The essence of Tattva Vada / Dvaita
The key point to be noted and remembered is that Acharya Madhva
did not discover or invent anything new. All the major concepts
enunciated by him were part of the timeless, eternal vedic
religion (sanAtana dharma). He brought back these forgotten
concepts into the conciousness of humanity, providing
appropriate references. The school of philosophy associated with
him has different names. Its ancient name is tattvavAda, but it
is more popularly known as Dvaita (the dualistic school).
There is a very popular verse, attributed to Sri VyAsa tIrtha,
which captures some of the highlights of the Acharya Madhva’s
philosophy:
shrIman Madhva Mate harih paratarah
Satyam Jagat
Tattvato bhedah
jeeva ganaah hareh anucharAh,
nichochha bhavam gatAh
Muktih Naija sukhAnubhUti
amalA bhaktishcha tat saadhanam
Haixyaadi tritayam pramaanam
akhilam Amnaayaika vedyo harih
A loose translation of the above would be:
ViShNu is the supreme God,
The world is real,
The five-fold difference between God, living and non-living
beings is an eternal fact,
All living beings are dependent upon Hari for their existence
There is a hierarchy amongst living beings, that is eternal
(without beginning or end)
Salvation lies in the soul experiencing its intrinsic joy,
Salvation can be attained only through pure and unsullied
devotion of God means of knowledge are sensory perception,
inference and holy scriptures
Hari is to be perceived in His nature through the holy
scriptures and only through them.
In addition to the above points, Acharya made several important
contributions to Indian Philosophy. Some of these are:
Bimba-pratibimba: God is the object (bimba) and jIvas are His
images (pratibimbas)·
Sarva-shabda vAchatva: every word, every sound is God’s name.
Jeeva traividya: three-fold classification of jIvas into Satvika
(fit for liberation), Nitya-samsAri (happiness mixed with
sorrow), tAmasika (fit for eternal damnation)
Vishesha: A special characteristic that acts as a distinguishing
feature where there is innately no difference.
The concept of “Sakshi” and its importance.
Treating all the Hindu scriptures as an integral entity, unlike
others who treat differentiate and discriminate between
different portions of scriptures. He showed how seemingly
conflicting passages from different scriptures should be
interpreted to yield one coherent message.
Providing a spiritual and philosophical interpretation of the
Rig Veda. As an example, he interpreted forty sUktas to show how
it should be done.