The Caitanya Vaisnava Vedanta of Jiva Gosvami
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THE CAITANYA VAIonAVA VEDfNTA OF JhVA GOSVfMh The Caitanya Vai1wava tradition is famous for its depth of devotion to K[1wa, the blue-hued Deity. Caitanya Vai1wavas are known for having re- fined the practice and aesthetics of devotion into a sophisticated science. This imposing devotional edifice was constructed upon a solid foundation of philosophical argument and understanding. In The Caitanya Vai2Wava VedAnta of JCva GosvAmC, Ravi Gupta sheds new light on the contribution of Caitanya Vai1wavism to the field of Indian philosophy. He explores the hermeneutical tools employed, the historical resources harnessed, the struc- ture of the arguments made, and the relative success of the endeavor. For most schools of Vai1wavism, the supporting foundation consists of the philo- sophical resources provided by Vedanta. The Caitanya tradition is remark- able in its ability to engage in Vedantic discourse and at the same time practice an ecstatic form of devotion to Krishna. The prime architect of this balance was the scholar-devotee Jcva Gosvamc (ca. 1517–1608). This book analyses Jcva Gosvamc’s writing concerning the philosophy of the Vedanta tradition. It concludes that Jcva’s writing crosses “disciplinary boundaries,” for he brought into dialogue four powerful streams of classical Hinduism: (1) the various systems of Vedanta; (2) the ecstatic bhakti movements; (3) the Purawic commentarial tradition; and (4) the aesthetic rasa theory of Sanskrit poetics. With training in and commitments to all of these traditions, Jcva Gosvamc produced a distinctly Caitanya Vai1wava system of theology. Dr. Ravi M. Gupta is Assistant Professor of Religion at Centre College, Kentucky, USA and Associate Lecturer for the University of Wales Lampeter (Open Learning Theology and Religious Studies Programme). His research interests include Sanskrit commentary, Vai1wava devotional traditions and comparative theology. ROUTLEDGE HINDU STUDIES SERIES Edited by: Gavin Flood University of Stirling Former Series Editor: Francis X. Clooney, S.J., Harvard University The Routledge Hindu Studies Series, in association with the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies, intends the publication of constructive Hindu theological, philosophical and ethical projects aimed at bringing Hindu traditions into dialogue with contemporary trends in scholarship and contemporary society. The series invites original, high quality, research-level work on religion, culture and society of Hindus living in India and abroad. Proposals for annotated translations of important primary sources and studies in the history of the Hindu religious traditions will also be considered. EPISTEMOLOGIES AND THE LIMITATIONS OF PHILOSOPHICAL INQUIRY Doctrine in Madhva Vedanta Deepak Sarma HINDU CRITIQUE OF BUDDHIST EPISTEMOLOGY Kumarila on perception The “Determination of Perception” chapter of Kumarilabhatta’s Slokarvarttika Translation and commentary John Taber SAMKARA’S ADVAITA VEDANTA A way of teaching Jacqueline Hirst ATTENDING KmonA’S IMAGE Caitanya Vai1wava Merti-seva as devotional truth Kenneth Russell Valpey ADVAITA VEDfNTA AND VAIonAVISM The philosophy of Madhusedana Sarasvatc Sanjukta Gupta CLASSICAL SflKHYA AND YOGA An Indian metaphysics of experience Mikel Burley SELF-SURRENDER (PRAPATTI) TO GOD IN 3RhVAIonAVISM Tamil cats or Sanskrit monkeys? Srilata Raman THE CAITANYA VAIonAVA VEDfNTA OF JhVA GOSVfMh When knowledge meets devotion Ravi M. Gupta THE CAITANYA VA I onAVA VEDfNTA OF JhVA GOSVfMh When knowledge meets devotion Ravi M. Gupta First published 2007 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 270 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10016 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2007. “To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.” © 2007 Ravi M. Gupta All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Gupta, Ravi M. (Ravi Mohan), 1982– The Chaitanya Vaishnava Vedanta of Jiva Gosvami : when knowledge meets devotion / Ravi M. Gupta. p. cm. — (Routledge Hindu studies series) Based on the author’s thesis (doctoral—University of Oxford). Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN13: 978-0-415-40548-5 (hardback : alk. paper) 1. Jiva Gosvami—Philosophy. 2. Chaitanya (Sect) 3. Vedanta. 4. Bhakti. I. Title. BL1285.392.J58G87 2007 294.5′512092—dc22 2006028485 ISBN 0-203-50068-7 Master e-book ISBN ISBN10: 0-415-40548-3 (hbk) ISBN10: 0-203-50068-7 (ebk) ISBN13: 978-0-415-40548-5 (hbk) ISBN13: 978-0-203-50068-2 (ebk) TO MY PARENTS, WHO INTRODUCED ME TO KmonA CONTENTS List of illustrations ix Foreword xi Acknowledgements xiii Introduction 1 Caitanya Vai2Wavism 5 JCva GosvAmC 6 The Bhagavata-sandarbha 11 Editorial notes 12 PART I Jcva Gosvamc’s system of Vedanta 13 1 Bhakti and Vedanta: do they mix? 15 Challenges and possibilities for VedAntic discourse 15 The Bhagavata Purawa as mediator 25 2 Caitanya Vai1wava hermeneutics 32 BhagavAn32 BhagavAn’s uakti 39 BhagavAn’s inconceivable uakti 45 Hermeneutics applied 56 3 Sources for Caitanya Vai1wava Vedanta 63 JCva GosvAmC’s audience 63 4rCdhara SvAmC 65 RAmAnuja 84 4a}kara and Madhva 87 vii CONTENTS 4 Vedanta in the BhAgavata PurAWa 93 The overall purport of the Bhagavata 93 Satya| Para| DhCmahi: VedAnta in the first verse 105 Conclusion 112 PART II Jcva Gosvamc’s CatuSsEtrC PCkA 119 5 History of the written text 121 The manuscript tradition 121 Printed editions 131 Major variants 131 Editorial conventions followed in the critical edition 132 Editorial conventions followed in the translation 134 6 A critical edition 135 7 Translation and notes 166 Establishing the meaning of the BhAgavata 166 The opening and concluding statements: the first indicator 166 Explanation of Brahma-setra 1.1.1: Satya\ Para\ Dhcmahi 167 Explanation of Brahma-setra 1.1.2: Janmady Asya Yatas 177 Explanation of Brahma-setra 1.1.3–4: Anvayad Itaratau Carthe1u 182 Explanation of Brahma-setra 1.1.5: Abhijñas Svarav 185 Another explanation of Brahma-setra 1.1.3: Tene Brahma ... 187 Another explanation of Brahma-setra 1.1.4: Muhyanti Yat Serayas 188 Another explanation of Brahma-setra 1.1.5: Abhijñas Svarav 189 The meaning of the entire Brahma-setra 189 The meaning of the GAyatrC 190 The meaning of the entire Purawa 192 The concluding statement 193 Repetition and novelty—the second and third indicators 197 Result—the fourth indicator 197 The statement of praise—the fifth indicator 198 Reasoning—the sixth indicator 199 Appendix: Overview of the Bhagavata-sandarbha 201 Bibliography 208 Index 217 viii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Figures 1 Caitanya and his close associate Nityananda. A relief carving located at the Radha-Damodara temple in Jaipur, Rajasthan. 4 2 The images of Radha and Damodara (K[1wa) worshiped by Jcva Gosvamc.6 3Jcva Gosvamc.8 4 The Six Gosvamcs of V[ndavana. Repa and Sanatana Gosvamc are in the center. 9 5 The temple of Radha-Damodara in Jaipur, Rajasthan, which houses the original image of K[1wa worshiped by Jcva Gosvamc. 122 6 Pragmatic stemma. 125 Tables 3.1 The content of Jcva Gosvamc’s quotations from Ramanuja’s 4rCbhA2ya 88 4.1 Correlation between the first five sEtras of the Brahma-sEtra and the first verse of the BhAgavata PurAWa 108 4.2 Vedantic discussions from the first verse of the BhAgavata PurAWa 108 4.3 Correlation between various Upani1adic passages and the first verse of the BhAgavata PurAWa 109 4.4 Correlation between the GayatrC mantra and the first verse of the BhAgavata PurAWa 111 4.5 Correlation between the chapters of the Brahma-sEtra and the first verse of the BhAgavata PurAWa 112 4.6 Characteristics of a Purawa embedded in the first verse of the BhAgavata PurAWa 112 ix FOREWORD The Routledge Hindu Studies Series, published in collaboration with the Oxford Centre for Hindu Studies, primarily intends the publication of con- structive Hindu theological, philosophical, and ethical projects. The focus is on issues and concerns of relevance to readers interested in Hindu traditions in particular, yet also in the context of a wider range of related religious concerns that matter in today’s world. The Series seeks to promote excellent scholarship and, in relation to it, an open and critical conversation among scholars and the wider audience of interested readers. Though contemporary in its purpose, the Series recognizes the importance of retrieving the classic texts and ideas, beliefs, and practices, of Hindu traditions, so that the great intellectuals of these traditions can, as it were, become conversation partners in the conversations of today. The publication of this book marks an important development in the academic study of the Caitanya Vai1wava tradition. It makes three major points: historical, theological, and textual. Ravi Gupta establishes the his- torical point of the way in which Vedanta, eroded to some extent during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries due to the rise of devotional traditions, becomes fused with devotionalism in the Caitanya tradition. This fusion can be seen in the work of Jcva Gosvamc who writes a commentary on the Brahma-sEtra, the CatuSsEtrC PCkA, in which he reads Vedanta through the lens of the devotionalism of the BhAgavata PurAWa. This is an original innova- tion in the history of Indian thought. Indeed, we might say that through Jcva’s work the Vedanta tradition undergoes a repristination that gives it renewed theological energy. Ravi Gupta shows how Jcva’s understanding of Vedanta is original while, of course, claiming to be closer to its source through being the correct interpretation.