Vaiṣṇavism, Philosophical
Jonathan Edelmann2021, The Encyclopedia of Philosophy of Religion
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Abstract
The Hindu theologian Jīva Gosvāmin (c. 1517-1608 ce) argued that God is always a single, conscious being, yet this God could be talked about in real and in meaningful ways using three specific-terms. This is God's inherent nature. Jīva argues for this view by saying that there is a "general definition" of God as a singular nondual awareness. This God is spoken of and it can manifest in accord with three "specific definitions": bhagavān, paramātmā, and brahma. This entry explains these terms; they are essential to Jīva's philosophy of religion. Jīva was an early Gaud .ī ya or Caitanya-Vais. n. ava theologian in the Hindu tradition who lived a large portion of his life in north-central India (modern-day Vrindavan, Uttar Pradesh). He was inspired by Caitanya (b. 1486), a saint, mystic, and divinity. Jīva was the brilliant student of Sanātana and Rūpa, his uncles, who taught him and who wrote prolifically, although Jīva also received a classical education in Benares. Caitanya was from Gaud. a, or Bengal, and thus his followers are called Gaud .ī ya or Bengali-Vais. n. avas; the name distinguishes them from other Vais. n. ava traditions, like theŚrī-Vais. n. avas, Pus. t. i-Vais. n. avas, and others. Vais. n. avas are a branch of Hinduism focused on devotion (see BHAKTI) to Vis. n. u and Kr. s. n. a. Jīva is a theologian because his primary intellectual method is the justification and articulation of his views in a systematic manner by interpreting a revealed and eternally perfect scripture (Edelmann 2015; see revelation in hindu religion). This scripture is the Bhāgavatapurān. a (Tagare 1976) and related texts. My discussion here is based on a selection of Jīva's theological writings (Dasa 2005, 2014, 2015, 2016), and all translations are my own. Here Jīva provides philosophers and theologians with a linguistic system by which they can discuss God's nature: God is defined in a general manner with the definition of nondual awareness. This God is further inspected by means of specific definitions. (Dasa 2014, 5-9; Bhagavatsandarbha 1) In Jīva's theology, then, at the very least we can talk about God in "general terms" and "specific terms." Whether one should clarify the meaning of "general" and "specific" using, for example, the new logic (Navya-Nyāya) of Gaṅgeśa and Ragunāthá Siroman. i, or that of Vedāntins like Madhva, scholars whose work Jīva had read, is not explored here. I accept a general definition as something like a category with three aspects. Near to the passage quoted above Jīva further elaborates two of his essential teachings:
