Friday, March 21, 2008
Re: What is Ekadashi bhava?
Nityaananda! Gauraanga! Hare Krishna! It is not Ekadashi bhaava. It is Ekaadasha Bhaava or the 11 characteristics of our eternal spiritual body (siddha deha) and is a very advanced topic of discussion. Some references are below:
In Jaiva Dharma Chp 39:
Vijaya: Kindly explain these ekadasa-bhavas to me thoroughly once again.
Gosvami: The ekadasa-bhavas are: 1) sambandha (relationship), 2) vayasa (age), 3) nama (name), 4) rupa (personal form and beauty), 5) yutha (group), 6) vesa (dress), 7) ajna (specific instruction), 8) vasa (residence), 9) seva (exclusive service); 10) parakastha-svasa (the highest summit of emotion, which is the aspirant's very life breath), and 11) palya-dasi-bhava (the sentiment of a maidservant under the protection of Shri Radha).
Shri Hari Naama Chintamani, Chp 15:
"A devotee who aspires to attain the ujjvala-rasa must follow the gopis of Vraja. A soul who thinks of himself as male is not qualified to enter the shringara-rasa. The soul must first attain the form of a gopi in Vraja. Then the soul may worship Lord Krishna in the shringara-rasa. The soul must attain the nature of a vraja-gopi in relation to eleven items described here. There eleven items are: 1. one's relationship, 2. age, 3. name, 4. form, 5. group, 6. garments, 7. command, 8. home, 9. service, 10. highest aspiration, and 11. gopi patroness. The aspiring devotee not attain this form even while he resides in the material world. Why not? In meditation considering himself a gopi according to these eleven items, he may worship Lord Krishna in his heart.
"(28) In striving to attain these eleven items the aspiring devotee passes through five stages. These five stages are: shravana-dasha (the stage of hearing), varana-dasha (the stage of accepting), smarana-dasha (the stage of meditating), apana-dasha (the stage of attaining), and sampatti-dasha (the stage of good fortune)."
Daaso'smi, Swami Gaurangapada.
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