[Advaita-l] Ritual Purity, Svadhyaya, and Commute

[Venkatraghavan S]

Namaste Venkatesh ji,
I don't want to argue about mAdhyAhnika - my family has been doing it for
generations so it's not something I can give up, however if you feel
differently that is of course your prerogative.

I had a general mImAmsa question on this statement: "When Sruti is one
thing and Smrti is saying extra things we may or may not do it."

The question is, isn't the rule that if Shruti is prescribing a
vidhi/niShedha and the smriti contradicts it, then the smriti should not be
considered?

However, if smriti is prescribing additional vidhi/nishedha (ie not a
contradiction, but an addition) then both smriti and shruti taken together
(ie the complete set of rules) will have to be followed? That is, the
additional smriti injunction is not optional, it is mandatory.

Regards,
Venkatraghavan

On 11 Sep 2016 7:15 a.m., "Venkatesh Murthy" <vmurthy36 at gmail.com> wrote:

> Namaste
>
> The argument for not doing Madhyanhika is like this.
>
> There is a Sruti Vidhi  अहरहः सन्ध्यामुपासीत  Worship the Sandhya
> every day. The Arthavada for this is explaining when Sandhya worship
> must be done.
> Where is the Arthavada? It is in Taittiriya Aranyaka 2nd Prapathaka
> and 2nd Anuvaka.
>
> उद्यन्तमस्तं यन्तमादित्यमभिध्यायन्कुर्वन्ब्राह्मणो विद्वान्त्सकलं
> भद्रमश्नुतेऽसावादित्यो ब्रह्मेति इति ।
>
> अस्यार्थः - उद्यन्तम् उदयं प्राप्नुवन्तम् अस्तं यन्तम् अस्तमयं
> प्राप्नुवन्तम् आदित्यं सूर्यम् अभिध्यायन् सम्यक् चिन्तयन् एवम्
> अरुणोदये ये सूर्यशत्रवः सन्ति ते गायत्र्यस्त्रेण सायं प्रातः प्रदत्तेन
> हता अभूवन् क्षयं प्राप्नुवन् 'असौ आदित्यो ब्रह्म’ इत्येवं विद्वान्
> ब्राह्मणः उभयकालेऽपि कुर्वन् सकलं भद्रमश्नुते सकलं मङ्गलं मोक्षाख्यम्
> अश्नुते भुङ्क्ते प्राप्नोति इत्यर्थः ।
>
> 'The Brahmana who knowing that the Sun is the same as the Supreme
> Brahman meditates on the rising and setting Sun destroying the
> Rakshasa enemies of Sun with morning and evening Arghyas and performs
> the circumambulation enjoys all happiness and gets Moksha.'
>
> Here there is no Madhyanika mentioned at all. How did Madhyanhika come
> to be practiced? It is because of Smrti writers. They added
> Madhyanhika in between Pratah and Sayam Sandhyas.
>
> First of all what is Sandhya? It is अह्नो रात्रेस्तु यः संधिः
> सूर्यनक्षत्रवर्जितः . It is the period in between Day and Night when
> there is no Sun and no Nakshatras. There is NO Sandhya of Day and
> Night at Midday at 12 O clock. It is Day only.
>
>
> There is also Sayana Bhashya saying
> सायणभाष्यम् -
>
> वेदनं प्रशंसति -
> ब्रह्मैव सन्ब्रह्माप्येति य एवं वेद इति ।
>
> यः पुमानादित्यो ब्रह्मेति वेद स पुमान्पूर्वमजानानोऽपि स्वय्ं वस्तुतः
> ब्रह्मैव सन् प्राप्तवेदनात् अज्ञानापगमे सति स्वानुभवेनापि ब्रह्म
> आप्नोति ।
>
> 'He who knows this is himself Brahman and attains Brahman with his own
> experience and with Ignorance destroyed even though he did not earlier
> know this.'
>
> When Sruti is one thing and Smrti is saying extra things we may or may
> not do it. It is good if we do Noon Sandhya  but  not compulsory.
> Because Sruti has said only Morning and Evening Sandhyas.
>
> I have followed this in my life. If it is convenient I will do
> Madhyahnika but I will always do Pratah and Sayam Sandhya.
>
> On Sun, Sep 11, 2016 at 12:31 AM, Venkatraghavan S <agnimile at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> > The Samkshepa Dharma ShaAstram book published by Kanchi Kamakoti maTham
> > quotes Atri and Shankha maharishis:
> >
> > SandhyA trayam tu kartavyam dvijenaatma vidaa sadaa |
> > Pratah Sandhyaam
> > sa nakshatraam Madhyamaam snaanakarmani | Saadityaam paschimaam sandhyaam
> > upaaseeta yathaa vidhi ||
> >
> > SandhyA is to be worshipped thrice as prescribed by Brahmins desirous of
> > Atma jnAna. The prAtah sandhya when the stars are seen (before sunrise),
> the
> > mAdhyAhnika in conjunction with the snAna karmas and the sAyam sandhyA
> with
> > the sun in the west.
> >
> > The same idea is conveyed in the cryptic Tamil saying by IDaikADa
> siddhar as
> > he was grazing sheep - "kANAmal koNAmal kanDu kuDu, Adu kaN poguthu pAr."
> > The literal translation seems like gibberish, but there is a hidden
> meaning
> > to every word - "Give when you cannot see, when it is not crooked, and
> when
> > you see. See the sheep and kid go."
> >
> > What it really means, give arghya when you cannot see the sun (before
> > sunrise), when your shadow is not crooked, or the sun is straight above
> > (mAdhyAhnika), and when you can see the sun, just before sunset. By ADu
> > (sheep), what is meant is nIrADu or bathe in the Ganges, and by kaN
> (kid) it
> > go see the lord in Setu (Rameshwaram), and see your sins vanish.
> >
> > Regards,
> > Venkatraghavan
> >
> >
> > On 10 Sep 2016 6:27 p.m., "V Subrahmanian via Advaita-l"
> > <advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:
> >>
> >> On Sat, Sep 10, 2016 at 8:13 PM, Venkatesh Murthy <vmurthy36 at gmail.com>
> >> wrote:
> >>
> >> > Namaste
> >> >
> >> > I heard some people saying Madhyanha Sandhya is not according to
> >> > Sastric sources. It is not required but some people are doing it.
> >> > Morning and evening Sandhya is sufficient.
> >> >
> >>
> >> Actually the very first sandhyā vandanam a vaṭu performs soon after his
> >> brahmopadeśa is the mādhyāhnika.  That evening is the first sāyam
> sandhyā.
> >>
> >> In the Srimadbhāgavatam, the story of Ambarisha has Durvāsa going to the
> >> Yamuna to perform his noon-oblations:
> >>
> >> SB 9.4.37
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> *pratinandya sa tāṁ yācñāṁ kartum āvaśyakaṁ gataḥnimamajja bṛhad dhyāyan
> >> kālindī-salile śubhe*
> >> Word for word:
> >> *pratinandya <http://vedabase.com/en/synonyms-index?original=
> pratinandya>*
> >> —
> >> gladly accepting; *saḥ
> >> <http://vedabase.com/en/synonyms-index?original=sah>*
> >>  — Durvāsā Muni; *tām
> >> <http://vedabase.com/en/synonyms-index?original=tam>* —
> >> that; *yācñām <http://vedabase.com/en/synonyms-index?original=yacnam>*
> —
> >> request; *kartum <http://vedabase.com/en/synonyms-index?original=kartum
> >*
> >> —
> >> to perform; *āvaśyakam
> >> <http://vedabase.com/en/synonyms-index?original=avasyakam>* — the
> >> necessary
> >> ritualistic ceremonies; *gataḥ
> >> <http://vedabase.com/en/synonyms-index?original=gatah>* — went;
> *nimamajja
> >> <http://vedabase.com/en/synonyms-index?original=nimamajja>* — dipped
> his
> >> body in the water;*bṛhat
> >> <http://vedabase.com/en/synonyms-index?original=brhat>* — the Supreme
> >> Brahman; *dhyāyan
> >> <http://vedabase.com/en/synonyms-index?original=dhyayan>* —
> >> meditating on; *kālindī
> >> <http://vedabase.com/en/synonyms-index?original=kalindi>* — of the
> >> Yamunā; *salile
> >> <http://vedabase.com/en/synonyms-index?original=salile>* — in the
> water;
> >> *śubhe
> >> <http://vedabase.com/en/synonyms-index?original=subhe>*— very
> auspicious.
> >>
> >> For that word 'āvaśyakam', Sridhara Swamin (Advaitin) and
> >> Virarāghavacharya
> >> (Viśiṣṭādvaitin) comment: mādhyāhnikam.
> >>
> >> vs
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> > On Sat, Sep 10, 2016 at 12:39 PM, V Subrahmanian
> >> > <v.subrahmanian at gmail.com> wrote:
> >> > >
> >> > >
> >> > > On Sat, Sep 10, 2016 at 12:02 PM, Venkatesh Murthy via Advaita-l
> >> > > <advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:
> >> > >>
> >> > >> Namaste
> >> > >>
> >> > >> Yes the older generation people used to do Sandhya in travelling
> >> > >> also.
> >> > >> I have seen my grandfather was doing Sandhya on platforms.
> >> > >>
> >> > >> But younger generation people can take a flight and be in Delhi or
> >> > >> Mumbai in a few hours. Once I did Pratah Sandhya and took a flight
> to
> >> > >> Delhi. In Delhi I did Sayam Sandhya in the evening and took the
> >> > >> flight
> >> > >> back and came home the same day. Madhyanhika is a problem because
> you
> >> > >> can be in meeting and cannot leave.
> >> > >
> >> > >
> >> > > During such situations, the Sringeri Jagadguru Sri Abhinava
> >> > > Vidyatirtha
> >> > > Swaminaḥ, has said that one can do mādhyāhnika immediately after
> >> > > prātaḥ
> >> > > sandhya.  In fact there are many known to me who have to leave home
> >> > > early
> >> > > for school, college or office, who do both the sandhyas and even
> >> > > brahma
> >> > > yajnam before leaving home.
> >> > >
> >> > > vs
> >> > >>
> >> > >>
> >> > >
> >> >
> >> >
> >> >
> >> > --
> >> > Regards
> >> >
> >> > -Venkatesh
> >> >
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>
> --
> Regards
>
> -Venkatesh
>