JAIVA DHARMA
- the religion of all souls -
By: Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura
(original text from the HARMONIST)
Jaiva Dharma
CHAPTER II
The natural function of the soul is spiritual and eternal.
1. Next day during the morning the good ascetic found no opportunity of asking any questions for the solutions of his doubts. Paramahansa Babaji was then fully immersed in his exclusive mood of loving service on the transcendental plane of Braja (Realm of Krishna). After accepting their food of midday, obtained in small quantities by the daily round of begging in the village, both of them were seated in the natural awning of Madhabi creeper. Paramahansa Babaji out of his mercy now began to speak. “O great devotee”, said he, “what definite conclusion has been reached by you on hearing my answer to your enquiry about ‘dharma’ ( man’s natural function ) ?”
(Q. 2 and 3.) The ascetic now preferred with the greatest joy his further questions. ‘‘Lord, if the soul be a very small thing, how can his natural function be full and unmixed ? If the natural function of the soul be formed at the same time when his entity is constituted, how can such function be also eternal ?”
2. (Ans.) On hearing these two questions Paramahansa Babaji meditated for a short time on the Lotus Feet of Sree Sachinandana before he proceeded to answer them. He then said, “Respected sir, even although the soul is a little thing, his function is nevertheless full, unmixed and eternal. His littleness has reference only to his substance. The Ultimate Great Principle (Para-Brahman) Krishnachandra is the only absolutely Great Substance. The souls of jivas are the endless particles of the One Great Absolute. In the way analogous to that in which sparks of fire are generated by the undivided substance of fire, the souls of jivas emanate from the Entity of undivided cognitive Substance who is Krishna. In the way that each individual spark of fire possesses the full power of fire, each individual soul can also be a basis for the manifestation of the full function of the cognitive Substance. A single spark of fire by coming in contact with combustible substances can, by gradually manifesting the nature of the great fire, burn the whole world. In a similar way even a single soul can bring about a great inundation of love by serving Krishnachandra, the real Object of Love. So long as he does not come in touch with the real Object of the function of his soul, his entity of infinitesimal cognitive substance, i.e., the soul of the jiva, manifests himself in the position of ineligibility for displaying the natural activity of the full spiritual function. As a matter of fact the proper function of the soul manifests itself only in relationship to the Object of Love. It is very necessary to search with due care for the true answer to the question as to what constitutes the spiritual function of the jiva. We should then be in a position to realise that love is his eternal spiritual function. The jiva is not insentient matter. The spiritual entity transcends to the material principle. Unmixed cognition is the stuff of his constitution. Love is his function. Pure love is identical with the service of Krishna. In other words love, in the form of the servitorship of Krishna, is the natural function of the real entity of the jiva.
3. The jiva may possess one of two states. He may be either in the conditioned or in the pure spiritual state. In his unconditioned state the jiva is uneclipsed cognitive substance. In that state the jiva has no relationship with non-sentience. Even in his unalloyed spiritual state the jiva is infinitesimal substance. By reason of his infinitesimality he is liable to undergo change of condition. The Entity of Krishna is plenary Cognition. He is naturally free from the possibility of any change of His Condition. He is substantively Great, Perfect, Pure and Eternal. The jiva is substantively infinitesimal, part of the Whole, liable to contamination and not ultimate. But in respect of his spiritual function the jiva is great, undivided whole, pure and eternal. As long as the jiva retains his pure spiritual condition he exhibits his spiritual function in his uneclipsed form. When the jiva is contaminated by relationship with the eclipsing potency (Maya) only then, by reason of the perversion of his proper function, he is not fully pure and feels helpless and afflicted with mundane pleasure and pain. The worldly course makes its appearance simultaneously with the jiva’s loss of all recollection of the servitorship of Krishna.
4. So long as the jiva continues pure, he cherishes his spiritual function as his own. His egoism then identifies itself with his servitorship of Krishna. His pure egoism, however, suffers contraction and assumes various forms when he is defiled by relationship with Maya. In relationship with Maya the pure entity of the jiva is overlaid with a subtle and a gross material form. This gives rise to a different egoism of the subtle body. This in its turn gives rise to a third form of egoism in association with the egoism of the gross body. In his pure spiritual body the jiva is the exclusive servant of Krishna. In his subtle material body the jiva entertains the egoism of being the enjoyer of the fruits of his own activities. In this position his spiritual ego, which identifies his entity with servitorship of Krishna, is covered up by the egotism of the subtle body. The gross form of mudane egotism, which arises when the subtle body is further enveloped in the gross physical body, leads the jiva to identify himself with the gross physical body. At this stage the jiva introduces himself to the world, in terms of gross material relationships as a Brahmana, a king, as poor, miserable, afflicted with disease, as wife or husband of another person, etc., etc. The spiritual function of the jiva is perverted in association with these false egotisms. Unalloyed love is the only proper function of the jiva in his pure state. Spiritual love manifests itself pervertedly in the subtle material body in the forms of pleasure and pain, likes and dislikes. This perverted love, thereafter, appears in the physical body in more concentrated material forms as pleasures of eating, drinking, sensuality. So you should now be in a position to see that the eternal natural function of the jiva manifests itself only in his pure state. The function that makes its appearance in his conditioned state is adventitious. His eternal function is naturally full, purely spiritual and ever present. I shall explain the nature of the adventitious function more fully at another time.
6. The ‘dharma’ of a pure Vaishnava, recorded in Srimad Bhagavatam, is the eternal spiritual function. All the different conceptions of ‘dharma’ or the natural function of the jiva, that have been promulgated in the world, are divisible into three classes, viz., as referring to his eternal, adventitious or temporary function. Those systems of the Norm, that have no reference to Isvara ( Supreme Personal Ruler of the Universe ) and eternal existence of the soul, treat only of the temporary function. Those systems, that admit Isvara and eternity of the soul but seek to gain the favour of Isvara by temporary means, confine themselves to the consideration of the adventitious function. Those that seek to gain the servitorship of Krishna by unalloyed love should alone be regarded as directed to the investigation of the eternal function. The eternal religion may have different designations due to differences of country, race and language ; but they are really one and are also perfectly wholesome. Nevertheless the Vaishnava ‘dharma’ that is current in India, is the standard of the eternal religion. And the religion that has been taught to the world by Lord Sachinandana, the most beloved Lord of our love, is admitted and accepted by all great souls, who delight in the loving service of the Absolute, as representing the unalloyed slate of the Vaishnava religion.
7. At this point Sanyasi Thakur spoke with folded hands. “Lord”, said he, “I am constantly realising the superior excellence of the pure Vaishnava religion that was revealed by Sree Sachinandana. I am also feeling the unwholesomeness of non-distinct monistic thuoght promulgated by Shankaracharya. But one thought is constantly running in my head which I do not wish to entertain without submitting at Your Feet. Am I to understand that the exalted state of concentrated love that has been manifested by Lord Sree Krishna-Chaitanya, is different from that of realised at-one-ment with non-distinct Brahman ?"
8. At this mention of the name of Sree Shankaracharya Paramahansa Babaji with great reverence made his prostrated obeisance to the Acharya. He then said, “Respected sir, we should always remember that Shankara was Mahadeva himself. Shankara is the Master (Guru) of all Vaishnavas. For this reason the Supreme Lord has referred to him as Acharya. Personally Shankara is a perfect Vaishnava. In the period when he made his appearance in India there was a great need for Shankara, the incarnation of the destructive quality of the Divinity. In India the culture of the Veda and the performances of the varnashrama ‘dharma’ which grades the people into classes according to spiritual disposition and also regulates individual life, were rendered almost nugatory by the prevalence of philosophical nihilism of the Buddhists. The negative cult of Buddhism has no reference to Isvara. It is an extreme advocacy of the temporary function, although it admits, in a measure, the principle of the spiritual nature of the jiva. At that time most of the Brahmanas, in pursuance of the teaching of Buddha, renounced the Vedic religion in all but name. Sree Shankaracharya, the incarnation of Mahadeva, possessed of super-human power, appearing at this crisis, transformed the prevailing ‘shunyavada’ of Buddhism into the cult of the non-distinct Brahman by re-establishing the prestige of the Vedic Shastras. This was an uncommon feat. India will remain for ever grateful to Sree Shankara for this great benefit. All work in this world is judged from two points of view. Certain achievements have a value for the particular needs of the time, while others possess value for all time. The great deeds of the incarnation of Shankara were in accordance with the pressing needs of that critical period. They were undoubtedly productive of many beneficial results. The edifice of pure Vaishnava ‘dharma’ has been reared by Sree Ramanujacharya and Sree Madhvacharya on the foundations that were laid by the incarnation of Shankara. The Avatara of Shankara was thus one of the greatest friends of Vaishnava religion and one of the pioneer Acharyas of the eternal religion.
9. The substantial benefit of the line of argument pioneered by Sree Shankara is now being enjoyed by the Vaishnavas without any effort on their own part. There is the greatest need of a knowledge of real reference to the Absolute ( Sambandhajnana ) for souls in the State of bondage to material energy which obscures their spiritual vision. Shankaracharya is in agreement with the Vaishnavas in his conviction that the spiritual substance is both super-mundane as well as separate from the gross and subtle body, in this world. There is also no disagreement between them as regards their conceptions of the substantive entity of the jiva. Both accept the view that liberation (Mukti) refers to the renunciation of relationship with the material world. Up to the stage of the attainment of liberation there are many points of agreement between the teaching of Sree Shankara and that of the Vaishnava Acharyas. It is also the teaching of Sree Shankaracharya that the worship of Hari is the means of the de-materialisation of the mind and attainment of liberation. Shankara is silent about the non-antecedent course that is realised by the jiva subsequent to the attainment of unmixed liberation. Shankara knew quite well that if the jiva could be made to move on the path of liberation by the method of the worship of Hari, he would gradually come under the influence of the bliss of loving devotion (bhajana) and turn into a pure devotee. It is for this reason that Shankara, although he pointed out the path, did not further reveal the mystery of the Vaishnava religion. Those who study his commentaries with particular care can understand this underlying view of Shankara. It is only those who waste their time in fruitless speculations over the external portions of his teaching are thereby deprived of the chance of being established in their eternal function.
10. Exclusive at-one-ness and love appear to be identical from one point of view The narrow interpretation of realised at-one-ness makes it to be different from love. You should consider carefully the substantive nature of love. Love may be defined as the constituent function (dharma) by which one spiritual entity is attracted naturally to associate with another spiritual entity. Love cannot be realised without the separate existence of two spiritual entities. Krishna Prem is that natural tendency by which all spiritual entities are eternally attracted to Krishnachandra, the Supreme Spiritual Entity. The eternally abiding facts in regard to the entity of love are the eternally separate position of Krishnachandra and the permanence of the separate existence of the totality of the jivas in the relation of reciprocity. The position of the three separate categories of relisher, relished and relishing is true. If there is identity of unity between the relisher and the relished, love cannot assert itself as eternal. If the pure state of spiritual entity, which has no reference to the non-spiritual, is the connotation of at-one-ness with the Brahman, then it is the same as love. But now-a-days the Pandits who profess to follow Shankara are not content with such at-one-ment in respect of spiritual function, They promulgate a false interpretation of the principle of the unity of the Absolute that is declared by the Veda by their attempt to resolve the substantive entity of the Absolute into the unity of identity with other entities. This opinion prejudices the eternity of love. Such view has accordingly been judged by the Vaishnavas to be wholly opposed to the Vedic position. Shankaracharya calls the uncontaminated position of the unalloyed spiritual substance as the state of non-duality. But those who later on professed to follow his leaching failed to understand his inner purpose and have gradually ascribed to him a position which is not his own. They have declared the different phases of unalloyed love to be temporary phenomena. This is the cult of Mayavada which is probably the most worthless of all the creeds that have ever been preached in this world. The professors of Mayavada are not prepared to admit more than one spiritual substance. They do not admit the existence of the function of love in the spiritual substance. They declare that the Brahman is located beyond the jurisdiction of Maya only so long as he is a single entity. When he assumes any form of his own or receives plurality of forms as jiva, he is under the power of Maya. They accordingly consider the Body of God, who is Enternal, Pure, Concentrated Spirit, to be a product of Maya. They suppose the separate entity of the jiva as also due to Maya. As a result of this, under the impression that love and its various manifestations are Mayik occurrence, they seek to establish non-dual cognition as the only principle that is uncontaminated by Maya. Thus the conception of at-one-ment of these misguided persons is by no means identical with love.
11. But the love that the Supreme Lord Chaitanyadeva has enjoined us to taste and taught the world by His Own Transcendental Conduct and Personality, is located wholly beyond the jurisdiction of Maya. It is in fact the final result of the realisation of true unalloyed at-one-ment. Mahabhava (the superior substantive spiritual love) is a distinctive transformation of such unalloyed love. In Mahabhava the bliss of love for Krishna is most intense and, therefore, the separateness and intimate relationship of the knower and object of knowledge therein reach a unique condition. Mayavada is a shallow speculation and cannot really enlighten us in regard to love in any of the stages of its activity.
12. Sanyasi Thakur with great reverence replied, “My Master, I am fully convinced in my heart that Mayavada is essentially trivial. Any doubt that had lingered in my mind about the same is today solved by your mercy. I am experiencing a great desire to give up my dress of an ascetic of the Mayavada school”.
13. Babaji Mahashaya said, “Great soul, it is not advisable to have any kind of preference or repugnance about outward garb. With the purification of the inner function the outward garb also attains the pure form quite naturally. When the external garb is esteemed for its own sake it indicates very great indifference to the inner function. To the best of my judgment inner purification is the first essential. It is only when in consequence of his purification of the inner function a person feels attracted to the outward conduct and garb of pure devotees that such a person may assume the external garb, etc., without offences. You should make your heart completely submissive to Sree Krishna-Chaitanya. You will then be in a position to conduct yourself in external matters in accordance with the dictates of your purified heart. Keep these words of the Supreme Lord constantly before your mind : “Do not practise hypocritical asceticism like the monkey, to be seen by the people. Enjoy the things of the world that it is proper to enjoy without being attached to them. Clutivate constant purity of the heart. In external conduct comply with the ordinary conventions of civilised society. Krishna will then deliver you very soon” (Ch. Ch. Madhya 16/238-239).
14. Sanyasi Thakur understood the principle of the process and did not press his proposal for changing his external garb. He continued with folded hands, “My Master, I have accepted the shelter of your feet by offering to be your disciple. I will follow with unreserved reverence and without argument whatever you may be pleased to advise me as my duty. By listening to your instructions I have been able to understand that unalloyed love for Krishna is the only real Vaishnava religion. It is also the eternal religion of all jivas (individual souls). The same function is also perfect, pure and natural. May you be pleased to enlighten me as to how I am to regard the various other religions that are current in the different countries ?”
15. Babaji Mahashaya said, “Great soul, the eternal religion is one. There cannot be two or different religions. All jivas have but one religion. The name of that eternal religion is Vaishnava dharma. There is no reason why the religion of the jiva should vary according to race, language and country. The natural function of the jiva is designated by different names by many persons, but no one can create a different function. Jaiva dharma or the function appertaining to the soul is that unalloyed spiritual love that is inherent in the fractional infinitesimal entity of the Supreme whole. Jaiva dharma appears in a perverted form by being moulded into various mundane shapes due to jivas being endowed with a variety of mental dispositions. For this reason the unalloyed state of the function of the soul has been designated Vaishnava dharma. Other religions are pure in proportion to the degree of Vaishnava dharma that they display.
16. “Some time ago at Sree Brajadham I submitted this question at the holy feet of Srila Sanatana Goswami, associated counterpart ( Parshada ) of the Supreme Lord. My question was whether the meaning of the word ‘Esk’, that is used in the books of the Yavanas, is unalloyed love or something else. The great Goswami (lit. one who is an authorised world teacher or saviour ) is also a great scholar of the Shastras and profoundly erudite in the language of the Yavanas. Sree Rupa, Sree Jeeva and other most eminent spiritual teachers were present in that assembly. Srila Sanatana Goswami Prabhu kindly gave this reply :
17. “Yes, the word ‘Esk’ means Love. The Yavana worshippers use the work ‘Esk’ in their prayer to God. But the word often means physical demonstration of love. The life-history of ‘Loyala-Majnu’ and the idea of 'Esk' as depicted by Hafez bear testimony to the fact that Moslem preachers could not understand the real significance of unalloyed spiritual exis¬tence. By the word ‘Esk’ they mean either physical or mental demonstration of love on the mundane plane. But they could not differentiate and hence failed to realise that Divine Love for Krishna, which is the eternal unalloyed function of a jiva in his unadulterated existence, is pure and transcendental and does not belong to this mundane plane of time and space. Such pure love is not found in any Yavana literature nor in any other than the Vaishnava religion. The ‘Roo’ of the Yavana preachers does not seem to mean pure soul, but only the conditioned soul. No other religion of the world teaches that pure Divine Love for Krishna which is found in Vaishnavism. In the Srimad Bhagavata Divine Love for Krishna, as in the expression ‘the supreme religion from which hyprocrisy has been totally uprooted’, is vividly described. But so far as my experience goes I am convinced that no other teacher in the world before the Advent of Sree Krishna-Chaitanya could give us a fuller representation of pure Divine Love for Krishna. If you believe me you are at liberty to accept this conclusion. Hearing this lesson from Srila Sanatana Goswami Prabhu I offered my prostrated greetings to him, time and again”. The Sanyasi Thakur prostrated himself on hearing this.
18. Paramahansa Babaji then said, “I am giving the answer to your second question, O great devotee. ( Q. 2—How the spiritual function of a fractional infinitesimal soul can be eternal ? ) Be pleased to listen to the same with an undivided mind. Ans. Terms such as ‘creation’ or ‘formation’ of a jiva are used by reference to mundane conditions. The language of this world functions more or less by dependance upon experience of matter. The time that is divided into the three positions of past, present and future is material time subject to Maya. In the Absolute Realm of the spirit the time is everpresent. In it there is no such intervals, corresponding to the past and future, of material time. Jiva and Krishna exist in that time. For this reason the jiva is etenal and ever-existing and his function (dharma) in the form of love for Krishna is also eternal. Subsequent to his enthralment in this material world those functions that are incidental to material time, viz., the creation, formation, fall etc., have been attributed to the jiva. The jiva is an infinitesimal entity. But he is nevertheless spiritual and eternal. His formation is prior to his coming into the material world. For the reason that there are no such conditions of the time of the spiritual realm as past and future, everything that exists in that time is eternally present. The jiva and his function are per se ever present and eternal. I am only stating this proposition. But the pure realisation of the true meaning of this proposition will be in proportion to the degree of your actual experience of the unalloyed spiritual existence of the Absolute Realm that you have been enabled to receive. I give you only a glimmering indication, but it is for you to realise its meaning by the process of spiritual isolation. You will not be able to understand these propositions by means of reasoning and discussion that are products of the mundane connection. The more you can loosen the power of consciousness from the fetters of matter the greater will be the manifestation of your realisation of the Absolute Realm which transcends all material existence. The first experience of transcendence on the path of spiritual endeavour is that of one’s own pure self. The function of the soul manifests itself with increasing energy of expression in course of serving the Pure Spiritual Name of Krishna by one's pure self. Neither the process of Astangayoga ( the eight processes of mind and body resorted to for spiritual concentration) nor the conception of the Brahman as undifferentiated monistic cognitive substance is efficacious for the attainment of the purity of spiritual realisation. The direct service of Krishna is the only process that is really efficacious for bringing about the manifestation of the spiritual function of a jiva, which by its nature is eternally self-perfect ( nitya-siddha ). May you practise constantly and with zeal to chant the Name of Hari. Serving the Name of Hari is the only true form of spiritual culture. If you do so in no time an unprecedental relish for the Holy Name accompanied by the simultaneous realisation of the spiritual realm of transcendental relativities will awaken in your purified heart. Of all the forms of bhakti the practice of chanting the Holy Name of Krishna stands foremost and is quick in its effect. The following statement is accordingly recorded in the excellent work of Sree Krishnadasa as purporting to be the instruction of Sree Chaitanya, “Among the various modes of spiritual culture nine varieties are superior to all the rest. They possess very great power as a means for the realisation of Krishna and Love for Krishna. The perfect chant of the Name is the highest of these nine forms of bhakti. If a person chants the Name without offence he receives the treasure of love”. ( Ch. Ch. Antya. 4/70-71 ).
19. Great soul, if you now ask, “Who is a Vaishnava ?” I should say that the person who chants the Name of Krishna without offence is a Vaishnava. The Vaishnavas are again divided into three grades viz., junior-most, superior and super-excellent. One who chants the Name of Krishna at intervals is junior-most Vaishnava. He who takes the Name of Krishna without interruption comes up to the real spiritual standard and may be termed as a superior Vaishnava. The person, by gazing at whom the name of Krishna comes to one’s lips, is a super-excellent Vaishnava. According to the Teaching of Sree Chaitanya Mahaprabhu we should not ascertain the entity of a Vaishnava by any other criterion.
20. Deeply immersed in the nectarine teaching of Paramahansa Babaji, Sanyasi Thakur could no longer contain his joy and began to dance as he chanted the following Name of Krishna :—
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare,
Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare”.
On that day a natural liking and relish for chanting the Name was felt by him for the first time. He prostrated himself at the lotus feet of the Master and said, “My Divine Master, may you be pleased to have mercy on your unworthy servant”.
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