Vaishnava tantra
A careful look at the framework of being conceived by the Pancharatric tradition will help explain the experience of life through the Vaishnava Agama mindset.
The first aspect of the framework of life is its base, this base must be something that is conceived in such a way to be both the origin of all things, pervading all things, and the end of all things. This principle is linked to the element of space as all objects and experience emerge from space, exist within space, and then subside into space. ParaVasudeva or Sri Krsna is the Pancharatric base of existence and supreme truth or reality. This platform is the container of all other platforms. The jewel in Indra's net. Turyatita, the state beyond all states of consciousness. It is the absolute stillness(a reason why all devotees freeze when they hear Krsna's flute or see him walking by.) for most we never experience this platform of existence but nevertheless, it is like the screen of being onto which Maya casts all of her episodes. This element is first manifest in the Visuddha chakra and is more perfectly experienced as Krsna in his divine abode, Goloka Vrndavana, in the Sahasrara chakra or Sudarshana chakra.
The second aspect is the first emanation, implying movement and multiplicity of points of view. Vasudeva is the lord of Turiya, the state beyond material states of consciousness. It is this principle who manifests the unlimited Vaikuntha forms of Godhead. He is pure space moving within pure space. This is the element of Air, our faculty of Id and the inner dialogue which goes along with our quality of being, it is our unique voice. Vasudeva resides in the Anatta chakra
The heat generated by the movement of air within space gives rise to the element of Fire, the burning truth, the revelation of the inherent difference between truth and untruth. The transformational principle of knowledge and ignorance. Sankarshana is the vyuha who best represents the revealed truth and Guru. The true guru is a manifestation or emblem of the wisdom of Sankarshana. This Sankarshana is the Judge or value system. He holds the highest truth, Sri Krsna, as the proper ideal and that which is pleasing/subservient to that ideal person is considered by Sankarshana to be good and all else which goes against that Ideal to be bad. This is the essential inner guide who is heard as the voice of our conscience. He is also the unconscious mind experienced as deep sleep and the first emanation that extends beyond the purely spiritual realm. It is said that all individual souls in the material realm emanate and returns to Sankarshana, this is seen in the fact that all living entities arise to the day from the state of deep sleep. He resides in the Manipura chakra of the human body.
Pradyumna is the vyuha who controls and represents the state of dreaming, emotion, desire, the mind, the moon, and of course the water element which contains the code and pattern of all of the above phenomena. Pradyumna is known in Krsna's lila to be the reincarnation of Kamadeva the god of desire and love. His consort is Rati Devi or the goddess of attraction. This level of being is responsible for the way in which our particular experiences are coloured by our emotional reaction to them.
Aniruddha is the last aspect of being, the physical realm of earth, the concrete and solidified version of space. The truth that isn't true. He manifests all of the incarnations of Godhead which appear in the manifest world. He is the physical body itself. The Jagat or waking state of Consciousness and the experienced sensations of the physical body. This is also the Muladhara chakra.
In a life that is turned outwards, the force of desire is pushing the living entities conscious attention instantaneously from the highest principle of unified, supreme, and pure consciousness in the play of life with itself, to the solidified earthly plane of mundane existence. When knowledge of the supreme enters our conscious awareness we begin to develop the desire to experience that level of reality and then take up progressive systems of sadhana to purify and transcend each layer which forms barriers for the conditioned awareness.
Kriya yoga(akin to Vaidhi sadhana, Yama Niyama etc)Purifies the earth element of being into an Aniruddha(uncontrollable self-controlled being)
Yoga (The full system ashtanga yoga including the yoga of love and sexuality) this purifies desire and the tendency of accepting and rejecting, the water element of being in the yogi is properly oriented upwards towards the supreme rather than downwards towards the transient.
Jnana yoga- the yogi applies the jnana yoga system to properly nullify within him any traces of falsity and false perceptions, He applies himself in becoming established in the absolute and burns away any trace of false egoism. Sankarshana is the supreme causation, and the supreme material causation is Ahamkara or false ego. When our false ego is burned by Sankarshana's fire of knowledge then the real self-shines and true life begin.
Charya yoga is the guidelines for meditation, behaviour and conduct for a self-realized person to not fall back into illusion as desires still creep into the psyche even on the platform of self-realization. Samadhi is the main practice of the Charya yogis who regularly spend days on end immersed in the state of samadhi.
Finally, Raganuga or Ragatmika Bhakti is the Practice of those who wish to abide eternally in the blissful realm of Sri Sri Radha Krsna. This is the cultivation of Prema which sits even above the Principle of Space and retains its own unique position as the Queen of reality, the real reason for being, Rasa also known as "the divine devotional aesthetic experience" also known as "Divine love" or "Pure Devotional service"
The King may rule the kingdom but the queen rules his heart.
Anyway, the point of this rough post is to help show how one could arrange their experience of life so that it has meaning and value at every level as well as some guidelines on how to purify and realize our fullest potentials as parts and parcels of the absolute principle.
I am a minute Individual fraction of reality pervaded by God at every level of being, I can only experience that If I learn to resist the tendency of attributing self-hood to the mind or body. I have to be established in truth and then learn to stay in truth, then I must learn to love that truth or simply merge into it, the later a less desirable goal as the Rasacharyas state that the living entity who chooses to merge will eventually fall again due to the natural proclivity of reality to expand outwardly. Thus I must finally take absolute shelter of Shakti, Srimati Radharani, and remain ever engaged in "Devotional service" or prema.
Jai Nitai!
In a life that is turned outwards, the force of desire is pushing the living entities conscious attention instantaneously from the highest principle of unified, supreme, and pure consciousness in the play of life with itself, to the solidified earthly plane of mundane existence. When knowledge of the supreme enters our conscious awareness we begin to develop the desire to experience that level of reality and then take up progressive systems of sadhana to purify and transcend each layer which forms barriers for the conditioned awareness.
Kriya yoga(akin to Vaidhi sadhana, Yama Niyama etc)Purifies the earth element of being into an Aniruddha(uncontrollable self-controlled being)
Yoga (The full system ashtanga yoga including the yoga of love and sexuality) this purifies desire and the tendency of accepting and rejecting, the water element of being in the yogi is properly oriented upwards towards the supreme rather than downwards towards the transient.
Jnana yoga- the yogi applies the jnana yoga system to properly nullify within him any traces of falsity and false perceptions, He applies himself in becoming established in the absolute and burns away any trace of false egoism. Sankarshana is the supreme causation, and the supreme material causation is Ahamkara or false ego. When our false ego is burned by Sankarshana's fire of knowledge then the real self-shines and true life begin.
Charya yoga is the guidelines for meditation, behaviour and conduct for a self-realized person to not fall back into illusion as desires still creep into the psyche even on the platform of self-realization. Samadhi is the main practice of the Charya yogis who regularly spend days on end immersed in the state of samadhi.
Finally, Raganuga or Ragatmika Bhakti is the Practice of those who wish to abide eternally in the blissful realm of Sri Sri Radha Krsna. This is the cultivation of Prema which sits even above the Principle of Space and retains its own unique position as the Queen of reality, the real reason for being, Rasa also known as "the divine devotional aesthetic experience" also known as "Divine love" or "Pure Devotional service"
The King may rule the kingdom but the queen rules his heart.
Anyway, the point of this rough post is to help show how one could arrange their experience of life so that it has meaning and value at every level as well as some guidelines on how to purify and realize our fullest potentials as parts and parcels of the absolute principle.
I am a minute Individual fraction of reality pervaded by God at every level of being, I can only experience that If I learn to resist the tendency of attributing self-hood to the mind or body. I have to be established in truth and then learn to stay in truth, then I must learn to love that truth or simply merge into it, the later a less desirable goal as the Rasacharyas state that the living entity who chooses to merge will eventually fall again due to the natural proclivity of reality to expand outwardly. Thus I must finally take absolute shelter of Shakti, Srimati Radharani, and remain ever engaged in "Devotional service" or prema.
Jai Nitai!
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