[Advaita-l] [advaitin] What is Samadhi?

[Venkatraghavan S]

Namaste Sadaji,

Before I address these questions, I want to clarify in what sense Swami
Vidyaranya uses the terms jIvanmukti and videhamukti.

According to him, videhamukti is not the mukti that takes place at the end
of the jnAni's life - rather it is a mukti that is contemporaneous with the
rise of jnAna.

In the JMV he says:
सेयं विदेहमुक्तिर्ज्ञानोत्पत्तिसमकालीना ज्ञेया,
ब्रह्मण्यविद्यारोपितानामेतेषां बन्धानां विद्यया विनाशे सति
पुनरुत्पत्त्यसंभवादननुभवाच्च। तदेतद्विद्यया समकालीना मुक्तिः भाष्यकारः
समन्वयसूत्रे प्रपंचयामासः (ब्र सू १.१.४), "तदधिगम
उत्तरपूर्वाघयोरश्लेशविनाशौ तद्व्यपदेशात्" (ब्र सू ४.१.१३) ,‌ इत्यत्र च।

This videhamukti must be understood to occur contemporaneous with the rise
of jnAna, because when these bonds, which are sumperimposed on Brahman due
to ignorance, are destroyed by knowledge, their reoccurrence is impossible,
and goes against experience too. It is this liberation contemporaneous with
knowledge, that the bhAShyakAra referred to in the commentary to the
samanvaya sUtra and in the sUtra "When That is known, the prior and future
sins are destroyed and unattached, for that has been declared".

This raises a question - which is raised and answered thus.

ननु वर्तमानदेहपातानन्तरं विदेहमुक्तिः बहवो वर्णयन्ति?
Many hold that videhamukti only happens at the end of the current body of
the jnAni.

नायं दोषः । विवक्षावशेन मतद्वस्याविरोधात् । विदेहमुक्तिरित्यत्रत्यनेन
देहशब्देन कृत्स्नं देहजातं विवक्षित्वा बहुभिर्वर्णितम् । अस्माभिस्तु
भाविदेहमात्रविवक्षयोच्यते, तदनारम्भस्यैव ज्ञानसंपादनात् । अयं तु देहः
पूर्वमेवारब्धः, अतो ज्ञानेनापि नास्यारम्भो वारयितुं शक्यते।
एतद्देहनिवृत्तिरपि न ज्ञानफलम्,‌ अज्ञिनानामप्यारब्धकर्मक्षये तन्निवृत्तेः ।
This is not a problem, because what is meant (by the word deha) is
different in the two systems. In the word videhamukti, the term 'deha'
refers to the entire gamut of bodies - this is the view held by many.
Whereas we hold that it only refers to future bodies, and their
non-occurrence is on account of knowledge. This body, however, has already
had birth, therefore its occurrence cannot be prevented even by knowledge.
Nor is the cessation of this body a result of knowledge, for that occurs
even for the ignorant when their prArabdha ends.

The opponent then asks
तर्हि वर्तमानलिंगदेहनिवृत्तिर्ज्ञानफलमस्तु, ज्ञानमन्तरेण तदनिवृत्तिरिति
चेत् -
न, सत्यपि ज्ञाने जीवन्मुक्तेस्तन्निवृत्त्यभावात् ।
If that is the case, let the cessation of the current subtle body be the
result of knowledge, because without knowledge, the cessation of that is
impossible.

Swami Vidyaranya says - no, because even *when knowledge has arisen, in the
case of the jIvanmukta, the current subtle body does not cease*.

He later refutes the theory of a final dawn of knowledge, the
charamasAkshAtkAra giving rise to videhamukti. He says:
किंच क्षणिकत्वेन कालान्तरे स्वमविद्यमानं ज्ञानं कथं मुक्तिं दद्यात्?
ज्ञानान्तरं चरमसाक्षात्कारलक्षणमुत्पत्सयत इति चेन्न ; साधनाभावात् ।
प्रतिबन्ध प्रारब्धनिवृत्त्यैव सह
गुरुशास्त्रदेहेन्द्रियाद्यशेषजगत्प्रतिभासनिवृत्तेः किं तत्साधनं स्यात्? ...
ततो भवदभिमता वर्तमानदेहराहित्यलक्षणा विदेहमुक्तिः पश्चादस्तु
देहपातानन्तरम्, अस्मदभिमता तु ‌ज्ञानसमकालीनैव ।
Further, how can thought, which lasts for but a moment, and ceases to exist
at a different time, give rise to liberation (videhamukti at the time of
death)? If it is said that there is another thought, the final cognition of
Brahman, that will arise and cause that to happen - no, because no means
for its rise will exist at the time. When the obstacle of prArabdha has
ceased to be, along with the appearance of the universe consisting of the
guru, scripture, body and the senses, by what means will that (knowledge)
arise?...Therefore, your idea of  videhamukti, ie being the absence of the
current body, may perhaps occur after the fall of this body, but the
videhamukti that we speak of, is coterminous with knowledge.

Thus, according to JMV
1) videhamukti means the cessation of future bodies.
2) videhamukti is coterminous with brahmajnAna .
2) manonAsha does not mean the literal destruction of the mind, for
jIvanmukti occurs upon manonAsha, but the mind continues to exist for a
jIvanmukta.

So what is this manonAsha that the scriptures speak of, where the mind
continues to exist? Swami Vidyaranya quotes from the laghuyogavAshiShTha to
explain:

न च मनोनाशेन विदेहमुक्तिरेव न तु जीवन्मुक्तिरिति शंकनीयम्
प्रश्नोत्तराभ्याम् तन्निर्णयात् -
One cannot allege that the destruction of the mind must lead to videhamukti
alone, and not jIvanmukti, for the following questions and answers explain
what is meant. (This was your actual question, Sadaji).

श्रीरामः -
विवेकाभ्युदयाच्चित्तस्वरूपेऽन्तर्हिते मुने।
मैत्र्यादयो गुणाः कुत्र जायन्ते योगिनां वद॥
Lord Rama - oh sage, please tell me where do good qualities such as
friendliness etc arise in, when the minds of yogis disappear with the rise
of discrimination?

वसिष्ठः -
द्विविधाः चित्तनाशोऽस्ति सरूपोऽरूप एव च।
जीवन्मुक्तौ सरूपः स्यादरूपोऽदेहमुक्तिगः॥

VasiShTha - There are two types of destruction of mind, the destruction
with form remaining and formless destruction. In jIvanmukti, the
destruction is with form, whereas it is without form in the bodiless mukti.

प्राकृतं गुणसंभारं ममेति बहुमन्यते।
सुखदुःखाद्यवष्टभ्य विद्यमानं मनो विदुः॥

The mind thinks of the qualities of the nature as 'mine' - hence, the wise
ones consider being possessed of pleasure and pain to be the existence of
the mind.

चेतसः कथिता सत्ता‌ मया रघुकुलोद्वह।
अस्य नाशमिदानीं त्वं श्रुणु प्रश्नविदां वर॥
The existence of the mind has been explained by me, o scion of Raghu clan!
Now, listen to what its destruction means, o best amongst the enquirers.

सुखदुःखदशा धीरं साम्यान्न प्रोद्धरन्ति यम्।
निःश्वासा इव शैलेन्द्रं तस्य चित्तं मृतं विदुः॥
The wise call the mind of the intelligent one - which is unmoved in
pleasure or pain from its state of equanimity like the Himalayas, which is
unmoved by the flow of breath - as dead.

आपत्कार्पण्यमुत्साहो मदो मान्द्यं महोत्सवः।
यं नयन्ति न वैरूप्यं तस्य नष्टं मनो विदुः॥
The wise know that the one whose mind stays unchanged when faced with
adversity, pitiful circumstances, zeal, pride, dullness or a great
festival, his mind is considered destroyed.

चित्तमाशानिधानं हि यदा नश्यति राघव।
मैत्र्यादिभिर्गुणैर्युक्तं तदा सत्त्वमुदेत्यलम्॥
When the mind which is the house of desires is destroyed, Oh Raghava, the
sattva endowed with good qualities such as friendliness etc., arises.

भूयोजन्मविनिर्मुक्तं जीवन्मुक्तस्य तन्मनः।
सरूपोऽसौ मनोनाशो जीवन्मुक्तस्य विद्यते ॥
The jIvanmukta's mind which is free from birth, the mind that undergoes
death with form, is the jIvanmukta's.

अरूपस्तु मनोनाशो यो मयोक्तो रघूद्वह।
विदेहमुक्तावेवासौ विद्यते निष्कलात्मकः॥
The formless death of the mind which was spoken of by me oh Raghava, is for
the videhamukta only, where no part of the mind remains.

समग्राग्र्यगुणाधारमपि सत्त्वं प्रलीयते ।
विदेहमुक्तावमले पदे पावने ॥
The mind as the sattva, the locus of all auspicious qualities, completely
dissolves in the holy state of videhamukti.

Thus the manonAsha which is the means to jIvanmukti, is not the literal
death of the mind, rather it is the immovability of the mind in the face of
pleasure and pain.

Kind regards,
Venkatraghavan



On Fri, 2 Feb 2024, 22:42 Kuntimaddi Sadananda, <kuntimaddisada at yahoo.com>
wrote:

> Venkatraghavanji - praNAms
>
>
> Thanks for posting your analysis of Jeevanmukta viveka of Swami
> Vidyaaranya.
>
>
> I have a simple question related to manonasha that you mentioned.
>
>
> I thought that happens only when the jeevan mukta leaves the body with the
> gross body merging with Virat, the mind merging with Hiranyagarbha, and
> intellect merging with Iswara.
>
>
> Mind and the associated chidaabhaasa are required as long as life is
> pulsating in the jeevanmutka.
>
>
> If manonaasha involves cessation of the notion that I am the mind, it can
> be achieved shravana, and manana, and nidhidhyaasnaa if required.
>
>
> The word 'manonaasha' is somewhat confusing to me. I understand that
> Samadhi is not necessary for abiding in the knowledge and what is required
> is vaasanaakshaya as Goudapaada also discusses as obstacles for
> self-realization.
>
>
> Will be happy if you can clarify.
>
>
> Hari Om!
>
> Sadananda
>
>
>
>
> On Friday, February 2, 2024 at 07:25:52 PM GMT+5:30, Venkatraghavan S via
> Advaita-l <advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:
>
>
> Dear Sadaji,
>
> About a year and a half ago (Sep 2022), I had written an email with some
> quotations based on a reading of the Jivan Mukti Viveka, which may be of
> interest.
>
> Pasting it here after fixing some minor typos. I think it addresses some of
> the questions you have raised.
>
>
>