[Advaita-l] GYAnimAtra and the sthitapraGYa (was Re: FW: Avidya, Jnanis and SSS' views)

[S Jayanarayanan]

--- On Wed, 5/12/10, Shyam <shyam_md at yahoo.com> wrote:

[..]

> I would like both of you to share your viewpoints and
> comments on a section of the Vivekachudamani, which I
> reproduce along with the invaluable commentary of His
> Holiness Sri Sri Chandrasekhara Bharati Mahaswamigal 

[..]

> 311
> nigrhyashatrorahamo’vakAshah kvacinna deyo
> viSayAnucintayA|
> sa eva sanjIvanaheturasya nprakSINajambIratarorivAmbu||
> 
> Vanquishing the enemy namely ahamkAra, no quarter should be
> given to it by thinking of senseobjects. Like water
> sprinkled on a lime tree, it is the AGENT OF REJUVENATION.
> nigrhya: vanquishing satrorahamah: of ahamkAra which is the
> cause of universal destruction. visayAnucintaya avakAsho na
> deyah: no chance should be given to it by thinking of
> sense-objects
> to come back to life. Thinking of the sense-objects is the
> cause of reviving it. It will be said in the sloka 323: 
> na pramAdAdanarthonyo jnAninah svasvarUpatah tato
> mohstatohamdhis tato
> bandhas tato vyathA.
> 
> To a decayed lemon tree that comes to life again, water
> becomes the cause of its revival and growth. Thus, THOUGH
> AHAMKARA IS DESTROYED BY DISCRIMINATORY KNOWLEDGE, IT COMES
> BACK TO LIFE IF one indulges in the thought of sense-objects
> - AND THAT MAKES FOR SAMSARA.
> 
> Thus, EVEN THOUGH DESTROYED BY DISCRIMINATIVE KNOWLEDGE,
> evam vivekavijnanena nashitopyahankarah - when SPRINKLED BY
> VASANAS which have arisen from beginningless time, ahamkara
> WILL GROW in the mind AND LEAD TO SAMSARA in the absence of
> concentration on the atman by the mind turned inwards. So,
> one will not be affected by vasanas as there will be no
> occasion for thinking etc., on sense-objects if one is
> continuously established in Brahman without negligence.
> Therefore, one should subdue the effect, i.e., one should
> not engage in thinking about sense-objects.
> ___________________________________
> 
> 
> Here what is interesting is the assertion : that even AFTER
> discriminatory KNOWLEDGE has successfully annihilated and
> ERADICATED the AHANKARA - the force of vasanas is said to be
> such that even a sprinkling of these can indeed give a new
> lease of life to the Ego, and cause the AHANKARA to be
> REBORN. And hence the conclusion - elimination of vasanas
> ALONE is mukti.

In the Fourth Chapter of the JIvanmuktiviveka (JMV) by VidyAraNya, there is a discussion on "svarUpasiddhiprayojanaprakaraNam.h" or "The purpose that the accomplishment of jIvanmukti serves". (Page 276 of the translation of the JMV by Swami Moksadananda - all page numbers in this post will be references to this book).

  keyaM jIvanmuktiH, kiM vA tatra pramANam, kathaM vA tatsiddhiH,
  ityetasya prashnatrayasyottaraM nirUpitam . siddhyA vA kiM
  prayojanamityasya chaturthaprashnasyottaramidAnImabhidhIyate
  GYAnarakshAtapovisaMvAdAbhAvaduHkhanAshasukhAvirbhAvAH
  pa~ncha prayojanAni .

  "What is jIvanmukti? What are the proofs of it? And how is it
  accomplished? These three questions have been answered in the
  foregoing chapters. Now the answer to the fourth question -
  'what purpose does the accomplishment of jIvanmukti serve?'
  - is being given.

  The purpose is five-fold: protection of knowledge (GYAna-rakShA);
  practice of religious austerity; absence of disagreement;
  disappearance of sorrow; and appearance of happiness."


  nanu pramANotpannasya tattvaGYAnasya ko nAma bAdhaprasa~Ngo
  yena rakshA apekshyata iti chet .
  uchyate - chittavishrAntyabhAvesaMshaya viparyayau prasajyeyAtAm .
  tathA hi tattvavido rAghavasya vishrAnteH pUrvaM saMshayaM
  vishvAmitra udAjahAra -

  "It may be asked - what is the necessity of protecting knowledge?
  The question of sublation does not arise inasmuch as the
  knowledge of Reality has been obtained through proper evidence.

  The answer is this - in the absence of tranquility of the mind
  (chitta-vishrAnti), doubt (saMshaya) and error (viparyaya)
  may creep in; for instance, VishvAmitra describes the doubt
  in the mind of rAghava, the knower of truth, before it attained
  calmness thus:"


VidyAraNya teaches that GYAna once obtained needs to be "protected" (GYAna-rakShA), because doubt (saMshaya) and error (viparyaya) may creep in due to lack of tranquility of the mind (chitta-vishrAnti). This is quite similar to H.H.'s assertion in the VivekachUDAmaNi commentary that GYAna may become "clouded" with vAsanAs again.

The JMV continues (279-280):

  tasmAdvidite.api tattve vishrAntirahitasya shukarAghavayoriva
  saMshaya utpadyate . sa chAGYAnamiva mokShasya pratibandhakaH . 

  "Therefore, doubt arises in him who is without tranquility
  even though he has known the truth like rAghava and shuka.
  And doubt (saMshaya) is an obstacle to Liberation (mokSha)
  like ignorance (aGYAna)."

VidyAraNya concludes that doubt (saMshaya) is like ignorance (aGYAna), in that it is an obstacle to Liberation (mokSha), and that it may arise AFTER GYAna has been achieved for one who is without tranquility (vishrAntirahitasya). The word used here is "mokSha" which is Liberation with a capital "L", and cannot possibly be interpreted any other way. So VidyAraNya is saying here that one who may have attained to GYAna, but without vAsanAkShaya-manonAsha has NOT attained to mokSha.

> _______________________________________
> 316&317
> tAbhyAm pravadhamAnA sA sUte samSrtimAtmanah| trayANAm ca
> kSayopAyAssarvAvasthAsu sarvadA||
> sarvatra sarvatah sarvam brahmamAtrAvalokanam|
> sadbhAvavAsanAdArDhyAt tattrayam layamaSnute||
> 
> Growing by these two, the VASANA PRODUCES ONE'S
> TRANSMIGRATION. The means to bring about the destruction of
> these three vAsanas – tendency, thought and action – is
> to see everything as Brahman under ALL conditions, ALWAYS,
> everywhere AND IN ALL WAYS. By the strengthening of the
> vAsana of being Brahman, those three are annihilated.
> 
> tabhyam pravardhamana sa vAsanA: that vasana which grows by
> those two, namely thought and action. Atmanah samsmrtim
> sUte: produces one’s [involvement in] samsara.
> 
> Verse 318
> For one who is not able to see everything as Brahman, the
> guru gives out a method by saying that the cause should be
> subdued by the subjugation of the effect.
> 
> kriyAnAshe bhaveccintAnAsho’smAdvAsanAkSayah|
> vAsanAprakASayo mokSassa jIvanmuktiriSyate||
> 
> When the action is destroyed, longing ceases; that will
> lead to annihilation of vasana. THE ANNULMENT OF VASANA
> ITSELF IS MUKTI. That is called jivanmukti.Thus, effort
> should be made by a person till the state of ‘no action’
> arises. Then, there arises complete destruction of vAsanas;
> that itself is liberation. Such a state is said to be
> jivanmukti, liberation even while alive. For it is said:
> muktim prahuhtadiha munayah vasanatanavam yat: “The munis
> say WHAT IS CALLED MUKTI IS ATTENUATION OF VASANA”. VAsana
> is the subtle condition of a thing. Its attenuation means
> destruction.

Here is a quote from the JMV to the same effect (page 139-140):

  tatra vAsanAkshayaprakAram Aha vasishhThaH -
  bandho hi vAsanAbandho mokShaH syAd vAsanAkshayaH .
  vAsanAstvaM parityajya mokShArthitvam api tyaja .. [LYV 18.20]

  "About the destruction of vAsanAs, VasishhTha said thus -
  'Bondage is truly the bonds of vAsanAs and mokSha is getting rid
  of them. Giving up all vAsanAs, give up even the desire for mokSha.'"

It is clear from the above that mokSha = vAsanAkShaya.

Note that all the instances where GYAna by itself does not constitute mokSha is ONLY for the akR^itopAsti - one without strong sAdhana-chatushhTaya-saMpatti. The GYAna of the kR^itopAsti is immediately steady and without vAsanAs and hence equivalent to mokSha, because he has already secured sAdhana-chatushhTaya-saMpatti before attaining to GYAna.

> __________________________________
> 
> Similarly an examination of verses 322 - 325 with the
> Acharya's commentary will further expand on these ideas.
> 

In fact, H.H. frankly admits being influenced by the JMV in his commentary on VivekachUDAmaNi verse 271 (272 in H.H.'s numbering):

  idaMtu jIvanmuktiviveke vAsanAkshayaprakaraNe
  vidyAraNya-gurucharaNaiH vistareNopapAditaM 
  'ko lokamArAdhayituM samarthaH' ...

  "This has been dealt with in the jIvanmuktiviveka of
  svAmI vidyAraNya, in the chapter on vAsanAkshaya,
  where he says, 'Who is expert in pleasing the world?'..."

> The Acharya of Kanchi also echoes similar thoughts - vid.
> http://www.adi-shankara.org/2009/10/advaita-simple.html
> 
> My humble pranams and thanks to both of you for spending
> your valuable time, and thoughts.
> 
> Hari OM
> Shri Gurubhyoh namah
> Shyam  
> 

Regards,
Kartik