[Advaita-l] Re: Vivekachudamani vs Bhashyas

[Vidyasankar Sundaresan]

Re: BUBh 1.4.7

>Where is Shankara here saying that GYAna is not mukti? He merely says
>that more effort is necessary to *maintain* GYAna = mukti. Not that
>mukti itself is to be obtained AFTER GYAna. This GYAna = mukti may
>require stabilization, indeed Shankara says:
>
>shruti mahAvAkya --> GYAna = mukti (needs stabilization)

Why the need for stabilization? Sankara is the first to argue that nothing 
needs to be done once jnAna has fully dawned. Indeed, he also says that 
after mukti, there is no more individual, so there can be nobody who can 
stabilize anything. So, either Sankara is contradicting himself in the 
bRhadAraNyaka commentary when he talks of the need for remaining in 
AtmaniShThA or else his point is being totally missed here.

>
>Whereas to the author of the VC, GYAna obtained from the mahAvAkyas is
>NOT mukti. In other words,

I beg to differ. Eg., VC clearly says,

vinivRttir bhavet tasya samyag jnAnena nAnyathA |
brahmAtmaikatva vijnAnaM samyagjnAnaM Sruter matam ||

This verse is unambiguous about equating moksha and jnAna. What we need to 
ask ourselves is, "what is the nature of jnAna obtained from mahAvAkyas, and 
how does this jnAna arise?" Does it arise at the very moment of SravaNa or 
does it arise out of cogitating upon the vAkya-s and understanding their 
meaning? Furthermore, we need to remember that VC talks of jIvanmukti 
extensively, whereas most of the time in the commentaries, Sankara takes the 
standpoint of either sadyomukti or krama-mukti. On the other hand, we need 
to ask what it is that prepares one person for sadyomukti and another for 
kramamukti and a third for jIvanmukti. And Sankara does indicate his views, 
in the gItAbhAshya, when he talks of jIvanmukti briefly.

>shruti mahAvAkya --> GYAna --> vAsanAxaya --> mukti
>
>There is a clear separation between GYAna and mukti for the author of
>the VC, for whom GYAna is NOT mukti. In this regard, the VC rather

As mentioned above, I don't get this impression at all from the text.

>feels like the jIvanmuktiviveka of Swami Vidyaranya, where it is said
>that AFTER obtaining GYAna, one must strive for mukti!

I do not think that JMV of Vidyaranya is all that far from Sankara's intent 
(as set out in the commentaries) either.

Vidyasankar

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