The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hindusim vol 2

Shuddhi
646
specific attributes, they are thus conditioned
forms of the ultimate Brahman.
In fact, any assumption that the world
as it appears is real is a fundamental
misunderstanding that ultimately
causes human beings to be trapped
in karmic bondage, reincarnation
(samsara), and suffering.
Shankaracharya’s philosophical position
was based primarily on the Vedas,
the oldest and most authoritative Hindu
texts, and particularly on the
Upanishads, the speculative texts that
are the latest part of the Vedas.
Vallabhacharya used both of these
sources in framing his Shuddadvaita
school, but also used the Bhagavata
Purana, which he considered to be of
equal authority. The Bhagavata Purana
is one of the later sectarian collections
known as puranas. It is the most important
source for the worship of the god
Krishna, whom Vallabha considered to
be the ultimate manifestation of the
Supreme Being, rather than the unqualified
Brahman promoted by
Shankaracharya. Aside from promoting
a personal conception of the deity over
an impersonal conception, another difference
in the two schools concerned
the status of the world. For
Vallabhacharya, the world as perceived
is not an illusion but is real, because it
and human beings have both evolved
from God through the exercise of his
supreme power. Krishna is conceived
in the traditional threefold divine aspect
as being–consciousness–bliss. Living
beings possess being and consciousness,
but not the divine bliss, whereas
the material, nonliving, world has
only being. Since this conception
gives real value to the everyday
world, Vallabhacharya described it as
“pure monism.”
In Vallabhacharya’s system God is the
inner controller of all souls, which
makes human beings dependent on
God for thinking and perception
(pratyaksha). This dependence on God
highlights the importance of grace,
which he refers to as pushti, meaning
“that which nourishes the soul.”
Because of this emphasis on grace,
Vallabhacharya’s religious community is
also known as the Pushti Marg. The
Pushti Marg believes that God’s favor is
gained through devotion (bhakti),
which is open to all and for which there
are no prerequisites. The emphasis
on devotion has marginalized all
other forms of religious practice, and
the Pushti Marg is particularly known
for rejecting all ascetic endeavors,
such as celibacy, fasting (upavasa), or
renunciation. Its members tend to be
householders coming from merchant
families, particularly from the state of
Gujarat. The community’s primary
temple is at Nathdwara in the state of
Rajasthan. For further information see
Richard Barz, The Bhakti Sect of
Vallabhacarya, 1976.
Shuddhi
(“purification”) Any ritual purification
that removes impurities and thus
returns one to a state of ritual purity.
In a more specialized context the
term denotes the “reconversion” back
to Hinduism of people who had
either converted to another religion
or who had adopted practices
characteristic of other religious traditions.
This practice was first instituted
in the 1890s by the reformist Arya
Samaj, led by Swami Dayanand
Saraswati. There was a tremendous
stir in the Sikh community when several
Sikhs were a part of a group thus
“purified,” and in Sikh accounts
this threat of reabsorption
into the Hindu community was one
of the major forces behind the Singh
Sabha movement, which defined
the Sikhs as a separate religious community.
In modern times this practice has
been employed by the Hindu nationalist
organization Vishva Hindu Parishad,
which has used it to “purify” certain
groups who had adopted some
Islamic practices.