[Advaita-l] Question on Samadhi

[bhaskar.yr at in.abb.com]

As for Vivekachudamani not being a genuine work of Shankaracharya,
scholars are divided on it and will probably continue squabbling for
eternity.  The Advaita tradition has always considered it to be an
authentic work.

>  praNAm prabhuji
>  Hare Krishna

>  Kindly pardon my intrusion here prabhuji.  Though traditional advaitins
hold lot of prakaraNa granthas as genuine works of Sri Shankara.  Some
scholars through the in-depth analysis of these prakaraNa grantha-s have
decided that methods & doctrines contained in these grantha-s are quite
contradictory to the purports of shankara's original prasthAna trayi
bhAshya.  For that matter, as we know Sri Sri Chandrashekara Bharati
himself has written commentary on this major work in advaita vedanta, but
it is very difficult to conclude that this work is from the pen of vedanta
sUtra bhAshyakAra.

>  Swamiji of HN Pur, discusses these issues elaborately in his master
piece vedAnta prakriya pratyabhigna (English version The Method of The
Vedanta), on the chapter dedicated to bhatruprapancha & vivaraNa school,
categorically proves this with parallel quotes from sUtra bhAshya & says
that major prakaraNa grantha-s such as vivekachudAmaNi, sarva vEdAnta
siddhAnta sAra Sangraha, aparOkShAnubhUti etc  are not definitely works of
bhagavadpAda since these minor works propagating jnAna-karma samucchaya
vAda. He accepts only UpadEsha sAhasri as the genuine work from shankara
since his direct desciple Sri surEshwarAchArya quotes verses from this work
in his vArtikas & its main theme will not contradict the prasthAna trayi
bhAshya.

>  prabhuji, following are some of the points swamiji of HN Pur raised
against vivEkachudAmaNi in which he finds diametrically opposed views in
prasthAna trayi bhAshyas :

(a) After attaining paramArtha jnAna / self realisation  must be
*maintained* through further sAdhana.

(b) Knowledge gained through vedAnta shravaNa is only parOkSha jnAna.

(c) The ultimate realisation can be had only in nirvikalpa samAdhi.

(d) Treating avidyA & mAyA are synonyms.

>  prabhuji, all the above points have been refuted by swamiji by quoting
the references from the sUtra bhAshya.

>  I donot know, what scholars of orthodox advaita tradition could offer us
to prove that vivEkachudAmani is from bhAshyakArA's pen.

>  I'd like to know more details about it, as my studies in advaita
restricted to swamiji's works & personal association with his direct
desciples.

Hari Hari Hari Bol!!!
bhaskar