My Nonprofit Reviews

I began to get a sense for the value of the education that the Bhakti Vedanta Institute offered after attending the free Saturday program in Princeton a few times. Through the association of Sripad Bhakti Madhava Puri Maharaja, the Serving Director, I slowly began to develop a holistic conception of reality which was inclusive of consciousness and Spirit. Two years after attending my first program at BVISCS, I now try to assist as much as possible during the annual conferences, weekly programs, and wherever else I may be able to render some service. Through that service, I have received some clarity regarding my own previous misconceptions about the nature of reality.

Since the inception of the original Bhaktivedanta Institute in 1976, of which Bhakti Madhava Puri, Ph.D., was a founding charter member, the mission has been to promote the Synthesis of Science and Religion, and the Role of Consciousness in Modern Science. Educating the public on these most important subjects is vital for a harmonious and bright future, as the rational development of these topics leads people to realize the highest fulfillment of this life.

Presently, there is widespread propagation of the materialist/reductionist perspective of reality - however an honest and rational appraisal can easily see its misguided foundation. This modern viewpoint holds that Matter is the fundamental reality and that Life spontaneously arises from it. It holds subjectivity and objectivity as irreconcilable opposites.

Despite the misled aforementioned modern view, in every day life we see that Life comes from Life. Offspring (plant, animal, etc.) only come from living parents and cells only come from living cells. The material body alone is not enough to produce life, it must also be alive. Without preexisting life, no life will come. Also, we witness that Matter comes from Life. Hair and fingernails continuously grow on living bodies for 100 years, but once life leaves the body, those processes will soon cease. All around us, we see massive trees grow from very tiny seeds. The matter which is the body of a mature tree is generated from the life within that seed. If you kill the seed (roast it) before planting it, nothing will grow. Both Life and Matter come from Life.

In reference to the relationship between subjectivity and objectivity, they are directly related. The object is what the subject knows it to be. To be cognizant of an object, there must be a conscious agent, who is the subject. Thus we can see the intimate connection between these things which are usually mistaken for irreconcilable opposites. The higher development of these simple yet profound truths leads us to the highest fulfillment of this human life. This is a brief look at the profound education that the Princeton BVISCS offers.