Daivi prakrti-see: Yogamaya; Daivi in Sanskrit means divine, and prakrti means nature. This term refers to the original spiritual nature, out of which matter (guna-maya), personified as goddess Durga, manifests (see Bg. 7.14). The word daivi is closely related to deva, God. Daivi-prakrti is therefore nature that is abhinna, not separate from God. A synonym for daivi-prakrti is para-prakrti (superior nature, see Bg. 7.5). Srila Prabhupada explained the daivi-prakrti to be the person of Srimati Radharani: ... Just like we are trying to be under the guidance of Radharani, daivi-prakrti. Prakrti means woman, and daivi means transcendental woman. (SB lecture in Los Angeles, August 19, 1972) See Prakrti, Radharani. Darwin, Charles-British naturalist of the nineteenth century (1809-1882) who presented the world his version of the theory of evolution in On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection; or The Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life (1859). In fact, the theory that living forms in earlier times were not what they are now, but were simpler organisms that evolved in complexity, was proposed by Anaximander (610-546 BC), who studied fossils in a cliffside. His theory was rejected in ancient Greece, but was revived in the nineteenth century, principally by Darwin. All areas of modern Western thought continue to be influenced by Darwinism. Philosophers and scientists have grown increasingly divided over his theory. One section of scientists argues there is no certain law of evolution it happened completely by chance. Another section holds that the evolutionary process is encoded in some sort of cosmic algorithm. A recent trend in philosophy, called postmodernism, views Darwinism as simply a matter of historical interpretation: it is a metaphor for capitalism and a white male-centered power structure. There is a growing feeling that the ideas of Darwin, like those of Marx and Freud, are obsolete. See Samsara. Deity-As Lord Krsna appears in the sound of His holy name, so also He appears within the arca-avatara, His incarnation as the Deity worshiped in the temple. The central focus of every ISKCON temple around the world is the worship of Krsna's Deity form as represented in stone, metal, wood or as painted pictures. Through ceremonial services (pūja) conducted according to Vedic tradition, the devotees fulfill the Lord's injunction in Bg. 9.27: Whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer or give away, and whatever austerities you perform do that, O son of Kunti, as an offering to Me. This pūja purifies the minds and senses of the devotees and connects them to Krsna in an attitude of love. Mayavadis decry service to the Deity as idol worship. They argue that God is not present within the Deity, because He is everywhere. But if He is everywhere, then why is He not within the Deity as well? Moisture is also everywhere, even within the air. But when one needs a drink of water, he cannot get it from the air. He must drink the water from where water tangibly avails itself to be drunk: from a faucet, a well, or a clear stream. Similarly, although God is everywhere, it is in His Deity form that He makes Himself tangibly available for worship. See Avatara, Krsna. Descartes, Ren-French rationalist philosopher of the seventeenth century (1596-1650), called the father of modern philosophy. He broke free of Scholasticism, the Christian re-interpretation of ancient Greek and Roman philosophy that had long held sway in European schools. Descartes is an important founder of the modern scientific attitude. He viewed the material world as a mechanism wholly describable by numerical values. Modern science, more Cartesii (after the manner of Descartes), tries to describe everything in terms of mathematics. Descartes strongly believed that science can help mankind become masters and possessors of nature. Through scientific advancement we might rid ourselves of an infinity of maladies, both of body and mind, and even perhaps the enfeeblement brought on by old age, if we had sufficiently ample knowledge of their causes, and of all the remedies provided for us by nature. Convinced that his revolutionary approach to knowledge would at least free himself from an infinity of maladies, Descartes wrote at age forty-two that he would be surprised if he lived less than over a hundred years. Unfortunately, he died at age fifty-four. See Cogito ergo sum, Rationalism. Dharma-religious principles; one's natural occupation. The capacity to render service, which is the essential quality of a living being. The occupational eternal duty of the living entity, regarded as inseparable from the soul himself; The Sanskrit term dharma is variously translated as duty, virtue, morality, righteousness, or religion, but no single English word conveys the whole meaning of dharma. The Vedic sage Jaimini defined dharma as a good which is of the nature of a command that leads to the attainment of the highest good. In Bg. 18.66, Lord Krsna commands us to give up all other dharmas and surrender to Him. This is the paro-dharma, or supreme command (good, duty, virtue, etc.) of the Vedas. Dualism-From the Latin dualis, containing two. There are two types of dualism in Western thought: metaphysical and religious. Metaphysical dualism is covered under the entry for the Mind/body problem. As a religious term, it was introduced in 1700 by Thomas Hyde in his work The Ancient Persian Religions. He characterized as dualism the conflict between the two principle gods of Zoroastrianism, the good Ormazd and the evil Ahriman. Zoroastrian dualism strongly influenced Judaism, Christianity and Islam. All three adhere to a doctrine of eternal struggle between God and Satan. But dualism, in the words of philosopher G.C. Nayak, is not an attempt to solve the problem of evil within the theistic concept. (From Evil and the Retributive Hypothesis, 1993, p. 44) Hence, none of the above religions, insofar as they are dualistic, can be considered truly theistic. See Atheism, Dvaita, Metaphysics, Mind/body problem, Problem of Evil, Theism.