Guest guest Posted July 13, 2006 Report Share Posted July 13, 2006 Ramanuja quotes the sruthi texts to prove this point. 'Sa yaThA sainDHavaghanah anantharah abAhyah krtsnah rasaghana Eva, Evam vA arE ayam AthmA anantharh abAhyah krtsnah prajnAna ghana Eva, as a piece of salt has no inner parts and outer parts but the whole of it is of salt only ,similarly this Athma has no inner and outer parts but the whole of it is pure intelligence, meaning a sentient principle only. 'Athra ayam purushah svayamjyothirbhavathi,' The Self, Purusha is self illuminated. Suthrakara also shows that AthmA is the knower by the suthra 'jnOatha Eva.' Therefore the AthmA who is svayamprakAsa is the knower. Perception cannot be AthmA. The words samvid, anubhuthi and jnAnam are relative terms and there can be no perception without an object which is proved by experience. Advaitin then says that anubhuthi is AthmA because it is ajada, sentient. Ajadathva means it is cognised by its own existence and does not need another to illuminate it as in the case of things which are jada, insentient like a pot. This lumonosity being the substance itself and not an attribute, is found even in a lamp which is not the AthmA. If on the other hand ajadthva means that which is always manifest, this characterestic is found in mental impressions like sukha and duhkha because when the feeling of happiness or sorrow arises it is always manifest. That is, one cannot say "I did not know that I am happy." It may be argued that the sukha and duhkha do not manifest to themselves but to the Self only, and hence they are jada, but Ramanuja asks,' jnAnam vA kim svasmai prakAsathE? Thadhapi hyanyasaiva ahamarTHasya jnAtyuh avabhAsathE, aham sukhee ithivath, jAnAmyaham ithi.' Even the knowledge does not manifest to itself but onlyto the knower and the perception that 'I know' is similar to that which is of the form 'I am happy.' Therefore ajadathvam does not imply svasmai prakAsamAnathvam, shining for itself. If ajada means what shines by itself by its mere existence it refers only to AthmA which is not mere knowledge as claimed by the advaitin but is the knower. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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