Paper short abstract:

In my lecture I will argue that embodied emotional aesthetics emphasised in the devotional theology and practice of Caitanya Vaishnavism can be seen as a form of religious hyperaesthetic utopia.

Paper long abstract:

As the notion of idealised state of being, utopia plays an important role in traditional cosmologies, especially religions. Many religions cultivate practices for attaining an ideal state of being and Caitanya Vaishnavism is one of them. It is a Vaishnava Hindu tradition that hails from 15th century Bengal, India. It is founded by Caitanya Mahaprabhu, an devotee of god Krishna whose incarnation he is traditionally believed to be. Caitanya preached the chanting and singing the names of God as the topmost soterological practice. Absorbed in the practice of calling for God with feelings of love and affection the exponents of the tradition, most of them highly educated individuals, provided a complex theology that aims to rationalise the ecstatic love of god or bhakti rasa.

In order to do that, these theologians used ancient Indian theory of drama, known as the rasa theory. Rasa is a Sanskrit word for emotional-aesthetic pleasure experienced when watching a play or reading poetry. Embodied in its character, this ancient theory accounts for intensification of emotions. Caitanya theologians used it to answer their question how to attain the state of blissful love of God, a hyperaesthetic state, both hyper-sensual and hyper-sensorial. Bhakti rasa is seen as the ever increasing and ever diversifying pleasure in loving, selfless and playful interaction with God.

In my lecture, I will use examples from my own research on the Hare Krishnas in Croatia and India and will try to point out the importance of emotional aspect of an hyperaesthetic utopia.