[Advaita-l] [advaitin] Brahmakara vritti refuted

[Raghav Kumar Dwivedula]

Namaste Michael


On Tue, 4 Feb, 2025, 6:43 pm Michael Chandra Cohen via Advaita-l, <
advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:

> Namaste Raghav
>
> Please show where HH SSS speaks of Nididhyasana as you state/
>
> For the meaning of the term 'nidi- dhyasana' has been expressed by the term
> 'immediate intuition’ (vijnana)


It's ironic that a vague phrase "immediate intuition" which presumably
involves some vRtti, is acceptable to you, while the word brahmAkAra vRtti,
is a red rag.

 Please also notice the need to say vijnAna, samyak-jnAna etc when jnAna
word should have been enough.

 PSA is clear that the prAmANya of shruti is not in any way contradicted by
mere mention of BKV. I repeat - the mere mention of BKV should not become
red rag.

Please see this carefully - when someone takes to elaborate and systematic
shravaNam etc (SMN) with some degree of sAdhana chatuShTaya but not in full
or sufficient measure, what do you think will happen? Your "immediate
intuition" may not take place notwithstanding elaborate shravaNam and
mananaM.

Such a half-ready mind may well appreciate the powerful yuktis and
prakriyas. It's not as if he or she will have no clue about what is said in
shAstra. Certain very subtle vRttis will still arise related to the
shAstra. And yet such a sAdhaka still needs to acquire pratibandhaka
nivRtti *even after* shravaNam etc. Thus there is no denial of shruti as
pramANa if it is said that, even after shravaNam-mananaM, in most cases,
some sAdhana apexA is still there.

 For some people this sAdhanApexA is fulfilled by repeated shravaNam and
mananaM itself. For others it may involve sitting quietly and
seeing/highlighting in the mind the essence, of the already-completed
shravaNam. Such a sitting practice conforming to shravaNam hardly amounts
to any new pramANa. And such quiet sitting  practice culminates in the
shravaNa-janita vRttis becoming free of all vagueness, doubt and
viparIta-bhAvanAs, culminating in the arising of the much-maligned BKV
(which is an exact synonym of your preferred word samyak-jnAna-vRtti).

Now the chronologically earlier shravaNa-mnana-janita vRttis of this
particular type of madhyama adhikArI sAdhaka are called
sapratibandhaka-jnAna-vRttis and BKV is apratibandhaka-jnAna-vRtti. This
is  anubhava-sammata and lokAnubhava of many who take to intense shravaNam
and mananaM having partial degree of sAdhana chatuShTaya.

So, as you see, your objection is without basis viz., the
apratibandhaka-jnAna-vRtti aka BKV aka samyak-jnAna-vRtti immediately
destroys avidyA (negates the wrong notions as you prefer to have it).

The sAdhana post-shravanaM and mananaM is a *cognitive journey* to allow
the pramANa to operate as it should , ie a journey from from
sapratibandhaka-jnAna-vRtti to apratibandhaka-jnAna-vRtti aka BKV. It's not
a mere mechanical repetition of the words heard during shravaNam. That is
not what PSA or anyone is talking about much less repetition of a vRtti
which then "produces" some other jnAnam.

I also observe that the word "immediate intuition" is also not found in PTB.

Om
Raghav





in the passage, 'Verily, through seeing the
> Self, through hearing about it, through thinking of it and through knowing
> it (in immediate intuition, vijfiana), all this (world) becomes known'
> (Bfhad.II.lv.5). That meditation (dhyana) is a prerequisite of immediate
> intulticn is not denied. But it is immediate intuition, and not meditetion
> and the rest of the discipline, that is ultimately required to realize the
> goal of liberation.(Vedanta Prakriya Pratyabinna/Method of the Vedanta
> p365).
>
> Awakening to immediate knowledge of the supreme Self de¬ pending on no
> external factor is called Nididhyasana. It is mentioned after seeing and
> hearing to show that they culminate in that.... One's first knowledge of
> the Self is through hearing, and then one ponders over what one has heard.
> When hearing and pondering are complete, one comes to have immedi¬ ate
> knowledge of the Self.... Because the use of the word 'Nididhyasana' (lit.
> 'sustained meditation') might lead the hearer to suppose that meditation
> was meant, the Upanishad deliberately uses the term 'immediate intuition’
> (vijnana) as a synonym for it at Byhadarajpyaka II.iv.5, to show that medi¬
> tation is not here meant. I already mentioned earlier how meditation and
> other practices are a means to immediate ex¬ perience . But immediate
> experience does not exist for the sake of anything else. It is taught to be
> just liberation.attainment of the final goal of all. (Sureswara in B.B.V.
> II.iv.217,220,
>
> On Tue, Feb 4, 2025 at 7:45 AM Michael Chandra Cohen <
> michaelchandra108 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Namaste Venkat,
> > // I think you are alleging qualities to the akhandakara vritti that were
> > not intended. How is quoting Naishkarmya Siddhi passages refuting
> > prasankhyana relevant when no one is claiming that the vRtti arises out
> of
> > meditation.  //
> > I am alleging that it is an improper depiction of PTB to conclude that
> > meditation or any kind of effort or repetition culminates in
> Brahmajnanam.
> >
> > //That samyak-dhI of Sureshvara which Shankara refers as to as
> > AtmaikyavidyA in the adhyAsa bhAShya, (अस्यानर्थहेतोः प्रहाणाय
> > आत्मैकत्वविद्याप्रतिपत्तये सर्वे वेदान्ता आरभ्यन्ते) is the akhanDAkAra
> > vRtti.//
> > Quite a hopeful stretch to seek confirmation of Akhandhakara vritti in
> the
> > prayojanam of Adhyasa Bhasya. Atmaikatva vidya is not a thought/vritti
> but
> > the culmination of the prahanaya of adhyasa.
> >
> > So again, I implore mulavidya vadins to discover any statement in PTB
> > referring to Brahmakara vritti or any of its cognates as a pramana. In
> > fact, suggesting BKV etc. as sufficient method contradicts
> > sruti's declaration as the ONLY pramana for Brahmajnanam.
> >
> > 🙏🙏🙏
> >
> > On Tue, Feb 4, 2025 at 7:15 AM Michael Chandra Cohen <
> > michaelchandra108 at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> >> Namaste Vikram,
> >> Excellent, I appreciate the style of your presentation.
> >>
> >> //5. The content of this samyak jnana is the oneness (ekatvam) of
> >> Brahman-Atman.//
> >> Samyak jnana is opposed to it's opposite - viparita & samshaya jnanan.
> It
> >> cannot be ekatvam or else it would not qualify as an ever-changing
> vritti.
> >> At the same moment, samakala eva, as the dissolution of viparita jnanam,
> >> Ekatvam consumes all distinctions.
> >>
> >> “Thus also it is a fact that, although the knowledge of the Self results
> >> in instantaneous liberation, yet its instruction is imparted with the
> help
> >> of some relationship with some conditioning factor.” BSB1.1.12
> >> Thus, a clear distinction between samyak jnanam and atma jnanam
> >>
> >> //Specific technical details can be found in Vedanta Sara as well.//
> >> Yes, I am sure but seeking confirmation outside of PTB is the essence of
> >> the problem. If we strictly limit our understanding to PTB, these issues
> >> should not arise.
> >> 🙏🙏🙏
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> On Tue, Feb 4, 2025 at 4:00 AM Raghav Kumar Dwivedula via Advaita-l <
> >> advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:
> >>
> >>> Namaste Michael
> >>> PSA understanding of nididhyAsanam is that it is pramANa vyApAra.
> >>>
> >>> It's not a mere repetition of a vRtti like an upAsana or prasaMkhyAna.
> >>>
> >>> The NKS reference by you is well-known as referring to the mImAmsaka
> idea
> >>> of using "aham brahmAsmi" as a kind of ahaMgrahopAsana or prasaMkhyAna
> -
> >>> a
> >>> mere repetition of a vRtti not involving any pramANa operation.
> >>>
> >>> As often happens,  SSS misunderstood PSA view on nididhyAsanam which is
> >>> for
> >>> viparIta-bhAvanA nivRttiH ;  PSA nididhyAsanam view viz.,
> "AtmasaMstham
> >>> manaH kRtvA na kincit api cintayet (gita 6th chapter)"  is for removing
> >>> obstacles to the shruti pramANa operation .
> >>>
> >>> The same word nididhyAsanam is used in Brahma siddhi of Sri  Mandana
> >>> Mishra
> >>> which has led to SSSS misrepresenting PSA's logical and shruti-sammata
> >>> understanding of the samyak-jnAna-vRtti and thinking that PSA is
> echoing
> >>> brahma siddhi.
> >>>
> >>> PSA clearly asserts that the avAkyArtha (if we insist on the word) is
> >>> nothing but the lakShaNA vRttiH understanding of the mahAvAkya by
> >>> shravaNam; not by prasaMkhyAna.
> >>>
> >>> If SSSS and co. insist that PSA is talking only of nididhyAsanam as
> >>> prasaMkhyAna, then they are just tilting at quixotic windmills.
> >>>
> >>> Om
> >>> Raghav
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> On Mon, 3 Feb, 2025, 10:34 pm Michael Chandra Cohen via Advaita-l, <
> >>> advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:
> >>>
> >>> > Namaste Sudhanshuji,
> >>> >
> >>> > Only Bhagavan can say why? But what does that prove? I am only
> >>> intending to
> >>> > voice sastra and acharya in my comments - not proclaim an independent
> >>> > authority.  Even moksa-claiming teachers may misguide students
> without
> >>> > clear knowledge of sruti. How about your answer to the same question?
> >>> >
> >>> > On Mon, Feb 3, 2025 at 8:30 AM Sudhanshu Shekhar <
> >>> sudhanshu.iitk at gmail.com
> >>> > >
> >>> > wrote:
> >>> >
> >>> > > Fine Michael ji.
> >>> > >
> >>> > > So, has it happened in your case? I mean, you have heard the
> >>> shAstra. And
> >>> > > also from a teacher. Has the avidyA been removed, or the wrong
> ideas
> >>> been
> >>> > > negated?
> >>> > >
> >>> > > If not, then why not?
> >>> > >
> >>> > > Regards
> >>> > > Sudhanshu Shekhar.
> >>> > >
> >>> > > --
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