Bhakti-rasayana by Madhusudana Sarasvati
(Study and translation of first chapter)
by Lance Edward Nelson | 2021 | 139,165 words
This is a study and English translation of the Bhakti-rasayana by Madhusudana Sarasvati (16th century)—one of the greatest and most vigorous exponents of Advaita after Shankara-Acharya who was also a great devotee of Krishna. The Bhaktirasayana attempts to merge non-dualist metaphysics with the ecstatic devotion of the Bhagavata Purana, by assertin...
Part 3 - Bhakti in the Gudharthadipika—Introduction
In scholarly discussions of Madhusudana's contribution to Advaita, the Gudhartha-dipika is commonly mentioned along
332 with the Bhakti-rasayana as his other important contribution to the debate on the place of bhakti in that system. Because the Gudhartha-dipika does indeed have a great deal to say about devotion, it is worth looking at its teachings here, if only briefly, to see what light they may shed on our attempt to understand both the Bhakti-rasayana and Madhusudana's overall thinking on bhakti. The Gita commentary is clearly the later of the two works, since it cites the Bhakti-rasayana three times. An examination of its treatment of devotion, therefore, will help us determine the the extent to which the ideas expressed in the Bhakti-rasayana represent Madhusudana's final views on the subject.