[Advaita-l] Core Advaita in the Srimad Bhaagavatam

[Jaldhar H. Vyas]

On Fri, 23 Mar 2018, kuntimaddi sadananda via Advaita-l wrote:

> I heard that Shankaracharya has not referenced Bhagavatam in his 
> bhaashyas.  Some claim that Bhagavatam, although attributed to Vyasa 
> Maharshi, came into existence sometime around 10th century.  Not sure 
> how much of all this is true.
>

A Gujarati translation of the Bhagavata I have has an article in the front
on the subject of "Shrimat Shankaracharya and the antiquity of the
Bhagavata."  The translator follows a view that is somewhat popular
amongst North Indian Vaishnavas that all this Advaita Mayavada
nonsense was just a ruse to defeat the Buddhists and Shankaracharya was
"really" a Vaishnava.  He claims that Shankaracharya did know and
approve of the Bhagavata and offers the following evidence.


The Vishnusahasranamabhashya says:

sa AshrayaH paraM brahma paramAtmA parAtpara iti bhAgavate |

A prakarana called chaturdashamataviveka says:

paramahaMsadharmo bhAgavate purANe kR^iShNenoddhavAyopadiShTaH |

(FWIW, I have not heard of this text and it is not included in the Vani
Vilas edition of the complete works of Shankaracharya.)

Govindashtakam includes the following:

mR^itsAmatsi kimiha yashodA tADanashaishavasantrAsaH |

and this episode is only found in the Bhagavata (i.e. not Mahabharata,
Vishnupurana etc.)

The article concedes there is some doubt over the authorship of the
prakarana granths and no mentions can be found in the prasthana trayi
bhashyas but dismisses that argument as the quibbling of atheists.

Gaudapadacharya is also supposed to have known of the Bhagavata (though
again the quotes are from works whose attribution to him are contested.)

In panchikaranabhasya it says:

jagR^ihe pauruShaM iti bhAgavatamupanyastam |

in uttaragitabhashya:

taduktaM bhAgavate teShAmasau kleshala eva shiShyate nAnyadyathA
sthUlatuShAvadhAtinAmiti |




-- 
Jaldhar H. Vyas <jaldhar at braincells.com>