[Advaita-l] Vaadiraaja Teertha's Yuktimallika - Eka Jeeva Vaada Criticism - Slokas 3-677 to 3-691

[Venkatesh Murthy]

The Main Siddhanta of the Advaitis is the Eka Jeeva Vaada. In the Siddhanta
Bindu it is said -

मुख्यो वेदान्तसिद्धान्त एकजीववादाख्यः । इममेव च
दृष्टिसृष्टिवादमाचक्षते । This Eka
Jeeva Vaada is the Main Vedanta Siddhanta. This itself is also called
as the Drishti Srishti Vaada.
Eka Jeeva Vaada and Drishti Srishti Vaada from Translation of Siddhanta
Bindu by Sri S. N. Sastri is this -

'In this view the jiva himself is the material and efficient cause of the
universe through his own nescience. All the objects perceived are illusory
(like things seen indream). The delusion that there are many jivas is only
due to there being many bodies. Liberation is attained by the single jiva
on realization of the self as a result of the perfection of hearing,
reflection,etc, with the help of the Guru and the scriptures which are all
conjured up by him. The statements about Suka and others having attained
liberation are only by way of eulogy. In the Mahavakya the term ‘That’
signifies by implication consciousness not limited by nescience, like the
terms ‘infinite’, ‘reality’, etc.'

Vaadiraaja now is turning his attention to the Eka Jeeva
Vaada.

युक्तिमल्लिका - भेदसौरभम्
खल एव खलो लोके नासुरा वैरवैरिणः ।

एको जीवः स निद्राति तस्य स्वप्नः किलाखिलम् ॥ ३-६७७

The wicked person is really the worst in this world but not the Asuras.
Why? The Asuras hate enemies like Gods but the wicked person hates the
world itself. Why? Because he thinks there is only one Jeeva and that Jeeva
is sleeping. Everything in the universe is his Dream.

अहर्निशेति च प्रायो न विदुर्मोहिदेहिनः ।

कालः किलायं सर्वोऽपि स्वप्नः सुप्तस्य कस्यचित् ॥ ३-६७८

The persons addicted to pleasures mostly will not know when it is day and
when it is night and they want to enjoy pleasures always day and night. All
this time is a dream for some sleeping person. The dreamer Jeeva does not
know when it is day and when night because he is always in a dream.

करस्थदण्डपिण्डाभ्यां शवबुद्धिं जहौ शिवा ।

चरन्तस्संसरन्तश्च शवा जीवाः किलाखिलाः ॥ ३-६७९

Even the female fox has not made the mistake of thinking the sleeping man
with rice ball in one hand and a stick in another hand as a dead body. But
for the Eka Jeeva Vaadi the moving Jeevas of the Samsaara are all dead
bodies. He is saying even animals like a fox will know a sleeping man is
not a dead body. But the Eka Jeeva Vaadi will think all people in the world
are like dead bodies because there is no Jeeva in the bodies.

हसति स्वैरिणी स्वैरमपरां स्वैरिणीमहो ।

किं च निर्जीवदेहात्मवादी चार्वाकहासकृत् ॥ ३-६८०

A prostitute is making fun of another prostitute even though both are
selling body for money. Similarly the Eka Jeeva Vaadi Advaiti is making fun
of the Caarvaka because he is saying there is no Jeeva in the body. The
Caarvakas are materialists. They say there is no Jeeva in the body and the
body is the Self.

एकाशाखण्डने लोका दोषमाघोयन्त्यहो ।

शुकाद्याः किल सर्वेऽपि न मोक्ष्यन्ते मुमुक्षवः ॥ ३-६८१

If one person's desire is not satisfied people say there is a defect. But
in EJV all the Mumukshus like Suka and so on are not liberated even though
they have desire for liberation. In EJV only one dreaming Jeeva can be a
Mumukshu. Other Mumukshus are only dream figures and they are not real. The
dreamer can be liberated but the others are not liberated because they are
not really existing.

यजनाध्ययनादीनि मननश्रवणानि च ।

दानस्नानादिकं सर्वं दशा स्वाप्नी किलाफला ॥ ३-६८२

For the others in the dream all sacrifices, study of Scriptures, Reflection
and Hearing the Vedanta, giving gifts, having bath in sacred places are in
only in the dream and have no Fruit.

ब्रह्मापि निर्ममे सम्यक्तपसोद्बुद्धशुद्धदृक् ।

अस्राक्षीन्निद्रितस्त्र्यक्षसहस्राक्षादिकान्किल ॥ ३-६८३

Even Brahma properly did penance and created the Universe with pure
knowledge. But according to EJV the one dreaming Jeeva has created Rudra,
Indra and other Gods and the Universe. This is a ridiculous theory.

अनादिकालतो यस्य निद्रा स किल कल्पकः ।

अनिद्रा वेदवेदान्तकर्तारः किल कल्पिताः ॥ ३-६८४

From the time with no beginning the one dreamer has imagined all this
effortlessly. The people studying Vedas and Vedanta with lot of effort are
all imagination.

हता यैरार्यमर्यादा वृथा तेषां कथाऽपि नः ।

अचेतनो गुरुर्वक्ति निद्रितः श्रुणुते किल ॥ ३-६८५

Our debate in a scholarly assembly with the Eka Jeeva Vaadi is a
waste because he has broken the limits of noble people. How can you argue
with him when he says there is only one Jeeva and you are imagined in his
dream? The imagined and Insentient Guru gives instructions and the sleeping
Jeeva listens to that. This is ridiculous.

स्वशिष्याज्ञानजगुरोर्विद्याऽपि तदविद्यया ।

स भेदज्ञोऽयमैक्यज्ञो नंक्ष्यत्येष स मोक्ष्यते ॥ ३-६८६

The Guru is created by the Disciple's ignorance. That Guru's instructions
also are from that Disciple's ignorance. That Guru knows Bheda because he
gives instructions thinking he is different from his Disciple. But the
Disciple gets Abheda knowledge from Guru. The Guru will get destroyed but
the Disciple is liberated. Ridiculous Theory.

योऽचीक्ऌपज्जगत्सर्वं शास्त्रस्तुतिसमन्वितम् ।

स जीवः किल शिष्योऽभूत्कल्प्यः कोऽपि गुरुः किल ॥३-६८७

He created all this Universe with the Sastras and Stutis and so on and has
become the Disciple. He is the Jeeva.  But the Guru is only imagined and
not real.

यद्यैक्यमा प्रमा वक्तुस्तर्हि स्वप्नोऽपि न भ्रमः ।

गौरवादप्रसिद्ध्यादेर्न स्वप्नस्य द्विरूपता ॥ ३-६८८

If Guru's instruction of Abheda is Pramaa or true knowledge this means the
dream is not Illusion. If you say the Guru's instruction only is Pramaa but
other dreams are Illusion there will be Gaurava Dosha and there is no
common knowledge or Prasiddhi of that. Nobody says there are real dreams
and false dreams.There cannot be two types of dream - one real and another
false.
स्वप्नो न चेन्न जीवैक्यं तत्रैव द्रष्टुरेकता ॥ ३-६८९
If you say this is not a dream at all there will be no Aikya of Jeeva and
Brahman also and there will be no single observing Jeeva but many Jeevas.

जाग्रद्दशैव स्वप्नस्य साम्याद् यदि च तादृशी ।

सर्वसाम्ये स एव स्यात् किंचित्साम्ये न किंचन ॥ ३-६९०
If you say there is sameness of waking state and dream state we ask - is
the sameness complete or partial? If sameness is complete it is ridiculous
to say there is Jaagrat and there is Svapna Avasthaa because they both are
the same Dream State. If sameness is only partial you cannot prove
anything. The Anumaana is -

जाग्रदवस्था द्रष्ट्रे एकत्ववती स्वप्नसाम्यात् स्वप्नवत् the Waking state
has one Seer only because of sameness with Dream. Like there is only one
Seer in the Dream. If the Saamya is complete the Waking State will become
same as Dream and there will be Asiddhi of the Hetu - Svapna Saamya. If you
say the Saamya is only Vastu Saamya it is ridiculous. It is like saying
there is Vastu Saamya of pot and cloth. But we cannot store water in Cloth.

दशात्वसाम्ये तेनैव स्वप्नोऽप्येतादृशो भवेत् ।

साध्येन साम्यं नासिद्धेर्व्याप्येन समतापि न ॥ ३-६९१

If you say there is Dashaatva Saamya or Avasthaatva Saamya we can say in
Svapna Avasthaa also there will be Aneka Jeevas like in Jaagrat Avasthaa.
If you say there is Saadhya Saamya or Saadhya Vyaapya Dharma Saadhya we
have right to reject it because we do not accept Eka Jeevatva and Eka
Jeevatva Vyapya Dharma also. The Advaiti may use Anumaana -

जाग्रद्दशा एकजीववती अवस्थात्वात् स्वप्नवत् The Waking state has one Jeeva
only because it is also Avasthaa like Dream. Then we can give a counter
Anumaana -

स्वप्नावस्था बहुजीववती अवस्थात्वात् जाग्रदवस्थावत् the Dream State has many
Jeevas because it is also Avasthaa like Waking State.

Response - The Mithyaatva of the Acetana Vastus is proved first. If you
argue how Acetana Vastus are Mithyaa that is a different argument and we
will argue that separately. Next we have the Cetana Vastus are the Jeevas.
There is Abheda of every Jeeva with Brahman. This also is proved
separately. Then we come to the Eka Jeeva Vaada. If there are two Jeevas
say A and B we already know A has Abheda with Brahman and B also has Abheda
with Brahman. If A has Abheda with Brahman and B also has Abheda with
Brahman we can also say Jeeva A has Abheda with Jeeva B. But if you object
and say A and B cannot be same because our Vyavahara is telling us they are
different. I am not the same as you. You are not another person. And so on.
To this we can say the difference between Jeeva A and Jeeva B is
also unreal only because it is in Vyavahara. Then we can say A and B are
same by neglecting Upadhis. Continuing in this way we can say if A and B
are same there are not two but one Jeeva. Similarly we can argue to say all
Jeevas in the world are the same Jeeva. There is only one Jeeva.

There is another way to prove Eka Jeeva Vaada. In Mandukya Upanishad there
is discussion of the Avasthaa Traya and Turiya also. Common agreement
between us is in Sushupti and Dream there are no other Jeevas. In dream
there may be other persons but they are not Jeevas because after you wake
up the persons in waking state will not share your dream experience. There
is only one Jeeva dreaming and one Jeeva in Sushupti sleep. Nowhere the
Upanishad is saying there are many Jeevas in the Jagrat Avastha. Therefore
Sruti itself has given proof for Eka Jeeva Vaada by not allowing many
Jeevas in Jaagrat.

When you are pointing to ridiculous results like Guru getting destroyed
and Disciple getting liberated we can give counter examples. In a dream
some one may solve a difficult Maths problem with a friend in the dream.
After waking up he will see the dream friend is not there. He is destroyed.
The friend may be there in waking but he did not participate in the
dream. But the problem's solution is correct. Similarly the Guru is part of
the dream only but his instructions are correct.

Requesting scholars to correct my mistakes, give details and finer points.
Thanking all for the responses to the last discussion.

-- 
Regards

-Venkatesh