[Advaita-l] Re: yoga and vedanta

[bhaskar.yr at in.abb.com]

but specific discussions
on key concepts and methods integral to pAtanjala yoga as a school of
philosophy. In the brahmasUtrabhAshya, for example, there is a sUtra, etena
yogaH pratyuktaH (2.1.3), which says that by this (etena, i.e. the
refutation of the dualistic sAMkhya school that has been discussed up to
sUtra 2.2.1), the school of yoga (yogaH) has also been addressed
(pratyuktaH). At two other places in the same brahmasUtra commentary,
SankarAchArya quotes other sUtras from yoga, while making different points.
>From these kinds of references in the key prasthAna trayI commentaries, it
is quite possible to infer the views of our Sankara bhagavatpAda himself on
the yoga system.


praNAms
Hare Krishna

Yes, as Sri Vidyashankar prabhuji said the term yOga has been explained by
shankara at various places in his prasThAna trayi bhAshya without directly
referring to patanjala yOga.  In gIta bhAshya, for example, shankara says,
yOyam yOgaH jnAnaniShTAlakshaNaH saNyAsaM, karmayOgOpAyascha..further he
confirms in the entire gIta bhagavAn meant yOga as AtmaikajnAna & karmayOga
as upAya only ( gItAsu cha sarvAsu ayamEva yOgO vivakshitaH
bhagavatA)....But wherever he explicitly mentions yOga shAstra of
patanjali, he clearly discard it as *dvaita shAstra* & confirms that chitta
vrutti nirOdha is not the direct means to realization.  In the above
yOgapratyuktvAdhikaraNa bhAshya too, shankara accepts only some portion of
sAnkhya & yOga siddhAnta which come in line with shruti-s but not entire
yOga shAstra as a philosophy.  Here in this adhikaraNa shankara makes his
stand clear & tells that yOga shAstra is not smruti as pramANa in
paramArtha nirNaya.  But as  we all know shankara shows his generosity
towards other schools by saying *paramataM apratishiddhaM anumataM bhavati*
but subject to those texts find its root in shruti-s & advaita siddhAnta.

Hari Hari Hari Bol!!!
bhaskar