[Advaita-l] RE: e-vEdAnta course

ravi chandrasekhara vadhula at yahoo.com
Thu Nov 13 19:15:30 CST 2003


Dear Members,

I am confused about the e-vedanta course.  Based the
commentary by Shri Chandrasekhara Bharati; this would
be limited to male dvijas after upanayana and they
must perform sandhyavandana.  And it apears, some
would be limited to braahmanas.  Listening to
discourses or reading translations would be open to
all.  Formal study of upanishads would be limited to
sanyasis.

Ravi Chandrasekhara
--- Anand Hudli <anandhudli at hotmail.com> wrote:
> Regardless of whether one intends to take an online
> course in Vedanta or one 
> approaches a Guru in a traditional sense, we should
> not forget the fact that 
> there are certain pre-requisites for the study of
> Vedanta, namely the 
> sAdhana-chatuShTaya of viveka, vairAgya,
> shamAdi-ShaTka, and mumukShutva.
> 
> Actually, Shri Chandrashekhara Bharati says (in his
> commentary on the 
> VivekachUDAmaNi - verse 16) that there are further
> pre-requisites for one to 
> be eligible for Atma-vidyA -
> medhAvI - one who is able to grasp the topic that is
> heard 
> (shrutArthadhAraNa-xama-buddhimAn.h)
> medhA asya astIti vyutpatyA medhAvI
> 
> vidvAn.h - one who has studied kAvya, kosha, and
> vyAkaraNa, ie. poetry, 
> lexicon, and grammar,  adhIta-kAvya-kosha-vyAkaraNaH
> 
> UhApohavichaxaNaH - one who has undergone training
> in tarka (logic, 
> reasoning) and mImAMsA ,
> tarka-mImAMsA-saMskR^ita-buddhitvam.h
> 
> The term pada-vAkya-pramANaGYa is used to indicate
> that the aspirant should 
> have proficiency in three fields - 1) padashAstra or
> vyAkaraNa, grammar, 2) 
> vAkya-shAstra or mImAMsA , and 3) prAmANa-shAstra or
> nyAya (logic).
> 
> The 18th verse of the vivekachUDAmaNI makes it clear
> that only the aspirant 
> who has the four-fold qualifications can succeed in
> vedAnta study, not one 
> who does not have them.
> 
> There are two separate issues here. One is the issue
> of running an 
> organization which is possible, unfortunately, only
> if funding is available. 
> In the good old days, kings and other wealthy
> individuals used to support 
> study of the Vedas and other shAstras. In a
> democratic society,  funding 
> channels would also be different and there is
> nothing wrong with it.
> 
> The other issue is the utility of the course itself.
> The VivekachUDAmaNi 
> proclaims very clearly "adhikAriNamAshAste
> phalasiddhirvisheShataH| upAyA 
> deshakAlAdyAH santyasmin.h sahakAriNaH||"
> Success depends primarily on the qualifications of
> the aspirant. Other 
> factors such as place and time are just supporting
> or secondary factors. 
> Here the term AdayaH  can, in the modern context,
> include technology. 
> Technology - whether the course is online or is
> offered in multimedia using 
> broadband technology, etc.- can only be an aid. It
> can never bring 
> Atma-vidyA on a platter to you.
> 
> There is nothing wrong in offering the course
> online. Nor is there anything 
> wrong in charging for it. However, success in the
> course depends on how 
> eligible the person who takes the course is.
> 
> Anand
> 
>
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