Question: I have a query regarding the use of the word anādi and the conditioning of the jīva as described in the Bhāgavata Purāṇa. Someone recently raised the following argument to me: “All Sanskrit words in śāstra that indicate an unlimited time span—anādi, śāśvata, nitya, etc.—are used nonliterally when referring to events in the material
Question: Would you please explain about spiritual body of the jīva? When the jīva enters spiritual realm of Kṛṣṇa, does the soul get a beautiful spiritual body? Or does the soul already possess such an eternal body, which is with us right now? Answer: The soul does not possess any body. It is formless. It
Question: Certain schools of thought, namely Buddhism, put forward the idea of momentariness. The flow of events gives rise to a continuum of consciousness, but this continuum is observed by a subtle level of mind, and not by a witness like the ātman/soul from an underlying substratum. Schools such as the Gelugpa tradition state that there
Question: Could you specify the difference between āropa-siddhā-bhakti and karma-miśrā-bhakti as defined by Srīla Jīva Gosvami in Bhakti Sandarbha? Answer: Āropa-siddhā-bhakti consists of activities that are not devotional in themselves but become part of devotion because of their contact with bhakti. Primarily it includes offering your actions to Kṛṣṇa, karmārpaṇam. These actions themselves are not
Question: You wrote that if one’s guru falls down, then one should accept another guru. However, some disciples of such a controversial guru argue that it is wrong to give up one’s guru because the guru should never be given up. They also cite the famous Gītā verse, api cet su-durācāro, which says that even
The Nature of Jīvas Question: One thing you could confirm is the definition of adrṣtā within Gaudīya Vedānta. I’m looking at Govinda Bhāṣya 2.3.49 onward. The discussion is regarding the difference between jīvas. They are not similar on account of their adrṣtā and karma. However, their essential nature is the same. I have checked that
Question: In Paramātma Sandarbha, Annucheda 93, it is said, “Bhagavān did not rescue Gajendra out of empathy for his pain, but rather because of his surrender in the form, ‘You are my only shelter.’” But He resides within the heart of every jīva as Paramātmā. How does He remain neutral to the threefold miseries of
