra written by Baladeva Vidyabhusana that argued yet another siddhanta. It is called Acintya-bhedabheda-tattva, which means simultaneous inconceivable oneness and difference. In recent years this siddhanta has become known to people from all over the world due to the popularity of the books of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Acintya-bhedabheda philosophy maintains the same standpoint of difference as Madhva's siddhanta on the five-fold relationship of God to soul, soul to matter, matter to matter, matter to God and soul to soul. But Acintya-bhedabheda-tattva further teaches the doctrine of sakti-parinama-vada (the transformation of the Lord's sakti), in which the origin of this five-fold differentiation is traced to the Lord's play with His sakti or energy. Because the souls and matter emanate from the Lord, they are one in Him as His energy yet simultaneously distinct from Him and one another. The oneness and difference of this five-fold relationship is termed acintya or inconceivable because, as Srila Prabhupada writes in his purport to Bg. 18.78, Nothing is different from the Supreme, but the Supreme is always different from everything. As the transcendental origin and coordinator of His energies, God is ever the inconceivable factor. See Advaita, Dvaita, Mayavadi philosophy, Six systems, Vedanta, Vedanta-sutra.
Gaudiya Vaisnava—The name Gaudiya refers to the region of Bengal and Bangladesh. A Vaisnava is a devotee of Visnu or Krsna. Hence, a Gaudiya Vaisnava is a practicioner of the form of Vaiñëavism associated with Bengal, as started by Caitanya Mahaprabhu some 500 years ago. See Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Krsna, Vaisnava, Visnu.
Gaurakisora dasa Babaji—the disciple of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura who was the initiating spiritual master of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura.
Gnosis /gr./ – Knowledge. See Jnana
Good and evil—See Problem of evil.
Goodness—See Modes of nature (Sattva-guna).
Grhastha— A married householder. A member of the second spiritual division of life, according to the Vedic social system of four asramas. See Brahmacari, Sannyasi, Vanaprastha.
Gross body—The body that grows on food is known in Sanskrit as the sthüla-çaréra, the gross body. It is a combination of the gross material elements moved about by the soul under the spell of the three modes of material nature. This body is ever-changing, transformed by birth, growth, maturity, reproduction, old age, and death. The living entity who rides within the heart of the body attempts to find satisfaction through sense happiness. But sense happiness is inseparable from sense distress. By Vedic knowledge, the body can be engaged in acts of sacrifice that liberate the soul from the duality of happiness and distress. The body of a pure devotee, who keeps himself always in Krsna consciousness, loses its ordinary material qualities, just as a piece of iron loses its usual qualities when it is kept within fire. As the iron becomes fiery, similarly the body of a pure devotee is spiritualized. See Ecstasy, Elements, Modes of nature, Soul, Subtle body.
Guna /skr./—See Modes of nature.
Guru /skr./—spiritual master; one of the three authorities for a Vaisnava. Literally, this term means heavy. The spiritual master is called guru because he is heavy with knowledge. See Sadhu, Sastra.
Hamlyn, David W.—Professor of Philosophy at Birbeck College, University of London. He is the author of a number of books on philosophy and the editor of Mind magazine.
Hare Krsna mantra— The “great mantra” for delivering consciousness from illusion:
Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare
The chanting of this mantra is the most recommended means for spiritual progress in this age of Kali, as it cleanses the mind and enables one to transcend the temporary designations of race, religion, and nationality and to understand one's true identity as an eternal spiritual being.
In other words, simply by chanting Hare Krsna one can directly experience self-realization
and lead a blissful life. See Kali-yuga, Mantra.
Hawking, Stephen—Famous British physicist (*1942) who believes the riddle of the origin of the universe can be solved by mathematics. Hawking is a positivist. See Logical Positivism, Positivism.
Henotheism—This term comes from the Greek hens, one, plus thes, God. Henotheism is a form of polytheism. It postulates that there are many gods, one of which rules the others, as Indra rules the demigods. The ruling god, however, is neither absolute nor eternal. He is just for the time being more powerful than the other gods. Max Muller mistakenly thought the Vedic religion was henotheistic: the Vedas present many gods, and when any one of them is worshiped, that god or goddess becomes the highest deity of the Vedas. See Atheism, Demigods, Polytheism, Theism.
Hinduism—This term is derived from the name of a river in present-day Pakistan, the Sindhu, Sind or Indus. Beginning around 1000 AD, invading armies from the Middle East called the place beyond the Sindhu river Hindustan and the people who lived there the Hindus. (Due to the invaders' language, the s was changed to h.) In the centuries that followed, the term Hindu became acceptable even to the Indians themselves as a general designation for their different religious traditions. But since the word Hindu is not found in the Vedic scriptures upon which these traditions are based, it is quite inappropriate. The proper term is Vedic Dharma. See Dharma.
Humanism—Humanism grew into a distinct ideological movement during the Renaissance as a reaction against feudalism and medieval theology. It proclaims freedom of the rational individual, opposes religious asceticism, and promotes man's rights to pleasure and the satisfaction of earthly desires and requirements. It is dedicated to fostering the ethical and creative development of the individual without reference to God or other concepts of the supernatural. In the nineteenth century, humanism took the shape of a secular religion; a prominent humanist of that time was Karl Marx. Today, the term is commonly used to mean a set of entirely non-religious beliefs and values. See Marxism, Relativism.
Hume, David—Along with Locke and Berkeley, Hume (1711-1776) is classified as one of the three principle British empiricist philosophers. He taught that knowledge is comprised of sense data; there is no a priori knowledge; existence is identical to our own ideas; there is no objective connection between cause and effect, and there is no mind, self, or spiritual substance apart from a bundle of sense impressions and ideas in our heads. See Empiricism.
Hypothetico-deduction—A method of reasoning widely used in the Western world for a very long time. An example from history is found in De Stella Martis by Kepler, who was puzzled by the problem of the shape of the orbit of Mars. Unable to figure it out by empirical observation, Kepler decided to simply suppose that the orbit was elliptical. Following this hypothesis, he worked out positions for the planet that corresponded well with its observed positions. Thus his hypothesis was not formed on the basis of previous observations, as it would have been had Kepler followed the empirical method. Rather, it was devised by speculation. The observations were then deductively brought into line with that speculation. See Abduction, Deduction, Induction.
Idea—The Greek term ida means form or pattern. An idea is anything that is contained in consciousness as an item of thought or awareness. It is usually taken to mean a mental image of something. It may also mean the essence of a thing; a general notion; an imagination; a belief, opinion or doctrine, or an ideal.
Idealism—Theoretically, the opposite of materialism. But like materialism, idealism is a very broad category of philosophy containing many shades of theory. It is sometimes called mentalism or immaterialism. Idealists believe the universe is the embodiment of a mind. All reality is mental, and matter does not exist. The external world is not physical. Famous idealist philosophers are Berkeley, Hegel, Kant, and Plato. See Materialism, Mind/body problem.
Ideology—From the Greek ida and lgos, ideology in classical times meant the science of ideas. Nowadays it means the system of ideas that constitutes a dogma: the ideology of fascism, for instance. See Idea.
Ignorance—See Modes of nature (Tamo-guna).
Impersonaism—See Brahmajyoti, Buddhism, Mayavadi philosophy, Personalism, Voidism.
Induction—A form of reason that guesses the nature of a cause from the perception of an effect. See Abduction, àroha/ Avaroha, Deduction, Empiricism, Logic, Phenomenalism.
Infinite—regress From the Latin regressus ad infinitum (similar in meaning to the Sanskrit anavasthä), infinite regress is the fallacy that occurs when someone argues that a material thing is the ultimate cause. Any material cause must depend upon a remoter material cause. That cause must depend upon an even more remote material cause, and so on ad infinitum (into infinity). Thus arguments for material causation never reach a logical end. See Fallacy, Logic.
Intellect, intelligence—The power of discrimination, in Sanskrit called buddhi, in Greek dinoia. Intelligence is as natural to the jiva as taste is to water or smell is to earth: As there is no separate existence of the earth and its aroma or of water and its taste, there cannot be any separate existence of intelligence and consciousness. (Kapiladeva, SB 3.27.18) Buddhi manifests within each living entity as the ability to distinguish between forms in the field of perception, and as the sense of direction. The mind (manaù) imputes emotional values to form and direction (painful, pleasurable, etc.). The false ego (ahankara) lays claim to the field of perception (this is mine etc.). Intelligence, being originally spiritual, can rise above the influence of mind and false ego by buddhi-yoga, as explained in Bhagavad-gita. Narada Muni tells Maharaja Yudhisthira in SB 7.14.38: O King Yudhisthira, the Supersoul in every body gives intelligence to the individual soul according to his capacity for understanding. Therefore the Supersoul is the chief within the body. The Supersoul is manifested to the individual soul according to the individual's comparative development of knowledge, austerity, penance and so on. Since buddhi is awarded to all living entities by the Supersoul according to their knowledge and austerity, when a living entity surrenders completely to Krsna, he is awarded pure intelligence. Surrendering completely to Krsna entails surrendering to the spiritual master by renouncing the emotional values of the mind and the claims of the false ego. When original intelligence is covered by ignorance, it is called tamasa-buddhi. This is the beginning of the material existence of the soul. In Bg. 10.10 Lord Krsna says that buddhi-yoga, the respiritualization of the intelligence, is accomplished by préti-pürvakam, the method of loving devotion. See Consciousness, False ego, Mind, Modes of nature, Soul, Subtle body, Supersoul.
Ipse dixit (Lat.) - He himself has said it. A kind of proof, after the answer that disciples of Pythagoras, an ancient Greek sage, used to give whenever an opponent called the certitude of the sage's doctrine into question. This proof is rejected by modern philosophers. See Sabda.
ISKCON—Acronym for the International Society for Krsna Consciousness, the branch of Caitanya Mahaprabhu's sankirtana mission established by Srila Prabhupada in New York in 1966. ISKCON is a worldwide nonsectarian movement dedicated to propagating the message of the Vedas for the benefit of mankind. Over the years ISKCON has steadily grown in popularity and influence, and today it is widely recognized by theologians, scholars and laymen as a genuine and important spiritual movement. The hundreds of ISKCON centers throughout the world enable full-time members to live in close association, following the principles of Vedic life, and also provide a place where interested visitors can learn about the philosophy and culture of Krsna consciousness and participate in its various functions. The basis of the movement is the Hare Krsna maha-mantraHare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. The devotees experience divine ecstasy in singing these holy names of God to the accompaniment of musical instruments. The ISKCON devotees, as a prerequisite for the serious pursuit of spiritual life, abstain from meat-eating, illicit sex, intoxication, and gambling. The Krsna conscious life style is based on the principles of simple living and high thinking. The devotees rise very early, about 3:30 a.m., and spend the morning hours in meditation and study. During the day, some devotees go out to public places to distribute the Society's books and its official journal, Back to Godhead magazine. In addition to book distribution, devotees engage in a variety of activities, including teaching, artistic pursuits, farming and business. See Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Hare Krsna Maha-mantra, Krsna.
Isvara /skr./—One of the five tattvas, or Vedic ontological truths: the supreme controller of all living and nonliving energy. In Bg. 18.61-62, Lord Krsna tells Arjuna: Isvaraù sarva-bhutanäà hrd-dese 'rjuna tisthati bhramayan sarva-bhutani yantrarudhani mayaya tam eva saranam gaccha sarva-bhavena bharata tat-prasadat param santià sthanaà prapsyasi sasvatam. The Supreme Lord (Isvara) is situated in everyone's heart, O Arjuna, and is directing the wanderings of all living entities, who are seated as on a machine, made of the material energy. O scion of Bharata, surrender unto Him utterly. By His grace you will attain transcendental peace and the supreme and eternal abode. And Cc., Ädi-Lila 5.142 states: ekale Isvara Krsna, ara saba bhrtya yare yaiche nacaya, se taiche kare nrtya. Lord Krsna alone is the supreme controller, and all others are His servants. They dance as He makes them do so. The Isvara has full control over the jiva, prakriti, kala and karma. The jiva has the power to choose whether to surrender to the Isvara or not. If he does surrender, he is freed from bondage within prakriti, kala and karma. If he does not, he is bound by them in the cycle of birth and death (Samsara). See Avatara, Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Krsna, Modes of nature, Supersoul, Tattva
Jagad-rupa (Visva-rupa, Visva-rupa) /skr./—The universal form of Isvara, in which jiva, prakriti, kala and karma are revealed as energies of the Supreme. This form was shown by Lord Krsna to Arjuna in the Eleventh Chapter of the Bhagavad-gita. See Isvara, Krsna.
Jiva — One of the five tattvas, or Vedic ontological truths: the living entity, or individual soul. See Soul, Tattva.
Jnana /skr./—This Sanskrit term is related in both form and meaning to the English word know via the Greek word gnsis. In Vedic terminology, there is jnana and vijnana. Jnana refers to the knowledge of the self as not the body, whereas vijnana refers to knowledge of the self's relationship to the Supreme Self.
Jnana-kanda/skr./—The path of philosophical speculation. One of the three departments of Vedic knowledge, Jnana-kanda is taught by the Kumäras. See Apara-vidya, Karma-kanda, Upasana-kanda.
Jnanendriya /skr./—The five knowledge-acquiring senses: the ears, the skin, the eyes, the tongue and the nostrils.
Kala /skr./— One of the five tattvas, or Vedic ontological truths: eternal time. See Tattva, Time.
Kali-yuga— Literally this Sanskrit term means “the age (yuga) of quarrel (kali)”. It is the last of four recurring epochs of universal time. In this age, as Bhagavatam 12.2.1confirms, human assets diminish almost to nil. “In the Kali-yuga the following things will diminish: religion, truthfulness, cleanliness, tolerance, mercy, duration of life, physical strength, and memory.” Kali-yuga-began 5000 years ago and will last for another 427 000 years. The most recommended process of spiritual upliftment in this age is sankirtana, the congregational glorification of the Lord through chanting His holy name. See Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Hare Krsna Maha-mantra, ISKCON, Sankirtana, Time.
Kama /skr./—Desire, especially material desire and sexual desire; lust, as opposed to prema. See Prema.
Kant, Immanuel—German rationalist philosopher, born in Königsberg (now Kaliningrad) in 1724. He laid down what are known as the regulative principles of modern science, such as the law of the conservation of matter and the principle of causality. Kant gave the world the theory that the universe was formed out of a cloud of dust. He died in 1804. See Idealism, Rationalism.
Karma /skr./— One of the five tattvas, or Vedic ontological truths: the activity or work which the embodied living entity performs with the karmendriya, as well as the resultant reaction. The soul receives the due reaction to work by taking his next birth in a subhuman species, or the human species, or a superhuman species. Or the soul may be liberated from birth and death altogether. All this depends upon whether the karma performed within this lifetime is ignorant, passionate, good or transcendental. Karma dedicated in sacrifice as directed by Vedic injunctions raises the quality of a human being's work. Sacrifice culminates in activity dedicated only to Lord Krsna's service. Such transcendental karma is called naiñkarma. See Liberation, Life after death, Reincarnation, Samsara, Supersoul, Tattva.
Karma-kanda—The path of fruitive work. One of the three departments of Vedic knowledge, karma-kanda is taught by Daksa. See Apara-vidya, Jnana-kanda, Upasana-kanda.
Karma-mimamsa—A doctrine of fruitive work taught by sage Jaimini. One of the six systems of Vedic philosophy. See Six systems.
Karmendriya—The five working senses or organs of action: the mouth (with the double function of speaking and eating), the hands, the legs, the genitalia and the rectum.
Kathenotheism—From the Greek kath'en, one by one, plus theos, a god. A kathenotheist worships one god after another among a pantheon of gods, at intervals throughout the year. These gods are supposed to represent different facets of the absolute. See Atheism, Theism.
Kirtana— A related Sanskrit word is kirti (fame). Hence, kirtana means to glorify, and sankirtana means to glorify congregationally, the fame of the Supreme Lord. Sankirtana is the yuga-dharma, or the main occupation and attribute of the present age (Kali-yuga). See Bhakti, Hare Krsna Maha-mantra, Caitanya Mahaprabhu,Sankirtana.
Krishna - Literally, the all-attractive Lord; the main Sanskrit name of the original Supreme Personality of Godhead. Sri Krsna is the source of all incarnations, and no one is equal to Him or greater than Him. The Vedas glorify His partial incarnations (which include the demigods), His impersonal Brahman effulgence, His almighty Narayana feature with four hands, and at last His superexcellent pastimes as the most sublime youth who herds millions of cows in the forest of Vrndavana and dances with millions of cowherd girls (gopis). There is nothing to compare with this, the two-armed form of the Lord, blackish like a rain cloud, with reddish lotus eyes and a world-enchanting smile. In the material world the owner of the body is called the soul, and the body is called a material designation. In the spiritual Vaikuntha world, however, there is no such distinction. The owner of the body is not different from the body, for both are pure spirit. The divine body of Lord Krsna in Vaikuntha is the first and the cynosure of all spiritual forms. He is eternal, and His appearance within the material world as an Avatara is perpetual. Krsna is personally Bhagavan, the possessor of six opulences in unlimited fullness: wealth, strength, beauty, knowledge, fame and renunciation. Semi-personally and impersonally, Krsna is represented by the Supersoul and the brahmajyoti Besides all-attractive, the name Krsna also means the whole of existence and He who stops birth and death. Krsna has unlimited other names like Govinda, Gopala, Mukunda and Hari. These holy names are nondifferent from Him and indicate the forms He displays in His various pleasure pastimes. See Avatara, Bhagavan, Bhakti, Brahmajyoti, Brahman, Deity, ISKCON, Isvara, Lila, Radharani, Supersoul, Spiritual world, Visnu.
Kumaras—four learned ascetic sons of Lord Brahma appearing eternally as children, who became great devotees of the Lord and great authorities on devotional service; Four sons of Brahma, named Sanat, Sanandana, Sanaka and Sanatana, who are incarnations of the jnana-sakti (power of knowledge) of Lord Visnu. They live for the entire duration of universal time, but appear as children of only 5 years. One of the four Vaisnava Sampradayas is called the Kumara Sampradaya. They are its original founders.
Laukika—Ordinary, mundane or commonplace; nonscriptural, as opposed to sastramulaka. See Sastramulaka.
Liberation—In Sanskrit, mokña or mukti. Vedic culture guides mankind through four stages of value development: dharma (religiosity), artha (economic development), kama (sense gratification) and mokña (liberation of the soul from birth and death). Beyond even mokña, taught Caitanya Mahaprabhu, is the fifth and unsurpassed stage, love of God (prema). See Ecstasy, Life after death, Karma, Nirvana, Prema.
Lila /skr./—The endlessly expanding spiritual activities and pastimes of Krsna. See Krsna.
Life after death—All the great religions of mankind teach that this present life is meant to cultivate a life in the hereafter. Among the various sects of Judaeo-Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism, two paths of cultivation can be discerned: 1) the path of elevation, and 2) the path of salvation. The elevationists aim for an elevated state of material happiness in the afterlife. Their hope is to join their family and friends in the celestial realm known as heaven in the Bible and svarga in the Vedas. The Bhagavad-gita warns that although life in heaven is much longer than on earth, it is not eternal: When they have thus enjoyed vast heavenly sense pleasure and the results of their pious activities are exhausted, they return to this mortal planet again. Thus those who seek sense enjoyment by adhering to the principles of elevation achieve only repeated birth and death. (Bg. 9.21) Salvationists, on the other hand, aim to be saved from their mortality. They often speak of salvation as the surrender of the mortal self to the eternal light that is Nirvana, Brahman or God. Some speak of salvation as a state of unbroken prayerful contemplation upon a personal deity. These are descriptions of impersonal Brahman and Paramatma realization. Impersonal Brahman, as explained in the brahmajyoti entry, is the formless effulgence of Krsna's personal form. Mystics and yogés who are able to negate their minds' attachments to the world of material form may lose themselves within this formless light. Paramatma is Krsna's form as the Supersoul, who dwells within the hearts of all living beings as the overseer and permitter (see Bg. 13.23). Paramatma realization is semi-personal, because the salvationist's relationship to the Supersoul in the heart remains passive. More than wanting to serve God, the salvationist wants to be saved from death and rebirth. Thus impersonal Brahman and semi-personal Paramatma realization are incomplete. The complete realization is the realization of the Personality of Godhead through bhakti-yoga. The most fortunate salvationists can attain only the santa-rasa (passive relationship in awe and reverence). The four higher rasas are reserved for Krsna's pure devotees. By flooding the senses with eternal nectar from the original, pure source of pleasure God Himself love of Krsna completely liberates the devotee from attraction to temporary material sense pleasures. Thus the consciousness of the soul completely takes shelter of its original position as an eternal associate of the Lord in the spiritual world. As long as he or she still possesses a physical body, the fully Krsna conscious devotee is called jivan-mukta, liberated while still within the material world. When he or she gives up the physical body, the fully Krsna conscious devotee remains forever with Krsna in the spiritual world. This is videha-mukti, liberation that transcends the material world altogether. See Bhakti-yoga, Brahmajyoti, Brahman, Karma, Liberation, Nirvana, Prema, Rasa, Reincarnation, Samsara, Supersoul.
Logic —This is one of the four main branches of philosophy (besides epistemology, ethics and metaphysics). Logic is the study of reasoning systematic thought expressed in language (speech) that accounts for what we know in this world. Through logic the experience of the world is made intelligible. See Epistemology, Ethics, Fallacy, Lgos, Metaphysics, Nyaya, Philosophy.
Logical positivism—A twentieth century development of positivism and empiricism. Its basis is the theory of verification, which claims the only valid truth is that which is proven by the modern scientific method. Language should emulate mathematical logic in order to express this truth. Metaphysical statements and values are meaningless. One of its founders is the British philosopher A.J. Ayer. See Empiricism, Positivism.
Logos (Gr.)—Reason, argument, word, speech, or knowledge of something. In Greek philosophy, lgos has three aspects of meaning: structured thought, structured speech and the structured appearance of the world. See Logic.
Madhva—Also known as Anandatirtha and Purnaprajna, Madhva re-established the Brahma Sampradaya in the thirteenth century AD. He is considered to be the Avatara of Vayu and Hanumän. A prolific writer and undefeatable in debate, he established Dvaita Vedanta in direct opposition to Sankaracarya's Advaita Vedanta. Srila Jiva Gosvami acknowledged Madhva's works as an inspiration for his own writings on acintya-bheda-abheda philosophy. See Advaita, Dvaita, Four Vaisnava Sampradayas and Siddhantas, Sankaracariya, Vedanta.
Maha-bhagavata—The Sanskrit term bhagavata refers to a devotee of Bhagavan Sri Krsna. A maha-bhagavata is a great or first-class Vaisnava devotee.
Mahabharata—An important and famous itihasa (historical) scripture belonging to the smriti section of the Vedic scriptures. The Mahabharata narrates the history of the great Kuru dynasty of kñatriyas (warriors) that was annihilated by the Kurukñetra war. Contained within the Mahabharata is the Bhagavad-gita. See Bhagavad-gita.
Maha-bhutas /skr./—The five material elements: earth, water, fire, air and ether. See Elements.
Mahat /skr./—Literally, very great, this word is often used in the Vedic scriptures to signify the immeasurability of material nature.
Mahat-tattva /skr./—The first stage of creation, in which the ingredients of subsequent creations are displayed within material nature. The ingredients appear when the three modes of material nature are activated by the glance of Maha-Visnu. See Modes of nature, Prakriti, Visnu.
Maha-Visnu— See Supersoul, Visnu.
Mantra. Maha-mantra—Combining the Sanskrit terms manas (mind) and trayate (to deliver), a mantra is a spiritual sound that frees consciousness from illusion. The Vedic scriptures are composed of many thousands of mantras. Maha-mantra means great mantra; it is a synonym for the Hare Krsna mantra: Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare
Marxism—The rationalist political and economic doctrine of the nineteenth century German social revolutionary Karl Marx (1818-1883). Marx is considered to be a materialist, but his materialism is special. He believed the material (especially economic) facts of a society determine its mental aspects: social laws, religion, culture and other patterns of thought. In short, Marx believed the material determines the mental. But materialism is actually the belief that the material is the mental. Marx was much influenced by the idealist Hegel, whose philosophy of history predicted the progressive development of human consciousness towards knowledge of the absolute. Marx translated that notion of progress into economic terms. But the historical end he foresaw for humanity perpetual communisms idealistic, not materialistic. According to materialism, nothing is perpetual except primordial matter. Phenomena are ever-changing. Hence, no social system can be permanent. Theorist of economy that he was, Marx was not able to provide for his wife and children. He and his family were supported by his fellow revolutionary Friedrich Engels, a rich man's son. See Humanism, Idealism, Materialism, Rationalism.
Materialism—A very broad category of philosophy containing many shades of theory. The main points are that everything in existence is only matter in motion. According to some materialists, mind exists, but only as an effect of matter in motion. Other materialists say mind has no existence at all. All agree there is no God, there is no first cause or prime mover and that life is not eternal. All phenomena change, eventually pass out of existence, returning back again to a primordial eternal material ground in an eternal retransformation of matter. Marxists claim to be materialists, but the doctrine taught by Karl Marx has idealistic tendencies. See Idealism, Marxism, Mind/body problem, Scepticism.
Maya—illusion; an energy of Krñna's which deludes the living entity into forgetfulness of the Supreme Lord. That which is not, unreality, deception, forgetfulness, material illusion. Under illusion a man thinks he can be happy in this temporary material world. The nature of the material world is that the more a man tries to exploit the material situation, the more he is bound by Maya's complexities; This is a Sanskrit term of many meanings. It may mean energy; yoga-Maya is the spiritual energy sustaining the transcendental manifestation of the spiritual Vaikuntha world, while the reflection, maha-Maya, is the energy of the material world. The Lord's twofold Maya bewilders the jiva, hence Maya also means bewilderment or illusion. Transcendental bewilderment is in love, by which the devotee sees God as his master, friend, dependent or amorous beloved. The material bewilderment of the living entity begins with his attraction to the glare of the brahmajyoti. That attraction leads to his entanglement in the modes of material nature. According to Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, Maya also means that which can be measured. This is the feature of Lord Krsna's prakriti that captures the minds of scientific materialists. The Vaisnava and Mayavada explanations of Maya are not the same. See Mayavada philosophy, Modes of nature, Spiritual world.
Mayavada philosophy— Mayavada in Sanskrit means doctrine of illusion. In India, the philosophies of the Buddha and of Sankaracarya are called Mayavada. The second grew out of the first. The fundamental principles accepted by both are the following: 1) name, form, individuality, thoughts, desires and words arise from Maya or illusion, not God; 2) Maya cannot be rationally explained, since the very idea that anything needs explaining is itself Maya; 3) the individual self or soul is not eternal, because upon liberation it ceases to exist; 4) like Maya, the state of liberation is beyond all explanation. The main difference between the two is that Sankaracarya's Mayavada asserts that beyond Maya is an eternal impersonal monistic reality, Brahman, the nature of which is the self. Buddhism, however, aims at extinction (nirodha) as the final goal. Of the two, Sankaracarya's Mayavada is more dangerous, as it apparently derives its authority from the Vedas. Much word-jugglery is employed to defend the Vedic origins of Sankaracarya's Mayavada. But ultimately Mayavadis dispense with Vedic authority by concluding that the Supreme cannot be known through Sabda, that the name of Krsna is a material vibration, that the form of Krsna is illusion, and so on. The Sankarites agree with the Buddhists that nama-rupa (name and form) must always be Maya. Therefore Vaisnavas reject both kinds of Mayavada as atheism. Buddhists generally do not deny that they are atheists, whereas the Sankarite Mayavadis claim to be theists. But actually they are monists and pantheists. Their claim to theism is refuted by their belief that the Supreme Self is overcome by Maya and becomes the bound soul. Sankaracarya's Mayavada is similar in significant ways to the Western doctrine of solipsism. Like solipsism, it arrives at a philosophical dead end. The questions that remain unanswered are: If my consciousness is the only reality, why can't I change the universe at will, simply by thought? And if my own self is the only reality, why am I dependent for my life, learning and happiness upon a world full of living entities that refuse to acknowledge this reality? See Brahmajyoti, Brahman, Buddhism, Four Vaisnava Sampradayas and Siddhantas, Monism, Pantheism, Sankaracarya, Scepticism, Solipsism, Six systems.
Mechanomorphism—In Contemporary Scientific Mythology (1957), Stephen Toulmin wrote: We are inclined to suppose that myths must necessarily be anthropomorphic, and that personification is the unique road to myth. But this assumption is baseless; the myths of the twentieth century, as we shall see, are not so much anthropomorphic as mechanomorphic. In mechanomorphism, God or the total universe is conceived in terms of mythical machines. See Anthropomorphism
Metaphysics—This is one of the four main branches of philosophy (besides epistemology, ethics and logic). Metaphysics inquires into reality beyond sense perception. It typically holds sense perception to be illusory. The term metaphysics comes from the Greek phrase, t met t physik, the things past the physics. See Epistemology, Ethics, Logic, Philosophy.
Method—In philosophy, method is what must be done to attain knowledge. In Vedic language, method corresponds to vidhi (injunction), which together with artha-vada (explanation) and mantra (transcendental chants) forms the very substance of knowledge itself.
Mind—Some prominent theories of the mind are the following: 1) it is an eternal transmigrating soul; 2) it is a product of the action of the soul upon the body; 3) it is a non-material substance totally unlike the body; 4) it is a succession of mental events; 5) it is a by-product of the body; 6) it is a function of the form of the body, as vision is to the form of the eye; 7) it is function of the organism as a whole; 8) it is the behavior patterns of the body; 9) it is identical to the brain; 10) it is matter in motion. None of these theories exactly correspond to the Vedic version, and some are completely materialistic. The Vedas state that the seed of the mind is the desire of the soul. If desire is pure, the mind that develops out of it is spiritual. If desire is impure, then what develops is subtle matter in the mode of goodness. The development of the mind of the living entity is governed by the Supersoul (Aniruddha). According to Lord Krsna, the functions of the mind are saìkalpa-vikalpa (acceptance and rejection; see SB 11.2.38). See Consciousness, False ego, Intellect, Mind/body problem, Modes of nature, Soul, Subtle body, Supersoul.
Mind/body problem—Throughout history, philosophers of the East and West have offered speculations about the exact nature of the relationship between the mind and the body. They can be grouped under the following headings: 1) Dualism: mind/body as two substances, mental and material. 2) Logical Behaviorism: mind as the logic of the body's behavior. 3) Idealism: mind/body as one substance, mind. 4) Materialism: mind/body as one substance, matter. 5) Functionalism: mind as the functions of input, processing, output, analogous to the functions of a computer. 6) Double aspect theory: mind/body as aspects of a substance that is neither mental nor physical. That substance is supposed by different philosophers to be the totality of everything, or a neutral monistic stuff, or the fundamental concept person, of which mind and matter are aspects. 7) Phenomenology: mind/body as a problem of experience, rather than a problem of theory. The mind/body duality is really a problem of the materialistic soul's intention toward matter, from which all dualities arise. The mind and body of the bound soul are material. The mind and body of the liberated soul are spiritual. See Consciousness, Dualism, False ego, Gross body, Idealism, Intellect, Logic, Materialism, Mind, Modes of nature, Phenomenology, Soul, Subtle body, Supersoul.
Modes of nature—There are three gunas, or modes of material nature: goodness (sattva-guna), passion (rajo-guna) and ignorance (tamo-guna). They make possible our mental, emotional and physical experiences of the universe. Without the influence of the modes, thought, value judgement and action are impossible for the conditioned soul. The English word mode, as used by Srila Prabhupada in his translations of Vedic literature, best conveys the sense of the Sanskrit term guna (material quality). Mode comes from the Latin modus, and it has a special application in European philosophy. Modus means measure. It is used to distinguish between two aspects of material nature: that which is immeasurable (called natura naturans, the creative nature) and that which seems measurable (called natura naturata, the created nature). Creative nature is a single divine substance that manifests, through modes, the created nature, the material world of physical and mental variety. Being immeasurable (in other words, without modes), creative nature cannot be humanly perceived. Created nature (with modes) seems measurable, hence we do perceive it. Modus also means a manner of activity. When creative nature acts, it assumes characteristic modes of behavior: creation, maintainance and destruction. Bhagavad-gita (14.3-5) presents a similar twofold description of material nature as mahat yoni, the source of birth, and as guna prakriti, that which acts wonderfully through modes. Material nature as the source of birth is also termed mahad-brahman, the great or immeasurable Brahman. Mahad-brahman is nature as the divine creative substance, which is the material cause of everything. Material cause is a term common to both European philosophy (as causa materialis) and Vedanta philosophy (as upadana-karana). It means the source of ingredients that make up creation. We get an example of a material cause from the Sanskrit word yoni, which literally means womb. The mother's womb provides the ingredients for the formation of the embryo. Similarly, the immeasurable creative nature provides the ingredients for the formation of the material world in which we live, the seemingly measurable created nature. The clarity of this example forces a question: what about the father, who must impregnate the womb first before it can act as the material cause? This question is answered by Krsna, the speaker of the Bhagavad-gita, in verse 14.4: ahaà bija-pradah pita, I am the seed-giving father. In Vedanta philosophy, this factor of causation is termed nimitta-mätram (the remote cause). It is important to note that by presenting creation as the result of the union of two causes (the material and the remote), the Bhagavad-gita rejects the philosophy of Deus sive natura, the identity of God and nature. In short, though creative nature may be accepted as the direct cause of creation, it is not the self-sufficient cause of creation. The seed with which Krsna impregnates the womb of creative nature is comprised of sarva-bhutanam, all living entities (Bg. 14.3). And Bg. 14.5 explains that when Krsna puts the souls into the womb of material nature, their consciousness is conditioned by three modes, or tri-guna. The modes are three measures of interaction between conscious spirit and unconscious matter. The modes may be compared to the three primary colors, yellow, red and blue, and consciousness may be compared to clear light. The conditioning (nibhadnanti: they do condition) of consciousness upon its entry into the womb of material nature is comparable to the coloration of light upon its passing through a prism. The color yellow symbolizes sattva-guna, the mode of goodness. This mode is pure, illuminating, and sinless. Goodness conditions the soul with the sense of happiness and knowledge. The color red symbolizes the rajo-guna, the mode of passion, full of longings and desires. By the influence of passion the soul engages in works of material accomplishment. The color blue symbolizes tamo-guna, the mode of ignorance, which binds the soul to madness, indolence and sleep. As the three primary colors combine to produce a vast spectrum of hues, so the three modes combine to produce the vast spectrum of states of conditioned consciousness that encompasses all living entities within the universe. See Krsna, Threefold miseries.
Mokña /skr./—See Liberation
Monism—From the Greek monos, “single”. It is generally taken to mean the doctrine of oneness argued by Mayavadi philosophers, that reality is without variety and matter is an illusion. Vaisnavas explain monism differently: all things in the universe occur out of the activity of one fundamental essence or substance, the Supreme Lord. See Atheism, Mayavada philosophy, Theism.
Monotheism—The doctrine that there is only one God (from Gr. monos, only, alone, plus theos, God). See Atheism, Theism.
Muhammed—See Avatara (Saktyavesa)
Mysticism—From the Greek mystes, one initiated into the mysteries or secrets of higher knowledge. Andrew Weeks, a scholar of this subject, points out the difficulty of coming to clear terms with what mysticism actually is: The concept of mysticism is controversial and ambiguous in its core. There is no agreement among scholars on the question of who ought to be classified as a mystic. (from German Mysticism, 1993, p. 3) St. John of the Cross, a Christian mystic, wrote:
“In order to arrive at that which thou knowest not, Thou must go by a way that thou knowest not. In order to arrive at that which thou possesseth not, Thou must go by a way that thou possesseth not.” As Srila Prabhupada once said, Mystical means misty. See Brahmajyoti, Ecstasy, Sphoöaväda.
Narada Muni— A great sage among the demigods, the favorite son of Brahma, and one of the foremost authorities on Visnu-bhakti. In Kali-santaraëa Upaniñad, Brahma taught Narada the Hare Krsna maha-mantra. Narada is famous throughout the universe for his ecstatic chanting of the holy name of Krsna. He taught the Narada-païcaratra and the Narada-bhakti-sutra and gives a number of illuminating discourses in Srimad-Bhagavatamand other Puranas. Among Narada's prominent disciples are Prahlada, Dhruva, Citraketu (Vrtrasura), the Haryasvas, and Vyasadeva, who compiled all the Vedic scriptures. See Bhakti-yoga, Brahma, Demigods, Prahlada, Vyasa.
Natural theology—A theological movement of the late seventeenth to early nineteenth century that minimized traditional revealed theology. Natural theology was the attempt of rationalist philosophers to acquire and demonstrate God consciousness by innate or natural reason. See Rationalism.
New Philosophy—A European intellectual movement of the seventeenth century that directly led to the rise of modern science, New Philosophy owed much to Descartes' analytical, mechanistic view of the material world. The essential premise of New Philosophy is that knowledge is how something is made. The arcana naturae (secrets of nature) are to be exposed by experimenta lucifera (experiments of light), and the results of such experiments are to be validated by the reproduction of nature's effects with the help of mechanical apparatus.
Newman, John Henry (1801-1890—an English cardinal who became one of the most outstanding European religious thinkers and essayists of the 19th century. He spent his life defending Christian truth against various forms of so-called rationalism.
Newton, Sir Isaac—English scientist who lived from 1643 to 1727. He was a follower of the Unitarian wing of Christianity, and tried to keep his science firmly grounded upon his faith. Newton opposed Descartes, whose philosophy he perceived as leading science away from the Bible.
Nirvana— Literally, of, or like, a candle extinguised. A Sanskrit term for deliverance from material identity or extinction of the false ego, Nirvana is often identified with Buddhism. However, it is to be found throughout the Vedic literatures, e.g. in Bhagavad-gita 2.72, 5.24-26, and 6.15. See Buddhism, False ego, Liberation, Modes of nature.
Niscaya—Correct apprehension. One of the five functions of buddhi. See Buddhi.
Noesis /gr./ - Factual, intellectual knowledge, as opposed to mere oppinion (doxa). See Epistemology.
Numinous—Opposite of phenomenal. The root of the word numinous is the Latin numen, nod: a nod as a sign of command. From this comes the sense of a divine will or divine command. Thus the term numinous indicates the felt presence of the divine spirit, the transcendental, the everlasting. See Phenomenalism.
Nyaya—logic. One of the six systems of Vedic philosophy; taught by sage Gautama. See Logic, Six systems.
Objective reality—The external reality to which our language and perceptions refer.
Occult, Occult quality—References to the occult were made by Aristotle in his Ethics. He considered occult any effect of nature for which a cause could not be demonstrated. Hence, the occult qualities of nature (for instance, magnetism) could not be subject to scientific inquiry. The New Philosophy viewed all natural phenomena to be occult, since it considered science before the seventeenth century hopelessly inadequate for discovering causation. Though nature's qualities were occult, it was believed that scientific inquiry of a more aggressive kind than Aristotle had conceived of could unlock her secrets. See New Philosophy.
Omkara /skr./—The transcendental sound oà, which symbolically denotes the Personality of Godhead as the root of the creation, maintenance and destruction of the cosmic manifestation.
Ontology—The study of being. It asks, what does to be, or to exist, really mean? Utilized in this study are terms and categories such as being/becoming, actuality/potentiality, real/apparent, change, time, existence/nonexistence, essence, necessity, being-as-being, self-dependency, self-sufficiency, ultimate and ground. See Epistemology, Philosophy.
Panentheism—The belief that all things are imbued with God's presence, because all things are in God (Gr. pan, all; en, in, and theos, God). See Atheism, Theism.
Pantheism - The belief that God is identical to the universe. See Atheism, Theism.
Panpsychism—The belief that God pervades all things as a psychic force. Hence, God's consciousness is behind the movement of matter; our individual consciousness is an aspect of God's. This falls short of true theism. See Atheism, Theism.
Paradox—From the Greek par, contrary to, and dxa, opinion, paradox originally meant anything that goes against common sense but yet still may be true. Nowadays it more commonly means an insoluble dilemma, or a contradiction.
Paramatma /skr./— See Supersoul.
Parampara /skr./— Literally, one after the other. It refers to the disciplic succession of spiritual masters and their disciples who became spiritual masters, beginning with Krsna and Brah-mä, His disciple at the dawn of creation. See Four Vaisnava Sampradayas and Siddhantas.
Para-vidya /skr./—Vedic knowledge of transcendence concerning the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His service, as distinct from apara-vidya. The upasana-kanda scriptures make up the para-vidya of the Vedas. See Apara-vidya, Avidya, Upasana-kanda.
Parokña—Knowledge though another's senses. The second of the five stages of Vedic knowledge.
Passion—See Modes of nature (Rajo-guna).
Personalism—The philosophical position that accepts personality as ultimate. Early Buddhist philosophers, themselves impersonalists, used the term puruña-vädé (Skr. personalist) in reference to the Vedic worshipers of the Mahapuruña (the Supreme Person). In Western philosophy, personalism is often used as a synonym for relativism. Srila Prabhupada used the term in the absolute sense, referring it only to the worship of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, not to the worship of demigods, humans or human ideals. He equated impersonalism with atheism. See Atheism, Impersonalism, Relativism, Theism.
Phenomenalism—A doctrine of sense perception and reality that is associated with the British philosopher John Stuart Mill (1806-1873). For Mill, all knowledge is derived from sense perception. Things are real only when they are perceived. Therefore the material world cannot be said to exist apart from perception. Phenomenalism is closely associated with empiricism and induction. It is not to be confused with phenomenology. See Empiricism, Induction, Numinous.
Phenomenology—A modern development in European rationalism. Its most famous exponents are Franz Brentano (1838-1917), Edmund Husserl (1859-1938), Martin Heidegger (1899-1976), Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980) and Maurice Merleau-Ponty (1908-1961). Phenomenology investigates consciousness through experience. Some of its theories are reminiscent of Vedic knowledge, for example, the theory of the triumvirate of consciousness: the knower, the act of knowing, and the thing known. In Vedic terminology, these are jnata, jnana, and jneya. See Mind/body problem, Rationalism.
Philosophy—From the Greek phlos, lover, friend, and sophs, wise, learned. A philosopher is someone who loves wisdom and erudition (sopha). Therefore he devotes himself to knowledge, that it may bloom into wisdom without hindrance. In Bg. 7.17, Lord Krsna declares that when a sage devotes himself to knowing Him, he becomes very dear to the Lord.
Plato—Disciple of Socrates, teacher of Aristotle, and a prolific writer (427-347 BC). Almost all that is known about Socrates comes from Plato's works. A Platonic doctrine that resembles the Bhagavad-gita philosophy of the three modes of material nature is the care of the soul. The soul is said to work within the body through three faculties: appetite, spiritedness and reason. The appetitive faculty is lowest of the three. It consists of the drives for physical enjoyment (of food and sex) and for the avoidance of pain. Thums, or spiritedness, is the middle faculty. It is excitable, aggressive and pugnacious, and seeks adventure and honor. Highest is the faculty of reason. It expresses itself as inquiry and as worthy activity. Reason seeks beauty, truth and goodness. The appetites can be compared to a herd of sheep, spiritedness to a sheepdog, and reason to a shepherd. Care of the soul means to keep the three faculties in harmony, so that they don't meddle in one another's purpose. The purpose of appetite is to see that the body is properly cared for. Spiritedness's purpose is to fight fear and complacency. The purpose of reason is impose order upon the other two, to maintain harmony, and to care for the soul. Reason gets its sense of correct order and harmony by contemplation of the Good, described as a realm of eternal, unchanging thought-forms. When reason harmonizes human life with the Good, the soul is freed from human ignorance and suffering. British philosopher A.N. Whitehead (1861-1947) said the whole history of Western philosophy consists of nothing more than footnotes to Plato. See Idealism.
Plotinus - Plotinus lived in Egypt and Rome some two centuries after Christ (204-270 AD) and is the founder of the Neoplatonist school of Greek philosophy. As a young man in Alexandria, he learned philosophy under Ammonius Saccas. There is speculation that Ammonius Saccus was originally from India. Plotinus tried to visit India but failed. Back in the Mediterranean world, he taught that the soul is eternal and transmigrates from body to body (reincarnation). The gradation of species of living entities emanates from the impersonal spiritual essence, God. The philosophical soul gradually ascends to that essence and merges into it. Neoplatonism had a strong influence on the early Christian church. See Mysticism, Plato.
Polytheism—The belief in the existence of many gods. See Atheism, Theism.
Popper, Karl—Austrian-born philosopher of science (1902-1994) who taught at the University of London. His most influential books are Logic of Scientific Discovery, The Open Society and Its Enemies and Conjectures and Refutations. Popper was a staunch opponent of logical positivism, which he challenged with his own theory of falsifiability.
Positivism—A rationalist doctrine founded by French philosopher Auguste Compte (1798-1857), who argued that human thought unavoidably evolves from theological thinking at the lowest stage, through metaphysics (depersonalized philosophy) at the middle stage, to positivism at the highest stage. Positivism consists of the elements of modern science: mathematics, logic, observation, experimentation and control. According to Compte, the highest form of religion is worship of reason and universal humanity, devoid of any reference to God. See Empiricism, Logical positivism, Metaphysics, Rationalism.
Prabhupada—See Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.
Pradhana—the total material energy in its unmanifest state; The unmanifest (avyakta) material nature (Gr. chos). See Modes of nature, Tan-mätras.
Pragmatism—A rationalist doctrine founded by American philosopher C.S. Peirce (1839-1914) that attempts to halt all metaphysical speculation about the truth by arguing that practical human activity is the only real test of truth. See Rationalism.
Prahlada Maharaja—A great devotee of the Lord in His Narasiàha (man-lion) feature, Prahlada is one of the foremost authorities on bhakti-yoga. Many important verses in Srimad-Bhagavatam are spoken by him.
Prakriti /skr./—One of the five tattvas, or Vedic ontological truths: (material or spiritual) nature. See Daivi-prakriti, Modes of nature, Tattva.
Pramana /skr./—Evidence, proof. The term refers to sources of knowledge that are held to be valid. In the Brahma-Madhva-Gaudiya Sampradaya, the school of Vedic knowledge that ISKCON represents, there are three pramanas. They are pratyakña (direct sense perception), Anumana (reason), and Sabda (authoritative testimony). Of these three pramanas, Sabda is imperative, while pratyaksa and Anumana are supportive. See Anumana, Pratyakña, Sabda.
Prasadam /skr./— Literally, mercy. When sattvic foods (milk, grains, fruits, vegetables, sugar and legumes) prepared by a devotee are offered to the Deity of Krsna as prescribed in the system of bhakti-yoga, the offering is transformed into Prasadam, the mercy of the Lord. Prasadam is delicious, nourishing but most important, transcendental. Ordinary food, unoffered to Krsna, breeds karmic reactions for every mouthful that is eaten, because so many living entities gave up their lives during the preparation. But food offered to Krsna is freed of sin and invokes an attraction to Krsna in whomever accepts it. See Bhakti-yoga.
Pratyakña /skr./—Direct sense perception. 1) The first of the five stages of Vedic knowledge, considered as a subordinate, not self-evident, proof of knowledge. 2) The first of the three Vaisnava pramanas. See Anumana, Empiricism, Experientia, Pramana, Sabda.
Prema—Love, especially love of Krsna. Cc., Adi-Lila 4.165 distinguishes prema from kama (lust). Prema is evinced by service to Krsna's senses, whereas kama is evinced by service to the senses of the material body. See Krsna.
Problem of evil—Professor A.L. Herman, philosopher at the University of Wisconsin, compiled a list of twenty-one attempts to solve the problem of evil put forward by Western philosophers and theologians during the Christian era. He admits that the list is not exhaustive, only representative. Of those he listed, Herman says none will suffice to dissolve the problem, and of unlisted attempts, he comments, I think this result must be inevitable for all such similar attempts undertaken within the context of the traditional Western approach to the problem of evil. The problem stems from three assumptions, only two of which seem to be compatible: 1) God is omnipotent; 2) God is omnibenevolent; 3) Evil exists. For evil to exist, so the argument goes, God must either be less than all-powerful or less than all-good. The Vedic answer is given by Srila Prabhupada in On the Way to Krsna, Chapter Three. Accordingly, the human perception of good and evil is due to the influence of the three modes of material nature upon consciousness. These three modes originate in Krsna, who is omnipotent and omnibenevolent. Though the modes and their effects are within Krsna, He is not in them. Hence, the human perception of good in this world does not correspond to the goodness of Krsna, the source of the world. For example, electricity is perceived in the home in terms of heat (in an electric stove) and cold (in a refrigerator). But at the power plant, electricity is not known in terms of the duality of heat and cold. In the home, whether electrical heat and cold are good or bad depends upon ever-changing circumstances and individual opinions. At the power plant, such changing circumstances and differing opinions do not occur. The power plant is not responsible for the reasons that cause people to say electrical heat is good, electrical cold is bad, or vice-versa. Similarly, individuals of different natures, circumstances and opinions define good and evil differently. Death is evil if it happens to me. Death is good if it happens to my enemy. Or death may be good for me if it delivers me from lingering agony, and not good if it does the same for my enemy. Although life and death, or good and evil, are within Krsna, His own divine goodness is not within them. The good and evil we ascribe to life and death or anything else are creations of the material mind. See Modes of nature.
Purana—Literally, very old. Within the smriti section of the Vedic scriptures, there are eighteen Maha-Puranas (great books of ancient wisdom). Of these, the greatest is the Bhagavata Purana, also called Srimad-Bhagavatam. See Srimad-Bhagavatam.
Puruña—Person, enjoyer or soul. This term may be applied to both the jiva and the Supreme Personality of Godhead. See Personalism.
Quantum mechanical theory—A theory of subatomic physics begun by Max Planck (1858-1947) and developed by Niels Bohr (1885-1962), Ernst Schrödinger (1887-1961), Werner Heisenberg (1901-1976), Paul Dirac (1902-1984) and others. In order to form an elementary understanding of quantum theory, it is useful to compare it to Newtonian and Einsteinian physics. In Newton's classical view, science defines the structure and movement of matter in a very fixed and real sense. Matter is composed of particles that move according to the same forces that govern the movement of billiard balls. Einstein argued that while the structure of matter ought to be considered definite, its movement is not. If particles are like billiard balls in motion, then the billiard table is also in motion. The billiard table is comprised of space and time, which are not two separate entitieshence the term spacetime in relativity theory. Even stranger, the movement of the billiard balls creates the spacetime billiard table that is the basis of the balls' movement. Einstein introduced into science the idea that the position of an observer contributes to the reality of the motion observed. When two observers, each in a different position, observe the same event differently, there is no way to determine whether one observation is right and the other wrong. If Newton's theory is compared to a tidy piece of realistic art, then Einstein's theory is more like a puzzle in which the objects look real enough, though their spatial relationships change before our eyes as in the case of a small circle drawn within a cube frame. As we gaze at it, the perspective shifts. The circle appears to be near the back left lower corner of the cube, then near the front left lower corner. But quantum theory can be compared only to an abstract yet suggestive art forma painting that at first glance appears to depict no subject at all, only chaos. Then, during closer scrutiny, forms are seen to emerge out of and merge back into the chaosa face, a hand, a bird or something else. Quantum theory gives no fixed and real definition of either the structure or the motion of matter. It predicts only where a quantum object may be found, or what state of motion it will be in. The where and what state of motion of that object are logically incompatible. Therefore quantum theory speaks of quantum objects as wave-particles. Ordinarily, the motion of objects through space is described in terms of four dimensions: length, breadth, height and duration of time. In quantum theory, as the number of quantum objects to be measured increases, more dimensions of space are added to account for them. But these dimensions are creations of the mind. This brings us to the problem of the interplay between mind and matter in quantum mechanics. There is no settled opinion as to where subjectivity ends and objectivity begins. Consequently, it has been remarked of quantum physics that there is no 'there' there. See Relativity theory.
Quine, W.V.—American philosopher of great repute in the twentieth century (1908-1995). His argument that in scientific theory, any statement can be held true, come what may, if we make drastic enough adjustments elsewhere in the system, is often quoted.
Radharani—The feminine counterpart of Lord Krsna. She directs the ananda potency (hladini-sakti) for the transcendental pleasure of the Lord. See Daivi-prakriti, Krsna, Sac-cid-ananda.
Rama—Literally, the supreme pleasure; a prominent Sanskrit name of the Personality of Godhead. See Krsna.
Rajo-guna—the material mode of passion. See Modes of nature.
Rasa—Eternal spiritual relationship with Krsna. There are five rasas: santa (passive awe and reverence); däsya (servitude); sakhya (friendship); vätsalya (parenthood); and mädhurya (conjugal love). According to his specific kind of rasa, the soul displays a spiritual form as Krsna's eternal servant, friend, parent or conjugal lover. Just as our present material body permits us to engage in karma (physical activities), so the spiritual rasa-body permits us to engage in Lila (Krsna's endlessly expanding spiritual activities) See Ecstasy, Lila.
Rationalism—The approach to philosophy that holds reason (Lat. ratio) to be the primary cause of knowledge. See Anumana, Descartes, Existentialism, Hawking, Kant, Marxism, Natural theology, Phenomenology, Positivism, Pragmatism.
Reality—That which is. Reality is opposite to appearance. The Sanskrit equivalent is tattva. See Tattva.
Reflective, creative, and critical thinking—Three modes of Anumana. Reflective thinking begins in wonder about something perceived. Out of wonder, questions arise. Creative thinking begins as a mental effort to answer the questions of reflection. Sometimes these questions are answered spontaneously, by intuition, insight or inspiraton, rather than by deliberate effort. At its highest stage of development, creative thinking is Sastramulaka philosophical speculation. Critical thinking examines to what extent an idea or argument fits the evidence and meets the requirements of logic. See Logic.
Reflexivity—The condition in which something is directed (reflected) back to itself. Hence, reflexive criticism is self-defeating. It comes from the Latin reflectare, to bend back.
Reincarnation—From the Latin re (again) and incarnare (make into flesh). Reincarnation it is the return of the soul to a physical body after death, also called transmigration. See Karma, Life after death, Samsara.
Relativism—Also known as the homo mensura (man is the measure) theory. Relativists reject any truth that is absolute. They argue that because each person sees things differently, truth exists individually for each person. It is therefore false to say one person is right and another is wrong. Relativism in Western philosophy is traced back to Protagoras, a contemporary of Socrates. See Absolute, Humanism.
Relativity theory - Albert Einstein compared his theory of relativity to a building with two stories. The ground floor is the special theory of relativity. It applies to all physical phenomena except gravitation. The general theory of relativity is the upper floor; it explains the law of gravitation. Einstein's theory combines two principles. One is that motion is relative. For example, when a table-tennis ball rolls across the surface of the playing table, its motion is relative to the table. In the classical physics of Newton, the rolling ball is considered to be the object in motion, and the table is considered to be at rest. However, if at first the ball was at rest on the tabletop, and we were to move the table, then both the table and the ball would move in relation to one another. Relativity theory argues that since all matter in the universe is in motion, the ball rolling upon the surface of a moving table is the actual model for motion in the universe. If space and time are taken to be the table, they contribute motion to the movement of all things. The old model of a ball rolling upon a tabletop at rest is therefore an illusion. The second principle of relativity is that the speed of light is always the same, even when light is emitted from a source that moves at a great speed towards, or away from, the observer. One of the significant differences between relativity theory and classical theory is seen in the calculation of the mass of a physical object. Mass is defined as the amount of matter in a physical object which is measured as that object's resistance to acceleration. Mass is different from, but proportional to, weight. Classical theory attributes a steady mass to any given physical object. Relativity theory predicts that the mass of a thing will vary according to its motion. Relativity is considered an advancement over, but not a replacement of, classical physics, which is still useful. From a logical point of view, the two theories are incompatible. The third important physical theory, quantum mechanics, is likewise incompatible with classical theory, and also differs significantly from relativity theory. See Quantum mechanical theory.
Revelation—Literally, it means an unveiling or a revealing. In Latin, velare means to cover or to veil (from velum, curtain or veil). Thus revelare means to pull back the veil. As light and darkness are separated by a veil, so too are good and evil. To step behind that veil into darkness is evil. By revelation, the veil is pulled back, removing by light the darkness of evil. See Problem of evil.
Russel, Bertrand—Very influential British philosopher of the twentieth century (1872-1970) who was especially interested in mathematical logic and the basic problems of philosophy (appearance and reality, general principles, the value and limits of philosophy, and so on). In a letter of 20 September 1966, Russel suggested to his editor at Oxford University Press that a book of his then in production ought to have a cover illustration of a monkey tumbling over a precipice and exclaiming 'Oh dear, I wish I hadn't read Einstein.' On no account should the monkey look like me.
Sabda /skr./—Sound, especially the Vedic sound, which is the self-evident proof of knowledge. As an authoritative testimony, the third of the three Vaisnava pramanas. See Anumana, Pramana, Pratyakña.
Sac-cid-ananda /skr./—The three qualities of Krsna and His spiritual world: eternality, knowledge and bliss. See Brahmajyoti, Krsna, Radharani.
Sad-Darsana /skr./—Six views or systems of Vedic philosophy. See Six systems.
Sadhu /skr./—A saintly person, a devotee of the Lord; one of the three authorities for a Vaisnava. See Guru, Sastra.
Salvation—See Life after death.
Sampradaya /skr./—School of thought. See Four Vaisnava Sampradayas and Siddhantas.
Samsara /skr./—the cycle of birth and death. The baddha-jiva (conditioned soul), captivated by the modes of material nature, is moved as if on a wheel through 8,400,000 kinds of births, lifetime after lifetime. At the lower range of the cycle are births within aquatic, vegetative and animal forms. At the middle range are births within human forms. At the upper range are births within superhuman forms, such as the demigods. But as high as the soul may reach, even up to the position of Brahma, there is no freedom from Samsara. Impelled by prakriti, kala and karma, the jiva will surely be forced into another womb, until the day that soul surrenders to the origin of the force that turns the wheel of Samsarathe Isvara, Krsna. The materialistic theory of evolution put forward by Anaximander and Darwin imperfectly recapitulates the Vedic description of the cycle of birth and death. It is true that we were once microbes, fish, reptiles, mammals and apes. But who are we? We are spirit souls. Materialists have no knowledge of the soul. They are unable to explain how and why dead matter assumes the forms of the gradient species. The Vedas explain that the gradient species mark the evolution and devolution of the soul's material desires. See Evolution, Karma, Life after death, Reincarnation.
Samsaya /skr./—Doubt. One of the five functions of buddhi. See Buddhi.
Sankaracarya— The incarnation of Siva who appeared about 1400 years ago in South India to propagate Advaita Vedanta. He taught that Brahman is impersonal, there is no individuality apart from Brahman (all souls are really one soul), the cosmic manifestation does not emanate from Brahman, and the cosmic manifestation is without reality, like a hallucination. Though his philosophy is a distortion of the Vedic teachings, his mission was very important. He turned the Indian people away from Buddhism, back to the Vedas. See Advaita, Brahmajyoti, Brahman, Buddhism, Four Vaisnava Sampradayas and Siddhantas, Mayavada philosophy, Six systems, Vedanta.
Sankhya /skr./—An analysis of matter and spirit taught by sage NirIsvara Kapila. One of the six systems of Vedic philosophy. See Analysis, Six systems.
Sankirtana /skr./—The congregational glorification of the Lord through chanting His holy name. The most recommended process of spiritual upliftment in the present age (Kali-yuga). See Caitanya Maha-prabhu, ISKCON, Kirtana.
Sannyasa, Sannyasi /skr./—The order of renunciation accepted by males in the Vedic culture. The fourth spiritual devision of life, according to the social system of four äçramas, Sannyasa is meant for ending material existence. It is usually accepted at age fifty, after a man has fulfilled his household responsibilities. The original Vedic Sannyasis carried the tridaëòa, three bamboo rods wrapped together around a fourth, symbolizing that the body, minds and words are dedicated to the Supreme. The fourth stood for the soul. Mayavadi Sannyasis in the line of Sankaracarya carry only one daëòa; the Buddhists carry none. All bona fide Sannyasis wear orange or saffron robes and keep their heads shaven; all must follow standard principles: no meat-eating, sexual activity, gambling or intoxication, and all are meant to travel and preach as their only duty in life. See Brahmacari, Grihasta, Vanaprastha.
Sastra /skr./—The Vedic scriptures; one of the three authorities for a Vaisnava. In his purport to Cc., Adi-Lila 17.157, Srila Prabhupada writes: The word Sastra is derived from the dhätu, or verbal root, ças. Sas-dhätu pertains to controlling or ruling. A government's ruling through force or weapons is called sastra. Thus whenever there is ruling, either by weapons or by injunctions, the sas-dhatu is the basic principle. Between sastra (ruling through weapons) and Sastra (ruling through the injunctions of the scriptures), the better is Sastra. Our Vedic scriptures are not ordinary law books of human common sense; they are the statements of factually liberated persons unaffected by the imperfectness of the senses. Sastra must be correct always, not sometimes correct and sometimes incorrect. In the Vedic scriptures, the cow is described as a mother. Therefore she is a mother for all time; it is not, as some rascals say, that in the Vedic age she was a mother but she is not in this age. If Sastra is an authority, the cow is a mother always; she was a mother in the Vedic age, and she is a mother in this age also. If one acts according to the injunctions of Sastra, he is freed from the reactions of sinful activity. For example, the propensities for eating flesh, drinking wine and enjoying sex life are all natural to the conditioned soul. The path of such enjoyment is called pravrtti-marga. The Sastra says, pravrttir esaà bhutanam nivrttis tu maha-phala: one should not be carried away by the propensities of defective conditioned life; one should be guided by the principles of the Sastras. A child's propensity is to play all day long, but it is the injunction of the Sastras that the parents should take care to educate him. The Sastras are there just to guide the activities of human society. But because people do not refer to the instructions of Sastras, which are free from defects and imperfections, they are therefore misguided by so-called educated teachers and leaders who are full of the deficiencies of conditioned life.
See Guru, Sadhu, Veda.
Sastra-cakñuù /skr./— Cakñuña means eyes; Sastra-cakñuña means seeing through the eyes of scripture, as opposed to gross sense perception or mental speculation.
Sastramulaka /skr./—Mula means root; Sastramulaka means rooted in scripture, as opposed to laukika. See Laukika.
Sattva-guna /skr./—the mode of goodness,. See Modes of Nature.
Scepticism—A state of doubting that may range from a tentative doubt in the process of reaching certainty to complete, total disbelief in everything. Usually, scepticism refers to a philosophy of disbelief, of which there are many. In India, the philosophies of Carvaka Muni, the Buddhists and the Jains are founded upon disbelief in the Vedas. Mayavadis claim to accept the Vedas, but they sceptically reject the Vedic philosophy of Vaiñëavism. As Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan, a famous Mayavadi scholar, wrote about the teachings of acarya Ramanuja: Ramanuja's beautiful stories of the other world, which he narrates with the confidence of one who had personally assisted at the origination of the world, carry no conviction. These are the words of a man confined to a miniscule spectrum of awareness by his pratyakña and Anumana. Yet he thinks he can pass judgement on that which is beyond his senses and mind. There are many forms of Western scepticism as well, which go back to the ancient Greeks. See Buddhism, Materialism, Mayavadi philosophy, Six systems, Voidism.
Semantics—From the Greek sma, sign. The study of how words (or linguistic symbols) make sense, and how words apply to the things they refer to. Semantics attempts to define the conditions under which a statement can be analyzed as true or false.
Semi-deism—A variant of deism in which God, the first cause, is supposed to sometimes intervene in the regular course of nature through geological catastrophes and the sudden rise of species. Noted semi-deists were nineteenth century British natural theologicans William Buckland (1784-1856), Adam Sedgewick (1785-1873), W.D. Conybeare (1787-1857), and Charles Lyell (1797-1875). See Atheism, Deism, Theism.
Sentimentalism—A mental attitude permeated by or predisposed to emotions produced of sense perception. For example, the sceptic David Hume rejected the standard moral obligations of his time, and argued that morality could only be valid when based upon what he termed “sympathy” and “sentiment”.
Siva – A qualitative expansion (guna-avatara) of Lord Visnu. Siva is the director of tamo-guna, just as Brahma is the director of the rajo-guna. See Avatara, Demigods, Modes of Nature, Sankaracarya.
Six systems—There are six systems of philosophy associated with the Vedic scriptures. These together are known as the ñaò-Darsana. The ñaò-Darsana (six views) are: 1) Nyaya (logic), 2) Vaiçeñika (atomic theory), 3) Sankhya (analysis of matter and spirit), 4) Yoga (the discipline of self-realization), 5) Karma-mimamsa (the science of fruitive work) and 6) Vedanta (the science of God realization). The ñaò-Darsana are termed ästika philosophies (from asti, or it is so), because they all acknowledge the Veda as authoritative, as opposed to the nästika philosophies of the Cärvakas, Buddhists and Jains (nasti, it is not so), who reject the Vedas. Beginning with Nyaya, each of the ñaò-Darsana in their turn presents a more developed and comprehensive explanation of the aspects of Vedic knowledge. Nyaya sets up the rules of philosophical debate and identifies the basic subjects under discussion: the physical world, the soul, God and liberation. Vaiçeñika engages the method of Nyaya or logic in a deeper analysis of the predicament of material existence by showing that the visible material forms to which we are all so attached ultimately break down into invisible atoms. Sankhya develops this analytical process further to help the soul become aloof to matter. Through Yoga, the soul awakens its innate spiritual vision to see itself beyond the body. Karma-mimamsa directs the soul to the goals of Vedic ritualism. Vedanta ultimately focuses on the supreme spiritual goal taught in the Upanisads. As can be seen in Srimad-Bhagavatam, the basis of these Darsanas was an original, unified spiritual science (bhagavad-tattva-vijnana) taught in very olden times by the twelve Mahajanas: Brahma, Narada, Siva, Kumaras, Kapila, Manu, Prahlada, Janaka, Bhisma, Bali, Sukadeva and Yamaraja. But due to the influence of Maya, scholars who followed the teachings of later sages like Gautama, Kanada, Kapila, Pataïjali and Jaimini, became divided and contentious. The Vedic philosophy was misunderstood, and opposing schools came into being to serve sectarian ends. For instance, Karma-mimamsa (which by 500 BC had become the foremost philosophy of the Brahmana class) was misused by bloodthirsty priests to justify their mass slaughter of animals in Vedic sacrifices. But the unexpected rise of a novel non-Vedic religion challenged the power of Karma-mimamsa. This new religion was Buddhism. By 250 BC, the influence of Karma-mimamsa and other Darsanas had weakened considerably. When King Asoka instituted the Buddha's doctrine as the state philosophy of his empire, many Brahmanas abandoned Vedic scholarship to learn and teach nästika concepts of ahimsa (nonviolence) and çünyatä (voidism). Buddhism in its turn was eclipsed by the teachings of the Vedantist Sankaracarya, who revived the Vedic culture all over India in the seventh century after Christ. But Sankaracarya's special formulation of Vedanta was itself influenced by Buddhism and is not truly representative of the original Vedanta-Darsana. After Sankaracarya, Vedanta was refined by the schools of great teachers (acaryas) like Rämänuja and Madhva. Having shed the baggage of Sankaracarya's crypto-Buddhism, Vedanta philosophers brought Vedic studies back to their original form as seen in Srimad-Bhagavatam. See Advaita, Analysis, Dvaita, Four Vaisnava Sampradayas and Siddhantas, Mayavada philosophy, Veda, Vedanta.
Smriti /skr./—Memory.One of the five functions of buddhi. See Buddhi.
Smriti-sastra /skr./—A section of the Vedic scriptures including the Mahabharata and the Puranas. See Sastra, Sruti-sastra.
Socrates—Socrates (470-399 BC) is the most influential philosopher in the recorded history of the Western world. Plato was his disciple and Aristotle his grand-disciple. Socrates lived in Athens and taught a doctrine of the soul that is similar in many ways to the Vedic conception. In a 1966 Bhagavad-gita lecture, Srila Prabhupada said Socrates was a mukta-puruña (a liberated soul). According to his biographer Plato, Socrates was unjustly convicted for anti-state activities by the Athenean authorities, who ordered him drink poison. He did so cheerfully, and died preaching we are not these bodies to his followers.
Solipsism—From the Latin solus, (alone), and ipse, (self). A Western doctrine stating that the self is all that exists or can be known. There are two forms of solipsism: epistemological and metaphysical. The first form holds that since there is nothing to be known beyond the content of one's own consciousness, one's own consciousness is the underlying justification for, and cause of, the existence and nonexistence of knowledge of anything. The second form holds that there is no reality other than one's own self. All things are creations of one's consciousness at the moment one is conscious of them. In other words, there is no existence apart from my own awareness. Like Mayavada philosophy, solipsism arrives at a philosophical dead end. The questions that remain unanswered are: If my consciousness is the only reality, why can't I change the universe at will, simply by thought? And if only I myself truly exist, why am I dependent for my life, learning and happiness upon a world full of living entities that refuse to acknowledge this truth? See Mayavada philosophy.
Soul—Known in Sanskrit as jiva, jiva-atma or atma, the soul is the eternal individual self, who is a tiny particle of Lord Krsna's spiritual potency located in the heart of the material body. The symptom of the soul is consciousness, and the power of the soul is taöastha-sakti, the power of choice. Thus the soul is responsible for his liberation or bondage, though he has no power to either liberate himself or enjoy matter. The result of his choice, whether auspicious or inauspicious, is arranged by the Supersoul. As the air is always different from the smells it carries, so the soul is always different from the material designations it assumes due to the influence of the modes of nature. How a yogé perceives the soul's direct relationship with the Supreme Soul is described in SB 11.14.45: He sees the individual souls united with the Supreme Soul, just as one sees the sun's rays completely united with the sun. The sun is jyotiñi, the source of light. Similarly, Krsna, the Supreme Soul, is the source of the light of consciousness of all living entities. Sunlight is composed of photons, which are tiny units of light. Similarly, each individual soul (jiva-atma) is a tiny unit of consciousness. See Consciousness, Ecstasy, Modes of nature, Supersoul.
Sphoöavada /skr./—Also known as Sabda-tattva, sphoöavada is the philosophy of a metaphysical school of Sanskrit grammarians that goes back to one Sphotayaëa, whose followers include Bhartrhari and Jayanta Bhatta. The famous karma-mimamsa philosopher Mandana Misra also accepted the sphotavada doctrine, though other teachers of mimamsa opposed it. Accordingly, there is a continuum of vibration (ekam eva yad amnatam), which is partless (akhanda) and unbroken (akrama), which becomes manifest in sounds (dhvani) or syllables (varna). The sounds and syllables are not important. They are used as aids to achieve meditation upon the underlying continuum, where the indivisible unit of meaning (sphota) is realized through Sabda-purva-yoga. When the sphota is realized, liberation is achieved in the monistic absolute. Clearly, this is a form of Mayavada philosophy. Interestingly, Sankaracarya rejected the sphotavada of the grammarians. Yet he accepted the basis of the sphotavada philosophy, which is the Sabda-yoga of Patanjali. In his Prabodhasudhakara 13.144, Sankaracarya wrote, When one's essential nature is contemplated upon for a moment or half a moment, then the subtle sound called anahata is heard in the right ear. In 148 he explained further: If the mind is completely absorbed for a long time in that Light comprised within the subtle sound, it is surely not slated for the bondage of worldly existence again. Many modern forms of mysticism and meditation can be traced to this doctrine: Transcendental Meditation, Radha-Soami Satsang, Kirpal Singh Satsang, and so on. The subtle sound sought in these systems is the egoistic sound at the root of material existence. Beyond this, however, is the pure name (suddha-nama), which cannot be extracted from the akasa by Sabda-yoga, but which must be received from the pure devotee of Krsna. What these Sabda-yogis really seek is explained by Krsna Himself: I am the sound in ether. ... Of vibrations I am the syllable oà. ... Of letters I am the letter A, and among compound words I am the dual compound. ... Of poetry I am the Gäyatré mantra. (Bg. 7.8, 10.33, 10.35) Hence, they seek Krsna but He is to be known only by pure devotion (bhakti-yoga). See Mayavada philosophy.
Spiritual world—Referred to as Vaikuntha, Goloka, the supreme abode (param-dhäma), and the spiritual sky (param-vyoma), it is the transcendental, eternal, three-quarters display of Lord Krsna's personal splendor. The names, form, qualities, activities and relationships of the spiritual world are ever-fresh and ever-free of the defects of birth, death, disease, and old age. Here the Lord displays His divine pastimes (Lila) which overflood the spiritual world with the sweetest nectar, the very life and soul of the liberated devotees who dwell there. As a tree on the bank of a river is reflected upside-down in the water, so the material world is a reflection of the spiritual world. What is highest in the spiritual world is lowest here. The highest Lila is Krsna's conjugal affairs with the gopés. That is reflected here as sex life, the most entangling activity for the embodied soul.
See Krsna.
Srimad-Bhagavatam—Also known as the Bhagavata Purana, this is a work of eighteen thousand verses compiled by sage Vyasa as his natural commentary on the Vedanta-sutra. It takes up where the Bhagavad-gita leaves off. In Bg. 4.9, Lord Krsna says that by knowing His transcendental appearance and activities in this world, one becomes free of the cycle of repeated birth and death. Srimad-Bhagavatamrecounts with great relish the details of the Lord's appearance and activities, beginning with His puruña incarnations and their Lila of cosmic manifestation, and culminating with Krsna's own appearance in Vrndavana 5000 years ago, and His most sweet rasa-Lila with the His cowherd girlfriends, the gopés headed by Radharani. See Bhagavad-gita, Caitanya-caritamrita, Vedanta-sutra.
Sruti-sastra /skr./—Literally, hearing. The core Vedic literature including the four Vedas (Åg, Sama, Yajur and Atharva) and the Upanisads. See Sastra, Smriti-sastra.
Sthula-sarira /skr./—See Gross body.
Subjective—In philosophy, that which is derived from the mind and not external sources, or that which exists in the mind without any external reference or possible confirmation. It also refers to the particular way an individual understands an experience. Even though others experienced the same thing, because of his subjective attitude and outlook, he forms an opinion of what happened that is different from theirs. See Objective reality, Reality.
Substance—From the Latin substare, be under, be firm, support. Substance (vastu in Sanskrit) is the underlying support of all phenomena. It is the eternal Brahman, the cause, of which the world is the effect. The Vedic view of the substance of the world is different from the Christian view, called creatio ex nihilo. According to this theory put forward by Augustine (175-242), God created the world out of nothing. Augustine's reasoning was based on the Biblical statement that in the beginning there was only God. Creatio ex nihilo was an attempt to break out of the paradoxical question, If in the beginning there was only God, and God is eternal, why is the world ever-changing? It was assumed that a doctrine of the material world's direct emanation from God's own substance could be true only if the material world had the same nature as God. But since it does not, and since God was alone in the beginning, He must have created the world from nothing. There is a paradox upon which creatio ex nihilo stumbles: ex nihilo, nihil fit, From nothing, nothing comes. According to the Vedic view, the substance of creation is tattva, true, just as God is true. The tattva of matter (prakriti) is eternal, but it assumes temporary forms as God wills. Like a shadow, the material creation resembles the original form of the substance. But it does not have the potency of the original. Yet it has no other source than the substance. Its source is not nothing. See Absolute, Brahman.
Subtle body—Called liìga-sarira in Sanskrit, and also known as the astral body, the subtle body is the result of the conditioning of consciousness by the three modes of material nature. It includes the false ego, intellect and mind and is composed of cetana, consciousness under material influence. As long as the living entity remains within the cycle of Samsara, the subtle body is retained. But the steady practice of bhakti-yoga dissolves the subtle body, thus freeing consciousness from matter. See Consciousness, Ecstasy, False ego, Gross body, Intellect, Mind, Modes of nature, Samsara, Soul, Supersoul.
Suddha-sattva /skr./—The transcendental mode of purified goodness. See Krsna, Modes of nature.
Supersoul— Known as Paramatma in Sanskrit, He is the third of Lord Krsna's three puruña incarnations: 1) Maha-Visnu, from whom unlimited universes emanate; 2) Garbhodakaçäyé Visnu, who enters each universe and is the source of birth of Brahma; and 3) Kñérodakaçäyé Visnu, who expands into the heart of every living entity and every atom within the universe. The Supersoul dwells within the hearts of all living beings next to the soul. His spiritual form is four-armed and the size of a thumb. From him come the living entity's knowledge, rememberance and forgetfulness. The Supersoul is the witness and permitter of karma. What He witnesses is punished or rewarded by prakriti (see Bg. 13.23). See Brahman, Intellect, Isvara, Karma, Life after death, Krsna, Modes of nature, Soul.
Svabhava /skr./—Nature, especially one's individual nature; intuitive psychology; instinct.
Svapna /skr./—Sleep, dreaming. One of the five functions of buddhi. See Buddhi.
Svarga /skr./—Heaven. See Demigods, Life after death, Tri-loka.
Syllogism—From the Greek syllogisms, a reckoning all together, it is a logical structure of reasonable thought (step-by-step argument). The Sanskrit equivalent is pararthanumana, reasoning for others' understanding. See Logic.
Tamo-guna /skr./—The mode of ignorance. See Modes of nature.
Tan-matras /skr./—The five qualities of the maha-bhütas that subtly manifest in the mind as sound, touch, form, taste and smell. See Maha-bhütas, Modes of nature, Pradhana.
Tattva /skr./—truth, reality. According to Baladeva Vidyabhusana, Vedic knowledge categorizes reality into five tattvas, or ontological truths: Isvara (the Supreme Lord), jiva (the living entity), prakriti (nature), kala (eternal time) and karma (activity).
Technology—This term is derived from the Greek techne, handicraft, skill, and that term in turn is derived from takña (cutting through), the Sanskrit word for the work of a carpenter. Thus modern technology is glorified carpentry.
Teleology—From the Greek telos, purpose, goal and logos, knowledge of. The logic of teleology is that one can know the purpose of something by deducing it from its origin. See Deduction.
Theism—According to the Harper Collins Dictionary of Philosophy, p. 120, the philosophy of theism in most interpretations is, God is partly immanent in the universe and partly transcendent. In essence, this definition is the Vedic philosophy of the Supreme Person. As stated in Puruña-çukta (Åg-Veda 10.90.4): With three-fourths of Himself, the Puruña ascended; the other fourth was born here. From here on all sides He moved, toward the living and the non-living. Again and again in the Vedic literatures we find references to tripada-vibhuti and ekapada-vibhuti, the three-fourths of the Lord's splendor displayed as the spiritual world, and the one-fourth by which He pervades the material world. About the material manifestation, Lord Krsna says in Bg. 10.41: yad yad vibhutimat sattvaà Srimad urjitam eva va tat tad evavagaccha tvam mama tejo-'àsa-sambhavam. Know that all these opulent, beautiful and glorious creations are born from a part of My total splendor. Because they oppose theism, the theories of deism, monism, pantheism and dualism are actually atheism. Deism separates God completely from His material creation. Monism renders God partless. Pantheism confines Him to the material universe. And dualism divides creation against Him, placing part of it in the hands of a rival. Even major religious traditions like Christianity are influenced by deism and dualism. The English natural theologian Robert Boyle (1627-1691) expressed open contempt for theism as a doctrine of infidels. When he drew up his last will and testament, he bequeathed fifty pounds per annum for ever, or at least for a considerable number of years in order to institute a series of lectures for proving the Christian Religion, against notorious Infidels, viz. Atheists, Theists, Pagans, Jews, and Mahometans. Monotheism and panentheism are synonyms for theism. Monotheism means belief in one God. In the Vedic religion, there is only one God, though He empowers servants who act as demigods on His command. These demigods are worshiped as God only by foolish people. Panentheism teaches that all things are imbued with God's presence, because all things are in God. God is more than all there is. He is all-conscious and the supreme unifying factor. See Atheism.
Theogony—A poem written around 700 BC by the Greek shepherd Hesiod who was inspired by the angelic Muses, the daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne. The Theogony, along with the works of Homer, formed the scriptural basis of the historical Greek religion. There was a religious culture in Greece long before this historical period, but from the empirical point of view, it is largely shrouded in mystery.
Theos /gr./—God.
Threefold miseries—This is another feature of the influence of the three modes of material nature. All living entities within this material world are controlled by material nature (prakriti), who subjects them to threefold miseries: adhidaivika-kleça (sufferings caused by the demigods, such as droughts, earthquakes and storms), adhibhautika-kleça (sufferings caused by other living entities like insects or enemies), and adhyätmika-kleça (sufferings caused by one's own body and mind, such as mental and physical infirmities). Daiva-bhütätma-hetavaù: the conditioned souls, subjected to these three miseries by the control of the external energy, suffer various difficulties. This suffering is the impetus for seeking answers to the fundemental questions of life: Who am I? Why am I suffering? How can I get free of suffering? See Modes of nature, Prakriti.
Time—In his purport of SB 3.10.11, Srila Prabhupada writes as follows about time: The impersonal time factor is the background of the material manifestation as the instrument of the Supreme Lord. It is the ingredient of assistance offered to material nature. No one knows where time began and where it ends, and it is time only which can keep a record of the creation, maintenance and destruction of the material manifestation. This time factor is the material cause of creation and is therefore a self expansion of the Personality of Godhead. Time is considered the impersonal feature of the Lord. The time factor is also explained by modern men in various ways. Some accept it almost as it is explained in the Srimad-Bhagavatam. For example, in Hebrew literature time is accepted, in the same spirit, as a representation of God. It is stated therein: God, who at sundry times and in diverse manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets... Metaphysically, time is distinguished as absolute and real. Absolute time is continuous and is unaffected by the speed or slowness of material things. Time is astronomically and mathematically calculated in relation to the speed, change and life of a particular object. Factually, however, time has nothing to do with the relativities of things; rather, everything is shaped and calculated in terms of the facility offered by time. Time is the basic measurement of the activity of our senses, by which we calculate past, present and future; but in factual calculation, time has no beginning and no end. Canakya Panditasays that even a slight fraction of time cannot be purchased with millions of dollars, and therefore even a moment of time lost without profit must be calculated as the greatest loss in life. Time is not subject to any form of psychology, nor are the moments objective realities in themselves, but they are dependent on particular experiences.
Tri-loka—The Sanskrit term tri-loka is often found in Vedic scriptures. Tri-loka means three worlds. The universe is divided into three worlds, or realms of consciousness: bhür, bhuvaù and svaù (the gross region, the subtle region and the celestial region). In Svargaloka or the celestial heaven, superhuman beings called demigods (devatas) exist, enjoying a life that in human terms is almost unimaginable. In the subtle region exist ghosts and elemental beings. And in the gross or earthly realm exist human beings and other creatures with tissue-bodies, including the animals and plants. There is also a subterranean region where powerful demons reside. And there is a region known as naraka, hell. As explained in Bg. 3.27, the souls within these regions of material consciousness wrongly identify themselves as the doers of physical and mental activities that are actually carried out by three modes of material nature. This wrong identification is called ahankara, or false ego, the basis of our entanglement in material existence. See Demigods, Svarga.
Uddhava—In Krsna's Mathurä and Dvaraka Lila, Uddhava is Krsna's best friend. He visited the residents of Vrndavana to console them in their grief due to Krsna's absence. In the Eleventh Canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam, Krsna imparts most important transcendental knowledge to Uddhava.
Upanisads—The term upanisad literally means that which is learned by sitting close to the teacher. The texts of the Upanisads teach the philosophy of the Absolute Truth (Brahman) to those seeking liberation from birth and death, and the study of the Upanisads is known as Vedanta, the conclusion of the Veda. The contents of the Upanisads are extremely difficult to fathom; they are to be understood only under the close guidance of a spiritual master (guru). Because the Upanisads contain many apparently contradictory statements, the great sage Vyasa systematized the Upanisadic teachings in the Vedanta-sutra. His natural commentary on the Vedanta-sutra is the Srimad-Bhagavatam. See Srimad-Bhagavatam, Vedanta-sutra.
Upasana-kanda /skr./—The path of devotional service. One of the three departments of Vedic knowledge, upasana-kanda is taught by Narada Muni. See Bhakti, Jnana-kanda, Karma-kanda, Para-vidya.
Vaiseñika /skr./—An atomic theory taught by the sage Kanada. One of the six systems of Vedic philosophy. See Six systems.
Vaisnava /skr./—A devotee of the Supreme Lord, Visnu, or Krsna.
Vaikuntha /skr./— See Spiritual world.
Vastu /skr./— See Substance.
Veda, Vedas, Vedic knowledge.—The Sanskrit root of the word Veda is vid, knowledge. This root is widespread even in modern Western language: e.g. video (from the Latin word to see) and idea (Gr. ida). The term Vedic refers to the teachings of the Vedic literatures. From these literatures we learn that this universe, along with countless others, was produced from the breath of Maha-Visnu some 155,250,000,000,000 years ago. The Lord's divine breath simultaneously transmitted all the knowledge mankind requires to meet his material needs and revive his dormant God consciousness. This knowledge is called Veda. Caturmukha (four-faced) Brahma, the first created being within this universe, received Veda from Visnu. Brahma, acting as an obedient servant of the Supreme Lord, populated the planetary systems with all species of life. He spoke four Vedas, one from each of his mouths, to guide human beings in their spiritual and material progress. The Vedas are thus traced to the very beginning of the cosmos. Some of the most basic Vedic teachings are: 1) every living creature is an eternal soul covered by a material body; 2) as long as the souls are bewildered by Maya (the illusion of identifying the self with the body) they must reincarnate from body to body, life after life; 3) to accept a material body means to suffer the four-fold pangs of birth, old age, disease and death; 4) depending upon the quality of work (karma) in the human form, a soul may take its next birth in a subhuman species, or the human species, or a superhuman species, or it may be freed from birth and death altogether; 5) karma dedicated in sacrifice to Visnu as directed by Vedic injunctions elevates and liberates the soul.
Vedanta /skr./— One of the six systems of Vedic philosophy; taught by the great sage Vyasadeva. Vedanta (literally the end of all knowledge or the conclusion of the Veda) is the highest degree of Vedic education, traditionally reserved for the Sannyasis (renunciates). Vedanta is mastery of the texts known as the Upanisads. See Six systems, Vyasa.
Vedanta-sutra — This most important work of Nyaya-prasthäna (Vedic logic), which is also known as Brahma-sutra, Çäréraka, Vyasa-sutra, Bädaräyaëa-sutra, Uttara-mimamsa and Vedanta-Darsana, was composed by the great sage Vyasa 5000 years ago. Sutra means code. The Vedanta-sutra is a book of codes that present, in concise form, brahma-jnana, i.e. conclusive Vedic knowledge. These codes are very terse, and without a fuller explanation, their meaning is difficult to grasp. In India there are five main schools of Vedanta, each established by an acarya (founder) who explained the sutras in a bhäñya (commentary). The natural commentary on the Vedanta-sutra is the Srimad-Bhagavatam. See Advaita, Dvaita, Brahmajyoti, Brahman, Four Vaisnava Sampradayas and Siddhantas, Sankaracarya, Six systems, Srimad-Bhagavatam, Upanisads, Vedanta, Vyasa.
Vicara /skr./—Consideration, philosophical speculation, as opposed to mental speculation.
Vijnana /skr./—Transcendental knowledge of the self's relationship to the Supreme Self. See Jnana.
Viparyasa /skr./—Misapprehension. One of the five functions of bu-ddhi. See Buddhi.
Visnu—Literally, the all-pervading God; a prominent Sanskrit name of the Personality of Godhead. See Krsna, Supersoul, Vaisnava.
Visva-rupa /skr./—the universal form of The Lord. See Jagad-rupa.
Voidism—The mind has two functions, accepting and rejecting. Voidism is the result of total frustration, when the mind negates and rejects everything as just too troublesome. Voidism in Sanskrit is sunyavada, a doctrine associated with Buddhism. As the Bodhicaryavatara-panjika, a Buddhist scripture, puts it, nihasvabhavavata sunyatathe absence of the self-existence of all things, voidnessis the paramärtha (supreme goal) of Buddhism. In ancient Greece, Democritus and other atomists reduced reality down to atoms and the void. Modern physicists propose scenarios of the universe popping out of a primordial void. Srila Prabhupada writes: The Çaìkarites and Buddhists claim that the world beyond is void, but Bhagavad-gita does not disappoint us like this. The philosophy of voidness has simply created atheists. We are spiritual beings, and we want enjoyment, but as soon as our future is void, we will become inclined to enjoy this material life. In this way, the impersonalists discuss the philosophy of voidism while trying as much as possible to enjoy this material life. One may enjoy speculation in this way, but there is no spiritual benefit. (Beyond Birth and Death, Chap. Four) The ultimate paradox of voidism is that if everything is void, then there is nothing to philosophize about. Consequently, those professing voidism logically ought to behave as Cratylus did. See Buddhism, Cratylus, Impersonalism, Mayavada philosophy, Mind, Sankaracarya, Scepticism.
Vyasa—Vyasadeva, The son of Parasara Muni and Satyavaté-devé, Vyasa is the empowered (Saktyavesa-)Avatara of God who rendered the Vedic Sabda into written texts some 5000 years ago. He is also known as Veda Vyasa, Badarayana and Dvaipayana. See Avatara (Saktya-avesa), Srimad-Bhagavatam, Veda, Vedanta-sutra.
Wittgenstein, Ludwig—Austrian-born logician and philosopher (1889-1951) who taught at Cambridge University. He is probably the most influential theorist of language in the twentieth century. In Tractatus Logico-philosophicus he wrote, My propositions serve as elucidations in the following way: anyone who understands me eventually recognizes them as nonsensical. ... He must transcend these propositions, and then he will see the world aright.
Yajna /skr./—Sacrifice. Also a name of Lord Visnu as the Lord of Sacrifice. See Visnu.
Yoga /skr./—Literally, connection; the discipline of self-realization. One of the six systems of Vedic philosophy, taught by Pataïjali.
According to Bhagavad-gita, the most sublime form of yoga is bhakti-yoga (the yoga of pure devotion). Through the process of bhakti-yoga, the consciousness of the individual soul connects with its source, Krsna. This is called Krsna consciousness. By Krsna consciousness, the soul rids itself of the bondage of the three modes of material nature and returns back home, Back to Godhead. See Bhakti-yoga, Six systems.
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