[Advaita-l] [advaitin] Real import of creation-sentences

[Sudhanshu Shekhar]

Very nice references Jaishankar ji and Subbu ji. Many thanks.

However, the mechanism as to how exactly advitIyatva of Brahman is
established through srishTi-vAkya -- I did not find in BhAshya.

AchArya does use upakrama-upasamhAra and other supporting logic to conclude
that advitIyatva is the import. The exact mechanism, however, I found to be
very well explained in VedAnta ParibhAshA.

Regards.

On Wed, 14 Aug, 2024, 16:03 V Subrahmanian, <v.subrahmanian at gmail.com>
wrote:

> Sudhanshu ji,  here is another input, directly addressing the question:
>
> Gaudapada Karika:
>
> मृल्लोहविस्फुलिङ्गाद्यैः सृष्टिर्या चोदितान्यथा ।
> उपायः सोऽवताराय नास्ति भेदः कथञ्चन ॥ १५ ॥
>
> Creation, taught with analogies such as iron/gold, clay, spark, etc. is
> only to enable understanding the Advaitic Truth. Thus, creation shrutis no
> way teach bheda/naanaatva, manifoldness.
>
> Bhashya:
> ननु यद्युत्पत्तेः प्रागजं सर्वमेकमेवाद्वितीयम् , तथापि उत्पत्तेरूर्ध्वं
> जातमिदं सर्वं जीवाश्च भिन्ना इति । मैवम् ,
> *अन्यार्थत्वादुत्पत्तिश्रुतीनाम् । *पूर्वमपि परिहृत एवायं दोषः —
> स्वप्नवदात्ममायाविसर्जिताः सङ्घाताः,
> घटाकाशोत्पत्तिभेदादिवज्जीवानामुत्पत्तिभेदादिरिति । इत एव
> उत्पत्तिभेदादिश्रुतिभ्य आकृष्य इह
> पुनरुत्पत्तिश्रुतीनामैदम्पर्यप्रतिपिपादयिषयोपन्यासः
> मृल्लोहविस्फुलिङ्गादिदृष्टान्तोपन्यासैः सृष्टिः या च उदिता प्रकाशिता
> कल्पिता अन्यथान्यथा च, स सर्वः सृष्टिप्रकारो
> जीवपरमात्मैकत्वबुद्ध्यवतारायोपायोऽस्माकम् , यथा प्राणसंवादे
> वागाद्यासुरपाप्मवेधाद्याख्यायिका कल्पिता प्राणवैशिष्ट्यबोधावताराय ;
> तदप्यसिद्धमिति चेत् ; न, शाखाभेदेष्वन्यथान्यथा च प्राणादिसंवादश्रवणात् ।
> यदि हि वादः परमार्थ एवाभूत् , एकरूप एव संवादः सर्वशाखास्वश्रोष्यत,
> विरुद्धानेकप्रकारेण नाश्रोष्यत ; श्रूयते तु ; तस्मान्न तादर्थ्यं
> संवादश्रुतीनाम् । तथोत्पत्तिवाक्यानि प्रत्येतव्यानि ।
> कल्पसर्गभेदात्संवादश्रुतीनामुत्पत्तिश्रुतीनां च प्रतिसर्गमन्यथात्वमिति चेत्
> ; न, निष्प्रयोजनत्वाद्यथोक्तबुद्ध्यवतारप्रयोजनव्यतिरेकेण । न
> ह्यन्यप्रयोजनवत्त्वं संवादोत्पत्तिश्रुतीनां शक्यं कल्पयितुम् ।
> तथात्वप्रत्तिपत्तये ध्यानार्थमिति चेत् ; न, कलहोत्पत्तिप्रलयानां
> प्रतिपत्तेरनिष्टत्वात् । तस्मादुत्पत्त्यादिश्रुतय आत्मैकत्वबुद्ध्यवतारायैव,
> नान्यार्थाः कल्पयितुं युक्ताः । अतो नास्त्युत्पत्त्यादिकृतो भेदः कथञ्चन ॥
>
> warm regards
> subbu
>
>
> On Wed, Aug 14, 2024 at 1:14 PM Sudhanshu Shekhar <
> sudhanshu.iitk at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Hari Om,
>>
>> Upanishads propound Brahman as the cause of world and elaborately
>> describe creation of world from Brahman. They describe the sequence of
>> creation of world from Brahman in TaittirIya 2.1.1.
>>
>> BhAshyakAra would insist that this sequence is inviolable and would hence
>> reconcile the passages of TaittirIya and ChhAndogya. (एवमीक्षित्वा तत् तेजः
>> असृजत तेजः सृष्टवत् । ननु ‘तस्माद्वा एतस्मादात्मन आकाशः सम्भूतः’ (तै. उ. २
>> । १ । १) इति श्रुत्यन्तरे आकाशाद्वायुः ततस्तृतीयं तेजः श्रुतम् , इह कथं
>> प्राथम्येन तस्मादेव तेजः सृज्यते तत एव च आकाशमिति विरुद्धम् ? नैष दोषः,
>> आकाशवायुसर्गानन्तरं तत्सत् तेजोऽसृजतेति कल्पनोपपत्तेः । (Chh. U. 6.2.3))
>>
>> This *prima facie *implies that srishTi-vAkya (creation-sentences) are
>> pramANa. Therefore, Brahman must be *with *world. And hence, the
>> existence of world should not be negated and Brahman should not be advitIya.
>>
>> BhAshyakAra is therefore quick to respond - अथवा अविवक्षितः इह
>> सृष्टिक्रमः ; सत्कार्यमिदं सर्वम् , अतः सदेकमेवाद्वितीयमित्येतद्विवक्षितम्
>> , मृदादिदृष्टान्तात् । That the sequence of creation is not the intention,
>> rather to establish the advitIyatva of Brahman is the import.
>>
>> The same concept is elucidated in VedAnta ParibhAshA.
>>
>> It explains that creation-sentences do not have their import in
>> propounding srishTi. Rather, they propound advitIya Brahamn.
>>
>> Question: How exactly do creation-sentences establish advitIya-Brahman?
>>
>> Answer: When it is said - there is no rUpa in vAyu, it does not *ipso
>> facto* imply that rUpa does not exist elsewhere. Despite the absence of
>> rUpa in vAyu, it may pretty well be present elsewhere, say in fire, water,
>> earth etc.
>>
>> Similarly, when it is said -- नेह नानास्ति किञ्चन -- it negates the
>> existence of world in Brahman. However, *ipso facto*, this sentence does
>> not prohibit the existence of world anywhere else, just as in the example
>> of rUpa-vAyu. And hence advitIyatva of Brahman is not established.
>>
>> However, when creation-sentences are propounded, which establish Brahman
>> as the upAdAna kAraNa, it implies that the effect-world cannot exist
>> anywhere else without its material cause, Brahman. And then, Shruti through
>> नेति नेति, नेह नानास्ति किञ्चन etc speaks of non-existence of world in
>> Brahman also.
>>
>> Thus, what results is the tuchchhatva of world and advitIyatva of Brahman
>> is established faultlessly. Because world cannot exist apart from its
>> material cause, Brahman --- and in the very same Brahman, it is
>> non-existent. Thus, world is utterly non-existent.
>>
>> Thus, creation-sentences have their import in advitIya-Brahman through
>> paramparA.
>>
>> ननु वेदान्तैर्ब्रह्मणि जगत्कारणत्वेन प्रतिपाद्यमाने सति सप्रपञ्चं स्यात्
>> , अन्यथा सृष्टिवाक्यानामप्रामाण्यापत्तिरिति चेत् न । न हि सृष्टिवाक्यानां
>> सृष्टौ तात्पर्यम् । किन्तु अद्वये ब्रह्मण्येव । तत्प्रतिपत्तौ कथं
>> सृष्टेरुपयोगः ? इत्थम् - यदि सृष्टिमनुपन्यस्य प्रपञ्चस्य निषेधो ब्रह्मणि
>> प्रतिपाद्येत, तदा ब्रह्मणि प्रतिषिद्धस्य प्रपञ्चस्य वायौ प्रतिषिद्धस्य
>> रूपस्येव ब्रह्मणोऽन्यत्रावस्थानशङ्कायां न निर्विचिकित्समद्वितीयत्वं
>> प्रतिपादितं स्यात् । ततः सृष्टिवाक्याद्ब्रह्मोपादेयत्वज्ञाने सति, उपादानं
>> विना कार्यस्यान्यत्र सद्भावशङ्कायां निरस्तायां, " नेति नेति"(बृ.उ. २.३.६.)
>> इत्यादिना ब्रह्मण्यपि तस्यासत्त्वोपपादनेन प्रपञ्चस्य तुच्छत्वावगमे,
>> निरस्तनिखिलद्वैतविभ्रममखण्डं सच्चिदानन्दैकरसं ब्रह्म सिद्ध्यतीति परम्परया
>> सृष्टिवाक्यानामपि अद्वितीये ब्रह्मण्येव तात्पर्यम् । [
>>
>> Regards.
>> Sudhanshu Shekhar.
>>
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