Reading Notes Week 14 (Part F) The Seven Secrets of Vishnu


Krishna's Secret: Part 1


  • He is in Mahabharata as a warrior
  • Krishna challenges traditional character of Indian culture and gods
  • His beloved is not his wife, and his war is not really war
  • Krishna is the only god that smiles in his statues. It is mischevious
  • He enjoys life, unlike Ram, who is serious and demands respect
  • Krishna is in the 3rd quarter of the world; the world more like we live in. Dharma becomes even more difficult to understand 
  • What is a good things in Ram's yuga could be seen as bad in Krishna's yug
  • King Yayati uses his power for his own good, so his Dharma goes down. The letter of the law is more important (thought) than the deed according to Krishna
  • Krishna has two mothers: Devaki (birth) Yushthura (raises him); represents nature and nurture
  • He has the blood of Devaki and the milk of Yushthura
  • Not all can be seen. Someone might be a prince at heart even though they are a cowherd
  • Milkmaids at his village sells milk, and Krishna grabs the pots and breaks them
  • The metaphor of love is changed: love is spilled out because of the pots 


Krishna's Secret: Part 2

  • Krishna's secret is the thought behind the action
  • Vrindavan is the woman who loves Krishna and encourages him to play the flute
  • She is older than him, so this love is not accepted in society
  • Krishna goes out and starts marrying people of high status out of obligation/duty, not love
  • He marries a princess, Rukmini, and she begs him to save her from a marriage with no love
  • He marries someone else as a gift and uncovered a jewel from her family
  • He has 16.000 junior wives, and he is a good father and husband
  • He gives them all individual attention, but they do not see the passion he had for Vrindavan. They all have respect, not passion
  • Krishna says that perfect love comes from absolute security and unconditional love 
  • Material reality can never be conquered, this is where greed comes from
  • Every human being is a "frightened beast" and can be outgrown the best by growing towards the God of forces. 
  • The battle between Krishma and Bhishma makes him function as a warrior and then kills Bhishma. He teaches students about war after the end of the battle. 


Image: Krishna as the flute player Flickr

Bibliography: Pattanaik. The Seven Secrets of Vishnu. Videos. 

Comments

  1. UnknownNovember 30, 2017 at 1:54 PM

    Leigh, I take my notes for all of my classes in a similar manner! I have always found making lists to be the easiest form of note taking for me, even on the computer. I began the course by posting my notes like this, but when we got to the epics I started reading them and then writing about them in paragraph form.

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