Ananda-maya

Expressions researched:
"ananda maya" |"ananda-maya" |"anandamaya" |"anandamayo"

BG Preface and Introduction

In the effulgent rays of the spiritual sky there are innumerable planets floating. The brahmajyoti emanates from the supreme abode, Kṛṣṇaloka, and the ānanda-maya, cin-maya planets, which are not material, float in those rays.

BG Introduction:

In the effulgent rays of the spiritual sky there are innumerable planets floating. The brahmajyoti emanates from the supreme abode, Kṛṣṇaloka, and the ānanda-maya, cin-maya planets, which are not material, float in those rays. The Lord says, na tad bhāsayate sūryo na śaśāṅko na pāvakaḥ/ yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāma paramaṁ mama (BG 15.6). One who can approach that spiritual sky is not required to descend again to the material sky. In the material sky, even if we approach the highest planet (Brahmaloka), what to speak of the moon, we will find the same conditions of life, namely birth, death, disease and old age. No planet in the material universe is free from these four principles of material existence.

BG Chapters 13 - 18

Then there is Brahman realization, called vijñāna-maya, in which the living entity's mind and life symptoms are distinguished from the living entity himself. The next and supreme stage is ānanda-maya, realization of the all-blissful nature. Thus there are five stages of Brahman realization, which are called brahma puccham.

BG 13.5, Purport:

As stated before, kṣetra is the field of activities, and there are two kinds of kṣetra-jña: the individual living entity and the supreme living entity. As stated in the Taittirīya Upaniṣad (2.9), brahma pucchaṁ pratiṣṭhā. There is a manifestation of the Supreme Lord's energy known as anna-maya, dependence upon food for existence. This is a materialistic realization of the Supreme. Then, in prāṇa-maya, after realizing the Supreme Absolute Truth in food, one can realize the Absolute Truth in the living symptoms or life forms. In jñāna-maya, realization extends beyond the living symptoms to the point of thinking, feeling and willing. Then there is Brahman realization, called vijñāna-maya, in which the living entity's mind and life symptoms are distinguished from the living entity himself. The next and supreme stage is ānanda-maya, realization of the all-blissful nature. Thus there are five stages of Brahman realization, which are called brahma puccham. Out of these, the first three—anna-maya, prāṇa-maya and jñāna-maya—involve the fields of activities of the living entities. Transcendental to all these fields of activities is the Supreme Lord, who is called ānanda-maya. The Vedānta-sūtra also describes the Supreme by saying, ānanda-mayo 'bhyāsāt: the Supreme Personality of Godhead is by nature full of joy. To enjoy His transcendental bliss, He expands into vijñāna-maya, prāṇa-maya, jñāna-maya and anna-maya. In the field of activities the living entity is considered to be the enjoyer, and different from him is the ānanda-maya. That means that if the living entity decides to enjoy in dovetailing himself with the ānanda-maya, then he becomes perfect. This is the real picture of the Supreme Lord as the supreme knower of the field, the living entity as the subordinate knower, and the nature of the field of activities. One has to search for this truth in the Vedānta-sūtra, or Brahma-sūtra.

Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead

When one develops his relationship with Him and executes devotional service, that stage of life is called Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the ānanda-maya stage. Ānanda-maya is the blissful life of knowledge and eternity.

Krsna Book 87:

Within the body there are five different departments of existence, known as anna-maya, prāṇa-maya, mano-maya, vijñāna-maya and, at last, ānanda-maya. In the beginning of life, every living entity is food conscious. A child or an animal is satisfied only by getting nice food. This stage of consciousness, in which the goal is to eat sumptuously, is called anna-maya. Anna means "food." After this one lives in the consciousness of being alive. If one can continue his life without being attacked or destroyed, one thinks himself happy. This stage is called prāṇa-maya, or consciousness of one's existence. After this stage, when one is situated on the mental platform, his consciousness is called mano-maya. The materialistic civilization is primarily situated in these three stages, anna-maya, prāṇa-maya and mano-maya. The first concern of civilized persons is economic development, the next concern is defense against being annihilated, and the next consciousness is mental speculation, the philosophical approach to the values of life.

If by the evolutionary process of philosophical life one happens to reach the platform of intellectual life and understands that he is not this material body but a spiritual soul, he is situated in the vijñāna-maya stage. Then, by evolution in spiritual life, he comes to the understanding of the Supreme Lord, or the Supreme Soul. When one develops his relationship with Him and executes devotional service, that stage of life is called Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the ānanda-maya stage. Ānanda-maya is the blissful life of knowledge and eternity. As it is said in the Vedānta-sūtra, ānanda-mayo ’bhyāsāt. The Supreme Brahman and the subordinate Brahman, or the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the living entities, are both joyful by nature. As long as the living entities are situated in the lower four stages of life— anna-maya, prāṇa-maya, mano-maya and vijñāna-maya—they are considered to be in the material condition of life, but as soon as one reaches the stage of ānanda-maya, he is a liberated soul. This ānanda-maya stage is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā as the brahma-bhūta (SB 4.30.20) stage. There it is said that in the brahma-bhūta stage of life there is no anxiety and no hankering. This stage begins when one is equally disposed toward all living entities, and it then expands to the stage of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, in which one always hankers to render service unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This hankering for advancement in devotional service is not the same as hankering for sense gratification in material existence. In other words, hankering remains in spiritual life, but it becomes purified. Similarly, when our senses are purified, they are freed from all material stages, namely anna-maya, prāṇa-maya, mano-maya and vijñāna-maya, and they become situated in the highest stage—ānanda-maya, or blissful life in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. The Māyāvādī philosophers consider ānanda-maya to be the state of being merged in the Supreme. To them, ānanda-maya means that the Supersoul and the individual soul become one. But the real fact is that oneness does not mean merging into the Supreme and losing one's own individual existence. Merging into the spiritual existence is the living entity's realization of qualitative oneness with the Supreme Lord in His aspects of eternity and knowledge. But the actual ānanda-maya (blissful) stage is attained when one is engaged in devotional service. That is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā: mad-bhaktiṁ labhate parām (BG 18.54). Here Lord Kṛṣṇa states that the brahma-bhūta ānanda-maya stage is complete only when there is an exchange of love between the Supreme and the subordinate living entities. Unless one comes to this ānanda-maya stage, his breathing is like the breathing of a bellows in a blacksmith's shop, his duration of life is like that of a tree, and he is no better than the lower animals like the camels, hogs and dogs.

Undoubtedly the eternal living entity cannot be annihilated at any point. But the lower species of life exist in a miserable condition, whereas one who is engaged in the devotional service of the Supreme Lord is situated in the pleasurable, or ānanda-maya, status of life. The different stages described above are all in relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Although in all circumstances there exist both the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the living entities, the difference is that the Supreme Personality of Godhead always exists in the ānanda-maya stage, whereas the subordinate living entities, because of their minute position as fragmental portions of the Supreme Lord, are prone to fall to the other stages of life. Although in all the stages both the Supreme Lord and the living entities exist, the Supreme Personality of Godhead is always transcendental to our concept of life, whether we are in bondage or in liberation. The whole cosmic manifestation becomes possible by the grace of the Supreme Lord, it exists by the grace of the Supreme Lord, and when annihilated it merges into the existence of the Supreme Lord. As such, the Supreme Lord is the supreme existence, the cause of all causes. Therefore the conclusion is that without development of Kṛṣṇa consciousness one's life is simply a waste of time.

Renunciation Through Wisdom

There are various stages of elevation the jīva goes through, which are like different shells (koṣas) covering him. They are the coverings of food (anna-maya), life air (prāṇa-maya), mind (mano-maya, or jñāna-maya), and transcendental knowledge (vijñāna-maya). When the final shell is penetrated, the soul attains pure consciousness, enters the state of complete bliss (ānanda-maya), and experiences sac-cid-ānanda as universal.

Renunciation Through Wisdom 5.1:

There are various stages of elevation the jīva goes through, which are like different shells (koṣas) covering him. They are the coverings of food (anna-maya), life air (prāṇa-maya), mind (mano-maya, or jñāna-maya), and transcendental knowledge (vijñāna-maya). When the final shell is penetrated, the soul attains pure consciousness, enters the state of complete bliss (ānanda-maya), and experiences sac-cid-ānanda as universal. First the soul has covered consciousness, then he reaches the stage of budding consciousness, then blossoming consciousness, and finally fully blossomed consciousness. And all the while he experiences a gradual expansion of bliss—but only in relation to Lord Kṛṣṇa and His devotional service. At the final stage, flowers, fruits, plants, trees, clay—all objects and elements—become spiritualized by being used in Lord Kṛṣṇa's service. In other words, nothing is seen to be separate from the Lord. As the Īśopaniṣad (1) explains, īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvaṁ: (ISO 1) "Everything animate or inanimate that is within this universe is controlled and owned by the Lord."

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures

Ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt: "The Absolute Truth is ānandamayo by nature," abhyāsāt. There are the interpretation of the Māyāvādīs of this Vedānta-sūtra, ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12). But we see that the Supreme Absolute Person is ānandamāyā. Kṛṣṇa, you'll never see without ānanda. He is, I mean to say, taking care of the cows, He's dancing with the gopīs, He's playing with His cowherd boys. Ānandamāyā. These are ānanda māyā. These are the varieties.

Lecture on CC Adi-lila 7.5 -- Mayapur, March 7, 1974:

So we may read herewith one commentary by my Guru Mahārāja Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura. "In his Anubhāṣya commentary Śrī Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura describes the Pañca-tattva as follows: The supreme energetic, the Personality of Godhead, manifesting in five kinds of pastimes, appears as the Pañca-tattva. Actually there is no difference between them because they are situated on the absolute platform, but they manifest different spiritual varieties as a challenge to impersonalists to taste different kinds of spiritual humors, rāsas..." Because they do not accept the different tastes. The Māyāvāda philosophy and Vaiṣṇava philosophy, the only difference is... Although the aim is one, Absolute Truth, but the difference is that they do not accept varieties, varieties of taste. Therefore they fall down. It is not our version, but it is stated in the Vedic literature, āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ patanty adho 'nādṛta-yuṣmad-aṅghrayaḥ: (SB 10.2.32) "By severe penance and austerities, these Māyāvādīs, they go up to the Brahman effulgence, but from there they fall down, fall down." Because for want of varieties. You cannot live without varieties. Ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt: "The Absolute Truth is ānandamayo by nature," abhyāsāt. There are the interpretation of the Māyāvādīs of this Vedānta-sūtra, ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12). But we see that the Supreme Absolute Person is ānandamāyā. Kṛṣṇa, you'll never see without ānanda. He is, I mean to say, taking care of the cows, He's dancing with the gopīs, He's playing with His cowherd boys. Ānandamāyā. These are ānanda māyā. These are the varieties.

General Lectures

Ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12). The Vedānta-sūtra says every living entity is ānanda-maya. Nature, living entity's nature is to be blissful, happy, always pleasing, but in our material condition of life we are just the opposite.

Lecture -- London, August 11, 1971:

Ānanda-cinmaya-rasa. Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa, Govinda, is enjoying ānanda-cinmaya-rasa, spiritual bliss. Cinmaya means spiritual, and rasa, bliss. That is eternal. We are also particles of that ānanda-cinmaya-rasa. Ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12). The Vedānta-sūtra says every living entity is ānanda-maya. Nature, living entity's nature is to be blissful, happy, always pleasing, but in our material condition of life we are just the opposite. There is neither pleasure, nor knowledge, nor eternity. But these three things are the symptoms of spiritual existence: eternity, blissfulness, and knowledge. (break) Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare, these names are so sweet that how I can relish the transcendental sweet... (break) ...Rādhārāṇī, but in the Goloka Vṛndāvana, everything—the land, the water, the trees, the flowers, the cows, the cowherds boy, everything—they are expansion of Kṛṣṇa's internal potency, ānanda-cinmaya-rasa. Ānanda-cinmaya-rasa-pratibhāvitābhis tābhir ya eva nija-rūpatayā kalābhiḥ (Bs. 5.37). That is Kṛṣṇa's expansion of His own person. Just like when Brahmā stole all the cows and calves and cowherd boys of Kṛṣṇa to test Kṛṣṇa, whether He is actually the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa immediately expanded Himself in the typical same way: all the cows, calves, cowherd boys.

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

This is our position, that I am part and parcel of God. God is happy, ānanda-maya. So part and parcel should be ānanda-maya.

Room Conversation -- January 31, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Prabhupāda: This is our position, that I am part and parcel of God. God is happy, ānanda-maya. So part and parcel should be ānanda-maya. But-manaḥ ṣaṣṭhānīndriyāṇi prakṛti-sthāni karṣati (BG 15.7). I have come to this material world. I am creating so many isms by the mind and acting with the senses, and there is struggle. This is the... Everything is there. Manaḥ ṣaṣṭhānīndriyāṇi prakṛti-sthāni karṣati (BG 15.7). Prakṛti-sthāni, being placed in this material atmosphere, he simply struggles. Therefore we are giving the solution: "You give up this struggle. Go back to home, back to Godhead." Everything is...