daśa-mūla

lit. daśa = ten; mūla = roots

in the Āyur-veda, the science of herbal medicine, there are ten roots which, when combined together produce a tonic which sustains life and counteracts disease. Similarly, there are ten ontological principles. When these are properly understood and realized, they destroy the disease of material existence and give life to the soul. The first of these principles is known as pramāṇa, the evidence which establishes the existence of the fundamental truths. The other nine principles are known as prameya, the truths which are to be established. The pramāṇa refers to the Vedic literature and in particular to the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. The Bhāgavatam is the essence of all the Vedas; it reveals the most intimate loving feature of the Lord‚ as well as the soul’s potential to unite with the Lord and His eternal associates in their play of divine loving exchange. Of the nine prameyas, the first seven relate to sambandha-jñāna, knowledge of the interrelationship between Śrī Bhagavān, His energies, and the living beings, both conditioned and liberated. The eighth prameya relates to abhidheya-jñāna, knowledge of the means by which the living entity can become established in an eternal loving relationship with Him. The ninth prameya relates to prayojana, the ultimate goal to be attained by pursuit of the transcendental path. That goal is known as kṛṣṇa-prema, and it takes on infinite varieties when manifest in the different bhaktas possessing variegated moods of divine love