[Advaita-l] Fwd: Question on shloka 5.20 of Shankara-bhashya on Gita.

[V Subrahmanian]

On Fri, Aug 18, 2023 at 7:28 PM Krishna Kashyap via Advaita-l <
advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:

> Namaste everyone,
>
> A specific statement here in Shankara Bhashya has some severe implications.
>
> see the whole shloka bhashya given at the end of this email: However,
> please focus on this sentence:
>
> देहमात्रात्मदर्शिनां हि प्रियाप्रियप्राप्ती हर्षविषादौ कुर्वाते, न केवला
> त्मदर्शिनः, तस्य प्रियाप्रियप्राप्त्यसम्भवात्
>
> Does this really mean one who does not have the dehatma-bhrama, will not
> experience any pain at all? Suppose he falls down while walking somewhere,
> does it not hurt him at all?  see the stern statement priya-Apriya prapti
> asambhavAt!.
>

Namaste

The basis for Shankaracharya's above statement can be traced to at least
the following two scriptural statements:

1. Bhagavadgita:  14.24

समदुःखसुखः स्वस्थः समलोष्टाश्मकाञ्चनः ।
तुल्यप्रियाप्रियो धीरस्तुल्यनिन्दात्मसंस्तुतिः ॥ २४ ॥

Here the Lord says, about the GuNAteeta, that is, the one who has
transcended the three guNa-s by securing Aparoksha Atma Jnana:  He is
same-sighted with regard to joy and misery, with regard to a lump of clay,
stone and gold and that which is pleasurable and the opposite of it and
same with respect of censure of praise.

So here the Jnani is stated by Bhagavan himself as one who does not see
priya and apriya as what they appear to be but Tulya, Same, samam =
Brahman. nirdoSham hi samam Brahma has been stated in the 5th chapter.

2.

The Chandogya Upanishad says: 8.12.1

तदस्यामृतस्याशरीरस्यात्मनोऽधिष्ठानमात्तो वै सशरीरः प्रियाप्रियाभ्यां न वै
सशरीरस्य सतः प्रियाप्रिययोरपहतिरस्त्यशरीरं वाव सन्तं न प्रियाप्रिये स्पृशतः
॥ १ ॥

The gist of the mantra is: He who is endowed with the idea 'I am the body'
(sa-shareera) can't be free from priya and apriya.  This is because these
two happen because of the body's contact with outside factors and he thinks
'I am affected by them'.  On the other hand, he who has become enlightened,
the 'I am the body' idea has ceased and the priya and apriya are realized
to be not for the Atman.  So these two do not 'touch' him, the one who has
the 'I am Brahaman' realization.

So, the teaching of the BG 5.20 is about the Atma Jnani and therefore for
him there is no way the priya-apriya accrue.  The basis for this is the
teaching of the Chandogya and the Gita itself as shown above.

Also in the Taittiriya Upanishad we have this statement:

  एतं ह वाव न तपति । किमहं साधु नाकरवम् । किमहं पापमकरवमिति । स य एवं
विद्वानेते आत्मानं स्पृणुते । उभे ह्येवैष एते आत्मानं स्पृणुते ।  9.1:  For
the Jnani, the regret/tormenting in the form of 'Why did I not perform
meritorious acts? Why did I engage in sinful acts?' will not be. The reason
is: He sees, comprehends, both these meritorious and sinful acts of the
past as non-diff from the Atman. He, by the power of Atma jnana, sees punya
and paapa as not-punya, not-paapa (but Atman alone).

Shankara says in the Bhashya:

कः ? य एवं वेद यथोक्तमद्वैतमानन्दं ब्रह्म वेद, तस्य आत्मभावेन दृष्टे
पुण्यपापे निर्वीर्ये अतापके जन्मान्तरारम्भके न भवतः ।

Having seen them as Atman alone (recall Chandogya, Gita 14.24) they (the
two - punya and paapa) lose their power to give another birth to the Jnani.

Thus, the answer to the question raised is: At the ontological level the
priya and apriya are none other than Atman and hence the statement: they
are asambhava to the Jnani who does not have the dehAtmabhAva.

regards
subbu

>
> I heard that Ramana Maharshi expressed his experience regarding the
> operation done on him, that he was just a witness and BMI complex was just
> an object. Hence the mind may have experienced pain, but he was just a
> witness.
>
> I did not get to meet such great people like Ramana Maharshi. Has anyone
> met such people now? If anyone here already is in this state, how easily is
> this state achievable? the simpler and easier method is: "find out who you
> are by vichara or analysis", suggested by Ramana Maharshi or Nisarga datta
> Maharaj.
>
> How many people have achieved this state already? I like to achieve this
> state since my arthritis pain is unbearable some days.
> Or,
> am I misunderstanding this shloka bhashya completely? Someone asked this
> question in my class and I have to answer this in 3 days. Any help is
> deeply appreciated. Thanks.
>  देहमात्रात्मदर्शिनां हि प्रियाप्रियप्राप्ती हर्षविषादौ कुर्वाते, न केवला
> त्मदर्शिनः, तस्य प्रियाप्रियप्राप्त्यसम्भवात्
>
> यस्मात् निर्दोषं समं ब्रह्म आत्मा, तस्मात् —
>
> न प्रहृष्येत्प्रियं प्राप्य नोद्विजेत्प्राप्य चाप्रियम् ।
> स्थिरबुद्धिरसंमूढो ब्रह्मविद्ब्रह्मणि स्थितः ॥ २० ॥
> न प्रहृष्येत् प्रहर्षं न कुर्यात् प्रियम् इष्टं प्राप्य लब्ध्वा । न
> उद्विजेत् प्राप्य च अप्रियम् अनिष्टं लब्ध्वा । देहमात्रात्मदर्शिनां हि
> प्रियाप्रियप्राप्ती हर्षविषादौ कुर्वाते, न केवलात्मदर्शिनः, तस्य
> प्रियाप्रियप्राप्त्यसम्भवात् । किञ्च — ‘सर्वभूतेषु एकः समः निर्दोषः आत्मा’
> इति स्थिरा निर्विचिकित्सा बुद्धिः यस्य सः स्थिरबुद्धिः असंमूढः
> संमोहवर्जितश्च स्यात् यथोक्तब्रह्मवित् ब्रह्मणि स्थितः, अकर्मकृत्
> सर्वकर्मसंन्यासी इत्यर्थः ॥ २० ॥
> *Best Regards,*
>
> *Krishna Kashyap*
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