[Advaita-l] Ishwara srushti - shruti bhAshya sammata

[V Subrahmanian]

On Thu, Aug 3, 2017 at 4:40 PM, Bhaskar YR via Advaita-l <
advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:

> praNAms
> Hare Krishna
>
> Kindly pardon me, it is really sickening to note sometimes in Advaita
> vedAnta  nAstika or chArvAka vAda gaining  a back door entry though it may
> not be the intention of propagators of jeeva bhrAnti srushti instead of
> vedAnta / bhAshya pradipAdita or sammata brahma abhinna nimittOpadAna
> kAraNa srushti  or Ishwara hetuka srushti or vedAnta maryAda srushti.
>


> As per vedAnta, shankara prakriyAdhArita Advaita vedAnta, brahma is the
> jagat kAraNa, it is brahman (chetana) alone prior to srushti thought about
> srushti and does the srushti kriya  with its intrinsic powers like
> sarvajnatvaM and sarvashaktitvaM.
>

Dear Sri Bhaskar ji,

If the Bhāṣyakāra's abhiprāya about creation is that it is brought out by
sarvajna, sarvashakta Ishwara alone, we have this Chandogya bhashya where
Shankara uses the rope-snake example for explaining that Chetana's
sankalpa: bahu syām:


तदैक्षत बहु स्यां प्रजायेयेति तत्तेजोऽसृजत तत्तेज ऐक्षत बहु स्यां
प्रजायेयेति तदपोऽसृजत । तस्माद्यत्र क्वच शोचति स्वेदते वा पुरुषस्तेजस एव
तदध्यापो जायन्ते ॥ ३ ॥
भाष्यम्
<http://advaitasharada.sringeri.net/display/bhashya/Chandogya?page=6&id=Ch_C06_S02_V03_B01&hlBhashya=%E0%A4%B8%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AA#bhashya-Ch_C06_S02_V03>

तत् सत् ऐक्षत ईक्षां दर्शनं कृतवत् । अतश्च न प्रधानं साङ्ख्यपरिकल्पितं
जगत्कारणम् , प्रधानस्याचेतनत्वाभ्युपगमात् । इदं तु सत् चेतनम् ,
ईक्षितृत्वात् । *तत्कथमैक्षतेति, आह — बहु प्रभूतं स्यां भवेयं प्रजायेय
प्रकर्षेणोत्पद्येय, यथा मृद्घटाद्याकारेण यथा वा रज्ज्वादि सर्पाद्याकारेण
बुद्धिपरिकल्पितेन । असदेव तर्हि सर्वम् , यद्गृह्यते रज्जुरिव
सर्पाद्याकारेण । न, सत एव द्वैतभेदेन अन्यथागृह्यमाणत्वात् न असत्त्वं
कस्यचित्क्वचिदिति ब्रूमः *।


For 'tat aikṣata, bahu syām (It deliberated 'let me become many', I shall
produce many. Just like clay (becomes many) as pot, etc., or rope, etc.
become many as snake, etc. by imagination: buddhiparikalpitena.

The bhashyakara is very clearly using the rope-snake analogy for Ishwara,
Sat, Brahman, Chetana's creation. The Upanishad is clearly using those
chetana's sankalpa and the bhashya clearly gives the buddhiparikalpitena
examples. Again, in the sequel too, in the same bhashyam, the rajju-sarpa
example is repeatedly invoked.  If the bhashyakāra's intention is sarvajna
krta srishti as you aver, why should he use the rajju sarpa
buddhiparikalpitena example? Does he mean that the sarvajna Ishwara is
under delusion?

And in the Mandukya mantra 7 bhāṣya, Shankara says:

तस्यापरमार्थरूपमविद्याकृतं रज्जुसर्पादिसममुक्तं पादत्रयलक्षणं
बीजाङ्कुरस्थानीयम् । अथेदानीमबीजात्मकं परमार्थस्वरूपं रज्जुस्थानीयं
सर्पादिस्थानीयोक्तस्थानत्रयनिराकरणेनाह
— नान्तःप्रज्ञमित्यादिना ।

In this Upanishad, there is no srishti statement of the nature 'I shall
become many', etc. uttered by the sarvajna Ishwara. Yet, the sixth mantra
is about Ishwara who is 'the cause of the utpatti and laya of all beings.'
So, Ishwara is taught by the Upanishad as jagatkāraṇam.  But Shankara says
in the above cited bhashya: the entire three pāda-s which are taught in the
upanishad as bīja (third pāda) and ankura (the first and second pāda-s), as
cause and effect, as rajjusarpa samam (that is, the three pādas put
together, along with the jagatkāraṇam Ishwara, as the imagined sarpa in the
rajju. And he goes on to say that the Turiya is beyond the bija (kāraṇam,
Ishwara of the third pāda) as the rajjusthāna and the entire three pādas,
including the Ishwara, as sarpa sthāna.

So, we see the bhashyakara explicitly saying the Ishwara-kRta srishṭi is no
less than a buddhiparikalpanam, rajjusarpavat.

I am retaining the remaining Chandogya bhashya for readers to see the
number of times the rajju-sarpa example is used in this Sarvajna Ishwara
srishti.

regards
subbu

 यथा सतोऽन्यद्वस्त्वन्तरं परिकल्प्य पुनस्तस्यैव प्रागुत्पत्तेः
प्रध्वंसाच्चोर्ध्वम् असत्त्वं ब्रुवते तार्किकाः, न तथा अस्माभिः
कदाचित्क्वचिदपि सतोऽन्यदभिधानमभिधेयं वा वस्तु परिकल्प्यते । सदेव तु
सर्वमभिधानमभिधीयते च यदन्यबुद्ध्या, यथा रज्जुरेव सर्पबुद्ध्या सर्प
इत्यभिधीयते, यथा वा पिण्डघटादि मृदोऽन्यबुद्ध्या पिण्डघटादिशब्देनाभिधीयते
लोके । रज्जुविवेकदर्शिनां तु सर्पाभिधानबुद्धी निवर्तेते, यथा च
मृद्विवेकदर्शिनां घटादिशब्दबुद्धी, तद्वत्
सद्विवेकदर्शिनामन्यविकारशब्दबुद्धी निवर्तेते — ‘यतो वाचो निवर्तन्ते ।
अप्राप्य मनसा सह’ (तै. उ. २ । ९ । १)
<http://advaitasharada.sringeri.net/display/bhashya/Taitiriya?page=2&id=T_C02_S09_V01&hl=%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%8B%20%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%9A%E0%A5%8B%20%E0%A4%A8%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%A8%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%87%C2%A0%E0%A5%A4%20%E0%A4%85%E0%A4%AA%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%AA%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AF%20%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%A8%E0%A4%B8%E0%A4%BE%20%E0%A4%B8%E0%A4%B9>
इति, ‘अनिरुक्तेऽनिलयने’ (तै. उ. २ । ७ । १)
<http://advaitasharada.sringeri.net/display/bhashya/Taitiriya?page=2&id=T_C02_S07_V01&hl=%E0%A4%85%E0%A4%A8%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%95%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%87%E0%A4%BD%E0%A4%A8%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%B2%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%A8%E0%A5%87>
इत्यादिश्रुतिभ्यः । एवमीक्षित्वा तत् तेजः असृजत तेजः सृष्टवत् । ननु ‘तस्माद्वा
एतस्मादात्मन आकाशः सम्भूतः’ (तै. उ. २ । १ । १)
<http://advaitasharada.sringeri.net/display/bhashya/Taitiriya?page=2&id=T_C02_S01_V01&hl=%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A6%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%BE%20%E0%A4%8F%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A6%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%A8%20%E0%A4%86%E0%A4%95%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B6%E0%A4%83%20%E0%A4%B8%E0%A4%AE%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AD%E0%A5%82%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%83>
इति श्रुत्यन्तरे आकाशाद्वायुः ततस्तृतीयं तेजः श्रुतम् , इह कथं प्राथम्येन
तस्मादेव तेजः सृज्यते तत एव च आकाशमिति विरुद्धम् ? नैष दोषः,
आकाशवायुसर्गानन्तरं तत्सत् तेजोऽसृजतेति कल्पनोपपत्तेः । अथवा अविवक्षितः इह
सृष्टिक्रमः ; सत्कार्यमिदं सर्वम् , अतः सदेकमेवाद्वितीयमित्येतद्विवक्षितम्
, मृदादिदृष्टान्तात् । अथवा त्रिवृत्करणस्य विवक्षितत्वात् तेजोबन्नानामेव
सृष्टिमाचष्टे । तेज इति प्रसिद्धं लोके दग्धृ पक्तृ प्रकाशकं रोहितं चेति ।
तत् सत्सृष्टं तेजः ऐक्षत तेजोरूपसंस्थितं सत् ऐक्षतेत्यर्थः । बहु स्यां
प्रजायेयेति पूर्ववत् । तत् अपोऽसृजत आपः द्रवाः स्निग्धाः स्यन्दिन्यः
शुक्लाश्चेति प्रसिद्धा लोके । यस्मात्तेजसः कार्यभूता आपः, तस्माद्यत्र क्वच
देशे काले वा शोचति सन्तप्यते स्वेदते प्रस्विद्यते वा पुरुषः तेजस एव तत् तदा
आपः अधिजायन्ते ॥




>
> Shruti vehemently announces that : sarvaM khalvidaM brahma tajjalAn iti
> shAntyupaaseeta.  bhAshyakAra clarifies : sarvamidaM vikArajAtaM brahmaiva
> tajjatvAt, tallatvAt, tadanatvAccha.  And Itareya quite explicit in this
> regard : AtmA vA edam eka evAgra Aseet and there is nothing apart from it
> na anyat kiMchana mishat sa Ekshata imaannu lokAnnu srujA iti, sa
> emAllokAnasrujata, sa EkshAmchakre prANamasrujata prashna shruti, mundaka :
> yaH sarvajnaH sarvavidyasya jnAnamayaM tapaH, tasmAt etat brahma nAma rUpaM
> annaM cha jAyate.
>
> Based on these shruti statements ( and other numerous shruti quotes with
> regard to brahma kAratvaM ) bhAshyakAra in the very second sUtra
> janmAdyasya yatha comprehensively again  clarifies  that neither pradhAna
> nor anU nor saMsAri jeeva are the cause of this jagat.  Please refer these
> bhAshya quotes :
>
> // quote //
>
> Asya jagatO nAmarUpAbhyAM vyAkrutasya aneka katrubhOkta saMyuktasya prati
> niyata desha kAla nimitta kriyAphalAshrayasya manasApi achintya
> rachanArUpasya janma sthiti bhangaM yataH sarvajnAt, sarvashakteH kAraNAt
> bhavati ' tad brahma' iti vAkya sheshaH....
>
> //  unquote //
>
> And it would be worthy to note that in continuation bhAshyakAra clarifies
> what I said above :
>
> // quote //
>
> Na yathOkta visheshaNasya jagataH yathOktavisheshaNaM IshvaraM muktvA
> anyataH pradhAnAt achetanAt, aNubhyaH, abhavAt, 'SAMSAARINO' vA utpattyAdi
> saMbhAvayitum shakyaM.
>
> // unquote //
>
>
> And finally didn't shankara himself says Ishwara's upAdhi, omniscience and
> omnipotence etc. is kevala avidyAkruta in araHbhaNAdhikaraNa sUtra bhAshya
> ??  yes, when one realizes  the paramArtha jnana i.e. idaM sarvaM
> yadayamAtA, brahmaivedaM sarvaM, AtmaivedaM sarvaM, neha nAnAsti kiMchana
> etc. the Ishwara the ruler, the jagat which is being ruled, the lordship of
> Ishwara over the jeeva-s etc. is dvaita only which is avidyA only due to
> parichinna drushti that splits in the form of  nAnA which will be
> completely eradicated by the dawn of Atmaikatva jnAna.  And it does not
> anyway propagate the 'anishta' theory of jeeva bhraAti srushti' which is
> directly doing the shruti hAni, siddhAnta hAni and bhAshya viruddha as well.
>
> Hari Hari Hari Bol!!!
> bhaskar
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