The Liberated Soul
Mukta (Sanskrit: मुक्त — from muc, 'to release') — 'the released one' — is the jīvātmā that has attained moksha and now exists in Śrī Vaikuṇṭham. The mukta is distinct from the nityasūri (who was never bound) but shares in the same eternal bliss and kainkaryam.
The State of the Mukta
Upon reaching Vaikuṇṭham:
- The mukta's dharma-bhūta-jñāna expands to its full infinite extent — omniscient within the scope the Lord allows
- All karma — accumulated (sañcita), operative (prārabdha), and newly accumulated (āgāmi) — is completely dissolved
- The mukta perceives Śrīman Nārāyaṇa and Śrī in their full divine glory, without any veil of ignorance
- The mukta performs eternal, joyous kainkaryam — singing, worshipping, decorating, attending — in the divine presence
- There is no possibility of return to saṃsāra (na ca punarāvartate)
What the Mukta Is Not
In Viśiṣṭādvaita, the mukta does not: merge into and lose itself in Brahman (as in Advaita); become the Lord; or become the Lord's equal (brahmānanda-sama-anubhava is debated). The mukta remains what it always was — an individual soul (jīva) — but now fully, joyously, infinitely expressed as the Lord's eternal servant.
The Path to Muktahood
For most Śrī Vaiṣṇavas in this age, the path is prapatti through an ācārya. Upon the body's death at the appointed time, the mukta travels the archirādi-mārga (path of light) to Vaikuṇṭham — a journey described in the Upaniṣads and Brahma Sūtras (4.2).