Guest guest Posted May 5, 2002 Report Share Posted May 5, 2002 In a message dated Sat, 4 May 2002 11:07:01 PM Eastern Daylight Time, "J.N. Das" <jn> writes: >Srila Narottama Das Thakur is quite clear in stating >the "jnana-kanda" and "karma-kanda" divisions of the >Vedas are like poison to the bhaktas, and Krishna >instructs Arjuna to not be bewildered by the flowery >words of the karma-kanda section of the Vedas. > Haribol The circumstances surrounding "karma-kanda" and "jnana-kanda" are not exactly parallel. There are sections in the Vedic literature explicitly dealing with fruitive activity. This can be seen in, for example, the lower Puranas, which direct one to worship a demigod to obtain certain boons. Now where are the "jnana-kanda" sections (specifically promoting mental speculation devoid of sastric direction) in the Vedic literature, specifically the Upanisads? When Baladeva comments on Upanisadic passages in the course of his Vedanta commentary, there is not a single instance of "jnana-kanda". Every discussion of "knowledge" refers to that which is supportive of bhakti. Is jnana-kanda taught in some obscure Upanisad? I believe the word "jnana" as used by Gaudiya acharyas carries two different meanings. One is sastrically based and refers to knowledge that can support bhakti. The other is the common usage in reference to Advaitic version of the Upanisads or any form of mental speculation. This is the only way I can see to understand the Gaudiya condemnation of "jnana". ys Gerald Surya Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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