[Advaita-l] [advaitin] Brahmakara vritti refuted

[Sudhanshu Shekhar]

Namaste Michael ji.

How do you understand the following sentence from Chhandogya Upanishad
bhAshya:

अद्वैतज्ञानं मनोवृत्तिमात्रम्। That is -- advaita-jnAna is manO-vritti only.

Translation by Swami Gambhirananda:

//As the nondual realisation (advaita-jnAna) is a mere mental modification
(manO-vritti), so also are the other meditations (upAsanA) forms of mental
modifications.

Herein lies their similarity.

Objection: Where then, lies the difference between the nondualistic
realisation (advaita-jnAna) and meditation (upAsanA)?

Vedāntin: The nondualistic realisation demolishes the cognition of all such
differences as agent, instrument, action and results, which are naturally
superimposed on the actionless Self, just as knowledge in the form of
imposition of a snake etc. on a rope etc. is destroyed by the realisation
of the true nature of the rope etc. But meditation (upAsanA) means
establishing a continuous flow of similar modifications of the mind in
relation to some object as presented by the scriptures, (and) uninterrupted
by any foreign idea. This is the distinction.//

If you read this carefully Michael ji, it is clear that advaita-jnAna which
leads to MOksha is stated unambiguously by BhAshyakAra to be a manO-vritti.

This is what is referred to as akhaNDAkArA-vritti.

Please note that there is no contradiction of this bhAshya-vAkya with the
quotations provided by you which state that Brahman is not an object of any
vritti. Brahman is aprameya, avishaya. However, since avidyA regarding
Brahman is removed by this manO-vritti, Brahman is stated as vritti-vyApya.
When avidyA regarding Brahman is removed by advaita-jnAna, which is nothing
but a manO-vritti, the self-luminous Brahman reveals itself.

Regards.
Sudhanshu Shekhar.