Gaudiya Vaishnavism

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Gaudiya Vaishnavism, (Bengal) Vaishnavism, is a Vaishnava religious movement founded by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486-1534). Its philosophical basis is primarily that of the Bhagavad Gita and Bhagavata Purana, as well as other Puranic scriptures and Upanishads such as the Isha Upanishad. The focus of Gaudiya Vaishnavism is the devotional worship (bhakti) of Radha and Krishna, and their many divine incarnations as the supreme forms of God.

Most popularly this worship takes the form of singing Radha and Krishna's holy names, such as 'Hare', 'Krishna' and 'Rama', (most commonly in the form of the Hare Krishna mantra) which is known as kirtan. The movement is sometimes referred to as the Brahma-Madhva-Gaudiya sampradaya referring to its traditional origins in the disciplic succession of spiritual masters (gurus) believed to originate from Brahma. It classifies itself as a monotheistic tradition, seeing the many forms of Vishnu as expansions or incarnations of the one Supreme God.

1 Philosophical concepts
2 History since Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
3 Kheturi
4 The Gaudiya Matha
5 Gaudiya and other Vaishnava schools
6 Notable modern-day personalities
7 Gaudiya Vaishnava organizations
8 See also
9 External links

[edit] Philosophical concepts

[edit] Inconceivable oneness and difference

A particularly distinct part of the Gaudiya Vaishnava philosophy espoused by Caitanya Mahaprabhu is Achintya Bheda Abheda tattva, which translates to inconceivable oneness and difference. In quality, the soul (jiva) is described as being identical to God, but God possesses opulence and powers to an unlimited degree, whereas the soul is infinitesimal in comparison. Thus quantitatively, the soul is different from God. This served as the synthesis of two extremes of Hindu thought, namely pure monism (God and the soul as one entity) and pure dualism (God and the soul as absolutely separate).

[edit] Living beings

It is believed that all living beings are distinct from their current body, and that as a soul they are eternal, immutable and indestructable without any particular begginning or end. <ref> Bhagavad Gita 2.20 </ref> As souls we wander through the various species of life on this planet and others according to the laws of karma, in line with general samsara belief.

[edit] Supreme Person (God)

Krishna is described as the eternal, all-knowing, omnipresent, all-powerful and all-attractive Supreme Person. The seed-giving father of all living beings and the sustaining energy of the universe. He is believed to be the source of all incarnations of God - from the Sanskrit quotation krsnas tu bhagavan svayam <ref>BhaP 1.3.28.</ref> Gaudiya Vaishnava's believe that God has many forms and many names, but that the name Krishna is the 'fullest' description because it means "He who is all-attractive", covering all of God's other aspects such as being all powerful, supremely merciful and all loving. Names of God from other religious traditions such as Allah and Jehovah are also accepted as bonafide titles of the same supreme person.

[edit] Devotional activities

For main article see Bhakti Yoga

The practical process of devotional life is described as bhakti, or bhakti yoga. The two main elements of this are vaidhi bhakti, which is devotional service through practice of rules and regulations; and raganuga bhakti, which is a taken as a higher stage of more spontaneous devotional service based on a selfless desire to please one's chosen deity. Both of these are based heavily around the chanting or singing of Krishna's names

[edit] History since Chaitanya Mahaprabhu

Image:Sankirtan Movement.jpg Over the three centuries following the departure of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition evolved into the form in which we largely find it today in contemporary India. In the early years of the tradition, the followers of Nityananda Prabhu, Advaita Acharya and other companions of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu educated and initiated people, each in their own locales across Bengal.

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu requested a select few among his followers, who later came to be known as the Six Gosvamis of Vrindavan, to systematically present his theology of bhakti in their writings. This theology emphasized the devotee's relationship to the Divine Couple, Radha and Krishna, and looked to Caitanya as the embodiment of both Radha and Krishna. The six saints and theologians were Rupa Gosvami, Sanatana Gosvami, Gopala Bhatta Gosvami, Raghunatha Bhatta Gosvami, Raghunatha dasa Gosvami and Jiva Gosvami, a nephew of the brothers Rupa and Sanatana. In the second generation of the tradition, Narottama, Srinivasa and Shyamananda, three students of Jiva Goswami, the youngest among the six Goswamis, were instrumental in spreading the established theology across Bengal and Orissa.

In the 17th century, Vishwanath Chakravarti Thakur held great merit in clarifying core doctrinal issues over the practice of raganuga-bhakti through works such as Raga-vartma-chandrika. His student Baladeva Vidyabhushan wrote a famous commentary on the Vedanta-sutra called Govinda Bhashya.

The 18th century saw a number of luminaries headed by Siddha Jayakrishna Das Babaji of Kamyavan and Siddha Krishnadas Babaji of Govardhan. The latter, a widely-renowned teacher of the mode of internal worship (raga-bhajan) practiced in the tradition, is largely responsible for the current form of devotional practice embraced by some of the traditions based in Vraja.

[edit] Kheturi

The famous festival of Kheturi, presided over by Jahnava Thakurani, the wife of Nityananda Rama, was the first time the leaders of the various branches of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's followers assembled together. Through such festivals, members of the loosely organized tradition became acquainted with other branches along with their respective theological and practical nuances. That notwithstanding, the tradition has maintained its plural nature, having no central authority to preside over its matters. The festival of Kheturi allowed for the systemitization of Gaudiya Vaishnava Theology as a distinct branch of Vaishnava Theology.

[edit] The Gaudiya Matha

Gaudiya Matha historians assert that in the 17th-18th century, there was a period of general decline in the movement's strength and popularity, followed by a renaissance which began at the start of the 20th century. This change is believed to have happened largely due to the efforts of a particularly adept preacher known as Bhaktivinoda Thakur who also held the position of a deputy magistrate with the British government. Srila Bhaktivinoda's son was later to became known as Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura. The latter was an eminent scholar and preacher who founded sixty-four Gaudiya Matha monasteries in India and abroad.

The leading disciples of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura established their own temples (mathas) after his departure from this mortal world in 1936. This movement was coined as the Saraswata Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition.

The branches of Gaudiya Matha have grown numerous. The best-known branches are:

ISKCON, founded by A.C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

(became known as the 'Hare Krishnas' by many in the West)

Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math of Bhakti Rakshak Sridhar Maharaj
Sri Chaitanya Gaudiya Math of Bhakti Dayita Madhava Maharaja
Gaudiya Vedanta Samiti of Bhakti Prajnana Kesava Maharaja
Sri Gopinath Gaudiya Math of Bhakti Promode Puri Goswami Maharaja
Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mission of Bhakti Vaibhava Puri Goswami Maharaja.

By the end of 20th century, following the pioneering efforts of A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada (ISKCON) all of these societies had established branches in foreign countries and the present-day leaders of these Vaishnava communities are now actively spreading the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition throughout the world.

[edit] Gaudiya and other Vaishnava schools

Image:Prabhupada 03.jpg There are a number of philosophical differences between Gaudiya Vaishnava theology and that of other Vaishnava groups, although from a general perspective their core beliefs are virtually identical. The main points of difference are:

Krishna is seen as the original form of God, the source of Vishnu and not His avatar.

This teaching - shared by Nimbarka and Vallabha sampradayas and opposed by Ramanuja and Madhva - is based most prominently on Bhagavata Purana 1.3.28 (krsnas tu bhagavan svayam), the most important Purana for Gaudiya Vaishnavas, and elaborated on by Jiva Gosvami (one of Six Gosvamis of Vrindavan) in his Krishna sandarbha.

Sri Radha is the adi Shakti of Krishna, the source of all other shaktis including Lakshmi Devi and Durga Devi.
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is the latest incarnation of Krishna to descend in this yuga (age). (Kalki comes in the yuga sandhya at its end.)

Gaudiya Vaishnava Theology is prominently expounded by Jiva Gosvami in his Sat-sandarbhas, six elaborate treatises on various aspects of God. Other prominent Gaudiya Vaishnava theologians are his uncles, Rupa Gosvami and Sanatana Gosvami, Visvanatha Chakravarti and Baladeva Vidyabhushana, author of Govinda Bhashya, a famous commentary on Vedanta Sutra.