[Advaita-l] [advaitin] Illusoriness of causation (cause-effect-relationship)

[Sudhanshu Shekhar]

Namaste,

>  Now I realized why some dualists would call us (advaitins) as pracchanna
> bauddha-s (buddhists in disguise)😊
>
There are similarities between VijnAnavAda Buddhism and Advaita. AchArya
says clearly in MANDUkya - विज्ञानवादिनो बौद्धस्य वचनं
बाह्यार्थवादिपक्षप्रतिषेधपरम् आचार्येणानुमोदितम् ।

There is coherence between Advaita and Buddhism in so far rejection of
external objects is concerned. BAhya-artha-pratishedha.

> OTOH, if we see what bhAshyakAra would offer with regard to nAma rUpa and
> his clarification to the doubts like :  are these names and forms perceived
> in the world illusionary or not? Etc.  is, even the nAma – rUpa (kArya) are
> indeed of the nature of the kAraNaM, why, because there cannot be a kArya
> coming into existence, if it all it is not of the nature of the kAraNam.
>
Sir, kArya-kAraNa-bhAva i.e. causality is itself illusory. Please refer to
MANDUkya - यावद्धेतुफलावेशः संसारस्तावदायतः ।
क्षीणे हेतुफलावेशे संसारं न प्रपद्यते ॥

Please note that it is not pAramArthika drishTi. The statement is made in
vyAvahArika/prAtibhAsika framework only.

> And for those who think that world would disappear in thin air after
> realizing that they are brahman, like snake disappears after realizing rope!Or
> atleast at the time of mahApraLaya this world would vanish etc.to
> maintain the nirvisheshatva of brahman,  bhAshyakAra again clarifies that
> even brahman as cause does exist in the past, present, and future, even the
> world of effects does exist in the past, present and future and there is no
> existence that can be called as anAtma since there exists nothing apart
> from brahman.
>

So, Brahman as cause exists in three periods of time and world as kArya
exists in three periods of time.

So, kArya-kAraNa-bhAva is as real as Brahman. Nice!!

Sir, kArya-kAraNa-bhAva of Brahman-world is stated not to attribute reality
to world or to kArya-kAraNa-bhAva. It is for explaining the advitIyatva of
Brahman.

How?

World is stated to be born from B. And world is stated to be absent in B.
This implies mithyAtva of world and hence its non-existence. Thus,
advitIyatva of B is established.

See what Acharya says - नन्वजातिवादिनः सृष्टिप्रतिपादिका श्रुतिर्न
सङ्गच्छते । बाढम् ; विद्यते सृष्टिप्रतिपादिका श्रुतिः ; सा त्वन्यपरा,
‘उपायः सोऽवतारय’ (मा. का. ३ । १५) इत्यवोचाम ।

Appreciate that creation Shruti does not harmonize with ajAtivAda i.e.
non-creation. The explanation is through mithyAtva of world.

Explanation:

Question: How exactly do creation-sentences establish advitIya-Brahman?

Answer: When it is said – there is no rUpa in vAyu, it does not ipso facto
imply that rUpa does not exist elsewhere. Despite the absence of rUpa in
vAyu, it may pretty well be present elsewhere, say in fire, water, earth
etc.

Similarly, when it is said — नेह नानास्ति किञ्चन — it negates the existence
of world in Brahman. However, ipso facto, this sentence does not prohibit
the existence of world anywhere else, just as in the example of rUpa-vAyu.
And hence advitIyatva of Brahman is not established.

However, when creation-sentences are propounded, which establish Brahman as
the upAdAna kAraNa, it implies that the effect-world cannot exist anywhere
else without its material cause, Brahman. And then, Shruti through नेति
नेति, नेह नानास्ति किञ्चन etc speaks of non-existence of world in Brahman
also.

Thus, what results is the tuchchhatva of world and advitIyatva of Brahman
is established faultlessly. Because world cannot exist apart from its
material cause, Brahman — and in the very same Brahman, it is non-existent.
Thus, world is utterly non-existent.

Thus, creation-sentences have their import in advitIya-Brahman through
paramparA.

So, please don't limit yourself to kArya-kAraNa-bhAva. That is the
adhyAropa. Go to the apavAda to know that world is utterly non-existent.

Regards.
Sudhanshu Shekhar.