[Advaita-l] Who is Keshava? A Vaishnava-unfriendly sublime insight

[V Subrahmanian]

In similar vein, Sri Annamacharya, a great medieval composer from the
Telugu Country, who had explicitly owed allegiance to Srivaishnavism, says
about the Lord of Tirupati, in a composition:

Annamācārya reflects in this song:
http://karnatiklyrics.blogspot.in/2011/06/entha-matramuna.html

//The Vaishnavas worship you with reverence as Vishnu.
The Vedic philosophers tell that you are the Supreme Consciousness.
The Shaivas believe that you are Śiva & the Kapalikas praise you as
Adibhairava.
The Shakteyas consider you as the manifestation of the supreme power
Shakti. People chant your praise in a number of ways. Ignorant people
assume that you are insignificant.The wise recognize your infinite
greatness.//


[It is noteworthy that Sri Annamācārya distinguishes Vedāntins from
‘vaiṣṇavas’,

koluthuru mimu vaishnavulu, koorimitho vishnudani

palukuduru mimu vaedaantulu, parabrahma anuchu

 By ‘Vedāntins’ he obviously refers to Advaitins for they alone hold the
Supreme Reality to be ‘Brahman’ beyond all names and forms.  Those who hold
the highest tattvam to be ‘Viṣṇu’ (the deity identified as Lakṣmipati,
etc.) are not vedantins as per this composer.

There is the famous Shiva Mahimna Stotram on the same lines:
त्रयी सांख्यं योगः पशुपतिमतं वैष्णवमिति
*प्रभिन्ने प्रस्थाने* परमिदमदः पथ्यमिति च।
रुचीनां वैचित्र्यादृजुकुटिलनानापथजुषां
नृणामेको गम्यस्त्वमसि पयसामर्णव इव॥ शिवमहिम्नःस्तोत्रम् ७.
[ The three Vedas, Sankhya, Yoga, the doctrine of Pashupati, the doctrine
of Vaishnavas (such are the different paths enjoined). Based on the variety
of likings of the follower men of the straight or crooked paths, (they
consider) this one as supreme or that one as proper. (However) the goal of
all these is You - just like the goal of rivers is the ocean.]
Madhusudana's 'Prasthaana bheda' is a work that is actually, originally,
part of his commentary to the above verse. The 'title' is also given by him
inspired by the words  *प्रभिन्ने प्रस्थाने * of the above verse.
There is another very popular such verse by an unknown author:
यं शैवाः समुपासते शिव इति ब्रह्मेति वेदान्तिनो. बौद्धा बुद्ध इति प्रमाणपटवः
कर्तेति नैयायिकाः ।
अर्हन्नित्यथ जैनशासनरताः कर्मेति मीमांसकाः. सोऽयं नो विदधातु वाञ्छितफलं
त्रैलोक्यनाथो हरिः ॥ (हनुमन्नाटक १ । ३)
[In this verse the poet identifies the highest Truth to be ‘Hari’ who alone
is seen variously by different people including the Vedāntins who hold this
Truth (called ‘Hari’) as Brahman.  [Here is a site that equates the above
two verses: http://satcharcha.blogspot.in/2015/06/blog-post_20.html]
MS has commented upon the famous work ‘Mahimna stotram’ of Puṣpadanta as
applying to both Śiva and Viṣṇu. At the end of the work MS composes a few
verses depicting the Hari-Hara abheda:
भूतिभूषितदेहाय द्विजराजेन राजते |
एकात्मने नमो नित्यं हरये च हराय च ||
Obeisance ever to Him, who is resplendent with His body adorned with
vibhūti, ashes, and is of the complexion of camphor (or having the moon on
His head), the One Atman that is both Hara and Hari.
हररशंकरयोरभेदबोधो भविु क्षुद्रधियामपीति यत्नात् |
उभयार्थतया  मयेदमुक्तं सुधियः साधुतयैव  शोधयन्तु ॥ १
 [With the benediction that the understanding of non-difference between
Hari and Shankara may rise even in those with a lowly intellect have I,
with effort, commented on the Shivamanhima stotra verses in dual-meaning
mode (as applying to Hari and Hara). Let the noble ones accept this as
admissible alone.]
shaivAH saurAshcha gANeshA vaiShNavAH shakti-pUjakAH |
bhavanti yanmayAH sarve so.ahamasmi paraH shivaH ||3||
This occurs at the end of the 15th Chapter, of the BG commentary
Gudharthadipika by Madhusudana Saraswati.
regards
subbu



On Sat, Nov 26, 2022 at 1:57 PM V Subrahmanian <v.subrahmanian at gmail.com>
wrote:

> Here is an excerpt:
>
>
> https://rsachi.blogspot.com/2016/06/shiva-hari-god-all-one-and-same.html?fbclid=IwAR2oHWTAkmwPFAqqP1Z2tLzxDtiPckVu-ZK8gtZckZhlT5B_C4cDTEhP1qw
>
> Tuesday, June 28, 2016
> Shiva, Hari, God - all one and the same
> My late father (1911-1993), Prof. S. S. Raghavachar of Mysore University,
> was a delegate and speaker at the World Conference of Religions conducted
> in 1963 by Prof. T.M.P. Mahadevan of Madras University. With hundreds of
> delegates from around the world, the conference was commemorating the birth
> centenary of Swami Vivekananda, who took the message to the World
> Parliament of Religions in Chicago in 1893 that all religions basically
> lead to the one truth or God.
>
> The delegates were taken for an audience with Kanchi Paramacharya at the
> end of the conference. While giving his benediction, Paramcharya asked the
> audience, "is the there any textual mention or inscription in Hinduism
> predating Swami Vivekananda and Ramakrishna  which stated that the worship
> of different conceptions of God all lead to the same Reality?" My father
> Prof. Raghavachar rose and quoted an inscription from the Belur temple in
> Karnataka built by Vishnuvardhana, a disciple of Sri Ramanujacharya in the
> 11/12th C CE, which states:
>
> * yam shaivah samupasate shiva iti brahmeti vedantinah*
> *bauddhah buddha iti pramanapatavah karteti naiyayikah*
> *arhan ityatha jaina-shasana-ratah karmeti mimansakah*
> *so yam vo vidhadhatu vanchita phalam trailokyanatho harih*
>
> It seems that Paramacharya was immensely pleased with this answer and
> felicitated my father.
>
> Recently, to find out more, I dug a little into the available textual
> references to this shloka. I give you three excellent references:
> 1. Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, 1926
> 2. H. Nakamura, 1983
> 3. C.P. Bhatta, 1994
>
> See the images pertaining to the above three authorities here:
>
>
> https://rsachi.blogspot.com/2016/06/shiva-hari-god-all-one-and-same.html?fbclid=IwAR2oHWTAkmwPFAqqP1Z2tLzxDtiPckVu-ZK8gtZckZhlT5B_C4cDTEhP1qw
>
>