[Advaita-l] Fwd: Hiranyagarbha/Brahmaa - in VP and Anandagiri and Mundakopanishad opening mantra

[Raghav Kumar Dwivedula]

>
> The second para should read -
>
> That idea of placing trimurtis on par is more plausible than rather
> awkwardly and asymmetrically saying that sRShTi alone is by a jeeva but
> sthithi and laya kArakas involve specific forms of Ishvara. The asymmetry
> between the three processes feels contrived and therefore paribhAShA and
> other tIkas avoid this and place brahmA, viShNu, maheshvara on par.
>
> This scheme of tanmAtra sRShTi etc., by TrimUrtika Ishvara preceding the
> creation of the first jeeva and the rest of the process by hiraNyagarbha
> should address all ideas of wrongly conflating the first cause/primary
> sRShTi-kartA (the kAraNa brahman) with the kArya Brahman aka hiraNyagarbha
> purusha who is an exalted jeeva.
>
> Om
> Raghav
>
>
>
>
> On Sat, 18 Mar, 2023, 4:28 pm V Subrahmanian via Advaita-l, <
> advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:
>
>> Vedanta Paribhasha says Hiranyagarbha is different from the Trimurtis. He
>> is the first-born. Brahman (Parameshwara) is directly the creator of the
>> Pancha tanmatras, etc. 17 part-sukshma sharira and Hiranyagarbha. For the
>> creation of the world beyond Hiranyagarbha, Ishwara's role is only
>> passive,
>> through Hiranyagarbha.
>> तत्र परमेश्वरस्य पञ्चतन्मात्राद्युत्पत्तौ सप्तदशावयवोपेतलिङ्गशरीरोत्पत्तौ
>> हिरण्यगर्भस्थूलशरीरोत्पत्तौ च साक्षात् कर्तृत्वम् इतरनिखिलप्रपञ्चोत्पत्तौ
>> च
>> हिरण्यगर्भादिद्वारा, " हन्ताहमिमास्तिस्रो देवता अनेन जीवेनात्मनानुप्रविश्य
>> नामरूपे व्याकरवाणि"(छा.उ. ६.३.२.)
>> <
>> https://advaitasharada.sringeri.net/display/bhashya/Chandogya?page=6&id=Ch_C06_S03_V02&hl=%22%20%E0%A4%B9%E0%A4%A8%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B9%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%8B%20%E0%A4%A6%E0%A5%87%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%BE%20%E0%A4%85%E0%A4%A8%E0%A5%87%E0%A4%A8%20%E0%A4%9C%E0%A5%80%E0%A4%B5%E0%A5%87%E0%A4%A8%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%A8%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A8%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%AA%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%B6%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AF%20%E0%A4%A8%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%82%E0%A4%AA%E0%A5%87%20%E0%A4%B5%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%95%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A3%E0%A4%BF%22(%E0%A4%9B%E0%A4%BE.%E0%A4%89.%20%E0%A5%AC.%E0%A5%A9.%E0%A5%A8.)
>> >
>> इति
>> श्रुतेः ।
>>
>> हिरण्यगर्भो नाम *मूर्तित्रयादन्यः प्रथमो जीवः* । " स वै शरीरी प्रथमः स वै
>> पुरुष उच्यते । आदिकर्ता स भूतानां ब्रह्माग्रे समवर्तत ॥", " हिरण्यगर्भः
>> समवर्तताग्रे"(ऋ.सं. १०.१२१.१.) इत्यादिश्रुतेः । एवं
>> भूतभौतिकसृष्टिर्निरूपिता ।
>> Anandagiri on Sutra bhasya and Gitabhashya:
>> Shankara has cited the Shvetashwataropanishad 'एको देवः सर्वभूतेषु
>> गूढः सर्वव्यापी
>> सर्वभूतान्तरात्मा। ...' in both the Sutra bhashya and the Gita bhashya.
>> न्यायनिर्णयव्याख्या
>>
>> ……… मूर्तित्रयात्मना भेदं प्रत्याह — एक इति । यथाहुः - ‘हरिर्ब्रह्मा
>> पिनाकीति बहुधैकोऽपि गीयते ‘ इति  ………The word 'EkaH' in the mantra is a
>> refutation of the idea of the division/difference among Trimurtis. And
>> quotes: As stated (by Sureshwaracharya in Brihadaranyaka Bhashya vartika)
>> 'He is called variously as Hari, Brahma, Pinaki, though One only.)
>>
>> In the Gita bhashya too Shankara cites this mantra and Anandagiri says the
>> same there too, without citing Sureshwaracharya:
>>
>> आनन्दगिरिटीका (गीताभाष्य) -  मूर्तित्रयात्मना भेदं वारयति- एक इति । ………
>>
>>
>> In this opening mantra of the Mundakopanishad, where Brahma is the
>> First-born, the creator and protector, who imparts Brahmavidya to Atharva,
>> the first son, Shankara comments that he is excels everyone in Jnana,
>> Dharma, Vairagya, Aishwarya. He manifested 'independently', not the way
>> bound jivas take birth conditioned by dharma-adharma. He cites a Manu
>> smriti verse.
>>
>>
>> ब्रह्मा देवानां प्रथमः सम्बभूव विश्वस्य कर्ता भुवनस्य गोप्ता ।
>>
>> स ब्रह्मविद्यां सर्वविद्याप्रतिष्ठामथर्वाय ज्येष्ठपुत्राय प्राह ॥ १ ॥
>> ब्रह्म परिबृढो महान् धर्मज्ञानवैराग्यैश्वर्यैः सर्वानन्यानतिशेत इति ;
>> देवानां द्योतनवतामिन्द्रादीनां प्रथमः गुणैः प्रधानः सन् , प्रथमः अग्रे वा
>> सम्बभूव अभिव्यक्तः सम्यक् स्वातन्त्र्येणेत्यभिप्रायः । न तथा यथा
>> धर्माधर्मवशात्संसारिणोऽन्ये जायन्ते, ‘योऽसावतीन्द्रियोऽग्राह्यः’ (मनु. १ ।
>> ७) इत्यादिस्मृतेः । विश्वस्य सर्वस्य जगतः कर्ता उत्पादयिता, भुवनस्य
>> उत्पन्नस्य गोप्ता पालयितेति विशेषणं ब्रह्मणो विद्यास्तुतये । सः एवं
>> प्रख्यातमह.
>> See English translation image here:
>> https://groups.google.com/g/advaitin/c/rjuvP1MDPlg
>> Anandagiri comments for the above:
>>
>> “ज्ञानमप्रतिमं यस्य वैराग्यं च जगत्पतेः ।
>> ऐश्वर्यं चैव धर्मश्च सह सिद्धं चतुष्टयम् ॥”वायुपुराणम्(वायुपुराणम् १।१।३)
>>
>> Unmatched knowledge, dispassion, splendor, dharma - all these are
>> naturally
>> there in Jagatpati (Brahma mentioned in the first mantra) (Vayupuranam
>> 1.1.3)
>>
>> इति स्मरणाद्धर्मज्ञानवैराग्यैश्वर्यैः सर्वानन्यानतिक्रम्य वर्तत इति
>> परिवृढत्वं सिद्धमित्यर्थः। Based on this smriti, Brahma surpasses everyone
>> else in the above four.
>> “योऽसावतीन्द्रियोऽग्राह्यः सूक्ष्मोऽव्यक्तः सनातनः ।
>> सर्वभूतमयोऽचिन्त्यः स एष स्वयमुद्बभौ ॥”(मनु. १-७)
>>
>> He, who is beyond the senses, beyond grasp, who is subtle, unmanifest and
>> eternal, absorbed in all created things and inconceivable — Appeared by
>> Himself. (The epithet 'achintya' is popularly found in the Mandukya
>> Upanishad 7th mantra on Turiya.)
>>
>> “स्वयमुद्भूतः शुक्रशोणितसंयोगमन्तरेणाऽऽदिर्भूतः” इति स्मृतेः |
>> स्वातन्त्र्यं गम्यते इत्यर्थः।
>>
>> 'He has manifested by himself without the intervention of father-mother,
>> the first one.' Accordingly he is independent of anything.
>>
>> Swami Vidyaranya in the Mundskopanishat section in Anubhuti prakasha says
>> this Brahma is Chaturmukha.
>>
>> From Shankara's Mundaka bhashya/Anandagiri, Brahma is not born of any
>> agent
>> but manifests by himself. According to the Vedanta Paribhasha
>> Hiranyagarbha
>> who is not part of the Trimurtis is the first-born, created directly by
>> Ishwara.
>>
>> Om tat sat
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