A Living Theology of Krishna Bhakti Essential Teachings of A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

by Goswami, Tamal Krishna; Schweig, Graham M.

• ISBN13: 9780199796632
• ISBN10: 0199796637
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2012-07-17
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada (1896-1977), founder of the Hare Krishna Movement, traced his lineage to the fifteenth-century Indian saint Sri Caitanya. He authored more than fifty volumes of English translation and commentaries on Sanskrit and Bengali texts, serving as a medium between these distant authorities and his modern Western readership and using his writings as blueprints for spiritual change and a revolution in consciousness. He had to speak the language of a people vastly disparate from the original recipients of his tradition's scriptures, without compromising fidelity to the tradition. Tamal Krishna Goswami claims that the social scientific, philosophical, and 'insider' forms of investigation previously applied have failed to explain the presence of a powerful interpretative device-a mahavakya or 'great utterance'-that governs and pervades Prabhupada's 'living theology' of devotion on bhakti. For Prabhupada, the wide range of 'vedic' subject matter is governed by the axiomatic truth: Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Goswami's academic training at the University of Cambridge, his thirty years' experience as a practitioner and teacher, and his extensive interactions with Prabhupada as both personal secretary and managerial representative, afforded him a unique opportunity to understand and illuminate the theological contribution of Prabhupada. In this work, Goswami proves that the voice of the scholar-practitioner can be intimately connected with his tradition while sustaining a mature critical stance relative to his subject. A Living Theology of Krishna Bhakti includes a critical introduction and conclusion by Graham M. Schweig.

Author Biography

Tamal Krishna Goswami was one of the closest and most influential disciples of the founder of the Hare Krisna Movement. Before his untimely death in 2002 at the age of 56, he became a student of religion and theology at the University of Cambridge. This volume comprises the five chapters of Goswami's near-complete doctoral thesis.

Graham M. Schweig is Professor of Religious Studies and Director of the Asian Studies Program at Christopher Newport University of Virginia. He received his doctorate in comparative religion from Harvard University. Among his publications are Dance of Divine Love: The Rasa Lila of Krishna from the Bhagavata Purana and Bhagavad Gita: The Beloved Lord's Secret Love Song.

Table of Contents

List of Abbreviations	p. vii
Introduction: Moving between Worlds	p. 1
General Remarks	p. 1
The Focus of GoswamiÆs Work	p. 3
A Sketch of GoswamiÆs Life	p. 9
On the Preparation of this Book	p. 16
In Quest of the "Theological" Prabhupada	p. 21
The Need and Aim of This Study	p. 23
The Approach of This Study	p. 27
Background of the Pre-ISKCON Prabhupada	p. 32
The Travails of Illegitimacy: Historical Setting	p. 38
Counterculture Discourse: The Mid-1960s to Mid-1970s	p. 38
Cult-Controversy Discourse: The Mid-1970s to Mid-1980s	p. 51
A Discourse of Indifference: The Mid-1980s to the Present	p. 71
Summary and Reflections	p. 82
Sources of Knowledge: Pramana	p. 87
The Influence of Parents and Teachers	p. 89
The College Setting and Christian Influences	p. 92
Earlier Vaishnava Teachers in Bengal	p. 102
Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati as Prabhupada's Guru	p. 108
Prabhupada as Authoritative Commentator	p. 112
Summary and Reflections	p. 119
Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead: Sambandha	p. 120
The Relationship with Krishna as Sambandha	p. 123
Prabhupada's English Mahavakya Phrase	p. 127
The Three Ultimate Spiritual Energies	p. 132
Deeper Theological Implications	p. 138
The Question of Translation	p. 146
Prabhupada's Root Metaphor	p. 149
Protecting Krishna's Intimate Lilas	p. 151
Summary and Reflections	p. 157
Bhakti, Devotional Service: Abhidheya	p. 158
Influence of Pan-Indic Conceptions of Bhakti	p. 159
Rupa Gosvamin's Conception of Bhakti	p. 165
The Relationship of Service to Bhakti	p. 167
Rupa Goswamin's Five Principal Practices of Bhakti	p. 172
Association with Devotees: Sadhu Sanga	p. 173
Collectively Praising the Divine Names: Nama-Samkirtana	p. 177
Hearing the Bhagavata Purana: Bhagavata Sravana	p. 183
Residing in a Holy Place: Mathura-Vasa	p. 187
Serving the Sacred Image: Sri-Murti Sevana	p. 191
Concluding Reflections	p. 198
Conclusion: Prema, Purest Love: Prayojana	p. 200
The Unattainable Nature of Prema	p. 200
Is There a "Theology" of the Chaitanya School?	p. 205
Three Foundational Sacred Texts	p. 209
Three Manifestations of the Loving Divinity	p. 213
The Ultimate Theological Focal Point	p. 217
The Divine Love Call	p. 223
A Theology of Divine Secrecy	p. 226
The Gifts of Theology	p. 230
Works Cited	p. 233
Index	p. 259
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