[Advaita-l] Ontological status of avidyA

[Bhaskar YR]

praNAms 
Hare Krishna

Brahman, being nirvikAra, cannot be a kAraNa at all (vide advaita prakaraNa). AvidyA being adhyasta itself, also cannot be adhyAsa kAraNa. So what is the cause of adhyAsa? Secondly what is the cause for avidyA to be adhyasta on Brahman in the first place?  This leads to anavasthA, because if you say another avidyA, what is the cause for that being adhyasta, and so on.

>  Yes, a thing (avidyA) which is  adhyAsta itself cannot be a cause for another adhyAsa hence avidyA is not at all upAdAna kAraNa (material cause) for adhyAsa.  Hence elsewhere Sri SSS clarifies searching for the cause of avidyA is an illegitimate effort and asking the question with regard to the cause of avidyA (jnAnAbhAva) is not legitimate and sane question.  If I use the wrong transaction code (TC) in SAP while doing some work in this module it is quite obvious that I donot know the 'correct' TC  and no sane person would ask for the cause of not knowing the correct TC because everyone knows that it is due to 'absence' of correct knowledge of TC I have used the wrong TC.  So, it will be a waste of effort if we want to search a cause for avidyA which is abhAva rUpa.  avidyA has the ashraya in the person who is asking the question about avidyA...is this person not the brahman atleast according to scriptures :-) If this person realizes that he is brahman then there is no avidyA whatsoever to anyone, clarifies shankara in sUtra bhAshya.  No scope for assuming AtmAshrita mUlAvdiyA or bhAvarUpa avidyA which is on par with brahmAstitva.  

Hari Hari Hari Bol!!!
bhaskar