ThirOdhAnAnupapaththi:
"api cha 'nirviSesha-jgnyAna-mAthram brahma,
thancha AachchAdikA-avidyA-thirohitha swaswarUpam swagathanAnAthvam pasyathi"
ithiyayamarthO na ghatathe | thirOdhAnam nAma prakASanivAraNam |
swaswarUpAthirEkiprakASa-dharmAnabhyupagamyEna,prakASasyaiva
swarUpathvAth swarUpanASa Eva syAth |'prakASaparyAyam jgnyAna nithyam |
sa cha prakASa:avidyA-tirOhitha:' ithi baliSabhAshitham"
The argument of Advaita regarding the Brahman getting covered by avidyA is not fit to be told before scholars. Even layman will not accept that because SrI Adi Sankara's Advaita is against logic and rational thoughts. This is not in any way exaggeration. The illogical and irrational nature of Advaita can be easily understood from the following discussion.
Advaita says that the Brahman is only jgnyAna-swarUpam (knowledge-self-reality) and that jgnyAna-swarUpam is itself swayam-prakAsam (illumines to itself without any aid and itself becomes object of its own illumination) and nityam (eternal). Advaita also states that the Brahman, which itself is swayam-prkAsam, gets covered/obstructed by the avidyA and hence gets bewildered and knows itself as"jIvAtman" and falls into the illusion of jagath (world). They say that "Brahma Satyam Jagath mithyA", which means that the "Brahman is the truth and the universe is falsehood". They have imagined the concept of avidyA only to "explain" the "jagath".
Now, the following illogical nature in SrI Adi Sankara's Advaita is outlined as follows:
If Adviata's above-mentioned points regarding
"avidyA covering/obstructing the Brahman" were admitted,
then it would mean that the "swayam-prakAsam"
is destroyed when Brahman gets covered/obstructed by the avidyA. Advaita
has admitted that "swayam-prakAsam" is Brahma-swarUpam. Advaita advocates
"nirviSesha Chin-mAthram Brahma". They do not admit any attributes (dharmam).
Therefore, Advaita cannot argue that "swayam-prakAsam" is different from
Brahman because,it is not a dharmam according to them. The cover/obstruction
of avidyA on Brahman is "ThirOdhAnam". That is, the "prakAsam" is destroyed
when avidyA covers the Brahman. This directly means that the Brahman-swarUpam
is destroyed.
Therefore the Advaita cannot establish that the Brahman is "nityam" eternal. This simply means that the own words of Advaita refute Advaita. The philosophy of Advaita is not fit to be told before scholars and rationalists.
Advaita may argue the same way telling that the similar case arises with jIvAtman in Visishtadvaita. It may argue that "In your matham, jIvAthman is jgnyAna swarUpa. But he is lost when he is bound by karma in samsAra. How come you call him as "nitya:"?
Is not the same logical mistake that you
pointed out in our philosophy present in your philosophy too? If you refute
this,
then the same refutation can be used by
us to refute your point!" Thus is the presumable argument of Advaita.
To refute this argument, Bhagavath Ramanuja says:
"EvamabhyupagachchathAmasmAkam Aathma-dharma-bhUthasaya
chaithanyasya swAbhAvikasyApi
karmaNa pAramArthikam sankOcham,vikAsam
cha brubathAm sarvamidam parihrutham; bhavathasthy
prakASa Eva swarUpamithi prakASO na dharmaBhUtha:
thasya sankOchO vikAsOvA nAbhyupagamyathE | prakASaprasarAnuthpaththimEvathirOdhAnabhUthA:
karmAdaya: kurvanthi |
avidyA chEth,thrirOdhAnabhUthayA thayA
swarUpabhUthaprakASanASa: pUrvamEvOktha:asmAkam thu
avidyArUpEN karmaNA swarUpanithydharmabhUthajgnyAnaprakASa:
sankuchitha: |
tEna devAdiswarUpAthmAbhimANO bhathIthiviSesha:
yathOktham "avidhyA karma-sangnyA-anyA trutIyA
SakthirishyathE |
yayA kshEthra SakthisA vEshtitA nrupa
sarvagA |
samsArathApanakhilAn avApnOthyathisanthathAn
|
thayA thirOhithathvAncha Sakthi: kshEthragnya
samgnythA |
sarvabhUthEshu bhUpAla thArathamyEna varthathE
|| ithi |
kshEthragnyAnAm swadharmabhUtha jgnyAnasya
karma samgnyayA
avidyayA sankOcham vikAsam cha darSayathi
||
In Visishtadvaita, all entities are "saviSesham" as told by the SAstra. The jIvAthman has dharma-bhUtha-jgnyAna as his attribute. The karma called avidyA makes only this attribute jgnyAna of the jIvAthman to undergo contractions and expansions. The jIva-swarUpa is not affected at all.
Therefore, the jIvAthman is "nithya:" in
Visishtadvaita.Therefore, there is no scope of such error in
Visishtadvaita.
Advaita cannot use this refutation to counter-argue
because Advaita's key point is "nirviSesham". The error, therefore, very
much exists in Advaita.
| Previous | Next | Preface | TOP |