Prakṛti — The Primordial Material Energy
Prakṛti (Sanskrit: pra = forth + kṛ = to make; 'that which creates forth') is the primordial material energy — the root substance (mūla prakṛti) from which the entire physical universe evolves under Bhagavān's sovereign will and direction.
The Viśiṣṭādvaita Framework — Three Reals: Rāmānuja's Viśiṣṭādvaita Vedānta holds that reality consists of three eternal categories (tattva-traya):
- Prakṛti — unconscious matter (achit)
- Jīvātmā — conscious individual souls (chit)
- Bhagavān (Īśvara) — the supreme, all-pervading, all-knowing God
Prakṛti and jīvātmā are both eternally real but are the śarīra (body) of Bhagavān — He is the śarīri (soul/inner controller). 'As the soul pervades and controls the body, Bhagavān pervades and controls both prakṛti and jīvātmā.'
Evolution of Prakṛti: From the undifferentiated mūla prakṛti, the universe evolves through a 24-fold expansion (Sāṅkhya system): Mahat (cosmic intelligence) → Ahankāra → five tanmātras (subtle elements) → five mahābhūtas (gross elements) → five jñānendriyas + five karmendriyas + manas.
Prakṛti and the Three Guṇas: Prakṛti consists of the three guṇas (sattva, rajas, tamas) in perfect equilibrium. The universe's diversity arises from the different proportions in which these guṇas combine.
Achit Category: In Viśiṣṭādvaita, prakṛti is part of the achit (non-conscious) category — it has no self-awareness, no knowledge, no will. All direction comes from Bhagavān through the jīvātmā's choices within His framework.
[From alternate entry: prakriti]
Prakṛti as Primordial Matter
Prakṛti (Sanskrit: प्रकृति, 'primordial nature' or 'the original material condition') is the beginningless, non-conscious, three-guṇa substance from which the saṃsāric material universe evolves. The gross elements, subtle elements, bodies, sense organs, manas, buddhi, and ahaṅkāra arise through its transformations.
Prakṛti is therefore the immediate material substrate of the physical universe. In the full Viśiṣṭādvaita account of causality, however, Brahman — Śrīman Nārāyaṇa qualified by cit and acit as His body — is both the ultimate material cause (upādāna-kāraṇa) and the intelligent cause (nimitta-kāraṇa) of the universe. Prakṛti does not create or transform independently; it is upheld, pervaded, and directed by Bhagavān.
Prakṛti and Acit
Prakṛti is a major division of acit, but the two terms are not completely coextensive. Acit includes not only three-guṇa prakṛti and its evolutes, but also realities such as kāla and, in the standard Śrī Vaiṣṇava classification, śuddha-sattva. Viśiṣṭādvaita affirms prakṛti as real and beginningless, yet wholly dependent upon Bhagavān and existing as a mode of His body. It is neither an ultimately unreal illusion nor an independent principle outside His sovereignty. Other Vedānta schools also subordinate prakṛti to God, although they explain its relation to Him differently; in Madhva's system too, prakṛti remains dependent upon the Supreme.
The Three Guṇas
Prakṛti operates through sattva (clarity and luminosity), rajas (activity and passion), and tamas (inertia and obscuration). Their changing proportions account for the variety of material bodies, dispositions, and experiences. The jīva becomes bound not because it is itself a product of prakṛti, but because beginningless karma connects it with bodies and it identifies itself with prakṛti's guṇas and evolutes.
Transcending Prakṛti
Mokṣa is freedom from karmic embodiment in three-guṇa prakṛti and from the error of taking the body-mind to be the self. The jīva does not become unreal or dissolve; it realizes itself as conscious, distinct from prakṛti, wholly dependent upon Bhagavān, and fit for eternal kainkaryam.