[Advaita-l] Question on Bodhayana and Upavarsha Vruttis of Brahma Sutras

[Vidyasankar Sundaresan]

> But there is strong reason for saying Bhartuhari is a strong Advaiti
> only. But he argued for Shabda Advaita.
> 
> The great Visistadvaiti Yamunacharya has said Bhartruhari is a
> Vyakhyanakara of Brahma Sutras in the Siddhi Traya.
> 
> Moreover the great Grammarian Bhattoji Dikshita has made a very
> important comment in the Shabda Kaustubha.
> 
> 1 Advaitaupanishade BrahmaNyapi Vyutpadyatamiti Abhiprayena Bhagavan
> Bhartruharihi Vivartavadamapi Prasangat Vyudapadayat
> 
> One more writer Helaraja has written in Vakyapadiya Vyakhyana-
> 
> Padartha Carcavishaye Brahmadarshananayenaiva Sambandhadivicare Vinigamanat
> 
> Bhartruhari has accepted the pet theory of Advaitis Vivartavada in Vakyapadiya.
> 
> Anadinidhanam Brahma Shabdatattvam Yadaksharam |
> Vivarte Arthabhavena Prakriya Jagato Yataha || Vakya Padiya 1-1
> 
> He has accepted the Shabda Tattva is Brahman. The World is a Vivarta
> of Brahman.
> 
> Some people also think Bhatti Kavya is Bhartruhari's work only.

Nevertheless, the sphoTa vAda of bhartRhari is rejected by Sankara in
the brahmasUtra bhAshya. vAkyapadIya is a work on grammar and its
author, bhartRhari, should not be confusd with bhartRprapanca, a pre-
Sankaran vedAntin who held a jnAna-karma-samuccaya view and who
has been refuted by Sankara and sureSvara.
 
The vivarta of Sabda-brahman, as delineated in vAkyapadIya, is also not
the same as the vivartavAda of advaita vedAnta. 
 
Finally, if bhaTTikAvya is to be attributed to bhartRhari, that view goes
directly against the story that makes bhaTTi a half-brother to bhartRhari
and to vikramAditya and vararuci as well. All in all, the legend recounted
in patanjali carita cannot be taken as anything more than a charming 
story. No philosophical or historical conclusions can be drawn from it.
 
Vidyasankar