[Advaita-l] [advaitin] A question on PariNAma and vivarta

[H S Chandramouli]

Namaste Sri Sarma Ji,



Reg  << Does not Milk and Curds example belong to Arambha
Vada(Nyaya-Vaiseshika).which says cause and effect are different.

Mud and and Pot, Gold and Ring appear to belong to PariNama
Vada(Sankhya_yoga) which says cause inheres in effect and they are not
different.

Only Rope and Snake appears to be genuine Vivarta case.>>,



All doctrines, Nyaya-Vaiseshika, Sankhya_yoga, Mimamsa, Advaita etc offer
their own postulates for  the process of Creation. In doing so  they need
to cover all the different types of modifications/transformations met with
therein like the different examples you have cited namely Milk and Curds
example, Mud and Pot, Gold and Ring example, Rope and Snake example etc.
All these examples are explained by each doctrine with a single  postulate
unique to that doctrine. For instance Nyaya-Vaiseshika doctrine explains
all these cases through Arambha Vada, not just the Milk and Curds example
as you have mentioned. Similar is the case with all other doctrines.



Confining to the vivarta vada of Advaita doctrine, rope appearing as
rope-snake is often used as the illustration to explain this vada due to
its universal familiarity and ease of understanding. But this is only
provisional. In its final form, the vivarta vada does not claim that rope
itself appears as rope-serpent. It claims that Chaitanyam which normally
appears as rope, itself appears as rope-serpent under certain
circumstances. According to this doctrine, all Creation, be it milk/curds,
mud/pot, gold/ornaments, rope/rope-serpent, ALL are appearences of
Chaitanyam alone. Chaitanyam, which appears as milk prior to
transformation, itself appears as curds after transformation. So with
everything else in Creation.



I hope this clarifies your question.



Regards