Category:Becoming One with The Supreme
Theme Analysis
This category explores the subtle distinction between genuine spiritual advancement and the hidden material desires found within the goal of impersonal liberation. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that the endeavor to become one with the Supreme is often a reaction to material frustration; when a person fails to "lord it over" the material world, they attempt to "become" the Lord instead. Because this desire is focused on personal relief and self-interest rather than the pleasure of the Lord, it is categorized as a refined form of materialism or even spiritual lust (kāma).
- A Reaction to Frustration: The desire for sāyujya-mukti, or merging, typically arises when a living entity is baffled in their attempts at material sense gratification. Thinking the world is false (jagan mithya), they seek to annihilate their individuality. This is seen as a negative escape rather than a positive engagement in spiritual variety.
- Subtle Materialism: Pure devotional service (bhakti) must be free from all other desires, including the desire for liberation. The quotes emphasize that wanting to become one with the Supreme is still a "demand" or a "desire" for one’s own satisfaction. In contrast, the devotee’s only interest is the satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa.
- The Myth of Oneness: The attempt to become the Supreme is described as an "impossible accomplishment" and a "myth." True self-realization means knowing one’s constitutional position as a part and parcel of the Whole, not falsely claiming to be the Whole itself.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: Why the Desire to Become One with the Supreme Is Considered Material.
Pages in category "Becoming One with The Supreme"
The following 68 pages are in this category, out of 68 total.
A
- A special distinction between devotees and the other transcendentalists, namely the jnanis and yogis, is that jnanis and yogis artificially try to become one with the Supreme, whereas devotees never aspire for such an impossible accomplishment
- According to the monists, when a yogi becomes one with the Supreme and loses his individual existence, he attains the highest stage, called kaivalya. But actually, the stage of realization of the Personality of Godhead is kaivalya
- Activities such as mystic trance, becoming one with the Supreme, and the religious principles of brahminism, such as speaking the truth and tolerance, have their own respective attractions
- As long as there is the desire to enjoy sensually or to become one with the Supreme or to possess the mystic powers, there is no question of attaining the stage of pure devotional service
- As soon as a living entity forgets his constitutional position and endeavors to become one with the Supreme, his conditional life begins
- As such, the pure devotees never accept the liberation of sayujya, to become one with the supreme, though sometimes they may accept as favorable the other four liberated states
B
- Bilvamangala Thakura lamented: I was situated as a monist in order to become one with the Supreme, but somehow or other I contacted a naughty boy and became His eternal servitor
- By virtue of his devotional service he (the devotee) attains the brahma-bhuta (SB 4.30.20) stage without a doubt. The yogis & jnanis are always doubtful about their constitutional position; they mistakenly think of becoming one with the Supreme
F
- For a pure devotee who has realized Krsna consciousness through Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the monistic philosophy by which one becomes one with the Supreme appears hellish
- For the devotee of the Lord, the highest perfection of the Mayavadis, kaivalya, or becoming one with the Supreme, is considered hellish to say nothing of the karmis' aspiration to be promoted to the heavenly planets
H
- He (the self-realized person) thus (by the sthira-buddhi) knows his constitutional position perfectly well, without falsely trying to become one with the Supreme in all respects. This is called Brahman realization, or self-realization. BG 1972 purports
- Here one word, sangatatma, is misinterpreted by the Mayavadi philosophers, who say that the self of Dhruva Maharaja became one with the Supreme Self, the Personality of Godhead
I
- If Krsna's enemies could get freed from material contamination and become one with the Supreme, then certainly His dear friends like the gopis can achieve such freedom and much more
- If someone has desire for material enjoyment or for becoming one with the supreme, these are both considered material concepts
- If the devotee can be engaged twenty-four hours each day in devotional service they do not want anything else, not even the happiness of liberation or of becoming one with the Supreme
- If we want to become one with the Supreme, we will be allowed to live outside the Vaikuntha planets, in the brahma-jyotir. However, that position is not eternal
- Impersonalists, who desire to become one with the Supreme, are unable to evaluate the devotees of the Lord. Thus from time immemorial these two transcendental pilgrims have sometimes been competitors
- In material activities a person engages in the modes of material nature. The aspirations of such people are (1) to be religious, (2) to be economically enriched, (3) to be able to gratify the senses and, at last, (4) to become one with the Supreme
- In that (brahma-bhuta) stage of existence, the idea of becoming one with the Supreme Brahman and annihilating one's individuality becomes hellish. BG 1972 purports
- In that condition of spiritual consciousness, the contributor, the contribution, the consumption, the performer or leader of the performance, and the result or ultimate gain-everything-becomes one in the Absolute, the Supreme Brahman. BG 1972 purports
- In the beginning he desires to become one with the Supreme. Thus, less intelligent transcendentalists cannot go beyond this conception of becoming one with the spirit whole, without knowing of the different rasas
- In the beginning of the SB it is said that unless one has the capacity to throw out, just like garbage, the fruitive results of ritualistic ceremonies, economic development and becoming one with the supreme (or salvation), one cannot understand SB
- It is a fact that there are many so-called Vaisnavas whose ultimate aim is to merge into the existence of the Lord. For example, the sahajiyas’ Vaisnava philosophy is to become one with the Supreme
- It is further said, "Who is that person who will not agree to worship the land of Mathura? Mathura can deliver all the desires and ambitions of the fruitive workers and of the salvationists, who desire to become one with the supreme Brahman"
J
- Jnanis are always aspiring after liberation and trying to become one with the Supreme
- Jnanis want to become one with the Supreme or liberation, so it should be uncovered by the result of jnana and karma and fully devoid of any other desire. That is bhakti. So those who are bhaktas and desiring after liberation, they are not pure bhakta
K
- Kaivalya-pataye namah. The Mayavadi philosophers, the monists, want to become one with the Supreme. The Supreme is self-satisfied, and they also want to be self-satisfied by becoming one with the Supreme
- Karmis, they are trying to be elevated in higher planetary system. And jnanis, they are wanting to become one with the Supreme. So that is also demand. That means there is some desire. It is not anyabhilasita-sunyam
M
- Mayavadis maintain that when a living entity is liberated, he becomes one with the supreme impersonal Brahman
- Mayavadis think that becoming one with the Supreme is the highest perfection, but this is not perfection because our original constitutional position is to enjoy the company of Krsna
- Mukti refers to being disgusted with material advancement and thus desiring to become one with the Supreme
S
- Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya replied, "I prefer bhakti to mukti. Although according to You there are two meanings to the word mukti, still, because this word is equivocal, when one hears the word mukti, he immediately thinks of becoming one with the Supreme"
- Sometimes it is found that a neophyte is taking part in chanting and dancing very enthusiastically, but within himself he is under the impression that he has become one with the supreme whole
- Srila Prabodhananda Sarasvati Thakura, describing this kind of mukti, which is called kaivalya, or becoming one with the Supreme, has said, kaivalyam narakayate: Becoming one with the Supreme is as good as going to hell
- Srila Rupa Gosvami says that if brahmananda, or the happiness of becoming one with the Supreme, is multiplied by one trillionfold, still it cannot be compared with an atomic fraction of the happiness derived from the ocean of devotional service
T
- That artificial stoppage of sense activities will not be ultimately beneficial. Or thinking that my sense activities may be stopped, I become silent, become one with the supreme - that will also not help us
- The consciousness of the individual soul becomes one with the supreme consciousness when there is complete synthesis between the two
- The difference between a devotee and an impersonalist is that an impersonalist tries to become one with the Supreme so that he can enjoy without impediment
- The ideal of Mayavada philosophy, becoming one with the Supreme, is hellish for a devotee; he never accepts it
- The impersonalist is desirous of becoming one with the Supreme, or in other words, he wants to become the Supreme. This is a myth only. The mystic yogis become encumbered by various mystic powers and so have neither peace nor satisfaction
- The individual soul becomes repentant that he forgot his constitutional position, wanted to become one with the Supreme Soul and tried his best to lord it over material nature. He has been baffled, and therefore he is repentant
- The jnanis are also engaged in sense gratification, for they are simply interested in becoming one with the Supreme. Thus the aim of all these activities is sense gratification to a higher or a lower degree
- The Mayavadi philosophers' unrealizable ambition to become one with the Supreme through denying the existence of the Personality of Godhead results in a most calamitous misrepresentation of spiritual knowledge
- The Mayavadi philosophers, they say that so long we are contaminated in the maya, we can adopt any means of self-realization, and after self-realization, when we become liberated, we become one with the Supreme and there is no more any work
- The Mayavadis want to become one with the Supreme because they are suffering in the material world. Krsna has created us to enjoy ourselves in His company, but due to our desire for independent enjoyment, we are not doing that
- The only concern of such (saintly) devotees is moksa, liberation. This moksa does not refer to becoming one with the Supreme like the Mayavadi philosophers
- The salvationists who are aspiring to become one with the Supreme Person, and the yogis who are aspiring after mystic perfections can achieve the results of all perfectional stages simply by chanting the maha-mantra
- The secret of success for the devotee is not understood by the karmis and jnanis. Karmis therefore try to be happy by material adjustment, and jnanis want to be happy by becoming one with the Supreme. The devotee has no such interest
- The tridandi-sannyasi of the Vaisnava school accepts three rods, representing the vow to engage in the service of the Lord with body, mind and speech, whereas the ekadandi-sannyasi takes the vow to become one with the Supreme
- There are also many so-called Vaisnavas who worship Lord Visnu with an aim of becoming one with the Supreme. They sometimes give the example of a drop of water merging into the great ocean itself. This is simply nonsense
- There are many kinds of mystics, such as the karma-yogi, jnana-yogi, dhyana-yogi and bhakti-yogi. The karmis particularly search after the favor of the demigods, the jnanis want to become one with the Supreme Absolute Truth
- They (Brahma, Siva and the great rsis) have an inclination to try to become one with the Supreme, and therefore they have to come back
- They (devotees of God) have no eagerness to be happy by being placed in the heavenly planets, becoming liberated or becoming one with Brahman, the supreme effulgence. These benefits do not appeal them. They are interested in giving direct service to God
- This conception of monism (becoming one with the Supreme whole) is completely different from pure transcendental devotional service
- This mukti the sayujya-mukti, means to become one with the Supreme, it not very safe, because there is, there is want of ananda and knowledge. Simply to become one, that will not help
- Those who are liberated theoretically by knowing simply that the living entity is not material may still have desires, although they may be technically classified amongst liberated souls. Their main desire is to become one with the Supreme
- Those who have complete knowledge never think that in the future they will become one with the Supreme. They simply want to remain in their constitutional position as part and parcel of Krsna
- To try to stop desires is impossible. One has to desire the Supreme in order not to be entangled in inferior desires. Jnanis maintain a desire to become one with the Supreme, but such desire is also considered to be kama, lust
W
- When he fails to lord it over the material world, he says: "Oh, this material world is false. Now I shall become one with the Supreme." Brahma satyam jagan mithya
- When one obtains real knowledge, he becomes theoretically one with the Supreme, and when he actually begins the service of Brahman, or Krsna consciousness, he is not only liberated but situated in his spiritual life
- When the purusa who worships, the living entity, thinks of becoming one with the Supreme person, he simply becomes bewildered and falls into the darkness of ignorance
- When, by that process (of satisfying the senses), they become confused or frustrated in fulfilling the maximum amount of sense enjoyment, they try to become one with the Supreme, which is, according to their conception, mukti, or liberation
- Whether one is freed from all material desires, is full of material desires, or desires to become one with the Supreme, he should engage in devotional service