[Advaita-l] [advaitin] Pāśupata, Pāncharātra, etc. composed by Śiva and Viṣṇu as mohaka śāstra

[V Subrahmanian]

These verses are also stated in the Rudrabhashyam (that has been cited)
discussing the composing of the doctrines:

मत्तन्त्राश्रयणेनैव मत्पूजा च कृता त्वया । तपसा प्रीतवानस्मि तव शाण्डिल्य
मे प्रिय ।।

[Lord Viṣṇu addresses Śāṇḍilya: Only by adhering to My doctrine
(Pāncharātra), you have performed My worship. My dear  Śāṇḍilya, I am
pleased by your austerities.]

कुमार्गेणापि शाण्डिल्य मम पूजा त्वया कृता । अतः कालेन महता वेदमार्गं
गमिष्यसि ॥

[Even by adhering to *this inferior path* (Pāncharātra), O Śāṇḍilya, you
have performed My worship. As a result of this, over time, you will come to
be included in the vedic fold.]

The above make it clear that the practice of puja, tapas alone was
performed and the resultant coming to the vedic fold is also specified.
That shows that the puja, etc is not sufficient to gain mokṣa.

Moreover, the smrtis are grouped and put in one place by Veda Vyasa in the
Brahmasutras. That is to show that there is no contradiction, avirodha, to
the Vedanta from the smrtis that are non-Veda. The pāncharātra is in this
group of smrtis. Hence alone while refuting it, along with other schools
mentioned in that group, whatever does not conflict with the Vedanta is
admitted: paramatam apratiṣiddham anumatam.  From the above verses it is
also clear that those practices are not contradictory to the Vedanta and
hence admitted. This can be clearly witnessed in the pancharatradhikaranam
where Shankara accepts explicitly the practices of worship, contemplating
the Lord, etc. (At one place even the Bauddha is admitted for the fact that
he too admits  the ephemerality of sense objects.) Only doctrinal
differences are pointed out and refuted. It can also be seen from the
bhashyas that all these schools that are refuted are non-advaitic, that is,
un-vedāntic. We can see this also implicitly in the above verses where the
puja, etc. is not endorsed as sufficient for moksa and a further stint in
the vedic path is shown as wanting.

regards

subbu