[Advaita-l] [advaitin] Brahmakara vritti refuted

[Raghav Kumar Dwivedula]

Namaste Michael ji

On Wed, 5 Feb, 2025, 4:09 pm Michael Chandra Cohen via Advaita-l, <
advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:

> Namaste All ji-s,
> HH SSS on Brahmakara Vritti --
>
> METHOD OF ACQUIRING TATTWANISHTHA
> Previously, it had been stated that the seeker should practise
> 'Smriti Santana' or continuous, relentless remembering (contemplation)
> of Advaita (non-duality, Pure Absolute Being-Consciousness),
> is it not so ? Here a doubt arises : "Only after the mind
> stuff assumes the fonn of the external object, the knowledge or
> cognition of the object ensues? But Atman does not have any
> form at all ! It being so, how at all is there any possibility of
> any Atmakara y'netti or a mental concept of the form of the Self
> being acquired ? If it is not there, then how at all can one attain
> .A.tmajfiana ?"
> For this, the solution is : 'Atmajiiana' does not mean -
> 'acquiring the mental concept of the form of Atman'.

I think this is called a strawman argument. No one says BKV means
"acquiring the mental concept of the form of Atman", least of all PSA.

For, Atman
> is Himself, without being dependent upon anything else, familiar
> (i.e. innately, intrinsically known universally). It being so, where
> is the need at all for a Y.ritti (mental concept, thought-construct)
> about or pertaining to Him ?

This is the exact place where SSS gets it totally wrong. Thank you for
sharing this. It's helpful.

Since He is verily the Self (Intuitive
> non-dual Being, Experience per se) of the 'Jijiiasu' (the seeker
> of this Self-Knowledge), He does not have any hindrance, impediment
> obstructing His cognition. When the A vivekins (nondiscriminative,
> ignorant people) have allowed themselves to be
> attached to or· bound by thoughts about aspiring for or hankering
> after the external (transient) objects alone, they naturally have
> acquired a deep-seated misconception, is it not so ? To get rid
> of this alone is Atmajfiana needed. Everyone entertains the concept
> of 'I' ; but in it there is intricately included a misconception
> which has blended (mysteriously, as it were), with Anatman (notSelf)
> which is not one's real Self. Getting rid of this misconception
> alone is the genuine Atmajfiana in esse.
>

"Getting rid of misconception" involves the antaHkaraNa, one way or
another. That's inevitable.

"Getting rid of misconception" does not occur in outer space. it involves
antaHkaraNa vRttis culminating in the carama vRtti nominally called BKV.

I wonder if there is any nyAya when, in a discussion, someone negates an
assertion and then goes on to again assert the same view? (equivalent to
shvashrU-nirgaccha nyAya?)


Om
Raghav

>
> Continued here:
>
> http://www.adhyatmaprakasha.org/php/bookreader/templates/book.php?type=english&book_id=034&pagenum=0209#page/265/mode/1up
>
> On Wed, Feb 5, 2025 at 1:54 AM Jaishankar Narayanan via Advaita-l <
> advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org> wrote:
>
> > Namaste,
> >
> > Some quotations from PTB for those who want to understand what the shruti
> > is revealing. It is not for those who do an exact word search using a
> > search engine or AI.
> >
> > For vrittivyAtpti and phalavyApti
> >
> > एवं च सति दृष्टिरेव स्वरूपमस्य अग्न्यौष्ण्यवत् , न काणादानामिव
> > दृष्टिव्यतिरिक्तः अन्यः चेतनः द्रष्टा ॥ तद्ब्रह्म आत्मानमेव
> > नित्यदृग्रूपमध्यारोपितानित्यदृष्ट्यादिवर्जितमेव अवेत् विदितवत् । ननु
> > विप्रतिषिद्धम् — ‘न विज्ञातेर्विज्ञातारं विजानीयाः’ (बृ. उ. ३ । ४ । २)
> इति
> > श्रुतेः — विज्ञातुर्विज्ञानम् । न, एवं विज्ञानान्न विप्रतिषेधः ; एवं
> > दृष्टेर्द्रष्टेति विज्ञायत एव ; अन्यज्ञानानपेक्षत्वाच्च — न च
> > द्रष्टुर्नित्यैव दृष्टिरित्येवं विज्ञाते द्रष्टृविषयां
> > दृष्टिमन्यामाकाङ्क्षते ; निवर्तते हि द्रष्टृविषयदृष्ट्याकाङ्क्षा
> > तदसम्भवादेव ; न ह्यविद्यमाने विषये आकाङ्क्षा कस्यचिदुपजायते ; न च दृश्या
> > दृष्टिर्द्रष्टारं विषयीकर्तुमुत्सहते, यतस्तामाकाङ्क्षेत ; न च
> > स्वरूपविषयाकाङ्क्षा स्वस्यैव ; तस्मात् अज्ञानाध्यारोपणनिवृत्तिरेव
> > आत्मानमेवावेदित्युक्तम् , नात्मनो विषयीकरणम् ॥  (बृ. उ. भा. १ ।  ४  ।
> १० )
> >
> > evaṃ ca sati dṛṣṭireva svarūpamasya agnyauṣṇyavat , na kāṇādānāmiva
> > dṛṣṭivyatiriktaḥ anyaḥ cetanaḥ draṣṭā ॥ tadbrahma ātmānameva
> > nityadṛgrūpamadhyāropitānityadṛṣṭyādivarjitameva avet viditavat । nanu
> > vipratiṣiddham — ‘na vijñātervijñātāraṃ vijānīyāḥ' (bṛ. u. 3 । 4 । 2) iti
> > śruteḥ — vijñāturvijñānam । na, evaṃ vijñānānna vipratiṣedhaḥ ; evaṃ
> > dṛṣṭerdraṣṭeti vijñāyata eva ; anyajñānānapekṣatvācca — na ca
> > draṣṭurnityaiva dṛṣṭirityevaṃ vijñāte draṣṭṛviṣayāṃ dṛṣṭimanyāmākāṅkṣate
> ;
> > nivartate hi draṣṭṛviṣayadṛṣṭyākāṅkṣā tadasambhavādeva ; na hyavidyamāne
> > viṣaye ākāṅkṣā kasyacidupajāyate ; na ca dṛśyā dṛṣṭirdraṣṭāraṃ
> > viṣayīkartumutsahate, yatastāmākāṅkṣeta ; na ca svarūpaviṣayākāṅkṣā
> > svasyaiva ; tasmāt ajñānādhyāropaṇanivṛttireva ātmānamevāvedityuktam ,
> > nātmano viṣayīkaraṇam ॥ (bṛ. u. bhā. 1 । 4 । 10 )
> >
> > NididhyAsana
> >
> > कथं पुनरुपासनस्य पक्षप्राप्तिः, यावता
> > पारिशेष्यादात्मविज्ञानस्मृतिसन्ततिर्नित्यैवेत्यभिहितम् ? बाढम् —
> > यद्यप्येवम् , शरीरारम्भकस्य कर्मणो नियतफलत्वात् , सम्यग्ज्ञानप्राप्तावपि
> > अवश्यंभाविनी प्रवृत्तिर्वाङ्मनःकायानाम् , लब्धवृत्तेः कर्मणो
> बलीयस्त्वात् —
> > मुक्तेष्वादिप्रवृत्तिवत् ; तेन पक्षे प्राप्तं ज्ञानप्रवृत्तिदौर्बल्यम् ।
> > तस्मात् त्यागवैराग्यादिसाधनबलावलम्बेन आत्मविज्ञानस्मृतिसन्ततिर्नियन्तव्या
> > भवति ; न त्वपूर्वा कर्तव्या ; प्राप्तत्वात् — इत्यवोचाम ।
> > तस्मात्प्राप्तविज्ञानस्मृतिसन्ताननियमविध्यर्थानि ‘विज्ञाय प्रज्ञां
> कुर्वीत’
> > (बृ. उ. ४ । ४ । २१) इत्यादिवाक्यानि, अन्यार्थासम्भवात् ।  (बृ. उ. भा. १ ।
> > ४  । ७)
> >
> > kathaṃ punarupāsanasya pakṣaprāptiḥ, yāvatā
> > pāriśeṣyādātmavijñānasmṛtisantatirnityaivetyabhihitam ? bāḍham —
> > yadyapyevam , śarīrārambhakasya karmaṇo niyataphalatvāt ,
> > samyagjñānaprāptāvapi avaśyaṃbhāvinī pravṛttirvāṅmanaḥkāyānām ,
> > labdhavṛtteḥ karmaṇo balīyastvāt — mukteṣvādipravṛttivat ; tena pakṣe
> > prāptaṃ jñānapravṛttidaurbalyam । tasmāt
> > tyāgavairāgyādisādhanabalāvalambena ātmavijñānasmṛtisantatirniyantavyā
> > bhavati ; na tvapūrvā kartavyā ; prāptatvāt — ityavocāma ।
> > tasmātprāptavijñānasmṛtisantānaniyamavidhyarthāni ‘vijñāya prajñāṃ
> kurvīta'
> > (bṛ. u. 4 । 4 । 21) ityādivākyāni, anyārthāsambhavāt । (bṛ. u. bhā. 1 ।
> 4 ।
> > 7)
> >
> > तस्मात् आत्मा वै अरे द्रष्टव्यः दर्शनार्हः, दर्शनविषयमापादयितव्यः ;
> > श्रोतव्यः पूर्वम् आचार्यत आगमतश्च ; पश्चान्मन्तव्यः तर्कतः ; ततो
> > निदिध्यासितव्यः निश्चयेन ध्यातव्यः ; एवं ह्यसौ दृष्टो भवति
> > श्रवणमनननिदिध्यासनसाधनैर्निर्वर्तितैः ; यदा एकत्वमेतान्युपगतानि, तदा
> > सम्यग्दर्शनं ब्रह्मैकत्वविषयं प्रसीदति, न अन्यथा श्रवणमात्रेण ।  (बृ. उ.
> > भा. २ ।  ४  । ५)
> >
> > tasmāt ātmā vai are draṣṭavyaḥ darśanārhaḥ, darśanaviṣayamāpādayitavyaḥ ;
> > śrotavyaḥ pūrvam ācāryata āgamataśca ; paścānmantavyaḥ tarkataḥ ; tato
> > nididhyāsitavyaḥ niścayena dhyātavyaḥ ; evaṃ hyasau dṛṣṭo bhavati
> > śravaṇamanananididhyāsanasādhanairnirvartitaiḥ ; yadā
> > ekatvametānyupagatāni, tadā samyagdarśanaṃ brahmaikatvaviṣayaṃ prasīdati,
> > na anyathā śravaṇamātreṇa । (bṛ. u. bhā. 2 । 4 । 5)
> >
> > अथ इदानीं ध्यानयोगं सम्यग्दर्शनस्य अन्तरङ्गं विस्तरेण वक्ष्यामि इति तस्य
> > सूत्रस्थानीयान् श्लोकान् उपदिशति स्म — (भ.गी.भा. ५ । २७ )
> > atha idānīṃ dhyānayogaṃ samyagdarśanasya antaraṅgaṃ vistareṇa vakṣyāmi
> iti
> > tasya sūtrasthānīyān ślokān upadiśati sma — (bha.gī.bhā. 5 । 27 )
> >
> > Many more reference in Bh. Gita 6th Chapter
> > यत्र यस्मिन् काले उपरमते चित्तम् उपरतिं गच्छति निरुद्धं सर्वतो
> > निवारितप्रचारं योगसेवया योगानुष्ठानेन, यत्र चैव यस्मिंश्च काले आत्मना
> > समाधिपरिशुद्धेन अन्तःकरणेन आत्मानं परं चैतन्यं ज्योतिःस्वरूपं पश्यन्
> > उपलभमानः स्वे एव आत्मनि तुष्यति तुष्टिं भजते  (भ.गी.भा.  ६ । २० )
> > yatra yasmin kāle uparamate cittam uparatiṃ gacchati niruddhaṃ sarvato
> > nivāritapracāraṃ yogasevayā yogānuṣṭhānena, yatra caiva yasmiṃśca kāle
> > ātmanā samādhipariśuddhena antaḥkaraṇena ātmānaṃ paraṃ caitanyaṃ
> > jyotiḥsvarūpaṃ paśyan upalabhamānaḥ sve eva ātmani tuṣyati tuṣṭiṃ bhajate
> > (bha.gī.bhā. 6 । 20 )
> >
> > with love and prayers,
> > Jaishankar
> > _______________________________________________
> > Archives: https://lists.advaita-vedanta.org/archives/advaita-l/
> >
> > To unsubscribe or change your options:
> > https://lists.advaita-vedanta.org/cgi-bin/listinfo/advaita-l
> >
> > For assistance, contact:
> > listmaster at advaita-vedanta.org
> >
> _______________________________________________
> Archives: https://lists.advaita-vedanta.org/archives/advaita-l/
>
> To unsubscribe or change your options:
> https://lists.advaita-vedanta.org/cgi-bin/listinfo/advaita-l
>
> For assistance, contact:
> listmaster at advaita-vedanta.org
>