Tridandiswami Sri Srimad Bhaktivedanta Narayana Maharaja
Note down these principals in your heart and on your paper, and when needed, you can boldly say, "This is our philosophy."
What is amnaya?
Sripad Asrama Maharaja: Amnaya praha means the Vedic teachings as they are coming down in our disciplic succession. There are vast teachings in the Vedas, but not all the teachings are accepted in the line of pure devotional service. Amnayah praha means specifically those teachings within the Vedic scriptures which are accepted by our predecessor acaryas, and which is given to us in line of disciplic succession.
Srila Narayana Maharaja: What is second?
Syamarani dasi : The amnaya is, in and of itself, separate. It is the pramana, evidence, and it establishes the prameya, that which established by the sastric pramana. There are nine principles established by the Vedic literatures, and they are called the prameya. The first of these nine is that Hari, Vrajendranandana Sri Krsna is the Supreme Absolute Truth. He is the advaya-jnana para-tattva. He is one without a second. All other incarnations and manifestations of Godhead are coming from Him. He is amsi, or the source of all avataras, and the other incarnations, like the purusa-avataras, lila-avataras, and guna-avataras, are all emanations from Him. This is the first prameya established by the pramana or the amnaya.
Srila Narayana Maharaja: We should know that the word brahma, and also Allah and God, have the same meaning. Brahma means the biggest, as does Allah. But the word Bhagavan has a very sweet meaning. If someone has unlimited opulence and greatness, but he cannot be very minute and fine, how can He be God? He cannot be. Krsna has both qualities. He is the biggest, because the whole world is situated in one of His pore-holes, and He is everywhere. At the same time He is anoraniyam, in every minute atom, and in each particle of the sunrays.
Krsna is everywhere. He is in us, and He is in the creepers, trees, dry stones, and everywhere else. He is also in this book. But if Krsna is everywhere - in atoms, trees, and creepers - why do they not speak? We speak because Krsna is in us, but why does this book not speak? There is no jivatma (soul) in the book. Where there is both jivatma and paramatma, speaking is possible. We can speak. Who are we? We are the soul. Krsna is present in the book, but there is no soul there. Both the soul and Supersoul are present in the trees, and thus they can feel, and they may say something in their language.
Krsna is Supreme. He can be the most minute of the minute, and He can be bigger than the biggest. Narayana has so much opulence; God has so much opulence, but most people think He has no shape and He cannot come to us. Krsna can come. It is true that Narayana does not descend in His original form to have a relationship with us, but Krsna comes to us in a very sweet form. He is very tricky and very lovely. He may come as a son, as a friend, or as the most beloved. Narayana, God, Allah, and Khuda will not come like this, and therefore Krsna is Supreme. Hari parama-tattva.
Murwillumbah, Australia; Feb. 18, 2002