The history of the
world is fraught with wars, few of which like the 'Hundred years war' between
the English and French and the Holy Crusades had lasted for many decades. Some
of these wars, like the struggle for power between Babylonians, Greeks and the
Persians, had even continued over many centuries. However, all of these wars pale in comparison
in terms of their longevity with another 'war' that has been going on for over
many millennium. It is the war between the 'heart' (emotion) and 'head'
(rational) for dominance over the matters of the soul in the spiritual world.
Both sides have taken turns to dominate
for some time with neither managing to
record a conclusive victory. While the philosophers have declared 'I think, therefore I am', the
devout have roared back, 'I love. Therefore
I am' ( though not in exact these same words). Interestingly, this 'war' had
been fought both in the western and oriental world approximately during the
same time period.
During the final
centuries of BCE, philosophy had
dominated the realm of religion. For the
philosopher, God was an abstract entity
devoid of any worldly qualities including human nature and emotions. We see
this in the philosophy of Plato, the Buddhist concept of 'emptiness', the Tao
of Lao Tsu from China and the Vedic
concept of 'Brahman'. The pathway to God realization was through learning,
understanding, reflecting, meditating and abstaining from worldly engagements. The schools of
philosophy that emanated at the time in India, the likes of Sāmkhya, Nyāya ,Vaiseshika
etc. were also of this viewpoint.
But then, there was
another common, human phenomenon - Love -
that also was also abstract and beyond definition. One may be tempted to
quickly say that 'Love' is an emotion. Think again, is it? Love is instinctive
and one knows when it is present and when it is not, whether expressed or
unexpressed. 'Love' appears to happen in the soul and its awareness. And,
without love, life may exist but it cannot be intelligent or know joy.
Spiritual masters
who had realized the ultimate had never become devoid of love. Vālmiki in
Rāmāyana was perturbed by the plight of a bird whose companion was killed by a
hunter. Gautama Buddha was extremely
compassionate about the sufferings of people. Even the Rishis of Upanishads who
have expounded on the 'Nirguna Parabrahman'
have not depicted God as insensitive to the world. In the Kena Upanishad
where the Brahman is defined as a principle beyond human comprehension, there
is a metaphorical story of Brahman appearing in the form of an Yaksha to correct the boisterous Deva clan who were
celebrating their victory over their rival, the Asura clan. In the Chāndogya
Upanishad, the Brahman which is described to be abstract is also metaphorically
described as the 'Golden Purusha in the Sun'. However, it is also very clear
that the God of the Upanishads was certainly not one who would want to
continuously meddle with the ways of the world.
The Biblical God of
Jewish religion, Jehovah, is as human in
nature as one could imagine a God to be. He is envious, punishing, partisan and
demands sacrifices. Jesus Christ changed the understanding of this all-powerful,
angry God to the loving figure of 'Father in the Heaven', who was both
benevolent and merciful. The God of
Christianity became the single, 'creator' God who had condemned humanity for
its 'original sin' but then begotten a
son, Jesus, to offer humanity the
opportunity for redemption. Over a period of time, 'Love' has come to be
central to Christianity than its theology.
The Greeks had
started with the idea that Gods are heroes who accomplish great deeds. These
Gods slew monsters, fought in wars and
intervened in human life to support those who cared for them and made life
difficult for others. Reading through Homer's tales, one may wonder what
exactly is the 'Godliness' in most of them! Being a "God' on Mount Olympus
was more like a privileged existence. With the advent of philosophy in the
later periods, through the likes of
Plato and Aristotle, there was a much better refinement to the concept of God
in Greek civilization. Again, like their Indian counterparts, the philosophers
of Greece and Rome also struggled to fit 'love' into the fold of an abstract
entity that God was.
In the western
world, the first religious leader who effectively combined the rationalism of
philosophical thinking with 'love', was
St. Augustine who lived in the 4th century CE. St. Augustine had transformed
himself from a loosely led life by effectively integrating the thoughts of
religious leaders like St. Paul and philosophers like Plato. St. Augustine's
contributions were also instrumental in establishing the theological foundation
for Christianity. During the same time In India, the devotional stream of
religion had cut a parallel course to the schools of philosophy. Some of it, as
in the Puranas, had followed a path similar to the Greek, where the Gods were
heroes who accomplished many deeds, mostly ensuring a win for good over evil.
It is interesting to note that most of
these purānic Gods were worshipped but not really 'loved'. The Ithihāsas like
Maha Bhāratha and Rāmāyana had introduced the concept of God taking a human
form and living a human life. Building up further on this, another parallel
stream, that of Vaishnavites, had followed a path similar to early
Christianity, establishing a single creator God in Lord Vishnu, who was all-powerful, benevolent and
compassionate. Similar thought process led to the advent of Saivites who
believed this single, powerful God to be Lord Shiva as also the Sākteyas who
considered the female Devi to be the primordial, benevolent, all-powerful God.
India had to wait
until 9th century CE to get an equivalent of St. Augustine. Adi Sankara was the
first religious leader in Hindu religion to effectively integrate the
philosophy of Vedanta with six different Bhakti movements that had become
predominant during his time. Adi Sankara, through the campaign of debates he
did across India, also effectively
reduced the influence of many schools of philosophy. After Adi Sankara's time, the only schools of
philosophy that remained significantly influential were Vedanta and Yoga. Adi
Sankara composed many hymns, that expounded poetically on devotion and love. My
favorite is his hymn on the River Ganga which is musical, poetic and beautiful
in its expressions of love, affection and regard.
In the Hindu religion, the God who is adored most is probably Lord Rama while the God who is loved most is undoubtedly Lord Sree Krishna. Worship of Vāsudeva Krishna
supposedly dates back into BCEs. But the widespread popularity and following
probably happened post 8th century. What
is unique about Lord Sree Krishna is that he is worshiped as a God in many
forms corresponding to his life stages; as a toddler, child, young adult, youth and middle aged. It will take
volumes to write comprehensively on who and what Sree Krishna was.It is also extremely difficult
to write even one sentence on what he was not. The oceanic poetry of Sant
Sur Das, thousands of verses of Srimad Bhagavatam and the romantic lyrics of Sree Jayadeva
together feel incomplete in depicting all dimensions of Sree Krishna's
mystifying personality. Through Bhagawad Gita, Sree Krishna has offered a means to live a balanced spiritual life
combining rational thinking, active living, devotion, love and compassion.
Let's remember and offer our pranams once again to him on this day of Sree
Krishna Jayanthi.
As the Bhakti
movement gained momentum in India during the 10 thru 15th Century CE, there was
an explosion in temple building all across India. And, the means of worship
also evolved becoming more and more social and community focused. There was
also the pressing need in the intellectual circles to reconcile philosophical
thinking and Bhakti. As a result were born the
Dhvaita school of philosophy of Sri Mādhwachārya followed by the
Visishtādvaita philosophy of Sri Rāmanuja. (More on this, later). There was
also the influence of Sufi practices that followed the Islamic invasions after
the 10th century CE, which resulted in a different stream of Bhakti
practitioners of the like Chaitanya Mahāprabhu in the Eastern regions of India.
This trend of Bhakti's domination in the society's mainstream continued until
the 19th century CE when Swami Vivekananda turned the tide once again towards
rational thinking and Vedānta.
Today, our
generation is in a uniquely advantageous position to understand the value and
purpose of Bhakti (devotion) and Gnāna (knowledge). Success in spiritual life
awaits those who are able to effectively utilize and balance both Bhakti and
Gnāna, the practice of which Lord Sree Krishna calls as Buddhi Yoga.
