THE WORLD OF MATTER IS ALSO SACRED

In this class, Swami Padmanabha addresses a current collective belief within the Gaudiya community that this created world and everything in it is mundane, profane, bad and must be rejected. This perspective colors how we approach every aspect of our lives—how we relate with divinity, the world, our family, our body, mind and emotions; how we love, who we love, if we love—morphing the prospect of bhakti from seeing God everywhere through proper acceptance and integration to seeing God no where through abject rejection and evacuation. That’s not bhakti; that is something else. The proposal is Radical Personalism, exploring how personal we are in relation to this world, tt the realm of matter.

As Gaudiyas who have a goal of entering nara-lila where Krishna is being very human and fully divine, we have to do something with our humanity right here and now. Considering that every corner of this world is the potential birthplace of the Kingdom of God, going “there” does not necessitate “leaving here,” but rather continually arriving.

For Krishna, there is no distinction between matter and spirit. He affirms this world as an overflow of his joy, and enters into each atom, making each unit of creation an embassy of the Lord. Additionally, he chooses to come to Earth to stage his lila eternally, and asks all of his friends and most dear associates join him. So how bad could it really be?
How do we harmonize a statement such as “This world is temporary and miserable” with “The whole universe is an abode of joy”?

This and other questions by participants are sensitively responded to, such as:
-Does love in this world have any value?
-What do we do with statements portraying Maya shakti as a witch

RADICAL PERSONALISM: Revival Manifesto for Proactive Devotion.