Questions & Answers
Questions & Answers

Guiding Principles in the Jungle of Shastra

Question: In the Śiva-Purāṇa, Kailāśa-Saṁhitā, 15.21-29, it is said that Viṣṇu appears from the Vāmadeva face of Rudra, is the presiding deity of the Sthiti-Cakra, and has four vyaṣṭi manifestations. A Śrī Vaiṣṇava, in order to establish samanvaya, as well as to establish Viṣṇu’s supremacy, explained to me that this Viṣṇu is not the unmanifest

Read More
Gaudiya Philosophy Questions & Answers

Etymological breakdown of the Mahamantra

Question: I am following a Śrīmad Bhāgavata class with Professor Edwin Bryant, and after last night’s class, I asked him a question about the meaning of “Hare” and “Rāma” in the mahāmantra. Though my professor had a few insightful answers for us, he didn’t have a definite opinion on the etymological basis for their meaning

Read More
Questions & Answers

Shanta-rasa is not Brahman-realization

Question: Do devotees in śānta-rasa worship Bhagavān in his Brahman form? Answer: No. All rasas are related to Bhagavān, the personal aspect of Tattva. There is no rasa in Brahman-realization because in Brahman-realization, there is no distinct identity between the jīva and Brahman. Śānta rasa means that the devotee has an understanding that Bhagavān is

Read More
Questions & Answers

Is it Fanatical to Believe in Bhakti’s Superiority?

Question: In the book The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa has been reported to have said several times that a combination of the highest jñāna and the highest bhakti in one person is a rare gift of the Lord. This view is quite opposed to the Gosvāmīs’ dictum that jñāna-miśra-bhakti is second only

Read More
Questions & Answers

Qualification for Lila-Smaranam and Rasa-katha

Question: In Bhakti Sandarbha 310, Srīla Jīva Gosvāmī writes regarding rāgānugā sādhana as, “ata evāsyā janma-lakṣaṇaṁ bhakti-vyatirekeṇānyatrānabhirucim upalakṣya“. Does that mean that a sādhaka in rāgānugā bhakti will not have a taste for anything apart from bhakti? Does this not imply that he is free of anarthas? Answer: There will be no gross anarthas like lust

Read More
Questions & Answers

How to Deal with Procrastination?

Question: My question regards procrastination. I have faced this issue for a while whenever I decide to work on my sādhana, health, etc. Even while engaging in day-to-day commitments, I waste time on social media or something else. Although I am aware of the necessary things I need to do, I find myself unable to

Read More
Gaudiya Philosophy Questions & Answers Shastra

Temporary or Eternal Hell for Asuras?

Question: In BG 16.20, Śrī Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa presents a concept of “eternal hell” for some jīvas, with no possibility of deliverance. Even after many births, Bhagavān does not deliver them. He explains how Bhagavān only kills a specific type of asura who is not internally opposed to the Vedas. Even in Govinda-bhāṣya, Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa quotes

Read More