[Advaita-l] [advaitin] 'The Jiva is Mithya' - an article in English

[H S Chandramouli]

Namaste Venkat Ji,

The view that ** the pratibimba itself is the bimba - ie they are
absolutely identical** does not affect my understanding in the current
context of how the word **abheda** needs to be understood in the context of
jIva Brahma Aikya vis-à-vis mirror-object reflection illustration. The two
can be identical, but if they are in different locations or loci, then
there is **bheda** between them to that extent. This is stated in so many
words in VivaraNa Prameya Samgraha itself which I had cited earlier and
copied below for immediate reference.

Vivarana Prameya Samgraha  (edition with hindi commentary), page 214
states  //  ….दर्पणेन  चैकमेव मुखबिम्बप्रतिबिम्बरूपेण  विभज्यते …..//,

// …..darpaNena  chaikameva mukhabimbapratibimbarUpeNa  vibhajyate….. //,

Translation VPS (Prof Suryanarayana Shastri) page 129  // ……and by the
mirror the face which is but one is divided into prototype and reflection
….//.

I have not checked in PanchapAdikA or VivaraNa separately. I have assumed
that VPS presents the views of these texts only even if Swami Vidyaranya
were to hold other views by himself.

I am not going into debate over what the word **identical** means in the
context of this illustration. I am limiting myself to what the commentaries
state about **bheda** and **abheda** as between object and image , and how
they might be interpreted.
Regards

On Sat, Nov 23, 2024 at 7:59 AM Venkatraghavan S <agnimile at gmail.com> wrote:

> Namaste Chandramouliji,
>
> Re: "Hence the term **abheda** is intended to mean **indistinguishable**
> rather than **identical** when the loci are the same."
>
> The panchapAdikA (and vivaraNa) hold that the pratibimba itself is the
> bimba - ie they are absolutely identical. The abheda, in my understanding,
> is in the identical sense only.
>
> The error is in the notion that the pratibimba is "*in the mirror"*. So
> the adhyAsa in the case of the pratibimba bhrama is a samsarga adhyAsa, not
> a svarUpa adhyAsa, in their view.
>
> In this sense (because they hold that the pratibimba is the bimba itself)
> they are pratibimba-satyatva-vAdins. The prakriyA is that the chakshu
> indriya rays emerge from the eyes, hit the mirror, are reflected back on to
> the face, and in this sense the eyes "see" the face as a reflection. The
> pratibimba is not an atirikta padArtha (a separate entity) to the bimba
> here. The siddhAnta lesha sangraha portion quoted by one of the posters in
> this thread describes this further.
>
> VidyAraNya svAmi etc hold that the pratibimba is mithyA, ie it is
> different to the bimba - it is in atirikta padArtha that is created at the
> time of its perception.
>
> Kind regards,
> Venkatraghavan
>
> On Sat, 23 Nov 2024, 10:11 H S Chandramouli, <hschandramouli at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>> Namaste.
>>
>> My post was rejected . Hence resending
>>
>> ---------- Forwarded message ---------
>> From: H S Chandramouli <hschandramouli at gmail.com>
>> Date: Sat, Nov 23, 2024 at 7:16 AM
>> Subject: Re: [advaitin] 'The Jiva is Mithya' - an article in English
>> To: <advaitin at googlegroups.com>
>> Cc: A discussion group for Advaita Vedanta <
>> advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org>
>>
>>
>> Namaste.
>>
>> I had mentioned in my earlier post that the term **abheda** concerning
>> Bimba (Object) and Pratibimba (Image) mentioned in the Advaita Siddhi quote
>> is in the context of jIva Brahma Aikya wherein the two are in the same
>> loci. All the subsequent quotes in this regard from other texts like
>> SiddhAnta Bindu etc are also in the same context. None of them is in the
>> context of reflection in a mirror and an object placed in front. On the
>> other hand I had also cited a quote from VivaraNa Prameya Samgraha wherein
>> the **bheda** between the two was specifically stated in respect of this
>> illustration of mirror and an object placed in front. In this illustration
>> the loci of the two are different.
>>
>> The difference between the two illustrations is the
>> spacing/separation/gap  between the object and its image. Where the loci
>> are the same, the spacing is literally nil. It is like a very thin film
>> pasted on a mirror. The film and its image would be practically
>> indistinguishable. While in the other instance the spacing is
>> significant/noticeable. Hence the term **abheda** is intended to mean
>> **indistinguishable** rather than **identical** when the loci are the same.
>> The Object and its Image are literally fused together.
>>
>> That is exactly the position in respect of jIva Brahma Ailya. Brahman
>> being all pervasive, the gap between **It**  and its **Image** (figurative
>> usage) is negligible. They are in the same loci. Hence the two are to be
>> understood as **indistinguishable** and not **identical** in the Advaita
>> Siddhi quote as well as other quotes in the same context wherein the word
>> **abheda** is used.
>>
>> My understanding.
>>
>> Regards
>>
>>
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