No Contradiction in Teachings of Srila Prabhupada on the Fall of the Jiva
BY: BALAVIDYA DASA
Jan 7, USA (SUN) — In the 'fall of the jiva' discussion, Deenanath dasa has asserted that "Prabhupada made apparently contradictory statements regarding the origin of the jiva". Such assertion that the statements of the great Acarya on this topic are somehow or other "contradictory" is quite thoughtless. At the very least, upon hearing apparently contradictory statements, we should intellectually step back and consider the possibility that the "contradiction" might be within our understanding, not the statements of Srila Prabhupada. However, few writers on this topic do so, and so it has become a common assertion that the statements of Srila Prabhupada on this topic actually are "contradictory". However those that have studied Srila Prabhupada over many years will know that his teachings are certainly characterized by a brilliant clarity, rather than any "apparent contradiction". In fact, an undoubted genius of Srila Prabhupada was his ability to present Vedic siddhanta with striking precision and lucidity. With this in mind, writers on this topic would do better to consider with humility that the source of the apparent contradiction is within their immature grasp of siddhanta rather than the statements of Srila Prabhupada.
"The conclusion is that no one falls from the spiritual world, or Vaikuntha planet, for it is the eternal abode."
Purport, Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.16.26
Now is there anything clearer than the above? After reading the above, only a dumb fool or mischievous rascal will assert that the great acarya has not given a clear "conclusion" on the matter. Those who knowingly do not accept the above "conclusion" should not posture and parade themselves as disciples of Srila Prabhupada. They are deviants from Srila Prabhupada's "conclusion". And it is their misinterpretation of certain particular statements of Srila Prabhupada that is the cause of any "apparent contradiction", not the original teachings of Srila Prabhupada.
These confused deviants have invented a phrase to serve their egoistic motives; this term is "Prabhupada siddhanta". Like the bogus Rtviks, they claim that because Srila Prabhupada is such a great acarya he can give a conclusion that is in opposition to the Vedas. These deviants are so stupid that they cannot see that this idea is not praise, but rather an insult to a great acarya. Great acaryas never stray from the conclusions of guru, sadhu and sastra. And to imply that Srila Prabhupada invented a new original "Prabhupada siddhanta" that differs from the Vedas is offensive and ridiculous. Moreover, in the light of the above quotation from his purport, it is groundless.
The Vedic conclusion is that no-one upon attaining the spiritual world will fall from that Supreme Eternal Abode:
"That which the Vedantists describe as unmanifest and infallible, that which is known as the supreme destination, that place from which, having attained it, one never returns-that is My supreme abode."
Bhagavad-gita 8.21
Sri Krsna's above statement is one of a great many throughout the Vedas that consistently elucidate that no one falls from that Supreme Eternal Abode. The Vedanta-sutra of Veda-Vyasa even ends on this very point. [Kindly see Appendix One as below.]
Therefore, the intelligent faithful devotee will understand that there are no internal contradictions within Srila Prabhupada's teachings, and furthermore no contradiction between the conclusion of Srila Prabhupada and the Vedic conclusion. Of course.
However, for the thoughtful devotee upon reading the appendix below and the previous quotes, a question may arise: Srila Prabhupada certainly explains that the jiva "falls" into the grip of the material energy. Therefore, if he has not fallen from the spiritual world, then from where has he fallen?
For those who consider that there is only (1) the spiritual world; and (2) the material world, this question certainly creates a conundrum. With their poor fund of knowledge, they consider that the only place to fall into the material world is from the spiritual world. Thus they perceive a "contradiction". Actually, with this perception, the "contradiction" they perceive is not only in Srila Prabhupada's writing but also within the Vedas. To put it simply, the perceived contradiction is that if no one falls from the spiritual world, then how are souls falling into the material world?
The root of this perceived contradiction is the mistaken premise is that there is only (1) the spiritual world; and (2) the material world. This dual division is in fact a very immature and crude vision of the Lord's multifarious creation. The acaryas and the Vedas do not propound such a simplistic paradigm. In the Jaiva-dharma, Chapter Thirty-One, Srila Bhaktivinoda elucidates the actual divisions through which a devotee should view the Lord's creation:
"This is an extremely esoteric subject. You already know that Krsna's vibhuti, divine opulence, is divided into four parts. Three parts are displayed in the spiritual world and the remaining one part in the material world. This single part, the domain of the maya-sakti, manifests the entire material cosmos, consisting of the fourteen planetary systems. Between the material world, on one side, and the spiritual world, on the other, a mass of water churns known as the Viraja River. The cit-jagat, spiritual world, is surrounded on all sides by the brilliant peripheral zone known as Brahma-dhama, beyond which, in the paravyoma, spiritual sky, the spiritual planets of Vaikuntha are situated."
Srila Bhaktivinoda thus gives four distinct divisions of creation: (1) the material world; (2) the Viraja, the Casual Ocean; (3) Brahma-dhama, the abode of the brahmajyoti; (4) the Paravyoma, the spiritual sky, wherein the various abodes of the Lord are situated, which culminate in the Goloka planet.
No one, of course, falls from (1) the material world, for that is the already fallen condition. No one falls from (4) the spiritual world, the Paravyoma, for that is the abode of the Lord from where no one falls, as the Vedas and Srila Prabhupada inform above. This leaves (2) and (3). The errant souls fall into the material world from both these places. Having attained (3) Brahma-dhama through impersonal sadhana in the material world, or through being killed by the Lord, souls fall from this region of the brahmajyoti to the material world, for they lack devotion to the Lord. However, this is not their initial fall. The initial fall takes place from (2), the Casual Ocean.
In Jaiva-dharma, Chapter Fifteen, Srila Bhaktivinoda describes three points of origin for the jiva. The jivas manifest (1) from Balaram in Goloka; (2) from Ananta in Vaikuntha; and (3) from Maha-Visnu in the Casual Ocean [See Appendix 2]. Those emanated from Balarama and Ananta-Sesa within the Paravyoma, the spiritual world, never fall for they have "attained the abode of the Lord". However, those emanated by Maha-Visnu within the Casual Ocean are not within the planetary "abodes of the Lord". They are the tatastha-sakti-jivas, who are balanced between the material world and the higher spiritual region, which are on either side of the Casual Ocean. Amongst them, those jivas that choose service to the Lord go directly to the spiritual world and thus never fall. And those jivas that choose service to themselves in rebellion to the Lord's supremacy "fall" to the material world [See Appendix 3]. Thus the initial fall of the tatastha-sakti-jiva is from the Casual Ocean, wherein the tatastha-jiva manifests from Maha-Visnu as an individual soul situated within His brahman effulgence.
When the above paradigm of the creation is understood, then we can see that all Srila Prabhupada's statements concerning the "fall of the jiva" must be related to those jivas either within (2) the Casual Ocean, or (3) within Brahma-dhama, according to their particular context. If these "fall statements" are applied to the jivas within (4) the Paravyoma, the Abode of the Lord, then we will misunderstand and as a result perceive apparent contradictions within the teachings of the Vedas and Srila Prabhupada. A number of persons are obviously in this mistaken condition and are foolishly asserting that the contradictions are caused by Srila Prabhupada statements. Actually, their confusion is rooted in their immature realization based on a poor fund of knowledge. Instead of humbly accepting this lack of knowledge as the cause of the apparent contradiction, they foolishly challenge the authority of the Vedas by declaring that jivas are falling from the transcendental abode of the Lord and compound their misbehavior by then declaring that Srila Prabhupada's teachings are "apparently contradictory".
For the sake of brevity, we have tried to be as concise as possible in this essay. The following appendixes expand and support the matter. However those who are interested in contemplating this interesting point of siddhanta in even more depth are encouraged to read the Jaiva-dharma, particularly the Fifteenth Chapter. Srila Prabhupada recommends the Jaiva-dharma:
"So Bhaktivinoda Thakura happens to be acaryas, one of the acaryas. And he has left behind him many books. Caitanya-siksamrta, Jaiva Dharma. These are very important books."
Srila Prabhupada, London, 9.3.1971
Finally, one should note that those persons who do not accept the conclusions of the acaryas and the Vedas are known as pasandis, atheists. And thus their association should be avoided.
We hope this is found helpful,
Your servant,
Balavidya dasa
Appendix 1
Vedanta-sutra, 4th Adhaya, Pada 4, Adhikarana 11
The Liberated Soul Never Returns
Introduction by Srila Baladeva Vidyabhusana
Now will be explained the truth that the liberated soul has the association of the Supreme Personality of Godhead eternally.
Visaya (the subject to be discussed): All scriptural statements describing the soul's entrance into the spiritual realm of the Supreme Lord are here the subject of discussion.
Samsaya (doubt): Does the liberated soul stay in the spiritual world eternally, or does he not stay there eternally?
Purvapaksa (the opponent speaks): The spiritual world is a place like Svargaloka or any other place. As one may fall down from Svargaloka, so one may also fall down from the spiritual world. Therefore the liberated soul does not necessarily stay in the spiritual world eternally.
Siddhanta (conclusion): In the following words the author of the sutras gives His conclusion.
Sutra 22
anavrttih sabdad anavrttih sabdat
an-without; avrttih-return; sabdat-because of the scriptures.
No return, because of the scriptures. No return, because of the scriptures.
Purport by Srila Baladeva Vidyabhusana
A devotee who faithfully worships and serves the Supreme Lord and then goes to the Lord's spiritual world, never returns. How is that known? The sutra explains, "sabdat" (because of the scriptures). In the Chandogya Upanisad (4.15.6) it is said:
etena pratipadyamana imam manavam avartam navartante
"They who enter the spiritual world never return to the world of men."
In the Chandogya Upanisad (4.15.1) it is said:
sa khalv eva vartayan yavad ayusam brahmalokam abhisampadyate. na ca punar avartate.
"Leaving this life, he enters the spiritual world. He never returns."
In the Bhagavad-gita (8.15 and 16) Lord Krsna declares:
mam upetya punar janma
duhkhalayam asasvatam
napnuvanti mahatmanah
samsiddhim paramam gatah
"After attaining Me, the great souls, who are yogis in devotion, never return to this temporary world, which is full of miseries, because they have attained the highest perfection.*
a-brahma-bhuvanal lokah
punar avartino 'rjuna
mam upetya tu kaunteya
punar janma na vidyate
"From the highest planet in the material world down to the lowest, all are places of misery wherein repeated birth and death take place. But one who attains My abode, O son of Kunti, never takes birth again."*
In the Bhagavad-gita (8.15 and 16) Lord Krsna also declares:
Here someone may express the following fear: Lord Hari is all-powerful, the master of all, perhaps at some point in time He may throw the liberated soul out of the spiritual world. Or perhaps the liberated soul may at some time voluntarily leave the spiritual world.
There is no need to fear in this way, for Lord Krsna has explained in Bhagavad-gita (7.17):
priyo hi jnanino tv artham
aham sa ca mama priyah
"Of these, the wise one who is in full knowledge in union with Me through devotional service is the best. For I am very dear to him, and he is very dear to Me."
Lord Krsna also declares in Srima-Bhagavatam (9.4.68):
sadhavo hrdayam mahyam
sadhunam hrdayam tv aham
"The pure devotee is always in the core of My heart, and I am always in the heart of the pure devotee. My devotees do not know anything else but Me, and I do not know anyone else but them."
In these words the mutual love of the Lord and His devotee is described.
In Srimad-Bhagavatam (9.4.65) Lord Krsna declares:
ye daragara-putraptan
pranan vittam imam param
hitva mam saranam yatah
katham tams tyaktum utsahe
"Since pure devotees give up their homes, wives, children, relatives, riches, and even their lives simply to serve Me, without any material improvement in this life or in the next, how can I give up such devotees at any time?"
In Srimad-Bhagavatam (2.8.6) it is also said:
dhautatma purusah krsna-
pada-mulam na muncati
mukta-sarva-pariklesah
panthah sva-saranam yatha
"A pure devotee of the Lord whose heart has once been cleansed by the process of devotional service never relinquishes the lotus feet of Lord Krsna, for they fully satisfy him, as a traveler is satisfied at home after a troubled journey."
In this way the scriptures explain that the Supreme Personality of Godhead will never abandon His devotee and the devotee will always ardently love the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is always truthful and His desires are always at once fulfilled. He is an ocean of love for they who take shelter of Him. He washes away the ignorance that made His devotees turn from Him. Once He brings back to Himself His dear devotees, who are His parts and parcels, the Supreme Personality of Godhead will not again let them go.
In the same way the individual soul, who had been searching for happiness and who finally has turned from the pathetic, wretched, pale reflection of happiness he had for many births sought in the material world in many ways, and who now, by the mercy of the bona-fide spiritual master has understood the truth of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, of whom he is a part and parcel, who now has no desire apart from the Supreme Lord, who is now purely engaged in devotional service to the Supreme Lord, and who has now attained the Supreme Lord, whose spiritual form is filled with limitless bliss, and who is the merciful friend and master, will never desire to leave such a Lord. In this way the truth is understood from the scriptures. This truth is understood only by taking shelter of the scriptures. The words of the sutra are repeated to indicate the conclusion of the book.
Appendix 2
Jaiva-dharma, Chapter 15
"As Sri Krsna, in Vraja, He brings into existence everything that is fully and wholly spiritual. In Vraja, expanded as Sri Balarama, He generates the nitya-siddha-parsada, the eternally liberated associates and servitors, who execute the eight types of devotional service to Him as Sri Krsna in Vraja. In Vaikuntha, Sri Balarama expands as Saìkarsana, Ananta Sesa, to generate the nitya-siddha-parsada of Sri Narayana who accomplish the eight kinds of service to Him as Sri Narayana in Vaikuntha. Sri Saìkarsana then further expands as Maha Visnu to preside over the maya-sakti. Maha Visnu generates the tatastha-sakti-jivas, borderline potency souls, who are susceptible to the influence of maya, and further expands accepting the form of Paramatma as the heart of the tatastha-sakti-jivas."
Appendix 3
Jaiva-dharma, Chapter Fifteen
In the Brhad-aranyaka Upanisad, 2.2.20, we find:
yathagneh ksudra visphuliìga vyuccaranti evam
evasmad atmanah sarvani bhutani vyuccaranti
"'Just as innumerable sparks cascade out of a flame, similarly, from Sri Krsna, who is the Atma, the Universal Soul, the jivas emanate who are His separated parts and parcels.'
"In another part of the Brhad-aranyaka Upanisad, 4.3.9, we find:
tasya va etasya purusasya dve eva sthane bhavata
idam ca paraloka-sthanam ca sandhyam trtiyam
svapna-sthanam tasmin sandhye sthane tisthan ete
ubhe sthane pasyati idam ca paraloka-sthanam ca
"'The jiva has access to two places, both of which he may seek, this material world and the spiritual realm. He is situated in svapna-sthanam, the dream-like third state, on the margin of these two worlds. From that middle position he is able to see both the material and the spiritual worlds.'
"Further, the following statement from the Brhad-aranyaka, 4.3.18, describes the nature of the marginal position of the jiva:
tad yatha maha matsya ubhe kule'
nusancarati purvam ca param caivam
evayam purusa etav ubhav antav
anusancarati svapnantam ca buddhantam ca
"'The symptoms of the marginal existence are like those of a huge aquatic who is capable of living on both the eastern and western sides of the river at his own will. Similarly, the jiva soul, situated within the waters of the Causal Ocean, which lies between the material and spiritual worlds, is able to reside in both the dream world of matter and the spiritual world of divine wakefulness."
Aum Tat Sat
