Books / Articles written by Sri V. N. Gopala Desikan
By Sri V.N. Gopala Desikan
You said that like Brahman, the Jivatma and matter are also eternal. Is there only one Jivatma or there are several of them?
Jivatmas are infinite in number. The fact that they are countless, has been made clear in the Vedas,as Well as in the Bhagavad Gita.
Then, is there any difference between [...]
By Sri V.N. Gopala Desikan
What are the types of activities of the Jivatma, in this world?
The activities pursued by Jivatma are of three kinds: 1) Nitya 2) Naimittika 3) Kamya
1) Nitya: That which has to be done, without fail, regularly, like Sandhyavandana. By not doing these, one incurs sins.
2) Naimittika: Those, which have to be [...]
Tags: bhakthi, bhakthi-yoga, Hinduism, jivatma, jnana-yoga, karma-yoga, prapatti, yoga
By Sri V.N. Gopala Desikan
How did the three systems of Vedanta philosophy, namely Advaita, Visishtadvaita and Dvaita come about?
The question can be answered with a little bit of background on the Upanishads.The Upanishads are of three types namely bheda sruti, abheda sruti and ghataka sruti.
What is the Bheda sruti?
There are many passages in the Vedas, [...]
Tags: advaitha, brahman, dvaitha, Hinduism, madhva, maya, Ramanuja, sankara, soul, visishtadvaitham
By Sri V.N. Gopala Desikan
What is the essential nature of Iswara?
The essential nature of Iswara is truth, knowledge, infiniteness, happiness and purity. He is present everywhere. He knows everything.
Why is He called Bhagavan?
He possesses six qualities and that is why He is called Bhagavan. Bhaga in Sanskrit means good quality.
What are these six qualities?
These are: [...]
Tags: Hinduism, iswara, jivatma, paramatma
By Sri V.N. Gopala Desikan
What is the meaning of Achetana?
As mentioned earlier, we have three tattvas or reals. We will next take up Achetana and then finally Iswara. Achetana means non-sentient. It means that it does not possess any knowledge. So, theAchetana is not capable of thinking, since it has no knowledge(pramana).
What are the categories under [...]
Tags: creation, Hinduism, jivatma, paramatma
By Sri V.N. Gopala Desikan
Please explain how you say that the soul is different from the body?
When I say “this is my book”, I mean the book belongs to me. The book is obviously something different from myself.
Similarly, I say “this is my body”. So, the body is different from myself. Here, the [...]
Tags: Hinduism, jivatma, sastras, Srivaishnavam, vedas, visishtadvaitham
By Sri V.N. Gopala Desikan
What is an authority (Pramana)?
An authority is something from which we learn truths. We consider the Vedas, as the basic authority We also use logic and arguments to arrive at the truths, in addition to learning from the Vedas.
Such things from which we learn the truths or arrive at [...]
Tags: Hinduism, Ramanuja, sastras, Srivaishnavam, visishtadvaitham
By Sri V.N. Gopala Desikan
What is the importance of Guru or Acharya in our system of philosophy?
To understand the proper meaning of Sastras is very difficult. We have to properly interpret some of the texts, which seem to be conflicting with each other. There are also inner meanings and secret meanings of the [...]
Tags: Acharyas, Azhwars, Hinduism, Ramanuja, sastras, Srivaishnavam
By Sri V.N. Gopala Desikan
What is the basic authority (pramana) for Hindu religion and philosophy?
The Vedas are the basic, fundamental authority.
What is the meaning of the word Veda?
Veda, in Sanskrit means that which gives knowledge.
Is there any other name for Veda?
Veda is also called Sruti.
What is the meaning of the word Sruti?
Sruti means [...]
Tags: Hinduism, Ramanuja, sastras, Srivaishnavam, vedas
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Ramasamy Ramanuja Dasan