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Re: Soul after death and before next birth

From the Bhakti List Archives

Mani Varadarajan • February 21, 2003 


In addition to Krishna Kalale's informative reply,
I would like to add that for the person of wisdom
(the 'jnAni' in the Gita's parlance) the ascent to
liberation begins as soon as life is lost in the
conventional sense. The jiva is led along the
path of light to Vaikuntha from its erstwhile 
residence in the heart of the body by the Supreme Self
who also resides in the heart and who graces the
jiva in this final stage (hArda-anugRhItaH -- Brahma
Sutra 4.2.x). The journey out of the body and into
the state of Vaikuntha takes thirteen days. On the
thirteenth day it is held that the jnAni attains
communion with the Supreme Self (Brahma-sayujya).

Yet, as Krishna has pointed out, the attainment of
Brahma-sayujya is not dependent on the performance
of the funeral rites by the deceased's survivors.
The former is purely between the jiva and the Supreme
Self whereas the latter is a duty of the embodied
survivors.

Mani



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