[Advaita-l] What is Krishna's 'tattva'?

Kalyan kalyan_kg at yahoo.com
Tue Nov 21 07:08:11 EST 2017


Dear Sri Subbu
The antaryAmi has to be either sopAdhika brahman or nirupAdhika brahman. Your mail gives me the impression that you treat it as both. Am I correct in my assessment?
Having said that, I will use your quotations to show that the antaryAmi is the sopAdhika brahman.
तत्र यं पृथिवी न वेद यं सर्वाणि भूतानि न विदुरिति च अन्ये नियन्तव्या विज्ञातारः अन्यो नियन्ता अन्तर्यामीति प्राप्तम् ; तदन्यत्वाशङ्कानिवृत्त्यर्थमुच् यते — नान्योऽतः — नान्यः — अतः अस्मात् अन्तर्यामिणः नान्योऽस्ति द्रष्टा ; तथा नान्योऽतोऽस्ति श्रोता ; नान्योऽतोऽस्ति मन्ता ; नान्योऽतोऽस्ति विज्ञाता । यस्मात्परो नास्ति द्रष्टा श्रोता मन्ता विज्ञाता, यः अदृष्टो द्रष्टा, अश्रुतः श्रोता, अमतो मन्ता, अविज्ञातो विज्ञाता, अमृतः सर्वसंसारधर्मवर्जितः सर्वसंसारिणां कर्मफलविभागकर्ता — एष ते आत्मा अन्तर्याम्यमृतः ; अस्मादीश्वरादात्मनोऽन्यत् आर्तम् 

Here, the meaning to be taken is that the antaryAmi devoid of upAdhis is the same as the Atman. We have the mANDUkya upanishad which does not call antaryAmi as Atman/turIya. The antaryAmi is the third quarter Ishwara, so one needs to do a proper samanvaya of the two statements from the two upanishads.

अविद्याकामकर्मविशिष्टकार्यकरणो पाधिरात्मा संसारी जीव उच्यते ; नित्यनिरतिशयज्ञानशक्त्युपाधिरा त्मा अन्तर्यामी ईश्वर उच्यते ; स एव निरुपाधिः केवलः शुद्धः स्वेन स्वभावेन अक्षरं पर उच्यते ।

Here, this one is pretty straightforward. It equates antaryAmi with sopAdhika brahman.

तस्य च परोपाधिनिमित्तः संसारः — यथा रज्जूषरशुक्तिकागगनादिषु सर्पोदकरजतमलिनत्वादि परोपाध्यारोपणनिमित्तमेव, न स्वतः, तथा ; निरुपाधिको निरुपाख्यः नेति नेतीति व्यपदेश्यः साक्षादपरोक्षात्सर्वान्तरः आत्मा ब्रह्म अक्षरम् अन्तर्यामी प्रशास्ता औपनिषदः पुरुषः विज्ञानमानन्दं ब्रह्मेत्यधिगतम् । 

Here, by the term nirupAdhika, all limiting adjuncts are not denied. Only those that lead to samsAra are denied. Because, immediately preceding this, the transmigration of the self is described by Shankara as due to limiting adjuncts. So only those limiting adjuncts that lead to samsAra are subsequently denied. So the word "nirupAdhika" takes on a new meaning here. The antaryAmi meanwhile remains as the sopAdhika brahman but its upAdhis do not lead to samsAra. 


RegardsKalyan 

    On Tuesday, November 21, 2017 1:08 AM, V Subrahmanian <v.subrahmanian at gmail.com> wrote:
 

 

On Mon, Nov 20, 2017 at 8:34 PM, Kalyan <kalyan_kg at yahoo.com> wrote:

//From these words of Shankara it is clear that the Antaryāmin of Vedānta is
nirguṇa Brahman.//

Dear Sri Subbu

The antaryAmi is not nirguNa brahman.

The below post by Sri Vidyasankar clarifies this -

http://lists.advaita-vedanta.o rg/archives/advaita-l/2012-Apr il/031467.html


Dear Sri Kalyan,
I remember to have discussed this before, in this or the Science Religion...forum. I shall reproduce three passages from the Bhāṣya:  
Br.Up. mantra: 3.7.23
ऽदृष्टो द्रष्टाश्रुतः श्रोतामतो मन्ताविज्ञातो विज्ञाता नान्योऽतोऽस्ति द्रष्टा नान्योऽतोऽस्ति श्रोता नान्योऽतोऽस्ति मन्ता नान्योऽतोऽस्ति विज्ञातैष त आत्मान्तर्याम्यमृतोऽतोऽन्यदार् तं ततो होद्दालक आरुणिरुपरराम ॥ २३ ॥ 
Bhashya:
तत्र यं पृथिवी न वेद यं सर्वाणि भूतानि न विदुरिति च अन्ये नियन्तव्या विज्ञातारः अन्यो नियन्ता अन्तर्यामीति प्राप्तम् ; तदन्यत्वाशङ्कानिवृत्त्यर्थमुच् यते — नान्योऽतः — नान्यः — अतः अस्मात् अन्तर्यामिणः नान्योऽस्ति द्रष्टा ; तथा नान्योऽतोऽस्ति श्रोता ; नान्योऽतोऽस्ति मन्ता ; नान्योऽतोऽस्ति विज्ञाता । यस्मात्परो नास्ति द्रष्टा श्रोता मन्ता विज्ञाता, यः अदृष्टो द्रष्टा, अश्रुतः श्रोता, अमतो मन्ता, अविज्ञातो विज्ञाता, अमृतः सर्वसंसारधर्मवर्जितः सर्वसंसारिणां कर्मफलविभागकर्ता — एष ते आत्मा अन्तर्याम्यमृतः ; अस्मादीश्वरादात्मनोऽन्यत् आर्तम् । 

In the above, Shankara is giving the aparokṣa jnāna method. Here antaryāmin is shown as the innermost self of the jiva, the realization of which results in liberation. This is essentially the nirupādhika svarupam. 

Br.Up.bhashya: 3.8 (introduction to 3.9): 
अविद्याकामकर्मविशिष्टकार्यकरणो पाधिरात्मा संसारी जीव उच्यते ; नित्यनिरतिशयज्ञानशक्त्युपाधिरा त्मा अन्तर्यामी ईश्वर उच्यते ; स एव निरुपाधिः केवलः शुद्धः स्वेन स्वभावेन अक्षरं पर उच्यते ।

Here antaryāmin is stated as the consciousness with omniscience, etc. upādhi. [One can notice that the words 'Iśvara' and 'antaryāmin' are used by Shankara in the first passage in sāmānadhikaraṇyam with 'ātman'. In the second passage above, the two words are used in sāmānadhikaraṇyam with sopādhika brahman, what is popular as Ishvara. So, Shankara's words acquire different meanings in different contexts. 

Brihadaranyaka bhashya  4.3. introduction: तस्य च परोपाधिनिमित्तः संसारः — यथा रज्जूषरशुक्तिकागगनादिषु सर्पोदकरजतमलिनत्वादि परोपाध्यारोपणनिमित्तमेव, न स्वतः, तथा ; निरुपाधिको निरुपाख्यः नेति नेतीति व्यपदेश्यः साक्षादपरोक्षात्सर्वान्तरः आत्मा ब्रह्म अक्षरम् अन्तर्यामी प्रशास्ता औपनिषदः पुरुषः विज्ञानमानन्दं ब्रह्मेत्यधिगतम् । 
Here the nirupādhika is stated to be antaryāmin,.... pure consciousness, bliss, Brahman. 
From the above we understand: when the 'act' of impelling is emphasized, it is sopādhika chaitanyam. When the direct realization is taught, it is nirupādhika chaitanyam. That is what is done in the mahāvākya: This Atmā of yours is the antaryāmi, eternal in the 3.7.23 cited above. The word 'adhigatam' in the last cited passage clarifies this. Swami Madhavananda's translation: p.415:
//But devoid of limiting adjuncts, it is known as indefinable, to be described only 'not this, not this,', the Brahman that is immediate and direct, the self that is within all, the Immutable, the Internal Ruler (antaryāmin), the mighty Ruler, the Being who is to be known only through the Upanishads, Knowledge, Bliss and Brahman.//
 [this last three epithets constitute the svarupa lakshanam.]  
regardssubbu




Regards
Kalyan




   


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