[Advaita-l] [advaitin] Brahmakara vritti refuted

[V Subrahmanian]

Surewshwaracharya in the Taittiriya Bhashya Vartikam admits of the
Avidya-dispelling VRtti explicitly, without any ambiguity:

The context is the Taittiriya Upanishad Brahmanandavalli statement: yo veda
nihitam guhAyAm paramE vyOman, so'shnutE sarvAn kAmAn saha

This means: whoever realizes that Brahman seated in the cave of the
intellect, attains complete fulfillment. Explaining this Sureshwara says:

तमोरजोविनिर्मुक्ततद्वृत्त्या चोपलभ्यते । ब्रह्मातो निहितं बुद्धौ मनसैवेति च
श्रुतिः ॥ १०८ ॥

Brahman is apprehended by that vRtti, the transformation of the intellect,
that is free of tamas and rajas (that is, with pure Sattva).  The pramANa
for this is: manasA eva idam ApnOti, neha nAnAsti kinchana - occurring in
the KaTha and Brihadaranyaka upanishads:  this Brahman is apprehended
through the instrumentality of the mind/intellect alone. Naturally any
function of the mind/intellect is by default through a vRitti.  This vRitti
alone is called akhanDAkAra vRtti.   By citing that KaTha, Brihadaranyaka
shruti's Sureshwara is also endorsing that the Shruti is the pramANa for
the akhaNDAkara vRtti.
निगूढमस्यां तद्ब्रह्म कामाविद्याद्युपप्लवात् । प्रत्यग्धियोऽनुपश्यन्ति
तस्माद् बुद्धिर्गुहोच्यते ॥ १०९ ॥
In this very next verse Sureshwara confirms the application of the vRtti:
In this intellect cave is hidden the Brahman by the screen of desire and
avidyA (the sequence taught in the Brihadaranyaka is: the fundamental
avidyA > kama > karma.  Avidya pertaining to one's true nature (AvaraNa)
gives rise to the vikShepa of being finite and the desire to fulfill
oneself and this in turn leads to action. Sureshwara gives this logic and
says: Those who have turned inward, pratyak dhiyaH, which is essentially
the culmination in akhaNDAkAra vRtti in apprehending the Atman Brahman and
hence alone the intellect is termed guhA, cave, says Sureshwara.
warm regards
subbu



On Sun, Feb 2, 2025 at 4:30 PM Michael Chandra Cohen <
michaelchandra108 at gmail.com> wrote:

> "Therefore, having known this (tasmād evaṁ viditvā), one should direct
> memory (smṛtim yojayet) towards the non-dual (advaita)." Mandukya Karika
> 2.39
>
> HH SSS Vivrti:
> There is no need for acquiring an awareness-modification (vṛtti-lābhaḥ) of
> the Self (ātman) for its knowledge (vedanam). For, in the case of the
> Self (ātman), which is already self-evident (sva-yam-prasiddhaḥ),
> knowledge (vedanam) does not require the generation of an
> awareness-modification (vṛtti-sampādana) related to its object (viṣaya).
> Even though the Self (ātman) is directly present, immediately evident
> (avyavahitaḥ), and the very essence of the inquirer
> (jijñāsuḥ-svarūpa-bhūtaḥ), yet, due to the superimposition of name and
> form (nāma-rūpa-viśeṣa) imagined by ignorance (avidyā-kalpitaḥ):
> (1) To those whose intellect is deluded (hṛta-buddhi), it appears as if
> unknown.
> (2) It seems as if separated from itself due to the obstruction caused by
> duality (dvaita-bhāva-vyavahita-iva).
> (3) It appears as if something distinct from oneself (sva-smāt anya iva).
> Thus, the false cognition of the reality of duality
> (dvaita-bhāva-satyatva-buddhiḥ) alone is what must be eliminated
> (nivartayitavyā), not an effort made towards the cognition of the Self (ātma-vedane
> yatnaḥ kartavyaḥ).
>
> from HH SSS, Mandukya Rahasya Vivṛtti (MRV2-38), Pages 390-258 Chatgpt
> Translation
>
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