The Vedic Scriptures

The following important Vedic scriptures will be presented here in brief:

Jaiva-Dharma

Jaiva-Dharma was published in Bengali by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur in 1896. The work was later translated into Hindi under the guidance of Srimad Bhakti Prajnana Kesava Gosvami, a disciple of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Goswami. Bhakti Prajnana Kesava Gosvami's disciple, Srila Bhaktivedanta Narayana Goswami, is to thank for a translation into English.

Srila Bhakti Prajnana Kesava Gosvami wrote in his preface to the translation of the Jaiva Dharma into Hindi:

“Jaiva-Dharma contains a thorough discussion of the nature of Dharma, our relationship with Dharma, the result of following Dharma, the true meaning of Dharma, the fact that the so-called religion driven by Kali is not Dharma at all, and many other topics. In fact, one can understand the meaning of all shastras in a condensed form simply by studying this compact book. It contains a comparative analysis of all the religions of the world in the form of questions and answers. In short, this little book is filled with the essence of all the shastras of India, like the ocean in an earthen jar. It is no exaggeration to say that without reading this book, there is a dearth of philosophical knowledge of spiritual truth for religious-minded people in their lives.”

In the preface to the English translation, Srila Bhaktivedanta Narayana Goswami says:

“The word jaiva-dharma refers to the dharma of the jiva, or the constitutional function of the living entity. Outwardly, people seem to have different religions according to country, caste, race and so on. The constitutional natures of humans, animals, birds, worms, insects and other living beings also seem to be different. But in reality, all living beings in the entire universe have only one, eternal and unchanging dharma. Jaiva Dharma gives a convincing and sound description of this Dharma, which is eternal and applies everywhere, at all times and to all living beings. This book is filled with a highly concise form of the essence of the extremely profound and confidential themes of the Vedas, Vedanta, Upanishads, Srimad-Bhagavatam, Puranas, Brahma-sutra, Mahabharata, Itihasas, Pancaratra, Sat-sandarbhas, Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu, Ujjvala-nilamani, and other excellent shastras. Moreover, it is written in the form of a flavourful, entertaining and easily understandable novel.”

“The original Jaiva Dharma, written in Bengali, is a priceless ornament for all Bengali-speaking Vaishnavas. The author, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, is a confidential associate of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and is famous as the Seventh Gosvami. In the modern Vaishnava community, he has unleashed a powerful flow of the holy Ganges of unadulterated bhakti revealed by Svayam Bhagavan Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Thakura Bhaktivinoda wrote well over a hundred books on bhakti in several languages, and Jaiva-Dharma has ushered in a new era in the world of philosophy and religion.”

A free copy of the Jaiva Dharma in PDF format is available here: http://www.purebhakti.com/resources/ebooks-magazines/bhakti-books/english/21-jaiva-dharma/file

There is a very good reading of the Jaiva Dharma. All 40 chapters can be listened to and downloaded directly from Drive in mp3 format: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1FP17wbfBeduywi30UwQpjkxthAD-ws_n?usp=sharing