[Advaita-l] Need some help

[Praveen R. Bhat]

​​Namaste Sadaji,

On Thu, May 24, 2018 at 6:43 PM kuntimaddi sadananda via Advaita-l <
advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:

>
> During the discussions on facebook a seeker asked in response to the
> discussion on tat tvam asi or brahmaarpanam  where we use bhaga tyaaga
> lakshana or jaha-ajahallakshana to discard the contradictory attributes and
> only equate the essence.
> Is there a reference to bhaga tyaaga lakshana in Shankara bhashyaas? I
> appreciate if someone can point to the reference(s).
>
>
That the neti neti prakrIya discards contradictory attributes, and yet
lands in one's own svatassidha svarUpa that is held on to, is something of
a bhAgatyAgalakShaNa, since this jahallakShaNa is applied to oneself (real
self) not being a vyaShThi as well as samaShThi. This jahallakShaNa itself
being sufficient is mentioned by NaishkarmyasiddhikAra initially (DSV).
bhAgatyAgalakShaNa is necessary for SDV which follows in NS too. So is
clear that the later commentators did not bring various lakShaNas.
​

> ------------------- can you provide citation where Sankara speaks of
> jahAjahaH lasksana or bahaagatyaaga lakshana. I believe you will only find
> reference in later sub-commentators who advocate Tat twam asi as a positive
> pointer. Sankara only refers to it in terms of neti neti in Chandogya and
> anvaya vyatireka in Upadesa Sahasri. In fact, Sankara advises against
> lakshana in US18.184
>
​
Then again, everything need not be found in the bhAShya itself, hence the
other works of Bhagavatpada and/ or the sampradAya that follows. The
questioner doesn't seem to have asked only bhAShya reference, so let me
quote Bhagavapadacharya's own work vAkyavRtti that says in 48 so, led by
reasons for lakShaNa in 46 and 47:

प्रत्यक्परोक्षतैकस्य सद्वितीयत्वपूर्णता। विरुध्यते यतस्तस्माल्लक्षणा
संप्रवर्तते॥ ४६॥
मानान्तरविरोधे तु मुख्यार्थस्य परिग्रहे। मुख्यार्थेनाविनाभूते
प्रतीतिर्लक्षणोच्यते॥ ४७॥
तत्त्वमस्यादिवाक्येषु लक्षणा भागलक्षणा। सोऽयमित्यादिवाक्यस्थपदयोरिव नापरा॥
४८॥

​gurupAdukAbhyAm
,
--Praveen R. Bhat
/* येनेदं सर्वं विजानाति, तं केन विजानीयात्। Through what should one know
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