[Advaita-l] Regarding the verses 'Maayaavadam asat shaastram...'

[V Subrahmanian]

In the set of the Padmapurana alleged verses on Mayavadam asat shaastram,
there is this verse:

कर्मस्वरूपत्याज्यत्वमत्रैव प्रतिपाद्यते॥ ६-२३६-८ ॥

सर्वकर्मपरिभ्रष्टैर्वैधर्मत्वं तदुच्यते।

which means: In this doctrine (Advaita) alone the giving up of the very
nature of karma.  There is a variant reading:

svakarmarUpaM tyAjyatvamatraivapratipaadhyate || Pa Pur 6.236.8 || (The
giving up of one's ordained duties is .....)


That such a charge does not apply to Advaita is clearly established here:

https://groups.google.com/g/bvparishat/c/sDJvRaqyoys/m/wbtzziMBGIAJ


Now additionally, we see the Bhagavatam, in the Uddhava Gita ,has this
instruction by Bhagavan to Uddhava:


श्रीमद्भागवतपुराणम्/स्कन्धः ११/अध्यायः १२
https://sa.wikisource.org/s/iki

तस्मात्त्वमुद्धवोत्सृज्य चोदनां प्रतिचोदनाम्।
प्रवृत्तिं च निवृत्तिं च श्रोतव्यं श्रुतमेव च १४।
मामेकमेव शरणमात्मानं सर्वदेहिनाम्।
याहि सर्वात्मभावेन मया स्या ह्यकुतोभयः १५।

https://vedabase.io/en/library/sb/11/12/14-15/
Therefore, My dear Uddhava, abandon the Vedic mantras as well as the
procedures of supplementary Vedic literatures and their positive and
negative injunctions. Disregard that which has been heard and that which is
to be heard. Simply take shelter of Me alone, for I am the Supreme
Personality of Godhead, situated within the heart of all conditioned souls.
Take shelter of Me wholeheartedly, and by My grace be free from fear in all
circumstances.

So, the Lord himself is asking Uddhava to give up enjoined work.  This is
nothing short of Sarva karma sannyasa.  The purport of the Bh.Gita famous
verse: sarva dharmaan parityajya.. is echoed here. The commentary of
Sridhara Swamin is below:
यस्मादेवंभूतो मद्भजनप्रभावः तस्मात् त्वं चोदनाम् = श्रुतिं, प्रतिचोदनाम् =
स्मृतिं च | यद्वा विधिं च निषेधं च उत्सृज्य मां शरणं याहि | [Since such is
the power of being devoted to Me, Uddhava, give up the veda and smriti. Or,
having  given up the injunctions and prohibitions take total refuge in Me.]

Thus while Veda Vyasa himself has taught the giving up of karma the
Padmapurana allegation on Advaita is quite preposterous.

Om Tat Sat


On Thu, Feb 16, 2023 at 1:06 PM V Subrahmanian <v.subrahmanian at gmail.com>
wrote:

> Pl. read the full post here:
> https://groups.google.com/g/advaitin/c/oksKnLD1Rio
>
> ---------- Forwarded message ---------
> From: V Subrahmanian <v.subrahmanian at gmail.com>
> Date: Thu, Feb 16, 2023 at 1:04 PM
> Subject: Fwd: Regarding the verses 'Maayaavadam asat shaastram...'
> To: Advaitin <advaitin at googlegroups.com>
>
>
> Here is a post that I made in another group, but relevant here in the
> context of the topic // Is the prediction of Shankaracarya in Padma
> Purana authentic? ‘Mayavadam Asat Shastram’ – Jaya Nitai Gauranga//
>
> Please read the complete post along with the links given.  Almost all
> points covered in the Gaudiya's article are covered.
>
> On Mon, Feb 13, 2023 at 8:10 PM Damodara Dasa <damodara.bvks at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>> || Hare Krishna ||
>>
>> You may consider these slokas from Padma Purana, Uttara Khanda.
>> They show a very specific purpose of Lord Shiva and explains or
>> harmonizes opposing stances of vaisnavas and advaitins as well as
>> others; and that too without diminishing but rather glorifying the
>> position of Lord Shiva.
>>
>> ==================================
>>
>> Padma Purana, Uttara, 236 (Lord Shiva Speaks to Mata Paravati)
>> -----------------------------------------
>> māyāvādamasacchāstraṁ pracchannaṁ baddha ucyate
>> mayaiva kathitaṁ devi kalau brāhmaṇarūpiṇā 7
>>
>> apārthaṁ śrutivākyānāṁ darśayanlokagarhitam
>> svakarmmarūpaṁ tyājyatvamatraiva pratipādyate 8
>>
>> sarvakarmmaparibhraṣṭairvaidharmmatvaṁ taducyate
>> pareśajīvapāraikyaṁ mayā tu pratipādyate 9
>>
>> brahmaṇosya svayaṁ rūpaṁ nirguṇaṁ vakṣyate mayā
>> sarvasya jagato ‘pyatra mohanārthaṁ kalau yuge 10
>>
>> vedārthavanmahāśāstraṁ māyayā yadavaidikam
>> mayaiva kalpitaṁ devi jagatāṁ nāśakāraṇāt 11
>> --------------------------------------
>>
>
> Actually the above verses are a denigration of Veda Vyasa himself.
>
> The reason for their not being authentic is explained with reasoning in
> the URL given below:
>
>>
>>
>> दैत्यानां नाशनार्थाय विष्णुना बुद्धरूपिणा।
>>
>> बौद्धशास्त्रमसत्प्रोक्तं नग्ननीलपटादिकम्॥ ६-२३६-६ ॥
>>
>> मायावादमसच्छास्त्रं प्रच्छन्नं बौद्धमुच्यते।
>>
>> मयैव कथितं देवि कलौ ब्राह्मणरूपिणा॥ ६-२३६-७ ॥
>>
>> अपार्थं श्रुतिवाक्यानां दर्शयल्लोँकगर्हितम्।
>>
>> कर्मस्वरूपत्याज्यत्वमत्रैव प्रतिपाद्यते॥ ६-२३६-८ ॥
>>
>> सर्वकर्मपरिभ्रष्टैर्वैधर्मत्वं तदुच्यते।
>>
>
> Regarding the incompatibility of these two lines with not only Advaita as
> taught by Shankaracharya but the Vedanta shastra taught by Veda Vyasa too,
> here is an old post in this forum:
>
> https://groups.google.com/forum/#!msg/bvparishat/sDJvRaqyoys/wbtzziMBGIAJ
>
> The first highlighted line has a slightly different reading as seen in
> many transliterations:
>
> svakarmarUpam tyAjyatvam atraiva.....
>
> In the Bhagavad GItA (admitted by all as a work of Veda Vyasa) we have
> verses like:
>
> na karamaNAmanArambhAt naiShkarmyam purusho'shnute (BG 3.4)
>
> and 'naiShkarmyasiddhim paramAm sannyAsenAdhigacChati (BG.18.49)
>
> And the Vedic utterances like 'na karmaNA na prajayA dhanena, tyAgenaike
> amRtatvamAnashuH''  (kaivalyopanishat and mahAnArAyaNopanishat) ,
> 'nAstyakRtaH kRtena'(munDaka up.)
>
> None can succeed in mapping these two lines with Advaita and Vedanta in
> general.
>
> Read full post here:  https://groups.google.com/g/advaitin/c/oksKnLD1Rio
>
>