Bhakti Sandarbha

Bhakti Sandarbha
Author: Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī
Publisher:
Total Pages: 412
Release: 2018-05-29
Genre:
ISBN: 9781983030383

Bhakti Sandarbha is the fifth Sandarbha of Jīva Gosvāmī. The first Sandarbha deals with pramāna, the Bhāgavatam. The second, third and fourth Sandarbhas deal with sambandha: defining the Lord in his aspects as Paramātmā, Bhagavān and Kṛṣṇa. The present Sandarbha deals with the abhideya (method), the sādhana of bhakti. This is the means to realize Kṛṣṇa. The same topic is covered in the second chapter of the Eastern Section of Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu of Rūpa Gosvāmī, but is expanded greatly. It discusses the spiritual nature of this process, the qualification of bhakti, the various actions of bhakti, vaidhi and rāgānuga types, mixed and pure forms of bhakti and various types of devotees.

Tattva Sandarbha

Tattva Sandarbha
Author: Jīva Gosvāmī
Publisher:
Total Pages: 141
Release: 2018-04-23
Genre:
ISBN: 9781980913443

The Sandarbhas are one of Jīva Gosvāmī's major works. Sandarbha literally means "stringing together." Baladeva explains, "The wise say a Sandarbha is that which possesses various matters of importance which should be known. Bhāgavatam verses are gathered together (sandṛbhyate)."In this case, it is a literary composition consisting of a series of prose sections mixed with verse mainly from Bhāgavatam. It is in six parts which explain Gauḍiya epistemology, theology and philosophy. Tattva Sandarbha deals with the epistemology, while Bhagavat, Paramātmā and Kṛṣṇa Sandarbhas deal with object of worship (sambandha). Bhakti Sandarbha deals with the process or abhidheya, bhakti, and Prīti Sandarbha deals with the goal or prayojana, prema.Tattva Sandarbha first explains the various pramāṇas or methods of proof and concludes that śabda or scripture is the strongest. Using scriptural proofs, finally Bhāgavatam is concluded to be the best among all scriptures. The second part of Tattva Sandarbha explains prameya--what is proved by Bhāgavatam: Kṛṣṇa as the object of worship, bhakti as the method and prema as the goal. These topics are expanded in the other Sandarbhas.

Bhakti and Embodiment

Bhakti and Embodiment
Author: Barbara A. Holdrege
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 489
Release: 2015-08-14
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 131766910X

The historical shift from Vedic traditions to post-Vedic bhakti (devotional) traditions is accompanied by a shift from abstract, translocal notions of divinity to particularized, localized notions of divinity and a corresponding shift from aniconic to iconic traditions and from temporary sacrificial arenas to established temple sites. In Bhakti and Embodiment Barbara Holdrege argues that the various transformations that characterize this historical shift are a direct consequence of newly emerging discourses of the body in bhakti traditions in which constructions of divine embodiment proliferate, celebrating the notion that a deity, while remaining translocal, can appear in manifold corporeal forms in different times and different localities on different planes of existence. Holdrege suggests that an exploration of the connections between bhakti and embodiment is critical not only to illuminating the distinctive transformations that characterize the emergence of bhakti traditions but also to understanding the myriad forms that bhakti has historically assumed up to the present time. This study is concerned more specifically with the multileveled models of embodiment and systems of bodily practices through which divine bodies and devotional bodies are fashioned in Krsna bhakti traditions and focuses in particular on two case studies: the Bhagavata Purana, the consummate textual monument to Vaisnava bhakti, which expresses a distinctive form of passionate and ecstatic bhakti that is distinguished by its embodied nature; and the Gaudiya Vaisnava tradition, an important bhakti tradition inspired by the Bengali leader Caitanya in the sixteenth century, which articulates a robust discourse of embodiment pertaining to the divine bodies of Krsna and the devotional bodies of Krsna bhaktas that is grounded in the canonical authority of the Bhagavata Purana.

Śrī Bhakti Sandarbha

Śrī Bhakti Sandarbha
Author: Jīva Gosvāmī
Publisher:
Total Pages:
Release: 2006
Genre: Bhakti
ISBN: 9788187153702

On concept of doctrine of Bhakti according to Chaitanya sect.

Paramātmā Sandarbha

Paramātmā Sandarbha
Author: Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī
Publisher:
Total Pages: 218
Release: 2018-05-17
Genre:
ISBN: 9781982924737

Paramātmā Sandarbha is the third Sandarbha. This work describes Paramātmā, since Bhāgavatam delineates three aspects of the Lord: Bhagavān, Paramātmā and Brahman. One Sandarbha has already been dedicated to Bhagavān. Paramātmā is similar to Bhāgavan, having a form and qualities. However, Paramātmā in its three forms as Mahāviṣṇu, Garbhodakaśāyī and Kṣīrodakaśāyī functions in relation to creation, maintenance and destruction of the material universe. Bhagavān functions in relation to devotees in the spiritual world. As well as describing Paramātmā, this work describes the jīva in some detail, since the jīva-śakti takes shelter of Paramātmā. Some parts, particularly of the commentary, deal with arguments against Māyāvāda philosophy.

The Nectar of Instruction

The Nectar of Instruction
Author: His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Publisher: The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust
Total Pages: 98
Release:
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 917149555X

Eleven Lessons in the Ancient Science of Bhakti-yoga Across five centuries and half the globe comes this compact guidebook of essential spiritual teachings. How to choose a guru, how to practice yoga, even where to live — you'll find it all in this invaluable work originally written in Sanskrit by Srila Rupa Gosvami, the greatest spiritual genius of medieval India. Now translated and illuminated by Rupa Gosvami's modern successor, His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the Nectar of Instruction is the key to enlightenment for all seekers on the path of spiritual perfection.

Refiguring the Body

Refiguring the Body
Author: Barbara A. Holdrege
Publisher: SUNY Press
Total Pages: 378
Release: 2016-12-28
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1438463154

Examines how embodiment is conceived and experienced in South Asian religions. Refiguring the Body provides a sustained interrogation of categories and models of the body grounded in the distinctive idioms of South Asian religions, particularly Hindu and Buddhist traditions. The contributors engage prevailing theories of the body in the Western academy that derive from philosophy, social theory, and feminist and gender studies. At the same time, they recognize the limitations of applying Western theoretical models as the default epistemological framework for understanding notions of embodiment that derive from non-Western cultures. Divided into three sections, this collection of essays explores material bodies, embodied selves, and perfected forms of embodiment; divine bodies and devotional bodies; and gendered logics defining male and female bodies. The contributors seek to establish theory parity in scholarly investigations and to re-figure body theories by taking seriously the contributions of South Asian discourses to theorizing the body.

Bhakti Yoga

Bhakti Yoga
Author: Edwin F. Bryant
Publisher: North Point Press
Total Pages: 465
Release: 2017-07-11
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0374714398

From the author of what has become the standard edition of The Yoga Sutras of Patañjali, an exploration of probably the most significant tradition in Hinduism, along with a rendering of key texts and parables from that tradition Bhakti Yoga explores one of the eight “limbs” of yoga. In the simplest terms, bhakti yoga is the practice of devotion, which is the essential heart of yoga and of Hinduism in general. In recent times, the term has come to be used in a rather simplistic way to refer to the increasingly popular practice of kirtan, or chanting in a group or at large gatherings. But bhakti yoga is far more complex and ancient than today’s growing kirtan audiences are aware, and embraces many strands and practices. Edwin F. Bryant focuses on one famous and important school of bhakti and explores it in depth to show what bhakti is and how it is expressed. And he supplies his own renderings of central texts from that tradition in the form of “tales and teachings” from an important work called the Bhagavata Purana, or “The Beautiful Legend of God.” This clarifying work establishes a baseline for understanding, and will be welcomed by all serious students of the spiritual heritage of India.

Caitanya Vaisnava Philosophy

Caitanya Vaisnava Philosophy
Author: Ravi M. Gupta
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 262
Release: 2016-04-15
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1317170164

In the sixteenth century, the saint and scholar Sri Caitanya set in motion a wave of devotion to Krishna that began in eastern India and has now found its way around the world. Caitanya taught that the highest aim of life is to develop selfless love for God Krishna, the blue-hued cowherd boy who spoke the Bhagavad Gita. Although only a handful of poetry is attributed to Caitanya, his devotional theology was expounded and systematized by his followers in a vast array of poetical, philosophical, and ritual literature. This book provides a thematic study of Caitanya Vaishnava philosophy, introducing key thinkers and ideas in the early tradition, using Sanskrit and Bengali sources that have seldom been studied in English. The book addresses major areas of the tradition, including epistemology, ontology, aesthetics, ethics, and history, and every chapter includes relevant readings from primary sources.

A Companion to Sanskrit Literature

A Companion to Sanskrit Literature
Author: Sures Chandra Banerji
Publisher: Motilal Banarsidass Publ.
Total Pages: 838
Release: 1989
Genre: Literary Criticism
ISBN: 9788120800632

In course of his studies in Sanskrit literature and research relating to various aspects of it, the author of the present work often felt the need of a vade mecum containing brief accounts of authors and works, information about the principal characters of Sanskrit plays, poems and prose works, the meaning of certain technical terms in common use, the common geographical names and the notable myths and legends. A Companion to Sanskrit Literature, the first work of its kind, covers a period of nearly 3500 years from the Vedic age down to the modern times. It seeks to acquaint the reader, within a brief compass, with the contents of outstanding works and authors in Sanskrit literature, followed by up-to-date bibliographies. Brief accounts of the important character in well-known poems, dramas and prose works have also been given. Important geographical names, with their modern identification as far as practicable, have also been laid down. Common technical terms, used in the different branches of Sanskrit literature, have been briefly explained, Prominent figures in myths and legends have been dealt with. In a number of appendices, various kinds of useful information about Sanskrit literature including sciences, sports and pastimes, etc. in ancient and medieval India have been set forth. It is an indispensable vade mecum for the general readers, the specialists and researchers. It is like a capsule taking the reader through the vast firmament of Sanskrit literature up to remote ages. -- Amazon.com.