The Hindu Vaiṣṇava tradition is often viewed as a monotheistic tradition. We find evidence for this in many of its scriptural sources (such as Bhavagad Gītā, Bhagavat Purāṇa, Viṣṇu Purāṇa, some Upaniṣads and many Pāñcarātras and Āgamas) as well in the teachings of its ācāryas (spiritual preceptors). It might be argued, however, that this is too hasty a conclusion. Vaiṣṇavism addresses the concept of God within several contexts. First, it supports the idea that the Supreme Personal God Viṣṇu manifests himself in different divine forms (usually referred to as “avatāras”), such as Kṛṣṇa and Rāma, often with an ontological hierarchy existing between them. Second, Vaiṣṇavism traditionally accepts the existence of other deities in the Hindu pantheon, such as Brahma, Śiva, Durgā, Indra, Varuṇa and the Goddess Lakṣmī. Third, the relation between Viṣṇu and some of these deities, notoriously Śiva and Lakṣmī, is ambiguous, sometimes being described as one of identity and sometimes as one of difference. And fourth, the relation between Viṣṇu and His potencies (prakṛti, in sāṅkhya terminology, and śakti, in puranic terms)—these encompassing entities ranging across deities like Lakṣmī, individual souls and the world—is a major theme, which has brought about its own set of controversies. While Madhva (13th century) emphasizes a dualism whereby Viṣṇu differs from His potencies (although he is their source), others such as Rāmānuja (11th century), Nimbārka (12th century) and Jīva (16th century) argue, with slightly different implications, that in some sense Viṣṇu is both different (bheda) and non-different (abheda) from them. 

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Given all this, we might wonder: is Vaiṣṇavism really a monotheistic tradition? Or, to put it in conceptual terms, is the Vaiṣṇava concept of God a monotheistic one? More importantly, how can the Vaiṣṇava concept of God be philosophically characterized?  What divine properties does the Vaiṣṇava God possess? Can it be described in a consistent way? Or is it a contradictory concept of God? If so, how would this affect its intelligibility? Does the Vaiṣṇava concept of God have some advantage over traditional philosophical accounts of God? How does it relate to more well-known accounts of God, such as classical theism, pantheism, panentheism, process theism, open theism, etc.? What are the difficulties peculiar to it? Is there a positive-conceptual basis for rationally accepting the Vaiṣṇava account of God, i.e., is the Vaiṣṇava concept of God fruitful?  

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The general goal of this project is to answer these questions and approach the Vaiṣṇava concept of God from a contemporary philosophical perspective. Although the project is plural in the sense of taking into account all Vaiṣṇava traditions, it has a specific goal, which is to philosophically reconstruct through a divine attribute approach the concepts of God found in two Vaiṣṇava texts: Jīva Goswami’s Sat Sandharba (16th century) and Bhavagad Gītā. Whereas the latter text is central for all Vaiṣṇava traditions, the former belongs to one tradition, Caitanya Vaiṣṇavism, that is both unique and interdependent with the other Vaiṣṇava traditions due to its dialogical composition.      

Regarding the outputs for the first stage of the project, we will organise: (1) an online workshop entitled “God and Vaiṣṇavism: The Tradition Speaks for Itself”; (2) an online conference with a call for abstracts entitled “Vaiṣṇavism, Hinduism and the Concept of God”; (3) several post-conference publications; (4) a published anthology on Vaiṣṇavism and the concept of God; and (5) two papers: one on the concept of God in Bhavagad Gītā and a second on the concept of God in Jīva’s Sat Sandharba.

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The second stage of the project concerns the fruitfulness of the Vaiṣṇava concept of God (or our philosophically reconstructed versions of the Vaiṣṇava concept of God, to be more precise). Here we will focus on the philosophical problem of consciousness. We will try to answer the following question: Can the basic tenets of the theistic bhedābheda (sameness-and-difference) philosophy of the Caitanya Vaiṣṇava Tradition be useful for developing a compelling account of the relation between matter and consciousness? (Philosophically, Caitanya Vaiṣṇavism presents itself within the framework of Vedānta, a pan-Indian philosophical and commentarial tradition.). The outcome of this second stage will be one article on this issue.

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