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Sri Tattva Viveka
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To: alt-hindu@uunet.uu.net
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Subject: Sri Tattva Viveka
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From: nparker@crl.com (Nathan Parker)
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Date: 12 Apr 1995 17:13:45 -0700
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From nparker@crl.com Wed Apr 12 20: 03:21 1995
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Newsgroups: alt.hindu
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Organization: CRL Dialup Internet Access (415) 705-6060 [Login: guest]
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Sri Tattva Viveka
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by Srila Saccidananda Bhaktivnoda Thakur
(an analysis of western philosophies)
Prathmanubhava - Sadanusilanam
1) jayati saccidananda rasanubhava vigrahah
procyate saccidanandanubhutiryat prasadath
All glories to Sri Krsna Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the Personality who
tastes the transcendental mellow of eternity, knowledge and bliss - by
whose mercy the realisation of Sri Krsna the eternally existent
transcendental Absolute Truth is explained in this book.
2) koham va kimidam visvabhavayoh konvayoh dhruvam
atmanam nivrto jivah prcchati jnanasiddhaye
After many many lifetimes the living entity who is wise developes
the following inquiries:
a) who am I?
b) what is this material existence in reality?
c) what is the actual relationship between me and this creation?
3) atma prakrtivaicitryaddadati citramuttaram
svasvrupasthito hyatma dadati yuktamuttaram
The conditioned soul due to influence of the variegatedness of
external illusory energy, gives multifarious (contradictory) answers,
whereas the soul who is situated in his constitutional position gives
united, (absolute) Krsna conscious answers.
The basic variation is due to the contamination of conditioning,
and then due to the various places, languages and origins the variations
become multifarious. But scientifically they can be devided into two,
speculative, jnana and fruitive, karma.
Jnana is the visual faculty of the conditioned soul to
discriminate between the eternal and transcient objects. (1) upholds the
material character by revealing the beginninglessness and the universal
aboriginality of the matter. (2) analytically denies t he existence of the
matter and establishes a featureless doctrine of Brahman without any
qualities.
Karma is the atheistic activity of the fallen souls in cultivating
the material association by means of the gross body.
4) citram bahuvidham viddhi yuktamekam svarupatah
citramadou tatha cante yuktameva vivicyate
Conditioned philosophies are of variegated natures whereas the
Krsna conscious philosophy is absolute and constitutional; We will first
describe the conditional and thereafter explain the constitutional.
Among the conditioned religious doctrines, materialism is a most
prominent one. This has two categories: of material bliss and
materialistic extinction.
Material bliss is of two types : selfish and unselfish.
Selfish: engage in sensual pleasures by being somewhat cautious
against the immediate consequences. No use in wasting time in religious
activities. Due to the company of unholy and evil activities. Not society
oriented.
Carvaka, Yangchoo of China, Leucippus of Greece, Sardanaplua of
middle Asia, Lucretius of Rome.
Unselfish: the modern day advocates have compiled their
philosophies after a type of unselfish materialistic bliss, in view to
gaining the faith of the masses.
Von Holbach, Ramakrsna and Vivekananda.
Karma:
Purva Mimamsakas have established something called Apurva in the
place of God.
Democritus of Greece established similar idea : matter and void
are eternal. Union of matter with void results in creation and separation
of the matter, in destruction. differnces are due to quantity. No
distinction in class. Knowledge is feeling generat ed by the union of
internal and external objects. Atom is the basis of all matter.
Vaisesika philosophy by Kanada accepts the eternal distinction of
classification of the atoms and this is in some way different than the
atomic theory of Democritus. Atma and Paramatma have been accepted as
eternal.
Plato and Aristotle of Greece also have not accepted the Supreme
Lord alone as the eternal principle and the only source of the entire
universe. In this way the defects of Kanada are also seen in their ideas.
Gassendi concludes that God is the creator of atoms.
Diderot and Lamettrie of France have preached the unselfish
material bliss.
Comte of France found the maturity of unselfish material bliss
philosophy in his Positivism. Except material aspects and phenomenal rules
nothing else is revealed by this.Sense organs are the only instruments of
knowledge.It is impossible to determine a nything as ultimate cause.
Nothing can be understood about the beginning or purpose of the world. No
sentient creator.All mental aspects of thought should be arranged
according to the mutual relation, result, similarity and dissimilarity. It
is not proper to attach any transcendental feelings int hem. God
Consciousness is infancy, and philosophical thoughts are childish.
Resolute thinking is mature . All activities should be conducted in
compliance to right and wrong, life should be unselfish in the help of
others.For cultivating these tendencies one should imagine an embodiment
of female form for worship. Even though it is unreal it will help in the
fulfillment of the tendencies.Earth is supreme fetich, land is supreme
medium, and human nature is supreme being. A female idol with a baby in
the hand should be worshipped three times a day. Mother, wife and daughter
should be worshipped mentally as past present and future. No fruit should
be sought.
Mill of England has named this as sentimentalism and subscribed to
same theory as Comtes.
Godless secularism is the philosophy of Mill, Lewis, Paine,
Carlyle, Bentham.
This has two types too. Holyoake has graciously accepted God to
some estent. Bradlaugh, is totally an atheist.
Reply:
1. If matter is accepted as origin, the external existence of various
atoms, erternity of void, inconceivable relationship between matter and
void, the eternity of energy, nature and the activities of the atoms etc.,
have to be accepted. Otherwise univers al creation will be impossibility.
Thus the fundamental principles become innumerable instead of unification.
Also time cannot be understood.
2. cause and effect are the nature of the mundane world. The philosophy of
consciousness is the quality of matter and matter is the cause of creation
is unscientific.
3. It is stupid to say that consciousness is controller by dead matter -
Professor ferris elaborately discusses this.
4. Due to the lack of evidence, eternity of matter cannot be accepted.
Prof Tyndall has established this. (Buchner and Molescott have the idea
that matter is eternal)
5. Consciousness cannot give away natural inquisitiveness. Investigation
after the faculty of cause and effect is the mother of science. If one
follows Comte within no time all human intelligence will be lost and human
will become inert matter.
6. No one has proved production of consciousness from matter.
7. The organised conducting of creation shows that there is a conscious
being behind it.
5) atmathava jadam sarvam svabhavaddhi pravartate
svabhavo vidyate nityamisajnanam nirarthakam
Either the soul or the inert matter - all these are only the
product of material nature; Material nature is the eternal principle;
Knowledge about so called God is quite useless
6) sarvatha cesvarasiddhirisakarta prayojanat
paralokakatha mithya dhurtanam kalpanerita
In all cases the origin should be found out; So if a person or
principle is established as God, the creator, then it is necessary to find
out who created Him. The stories about other worlds (after death) are all
false, they are only the imaginations of c heaters.
7) samyogajjadatattvanamatma caitanyasajnitah
praturbhavati dharmoyam nihito jadavastuni
By the combination of material principles, consciousness, which is
the inherent quality of matter, known as soul, manifests. And thus,
various material things are placed in the world.
8) viyogat sa punastatra gacchatyeva na samsayah
na tasya punaravrttirna muktirjnanalaksana
When this process is reversed the consciousness again disappears,
attaining the original state of entrance into material elements; Of this
there is no doubt; There is neither the question of rebirth of the soul
nor it is wise, at all, to speak of its liberation
9) kartavyo loukiko dharmah papanam viratiryatah
vidvadbhir laksito nityo svabhavavihito vidhih
One should be disciplined in worldly dealings and refrain from
sinful activities; Since the nature is always lawful, the learned ones
should see the rules of nature
10) punkhanu punkharupena jijnasyo sa sukhaptaye
jivane yat sukham tattu jivanasya prayojanam
The wise should enquire in detail the laws of nature by which
(sensual) happiness can be derived; By following such rules whatever
happiness is experienced in this life is the summum bonum of life.
11) jivane yat krtam karma jivanante tadeva hi
jagatamanyajivanam sambande phalam bhavet
The activities done in life, at the end of life, will certainly
bear fruit for other living entities of the world, in toto.
12) na karma nasamayati yada va yena va krtam
apurvasaktrirupena kurute sarvamunnatam
Even if the result of the activitgies are lost in a short time,
the various activities at their maturity will produce an unprecedented
potency that will elevate the entire universe. (Therefore the activities
will provide unselfish gain for the performer).
13) bhavah klesobhavah kesam mate soukhyamiti sthitam
nirvanasukhasampraptih sariraklesasadhanat
Materialists think that material happiness (removal of material
misery) is permanent bliss; (So they work either selfishly or selflessly
and enjoy it); (Those who cannot remain satisfied with material happiness)
thinking that existence itself is misery, even by accepting bodily
miseries try to attain non-existence (material extinction).
14) kecidvadanti maya ya sa kartri jagatam kila
cidacitsavini suksma saktirupa sanatani
Some say that an eternal potency called maya has created the
entire manifestation; This subtle natured energy is the cause of both
matter and spirit.
15) athava bhava evasyat nesvaro na jagajjanah
bhavo nitya vicitratma nabhavo vidyate kvacit
Others do not accept anything except (mental) feelings; There is
neither a controller (God), nor the objective world; Only the feelings are
existent; The soul is no subjective reality and other than feelings
nothing remains.
16) sanyameva tvasannityam sadevanitya bhavana
kecidvadanti mayandha yuktivada parayana
Whatever exists in this world is seen to be transcient; At the end
all existence become non-existence; Therefore non-existence itself is
real and eternal; This theory is essenceless and blind philosophers have
posed this idea out of argumentativeness.
17) sarvesam nastikanam vai matametad puratanam
desabhasa-vibhedena laksitamca prthak prthak
All these atheistic conceptions (potentialism, sentimentalism and
scepticism) are age old types; Due to the variation in the languages these
philosophies are preached in different countries in different names.
18) karmajnanamisra ya yuktistarkamayo nare
citramataprasuri sa samsaraphaladayini
Those who have fruitve and speculative mixed reasoning, full of
arguments and debates, follow the speculative philosophies which result in
bondage of samsara, of repeated birth and death.
19) yuktestu jadajataya jadatite na yojana
atho jadasrita yuktirtadvadatyevam pralapanam
The mixed reasoning is born of matter; It has no scope for
anything beyond matter (i.e., transcendental). Therefore, those who take
shelter of materilistic rationalisation simply wrangle in material
platform.
20) pralapantiha sa yukti rudanti svatmasiddhaye
carame paramesanam svikaroti bhayatura
Since most of the human beings are advocates of the mixed
reasoning, the constitutional unalloyed reasoning is quite rare in this
world. Ultimately frustrated because of not finding any delight in these
speculations, out of fear and anxiety one accepts t he Supreme Lord as the
cause of all causes.
21) kadacidisatattve sa jadabhranta pralapani
dvaitam traitam bahutvam varopayatyeva yatnatah
Due to materialistic bewilderment, even after accepting God as a
principle, one finds difficulty in accepting his Absolute Supremacy; Again
wrangling with materilistic reasoning one endeavours to speculate the
following kinds of philosophies:
Duality: accepting both matter and spirit as divinity; (this
creates a competitor - satan - to God)
Trinity: accepting three divinities
Multiplicity: accepting many divinities
[to be continued]
