sribhashya-purvapaksha concluded

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Thus consciousness is identical with existence because it is real

and persists in all cognitions. But the sanmAthra, existence, being

perceived becomes an object of consciousness and hence cannot be

identical with it and only different from it. Advaitin meets this

objection by saying that it has already been shown that the

difference cannot be the object of perception nor can it be defined

by any pramANa. Hence existence cannot be proved as an object of

consciousness as it is not expereinced through any pramANa and hence

it is identical with it.

 

Existence is svathassiddha, self-proved, being consciousness. If it

depends on any other proof it will become an object of experience

like a pot. It is always manifest while it exists and does not need

any other consciousness to reveal it except itself. A thing by which

everything else is illumined does not require an external agent for

its own manifestation, like a lamp.

 

But at the time of perception of a pot, there is only the knowledge

that this is a pot. The cognition of the pot, anubhuthi, comes

later. The pot is illumined by the indriyARthA sannikarsha, the

contact of the indriya, eye, with the object, pot.The anubhuthi, 'I

know the pot,' follows later and according to the school of

MimAmsakas, the BhAttAs,

( followers of KumArila Bhtta) this cognition is not through

perception but by anumAna, inference. Thus the anubhuthi , being the

object of anumaAna, becomes jada, insentient and not self

illuminating, ajada, as claimed by the advaitin.

 

Advaitin contends that this ajadatvam pointed out by the opponent is

not in any way a violation, vyabhichAra, of the self-illumination of

the sattha.That is, the cognition 'I know the pot,' is also

illumined by the consciousness which is identical with the sattha.

Hence its jadathva is not the criterion. For instance the experience

of sukha is also not cognised at the first moment but only when the

consciousness that ' I am experiencing sukha' arises. Moreover the

sattha, consciousness is the cause of all jnAna, cognition, it cannot

cognize itself as the tip of the finger cannot touch itself.Therefore

anubhuthi cannot be known through inference or through any other

cognition. Hence anubhuthi, conscousness which is the cause of all

cognitions is self- proved.

 

Consciousness is eternal and so has neither beginning nor end. There

can be no prior or posterior nonexistence as that could be cognised

only by conscousness which would have been nonexistentat that time.

Consciousness is devoid of all plurality, being unoriginated. That

which is eternal must be one only and not many. All that is non-self

is excluded from the self and hence the Self, that is consciusness,

cannot have any other knower but itself.

 

Neither the concept of knower as 'aham jAnAmi, I know,' can said to

be the attribute of consciousness because knower is an object of

consciousness, in the form of awareness that 'I know.' The concept of

knower, jnAtrthA is bhraAnthimoola, illusory like the silver in

nacre.Every cognition like 'I am a man' etc. is the product of the

ego, which itself is unreal and hence cannot be the attribute of

consciousness. In sushupthi,deep sleep or murcchA, swoon when the

ego is absent, the consciusness is present,as otherwise there would

not have been the awareness 'maamapi aham na jnAthavAn, I did not

know even myself, and hence the ego functions only through body, mind

and intellect. Therefore the witness-self,sAkshi is different from

the ego. Even though it is jada, insentient, the ahamkara, ego,

reflects the consciousness which is changeless, and creates an

appearance as though it is the ego. This is just like the moon being

reflected in the water, miiror etc. and creates an illusion that it

is in them. It may be doubted as to how the self illumined

consciousness can be illumined by insentient objects like ego. In

actual practice we see that the rays of the Sun or of a gem falling

on the hand manifest the light which is not existent there.

 

The MahApurvapaksha is concluded with the words,' thasmAth

paramArTHathah nirasthasamasthabhedhavikalpa-

nirviseshachinmAthraikarasakutasTHanithyasamvid Eva bhrAnthyA

jnAthrjnEyajnAnarupaviviDHavichithrabhedhA vivarthatha ithi

thanmoolabhoothAvidhyAnibarhaNAya nithya

suddhabuddhamukthasvabhAvabrahmAthmaikathvavidhyAprathipatthayE sarve

vEdaAnthAh Arabhyantha.'

 

Therefore in reality, only the consciousness which is devoid of all

differences,changes and attributes, which is the permanent Reality,

appears as the manifold differences of knower,known and knowledge. So

to remove the avidhya which is the cause of the appearence of

diversity the study of vedantha should be started to get the

knowledge of Brahman which is by nature suddha, purity itself,

buddha, intelligence and muktha, everfree.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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