Bhaktivinoda Thakura's contributions 1 - Let faith and reason remove the mosses of illusion

"When the stream of reason joins the river of ancient faiths, the stagnant mosses of illusion are swept away. And with the gradual flow of time when this unwanted stench will disappear, the knowledge of the Indians will blossom again."

- Bhaktivinoda Thakura, Krishna Samhita

Bhaktivinoda Thakura's contributions 2 - See the unity of purpose underlying the diversity of religions

"When we have occasion to be present at the place of worship of other religionists at the time of their worship, we should stay there in a respectful mood, contemplating thus: 'Here is being worshiped my adorable highest entity God, in a different form than that of mine. Due to a different practice of a different kind, I cannot thoroughly comprehend this system of theirs. But seeing it, I am feeling a greater attachment for my own system. God is one. I bow down before His emblem as I see here and offer my prayer to my Lord who has adopted this different emblem so that He may increase my love toward Him in the form that is acceptable for me."

- Bhaktivinoda Thakura, Chaitanya Shikshamrita

Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s contributions 3 – The sara-grahi redefinition of Panchopasana as progressive modes of comprehending the divine

5 levels outlined in Bhaktivinoda Thakura's essay "On the Pure Religion of the Bhagavata":

1. Shaktism - Worship of nature 

2. Sauryaism - Worship of sun

3. Ganapatyaism - Worship of consciousness manifested in animals

4. Shaivism - Worship of consciousness manifested in humans

6. Vaishnavism - Worship of the Supreme Person  

Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s contributions 4 – The Eastern Savior offers the zenith of religious experience among all the world's religions

"People from Europe and the Americas have not been satisfied with beauty of the rasa of parental affection (vātsalya) that Jesus propagated. By God’s grace, the hope is that they get addicted to the mature wine of the rasa of sweetness in the near future. It is observed that the rasas that appear in India first gradually spread to the West . . . just as the sun first rises in India and then gradually lights up the countries of the West. Similarly the incomparable rays of spiritual principles spread across in Western lands, after first manifesting in India."

You need to be a member of ISKCON Desire Tree | IDT to add comments!

Join ISKCON Desire Tree | IDT