[Advaita-l] advaitasiddhi discussion: प्रत्यक्षस्य उपजीव्यत्वेन प्राबल्यविचारः

[Anand Hudli]

Dear Shri Sadanandaji,

I get your point. What I tried to convey in my last message is that I think
it is better to provide explanations in simple Sanskrit than translations.
One who reads the advaita siddhi in the original text will find it hard, to
say the least. There is the GauDabrahmAnandI commentary, but even that is
not easy to read by any means. So a feasible approach might be to be
provide a much simpler way of putting things discussed in the
advaitasiddhi, and in a simpler form of Sanskrit. Besides, there are
examples where a translation will not do justice to the original. One
example that I was taught as an eighth grader is this. Kalidasa was a poet
in King Bhoja's court, according to this legend. It so happened that Bhoja,
who was a great patron of the arts, disguised himself as an ordinary man
and approached KAlidAsa, who was staying away from Bhoja at the time. The
disguised Bhoja told kAlidAsa that his dear King Bhoja was dead. Upon
hearing the sorrowful news, kAlidAsa's grief expressed itself spontaneously
in the form of a verse:

अद्य धरा निराधारा निरालम्बा सरस्वती।
पण्डिताः खण्डिताः सर्वे भोजराजे दिवं गते॥

Today, while King Bhoja is dead, the Earth is without a basis, the Goddess
of Learning Sarasvati is without a support, and all the Pandits are
abandoned.

Bhoja much appreciated this verse and he revealed himself in his true form
to kAlidAsa. Seeing his king alive, the kAlidAsa's joy expressed itself
spontaneously thus:

अद्य धरा सदाधारा सदालम्बा सरस्वती।
पण्डिता मण्डिताः सर्वे भोजराजे भुवि स्थिते॥

Today, while King Bhoja is alive, the Earth is ever with a basis, the
Goddess of Learning Sarasvati has everlasting support, and all the Pandits
are adorned ( honored).

As you can see, the beauty of Sanskrit wordplay is lost in the translation.

Anand