[Advaita-l] World is mind alone: Shankara

[V Subrahmanian]

On Sat, Jul 29, 2017 at 4:56 AM, kuntimaddi sadananda <
kuntimaddisada at yahoo.com> wrote:

> Subbuji - PraNAms
>
> The sloka appears to refer to the macro cosmic person. Then there is a
> jump to the microcosic individual jeeva and his mind in the explanation.
>
> Yes, the individual mind is required in both driShti sRiShTi or sRiShTi
> driShTi  - there is draShTaa in both that involves the local mind of jeeva,
> involving his sense as well for patyaksha pramaana.
>
> Without the mind, jeeva cannot perceive the world . Hence - The existence
> of the world is established by the knowledge of its existence by a
> conscious being.
>
> Without the knowledge its existence, the existence of the world is
> indeterminate - just as existence (or its non-existence) of any object in
> the pitch dark room is indeterminate or anirvacaneeyam.
>
> Yes, when the local mind goes to the deep sleep state, the mind that
> perceives the subject-object duality is folded and hence there is knowledge
> of any duality whatsoever - Hence Mandukaya says - na kanchana kaama
> kaayata - there is no desire for an object, thus describing the deep sleep
> state.
>
> Yet, the world is not a projection of the local mind but the global mind
> as above sloka states. From the point of the individual jeeva, the world is
> not the creation of his local mind - if so we reduce the philosophy to
> vijnaana vaada.
>

Dear Sada ji,

The vijnanavādin does not hold an eternal non-changing entity apart from
the momentary consciousness. On the other hand, the Vedantin holds the mind
to be a viṣaya, object, to the Atman, the kshetrajna. Shankara is alluding
to everyone's everyday experience of the mind, not the Atman, being
observed to wake up and go into sleep mode. In fact that is the basis of
the avasthātraya viveka. Hence the above objection does not stand. Also
Shankara has stated that an appearance cannot appear without a basis, the
adhishthanam. Hence apart from the vijnanavada, even the shunyavada has
been refuted:


Mandukya 7th mantra:

सर्वशब्दप्रवृत्तिनिमित्तशून्यत्वात्तस्य शब्दानभिधेयत्वमिति
विशेषप्रतिषेधेनैव तुरीयं निर्दिदिक्षति । शून्यमेव तर्हि ; तन्न,
मिथ्याविकल्पस्य निर्निमित्तत्वानुपपत्तेः ; न हि
रजतसर्पपुरुषमृगतृष्णिकादिविकल्पाः शुक्तिकारज्जुस्थाणूषरादिव्यतिरेकेण
अवस्त्वास्पदाः शक्याः कल्पयितुम् ।





> Perceptibility is different from projectability. Jeeva's projection of
> rope where the snake is jeeva's mind creation using the samskaara based on
> Iswara creation only.
>
> In explaining the verse there seems to be a jump from the global mind to
> the local mind which is not necessary.
>

No, actually the verse says 'the world is the mind of the cosmic person'.
Shankara is helping us understand that by citing our own experience. Thus,
what is applicable to the cosmic person is applicable to the individual
too. That is the purport and purpose of Shankara alluding to the
individual. Neither the verse nor Shankara even suggest that 'there is no
cosmic person apart from the cosmic mind which is the world'.  The cosmic
person, the Consciousness, has his own cosmic mind, which is the world, as
a viṣaya, object for him. This same phenomenon is present with respect to
the individual also. The eternal unchanging viṣayi is different from the
vishaya that is changing.

>
> Jnaanam involves that I am not this local mind either but I am pure sat
> chit ananda that enlivens not only this mind but the whole universe. That
> knowledge has to occur in the local mind since the local mind has
> misconceptions that I am this BMI and the world and the creator (the global
> mind or Hiranyagarba) are different from me. It is like a Ring realizing
> that I am gold that pervades all the golden ornaments, while still
> remaining as ring that is different from bangle.
>
> I feel that there is no need to jump from macrocosm to microcosm.
>

The need is there for helping the aspirant appreciate that the situation is
so even in the case of the individual. It is only with a view to help
understand and appreciate Shankara's remark in the Mundaka bhashya I cited
the Mandukya bhashya passages too:  //Therefore it stands established that
dvaita (dvaita prapancha) is only a mental concoction.//

regards
subbu

>
> One can feel that everything is nothing but Iswara while still
> understanding the essence that there is no triad- jeeva-jagat-Iswara and I
> am that all pervading Brahman. At transactional level - the triad is there
> but understood as mithyaa and not absolutely real but only transactionally
> real.
>
> My 2c.
>
> Hari Om!
> Sadananda
>
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