Bhakti Chakora Ashrama
– There are three Dhamas where the different manifestations of Krishna’s lilas are revealed: Dvaraka Puri, Mathura, and Vridavana, respectively purna, purnatara, and purnatama.
– In Dvaraka and Mathura, aisvarya-lila predominates, in which opulence is manifest; in Vridavana, madhurya-lila predominates, and sweetness overshadows the opulence.
– Vridavana possesses superior opulence throughout Vaikuntha, but this opulence remains overshadowed by the sweetness of the relationship with Krishna.
– The vrajavasis do not consider Krishna to be Bhagavan, because He walks barefoot, wears a peacock feather, and plays a bamboo flute.
– The gopis’ love for Krishna is spontaneous and does not depend on any specific reason; this love is called svatah-siddha prema.
– Krishna is sarva-avatari, the source of all avatars, but the vrajavasis do not even consider Him to be Bhagavan, because their madhurya is so elevated that it obscures Bhagavan’s aisvarya.
– Brahman is the effulgence of Krishna; Paramatma is the Supersoul present in the heart of all living entities; and Krishna is Bhagavan, the Supreme Personality, possessor of all opulence.
– Tattva means philosophical knowledge and constitutes the basis for correctly understanding spiritual reality, rasa. When Krishna invests His guru-sakti in someone, that person can act in the role of Guru.
– All potencies belong to Krishna, therefore He is called shaktiman. Srimati Radhika is purna-sakti, the complete potency, and Krishna is the possessor of all potencies.
– Tattva-vicara and rasa-vicara are interconnected: tattva establishes the firm foundation for understanding rasa, protecting the practitioner from deviations such as sahajiya-vada and impersonalism.
– The Brahma-samhita book presents tattva-siddhanta in depth, while the Sri Krishna Karnamrta presents rasa-siddhanta in depth; both siddhantas are present in both texts, although each has a different emphasis.
– Without correctly understanding tattva, it is not possible to establish a solid rasa-vicara; therefore, everyone should study tattva and rasa together.