[Advaita-l] Adwaita and God.

[Vidyasankar Sundaresan]

> 2)The Ishwara in Yoga and the Ishwara in Vedanta are the same.But,in Yoga
> the term"Ishwara"is used to mean the creator,or "OM'as you have
> said..But,in Vedanta "Ishwara"occupies the third pada,named "Pajna",which
> is the "Ma"kara in the Mandukya Upanishad.It occupies the third matra or
> the third pada in the "AUM"kara.You have said "Ishwara"in Yoga and Brahman
> in vedanta are the same whether Gaudapadacharya says or not.
 
I hesitate to get into this conversation, but would just like to point out that in the
yoga system, ISvara is nowhere described as the creator of the universe. As per
the yogasUtra (and if I remember right, the yogabhAshya too), ISvara is only a
special kind of purusha (purusha-viSesha), who is always free of prakRti and is
never tainted by the impurities of identification with prakRti, that is all. 
 
The classical yoga school is aligned with sAMkhya, where creation is due to the
contact of purusha(s) and prakRti. Neither purusha alone nor prakRti alone can
create, as per both sAMkhya and yoga. Creation needs purusha-prakRti saMyoga,
whereas in yoga, ISvara is always in viyoga with respect to prakRti.
 
Nevertheless, in yoga, tasya vAcakaH praNavaH - OM is the symbol of ISvara. 
 
Regards,
Vidyasankar