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Gaudiya Vaishnavism
Gaudiya Vaishnavism (IAST: Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavasampradāyaḥ), also known as Chaitanya Vaishnavism, is a Vaishnava Hindu religious movement inspired by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486–1534) in India. "Gaudiya" refers to the Gaura or Gauḍa region of Bengal (present-day Malda district of West Bengal and Rajshahi district of Bangladesh), with Vaishnavism meaning "the worship of Vishnu". Specifically, it is part of Krishnaism–Krishna-centric Vaishnavite traditions.
Its theological basis is primarily that of the Bhagavad Gita and Bhagavata Purana (known within the tradition as the Srimad Bhagavatam), as interpreted by early followers of Chaitanya, such as Sanatana Goswami, Rupa Goswami, Jiva Goswami, Gopala Bhatta Goswami and others.
The focus of Gaudiya Vaishnavism is the devotional worship (known as bhakti yoga) of Radha and Krishna, and their many divine incarnations as the supreme forms of God, Svayam Bhagavan. 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), also known as kirtan and dancing along with it.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Bengal became the center of a Hindu religious awakening and Gaudiya Vaishnavism influenced or served as the basis for some of its new religious movements, such as the Gaudiya Math, from which institutions with international projection were derived, such as the Gaudiya Mission and the well-known International Society for Krishna Consciousness, more often called the "Hare Krishna Movement". Ferdinando Sardella estimates there are about 30 to 50 million adherents of Gaudiya Vaishnavism, concentrated mostly in the regions of Orissa, Manipur, West Bengal and Bangladesh.
According to Gaudiya Vaishnava philosophy, consciousness is not a product of matter, but is instead a manifestation of the soul. All living beings (jivas), including animals and trees, have a soul. That soul is distinct from their current physical body – the nature of the soul being eternal, immutable, and indestructible without any particular birth or death. The soul does not die when the body dies, but it is transmigrated into another new body and takes new birth in a new body. Souls which are captivated by the illusory nature of the world (Maya) are repeatedly reborn among 8.4 million species of life on this planet and in other worlds in accordance to the laws of karma and individual desire. This is consistent with the concept of samsara found in Hindu, Sikh and Buddhist beliefs.
Release from the process of samsara (known as moksha) is believed to be achievable through a variety of spiritual practices, and in general, is the ultimate aim in life. However, within Gaudiya Vaishnavism, it is bhakti in its purest state (or "pure love of God") which is given as the ultimate aim, rather than liberation from the cycle of rebirth. Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition asserts that in the current yuga, which is Kali Yuga, singing and chanting the various sacred names of God (Krishna) are sufficient for spiritual liberation.
One of the defining aspects of Gaudiya Vaishnavism is that Krishna is worshiped specifically as the source of all avataric incarnations of God.[citation needed] Theologians refer to verse 1.3.28 of the Bhagavata Purana, "krsnastu bhagavan svayam", literally "Krishna is God Himself" to point to Krishna as the Supreme Being. Jiva Gosvami calls this phrase the "paribhasha-sutra" (definitive rule) of the theology of the Gaudiya Vaishnava school and a mahavakya (governing proposition).
A particularly distinct part of the Gaudiya Vaishnava philosophy espoused by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is the concept of Achintya Bheda Abheda, which translates to "inconceivable oneness and difference" in the context of the soul's relationship with Krishna, and also Krishna's relationship with his other energies (i.e. the material world).
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Gaudiya Vaishnavism
Gaudiya Vaishnavism (IAST: Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavasampradāyaḥ), also known as Chaitanya Vaishnavism, is a Vaishnava Hindu religious movement inspired by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486–1534) in India. "Gaudiya" refers to the Gaura or Gauḍa region of Bengal (present-day Malda district of West Bengal and Rajshahi district of Bangladesh), with Vaishnavism meaning "the worship of Vishnu". Specifically, it is part of Krishnaism–Krishna-centric Vaishnavite traditions.
Its theological basis is primarily that of the Bhagavad Gita and Bhagavata Purana (known within the tradition as the Srimad Bhagavatam), as interpreted by early followers of Chaitanya, such as Sanatana Goswami, Rupa Goswami, Jiva Goswami, Gopala Bhatta Goswami and others.
The focus of Gaudiya Vaishnavism is the devotional worship (known as bhakti yoga) of Radha and Krishna, and their many divine incarnations as the supreme forms of God, Svayam Bhagavan. 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), also known as kirtan and dancing along with it.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Bengal became the center of a Hindu religious awakening and Gaudiya Vaishnavism influenced or served as the basis for some of its new religious movements, such as the Gaudiya Math, from which institutions with international projection were derived, such as the Gaudiya Mission and the well-known International Society for Krishna Consciousness, more often called the "Hare Krishna Movement". Ferdinando Sardella estimates there are about 30 to 50 million adherents of Gaudiya Vaishnavism, concentrated mostly in the regions of Orissa, Manipur, West Bengal and Bangladesh.
According to Gaudiya Vaishnava philosophy, consciousness is not a product of matter, but is instead a manifestation of the soul. All living beings (jivas), including animals and trees, have a soul. That soul is distinct from their current physical body – the nature of the soul being eternal, immutable, and indestructible without any particular birth or death. The soul does not die when the body dies, but it is transmigrated into another new body and takes new birth in a new body. Souls which are captivated by the illusory nature of the world (Maya) are repeatedly reborn among 8.4 million species of life on this planet and in other worlds in accordance to the laws of karma and individual desire. This is consistent with the concept of samsara found in Hindu, Sikh and Buddhist beliefs.
Release from the process of samsara (known as moksha) is believed to be achievable through a variety of spiritual practices, and in general, is the ultimate aim in life. However, within Gaudiya Vaishnavism, it is bhakti in its purest state (or "pure love of God") which is given as the ultimate aim, rather than liberation from the cycle of rebirth. Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition asserts that in the current yuga, which is Kali Yuga, singing and chanting the various sacred names of God (Krishna) are sufficient for spiritual liberation.
One of the defining aspects of Gaudiya Vaishnavism is that Krishna is worshiped specifically as the source of all avataric incarnations of God.[citation needed] Theologians refer to verse 1.3.28 of the Bhagavata Purana, "krsnastu bhagavan svayam", literally "Krishna is God Himself" to point to Krishna as the Supreme Being. Jiva Gosvami calls this phrase the "paribhasha-sutra" (definitive rule) of the theology of the Gaudiya Vaishnava school and a mahavakya (governing proposition).
A particularly distinct part of the Gaudiya Vaishnava philosophy espoused by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is the concept of Achintya Bheda Abheda, which translates to "inconceivable oneness and difference" in the context of the soul's relationship with Krishna, and also Krishna's relationship with his other energies (i.e. the material world).