[Advaita-l] Are actions essentially meaningless?

[Rajaram Venkataramani]

This is quote clear. When does one become a paroksha jnani, if the fourth
stage is aparoksha? Is the second stage paroksha jnani stage and the third
is a step towards aparoksha jnana?

On Fri, Dec 28, 2012 at 7:49 PM, श्रीमल्ललितालालितः <
lalitaalaalitah at lalitaalaalitah.com> wrote:

> *श्रीमल्ललितालालितः
> *www.lalitaalaalitah.com
>
>
> On Thu, Dec 27, 2012 at 4:03 PM, Rajaram Venkataramani <
> rajaramvenk at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Madhusudana talks about jnana bhumi. Do these stages map to stable and
> > unstable jnana?
> >
>
> Whatever *shrI madhusUdana-sarasvatI* talks about *GYAna-bhUmI*, appears to
> be taken from *jIvanmuktiviveka *of *shrIvidyAraNya*.
>
> Anyway, the first three stages are of *sAdhana*, fourth stage is of
> asthirapraGYA(unstable but aparoxa GYAna), and others belong to different
> degrees of sthirapraGYA(stable GYAna). The fifth, sixth and seventh stages
> have increasing degree of stability respectively.
>
> So says *shrIvidyAraNya* in *jIvanmuktiviveka *:
>
> '*सिद्धो न पश्यति*' , '*आचारमाचरति*' - इत्युभयोः परस्परविरोध - इति चेत् ।
> *न *। विश्रान्तितारतम्येन व्यवस्थोपपत्तेः ।
>
> This portion is preceded by two shloka-s. One of them from *bhAgavata *says
> that GYAnI doesn't see his body. The other of sage *vashiShTha *says that
> they do the needed according to the practiced AchAra.
>
> *Q:* How is it possible to not see body and do the needed at the same time
> by the same person ?
>
> *A:* There is no contradiction. Both are possible with different degree of
> niShThA(self-abidance). When in deep samAdhI, the GYAnI doesn't see the
> world. While the one without samAdhI does the needed.
>
> This again shows that GYAna may have different stages of stability and it
> will cause difference in nature of GYAnI-s. So, we say that GYAnI may be
> engaged in karma according to prArabdha, i.e. we may not see all signs of
> GYAnI(which are popularly known) in him. But, when he gains stability of
> knowledge by practicing yoga and sadvAsanA-s, he acquires all signs of
> GYAnI which are mentioned in gItA, etc.
>
> तदेव तारतम्यमभिप्रेत्य श्रूयते - *आत्मक्रीड आत्मरतिः क्रियावानेष
> ब्रह्मविदां वरिष्ठः* - इति ।
> अत्र चत्वारः प्रतीयन्ते - *ब्रह्मवित् *प्रथमः , *ब्रह्मविद्वरो
> *द्वितीयः , *ब्रह्मविद्वरीयान्
> *तृतीयो , *ब्रह्मविद्वरिष्ठः *चतुर्थः । त एते सप्तसु योगभूमिषु चतुर्थीं
> योगभूमिमारभ्य क्रमेण भूमिचतुष्टयं प्राप्ता - इत्यवगन्तव्यम् ।
>
> The same difference of degree is shown in shruti: AtmakrIDa, etc.
> Here (in AtmakrIDa shruti) we see four types of GYAnI : 1. *brahmavit*, 2.
> *
> brahmavidvara*, 3. *brahmavidvarIyAn*, 4. *brahmavidvariShTha*.
>
> Among seven stages of yoga, these (four type of people) respectively belong
> to four stages which start from the 4th stage - is to be known.
>
> वेदान्तवाक्यात् निर्व्विकल्पको ब्रह्मात्मैक्यसाक्षात्कारः *चतुर्थी
> भूमिका*फलरूपा सत्त्वापत्तिः ।
>
> Direct knowledge of brahman which comes from vedAnta-vAkya (mahAvAkya-s)
> and which doesn't focus on any quality or relation, is considered fourth
> stage of yoga by *vashiShTha*. This is the stage of result(GYAna).
>
> सोऽयं चतुर्थीं भूमिकां प्राप्तो योगी ब्रह्मविद् इत्युच्यते ।
>
> The yogI, who has reached this fourth stage is called *brahmavid*.
> He is though not a jIvanmukta (a person with stable GYAna).
>
> *Q:* How could you say this ?
>
> *A: *Because the next sentence says that :
> पञ्चम्यादयः तिस्रो भूमयो जीवन्मुक्तेरवान्तरभेदाः ।
>
> The three stages, starting from fifth one, are the different stages of
> jIvanmukti.
>
> This shows that the person on the fourth stage is not a jIvanmukta. He is a
> aparoxa-GYAnI without stability of the same.
>
> This post hence shows that unstable and stable aparoxa-GYAna are mapped to
> last four stages among the mentioned seven stages of yoga.
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