Shree Rama
I will try my best to present to you the philosophy of Sri Ramanujaacharya and the Azhwars, which in itself is so large and incredibly beautiful to which i can hardly do justice to.
I would truly appreciate it if the knowledge members of this forum like Vishal and Suresh on visistadvaita would contribute and correct any of my mistakes.

The ultimate point of all philosophy is to try and grasp at the reality and explain it or understand it. In Indian philosophy the end all of philosophy is Vedanta or the "End(Sum) of all Knowledge". The main sources of knowledge is the vedas or more specifically the upanshids. This is supplimented by the brahma sutras of badrayana and the Bhagavad Gita. There where many commentaries and philosophies written about these before Shri Sankaraacharya but much of them are extinct today. Sri Samkaraacharya was the first person to revive vedanta after the advent of buddhism. His philosophy which is known as kevala advaita, puts forth that world is empirically real but at the absolute level it is false or not real. The nature of the jiva in advaita is that it is a product of the super-imposition of maya or avidya on Brahman, which produces this apparent plurality of souls. In actuality there exists only one entity which is Brahman, who is non-differentiated, homogenous, pure, attributeless, formless and infinite.
This is the absolute brahman and in reality at the absolute level the atman of the "jiva" is identical with this brahman. This Brahman is called Nirguna Brahman or Brahman without any qualities. The Saguna Brahman or the attribute brahman is Brahman viewed through maya, it is real but only as real as the "jiva" is, from the relative or empirical point of view. Although this may seem a little redundant it must be understood that before one can understand visistadvaita one must understand advaita.
I have laid the basic foundation of advaita in a very general way, i definitely have not done this philosophy justice so please correct any of the mistakes present here. In my next post i will begin to talk about the fundamentals of visistadvaita.
Shree Rama
-Mukunda

Shree Rama
I shall now try to provide the essentials and fundamentals of vishishthadvaita. Having explained the very basics of advaita, i will explain vishishthadvaita.
Vishishthadvaita essential means "Reality is one as qualified by plurality". It comes from Visista which mean attributes and advaita which of course means oneness or non-duality. In this philosophy Brahman is the absolute underlying reality and the jivas and universes(or insentient) constitute his qualities or modes. Brahman is sarvaguna possessing infinite number of attributes. He possesses infinite number of auspicious qualities like jnana, bala, veerya, shakthi, tejas, satyakama, satyasamkalpa, kaarunya and so on. He is nirguna in a sense that he is deviod or the anti-thesis of all imperfections and negative qualities like anger, pain, hunger, death, evil, cowardice, sickness and so on. Brahman is eternal, pervades all, the cause of the entire creation(of souls and matter), lord of all creation, the only independent entity and the support of other two entities. The jiva is unborn, eternal, atomic in nature, but possesses infinite conscienceness which is contracted due to the karma and the body which the jiva enters into. Jiva is the attribute or mode to brahman, it is subservient to brahman and possesses various relationships to brahman such as: sarira/sariri(body/indweller),Prakara/Prakari (attribute or mode/ substance), Sesha/seshi(Owned/owner), Amsa/amsi (part/whole)(example here is the light and the sun, the light is part of the sun but it is different from it), Adharadeya Sambandha (supporter-supported), Niyamya/Niyanta (controlled/controller) and Rasksya/Raksaka(redeemed/redeemer). These are the prominent relationships that the jiva and matter inherehent possesses with Brahman. There are other relationships that the jiva possesses with Brahman, Brahman can be experienced as the father, son, mother, sister, wife, husband, friend, lover and lord.

I will continue in my next post with the nature of the universe and jiva, in more detail.
Shree Rama
-Mukunda

Shri Mukunda,
Your exposition is perfect.Go ahead...Harihi Om

Dear Mukunda,

You have written an excellent summary. I am quite familiar with all these points and have no disagreement.

I am interested in exploring the process of creation with other members of this forum. Brahma creates in an absolute sense. A jiva creates in a limited sense.

But what is this process of creation? How does Brahma, or jiva, create? Does the creation occur through THOUGHT? Then how is THOUGHT itself is created? What is THOUGHT anyway?

Does your philosophy expound on this area of knowledge? Please note this is not meant as a challenge. It is just that I find this area has not been addressed in detail in all that I have studied in Hinduism.

Dear Sri Mukunda,

Thanks for responding and I hope you continue.

Dear Sri Suresh,

Kindly add your messages.

Dear Vinaire,

I read your message. To your questions As to HOW creation takes place I honestly do not know. All I can say is the creation that we see is in the domain of Thought. As to the how, I have to humbly say that God knows everything and God created the domain of Thought or creation happens because of God. In fact I don't even wish to know the how. I will be satisfied if I can enjoy the Silence and Bliss in the company of of God. All I know is that I cannot lift a pencil without God's will. My body picks up the pencil, no doubt but it is from God's order and command that I pick the pencil.

Dear Murali,

There woudn't be any Science and there wouldn't be any Vedic knowledge either if we don't search for answers, but leave everything to some convenient idea of God.

Do this experiment: THINK A THOUGHT. Observe how you brought it about. Do it repeatedly until you know what you are really doing.

I have my own wxperience with creation, but I want to know what is said about it in the Shastras, and what has been the experience of others.

Dear Vinaire,

I stated my honest view. But you as usual feel I am lethargic and so on. I certainly would love to listen to your experiences with creation without prejudice. But don't you think you should start a new thread as this one is for Vishistaadvaita?

Doesn't Vishistaadvaita has anything to say about Creation?

After all that is the most fundamental process.

Shree Rama
As to initially answer your question: the jivas and universe are not created in the typical sense of the word, they are ever existent and have no beginning because they are mode of Brahman, therefore there is no real creation for something that always exists. Each of the three Brahman, jiva and jagat are distinct realities which possess a relationship based on Brahman. This is called the tatva traya. I will address this point in this or upcoming posts of visistadvaita.
Continuing with where i left off: I shall enter into a discussion about the jagat or the universe of insentient beings (ie. matter or energy). Before the time of each creation and during pralaya, the universe exists in a subtle and unevolved state without name and form within Brahman. When creation occurs, the universe evovles itself and issues out with name and form, this is what is called creation. Ramanujaacharya accepts the Sankhya method of creation and cosmology but in addition adds that Brahman is the ruling or underlying principle behind it. The universe emanates from Brahman and remains in Brahman as a distinct entity which also possess Brahman as the antayarami or in-dwelling soul. Brahman creates the world just as a spider creates it's webs out of itself, even though the web is a different entity from the spider, so is the world a different entity from Brahman. The creation of the universe is but a sport or leela of the Lord. It is a spontenous joyous creative activity by Brahman which gives the jiva a purpose in life, which again is to understand its true identity and its dependent relationship with Brahman.
Next post i shall deal in detail with the nature and psychology of the jiva.
Shree Rama
Shree Ramanujaaya Namah
-Mukunda

When you are Brahmam and there is no matter, energy, space, and time, how do you bring into existence something that has matter, energy, space, and time?

As I understand, before you can create something, you have to BE.

So Brahma assumes a beingness. And that is Jiva.

Then you simply have to say it is, and voila! IT IS.

I think that is how an original thought is created.

Of course, there is nothing else but Brahma, so all this "exists" as an ability, or potential, in Brahmam. It doesn't matter what terminology you use.

Dear Vinaire,

Even though I do not wish to get involved with the headache of creation I would love to listen to you views in that matter in this or any other thread. But you must cover the answers to your ability to all your original questions in your message.

Dear Vinaire,

Even though I do not wish to get involved with the headache of creation I would love to listen to you views in that matter in this or any other thread. But you must cover the answers to your ability to all your original questions in your message.

It comes from Visista which mean attributes and advaita which of course means oneness or non-duality.
--------------------------------------------------(1)ViziSTa is not translated as "attributes"
Entry:-viziSTa
Meaning. distinguished , distinct , particular , peculiar characterized by. pre-eminent,excellent , excelling in or distinguished by chief or best among (gen.),better
(2)Only "Guna" is translated as "attributes"- -Nirguna means without 'attributes"
(3)There is another School of ViziSTa Advaita-other than that of Acharya Sri.Ramanuja -that of sri.SriKhanta.According to sri.Srikhanta the Niraakara Parabrahmam-when manifests as Saakaara Brahmam,the name is Lord.Sri. Parameswara (Lord Siva)

As we all know Matter and energy can never be created.But they are interchangable.That is why this world is called Samsaara (That which continuously changes).So in reality there is no such thing as creation.But there will be continuous change.Science stops here.But our vedic science goes further.It recognises 'conciousness' which is different from Matter.
According to Sri Ramanuja, Three fundamental entities exist in Reality.Jada(Material world),Jiva (limited/personal conciousness) and Paramatma (Supreme conciousness/Paramatma).Jada and Jiva are not seperate from Paramatma.In the sense they are attributes of Paramatma/Brahman and
wholly depend on that supreme Reality.So they are distinct and seperate at the same time they are part and parcel of the same Paramatma.
I look forward to enjoying Sri Mukunda's explaination further- HariOm

Wow! Do Vedas really say that matter cannot be created? What definition of "matter" are we using here?

As far as I can see, the idea, "Matter cannot be created," is FALSE.

Science has reduced matter to fundamental particles. These fundamental particles are basically "standing waves." Thus, matter is reducible from "standing waves" to free flowing energy.

Now, what is ENERGY? Energy is basically MOTION.

And, what is MOTION? Motion is basically change in SPACE.

And, what is SPACE? Space is viewpoint of dimension. It is awareness.

Thus, matter is one's awareness that has been solidified. Please look at the above carefully.

The question is, "How is awareness created?"

We are trying to understand Vishistadvaita according to Sri Ramanuja here.
There are shruti vakyas which state unity of Chit/Achit (Jiva/Matter) with Parabrahman at the same time there are sruti vakyas which states plurality also.Sri Ramanuja upholds both.After all it is the same sruti and there cannot be any contradiction.
As far as Unity is concerned, Yes- It is Brahman and Brahman alone exists with all the chit/Achit as its Modes (Attributes).At the same time Chit/Achit are not Brahman, but exist as part and parcel of Brahman.This Brahman is visualised as Narayana - That in which All exists.
So this entire universe including the Jivas are like pearls on the string of Narayana.They expand,exist,contract within Him as per His Will.
Lets wait for Sri Mukunda to elaborate - HariOm

We are in an area where Science and Philosophy are approaching each other.

This area may appear brand new either because the Science of matter as it exists today did not exist at the time of the Vedas, or, if it did exist, it got lost.

Therefore, one must examine this area very, very carefully without harboring any fixed ideas.

A persisting thought is a very fine form of matter (a standing wave).

Those who have question on what a "standing wave" is should consult a textbook on Physics.

To understand Vedas with complete thoroughness, one cannot ignore scientific facts as Ashegan has been saying.

Please keep in mind that we do not have all the Vedas available to us. A part of them have been lost. Thus, an aspect of studying Vedas is "rediscovering" some of those truths that may have been lost.

Shree Rama
Before i continue the posting on visisthadvaita i would like to address the question of matter and science. Matter does not just mean something you can touch and feel but rather as i have said so in my posts it refers to the insentient beings. The theory now most accepted by physicists is the theory of quanta, i believe that is what it is called. All matter is just vibrations according to a certain frequency according to this theory. It is a vibrational level. The visisthadvaita theory just says that the insentient universe is not created but exists at all times, in either some name or form or without name and form but regardless it exists and is not created for it is an eternal "part" or mode for Brahman.
Now back to the philosophy itself. I shall attempt to give a description of the nature of the jiva. The jiva too is not created rather it is projected into manifestation by Brahman from its subtle state or "sleeping" state. Creation here refers to drawing something out. The individual soul is different from Brahman because Brahman is the creator, sustainer and destroyer of universes, he is the abode of infinite kalyana gunas and is beyond the shadow of imperfections. Brahman is in all the individual souls as the inner self, just as the jiva is the self to the body.
The jiva is a conscience entity, who is aware of its own existance and the existance of others. Consciousness is the essence and quality of the individual soul. Consciousness as a quality can contract or expand, in a state of constant flux. It is dynamic not static. Both memory and recognition prove it's existance. The absence of consciousness does not mean the absence of the self, ie in sleep it is said that consciousness ceases to persist and the self persists. Ramanuja asserts that:"the very fact that one is able to remember what has happened before he went to sleep is also proof that the self persisted through sleep although consciousness had come to an end."
The individual soul is also a knowing subject. Jnana is a attribute of the jiva. The jiva possesses dharmabhuta jnana or attributive consciousness. This means that jiva is the subject and a self-luminous substance, it is of the nature of substance-attribute. In other words the jiva possesses an distinct "I" that exists at all times, even upon union with Brahman. The jiva is also an agent. What that means is that the jiva has the ability to make choices and do things of its own will and take action. According to Ramanuja from this stems the jiva's moral and social responsibility. The jiva is also an enjoyer of the fruits of the actions.
The jiva is sentient, a subject of consciousness and experience, a self-luminous substance, an agent and enjoyer but the defining characteristic of the jiva is that it is dependent on Brahman. The jiva is not totally free nor is it totally bound, it possesses what can be best put as self-determination. In otherwords, the jiva takes actions which are approved or disapproved by the Supreme residing in the soul of the jiva, and accordlying the law of karma takes jurisdiction. When i talk about approval or disapproval of the Supreme it must be understood in the sense of obeying or disobeying the scriptures and the law of karma.
Ramanuja makes an analogy of two masters owning a property, if one master wishes to transfer that property to a third party he can't do it without the approval of the partner. The approval is given but act itself is performed by the selling partner so the fruit belongs to him too. This Ramanuja refers to as anumati dana or lending approval. This way the blame falls on the individual soul not brahman who only gave his lending approval to the jiva, and informing the jiva he is responsible for his own action and He the lord only gives his approval to actions whatever the action is.

Here is a quote by Pillai Lokacharaya regarding this concept:"Even the All-loving Father, the Great Isvara, does not force his presence on the soul, not yet ripe to recieve Him. With infinite patience He waits and watches the struggle of the soul in Samsara since the struggle is necessary for the full unfoldment of the faculities of the soul."

The individual soul is instrinsically free from evil or imperfections, different from the body and is characterized by knowledge and bliss.

In the next post i will give a explaination of the the way or hita and Supreme grace.
Please correct any mistakes i may have done in the course of this discussion.
Shree Rama
Shree Ramanujaya Namah
-Mukunda

Shree Rama
Before i continue the posting on visisthadvaita i would like to address the question of matter and science. Matter does not just mean something you can touch and feel but rather as i have said so in my posts it refers to the insentient beings. The theory now most accepted by physicists is the theory of quanta, i believe that is what it is called. All matter is just vibrations according to a certain frequency according to this theory. It is a vibrational level. The visisthadvaita theory just says that the insentient universe is not created but exists at all times, in either some name or form or without name and form but regardless it exists and is not created for it is an eternal "part" or mode for Brahman.
Now back to the philosophy itself. I shall attempt to give a description of the nature of the jiva. The jiva too is not created rather it is projected into manifestation by Brahman from its subtle state or "sleeping" state. Creation here refers to drawing something out. The individual soul is different from Brahman because Brahman is the creator, sustainer and destroyer of universes, he is the abode of infinite kalyana gunas and is beyond the shadow of imperfections. Brahman is in all the individual souls as the inner self, just as the jiva is the self to the body.
The jiva is a conscience entity, who is aware of its own existance and the existance of others. Consciousness is the essence and quality of the individual soul. Consciousness as a quality can contract or expand, in a state of constant flux. It is dynamic not static. Both memory and recognition prove it's existance. The absence of consciousness does not mean the absence of the self, ie in sleep it is said that consciousness ceases to persist and the self persists. Ramanuja asserts that:"the very fact that one is able to remember what has happened before he went to sleep is also proof that the self persisted through sleep although consciousness had come to an end."
The individual soul is also a knowing subject. Jnana is a attribute of the jiva. The jiva possesses dharmabhuta jnana or attributive consciousness. This means that jiva is the subject and a self-luminous substance, it is of the nature of substance-attribute. In other words the jiva possesses an distinct "I" that exists at all times, even upon union with Brahman. The jiva is also an agent. What that means is that the jiva has the ability to make choices and do things of its own will and take action. According to Ramanuja from this stems the jiva's moral and social responsibility. The jiva is also an enjoyer of the fruits of the actions.
The jiva is sentient, a subject of consciousness and experience, a self-luminous substance, an agent and enjoyer but the defining characteristic of the jiva is that it is dependent on Brahman. The jiva is not totally free nor is it totally bound, it possesses what can be best put as self-determination. In otherwords, the jiva takes actions which are approved or disapproved by the Supreme residing in the soul of the jiva, and accordlying the law of karma takes jurisdiction. When i talk about approval or disapproval of the Supreme it must be understood in the sense of obeying or disobeying the scriptures and the law of karma.
Ramanuja makes an analogy of two masters owning a property, if one master wishes to transfer that property to a third party he can't do it without the approval of the partner. The approval is given but act itself is performed by the selling partner so the fruit belongs to him too. This Ramanuja refers to as anumati dana or lending approval. This way the blame falls on the individual soul not brahman who only gave his lending approval to the jiva, and informing the jiva he is responsible for his own action and He the lord only gives his approval to actions whatever the action is.

Here is a quote by Pillai Lokacharaya regarding this concept:"Even the All-loving Father, the Great Isvara, does not force his presence on the soul, not yet ripe to recieve Him. With infinite patience He waits and watches the struggle of the soul in Samsara since the struggle is necessary for the full unfoldment of the faculities of the soul."

The individual soul is instrinsically free from evil or imperfections, different from the body and is characterized by knowledge and bliss.

In the next post i will give a explaination of the the way or hita and Supreme grace.
Please correct any mistakes i may have done in the course of this discussion.
Shree Rama
Shree Ramanujaya Namah
-Mukunda

Dear Mukunda,

The following statement from you is indeed quite telling:

"In other words the jiva possesses an distinct "I" that exists at all times, even upon union with Brahman."

I do agree with this statement though others might disgree with it. This is the point of the following article.

WHO AM I?

It has been a pleasure reading such beautiful and accurate posts on Visistadvaita from Mukunda. Once you are done, let me know and I will try to incorporate them at our Visistadvaita Vedanta Homepage at

http://www.hinduweb.org/home/dharma_and_philosophy/vvh

Keep it up!

Best wishes

Vishal

The following URL contains a collection of Links on Visishtadvaita Vedanta.

http://shrikrishna.homepage.com/links.html

Shree Rama
Sorry everyone due to the lastness of this post but i was out of town with family and having a good time, did not have any time to come to the internet and post. Hope everyone had a happy "krishna"masa(instead of christmas) and wish everyone a happy new year.
To continue i will now speak about the hita and Supreme Grace. The previous posts spoke about the Tattva or the Truth which is the relationship between the chit, achit and the Isvara. This post now is about the Hita or the Path. The 4 paths of jnana, karma, bhakthi and prappati are not exclusive of each other but are a continous whole. Jnana leads to bhakthi, bhakthi must lead to karma. Bhakthi is the form of jnana that has been fully matured and excerised. This bhakthirupapanna jnana as ramanuja coins it fosters kainkarya or the act of dedicated karma to the Lord. But this whole process is under the banner of prappati. Prappati encompasses all of this because it involves unqualified and unconditional self-surrender to the Supreme Being.
Jnana is term as which the individual knows " the soul which you truly are is distinct from the body and matter, does not possess the uncontaminations and impurities of the body, is eternal." This jnana leads to bhakthi which is termed as constant remembrance of God it is very related to the idea of dhyana and upasana.
Ramanujacharya says that all the scriptures dealing with dhyana or upasana must all be viewed with this meaning from br. upanshid: " Having know it (the nature of reality) let him practice mediatation." This dhyana or upasana should be done with the mind on the Supreme Soul possessing the individual soul as a body. Mediatation is the continual and steady remembrance.

"That self cannot be gained by him by the study of veda(reflection) nor by much hearing, Whom the self chooses, by him it may be gained, to him the self reveals its being."Katha Upanshid
This ramanuja uses as the foundation for his doctrine of Supreme Grace. The individual must be God centered and utterly dedicated to God as the Supreme Self with in and without. To further support this idea Ramanujacharya draws from the Bhagavad Gita Chapter 10 verse 10: "To those who are constantly devoted and worship with love i give that knowledge by which they reach me."

Also the other tier in which this philosophy of prappati and saraangathi is based on is the charana shloka of the Gita: which starts off as "Sarva Dharman Parityajya". In this passage Krishna assure Arjuna that if he surrenders all his dharmas and the fruits thereof to Krishna and seeks shelther at his feet that without fail Krishna will grant moksha and remove all the sins from Arjuna. This is the final reassuring message of the Gita according to Ramanujacharya. This also shows that all other paths like karma, jnana and bhakthi are superseded by this saraangathi, which in essence encompasses them all. At this point the burden of salvation no longer falls on the individual soul which is struggling to the find a realese but falls on the Supreme Soul who now assumes the role of the Savior and Redeemer. The Grace of the Lord is needed for salvation or moksha, because it is whom the self chooses.

Next post i will speak about the nature of Purusartha or the Goal.
Shree Rama
Shree Ramanujaaya Namah
-Mukunda

Shree Rama
Now i will continue with the discussion on the Purushartha or the Goal. In human life according to the vedas there are 4 goals which are artha, kama, dharma and moksha. The first three goals are not ends in themselves according to Visisthadvaita philosophy. Artha, Kama and Dharma must be pursued with the ideal of moksha at the end. These three goals must be performed or done with knowledge that they are not ends in themselves but are a means to the Parama-Purushartha or Moksha. Moksha itself is the goal. In other words artha, kama and dharma must be pursued in moderation and within "moral" and ethical means.
Moksha according to Ramanujacharya is attaining to the likeness or similar nature of Brahman. Moksha is not the destruction of the "I" in the atman but it is the destruction of the false sense of "I" like ahamkara(ego or pride), confusion with the body, karma and so on. The "I" or the individuality of the atman persists even through moksha because it is a different entity than Brahman who is the innersoul of it. The individual jiva attains to the nature of Brahman and attains to his qualities like freedom from imperfections, evil, sin and so on, which in actuality is its true nature which was concealed by the power and effects of Karma. Upon moksha the individual atma attains to autonomy and freedom but is still is dependent on the Lord who has granted the individual atman its true nature. In otherwords, just because the Supreme Being is the source of all the qualities and nature of the individual atman in that way is the individual liberated soul dependent on the Supreme. The individual atman possesses all the qualities of the Lord except for ability to create, govern and destory the universes (or creation). They do not have the ability to grant moksha either, and they are still atomic in size as when compared to the Lord who is all pervading and everywhere. The bliss of the Lord becomes the bliss of the individual atman. The individual atman no longer has any desires for it has Brahman the all-desire and the all-bliss. Ramanuja ends his shree bhashya on this topic. From Tattva or Truth one goes to Hita or the Path and that leads to Purushartha or Moksha.
In the next post i will conclude and summarize my posts on visisthadvaita.
Shree raama
-Mukunda

Shree Raama
I shall conclude my discussion on visisthadvaita in this post. To summarize, there is one reality which is qualified by plurality. The one reality Brahman is qualified by the jivas and the insentient matter. The jiva is a real entity which has existed forever and will continue to exist forever as an individual soul, which possesses conscienceness, bliss and knowledge as essential qualities and its nature. It is atomic in size and has all the qualities of Brahman upon moksha except for the power to create, sustain and destroy. It cannot grant moksha and remains atomic in nature. The jiva possesses within it the antaryami brahman who sits within the soul and is a witness to all its actions.
The universe is real entity that exists always. It may not exist in the same name or form but it exists nonetheless. During the period in which creation has not taken place, the universe of matter exists in a subtle state within Brahman. When creation occurs the universe of matter is brought forth and assumes name and form. The universe comes out of and remains in Brahman. The act of creation, sustance and destruction of the universes is a divine leela or sport of the Lord. It is ultimate expression of Brahman's love for its "parts" or modes.
Brahman is the supreme and only independent reality, all other realites or reals depend on Brahman for existence. Brahman is the abode of infinite auspicious qualities like bliss, love, compassion, power, strength, energy, grace, mercy and so on. Brahman is also the anti-thesis of everything opposed to purity and imperfection such as age, hunger, anger, pain, hate, weakness and so on. He is beyond the realm of duality for he is the Only reality in which all other realities are dependent on and He is the reality that exists within all other realities. He possesses conscienceness, knowledge and bliss as both essential qualities and as part of his nature. He pervades all so he is called Vishnu, he exists within the inner reaches of the soul and all matter as the antaryami or indwelling soul. He is all around us and as such all should be seen as possess him for the inner soul. Out of his infinite love for us he assumes different relationships with us like the ones i have describe in the previous post such as lover, friend, father, mother and so on. These are secondary relationships the first order of relationship is the Supporter/supported, Whole/part, Substance/quality and so on.

The paths to the Supreme are many but fall under these four categories jnana, karma, bhakthi and prappati. These are not contradictory means but are rather successive and complimentary means which lead to self surrender which is the goal and the means to the goal. Moksha is the final goal of a human's life and all other goals such as artha, kama and dharma must be performed with the knowledge that they are not goals unto themselves but are means to the goal. Of the means to moksha the easist to follow is prappati in which the prappana or the surrenderer, gives the false ahamkara or ego, pride and the fruits of their actions to the supreme and puts on the Supreme the burden of protection and gives him all the good and bad fruits of the actions.

In the state of moksha the jiva enjoys all the qualities of Brahman but for the ones i mentioned above. The jiva also attains equality of status with Brahman and experiences the same bliss as Brahman. Even in this state the jiva is dependent on Brahman due to Brahman being the cause and reason why the jiva exists and possesses the qualities and abilities that it does. Even in the state of moksha the jiva performs loving service and devotion to the Lord but not for the want of any desires but out of pure love to the Lord.

In terms of theology, Ramanujaacharya puts forth the view that Lakshmi and Narayana together constitute Brahman. Lakshmi is the female personification of Brahman and Narayana is the male personifaction of Brahman but they are both inseperable and are always one. There exist three types of jivas, the nityas or the eternally free jivas who were never in samsara, the mukthas or the jivas that were once in samsara but are free, and finally bandhas or the jivas still in samsara.
Lakshmi and Narayana possess spiritual bodies composed of shudda-sattva or spiritual forms. This is the basic theology of Shree Vaishnavism, both shruti and smriti is used to support this view.

In conclusion the Supreme Being that Ramanujaacharya showed the world is a infinitely loving, no actually He is love itself. This being which pervades all and exists in all, out of divine love and sport creates this leela in which we exist. The Lord is simply waiting for us to take the first step towards him, when we take that first step, he immediately rushes forth taking infinite number of steps to be with his devotee and the expression of his love. In the mystic sayings of the alwars it has been said that although the Lord is the supreme lord, he becomes a servant to his devotees out of his infinite love for them. The Supreme as put forth by Ramanujaacharya is the Supreme Transcendental Loving Reality, who is the abode of all that is pure and perfect. This Lord who of his own will not by the product of avidya or maya brought this universe into being as the expression of his divine love, Who transcends duality as it were and the mundane and is in the realm of the spiritual perfection is the Lord of the Vedas and the Scriptures. It is not through mere knowledge or ritual that one knows him but it is through love, devotion together with right knowledge and practice that one experiences and knows him. This is the goal in itself, for a devotee of the lord neither moksha nor mundane life is wanted or needed for the loving service to the Lord is all that there is. To the devotee this service is all the moksha needed. Ramanujaacharya's philosophy doesn't deny the world or experiences but rather fosters us to experience it and live in the moment with the understanding and knowledge that all is the Lord. The world is not false or impure but is the expression of the divine love of the Lord so we should experience it in that manner. With this mentality all activities should be done. Don't deny the reality of the world but experience it by seeing the Supreme in everything.
Shree Raama
Shree Ramanujaya Namah
Shreeman Narayano Vijayathe
Shree Mahalakshmi Kaataksham
-Mukunda

Shree Raama
I thank you all for giving me a chance to explain this great philosophy of visisthadvaita, i have not done it enough justice at all. I have extensively quoted from the works of M. Yamunacharya in his work Ramanuja's Teaching in his own words and i have used a lot of his ideas in these posts. I would love to hear any input on the posts and what people's feelings are towards it. For those who do not what to read all the posts just read the conclusion or summary that i wrote it will give the general idea and feeling of Shree Ramanujacharya's philosophy and religion.
Please forgive any mistakes that i have done through the course of this work and any offenses that have been committed by me.
Shree Raama
Shree Ramanujaya Namah
-Mukunda

Shree Raama
I thank you all for giving me a chance to explain this great philosophy of visisthadvaita, i have not done it enough justice at all. I have extensively quoted from the works of M. Yamunacharya in his work Ramanuja's Teaching in his own words and i have used a lot of his ideas in these posts. I would love to hear any input on the posts and what people's feelings are towards it. For those who do not what to read all the posts just read the conclusion or summary that i wrote it will give the general idea and feeling of Shree Ramanujacharya's philosophy and religion.
Please forgive any mistakes that i have done through the course of this work and any offenses that have been committed by me.
Shree Raama
Shree Ramanujaya Namah
-Mukunda

Sri Mukunda,

You have indeed given a very good introduction to Visisthadvaita. I have benefited from your efforts and I am sure others have also found it very enlightening. Thank you very much.

I hope that Sri Vishal would incorporate portions of this thread at the Visisthadvaita Homepage for easy access in the future as well.

Sri Mukunda,

It is indeed a very well thought out presentation.Thank you very much. - Harihi Om