Shankara?

July 27, 2007

Why do members of this group value the teachings of Shankara as

opposed to, say, Ramanuja or other vedantins?

Richard

July 28, 2007

Shree Richard,

PraNAms.

Shankara is the exponent of the advaita doctrine and

this is advaita list that accepts advaita is the

ultimate truth that is emphasized by the mahavaakyaas

in the Vedanta.

Ramanuja emphasizes dvaita in the form of vishishhTa

adviata - that Brahman has internal differences just

as the body is made of many organs, each organ

different from the other, yet all organs together

constituting the body. In the same way, Brahman is

one but jiivas and jagat, that is, the beings and the

inert world constitute the body of the Lord. Hence

they are part of the Lord. Each one separate from the

ohter but not separate from the Lord. There is

eternal organic relation between jiivas and the Lord,

but not the identity relation as emphasized by

mahavaakyaas as per adviata. Even in moksha, the

jiiva will remain as eternal servants of the Lord -

that constitutes liberation.

Other philosophers do not even accept such relation

between jiivas and the Lord.

There are other list serves that cater to the needs of

Ramanuja's philosophy as well as the others

philosophies that you mentioned.

This list serve exclusively serves the advaita

philosophy catering to those who accept that advaita

is the ultimate truth as emphasized by mahavaakyaas of

the Upanishads.

Hope your question is answered.

Hari Om!

Sadananda

--- Richard <richarkar wrote:

> Why do members of this group value the teachings of

> Shankara as

> opposed to, say, Ramanuja or other vedantins?

>

> Richard

>

July 28, 2007

Dear Advaitins and all the members listed here,

At the outset I wish to say hello to all the members in this message board.

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Kamakshi Subramaniam and I

currently reside in the Midwestern region of the United States- specifically

in the Detroit Suburb area. I am a new member here.

I wish to answer this question put forth by Mr. Richard- Why is Advaita- or

rigorous monism more appealing to certain people (especially to the Smarthas

as we call ourselves which distinguishes our no dualistic faith from others)

than the other binary vendantic school of thought?

I think I have the answer to this question based on my own experiences.

Several times have I been pounded with this very question when I first began

to attend a local Bhagavad Gita session here as to why I chose to read Swami

Chinmayananda's version above all else. (Swamiji was a staunch Advaitin).

It is interesting to note that I was also ambivalent in the beginning as to

which Gita book to refer to. Initially I was inflicted with so many thoughts

such as - Why do we have so many differing philosophies to begin with? Why

did some over zealous scholars denounce one method or the other claiming its

superiority or questioning the veracity of another school of thought? Some

of the interpretations are dubious and exaggerated so my sincere advice is

not to delve deeper into such comparisons as texts that attempt to claim the

superiority of one over the other.

Of course we are all completely aware of the fact that it is only in the

interpretation of the Atman's relationship with Brahman where the difference

arises. These interpretations in my view are only an addendum to the core

ideologies and the tenets which remain homogeneous across all the differing

school of thought such as Vashista Dvaita, rigorous Dvaita or the hybrid

varieties.

So why does one to the Advaita Vendata as opposed to the other

schools of thought?

First of all, for most of us we are born Smarthas so it is natural that we

are much inclined to continue the practices of our foreparents and carry on

what we have been inculcated with or introduced to from our childhood days.

My grandmother has always been a staunch devout of Shankara's preachings and

an active participant in the Kanchi madam events. Even though she did not

speak much about his philosophy to me, I realize that I have been a scilent

observer during the formative days. She has been instrumental in creating

this religious aura in my life. " Familiarity in certain cases does not breed

contempt but love " . I have noticed that this is also true in the western

world. I once asked my friend Dr. Samuel Johnson as to why he chose to go to

the Lutheran church and his instant reply was- this is the church my mother

went to a long time ago!

For the followers of the Sanathana Dharma (I wish to use this word rather

than the term Hindu) it is imperative that we surrender to a bona-fide

spiritual Guru before we begin the crusade towards seeking the truth in

life- as we proudly put it. The word " surrender " plays a vital role here. We

are not talking about surrendering our physical presence- but also our mind,

our body, our intellect, and our very soul at the least. In Bhagavad Gita

Lord Krishna clearly states that we are to pledge our allegiance (if you

will)- to one and the only bona-fide Guru, who can lead us from the

ephemeral to the eternity. So in other words if you to the Advaita

Vedanta and you have decided to choose an Advaitin as your Guru (which I am

sure that all of us in the message board have) - YOU BETTER STICK TO IT. We

do not question the authenticity of the core ideologies however we are

allowed to ask questions to remove certain doubts from our minds. I believe

this is a major driving force for most of the advaitins to stick to one

philosophy- which I am sure is also the same with the non advaitins as well.

But neither does Christianity nor the any other religious groups for the

matter, question the basic tenets of their faith- in Christianity they are

even labeled as heretics right? for abandoning their faith or not adhering

to the rules and doctrines of the church?

It is well known that Shankara's Vedanta is the oldest extant school of

thought amongst the Vedantic institutions of Indian Philosophy and it is

natural that he has more followers because most people have stuck to this

Vedantic preachings for a long long time and chose not to deviate from it?

And the last but not the least- the most appealing part of this vedantic

philosophy is fact that it preaches equality of all race, caste, creed,

beings -non as well as living beings; and I am sure that all the Advaitins

in this message board will unanimously agree that true advaitins will never

discriminate. Shankara himself was humbled by an outcaste with 4 dogs after

which he blatantly opposed the caste system much to the dismay of the other

groups during his contemporary times. This is by far the most appealing part

to me....if we can live in absolute unity respecting all creations of god

why would we have segregation problems? And we definitely want more of this

in this world today!

For me it was a combination of all the above aforementioned bulleted points

for becoming a staunch advaitin. I was never hounded to follow the footsteps

of my fore fathers it came naturally to me. What appeals to me is the most

is the fact that in the Advaita Vedanta we are all described as being a

manifestation of the Supreme Being termed as Brahman, and not just a portion

of the Brahman that dissolves into the supreme holistic force but a

representation of the entire Brahman itself implying qualitative and

quantitative symmetry- forming a Nirguna Brahman. That binds all of us

together and makes us equal- we all have the same Atman after all.

No matter which philosophy you to- ultimately the destination for

all is the same- everything leads to Moksha- All roads definitely leads to

Rome here! The path that one follows is different though.

But for some, Shankara- a peripatetic monk- is a representation for a divine

figure and for me he is the manifestation of Godhood- he was after all a

strong rejuvenating force of the Sanathana Dharma (one of the very first)

and was extremely successful in his pursuits and endeavors. It is obvious

that highly successful monks have an appealing story attached to their

lives. Their very life is an example for us to follow. Take Jesus Christ as

an example. He was an exemplary scholar and a great saint! It is therefore

not surprising that in the Christian world he is referred to as the Son of

God. For the Advaitins, Shankara is a reincarnation of Lord Shiva and hence

we feel that God himself came down to teach us these fundamental concepts of

truth to relieve us from Samsara. He being a noteworth saint and the torch

bearer of the Advaita Vedanta- It is no doubt that Shanakara’s life story is

appealing. His doctrines are appealing. His approach is cosmopolitan and

appealing. Considering all these, Shankara remains our ultimate Guru. Enough

said. I have given a good dose of philosophy to all the members here this

morning.

I am sure that most of the Advaitins would list some of the same reasons for

choosing the Advaita Vedanta above all else. Any other thoughts from the

others?

Thank you,