Achintya
The Sanskrit term achintya (अचिन्त्य - acintya) can be translated as incomprehensible and describes one of the essential characteristics of God .
etymology
Achintya is the negation of the Sanskrit noun chintya (चिन्त्य), expressed by the prefix a- (अ), un-, not. Chintya itself is derived from the root chit (चित् - cit) meaning consciousness .
description
Achintya refers to that which is hidden beyond the material world of the senses, to that which exceeds our arguments, our logic and our philosophical speculation, precisely that which is incomprehensible.
Achintya in the Bhagavad Gita
In verse 9 of the eighth chapter of the Bhagavad Gita , God is described as achintya rupam - as of incomprehensible form - in addition to his function as the sustainer of the entire creation ( Vishnu ) :
"Kavim purāņam anuśāsitāram aņor aņīyāṁsam anusmared yaḥ
sarvasya dhātāram acintya-rūpam āditya-varņaṁ tamasaḥ parastāt"
“The Supreme Person is the one who knows everything, since he is the oldest, master and ruler of everything that is smaller than the smallest atom, beyond all material conceptions and of completely incomprehensible form. He is shining like the sun and He is transcendental, beyond dark material nature "
The word achintya is very meaningful in this context, as God's unimaginable energy is beyond our imagination, far beyond the dimensions in which we think. God pervades the entire material world that He has created, but is still beyond it.
Achintya bheda abheda tattva
This idea of the simultaneous separation of the Creator from his own creation forms the central starting point of the philosophy of Achintya Bheda Abheda , which was taught by Caitanya Mahaprabhu (1486 to 1533/1534).
Cosmological outlook
The more recent images from the Hubble Space Telescope show an enormous number of ancient galaxies , the number and size of which by far exceed all previous astronomical predictions. This consequently sheds light on the correctness of existing cosmogenic models .
The question therefore inevitably arises, how do we ever want to understand what lies beyond this material world if we do not even understand correctly our own material universe, which is insignificant compared to the spiritual world? Achintya.
swell
- AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada - Bhagavad-gita as it is -, Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, Los Angeles 1972, (German translation: Bhagavad-gītā - As it is ; PDF; 2.3 MB)