QA with Christian students 1 – Is Yashoda similar to Virgin Mary?

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Hare Krishna.
Question is, Mother Yashoda analogous to Virgin Mary in the Christian tradition? Answer, not precisely. At first glance, yes, there is a similarity that both are in the position of the mother of God and it is understood that God, in both theologies, it is understood that God is not, God does not have any parents. So God does not have a mother also.
So in that sense, it is not a challenge or compromise to the supreme position of God, but it is for the purpose of, particular purpose that God gives a particular position to one who is very intimately connected with him. So that much the similarity is there. But at the same time, when we consider Jesus in the Christian theology, now Virgin Mary is talked about primarily in the Catholic theology, there is a huge amount of debate whether she is, whether the conception of immaculate conception and thereafter, how central it is to Christian theology and apart from Catholics, the other denominations often do not give it that much importance.
But still, focusing on the Catholics here, if you want to make the comparison, still, it is for the purpose of incarnation that this Jew girl, she was chosen and then eventually she is considered to be the mother of the, mother of the church and the mother of all Christian community because Jesus, they consider in one sense, same with the church. So now, this is exclusively connected with the incarnation. That means when God becomes human, I am talking from perspective of Catholic theology, when God becomes human and descends to this world, at that time, the Virgin Mary is the vessel through which God appears in this world and that he appears through her womb is to stress that he becomes human.
He truly becomes human, having lived in a mother’s womb the way a human lives and having thereafter experienced the tribulations of life the way a human experiences, including ultimately crucifixion. So, within the Catholic conception of the simultaneous humanity and divinity of Jesus, his birth through a mother’s womb stresses his humanity while his conception, immaculate conception, as it is said, without any sexual contact, that is supposed to stress on his divinity. So, when we come to Krishna, we see that it is not that Krishna has a mother only as a vessel or a route for coming in this world.
In the Vaishnav conception, especially the Gaudiya Vaishnav conception of the absolute truth, there is an eternal spiritual world where God resides with his devotees who are in various relationships with him. So, Yashodamayi is the eternal mother of Krishna in the spiritual world and she has the eternal vatsalya rasa with him and there is no such conception of an eternal spiritual world where Jesus is eternally related with his mother in that conception, in that relationship, in the conception of heaven. So, in the conception of heaven that is there within the mainstream Catholic theology, the point is that God, the Trinity of Godhead, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, they are, it is said, according to some conceptions, they are in eternal loving conversation or they are in eternal discussion or they are eternally one in some way while being three.
The point is that there is no eternal role for Virgin Mary in that dispensation. So, the conception of rasa and the conception of, in terms of, the conception of rasa in terms of eternal relationship in a eternal spiritual world, that is very much not, that is not there in the Christ Catholic conception. Further, we understand that when we talk about Yashoda, she is performing, she performs pastimes with Krishna and was Krishna present in her womb? Yes, she was present.
Krishna appeared in her womb, at least according to Gaudiya Vaishnava understanding, that Krishna manifested in two forms, one in the womb of Devaki and the other in the womb of Yashoda. But still, the point is that Krishna’s manifestation through the womb of his mother was not to stress his humanity. It was, it is to give his devotee an experience of the intensity of love.
Whatever Krishna performed, whatever activities Krishna performs are to intensify the loving reciprocations with his devotees. So, in that sense, Krishna, Krishna’s relationship with Yashoda Mai, Krishna’s appearance in his womb, the theological implication of that is very different. It is not to stress his humanity because Krishna is not human.
Krishna is always transcendental, whether he is in his mother’s womb or is outside his mother’s womb. So, the conception of rasa, so the whole theological framework in which the conception of the Mother of God is taken, that is very different in the Catholic theology and in the Vaishnava theology. So, at first glance, there is similarity between them.
But on deeper examination, there are substantial differences in terms of the theological framework in which these conceptions are understood. Thank you. Hare Krishna.