Nelson, Lance. 2013. “Foreword.

” In Sri Tattva Sandarbha by Srila

Jiva Gosvami, edited and translated by Gopiparanadhana Dasa, xi–
xviii. Vrindavan, India: Giriraja Publishing.
 FOREWORD

The North Indian town of Govardhana is nowadays located just off

National Highway 2 between Delhi and Agra, home of the Taj Mahal.
You can drive from Delhi in three hours or so, but the relative shortness
of the journey facilitated by the new four-lane highway can be some­
what disorienting. Govardhana and the other towns and settlements -
Mathura, Gokula, Vrndavana - that make up the region called Vraja by
religious Hindus seem in fact centuries removed from the high-energy,
stressful bustle of the national capital. The divided highway, somewhat
jarringly for those with religious sensibilities, bisects what is for mil­
lions of Hindus the holy land of Kr�l).a, the land rendered sacred by
the Lord's earthly career some thousands of years ago. For the faith­
ful, it is still graced by the presence - on the spiritual plane, invisible
to most of us but nevertheless still very �eal - of Kr�l).a and his loving
companions. The stories of Kr�l).a's pastimes in this very special place
are numerous, as recounted especially in the Srfmad-Bhtigavatam, the
most sacred scripture of Krishnaite Vai�l).avism. "He was born here,"
the sacred narratives and the devotees who recount them say. "He grew
up there." "Here is where he did this." Every square foot of this region,
it seems, is hallowed with magical tales, recounted over and over again
by Kr�l).a's devotees, of the play of God on earth. Once you've arrived
and gotten caught up in the feelings, the nearby highway quickly fades
into insignificance.
Kr�l).a is often referred to as GiridharJ: ("mountain lifter"). The epi­
thet celebrates one of these wondrous stories of Kr�l).a's youthful ex­
ploits, one which happened to take place in Govardhana. To protect his
loving companions from the stormy wrath of the demigod Indra, Kr�l).a
lifted the hill that gives the place its name. He picked up this "king
of mountains" (giri-rtija) and held it aloft without effort, balancing it
playfully on his pinky, like a huge umbrella, for seven days and seven
nights until the overpowering deluge sent by Indra had abated. When

xi
xu Sri Tattva-sandarbha

Sri Kr�lJa Caitanya ( 1486-1533), the great reviver of Kr�lJa devotion

in North India in the sixteenth century, visited Govardhana, he went
into ecstasy, exclaiming that the sacred hill was identical with the divine
body of Kr�lJa. The six Gosvamis - Rupa, Sanatana, Jiva, and their com­
rades, who became the founding theologians of the ongoing Caitanya
Vai�lJava movement - all spent time in Govardhana, passing their days
in worship and meditation in ku{iras, small huts, near the holy site. Go­
vardhana Hill is perhaps nowadays less imposing in terms of size, but it
remains still a powerfully sacred focal point for Kr�lJa's devotees.
In the vicinity of Govardhana you can meet sincere pilgrims from
all over the world, come to absorb the spiritually charged atmo­
sphere. The devout circumambulate the hill as an act of recollection
known as parikrama. During the fourteen-mile journey, they visit many
of the more than sixty sacred sites in the environs. If you had spent
some time there prior to 20 12, you might well have been privileged
to have met GopiparalJadhana Dasa Adhikari, an American scholar
of Sanskrit and long-time follower of A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
Prabhuplida, the founder of the "Hare Kr�lJa" movement. GopiparalJa­
dhana would likely have told you, if you were not already aware,
that the Hare Kr�lJa movement - more formally identified with the
International Society for Krishna Consciousness, or ISKCON - is much
more than a relic of the '60S. He would rightly have said that it is a
still vibrant, international religious movement of considerable size that
traces its roots back at least five centuries to the divine inspiration of
Sri Caitanya. It maintains sophisticated traditions of ritual and spiri­
tual practice and a rich legacy of theological thought and scholarship
that goes back to the Gosvamis who made this sacred region their home
in the sixteenth century. As the conversation progressed, GopiparalJa­
dhana Dasa might also have told you that, if you were to see a herd
of white cows without a cowherd wandering on Govardhana Hill, you
should pay reverent attention. They would be - according to local lore -
the cows of Kr�lJa and his companion Balarama, not actually without
their herders because the divine pair would be present there also in
spiritual form.!

1 Dhanurdhara Swami, "Kartika Journal- Govardhana Piija and Japa Thoughts." November I,
ZOOS· Accessed I March zo09· <http://www.wavesofdevotion.com!zoos/rr/oz/kartika-journal­
govardhana-puja-and japa-thoughts>.
_
 Foreword xiii

Gopiparal).adhana Dasa lived in Govardhana in a humble cottage

of bricks and mud with his wife, his son, and several cows. He was the
founding preceptor and guiding light of a new educational institution
in Govardhana, the Srimad-Bhagavata V idyapitha. This "seat (pfrha)
of knowledge (vidyii)" is dedicated to training young scholars in the
higllest traditions of brahmanical, Sanskrit learning, with an emphasis
on the theological texts of the Caitanya tradition and, most especially,
the systematic study of the works of the Gosvamis and the Srfmad­
Bhiigavatam and its commentaries. Here, something quite remark­
able is going on. As the ISKCON tradition of Caitanya, or Gau<;liya
Vai�l).avism, matures, it has begun to train scholars and theologians of
its own to carry on and extend into the future the work of Prabhupada,
its founder. As Joseph O'Connell has noted, the publication in Eng-
lish in 2002-2006 of Sanatana Gosvami's Srf Brhad-bhiigavatiimrta, as
translated by Gopiparal).adhana Dasa, was "the first publication by the
Bhaktivedanta Book Trust of a major Caitanya Vai�l).ava text which
the followers of the late Swami A. C. Bhaktivedanta Prabhupada ...
accomplished without his immediate presence."2 This new stage in the
institutional and theological development of the movement is now cen­
tered at the vidyiipfrham in Govardhana, and was being overseen by
Gopiparal).adhana Dasa.3
The students of the school, who pay no tuition, lead a demanding
life of study, discipline, and celibacy, enfolded in a routine of devotion
and spiritual practice. The day begins with worship at 4:30 A.M. and has
no slack in it. In addition to their hours of rigorous study of Sanskrit
grammar, literary theory, scripture, and Vai�l).ava theology, students
engage in serious devotional practice and are expected, following the
ancient iiSrama tradition of Indian education, to perform many of the
daily chores that keep the institution running. The object is to give the
students not only technical expertise and scholarly mastery - in terms
of Sanskrit learning no mean task - but also to foster in them the spiri­
tual discipline and depth of religious experience that will enable them
to teach and translate the spiritual masterworks of their tradition in as
authentic a manner as possible. The students of this school seem likely

2 Joseph T. O'Connell. "Foreword," in Sri Brhad Bhiigavatiimrta of Srlla Sanatana GosvamI,

vol. I (Los Angeles: Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, 2002): XIII-XIV.
3 The school is now located in Vrndavana
xiv Sri Tatt va-sandarbha

to play a major role in the future of ISKCON and the Caitanya Vai�l).ava
movement as a whole.
The main project these days at the Srimad-Bhagavata Vidyapitham is
the study and translation of the works of Jiva Gosvami (c. 15 16-1608).4
Not only was Jiva the primary systematizer of the GaU(;l1ya Vai�l).ava
tradition, he deserves in fact to be considered among the most impor­
tant theologians that India has produced. It is said with more and more
frequency now that the West has, in its appreciation of Hindu religious
thought, placed excessive emphasis on the Advaita Vedanta, or nondu­
alist theology, of Sailkara (c. 650-700 A.D. ) . In this they were perhaps
abetted in the late nineteenth and first half of the twentieth century
by India's Westernized intelligentsia. Advaita conceives the ultimate,
Brahman, as an impersonal state of pure Being and offers a contem­
plative, intellectual kind of spirituality, in which engagement with the
multiple particular and symbolically extravagant (to the Western mind)
"gods and goddesses" of Hinduism, and the so-called idol worship as­
sociated therewith, is unnecessary. Advaita was easier for the West to
come to terms with as a kind of universal spirituality. Nowadays we are
no longer so squeamish about the personalistic richness of Hindu the­
ism or the rich particularly of Hindu deities. Indeed, we are fascinated.
Respect for Hindu theism, and the wealth of the theological traditions
associated with it, is on the rise. In such an environment, Jiva Gosvami
may well be on the verge of his proper recognition as a theologian of
world standing.
While Jiva's output was genuinely prolific - more than twenty-five
works on theology, grammar, rhetoric, and poetics, plus forays into
devotional literature and poetry - his Bhagavata-sandarbha remains
without a doubt his most significant achievement. The title suggests a
compendium - literally, a "stringing or drawing together" (sandarbha) -
of the teachings of the Bhagavata PuralJa, or Srlmad-Bhagavatam. In
the Bhagavata-sandarbha, Jiva Gosvami "strings together" key verses
from this text in a topical arrangement with commentary, so as to create
the first thoroughgoing, systematic presentation of Gauc;liya Vai�l).ava
teachings. It remains the most authoritative.

4 Jan Brzezinski, "Jiva Goswami: Biography and Bibliography," Journal of Vaishnava Studies
15,2 ( Spring 2007): 54-59.
 Foreword xv

The Bhiigavata-sandarbha is also referred to as the $at-sandarbha

because it consists of six (�arj.) volumes, each separately titled. The book
you now hold in your hand is the first of these, the Tattva-sandarbha
("Compendium on the Highest Truth"). The others are the Bhagavat­
sandarbha ("Compendium on Bhagaviin," the supreme personal De­
�
ity the Paramiitma-sandar�ha ("Compendium on the Supreme.
Soul," or Supersoul), the Srl-k!�lJa-sandarbha ("Compendium on
Lord Kr�lfa," as BhagaViin), the Bhakti-sandarbha ("Compendium
on Devotional Practice"), and the PrUi-sandarbha ("Compendium on
Pure Love" for God). The second, third, and fourth of these outline
the Gau"Hya Vai�lfava conception of ultimate Deity in its various as­
pects. The fifth describes Gaw;il:ya spirituality, in which the practice or
yoga of bhakti, loving service of God, is deemed the most efficacious
means of rising above worldly consciousness and regaining one's true
relationship with Kr�lfa. The sixth and last of the Sandarbhas describes
the spiritual goal, prUi, which is the divine love blissfully manifest in the
heart of the devotee.
The Tattva-sandarbha, the first of the six, is a systematic introduc­
tion to the entire scope of theological and spiritual themes that are elab­
orated in the remaining five volumes. Its first part is dedicated to the es­
sential preliminary of any theological discussion in India, a discussion of
pramiilJa, the valid means of knowledge. The second part of the Tattva­
sandarbha gives an overview of prameya, the material "to be known"
through pramiil:/a, that is, the main topics of theology and spirituality
that will be dealt with more exhaustively in the remaining five volumes.
As the translator notes in his preface, one could say that the first part
of the text deals with epistemology, the theory of how we obtain knowl­
edge, while the second gives an overview of Gaw;il:ya Vai�lfava ontology,
the metaphysical/theological vision of the tradition.
Why begin with discussion of pramiilJa, which might appear, at first
encounter, a rather abstruse exercise? Some reflection may help in this
context. If life is to be lived in any sense well, it is essential that we have
accurate knowledge. Let us say that I am going to make a decision -
whether about money or health or family. A primary ingredient for
any kind of successful outcome is that the decision and consequent
action be taken on the basis of correct information. Acting on erro­
neous information could easily lead to frustration, or even in extreme
cases disaster. So the question of finding the best sources of correct
xvi Sri Tatt va-sandarbha

information is critical. This is, moreover, a universal human concern,

common to all cultures and ages: how do we find the kind of accurate
knowledge that will enable us to navigate life successfully? From el­
ders? From friends? From books? Which books? From the Internet?
The question becomes more important when it comes to spiritual mat­
ters. Although it deals with matters of our ultimate destiny, spiritual
knowledge is generally neither obtainable, verifiable, nor for that mat­
ter even falsifiable via ordinary methods such as sense perception, mea­
surement, experiment, deduction, inference, and so on. At the same
time, there are any number of claimants to spiritual knowledge. Which
is the best source, the most accurate and reliable? For reasons like this,
Hindu thinkers hold, any serious discussion of religious truth must be­
gin with a discussion of pramal}a: the valid means of knowledge. To
make a long and very complex story short, the general conclusion of
Hindu theology, as in other religious traditions, is that the authoritative
word (sabda) of scripture is our best guide and source of knowledge
in spiritual matters. The matter is somewhat complicated for Hindus,
however, since in their tradition there are many scriptures - the Vedas,
the Bhagavad-GUa, numerous Pural}as and Agamas - to name the most
important. Which among these should followers turn to for the most
authentic presentation of truth?
Jiva Gosvami's answer, and the answer of his tradition of Kr�l}a­
centered faith is that the surest revelation for people in our time may
be found in the Srimad-Bhagavatam. This was perhaps a natural and
inevitable choice. The Bhtigavatam, of all Hindu scriptures, is the text
which describes in most vivid detail and poetic richness the nature of
the Divine as Kr�l}a and the marvelous play (lila) of Kr�l}a's earthly
career. It proclaims most clearly that, while there are many forms
through which aspects of Divinity have been manifest, Kr�l}a is the full­
ness of the Godhead itself: k!�l}as tu bhagavan svayam (i.3.28). The
Bhagavatam, furthermore, was unquestionably the favorite scripture
of the founder of the Gau9iya Vai�l}ava tradition, Sri Caitanya, him­
self regarded as an avatara or incarnation of Kr�l}a. It holds a preem­
inent position also in other traditions of Kr�l}a devotion, such as the
Pu�ti-marga of Vallabha. The Srlmad-Bhtigavatam, according to a tra­
dition discussed in the Tattva-sandarbha (texts 19, 30), as well as the
Bhagavatam itself (I.7.3 -8), was revealed to the sage Vyasa in meditation
(samadhi-labdha) .
 Foreword xvii

Having established the authoritativeness of the Srfmad-Bhtigavatam

as the most authentic and reliable source of knowledge (pramtilJa),
Jiva turns at text 29 of the Tattva-sandarbha to a summary of the sub­
ject matter "to be known" (prameya) .from that scripture and to be
expounded in the remaining five Sandarbhas. As indicated, this subject
matter includes the nature of the Supreme Truth (tattva) as Kr�I).a, the
pr�tice of bhakti, or devotional service, as the means of recovering
one's true relationship with Kr�I).a, and the enjoyment of prfti or prema,
ecstatic love, as the goal of that practice.
Jiva Gosvami wrote his own commentary on the first four
Sandarbhas called the Sarva-sarhvtidinf. It contains additional explana­
tions, evidence for his arguments, and references. A translation of the
Tattva-sandarbhtinuvytikhyti, the portion of the Sarva-sarhvtidinf that
explicates the Tattva-sandarbha, is provided in the present volume.
The fact that we have Jiva's commentary on his own text illustrates
the importance of the commentarial tradition in Indian thought. Primary
texts are often more or less laconic, in need of further explanation by a
teacher with full access to the wealth of background knowledge that is
presupposed. Such is the case with the Tattva-sandarbha, and - given
its importance to the tradition - it is not surprising that it has attracted
any number of commentaries over the years. Among the most impor­
tant of these are the Tattva-sandarbha-tfkti of Baladeva Vidyabhu�aI).a
(early eighteenth century) and the Tattva-sandarbha-tippanf of Radha­
mohana Gosvami (late eighteenth century). GopiparaI).adhana Dasa, in
addition to translating the Tattva-sandarbha for the present volume, has
chosen to write his own commentary on the text - consulting his prede­
cessors to be sure, but not merely translating them. In so doing, as Ravi
M. Gupta has observed, "GopiparaI).adhana stands as the most recent
example of a Caitanya Vai�I).ava scholar interpreting and reclaiming this
important text for his own generation." 5
The translator/commentator was in fact a highly respected figure in
the ISKCON movement. Having received spiritual initiation from A. C.
Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada in 1973, GopiparaI).adhana Dasa be­
gan a serious study of Sanskrit and a now more than thirty-five-year
career as editor and translator with the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, the

5 Ravi M. Gupta, Assistant Professor of Religious Studies, College of William and Mary,
e-mail message to author, March 4, 2008.
xviii SrI Tattva-sandarbha

official publisher of Prabhupada's books. He was one of the editors of

Prabhupada's monumental translation and commentary on the Srimad­
Bhiigavatam, in the process gaining valuable insight into his master's
method of textual interpretation.6 Following Prabhupada's passing in
1977, he helped complete cantos IO-I2 of that work. Since then, he has
worked tirelessly to bring out, via translation and commentary, a number
of seminal works of Vai�l).ava theology and spirituality, perhaps the most
important prior to the present work being his three-volume, 1800-plus­
page translation of Sanatana Gosvami's SrI Brhad-bhiigavatiimrta
(2002-2006), which includes a rendition of Sanatana's own Dig-darsani
commentary. More recently (2007), Goplparal).adhana's translation of
Sanatana's SrI Kr:jfJa-lllii-stava has been published.
The publication by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust of this transla­
tion of Jlva GosvamI's Tattva-sandarbha is an important milestone in
the history of ISKCON and indeed in the Caitanya Vai�l).ava move­
ment as a whole. Few would doubt that Jlva was "the most brilliant
theologian"? of this tradition. Jiva's Bhiigavata-sandarbha, of which
the Tattva-sandarbha is the first volume, is - to reiterate - the preemi­
nent systematization of Gauc)Iya Vai�l).ava theology. With the assistance
of his students at the Srlmad-Bhagavata V idyapltham in Govardhana,
Goplparal).adhana Dasa was until his untimely passing engaged in a
multi-year project to produce authentic and careful translations of all
six of the Sandarbhas. The clarity and sensitivity of this, the first out­
come of that work, makes one hope that other scholars in the tradition
will step in and keep this most valuable project alive.

Lance E. Nelson, Ph.D.

Professor and Chair
Department of Theology and Religious Studies
University of San Diego

6 See Gopiparal).adhana Dasa, "Srila Prabhupada and the Vai�l).ava Tradition of Scriptural
Commentary: Serving the Words of His Predecessors," ISKCON Communications Journal 8,
2 (March 200I): 1-8.
7 Edward C. Dimock, Jr., "Doctrine and Practice among the Vai�l).avas of Bengal," History of
Religions 3, I (Summer I963): II 1.