[Advaita-l] Advaita-The Vedanta.

[Srikanta Narayanaswami]

Many Acharyas of the Advaita,starting from Gaudapada,Govinda Bhagawathpada,Sri Shankara,Sureshwaracharya,Padamapada have answered many Purvapakkshas,counter objections of the rival schools,and based on sruthi,smrithi,puranas and logic have answered all objections and clearly answered,and established,Advaita as the Vedantha enshrined in the Vedas,and as the quintessence of the Upanishads.Unlike other schools,like Vishishtaddvaita,Dwaita,Advaita has not reconciled and compromised with other schools.Vishistadvaita of Ramanuja had the Bhedha-abhedha vadin like Bhaskara as his predecesser.The "Aprithak siddhi"by Vijnana Bhikshu was an attempt to improvise and fillin the gaps in the Vishishtadvaita.But,he failed to answer the Advaitins who have the Mahavakyas of the Upanishads,like "Tat tvamasi,Aham Brahmasni,Idam sarvam yat ayamatma,Aitadatmyam idam sarvam"etc.In the beginning of his Sri Bhashya itself,Ramanuja fails miserably,and instead starts his work,with
 an attack on the Advaita,with the title of the first article,"laghu Purvapaksha,with 21 Advaitic siddhanta statements andlisting frivolous objections,as if Sri Shankara had not dealt with this 'Purvapakshas"in his Brahmasutra Bhashya!As if these frivolities are not enough,he ends his introduction with an attack reminicent of a "school boy","Kutharka Kalka"on the Advaitins!"Kalka'is a potion that is used in "Rishi tarpanam"during the "Upakarma'particulaly in "Samaveda Upakarma"where many "kalkams'like "amalaka kalkam"etc are used to do "abhishekam"on the "Rishis"who are signified by clay balls placed on the "Arka patras".
Or,in modern parlance, we can mean this as,"crooked hogwash"(kutarka kalka).Taking even an generous stand,a reader of the "Sri Bhashya"can feel that it was written with a 'heartburn'with the preconception of atacking Sri Shankara!
N.Srikanta.