Vaishnava Philosophy The Roots of Existence "It is a time of progress, my dear. You are nothing more than a bundle of atoms and your silly little feelings are nothing but chemical reactions in your brain, which, by the way, is merely a product of billions of years of random evolution of some kind of soup, like anything else around here..."

The Bare Basics [ Karma | Reincarnation | Yoga | Falldown, my fault? | The goal of life ] [ Our real identity | Why did I come to this world? | Soul research | Maya (illusion) ] Look here for the basic understanding of who we are and why we are here, doing what we're doing.

Sounds familiar? That is not a coincidence. It is indeed the time you are presently living in. Remember? You were taught like that from your very childhood. And even at the highest university levels this is the officially accepted value of your life. Or any life for that matter. Yes, true. Externally we may be forced -- by mass media and social pressure -- to submit to these unpalatable concepts, but something deep within refuses. Something deep in our hearts, that continues its quest for the answers to those timeless questions.

Acquiring Knowledge [ Disciplic succession | Spiritual master | Vedic scriptures | Bhagavad-Gita As It Is ] [ Doubt and certainty | Apasampradayas (deviants) | Six systems of Vedic philosophy ] One of the first steps in spiritual life is acquiring transcendental knowledge from the right source.

Who am I? What am I? Why am I? Questions that echo from the soul. Questions that need to be answered. Questions that can be answered.

The World We Live In [ The material energy | The modes of material nature | Time | Truth & beauty ] [ The cycle of ages | The demigods | Hinduism, followers of the Veda ] Our world and existence is more than meets the eye and other senses...

The ancient Vedic scriptures urge us, atatho brahma-jijnasa: "Now that you have attained a human form of life, you should utilize your developed consciousness to inquire into the Absolute Truth." Yet we rather engage in polished styles of eating, sleeping, mating and defending, which is available even in animal species without the hassle of nine-to-five jobs, supermarkets and tax assessments. And thus we claim the world. We claim the very world we destroy with our own ignorance of higher values and truths.

The Absolute Truth [ The three phases of the Absolute | A definition of God | Sri Krishna ] [ The incarnations of Krishna | What is an avatar? | Sri Caitanya | The names of God ] The Absolute Truth is always a person. The source never emanates qualities it doesn't possess.

Once again we are "too busy" making a career. Once again we have "no time" to ponder over the actual substance of existence. Once again we cling to those flickering opportunities that our short life span offers to pursue some temporary satisfaction of our thirst for happiness. We keep running like mad after the oasis in a mirage, castles made of sand, and the gifts of Santa Claus. But the illusion of this material world will never quench the spiritual thirst of the soul. Invisible shackles. Prison without bars. And all bait hides a hook.

An Ageless Vision [ What's that? | Abortion | Prayer | Environment ] [ The art of dying | Equality of man and woman ] Seeing through the eyes of scripture, at all times.

But if we follow that advice, that has come to us through millennia of wisdom and realization, we may find our ignorance dissipating. We may find our questions answered. We may find meaning to our lives. We may find meaning to their lives. We may find meaning... We may find the Absolute Truth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead Sri Krishna, who tells us: "To show them special mercy, I, dwelling in their hearts, destroy with the shining lamp of knowledge the darkness born of ignorance." (Bhagavad-gita 10.11)

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