Guest guest Posted September 8, 1999 Report Share Posted September 8, 1999 Dear Bhaktas, I had erroneously written yesterday that the etymology of the word "Vaikuntha" has been mentioned by Sri Vedanta Desika. Actually, it is Sri Sudarsana Suri who discusses this topic in his commentary on Ramanuja's Saranagati Gadya. "vaikuNTha" is derived from "vikuNTha". Sudarsana Suri cites an authority which states that "vikuNTha" is based on the word "kuThi", which means "to obstruct knowledge" (gati-pratighAta). The prefix "vi" means without, so "vi-kuNTha" means "without obstruction of knowledge". Those whose knowledge is unobstructed by karma are known as "vikuNThAH". The place that is associated with them is "vaikuNTha". >From this we can gather that Vaikuntha refers to that place where one's knowledge is unlimited. From the previous discussions, we can conclude that moksha consists of both a state as well as a place, though not in any conventional sense. I refer readers to both Srikanth's and Murali's excellent observations on this subject. rAmAnuja dAsan, Mani Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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