Visions of God in Creed of International Society for Krishna Consciousness

International Journal of Future Generation Communication and Networking Vol. 12, No. 5, 2019 pp.61-67

VISIONS OF GOD IN CREED OF INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY FOR KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS

Denis Alexandrovich Lesnyansky

Graduate student. Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Sociology. Transbaikal State University, Chita, Russia. Address: 672039, Russia, Chita, Alexandro-zavodskaya street, 30,

Tatyana Vladimirovna Bernyukevich

Professor, Transbaikal State University. Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Sociology Transbaikal State University, Chita, Russia. Address: 672039, Russia, Chita, Alexandro- zavodskaya street, 30, telephone: +7(3022) 320301, professor, National Research Moscow State University of Civil Engineering. Moscow, Russia.

Artem Vadimovich Zhukov

Professor, Transbaikal State University. Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Sociology Transbaikal State University, Chita, Russia. Address: 672039, Russia, Chita, Alexandro zavodskaya street, 30,

Abstract The subject of research is the image of the Hindu Lord Krishna in terms of the creed of the NRM “The International Society for Krishna Consciousness”. The disclosure of the interpretation of the phenomenon under study is the goal of this work. In their study, the authors rely on the method of a philosophical analysis of texts containing the basic principles of the creed of the followers of the ISKCON. The results of the work consist of revealing the essence of the interpretation of the image of Lord Krishna. As part of a study, the authors analysed the meaning of the name “Krishna”, as well as other names of God from the point the theology of Neokrishnavism. A detailed analysis of the image of Krishna revealed the attitude of the followers of the ISKCON to his personality. The authors conclude that the doctrinal provisions of the ISKCON developed a detailed teaching about Krishna as a God and the main object of veneration, including many of the qualities attributed to God in other religions, which the founder of the ISKCON Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada explains to followers of different religions by faith in one God, thereby reflecting ecumenical views. Keywords: The International Society for Krishna Consciousness; new religious movements; Krishna; Neokrishnavism; Neohinduism; religious visions; religious personalities.

Introduction The concept of God is central in most religions and religious movements, monotheistic and polytheistic. Only in some religions, God appears as an impersonal force or energy, but in most religions, God is a person and often appears anthropomorphic. In Christianity, this is because, according to the Bible, a man was created in the image and likeness of God. However, if religious scholars and theologians sufficiently studied the ideas of the God and Gods of traditional religions, the images of the Gods of the new religious movements require equally careful study. In the creed of the new religious movement “International society of Krishna consciousness” (hereinafter the ISKCON), God Krishna has many traits and qualities that he does not possess in the creed of traditional Hinduism. Several scientists considered the image of Krishna in their works not only from the ISKCON creed but also in terms of traditional Hinduism, which allows us to discern the evolution of the image of Krishna from the tribal deity of shepherds to the avatar of Vishnu, one of the Gods of the Hindu Pantheon. At the same time, one should note that Vishnu is one of the Trimurti Brahma-Vishnu-Shiva, is especially esteemed only in Vishnu cults; while in Brahmanism and Shaivism, Brahma and Shiva have primacy. Besides, in the ISKCON creed, the position regarding avatars is the opposite. Since Krishna is called the “Supreme Personality of Godhead”, the avatar of Krishna considers Vishnu and

ISSN: 2233-7857 IJFGCN Copyright ©2019 SERSC 61 International Journal of Future Generation Communication and Networking Vol. 12, No. 5, 2019 pp.61-67 that conflict with traditional Hindu beliefs. Since this study is based on the views of the ISKCON, Krishna is viewed from the perspective of the followers of this NRM, who fully shares the opinion of the founder and author of the doctrine of the ISKCON, Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Materials and techniques Relying on the method of a philosophical analysis of the ISKCON literature, which contains the main doctrinal provisions of this NRM, allows us to analyse in detail the image of Krishna in terms of the doctrine of this NRM dictated by his perception by the Acharya-founder, whose works served as the main material for research. Literature review The image of Krishna and his role in religious both new and traditional associations has been the subject of research by various scholars. F. B. Edwin [13] in his works considers Krishna as a traditional Hindu deity, K. K. Klostermeier [16], M. B. Singer and D. H. Ingalls [21], as well as D. D. Hudson and M. H. Case [15]. From such standpoints, studies are interesting where the image of Krishna is traced in the history of traditional Indian art culture. In particular, these are the studies of V. G. Archer [1], S. K. Bhattacharya [12], M. L. Varadpande [23]. Several researchers also consider the evolution of the image of Krishna depending on the historical period, as, for example, V. K. Mahoney [18], as well as depending on the region of confession of traditional Hinduism, which is devoted to the study of G. L. Beck [2]. F. Matchett [19] in his work covers the problem of the relationship between the avatars of Vishnu and Krishna, the writing contains an analysis of such texts of Sanskrit literature as Harivamsha, Vishnu Purana and Bhagavata Purana. The academic’s works directly or indirectly related to the ISKCON contributed greatly to the study of the image of Krishna. For example, the study of K. R. Valpi [22] is devoted to the issue of coverage of the image of Krishna in the teachings of Caitanya, on which the ISKCON creed developed by Swami Prabhupada is largely based on. C. S. J. White [24] analyzed the image of Krishna in the writings of Vallabha Shri Vallabhacharya, a philosopher of the XV – XVI centuries, a supporter of Vishnu views. The work of S. J. Rosen [20] focuses on the comparison of the image of Krishna in traditional Hinduism and the ISKCON creed. The views of several scientists (H. Cox, L. D. Shinn, T. J. Hopkins, A. L. Basham, Shrivatsa Gosvami) on the ISKCON and Krishna's place in it are collected and analyzed in S. J. Gelberg [14]. Results and discussion The most important attribute of God in the creed of the ISKCON is that he calls himself “Sanatanam” [4, p. 354-355]. According to the definition of Shripada Ramanujacarya, “Sanatana” means “eternal”, “one who has neither beginning nor end.” There is a similar concept of God in Christianity when God proclaims, “I am alpha and omega.”Thus, in Krishnavism, God is the eternal source of all that exists, while he does not decrease either qualitatively or quantitatively, although all living things that come from him are identical to him in qualitative terms, different in quantity like sparks separated from bonfire [8, p. 51-52]. Of note is the fact that God in the ISKCON creed is a person,but not an invisible force. Swami Prabhupada approves that Hinduism is based on the personal concept of God Vishnu. The impersonal concept of God is a secondary notion and one of the divine aspects. However, the Absolute Truth is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, because the concept of Paramatma (the Supreme Soul) is a localized aspect of the ubiquity of God, and the impersonal concept is an aspect of his eternity and greatness. Nevertheless, they all form a single whole [11, p. 125]. God, in the ISKCON creed, namely the “Supreme Personality of Godhead”is consideredKrishna. It is the “personality” of God because from the standpoint of Neohinuism God cannot beneither impersonal, not an impersonal force. From traditional Hinduism, Krishna is one of the deities of the Hindu Pantheon, the avatar of God Vishnu. However, in Krishnaism, Krishna is considered the Supreme God, the main incarnation of Vishnu, because his most important qualities entirely translated intohis avatar. Moreover, in the Bhagavad-Gita, Krishna reveals his universal form. At the same time, Vishnu, Brahma and Shiva together constitute the Trinity of the main Gods (Trimurti) in traditional Hinduism. They symbolize the guardian, the creator and the destroyer of all things, respectively. Besides, the importance of any of them is not at all diminished. However, it is worth noting that Hinduism has many branches according to the object of worship. That is why there are Vishnuism, Brahmanism, Shaivism and many other branches. Thus, traditional Krishnaism originates from Vishnuism, as Krishna is considered the avatar of Vishnu as well as the deity Rama. Therefore, the

Maha-mantra (great mantra) hare Krishna, the main mantra of the ISKCON creed, is revered in traditional Hinduism as it contains the names of the two avatars of the God Vishnu-Krishna and Rama. Krishna appears to the believer as a beautiful young man with blue skin. Such an anthropomorphic image is related to his need to come to the material world as a human being, but the human body does not limit Krishna as a God. In the Bhagavad-Gita, Krishna says, “Fools mock Me when I descend into this world in human form. They do not know that My nature is transcendent and I have Supreme power over all things” [4, p. 432]. In addition to Krishna, the followers of the ISKCON worship Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu, who is considered one of the avatars of God, who appeared about five hundred years ago [11, pp. 204-205]. The Vaishnavas believe that Caitanya was an incarnation of Krishna and, as a devotee of Krishna, worshipped himself. In the Bhagavad-Gita, Krishna says, “Whenever I appear in this world, My mission is to liberate pious devotees and destroy demons.” Krishna himself has conquered many demons in his life. His other avatar, Vishnu, is depicted with the mace and the discus for destroying demons, as well as the conch and thelotus flower. San-Kirtanserved Caitanyafor this purpose, a movement that he initiated. The ISKCON devotees believe that through San-Kirtan, the joint chanting of the names of God, Caitanya destroyed the demonic way of thinking of people. Therefore, Caitanyawas always depicted in the company of singing companions: Nityananda, Advaita, Gadadhara and Shrivasa. Their names, along with those of Krishna and Caitanya, are mentioned in the preamble to the Maha-mantra. Shrila Prabhupada also regarded Jesus Christ as one of the avatars of Krishna, who came to this world to give Vedic knowledge to people in another territory and through suffering on the cross took on all the sins of mankind [7, p. 63]. The image and name of Jesus Christ are often mentioned in the religious literature of the ISKCON and the preceptors' sermons. The Krishnas accept the historical fact of the existence of Christ and the events described in the Bible.It teaches the love of God, is the main lifegoal of humans, according to the followers of the ISKCON. The Vaishnavas acknowledge Christ as the representative of God and worship him. “Therefore we bow before the Lord Jesus Christ and offer him our respectful obeisance” [11, p. 155]. Based on the thesis that God is not different from his qualities and his son, Prabhupada concludes that Jesus Christ appears not only as a prophet but also as one of the avatars of Vishnu. He says, “Christ Consciousness is Krishna consciousness” [11, p. 29]. Besides, Jesus Christ is revered as a true guru, because the real preacher of God-consciousness has two qualities-tolerance and compassion. Being a real guru, Christ was a pure Vaishnava (“servant of the Lord”) and went for the crucifixion to relieve people from suffering, because a Vaishnava feels miserable when he sees other living things suffering. Speaking about the image of Jesus Christ, Shrila Prabhupada does not insist on the spiritual practices of Krishnaism, performed by the followers of the ISKCON (Japa meditation, kirtan, san-kirtan), but mentions that Christianity is one of the ways of bhakti or loving service to God, provided that all the requirements outlined in the gospel are strictly fulfilled [17, pp. 117-129]. The mention of Jesus Christ in the creed of the ISKCON testifies to the positive attitude to the creed of Christianity, which, like the Vedic teaching, contributes to the spiritual development of man. Probably, having arisen in the USA, the ISKCON needed information that was understandable to a Western audience, as well as proof of the peaceful coexistence and conflict-free nature of Christianity and Nekrishnaism. That is why the image of Christ, as the closest for a European and an American, is more often used to confirm some of Shrila Prabhupada's separate statements, in his evidence to rely on an authoritative historical figure, revered in many countries not only by Christians but also by representatives of other faiths. The notions“Christ” and “Krishna” seem to the founder Acarya to be similar or variants of the pronunciation of the same word, which, in his opinion, confirms the fact that Jesus Hritsos was an avatar of Krishna [11, pp. 145-146]. This statement is quite controversial, like many others concerning the semantics and etymology of some words. For example, even though the word “Krishna” in Sanskrit translates as “black”, “dark”, “dark blue”, Shrila Prabhupada insists on the translation“all-attractive”;as well asGod has no name, he is called by his qualities. He claims that by saying that God has no name, religious people mean that no one knows how many names he has because God is endless, that is why the number of his names must be unlimited as well.For this reason, it is impossible to dwell on any one name. God and his devotees have various relationships, and his names reflect those relationships. For example, he may be called Yashoda-Nandana or Devaki-Nandana (son of Yashoda or Devaki), Partha- Sarathi (Arjuna's charioteer, who is called Partha). The limitless of the names of Godis connected with

ISSN: 2233-7857 IJFGCN Copyright ©2019 SERSC 63 International Journal of Future Generation Communication and Networking Vol. 12, No. 5, 2019 pp.61-67 the infinity of the number of his devotees, but being an all-attractive God, he should be called "Krishna" [11, p. 38-39]. Prabhupada notes that God must be omnipotent, beautiful, wise, powerful, and famous. As a trickster character, Krishna in his youth was a cheat and teased Gopi, so cheating and cheating originated in this world, as he is the source of everything in this world, although Krishna's cheating Prabhupada considers absolute good [7, p. 9-10]. For the same reason, Krishna is considered the greatest scientist, because, being a God, he knows everything and only he alone has perfect knowledge. Note that Prabhupada does not always have a positive attitude towards scientific knowledge.Since many theories, for example, about the origin of the Universe or life on Earth, have not been confirmed.On the other hand, he considers the fact that old cells are replaced with new ones in a living organism to be a confirmation of his assertion that every day a person receives a new body into which his soul moves, so people are born and die millions of times [6, p. 80-81].The adaptation of controversial and confirmed scientific theories to their creed can be traced in almost all Shrila Prabhupada's books, along with the rejection of those scientific facts and theories that contradict his views. Therefore, Shrila Prabhupada recommends receiving knowledge from the Vedas because Krishna was the source of all Vedic knowledge. Krishna is also a God in the dogma of the ISKCON because he is considered a source of energy in the material world. Most processes in living organisms occur with the participation of ATP molecules energy. The beginning of it is laid in the process of photosynthesis that occurs in plant cells containing chlorophyll when they accumulate solar energy. Shrila Prabhupada combines this scientific knowledge with the words of Krishna quoted in the Bhagavad-gita: “Water, earth, air, fire are all my energies,” thus proving to his followers the fact that the bodies of all living organisms are the living energy of Krishna. Also, there is a belief that the Murti (the image of a deity), which is worshipped in a temple or at home, is filled with his energy and is Krishna himself, not different from him [7, p. 16-19]. Thus, Shrila Prabhupada is trying to explain that the energy is not different from its source, and Krishna is not qualitatively different from what it fills. Swami Prabhupada proves the existence of God and his energies by how rationally the material world is structured, how exactly and in time the sun rises and sets, providing life on the planet. Therefore, he condemns the Mayavadis who claim that nature acts on its own and not due to the will of a powerful and intelligent person [5, p. 43]. Prabhupada compares Krishna and his energy as fire and heat from the fire, which one can feel without touching it, but it is impossible to separate one from the other. Krishna is everything,it can manifest itself in the material world in anything, and its impersonal energy pervades the entire universe. Similarly, the Law of God explains the essence of the triune God. God the Son is born from God the Father, the Holy Spirit comes from God the Father, and together they are in permanent love and constitute one being, as the rays and heat emanating from the sun, inseparable from it, which are one with it. Besides, Shrila Prabhupada calls Krishna “the greatest artist” [10, p. 102]. He characterizes God as an artist who does not need to do something on his own, not by need but only through his many energies since he has no duties, but all his powers act by his desire.Many divine energies create plants, animals and other objects of animate and inanimate nature, and nature itself is an instrument of God, a manifestation of his power. Material energy does not act on its own, but is controlled through the great mind of Krishna, whose artistic abilities are inexhaustible because he is the source of all creation, the greatness of which is easy to understand, realizing the infinity of the cosmos and the innumerableness of celestial bodies created by God [10, p. 102-105]. Based on this, the followers of the ISKCON doctrine are sure that the greatest art is to understand Krishna, to become closer to the “greatest artist” by serving him. Swami Prabhupada claims that Krishna, being the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the Supreme ruler who is subject to both the lower energy, matter and the higher living entities. People belong to the higher energy because they can control the material world, but their power over energies and matter is limited, although given directly by Krishna [10, pp. 310-311]. Another of the qualities described in the literature of God is the ability to speak any language, including the languages of different animals, because, as a father to all living things, he must understand his children. In addition to humans, Krishna also talked to the bird [6, p. 88]. In the material world, Krishna not only takes care of people but also punishes those who have committed sins and misdeeds. Shrila Prabhupada calls these “threefold sufferings” caused by one's own body and mind, other living entities and natural disasters caused by the demiGods, but people do not

ISSN: 2233-7857 IJFGCN Copyright ©2019 SERSC 64 International Journal of Future Generation Communication and Networking Vol. 12, No. 5, 2019 pp.61-67 understand that Krishna is punishing them and, fascinated by Maya, the illusion of the material world, perceive these punishments as mere accidents [10, p.320]. In the book “Prayers of Queen Kunti,” Shrila Prabhupada points out that, in his opinion, Christians and Muslims are also Vaishnavas, because in their prayers they turn to God, asking for their daily bread. The founder Acharya indicates that one who offers such prayers can be at a low spiritual level, but through such an appeal to God, he already becomes involved in it, which will lead to the fact that every believer will eventually become a pure devotee. Even being at a low spiritual level, a person must do at least something in the way of God’s realization [9, p. 191]. On the other hand, Prabhupada condemns the petition of believers for “daily bread” for the reason that, from his point of view, one should turn to God with a petition to save a believer from material attachments for a more pure service to him, and not vice versa [9, p. 249-250]. In the ISKCON creed, one of the main ideas is the satisfaction of God. Shrila Prabhupada calls Krishna “the great enjoyer”. Krishna, being God, is self-sufficient and does not need to be worshipped, but accepts all that the Vaishnava offers him with love and devotion. Krishna is the enjoyer of everything that exists in the world because he is the only owner and master of all things. Shrila Prabhupada says that giving Krishna one's own money is good because it is his own money, but people who are not aware of it may think that a Vaishnava is a fool, so it is madness to be wise where one enjoys ignorance. The ISKCON Vaishnavas believe that any sacrifice by an outsider for the development of their religious movement leads to the salvation of the soul, which is called “Ajanta- Sukriti”, that is, spiritual activities performed unconsciously. Therefore, offering to sacrifice for the benefit of the ISKCONis seen as giving people a chance to join religious activities and be saved by the will of Krishna. If a devotee spends the donated money for his own needs, he will burden himself with karma like a thief [7, p. 75-81]. The Society for Krishna Consciousness teaches that through meditation, one can understand that God is always in his heart, even if initially he is unaware of it. God lives in the heart of all living beings, which Shrila Prabhupada finds confirmation in the Bhagavad-gita, which says that the supreme ruler of the world, Ishvara, lives in every conditioned being, as well as in every tiny particle of the material world. Therefore, in nature, there is no void and, there is no place, where there is no presence of God. This aspect of Godis called Paramatma, the individual super-soul. The difference between Paramatma and the Atma is that it is present everywhere, while the Atma is in a particular area.Also, the super-soul differs from the individual soul in the number of its expansions, that is, it can spread itself into millions of different forms. The Supersoul is next to the individual soul as a friend and witness of past, present and future actions. As a friend, she seeks to return the individual soul to God, and as a witness, she gives the soul the benefits that she deserves with her actions, giving her all the opportunities to achieve what she desires.Moreover, the ultimate goal of the super-soul is to instruct the individual soul to give up all material activities and surrender to God, having gained infinite bliss and eternal life. Moreover, the ultimate goal of the super-soul is to instruct the individual soul to give up all material activities and surrender to God, having gained infinite bliss and eternal life. The individual soul is in one organism through consciousness, and the super-soul is in the whole world through its super- consciousness.An individual soul possessing a limited consciousness is to feel what is happening in the organism of another living being, cannot spread its presence to the body of another, penetrating it with its consciousness.One can achieve such super consciousness but only by harmonizing individual consciousness with super consciousness, and this process is called Krishna consciousness. Because of the development of super consciousness, one can perceive these instructions through a spiritual teacher. When a sufficiently prepared person acts with humility, faith and love for God, such a process of coordination becomes more accurate and stable. Krishna himself gives directions from within, and from the outside acts through the guru [11, p. 199-201]. An example of such a reunion of the Atma and Paramatma is contained in the Bhagavad-gita. Arjuna did not want to fight for power with his relatives, but Krishna explained to him that he mistakenly considers his loved ones to be material bodies, explaining to him the laws of the world so that Arjuna harmonizes his consciousness with super consciousness. After this, Arjuna agreed to participate in the battle, being Krishna conscious and acting on his instructions. Therefore, Arjuna is an ideal example for devotees of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.

Prabhupada understands service to Krishna as something natural, because each person is a part of him, just as a separate organ serves the whole body. Thus, by serving Krishna, a believer serves everyone in the universe, is filled with sympathy for every living being [10, pp. 225-226]. Shrila Prabhupada often refers to followers of Mayavadi philosophy as misguided in their beliefs. For example, when meditating on God, Mayavadi thinks that he has become God, because qualitatively all souls are indistinguishable from God, and accumulating Vedic knowledge, Mayavadis declare that they merge with God, so they refer to each other as “Narayana” (one of the names of God). Prabhupada proves that it is impossible to become God because God is great and unlimited and no one can become as great as God can, so the mistake of the Mayavadis is that during meditation they try to equate the part with the whole [3, p. 97-98]. It should also be noted that Srila Prabhupada did not diminish the significance of other religions, assuming that their creed also helps to achieve the spiritual abode of God, and the different names of God are only linguistic differences. Preaching his teachings of love and reverence for God, he did not call upon all of humanity to convert to Hinduism, calling God exactly by the name Krishna. In his opinion, the goal of any religion is to cultivate an unselfish love for God, whether it be Christianity, Buddhism, Hinduism or Islam. Every religion is dharma, that is, faith that exists within any person, regardless of his religion [10, p. 114-115]. It is such a path of selfless service to God can lead a believer to save his soul and gain divine grace.

Conclusion In the creed of the society of Krishna, consciousness developed a detailed doctrine of God, which is the main object of worship for the followers of this religious movement. The image of Krishna includes some of the characteristics of God described by theologians of other religions. The founding Acharya of the ISKCON explains the unity of Godin all religions of the world, reconciling them and entering into dialogue with them, without denying the presence of the "real" God in other religions. Possessing many traits and qualities, as well as his history, expressed not only by the description of his avatars but also by the story of his life in the material body, Krishna is an attractive object for worship and devotional service by the followers of Shrila Prabhupada's teachings.

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