[Advaita-l] Is the agrahaNa (jnAna abhAva) in sushupti, a product of mUlAvidyA??

[Bhaskar YR]

praNAms
Hare Krishna

The bhAvarUpa avidyAvAdins say mUlAvidyA is mother of all other three types of avidyA and thus mUlAvidyA is 'different' from these three types of avidyA and jnAna abhAva type of avidya i.e. agrahaNa is also a product of mUlAvidyA.  IOW, the agrahaNa which has been accepted in the state of sushupti is just an effect (kArya) of kAraNAvidyA (mUlAvidyA).  Sri SSS quotes the following bhAshya vAkya from taittireeya Upanishad (2-8) to refute the baseless theory of mulAvidyAvAdins :

sushuptegrahaNamapyavidyAkrutamiti chet??  Na svAbhAvikatvAt, dravyasya hi tattvamavikriyA, parAnapekshatvAt, vikriyA na tattvaM, parApekshatvAt, na hi kArakApekshaM vastunastatvaM, satOvisheshaH kArakApekshaH, visheshashcha vikriyA, jAgratsvapnayOshcha grahaNaM visheshaH, yaddhi nAnyApekshaM svarUpaM, tattasya tattvaM, yadanyApekshaM na tattatvaM anyAbhAve abhAvAt tasmAt svAbhAvikatvAjAgratsvapnavanna sushupte visheshaH.

If it is asked agrahaNa (not knowing / jnAnAbhAva) in sushupti is also a product (effect) of avidyA alone. Is it not??  Here it is to be noted that bhagavatpAda directly answering the question, which mulAvidyAvadins holding as siddhAnta (i.e. agrahaNa is also a product / effect of mUlAvidyA) he clarifies : NOT SO!! For it is but natural (svAbhAvika).  For an entity not undergoing any change or transformation is its svarUpa / svabhAva (very essential nature of that entity/being) for these is no need of another thing for it.  Undergoing changes is not svabhAva for another thing is needed for that purpose.  Whereas for the svabhAva of a vastu no kAraka (agent of action) WHATSOEVER is needed.  He explains like this and concludes : therefore because of the reason that in shushupti the fact of not knowing is svAbhAvika (natural) it is NOT vishesha / product / effect (a special feature) born out of something else (here in this case mulAvidyA).

The same time further emphasized by bhAshyakAra in sUtra bhAshya : when there is no distinctive cognition or qualified knowledge in sushupti there does not exist any other special feature whatsoever (tAvatsushuptaM na kvachitvishishyate).  Because of the reason that therein one has indeed become merged with sadrUpa brahma ( the ultimate / Shuddha Chaitanya/pure existence), it is quite reasonable to say that he does not see anything.

I think with this clear cut definition and clarification by bhAshyakAra about agrahaNa in sushupti,  we can comfortably close the mUlAvidyA case and conclude and refute the baseless assertions like mulAvidyA is the mother of other three types of avidyA and it is like Atman existing in all the three states uninterruptedly etc. etc.   It is simply bAshyabAhira and need to mention shuruti, yukti and anubhava viruddha too.

Hari Hari Hari Bol!!!
bhaskar