Sambodhi 2013 Vol 36

Author(s): Jitendra B Shah
Publisher: L D Indology Ahmedabad

Page 65

Vol. XXXVI, 2013
The Philosophy of Ramakrishna Paramahansa
57
Pantheism and Theism, it cannot itself be said to be deistic, pantheistic or theistic. It however, seems proper to call it Panentheistic. The term Panentheism has been defined by Vergilius Ferm as follows:
“Panentheism: (Gr. Pan=all; en=in; theos;God): The term for the view that God interpenetrated everything without canceling the relative independent existence of the world of entities; moreover, while God is immanent, this immanence is not absolute (as in pantheism); God is more than the world, transcendent in the sense that though the created is dependent upon the Creator, the Creator is not dependent upon the created. God thus, is held to be the highest type of Unity, viz. Unity in Multiplicity. The term is employed to cover a mediating position between pantheism with its extreme immanence and theism of the type which tends to extreme transcendence.” (Runes and others: 316)
It will be seen that the above description of Panentheism fully applies to the position held by Ramakrishna. It, therefore, seems that we are justified in describing the philosophical position of Ramakrishna as Panentheism. (Yajnik J. A. 1972: 133-134)
Thus, in our attempt to describe the philosophical position of Ramakrishna we have shown that with reference to Metaphysics, his philosophical position is “Comprehensive Absolute Monism” and with reference to Philosophy of Religion, his philosophical position is "Panentheism." References 1. Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa, 2. Festinger, L. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive dissonance 3. Mctaggart, J. M. E. (1901). Studies in Hegelian Cosmology. Cambridge:
Oxford University Press. 4. McTaggart, J. M. E. (1906). Some Dogmas of Religion. London: Edward
Arnold. 5. Mill, J. S. (1855). Three Essays on Religion.
6. Pringle-Pattison, A. S. (1917). The Idea of God in the Light of Recent ... Philosophy. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
7. Runes and others, (1961). Dictionary of Philosophy.