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| Madhva |
Dwaita or dualism
Introduction
A leading form of reaction against Samkara's Advaitism is the dualistic philosophy associated with the name of
Madhva, which has many points in common with Ramanuja's view of reality. Madhva stands out for unqualified
dualism and insists on the five great distinctions of God and the individual soul, God and matter, the individual
soul and matter, one soul and another, and one part of matter and another. It will perhaps be better to
visualize creation as comprising of all the souls and the world of matter. Thus the duality, as Madhva suggests,
between God and creation. The exclusive mediatorship through Vayu, the son of Vishnu, is also there. In view of
the fact that Madhva's commentary on the Kena Upanisad is taken from Brahmasara, it is reasonable to think
that there was the tradition of dualism even prior to Madhva. Madhva also makes clever use of the Samkhya and
the Nyaya-Vaisesika theories.
The differences with Ramanuja include that while Ramanuja thinks that the individual souls are similar in their
natural essence, Madhva makes them different. Madhva denies that Brahman is the material cause, which
Ramanuja admits. For Madhva, the universe is not the body of God. In Ramanuja, there are no souls disqualified
for salvation and there are no differences in the enjoyment of bliss for freed souls.
Madhva accepts the three sources of knowledge: perception, inference and scriptural testimony. Comparison is
regarded as a variety of inferences. Perception is confined to the facts open to the senses. Inference is
incapable of supplying us with new facts, though it helps us to test and systematize the facts obtained through
other means. We have to depend on the Vedas for a true knowledge of reality. Madhva accepts the
authoritativeness of the Vedas as a whole, and does not discriminate between the different parts of it.
Reality (padartha) is of two kinds, according to Madhva, independent (svatantra) and dependent (paratantra).
God, the supreme person, is the only independent realty. The dependent beings are of two kinds, positive
(bhava) and negative (abhava). Of the positive we have two varieties, conscious (cetana) souls, and
unconscious (acetana) entities, like matter and time. Unconscious existence is either eternal like the Vedas,
eternal and non-eternal like prakrti, time and space, or non-eternal like the products of prakrti.
God
There are three entities existing from all eternity to all eternity, fundamentally different from one another, which
are God, soul and the world. Though these are all real and eternal, the latter two are subordinate to God and
dependent on him. Independent reality is Brahman, the absolute creator of the universe. We can know his
nature through the study of the Vedas, and so his nature is not indefinable. When the Supreme is said to be
indefinable, all that is meant that a complete knowledge of him is difficult to acquire. Brahman is unsurpassed in
excellence and without an equal, since it penetrates everywhere. The attributes of God are absolute in their
character and so do not limit him. Brahman possesses every kind of perfection. He is identified with Vishnu, and
is said to direct by his will the world and all that is in it as an absolute ruler. He creates and destroys the world
again and again. He is endowed with a supernatural body and is regarded as transcendent to the world as well
as immanent, since he is the inner ruler (antaryamin) of the souls. He manifests himself in various forms
(vyuhas), appears periodically in incarnations (avataras), and is said to be mystically present in the sacred
images. He creates, maintains and destroys the universe, imparts knowledge, manifests himself in several ways,
condemns some and redeems others. By his side is Laksmi, capable of assuming various forms, but without a
material body, coeternal with him and all pervading. She witnesses the glory of God through eternity and, unlike
other gods and goddesses who acquire release after many existences, she is eternally redeemed. She is the
personification of God's creative energy. She is the intelligent prakrti, though God is greater than she is in point
of subtlety and the extent of qualities. God rules the souls and matter, though he does not create them from
nothing or reduce them to nothing. He is the efficient cause but not the material cause of the universe. God
takes into account the karma of individuals, but he is not dependent on karma.
The Individual Soul
Everything on earth is, according to Madhva, a living organism. The universe is a vast expansion of animated
nature with every atom of space filled with jivas (beings comprising of body and soul). Madhva regards the
distinction between Brahman and jiva real, and holds that it is wrong to think that the jiva and Brahman are
non-different in release and different in samsara (world), since two different things cannot at any time become
non-different or vice versa. Though absolutely dependent on Brahman, the jivas are essentially active agents
and have responsibilities to bear. The soul is not an absolute agent, since it is of limited power, depending, as it
does, on the guidance of the Lord. The jiva is said to be of the atomic size as distinct from Brahman who is all
pervading. Though limited in size, it pervades the body on account of its quality of intelligence. The organ of
knowledge is called saksin, to which the material manas (mind) presents its impressions. It is the cognizing
principle to which is due the consciousness of I-ness (ego), which is the basis of individuality. The soul is by
nature blissful, though it is subject to pain and suffering, on accounts of its connection with material bodies due
to the past karma. So long as it is not freed from its impurities, it wanders about in changing forms of existence.
The qualities like bliss become manifest at the time of release. Though the souls are eternal, they are said to be
born with reference to their embodied connection. No two jivas are alike in character. Each has its own worth
and place in the scale of existence. The jivas are dependent on the Lord, who, however, impels them to action
according to their previous conduct.
The conscious souls are of three kinds: (1) those eternally free (nitya), like Laksmi; (2) those who have freed
themselves from samsara (mukta) devas and men, rsis and fathers; and (3) the bound (badha). The last class
(3) includes both those who are eligible for release (mukti-yogya) and those who are not eligible for it
(mukti-ayogya). These latter (mukti-ayogya) are metaphorically either those intended for hell (constant
suffering) or the blinding darkness (tamo-yogya) or those who are bound to the circuit of samsara for all time.
While some are preordained for salvation by their inherent aptitude, others are destined for hell, while a third
class keeps revolving on the wheels of samsara from eternity to eternity, now enjoying, now suffering, in
endless alteration. This threefold classification is based on the three gunas. The Sattvika soul goes to heaven,
the rajasa revolves in samsara, while the tamasa falls into hell. The living beings comprise of gods, men, animals
and plants. Even among the souls destined for salvation, no two souls possess the same degree of eligibility.
The World of Nature
Material products are the objects of the inanimate world and form the bodies and organs of all beings. They all
originate from the primary matter, prakrti, and return to it in course of time. Though prakrti appears to be
homogeneous, it is really composed of different principles in a subtle state. It develops into the perceptible
universe when worked up by God and the souls. God moulds forms out of prakrti, which is the material cause
and in which he exists himself in various forms. Before we get from the unmanifested prakrti to the
well-developed forms of creation, we have twenty-four transitional products of creation which are mahat (the
first formed matter from which the rest evolves); ahamkara (ego); buddhi (intellect); manas (mind); ten senses
(working in cooperation with the manas): five related to perception or the functions of sense-objects (e.g.
seeing, hearing, touching / tactility, tasting, smelling), and the other five related to the organs of action (as
functions of the tongue, feet, hands, evacuation and reproduction); five sense-objects (form / color, sound,
touch or tactile, taste or rasa, odor); and the five great elements (fire or light, ether / space, air, water, earth).
These exist in the primordial prakrti in subtle forms before their evolution.
God and the World
Madhva rejects all attempts to reduce the world of souls and nature to a mere illusion or an emanation of God,
and sets forth an absolute dualism. The individual soul is dependent on God, since it is unable to exist without
the energizing support of the universal spirit, even as the tree cannot live and thrive without its sap. Even
Laksmi, the consort of Vishnu, though supreme and eternal, is dependent on God. She is the presiding deity
over prakriti, which is the material cause of the world. Isvara somehow energizes prakrti, which forms no part of
his being. Madhva uses the etymological meanings of Atman and Brahman with identifications of the individual
and the universal self. The Atman is Brahman, since it grows or since it penetrates everywhere.
The supremacy of God introduces order and unity into the universe, in spite of ultimate differences. Through the
category of visesa (particularity), which distinguishes a quality from a substance, a part from a whole, the one
and many are brought into relation. By means of the category of visesa, it is possible to account for the world of
distinctions without assuming the latter is ultimate. It is through the functioning of visesa that there is difference
or bheda. If visesa is different from the Supreme, it breaks the integrity of the Supreme; if it is non-different from
it, it cannot be called visesa (Vaisesika philosophy).
Ethics and Religion
It is knowledge that produces the feeling of absolute dependence on God and love for him. A correct knowledge
of all things, material and spiritual, leads to knowledge of God, which naturally results in the love for God.
Towards the close of his Tattvaviveka, Madhva says: "Surely he finds release from samsara who understands
that all this limited existence is ever under the control of Hari."
A sound moral life is a preliminary for salvation. The moral rules are to be obeyed and obligations fulfilled without
any desire or claim for fruit. A virtuous life helps us to win insight into truth. We can gain true knowledge from a
study of the Vedas, which is usually difficult (for people with varying educational and social backgrounds) and
therefore must be carried out under the proper guidance. Each individual has in him the capacity for the
perception of a particular aspect of Brahman. Madhva encourages all to study the Vedanta. Meditation, or the
act of absorbing oneself as often and as intensely as possible in the glory of God, is advised. In the act of
meditation the soul can by divine grace arrive at a direct intuitive realization of God. When the soul has this
vision, as steady as the sun and not merely as swift as lightning, its fetters fall off and it is said to be redeemed.
Though, in a sense, the states of the soul are brought about by Brahman, it is also admitted that the grace of
the lord is proportional to our devotion. Our conduct cannot by itself lead us to freedom; God must cooperate.
The supreme that is non-manifested cannot be made manifested by the force of our efforts. He reveals himself
when pleased with our devotion. The grace of God corresponds to the faith of the worshipper. There is the belief
in divine predestination and human freedom. Insight, devotion, performance of rites and ceremonies, are
insisted on. God (Vishnu) can be worshipped in word (veracity, sacred study), act (charity) and thought (mercy
and faith). Worship of God is the indispensable, preliminary condition for obtaining the divine grace. Works done
with knowledge help us in the upward progress. Rites and sacrifices are recommended, but animal sacrifices are
forbidden.
The soul may continue the bodily existence so long as its prarabdha (previously acquired) karma is operative
(not exhausted), but when it departs from the body it is freed absolutely. Absolute liberation and embodied life
are not compatible. The author of the Nyaymrta argues that he, who has the vision of the truth but not the
grace of God necessary to effect freedom, continues to live in the flesh. This is jivanmukti (liberation in life).
Complete freedom is possible only through the grace of God. Release, according to the Bhagavata, is fellowship
with God and not identification with him. In the state of release, there is absence of pain as well as the
presence of positive enjoyment. But the soul is not capable of rising in equality with God. It is only entitled to
serve him. While those who attain release escape from the world of Samsara, others pass on at death to a
different existence, which is determined by the law of karma.
TOP
Introduction
A leading form of reaction against Samkara's Advaitism is the dualistic philosophy associated with the name of
Madhva, which has many points in common with Ramanuja's view of reality. Madhva stands out for unqualified
dualism and insists on the five great distinctions of God and the individual soul, God and matter, the individual
soul and matter, one soul and another, and one part of matter and another. It will perhaps be better to
visualize creation as comprising of all the souls and the world of matter. Thus the duality, as Madhva suggests,
between God and creation. The exclusive mediatorship through Vayu, the son of Vishnu, is also there. In view of
the fact that Madhva's commentary on the Kena Upanisad is taken from Brahmasara, it is reasonable to think
that there was the tradition of dualism even prior to Madhva. Madhva also makes clever use of the Samkhya and
the Nyaya-Vaisesika theories.
The differences with Ramanuja include that while Ramanuja thinks that the individual souls are similar in their
natural essence, Madhva makes them different. Madhva denies that Brahman is the material cause, which
Ramanuja admits. For Madhva, the universe is not the body of God. In Ramanuja, there are no souls disqualified
for salvation and there are no differences in the enjoyment of bliss for freed souls.
Madhva accepts the three sources of knowledge: perception, inference and scriptural testimony. Comparison is
regarded as a variety of inferences. Perception is confined to the facts open to the senses. Inference is
incapable of supplying us with new facts, though it helps us to test and systematize the facts obtained through
other means. We have to depend on the Vedas for a true knowledge of reality. Madhva accepts the
authoritativeness of the Vedas as a whole, and does not discriminate between the different parts of it.
Reality (padartha) is of two kinds, according to Madhva, independent (svatantra) and dependent (paratantra).
God, the supreme person, is the only independent realty. The dependent beings are of two kinds, positive
(bhava) and negative (abhava). Of the positive we have two varieties, conscious (cetana) souls, and
unconscious (acetana) entities, like matter and time. Unconscious existence is either eternal like the Vedas,
eternal and non-eternal like prakrti, time and space, or non-eternal like the products of prakrti.
God
There are three entities existing from all eternity to all eternity, fundamentally different from one another, which
are God, soul and the world. Though these are all real and eternal, the latter two are subordinate to God and
dependent on him. Independent reality is Brahman, the absolute creator of the universe. We can know his
nature through the study of the Vedas, and so his nature is not indefinable. When the Supreme is said to be
indefinable, all that is meant that a complete knowledge of him is difficult to acquire. Brahman is unsurpassed in
excellence and without an equal, since it penetrates everywhere. The attributes of God are absolute in their
character and so do not limit him. Brahman possesses every kind of perfection. He is identified with Vishnu, and
is said to direct by his will the world and all that is in it as an absolute ruler. He creates and destroys the world
again and again. He is endowed with a supernatural body and is regarded as transcendent to the world as well
as immanent, since he is the inner ruler (antaryamin) of the souls. He manifests himself in various forms
(vyuhas), appears periodically in incarnations (avataras), and is said to be mystically present in the sacred
images. He creates, maintains and destroys the universe, imparts knowledge, manifests himself in several ways,
condemns some and redeems others. By his side is Laksmi, capable of assuming various forms, but without a
material body, coeternal with him and all pervading. She witnesses the glory of God through eternity and, unlike
other gods and goddesses who acquire release after many existences, she is eternally redeemed. She is the
personification of God's creative energy. She is the intelligent prakrti, though God is greater than she is in point
of subtlety and the extent of qualities. God rules the souls and matter, though he does not create them from
nothing or reduce them to nothing. He is the efficient cause but not the material cause of the universe. God
takes into account the karma of individuals, but he is not dependent on karma.
The Individual Soul
Everything on earth is, according to Madhva, a living organism. The universe is a vast expansion of animated
nature with every atom of space filled with jivas (beings comprising of body and soul). Madhva regards the
distinction between Brahman and jiva real, and holds that it is wrong to think that the jiva and Brahman are
non-different in release and different in samsara (world), since two different things cannot at any time become
non-different or vice versa. Though absolutely dependent on Brahman, the jivas are essentially active agents
and have responsibilities to bear. The soul is not an absolute agent, since it is of limited power, depending, as it
does, on the guidance of the Lord. The jiva is said to be of the atomic size as distinct from Brahman who is all
pervading. Though limited in size, it pervades the body on account of its quality of intelligence. The organ of
knowledge is called saksin, to which the material manas (mind) presents its impressions. It is the cognizing
principle to which is due the consciousness of I-ness (ego), which is the basis of individuality. The soul is by
nature blissful, though it is subject to pain and suffering, on accounts of its connection with material bodies due
to the past karma. So long as it is not freed from its impurities, it wanders about in changing forms of existence.
The qualities like bliss become manifest at the time of release. Though the souls are eternal, they are said to be
born with reference to their embodied connection. No two jivas are alike in character. Each has its own worth
and place in the scale of existence. The jivas are dependent on the Lord, who, however, impels them to action
according to their previous conduct.
The conscious souls are of three kinds: (1) those eternally free (nitya), like Laksmi; (2) those who have freed
themselves from samsara (mukta) devas and men, rsis and fathers; and (3) the bound (badha). The last class
(3) includes both those who are eligible for release (mukti-yogya) and those who are not eligible for it
(mukti-ayogya). These latter (mukti-ayogya) are metaphorically either those intended for hell (constant
suffering) or the blinding darkness (tamo-yogya) or those who are bound to the circuit of samsara for all time.
While some are preordained for salvation by their inherent aptitude, others are destined for hell, while a third
class keeps revolving on the wheels of samsara from eternity to eternity, now enjoying, now suffering, in
endless alteration. This threefold classification is based on the three gunas. The Sattvika soul goes to heaven,
the rajasa revolves in samsara, while the tamasa falls into hell. The living beings comprise of gods, men, animals
and plants. Even among the souls destined for salvation, no two souls possess the same degree of eligibility.
The World of Nature
Material products are the objects of the inanimate world and form the bodies and organs of all beings. They all
originate from the primary matter, prakrti, and return to it in course of time. Though prakrti appears to be
homogeneous, it is really composed of different principles in a subtle state. It develops into the perceptible
universe when worked up by God and the souls. God moulds forms out of prakrti, which is the material cause
and in which he exists himself in various forms. Before we get from the unmanifested prakrti to the
well-developed forms of creation, we have twenty-four transitional products of creation which are mahat (the
first formed matter from which the rest evolves); ahamkara (ego); buddhi (intellect); manas (mind); ten senses
(working in cooperation with the manas): five related to perception or the functions of sense-objects (e.g.
seeing, hearing, touching / tactility, tasting, smelling), and the other five related to the organs of action (as
functions of the tongue, feet, hands, evacuation and reproduction); five sense-objects (form / color, sound,
touch or tactile, taste or rasa, odor); and the five great elements (fire or light, ether / space, air, water, earth).
These exist in the primordial prakrti in subtle forms before their evolution.
God and the World
Madhva rejects all attempts to reduce the world of souls and nature to a mere illusion or an emanation of God,
and sets forth an absolute dualism. The individual soul is dependent on God, since it is unable to exist without
the energizing support of the universal spirit, even as the tree cannot live and thrive without its sap. Even
Laksmi, the consort of Vishnu, though supreme and eternal, is dependent on God. She is the presiding deity
over prakriti, which is the material cause of the world. Isvara somehow energizes prakrti, which forms no part of
his being. Madhva uses the etymological meanings of Atman and Brahman with identifications of the individual
and the universal self. The Atman is Brahman, since it grows or since it penetrates everywhere.
The supremacy of God introduces order and unity into the universe, in spite of ultimate differences. Through the
category of visesa (particularity), which distinguishes a quality from a substance, a part from a whole, the one
and many are brought into relation. By means of the category of visesa, it is possible to account for the world of
distinctions without assuming the latter is ultimate. It is through the functioning of visesa that there is difference
or bheda. If visesa is different from the Supreme, it breaks the integrity of the Supreme; if it is non-different from
it, it cannot be called visesa (Vaisesika philosophy).
Ethics and Religion
It is knowledge that produces the feeling of absolute dependence on God and love for him. A correct knowledge
of all things, material and spiritual, leads to knowledge of God, which naturally results in the love for God.
Towards the close of his Tattvaviveka, Madhva says: "Surely he finds release from samsara who understands
that all this limited existence is ever under the control of Hari."
A sound moral life is a preliminary for salvation. The moral rules are to be obeyed and obligations fulfilled without
any desire or claim for fruit. A virtuous life helps us to win insight into truth. We can gain true knowledge from a
study of the Vedas, which is usually difficult (for people with varying educational and social backgrounds) and
therefore must be carried out under the proper guidance. Each individual has in him the capacity for the
perception of a particular aspect of Brahman. Madhva encourages all to study the Vedanta. Meditation, or the
act of absorbing oneself as often and as intensely as possible in the glory of God, is advised. In the act of
meditation the soul can by divine grace arrive at a direct intuitive realization of God. When the soul has this
vision, as steady as the sun and not merely as swift as lightning, its fetters fall off and it is said to be redeemed.
Though, in a sense, the states of the soul are brought about by Brahman, it is also admitted that the grace of
the lord is proportional to our devotion. Our conduct cannot by itself lead us to freedom; God must cooperate.
The supreme that is non-manifested cannot be made manifested by the force of our efforts. He reveals himself
when pleased with our devotion. The grace of God corresponds to the faith of the worshipper. There is the belief
in divine predestination and human freedom. Insight, devotion, performance of rites and ceremonies, are
insisted on. God (Vishnu) can be worshipped in word (veracity, sacred study), act (charity) and thought (mercy
and faith). Worship of God is the indispensable, preliminary condition for obtaining the divine grace. Works done
with knowledge help us in the upward progress. Rites and sacrifices are recommended, but animal sacrifices are
forbidden.
The soul may continue the bodily existence so long as its prarabdha (previously acquired) karma is operative
(not exhausted), but when it departs from the body it is freed absolutely. Absolute liberation and embodied life
are not compatible. The author of the Nyaymrta argues that he, who has the vision of the truth but not the
grace of God necessary to effect freedom, continues to live in the flesh. This is jivanmukti (liberation in life).
Complete freedom is possible only through the grace of God. Release, according to the Bhagavata, is fellowship
with God and not identification with him. In the state of release, there is absence of pain as well as the
presence of positive enjoyment. But the soul is not capable of rising in equality with God. It is only entitled to
serve him. While those who attain release escape from the world of Samsara, others pass on at death to a
different existence, which is determined by the law of karma.
TOP
