[Advaita-l] Holenarsipur Swamiji's remarks and why even Avidya is not necessary for Advaita

[Venkata sriram P]

Namaste,
 
Siva Rahasya says:
 
matprasAdAt AvaraNa shakti nAsaH prajAyatE
yAvat karma vipAkO hi dEhinAM bhavatAM surAH
vikSEpAyacha sA shakti rnuvartEta sattamAH
 
Siva says that:
 
Owing to my grace, Avarana Shakti is removed but
So long as prarabdha karma is there, Vikshepa Shakti
continues to be present till the karma-kSaya.  
 
Now, regarding the confusions of mAyA, avidya, mithyA etc.
Unless the siddhAnta is learnt from good acharya belonging
to the same sampradaya, the confusion continues.  And the
acharya imparts the education according to the levels of
receptivity of the disciple.   Depending upon the maturity levels
of the disciple, the siddhAnta is imparted.  
 
“tArakENa manasshuddhiH sAnkhyaM dEha-vichAraNA,
amanaskaM svAnubhavaH paschAt abhyAsaniSTatA”
 
First the tAraka mantra is given for chitta shuddhi; followed by
Atma-anAtma vichAraNa using sAnkhya buddhi; followed by
anusandhAna with amanaska yoga.  This is followed by
abhyAsa niSTa.  
 
Sampradaya prohibits the teaching of advaita to every tom, dick & harry
Because the acharyas know what sort of problems they are going to face with
half-baked disciples without proper chitta shuddhi.   That is why, in Amnaya Pithas, only hand-full of sishyas are to be seen when Sannidhanam does bhAshya shanti during early in the morning.  
 
Sampradaya designed the methodology of Advaita teaching in 2 ways
ie., sAmAnya upadesa and asAmAnya upadEsa.   
 
Mahamahopadhyaya Medavaramu SubramaNya shAstrinaH in one of his 
prakaraNa grantha “yathArtha vichAra” says:
 
Advaita siddhAntaH kinchinnirUpyatE 
 
advaitasiddhAntE sAmAnyOpadEsaH , a-sAmAnyOpadEsaH cha 
upadEsakramaH dvividhaH
 
prathamataH sAmAnyOpadEsaH vivrIyatE 
 
///
 
vEdAntasya dvaitEna prAraMbhaH advaitEna 
parisamAptiH ;
 
kutaH ArabhyatE vEdAnta vichAraH? 
 
samasta Agama-upanishad-bhASyAdi granthastha 
viSayAn sarvAn vihAya pratyakSa sthUla dEha mArabhyaiva 
vichAra kartavyaH
 
///
 
The advaita prasthAna commences with dvaita bhava like
Sivalinga / Salagrama Puja , dAsya bhakti, mantra japa etc.
but culminates in Advaita with ahamgrahOpAsana.
 
Such a sAdhaka is imparted “sAmAnya upadesa” 
which involves shravana, manana etc.  
 
It is interesting to note that Mahamahopadhyaya Subramanya Sastry
prescribes the method of teaching of adhyaropa apavada as a part of
sAmAnya upadesa with the sutra “draSTuM yOgyaM drishyaM” 
which involves nishedha (negation) of anAtma vastu.  
 
With this niSEdha paddhati through vichAra mArga, at certain point
this stops with sva-svarUpa anusandhAna and the sAdhaka abides 
in his nija-rUpa sthiti.  
 
Now, the 2nd method of initiation is “asAmAnya upadesa” 
Which doesn’t involve all these adhyaropa apavada siddhanta
and “parisESa nyAya” because the disciple is at the higher level
and equipped with chitta shuddhi.   
 
Such a matured sAdhaka doesn’t require the examples and
teaching methods of adhyaropa etc.  Because, there is no
use in establishing the existence of unreal stuff which never exist 
and then denying it’s existence.  Why to prove it’s unreality which is said 
to be superimposed on Reality When it never existed is the question comes.  
 
It is something like this:
 
“prakSALanAddhI pankasya dUrAdutsarjanaM vara”
 
Ie., why to step on the muddy waters and again wash one’s feet.
 
First of all, why one must get into the marshy / muddy 
Waters filled with dirt and again wash the feet with water to cleanse.  
 
These sorts of questions do come to the immatured sadhakas
Who doesn’t have relevant chitta shuddhi & acharya upadesa.
 
Yes, there is no Jagat.  Only Brahman Exists.  There is no creation.
Creation was never there before, is not there now and would never be in Future.
 
But, are we matured enough to understand this siddhAnta? 
 
Let us introspect that first before criticizing the sampradaya acharyas
Which is coming from avicchinna parampara.
 
Regs,
Sriram