[Advaita-l] ***UNCHECKED*** The akhandakara vritti stated by Shankara in the Bh.Gita.Bhashya

[V Subrahmanian]

In the Bhagavad Gita Bhashya 2.21 Shankaracharya gives a clear indication
of what is called akhandakara vritti:


यथा बुद्ध्याद्याहृतस्य शब्दाद्यर्थस्य अविक्रिय एव सन्
बुद्धिवृत्त्यविवेकविज्ञानेन अविद्यया उपलब्धा आत्मा कल्प्यते, एवमेव
आत्मानात्मविवेकज्ञानेन बुद्धिवृत्त्या विद्यया असत्यरूपयैव परमार्थतः
अविक्रिय एव आत्मा विद्वानुच्यते ।

In the first part of the sentence he describes the state of ignorance: the
perceptive knowledge received by/in the mind through the senses is wrongly
attributed to the immutable Atma. Thereby the Atman comes to be known a
knower, pramaatru, which is called in the bhashya: upalabdhaa.

In the second part of the sentence, Shankara states the state of
realisation by the words buddhivritti, vidya, asatyarupa. This means that
this akhandakara vritti is a mental mode, called vidya, knowledge, and it
is asatya rupa in the sense that it is not paramarthika. It does not remain
in the state of moksha, videha mukti. Even during jivanmukti since it
belongs to the mind alone, it is not satya.

This statement of Shankaracharya is akin to the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
4.5.15 mantra statement:


बृहदारण्यकोपनिषद्भाष्यम्चतुर्थोऽध्यायःपञ्चमं ब्राह्मणम्मन्त्र १५

………यत्र हि द्वैतमिव भवति तदितर इतरं पश्यति तदितर इतरं जिघ्रति तदितर इतरं
रसयते तदितर इतरमभिवदति तदितर इतरं शृणोति तदितर इतरं मनुते तदितर इतरं
स्पृशति तदितर इतरं विजानाति यत्र  त्वस्य  सर्वमात्मैवाभूत्तत्केन कं
पश्येत्तत्केन कं जिघ्रेत्तत्केन कं रसयेत्तत्केन कमभिवदेत्तत्केन कं
शृणुयात्तत्केन कं मन्वीत तत्केन कं स्पृशेत्तत्केन कं विजानीयाद्येनेदं सर्वं
विजानाति तं केन विजानीयात्स एष नेति नेत्यात्मागृह्यो न गृह्यतेऽशीर्यो न हि
शीर्यतेऽसङ्गो न हि सज्यतेऽसितो न व्यथते न रिष्यति विज्ञातारमरे केन
विजानीयादित्युक्तानुशासनासि मैत्रेय्येतावदरे खल्वमृतत्वमिति होक्त्वा
याज्ञवल्क्यो विजहार ॥ १५ ॥

The mantra translation:

 "For when there is duality, as it were, then one sees another, one smells
another, one tastes another, one speaks to another, one hears another, one
thinks of another, one touches another, one knows another. (This is the
state of ignorance)


The following characterizes the state of liberation, knowledge:


But when to the knower of Brahman everything has become the Self, then what
should he see and through what, what should he smell and through what,
what should he taste and through what, what should he speak and through
what, what should he hear and through what, what should he think and
through what, what should he touch and through what, what should he know
and through what? Through what should one know That Owing to which all this
is known? "This Self is That which has been described as'Not this,
not this.' It is imperceptible, for It is never perceived; undecaying, for
It never decays; unattached, for It never attaches Itself; unfettered, for
It never feels pain and never suffers injury. Through what, O Maitreyi,
should one know the Knower? "Thus you have the instruction given to you.
This much, indeed, is the means to Immortality." Having said this,
Yajnavalkya renounced home.

Om Tat Sat