[Advaita-l] mUlAvidyA debate [Was Swami Satchidanandendra Saraswati]

[Annapureddy Siddhartha Reddy]

praNAm.h All,
        This mail is to rectify a few errors in the article that I wrote
here:
http://lists.advaita-vedanta.org/archives/advaita-l/2006-October/018492.html


<quote>

Some other interesting points (which I will not explore further):
-- svAmi satchidAnandEndra's views are very close to the dR^iShTi-sR^iShTi
vAda (it seems he acknowledges it), which is rejected by shaN^kara. This

requires a better understanding of the definition of mithyA as deduced from
taittirIya upaniShat.h bhAShya (TUB) 2.1.1 of shaN^kara by the svAmi.
-- svAmi satchidAnandEndra holds that there is no avidyA in deep sleep,

whereas the traditional position is that an individual identifies with his
kAraNa sharIra which is given the technical name of avidyA.

</quote>

The second assertion that SSS denies the existence of avidyA in deep sleep
needs to be put into context (thanks to shrI Subhanu and shrI Shivashankar
of the satchidanandendra list for clarifying SSS's position). SSS mentions
that there is aGYAna (or agrahaNa) from anAdi kAla, and because of this
agrahaNa (lack of right perception), there is anyathAgrahaNa (perception of
something else in place of the Self). In deep sleep, agrahaNa is still
"present" in bIja form (note that this is not a bhAva rUpa avidyA; it's just
a lack of right knowledge), but the antaHkaraNa which is the vehicle for the
manifestation of avidyA is itself dormant (Note that anyathAgrahaNa is not
there because all the indriyas are inactive during deep sleep.) It's from
this perspective that the difference with the tradition should be
understood.

praNAm.h.

A.Siddhartha.