[Advaita-l] Avidyaa is Subjective not Objective

[Venkatesh Murthy]

Namaste
On Wed, May 22, 2013 at 12:05 PM, V Subrahmanian
<v.subrahmanian at gmail.com>wrote:

> On Wed, May 22, 2013 at 10:11 AM, Venkatesh Murthy <vmurthy36 at gmail.com
> >wrote:
>
> This is not denied at all.  Vidyaranya as said that hunger, thirst, joy,
> sorrow, knowledge, ignorance etc. are known to oneself pratyakSheNa and to
> others only by inference.
>
By looking at sayings and behaviour of another person we cannot very
definitely say he has Avidyaa.Why? Because Mukta persons have also shown
bad behaviour like Kashyapa Rishi with his wife in Sandhyaa Kaala.Only I
can say definitely I have Avidyaa because I know I am not Happy always.This
is the one and only test. If I am always Happy I am Mukta. If I am
sometimes Happy and sometimes Unhappy I am Baddha. I do not know another
person he is always Happy or not Happy.


>
> >
> > But Teekaakaras are telling us there is a Moola Avidya attached to
> Brahman.
> >
>
> I have already shown that in the Br.up. 1.4.10 bhashyam Shankara Himself
> has said that avidyA is to be admitted in/for Brahman.  [this is not to be
> confused with what I said above: avidyA is an attribute of the anAtmA and
> not of the Atman.)
>
In Method of Vedanta SSS Swamiji has given objection of Bhaskaracarya like
this. If you say Avidyaa belongs to Jeeva there is circularity. Jeeva is
Avidyaa Kalpita. But Whose Kalpana? It cannot be Brahma's Kalpana because
Brahma cannot have Kalpana. It is Jeeva's Avidyaa Kalpana. This will be
Jeeva. You are saying Jeeva is Jeeva's Avidyaa Kalpita. There is a circular
logic.

But if you say Avidya is attached to Brahma it is impossible because Brahma
cannot have Avidya. He has no defects.

The BEST ANSWER to Question Whose Avidyaa? is already given by Adi Sankara
I have already given it . I am giving it below once again -

>Very Important Sankara Bhashya 4 -1 - 3 is saying Kasya Punarayam
> Aprabodhaha ? Iti Cet Yastvam Prucchasi Tasya Te Iti Vadaamaha. Nanu Aham
> Ishwara Evoktaha Shrutyaa. Yadyevam prati Buddho'si Naasti Kasyacid
> Aprabodhaha.
> 'Objection - To Whom does this non-waking belong?
> Answer - We reply 'To You who ask this question!'
> Objection -  But Sruti teaches that I am Ishwara Himself.
> Answer - If you are thus awakened Then non-waking belongs to none!' SSS
> Swamijis book Sankara Vedanta Meemamsa Bhashya Page 73.


>
>
> > This Moola Avidyaa is Maayaa Shakti. It has created the world and we are
> > all seeing that Objective Avidyaa.
>
>
> This is exactly the teaching of the 13th chapter of the Gita.  The entire
> avidyA/mAyAkAryam is the kShetra which is the known, as 'idam', and the
> kShetrajna is the knower, vEttA.  Only that which is a viShaya, known,
> dRshya can be an object.  And that is why it can be annihilated by vidyA.
>
We are seeing Creation of Avidyaa Kalpita Maaya Shakti. That Avidyaa is a
Misconception in the Mind or Superimposition of Self and not Self. The
Creation is not Objective  but Subjective.

> But Adi Sankara said that Maayaa Shakti
> is imagined by Avidyaa in the mind. It is Maayaa Kalpitaa.
>

Maybe you wanted to say here 'It is avidyAkalpita'.
>
Correct. Maayaa is  Avidyaa Kalpitaa.


>
> >
> > regards
>

-- 
Regards

-Venkatesh