gokula - goloka by obl kapoor

8/10/2019 Gokula - Goloka by OBL Kapoor

1/6

BTG

>>> Ref. VedaBase => The Bhakti Viewpoint

Vndvana, the highest paradiseby O.B.. !apoor, "h.#.

O. B. . !apoor, "h.#., has served as $ead of the "hi%osophy#epart&ent and #ean of the 'a()%ty of *rts at B.R. +o%%ege in *gra,ndia, as "rin(ipa% and $ead of the "hi%osophy #epart&ent at !.-.Govern&ent "ostgrad)ate +o%%ege in Varanasi, as "rin(ipa% of theGovern&ent (o%%ege in Ra&p)r, and as a &e&ber of the /e()tive+o)n(i% of *gra 0niversity. $e has been residing in Vndvana sin(e hisretire&ent in 1234 and is engaged at present in writing books and

arti(%es (on(erning the tea(hings of 5n +aitanya 6ahprabh) and $isdis(ip%es. $e was initiated in 1278 by $is #ivine Gra(e 9r: 9r:&adBhaktisiddhnta 5arasvat: "rabh)pda, by whose order Ba(k toGodhead was ;rst estab%ished in 12


2/6

dierent kinds of obKe(ts in the dh&a, whi(h %ook so &)(h %ikepheno&ena% obKe(ts, are trans(endenta% ?(in&[email protected] 5antanaGosv&: Ia great a)thority on the Vedi( s(ript)resN states that ea(hone of the& is (on(entrated Brah&an [email protected] tho)gh ea(h dh&a is in;nite and a%%Dpervading, the dh&as are

said to be sit)ated one above another. 5it)ated above the &)ndanesphere, whi(h is graded into fo)rteen wor%dsthe seven okas andseven "t%asand beyond the River ViraK, is the Brah&a%oka, or5iddha%oka, whi(h is the residen(e of a%% the freed ?&)kta@ so)%s ?+(.6adhya 12.1P7@. *bove the Brah&a%oka is the paravyo&a, where thein;nite avatras, or partia% &anifestations of !Aa, reside, and whi(his the s)pport of in;nite spirit)a% regions (a%%ed Vaik)Qhas ?+(, diP.1P@. *bove a%% these dh&as is !Aa%oka ?!AaMs abode@, whi(h,a((ording to the dieren(es in !AaMs pasti&es ?%:%s@ and asso(iates?parikaras@, appears in three dierent for&sas #vrak, 6ath)r andGok)%a ?+(. di P.17@. Gok)%a, the highest of the three, is a%so (a%%ed

Vndvana be(a)se Vndvana is the (entra% portion of Gok)%a.The sit)ation of the dh&as above or be%ow ea(h other sho)%d not,however, be taken in its %itera% sense. t a(t)a%%y i&p%ies their gradationa((ording to their e/(e%%en(e ?&ahi&@. The e/(e%%en(e of a dh&adepends on the degree to whi(h it &anifests the highest dh&a,Vndvana. Th)s the e/(e%%en(e of 5iddha%oka is greater than thee/(e%%en(e of the pheno&ena% wor%d, the e/(e%%en(e of paravyo&a isgreater than the e/(e%%en(e of 5iddha%oka, the e/(e%%en(e of !Aa%okais greater than the e/(e%%en(e of paravyo&a, and the e/(e%%en(e ofGok)%a is greater than the e/(e%%en(e of a%% the rest of !Aa%oka. Thee/(e%%en(e of Vndvana is the greatest of a%%.

n the g Veda ?1.1P


3/6

d)ring that period in $is &anifest pasti&es ?prakaQaD%:%@ inVndvana.FFndi(ating how !Aa is inseparab%y (onne(ted with Vndvana in $ishighest aspe(t, whi(h f)%%y disp%ays $is sweetness, Rdh, to who&even a &o&entMs separation fro& !Aa is )nbearab%e, is not satis;ed

to ;nd $i& in !)r)kAetra, where $e appears as a king with $isento)rage and not as a (owherd with $is S)te ?+(. 6adhya [email protected] is a%so not satis;ed to ;nd $i& in -avaDvndvana, a rep%i(a ofVndvana spe(ia%%y prepared for $er in #vrak, be(a)se it %a(ks theat&osphere of freedo& and the (har& and gra(e so nat)ra% toVndvana and is therefore not (ond)(ive to the highest b%iss 5he isa(()sto&ed to e/perien(e in the (o&pany of !Aa in Vndvana.t is not s)rprising, therefore, that 0ddhava, the wisest of !Aasasso(iates, Hishes to be a b%ade of grass or a (reeper in Vndvana sothat he &ay be (onse(rated by the d)st of the ho%y feet of the gop:s.FFven the great 9aWkar(rya, who regards the for& and pasti&es of

!Aa as (reations of &y, revea%s a se(ret desire to be in Vndvanaso that he &ay sit on the bank of the a&)n and pass ea(h %ong dayof his %ife in the twink%ing of an eye, &editating on !AaXkad vndraye taraiDtanayDp)yaDp)%ines&aran Er:Dgop%aJ ni&iAa& iva nesy&i divas an?*bhi%AAQaka@The (e%estia% #vrak, 6ath)r and Gok)%a ?Vndvana@ have theirrep%i(as on earth Iin ndiaN in the for&s of the geographi(a% #vrak,6ath)r and Vndvana, whi(h are known as their prakaQaDprakEas,or &anifest for&s. These appear as parts of the pheno&ena% wor%d too)r (%o)ded vision, b)t are in essen(e identi(a% with their +e%estia%

(o)nterparts. $ere a%so !Aa is eterna%%y present with -anda, aEodand $is other asso(iates and perfor&s $is pasti&es with the& as inthe (e%estia% #vrak, 6ath)r and Vndvana. f we (o)%d see the&with spirit)a% eyes, they wo)%d witho)t a do)bt appear in their tr)efor& ?+(. di P.8YD81@. ven today, whi%e staying in these very abodesand in their very bodies, the devotees who attain a((o&p%ish&ent?siddhvasth@ in devotion are b%essed with the vision of the divinepasti&es of !Aa with $is asso(iatesU s)(h devotees need not betransported to any other abode or %eve% of e/isten(e. Hhen !Aades(ends to these abodes, however, at the ti&e of $is &anifestpasti&es ?prakaQaDprakEa@, even those who are not devoted (an see

these pasti&es in their tr)e for&. 5)(h is the ee(t of the divine to)(hof !Aa with these abodes, whi(h otherwise appear pheno&ena%.Besides the &anifest for&s of !Aa%oka, there is a%so an )n&anifestfor& of it on earth that has the pe()%iar power of a%ways re&aininginvisib%eU it re&ains on earth witho)t to)(hing it. Th)s there are twoaprakaQaDprakEas ?)n&anifest for&s@ of !Aa%oka. One is the!Aa%oka sit)ated above paravyo&a, whi(h is (a%%ed by vario)sna&esX Go%oka, Gok)%a, 9vetadv:pa, VraKa%oka or Vndvana. The


4/6

other is the invisib%e !Aa%oka sit)ated on earth, whi(h is dierentfro& the prpaZ(ika, the pheno&ena% !Aa%oka visib%e to o)r &ateria%eyes and a(t)a%%y to)(hing the earth. t is a%so (a%%ed Gok)%a or VraKa.RCpa Gosv&: states in agh)Dbhgavat&ta ?1.844.4[@ that Go%okais a &aKesti( &anifestation ?vaibhavaDprakEa@ of Gok)%a, whi(h is

essentia%%y sweet in appearan(e and therefore greater in e/(e%%en(e. *san instan(e of the &aKesty ?vaibhava@ of Go%oka, he (ites the Varha")ra, whi(h says that the kada&ba trees of Go%oka spread o)t&aKesti(a%%y with their h)ndreds of bran(hes, whi(h is K)st in keepingwith its aiEvarya ?op)%en(e@, whi%e the kada&ba trees of Gok)%a are&edi)&Dsi\ed, whi(h is in keeping with its &dh)rya ?sweetness@. *spe(ia% reason why Gok)%a e/(e%s Go%oka in sweetness is that in Go%oka!Aa is present eterna%%y witho)t birth, on a((o)nt of whi(h $ispasti&es in Go%oka dier in (ertain respe(ts fro& the sweet h)&anaspe(t in whi(h they revea% the&se%ves in the pheno&ena% Gok)%a.Brah&aDsaJhit des(ribes the pasti&es of Vndvana as naraD%:%

?&an%ike pasti&es@ and those of Go%oka as devaD%:% ?God%ikepasti&es@. This theory is s)pported by the rsa dan(e in Go%oka, whi(h!Aa is said in BhadDbhgavat&ta to have perfor&ed on the headof !%iya -aga, the tho)sandDheaded (obra, a%tho)gh there is no&ention of this in the Bhgavata&.*((ording to L:va Gosv&: a%so ?Gop%aD(a&pC, "CrvaDkha]a, 12@,Go%oka is the &aKesti( &anifestation of Vndvana. $e des(ribesVndvana as the inner side ^^?antarD&a]a%a@ of Go%oka, and Go%okaas the o)ter side ?bahirD&a]a%a@ of Vndvana. B)t they are not theo)ter and inner side of ea(h other in the physi(a% sense, for it ispossib%e to see Go%oka in Vndvana ?be(a)se Go%oka is the &aKesti(

&anifestation of Vndvana@ b)t not possib%e to see Vndvana inGo%oka ?!AaDsandarbha, 113@. *((ording to RCpa and L:va, ?BhaktiDras&taDsindh), T:k 1.


5/6

1. *%tho)gh 5antana Gosv&: regards Go%oka and Vndvana asidenti(a%, it is (%ear fro& his Q:k on BhadDbhgavat&ta ?8, P, 4[D42@ that Vndvana is the &ar&aDtarJEa of Go%oka, or the part ofGo%oka that s)persedes the who%e in e/(e%%en(e.8. 5antana a%so ad&its that the e/(e%%en(e of the pheno&ena% VraKa

e/(eeds the e/(e%%en(e of Go%oka at the ti&e of the &anifest pasti&es?prakaQaD%:%@ of !Aa.FF7. *%tho)gh RCpa and L:va regard Go%oka as the &aKesti( &anifestationof Vndvana, L:va see&s to regard the& as essentia%%y identi(a%. $eestab%ishes their identity by referring to the go%oka eva nivasati te/tof Brah&aDsaJhit and the tatraiva ra&arthe hi nityaDk%aJ saga((hati te/t of the di ")ra, one of whi(h says that !Aa a%waysstays in Go%oka and the other that $e a%ways stays in the pheno&ena%Vndvana, and by saying that the (ontradi(tion between the& (an bereso%ved on%y if the two are regarded as a(t)a%%y one and the sa&e. nanswer to a _)estion regarding the $ariDvaJEaMs &ention of 9r:

!AaMs %ifting Govardhana $i%% in Go%oka, he (%ear%y states that sin(eGo%oka and Gok)%a are identi(a%, a pasti&e that took p%a(e in Gok)%a(an a%ways be &entioned in referen(e to Go%oka.FF


6/6

a%tho)gh in the pheno&ena% Vndvana $e takes birth and grad)a%%yattains boyhood.The vera(ity of the (%ai& that the pheno&ena% Vndvana, whi(h %ooks%ike any other part of the &ateria% wor%d to o)r &ateria% eyes, is itse%fthe spirit)a% Vndvana, the highest abode, s)rpassing even Go%oka in

its e/(e%%en(e, &ay be _)estioned. B)t 9r: +aitanya and $is fo%%owersare ever so e&phati( in their state&ents abo)t its trans(endenta%(hara(ter. 9r: RCpa Gosv&: says that devotees who have ardent %ovefor !Aa are even today b%essed with a vision of $is divine pasti&esin this very Vndvana. 5antana Gosv&: says that Vndvana ishere on earth and !AaMs )n&anifest pasti&es are going on in it evennow, b)t none e/(ept those to who& $e and $is devotees are kind (ansee it. "rabodhnanda 5arasvat: des(ribes how he a(t)a%%y sees thisVndvana in its rea% for& with a%% its trans(endent bea)ty ande/(e%%en(eXaho sarvoparyati vi&a%aDvist:raD&dh)ryaD

sph)ra(D(andraDpryaJ sph)rati &a&a vndvana& ida&Oh, this Vndvana of &ine, stationed above every other abode` $owit shines near &e %ike a big &oon in a%% its resp%endent bea)ty`?Vndvana&ahi&&ta,

gokula - goloka by obl kapoor

Documents