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| Srimad Vallabhacharya (1479-1531) |
Radha-Madhava is Prakriti-Purusha and this dual category is assumed to represent the duality of Jivatma and Paramatma, the Individual Soul and the Universal Soul, the wave and the ocean. Worship is offered to both through that Name. Vallabhacharya proclaimed “Krishnasthu Bhagawan Swayam” (Krishna is the Lord Himself). Attaining Him was explained to be equal to merging in the Universal, the goal of genuine monists.
- “Modes of Worship”, Sathya Sai Vahini
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| Srimad Vallabhacharya expounding on devotion from Srimad Bhagavatam |
Vallabhacharya gave a different interpretation of devotion. He made a distinction between the continuous flow of devotion and devotion falling in drops. When a devotee’s heart is completely filled with the love of God, he ceaselessly chants the name of God. This state of mind of the devotee was described thus, ‘Sarvadha Sarvakaleshu Sarvatra Harichintanam’ (ceaselessly thinking of God at all times and at all places).
- “The Triple Purity”, Sathya Sai Speaks, Volume 29, January 1, 1996, Prasanthi Nilayam
Examine, if you like, whether any saint was saved without the name of the Lord or the house of the Lord! For Gauranga (Chaitanya Mahaprabhu), the Vishnu temple (Jagannath Mandir) was the inspiration and refuge.
For Jayadev, it was the Radhakrishna temple. For Nandanar, the temple at Chidambaram provided the source of realisation. Vallabhacharya, Kabir, Nanak, Meera, Radha, Ramanuja, Madhvacharya, Shankaracharya, Namdev, Tulsidas, Tyagaraja, all attained Divine vision and, what is more, Divine wisdom itself in and through temples. What need is there to dilate more? Even in recent times, was it not in the Kali temple built by Rani Rasmani that Ramakrishna Paramahamsa tasted Divine bliss and discovered his identity.
- “Temples”, Dharma Vahini
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| The form of Krishna worshipped as Shrinathji (center) at Nathdwara (Rajasthan). The worship of this self-manifest idol of Krishna was established by Srimad Vallabhacharya (left of idol) |
All sects of Hinduism, who claim to be authentic and orthodox, accept the Three Sources (the Upanishads, the Brahma Sutra and the Bhagavad Gita) as their basic texts—whether they are Dvaitins, Vishishtadvaitins or Advaitins (dualists, qualified-non-dualists or non-dualists). Whoever desired to propagate a new interpretation or a new attitude or theory- Shankara, Ramanuja, Madhvacharya, Vallabhacharya or Chaitanya, had to propagate it through commentaries from that standpoint on the Three Sources (Prasthana Traya) only. Therefore, to assert that Vedanta can be used only with reference to the Upanishads and the doctrines that they teach will be a great mistake. All conclusions drawn from the Prasthana Traya are genuine and deserve the name Vedanta. Vishishtadvaita as well as Dvaita have as much claim to be known as Vedanta as Advaita. This unity in diversity, this harmony in difference, this is the core of the current of Bharatiya thought.
- “Values in Later Texts”, Sathya Sai Vahini
About Srimad Vallabhacharya
Born in the year 1479 in present day Chhattisgarh, Sri Vallabhacharya was a devotional Indian philosopher and a Vaishnava teacher. He wrote many spiritual texts and devotional verses, including commentaries on the Vedanta Sutras. He established the devotional philosophy called Shuddhadvaita (Pure Non-Dualism) and the Pushti Marg (Path of Grace) sect which advocates Bhakti (devotion) to Lord Krishna as the supreme path to salvation.
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| Chief Deities of Pushti Marga: Vallabhacharya (left), Shirnathji (center), Yamunaji (right) |
He established the worship of the childhood form of Krishna, known as Shrinathji, which is currently installed at Nathdwara in Rajasthan. At the command of Lord Krishna Himself, he took Samadhi at the age of 52 in 1531 at Kashi by entering the Ganges.
Source: Sai Vani: Avatar on Mahapurushas
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