vyAvahArika (empirical) satyatva of universe

[Guest guest]

praNAms

Hare Krishna

 

This universe wherein we do our day to day business...(that is including

vaidik as well as loukik) is not an illusion according to shankara!! The

*vyavahAra* what we do everyday has its own validity for testing reality

and unreality!!...(ofcourse we do brahma jignAsa in vyavahAra only).

Advaita does not say even in vyavahAra this universe is an illusion & only

mental creation!! It is the assertion of buddhists who deny the reality

to external objects... They something like since the independent existence

of the outside object is inconceivable it is the idea alone that appears as

thought it were outside!! (kindly pardon me if I said anything wrong about

buddhists-vijnAnavAdins)..But advaita does not negate the reality of

external objects in the vyAvahArika satya...shankara says in sUtra bhAshya

" it is on the evidence or want of evidence of some valid means of

knowledge, that we have to determine the conceivability or the

inconceivability of the existence of a thing and *not* vice versa" (

kindly refer shankara's bhAshya on sUtra *na abhAva upalabdeH* in

abhAvAdi karaNa ).

 

But when it comes to pAramArthik view point (absolute view point) shankara

clearly asserts in his preamble to sUtra bhAshya : " it is on the

presuppositions of the superimposition of the Atman and the un-Atman called

*avidyA* that all conventions of pramANa and pramEya (means and objects of

knowledge- *sarva pramANa pramEya *vyavahAraH loukika vaidikascha

pravruttaH) and all the shAstra whether injuctive (vidhi) and prohibitive

(nishEdha) or teaching liberation (mOkSha)...This sweeping statement of

shankara once again proves that in paramArtha even vEda-s are no vEda (atra

vEda avEda, even gods are no gods (dEvAH adEvAH)...bruhadAraNyaka asks us :

"when to the wise one, All has become the Self ALONE, then what will He see

and with what, what will He hear and with what.....what will he know and

with what?"

 

Atmaikatva or the unity of Atman/brahman is the only absolute truth all

sruti-s emphasizing...even while the distinction of sentient and insentient

nature remains quite real from the empirical standpoint. Under these

circumstances, where is the question of two entities (brahman & universe) &

exercise of identifying them together!!!

 

Hari Hari Hari Bol!!!!

bhaskar