[Advaita-l] [advaitin] Does the Vivarana argument lead to an existent avidya? SSSS's comment

[Bhaskar YR]

Vivaraṇa does not teach a third ultimate category. It teaches that within the empirical reality of vyavahāra, which Śaṅkara himself utilizes, avidyā functions as if it were a positive entity—a necessary postulate to make sense of the journey from ignorance to knowledge, from bondage to liberation, 

praNAms
Hare Krishna

The missing point here from vivaraNa perspective is that they advocate that avidyA is a jada vastu (like chair etc.) hence arguments go like avidyA is like darkness and it is not mere prakAsha abhAva but it is a solid entity.  More importantly, it is there in brahman itself even before the creation, which is the root cause for the jeevabhAva in brahman and upAdAna kAraNa for the adhyAsa.  Hence nAma rUpa prakruti as per them is mUlAvidyA and for seeing it differently (adhyAsa) this nAma rUpa mUlAvidyA is material cause.  So, as per vivaraNa well before saying anything in vyavahAra, the very cause of vyavahAra is mUlAvidyA which is NOT jeevaashrita / antaHkaraNa dOsha but it is having the shelter in brahman itself.  But at some place they also say :  there is nothing wrong that nAmarUpAtmaka prakruti is said to be concocted by adhyAsa!!  even though the word avidyA in its mukhya artha 'mAya', there is no problem in saying this mAya is adhyAsa kruta.  So IMO, it is wrong to think that vivaraNa introduces mUlAvidyA ONLY in vyavahAra...it is an ontological entity that is having the ashraya in brahman itself well before any talks about duality / creation / jeeva.  

Hari Hari Hari Bol!!!
bhaskar