[Advaita-l] The term 'pariNAma' means 'vivarta' for Shankara

[V Subrahmanian]

Namaste

In a conversation with Sri Mani Dravid Sastrigal on the jagat kaaraNatva of
Brahman where Advaitins accept pariNaami and vivarta kaaraNatvam, he
pointed out that in the Brahma sutra 1.4.26 shown below, Bhagavatpada has
taken the word 'parinama' as vivarta.

I looked up the bhashyam and the Ratnaprabha and found that the latter has
explained that 'the sutra word 'pariNama' is  actually vivarta.

आत्मकृतेः परिणामात् ॥ २६ ॥
 भाष्यम्
<https://advaitasharada.sringeri.net/display/bhashyaVyakhya/BS?vyakhya=RP#bhashya-BS_C01_S04_V26>
इतश्च प्रकृतिर्ब्रह्म, यत्कारणं ब्रह्मप्रक्रियायाम् ‘तदात्मानं स्वयमकुरुत’
(तै. उ. २ । ७ । १)
<https://advaitasharada.sringeri.net/display/bhashya/Taitiriya?page=2&id=T_C02_S07_V01&hl=%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%A6%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A8%E0%A4%82%20%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%95%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%A4>
 इत्यात्मनः कर्मत्वं कर्तृत्वं च दर्शयति — आत्मानमिति कर्मत्वम् ,
स्वयमकुरुतेति कर्तृत्वम् ।  कथं पुनः पूर्वसिद्धस्य सतः कर्तृत्वेन
व्यवस्थितस्य क्रियमाणत्वं शक्यं सम्पादयितुम् ? परिणामादिति ब्रूमः —
पूर्वसिद्धोऽपि हि सन्नात्मा विशेषेण विकारात्म-ना परिणमयामासात्मानमिति ।
विकारात्मना च परिणामो मृदाद्यासु प्रकृतिषूपलब्धः ; स्वयमिति च
विशेषणान्निमित्तान्तरानपेक्षत्वमपि प्रतीयते । ‘परिणामात्’ इति वा
पृथक्सूत्रम् । तस्यैषोऽर्थः — इतश्चप्रकृतिर्ब्रह्म, यत्कारणं ब्रह्मण एव
विकारात्मना परिणामः सामानाधिकरण्येनाम्नायते ‘सच्च त्यच्चाभवत् । निरुक्तं
चानिरुक्तं च’ (तै. उ. २ । ६ । १)
<https://advaitasharada.sringeri.net/display/bhashya/Taitiriya?page=2&id=T_C02_S06_V01&hl=%E0%A4%B8%E0%A4%9A%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%9A%20%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%9A%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%9A%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%AD%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%8D%C2%A0%E0%A5%A4%20%E0%A4%A8%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%95%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%82%20%E0%A4%9A%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A8%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%95%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%82%20%E0%A4%9A>
इत्यादिनेति ॥ २६ ॥

Ratnaprabha: अत्र सूत्रे परिणामशब्दः कार्यमात्रपरः, नतु
सत्यकार्यात्मकपरिणामपरः, 'तदनन्यत्वम्' इति विवर्तवादस्य वक्ष्यमाणत्वात् ॥
२६ ॥
The vyakhya is interesting in the sense that by 'satkAryAtmaka-pariNama' he
means the process where the kaaraNa dravya actually undergoes a
transformation to become the kArya dravya. He says this is not the case in
this sutra as Brahman is not admitted to undergo any transformation but it
is a case of vivarta.
It is interesting again that in the Bhashya above //पूर्वसिद्धोऽपि हि
सन्नात्मा विशेषेण विकारात्मना परिणमयामासात्मानमिति । विकारात्मना च परिणामो
मृदाद्यासु प्रकृतिषूपलब्धः ;// Shankara says 'Atman, which is already
existing a-priori, in a special vikara, became transformed
-pariNamayaamaasa, Itself.' He gives the analogy of 'clay, etc. causes
transforming themselves as ...effects.  From this it is clear that Shankara
holds the clay, etc. transforming into pot, etc. is also a case of vivarta
only.
The 'nyayanirnaya' gloss of Sri Anandagiri says: मृद्-घटः, सुवर्णं-कुण्डलम्
इतिवत् ब्रह्मण: सच्च त्यच्चेते जगतः सामानाधिकरण्यादुपादानत्वम् |
[Just as clay-pot, gold-ear-ring, there is a sAmAnAdhikaraNyam for Brahman
with the sat, asat (agni, jala and prthivi and aakaasha, vayu sets), there
is the upAdAnatvam.] Brahman is the material cause to the world just like
clay, etc. are for their respective effects.
Thus, the term 'pariNAma' of the sutra is actually 'vivarta' for Shankara.
Even the cases of clay-pot, etc. is a vivarta.
It is quite interesting that in the prasthana traya bhashya, only this
usage of the term 'vivarta' comes close to the conveying of kaarya-kaarana
bhaava:
वायौ हि पर्जन्यभावेन विवर्तमाने विद्युत्स्तनयित्नुवृष्ट्यशनयो
विवर्तन्त इत्याचक्षते  ...[the
purvapakshin says...vaayu alone transforms (vivarta) as rain..etc.] BSB
1.3.39.
Om Tat Sat
subbu