To summarize BG.IN.04: The other prakriti is not conscious. The other prakriti is material nature. This prakriti is one of the five aspects that is eternal. Material nature is no conscious. I have three questions as follows:
We learn that our bodily coverings are not conscious. It is the jiva soul which is consiousness and which animates and gives the appearance of life to the body. Q: 1) Do things such as rocks, water, sand, oil, milk, and other such substances in material nature lack consciousness? Is the milk and water we drink dead matter? How then can it nourish the body?
My answer is this: the body is a complex machine that is energized by the presence of the jiva soul and Paramatma. It is these two spiritual energies that allow the material body to function, stay alive, grow, and become nourished for a specific duration of time.
Concerning the study of the material sciences, such as chemistry, Q: 2) Do molecules of elements such as iron, oxygen, or water have consciousness? If not, what is allowing their electrons attract and repel other electrons? Supersoul? Then shouldn't they have consciousness, or not, because the jiva soul is not present? Material science states that an atom is the basic unit of matter. Do atoms lack consciousness? If so, then how are they working if they are not conscious? I thought that life has to be present to animate anything that has a material covering.
Q: 3) So then are we to understand that, within every atom and sub-atomic particle, is the presence of the supersoul, the spiritual spark of Krishna's energy, and this is animating the atomic particles with their specific, endowed material qualities. And, there is no presence of the jiva soul within the atoms and molecules because they are not considered to be living entities.
I would like to discuss these points with others as well as hear the correct answers. Thanks. Emily
Hare Krishna.
suksma jivas
I don't want to confuse you but things are little more complex.
Just as the Lord is omnipresent, jivas are as well. But they are either active (within samsara) or passive.
CC Antya 3.78-86: Caitanya Mahaprabhu liberated all living entities and enabled the manifestation of the unmanifested (suksma) living entities (present inhabitants of this universe) who were merged in material elements, inactive, fully unconscious and out of samsara. Interplanetary space is constituted mainly of ether (akasa) and is full of suksma-jivas.
Matter appears living (organic) due to the influence of active jivas.
Matter itself is in the Vedanta considered to be jada-tattva, unconscious substance (CC Madhya 20.260: "Without the Supreme Personality of Godhead's energy, dull matter cannot create the cosmic manifestation. Its power does not arise from the material energy itself but is endowed by Sankarsana.").
CC: http://vedabase.net/cc
re Sanskrit dictionary: Monier Monier-Williams is the standard one, although already quite old. An assortment of related resources: http://www.veda.harekrsna.cz/links.htm#8
Hope this helps.
ys Jan
Thanks. I downloaded the
Thanks. I downloaded the sanskrit dictionary, very cool. I have only seen pdf scans of Monier Williams one but never a searchable one.
I also see another software in your list that I found for typing in sanskrit. Do you know how one can type devanagari without opening some program?
ys
ncd
Good Point!!!
Hare Krishna Jan Prabhu. I heard a lecture by Gopipranadhana Prabhu where he said that there are souls within atoms too and they wait their turn to become active. The reference you provided from CC confirms this point. Thank you.
Radhikesh das
Sanskrit meanings
Hare Krishna. Radhikesh das, Can you translate this: andantarasta paramanu. I can try paramanu - para would mean supreme and manu, perhaps man. Not sure. Andantarasta?
I'm interested in understanding the sanskrit as well as the philosophy. I should probably be using a dictionary, but I don't know how they are laid out. Would one look up the sanskrit word, as above, and find the English translation? I've heard that sanskrit words have several meanings, depending on the context from where they're used. Perhaps you and other devotees can suggest a dictionary they find useful.
Thanks, Emily
Brahma Samhita
Hare Krishna. I was quoting from Brahma Samhita 5.35 where it is said the Lord is situated within every atom that are scattered thruout the universe.
aNDAntarastha or with diacritics aṇḍāntara-stha: aNDA means the egg shaped universe; antara is within it; stha - situated or scattered. So aNDAntarastha means that which is scattered within the universe.
paramANu or with diacritics paramāṇu: it is combination of parama and aNu. aNu is atom. So parama-anu means the smallest atoms. Parama means supreme but with atoms we are talking about something very minute or small, and so to describe the glory of such a small thing parama is used to indicate the smallness.
Krishna is present within everything small and also everything huge. He is within all atoms scattered all over the universe.
Radhikesh das
BG 15.13
Hare Krishna. The Lord is present everywhere in the creation. He is within the atoms too - andantarasta paramanu...Matter or prakrti is not conscious indicate there is no jiva or soul within them. So the atoms, electrons and milk are not conscious living beings.
To your question then how milk and other eatables nourish the body, Krishna answers in BG 15.13 that becoming the moon He supplies the juice of life to all vegetables - pusnami causadhi sarvah soma bhutva rasatmakah. He nourishes all plants such as rice. He makes things full of various tasty flavors. This is how Baladeva Vidyabhusana comments on this verse.
Radhikesh das
consciousness vs.desire
Its interesting how it seems that the desire of the supreme controller to create and sustain life moves thru all the stages of gunas and elements from the inanimate thru to the Human level.
The 'inanimate, like a rock would be the earth element and corresponds to the tamasic guna, and has little desire - then the 'vegetative, like a plant in which is mostly still but will move towards the light and will seek to absorb water and minerals, is like the earth/water and fire element and is the tamasic/rajasic guna, and has greater desire - then the 'animate level or animal level' which has earth/water/fire/air and tamasic/rajasic guna properties, and an even greater level of desire - then the Human level that has earth-water-fire-air and ether and triguna properties which includes satvic and the greatest level of desire combined to produce consciousness, making the human level jiva capable of attaining spirituality - or attaining a state of homeostasis with the desire of the Lord.
So it seems to me that the consciousness is the human level of the jiva and the amalgamating force that binds and moves the entire creation is the divine desire.
Haribol