[Advaita-l] A Vedantic message

[Kalyan]

//Prakriti as a shakti is admitted, as an unreal entity, subservient to Brahman, neither different nor non-different from Brahman, anirvachaniya. Brahman 'with' this power is the abhinna nimitta updana kaaranam of the universe.//
Dear Sri Subbuji
Pardon me for asking this question which might sound simple to you. 
Who or what is the abhinna nimitta upadana karana of the universe?
1. Ishwara alone2. Ishwara + prakRti3. nirguNa brahman + prakRti4. nirguNa brahman alone (you seem to have ruled out this possibility, but I am posing this for completeness sake).
RegardsKalyan 

    On Wednesday, September 13, 2017 12:15 AM, V Subrahmanian <v.subrahmanian at gmail.com> wrote:
 

 

On Tue, Sep 12, 2017 at 3:48 PM, Kalyan via Advaita-l <advaita-l at lists.advaita- vedanta.org> wrote:

//The verdict of all discussions on the Vedanta is that the Jīva and the
whole universe are nothing but Brahman//


That means prakRti is also brahman and there is no shakti that is different from brahman and brahman alone is the material and instrumental cause of the universe?


Prakriti as a shakti is admitted, as an unreal entity, subservient to Brahman, neither different nor non-different from Brahman, anirvachaniya. Brahman 'with' this power is the abhinna nimitta updana kaaranam of the universe. One instance where Shankara says that Brahman is the dual cause is: BSB 2.2.42:
 प्रकृतिश्चाधिष्ठाता चेति ; श्रुत्यनुसारिणी च स्मृतिः प्रमाणमिति स्थितिः ; तत्कस्य हेतोरेष पक्षः प्रत्याचिख्यासित इति — उच्यते — यद्यप्येवंजातीयकोंऽशः समानत्वान्न विसंवादगोचरो भवति,   In this passage the word prakrti means simply material cause and not the mula prakriti, the Shakti.  He says here: That a single entity is both the material and instrumental cause is in accordance with the shruti and the bhagavata school accepts this format. The Vedantin has no issues with them on this. But there are other issues with them that do not concur with the Vedanta.
That such a shakti has to be admitted by the Vedantin as otherwise the Brahman of the Vedanta cannot even be the creator (since Brahman is nishkriyam) is stated by Shankara in BSB 1.4.3:परमेश्वराधीना त्वियमस्माभिः प्रागवस्था जगतोऽभ्युपगम्यते, न स्वतन्त्रा । सा चावश्याभ्युपगन्तव्या ; अर्थवती हि सा ; न हि तया विना परमेश्वरस्य स्रष्टृत्वं सिध्यति, शक्तिरहितस्य तस्य प्रवृत्त्यनुपपत्तेः ।

It is also to be remembered that creation passages are not there with a view to teach a real creation but only to teach the jiva-brahman identity. Shankara has said this on more than one occasion. 
Prakriti is the parinami upadana karana and Brahman is the vivartopadana karana. With the former we can account for creation sustenance and laya. With the latter we can establish advaita.

vs


     

Regards
Kalyan
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