Plato (429 – 347 B.C.E) is considered one of the greatest minds and thinkers of western schools of philosophy. The Stanford encyclopedia of Philosophy (SEP) quotes “the questions he raises are so profound and the strategies he uses for tackling them so richly suggestive and provocative that educated readers of nearly every period have in some way been influenced by him, and in practically every age there have been philosophers who count themselves Platonists in some important respects”. The school also goes on to say “Few other authors in the history of philosophy approximate him in depth and range: perhaps only Aristotle (who studied with him), Aquinas, and Kant would be generally agreed to be of the same rank”. None can dispute his profundity of knowledge and his deliberate provocation of logic, thought and rhetoric. Indeed, he is considered renowned among the philosophical circles. Actually, Plato’s fame is so renowned that even today he is a common household term. But from the standpoint of Vedic rishis and sages, in comparison, Plato’s knowledge at best can be considered abstract and rudimentary. Vedic thought is said to have originated more than 5000 years ago way before Plato even was born. Nothing Plato has said was not analyzed by the sages and self-realized souls of the Vedic paradigm. In other words, for the western world the concept of the soul, supersoul, mundane reality and spiritual reality is a mysterious subject matter, for Vedic followers, this is a way of life. Plato, however for his credit, philosophized (or should we say speculated) a higher nature, the soul, and its relationship with this world. This was radical and revolutionary during his day.
Plato’s central doctrines were mainly focused on the current erroneous reality juxtaposed with a higher reality of that which is eternal, changeless, real and perfect. He hypothesizes that in one sense “paradigmatic for the structure and character of our world” as Srila Prabhupada says that this material world is a perverted reflection of the spiritual world. Plato states that there are forms or ideas populating a perfect reality as opposed to a reality that we currently perceive as defective and filled with error. The Vedic philosophy clearly enunciates the source of this flaw or error. It states that man is fundamentally made up of four defects; imperfect senses; to make mistakes; to be in illusion; and tendency to cheat. These four fundamental “errors” mount up to Plato’s error of this world. However, from the Upanishads, we can conclude that the world in itself is perfect and complete.
oḿ pūrṇam adaḥ pūrṇam idaḿ
pūrṇāt pūrṇam udacyate
pūrṇasya pūrṇam ādāya
pūrṇam evāvaśiṣyate – Isopanishad invocation prayer
The Personality of Godhead is perfect and complete, and because He is completely perfect, all emanations from Him, such as this phenomenal world, are perfectly equipped as complete wholes. Whatever is produced of the Complete Whole is also complete in itself. Because He is the Complete Whole, even though so many complete units emanate from Him, He remains the complete balance.
Plato, in this particular regard ignores the concept or at the least not clear (abstract) on the aspect of creationism. While the world is populated with apparent defective men, but the world in itself is perfect. Plato fails to clearly distinguish between the erroneous people and the perfect world.
Plato, however, philosophizes the higher realm is filled with perfect entities. They are abundantly filled with all the opulent qualities of goodness, beauty, eternal, perfect, bigness, likeness, unity, being etc. We cannot but help ourselves to equate this description of higher reality to the Vedic conception of Vaikunta (or spiritual sky). While Plato may have speculated a higher truth, it is anything but speculation from the Vedic paradigm. Brahma-samhita (5.29) states that the abode of Krishna is filled with wish fulfilling trees, gems etc. Everything is self-effulgent where there is no need of sun, moon or electricity. Plato’s description of perfect and full reality closely coincides with Lord Brahma’s prayer to the Supreme Lord.
“The most fundamental distinction in Plato's philosophy is between the many observable objects that appear beautiful and the one object that is what beauty really is, from which those many beautiful things receive their names and their corresponding characteristics” (SEP). Here in, Plato speculates “observable objects” as “beauty particles” receiving beauty from the “beautiful whole”. Lord Sri Krishna is more beautiful and charming than millions of cupids (Kandarpa koti kamaniya visesa sobham). Perhaps Plato’s “beautiful whole” is none other than Krishna and His “beauty particles” are the infinitesimal jivatmas who are receiving Krishna’s beauty. Krishna describes this reality in BG 15.7 “The living entities in this conditioned world are My eternal fragmental parts. Due to conditioned life, they are struggling very hard with the six senses, which include the mind”. As individual living entities we are qualitatively one with God but differing quantitatively. This is the conclusion of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Plato, although abstract, hints at this qualitative oneness by comparing the beautifulness of the part and whole. He described beautiful as good, just, unified, equal, big eternal. According to Vedic paradigm, Plato’s “beautiful qualities” can be equated to Vedic “sat chit Ananda quality of eternality, knowledge and bliss”. Both describe the opulence of the objects of this world receiving its beauty from an Absolute higher object.
Plato, in the beginning, qualifies this world as defective and filled with error. Later, however, he distinguishes the many observable objects (indicating our reality) that appear beautiful and the one object that beauty receives its name and characteristics. There seems to be an apparent contradiction? How can a beautiful observable object (good, just, equal,etc) be filled with error. Perhaps, Plato was hinting at a different reality simulataneously co-existing in our observable world. Plato was indeed, making a distinction between the existence of the soul and matter. From Plato’s various works, the embodied soul is living a life of punishment or reward from its previous existence (final pages of his work Republic). Clearly Plato describes the concept of karma and reincarnation which is the fundamental thesis in the Vedic paradigm. Krishna talks about the soul and reincarnation in chapter two of the Bhagavad Gita. Plato also speculates that the soul does not depend on the existence of the body for its functioning, and can in fact grasp the nature of the forms far more easily when it is not encumbered by its attachment to anything corporeal (SEP). Here in Plato may have indicated the goal of human life – to break our cycle of birth and death. If the soul can function independently without the aid of matter, then matter can be seen only as a burden to the free soul. This, from the Vedic perspective, is considered as the goal of human life (liberation from the cycle of birth and death to break our attachment to matter/body).
Plato in many of his writings considers enlightened human beings as those who can recognize which things are good (from the many) and why they are good as he (Plato) stresses the need to investigate the form of good. This investigation is the foundation of Vedic Paradigm – "athato brahma jigyasa"; Srila Prabhupada translated this as now that we have attained a human form, we should inquire into Brahman, the Absolute Truth or God. Vedanta Sutra 1.1.1 as we understand the Absolute truth to be the fountainhead of all knowledge and goodness (as Plato wants us to investigate the form of good).
Plato’s thoughts and Vedic teachings closely associate with each other. Modern critiques and philosophers think that Plato’s words are more exploratory, incompletely systematic, elusive, and playful. Many of his works therefore give their readers a strong sense of philosophy as a living and unfinished subject (perhaps one that can never be completed) to which they themselves will have to contribute. All of Plato's works are in some way meant to leave further work for their readers (SEP). This is Plato’s puzzle.
Plato’s central doctrines were mainly focused on the current erroneous reality juxtaposed with a higher reality of that which is eternal, changeless, real and perfect. He hypothesizes that in one sense “paradigmatic for the structure and character of our world” as Srila Prabhupada says that this material world is a perverted reflection of the spiritual world. Plato states that there are forms or ideas populating a perfect reality as opposed to a reality that we currently perceive as defective and filled with error. The Vedic philosophy clearly enunciates the source of this flaw or error. It states that man is fundamentally made up of four defects; imperfect senses; to make mistakes; to be in illusion; and tendency to cheat. These four fundamental “errors” mount up to Plato’s error of this world. However, from the Upanishads, we can conclude that the world in itself is perfect and complete.
oḿ pūrṇam adaḥ pūrṇam idaḿ
pūrṇāt pūrṇam udacyate
pūrṇasya pūrṇam ādāya
pūrṇam evāvaśiṣyate – Isopanishad invocation prayer
The Personality of Godhead is perfect and complete, and because He is completely perfect, all emanations from Him, such as this phenomenal world, are perfectly equipped as complete wholes. Whatever is produced of the Complete Whole is also complete in itself. Because He is the Complete Whole, even though so many complete units emanate from Him, He remains the complete balance.
Plato, in this particular regard ignores the concept or at the least not clear (abstract) on the aspect of creationism. While the world is populated with apparent defective men, but the world in itself is perfect. Plato fails to clearly distinguish between the erroneous people and the perfect world.
Plato, however, philosophizes the higher realm is filled with perfect entities. They are abundantly filled with all the opulent qualities of goodness, beauty, eternal, perfect, bigness, likeness, unity, being etc. We cannot but help ourselves to equate this description of higher reality to the Vedic conception of Vaikunta (or spiritual sky). While Plato may have speculated a higher truth, it is anything but speculation from the Vedic paradigm. Brahma-samhita (5.29) states that the abode of Krishna is filled with wish fulfilling trees, gems etc. Everything is self-effulgent where there is no need of sun, moon or electricity. Plato’s description of perfect and full reality closely coincides with Lord Brahma’s prayer to the Supreme Lord.
“The most fundamental distinction in Plato's philosophy is between the many observable objects that appear beautiful and the one object that is what beauty really is, from which those many beautiful things receive their names and their corresponding characteristics” (SEP). Here in, Plato speculates “observable objects” as “beauty particles” receiving beauty from the “beautiful whole”. Lord Sri Krishna is more beautiful and charming than millions of cupids (Kandarpa koti kamaniya visesa sobham). Perhaps Plato’s “beautiful whole” is none other than Krishna and His “beauty particles” are the infinitesimal jivatmas who are receiving Krishna’s beauty. Krishna describes this reality in BG 15.7 “The living entities in this conditioned world are My eternal fragmental parts. Due to conditioned life, they are struggling very hard with the six senses, which include the mind”. As individual living entities we are qualitatively one with God but differing quantitatively. This is the conclusion of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Plato, although abstract, hints at this qualitative oneness by comparing the beautifulness of the part and whole. He described beautiful as good, just, unified, equal, big eternal. According to Vedic paradigm, Plato’s “beautiful qualities” can be equated to Vedic “sat chit Ananda quality of eternality, knowledge and bliss”. Both describe the opulence of the objects of this world receiving its beauty from an Absolute higher object.
Plato, in the beginning, qualifies this world as defective and filled with error. Later, however, he distinguishes the many observable objects (indicating our reality) that appear beautiful and the one object that beauty receives its name and characteristics. There seems to be an apparent contradiction? How can a beautiful observable object (good, just, equal,etc) be filled with error. Perhaps, Plato was hinting at a different reality simulataneously co-existing in our observable world. Plato was indeed, making a distinction between the existence of the soul and matter. From Plato’s various works, the embodied soul is living a life of punishment or reward from its previous existence (final pages of his work Republic). Clearly Plato describes the concept of karma and reincarnation which is the fundamental thesis in the Vedic paradigm. Krishna talks about the soul and reincarnation in chapter two of the Bhagavad Gita. Plato also speculates that the soul does not depend on the existence of the body for its functioning, and can in fact grasp the nature of the forms far more easily when it is not encumbered by its attachment to anything corporeal (SEP). Here in Plato may have indicated the goal of human life – to break our cycle of birth and death. If the soul can function independently without the aid of matter, then matter can be seen only as a burden to the free soul. This, from the Vedic perspective, is considered as the goal of human life (liberation from the cycle of birth and death to break our attachment to matter/body).
Plato in many of his writings considers enlightened human beings as those who can recognize which things are good (from the many) and why they are good as he (Plato) stresses the need to investigate the form of good. This investigation is the foundation of Vedic Paradigm – "athato brahma jigyasa"; Srila Prabhupada translated this as now that we have attained a human form, we should inquire into Brahman, the Absolute Truth or God. Vedanta Sutra 1.1.1 as we understand the Absolute truth to be the fountainhead of all knowledge and goodness (as Plato wants us to investigate the form of good).
Plato’s thoughts and Vedic teachings closely associate with each other. Modern critiques and philosophers think that Plato’s words are more exploratory, incompletely systematic, elusive, and playful. Many of his works therefore give their readers a strong sense of philosophy as a living and unfinished subject (perhaps one that can never be completed) to which they themselves will have to contribute. All of Plato's works are in some way meant to leave further work for their readers (SEP). This is Plato’s puzzle.
While knowledge and philosophy aid us in our quest for the truth, it is I who has to explore the truth. Therefore the onus is indeed on the individual to further explore the truth and realize it rather than just leave it in the classroom for the teacher Plato to do all the work. Perhaps Plato wanted us to realize his knowledge by further exploration versus just debating it.
Plato’s puzzle can be solved by further extending his thoughts into the Vedic school of thought. There is no beaming contradiction between Plato’s definition of soul and body and Vedic teachings. Further in depth study of the Vedas can give us detailed and concrete explanation of the nature of the soul, Supersoul, matter and its interrelationships (that which was lacking in Plato's works). This would be a natural progression into Plato's thoughts thus solving Plato's puzzle of elusiveness. We just have to open ourselves to this oceanic knowledge that is within the Vedic texts, more recently translated into English by His Divine Grace A.C.Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada. Indeed, as Srila Prabhupada once said “Everything is in my books”.
Hare Krishna
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