Beyond
Nirväëa
notwithstanding
the relative fact that although undesirable, it is still far
better
than the false existence of a monist realisation where one desires
to
impossibly become ‘One’ with brahman. The
modern brand of liberation
proposed
by Çré Çaìkaräcärya is fictitious and illusory – there is not a
shred of
spiritual reality in it.
The
Vedic Concept of Time Calculation
In India, one
discovers that the modern figures for the duration of the
first
three yugas, Satya, Tretä and Dväpara, and the number of years so
far
expired in the present and fourth Kali-yuga, has been surreptitiously
calculated
by Western scientists, via their Indian counterparts. These
people are
generally referred to as modern day Vedic ‘scholars’ most of
them being
hugely influenced by a vast plethora of non-Vedic western
concepts.
Working alongside these scholars are a class of astrologers who
base their
calculations on mundane empirical or speculative sciences. In
the
opinion of some of them, a total of approximately 7,500 years have
passed
since the beginning of Satya-yuga till now. This school of modern
‘scholarship’
also puts forward unsubstantiated theories that the Äryans
were some
kind of white skinned, nomadic horsemen who migrated from
central
Asia, invading northern India
in 1500 BC. They usually go on to
make
nonsensical claims that these same barbarian nomads brought the
ultra
sophisticated Sanskrit language into India and wrote the Rg Veda as
well.
Ideas and speculations like these are not in line with Vedic thinking
and have
yet to be conclusively proven, despite being presented as ‘ancient
Asian
history’ in many universities and institutions of higher education
around the
world.
There is a
well known astronomical axiom called the ‘Precession of
the
Equinoxes’ which enables a proficient astrologer to accurately calculate
the dates
of ancient events, providing one has the specific astronomical
references.
Using this astronomical system it is scientifically possible to
determine
the relative time frame of a particular event over a 25,000 year
cycle
which is the time it takes our solar system to go around the pivotal
sun known
as Polaris, or the Pole Star. For example; in the Kauñétaki
Brähmaëa
XIX.3 it is mentioned that a winter solstice occurred on the
night of
the new moon in the month of Mägha. This can accurately be
determined
to be approximately 3000 BC. So in this way, by studying the
astronomical
references found in the Vedas, accurate dates and times can
be known.
This is an appropriate way to calculate the chronology of the
divine
incarnations of Lord Viñëu in different universal epochs.
87
According
to this system, the Çesa and Haàsa avatäras appeared
in
the
Satya-yuga which ended 2,160,000 years ago. The Tretä age began at
this point
and lasted 1,296,000 years, during which time Lord Räma
appeared
in the royal solar dynasty and enacted His pastimes as recounted
in the
Rämäyäna. Dväpara-yuga was the next yuga which
lasted 864,000
years. At
the tail end of the Dväpara-yuga the Supreme Lord Kåñëa
appeared
along with His primary expansion Lord Balaräma and enacted
countless
transcendental pastimes. These included His blissful childhood
pastimes
as the divine cowherd of Vraja, after which the overthrowing of
His evil
uncle Kaàsa, and latterly His central role in the epic Mahäbhärata.
At the
core of this epic is the famous battle of Kurukñetra, before which
Çré Kåñëa
spoke the sublime Bhagavad-Gétä to His confidential friend and
devotee
Arjuna.
Vedic
texts like Çrémad-Bhägavatam describe how the universe
progresses
through periodic cycles and sub-cycles of vast cosmic time, in
which Lord
Kåñëa, the Original Godhead manifests His transcendental
pastimes
only once in a great span of sub-cyclic time known as a ‘day’ of
Brahmä or
the equivalent of 4,320,000,000 earth years (four billion, three
hundred
and twenty million solar-earth years). Let me give perspective
to these
cycles from the viewpoint of our present ‘modern’ era. The Kaliyuga
began
approximately 5,000 years ago and lasts for a span of 432,000
years.
Near the beginning of the Kali-yuga, some thirty-five hundred years
ago the
Viñëu Avatära Buddha appeared at Bodhi Gaya in present day
Bihar, India (1500
BC). One thousand years later, Çakya Siàha Buddha
was born,
(around 563 BC) at Kapilavastu in Nepal. Then, in approximately
700 A.D.
the Vaiñëava äcärya, Viñëusvämé, empowered by Lord Çiva
established
the Rudra Sampradäya and preached the philosophy of çuddhaadvaita-
vada.
Çaìkaräcärya took birth in 786 A.D. at Chidambaram, Kerala
and
promulgated his Mäyäväda hypothesis, which dramatically drove Çakya
Siàha’s
concept of Buddhism outside the borders of India. Thus in
chronological
order the respective personalities appeared as follows:
__ Lord
Buddha- 1500 BC
__ Çakya
Siàha Buddha- 563 BC
__ Viñëusvämé-
700 AD
__ Çré Çaìkaräcärya-
786 AD
After
Çaìkaräcärya, in three successive centuries, there appeared the
famous äcäryas
of the remaining three authorised Vaiñëava lineages:
__ Ramänuja-äcärya-
1017-1137 A.D
__ Nimbärka-äcärya-
1130-1200 A.D
__ Madhva-äcärya-
1238-1317 A.D
Mäyävädism
in the Four Yugas
88
Beyond Nirväëa
Each of
these äcäryas are considered transcendental personalities who
were
divinely empowered to expose the fallacy of the Mäyäväda hypothesis,
by
simultaneously revealing different, unique aspects of the Absolute Truth.
Rämänuja,
empowered by Laksmi Devi, established the Çré Sampradäya.
Madhaväcärya,
empowered by Brahmä, established the Brahmä
Sampradäya,
while Nimbärka empowered by the Four Kumaras established
the
Nimbärka Sampradäya. Each of these äcäryas expressed
in different
schools,
the individual identity of the jiva, and it’s
personal nature in
relation
to the Supreme. These four schools of philosophy are listed as:
__ Viñëusvämé
- Çuddha-advaita-vada.
__ Rämänuja-äcärya
- Vasistadvaita-vada.
__ Nimbärka-äcärya
- Dvaita-advaita-vada
__ Madhva-äcärya
- Dvaita-vada
These four
legitimate, genuine Vaiñëava lineages routed Mäyävädaism
throughout
India
and firmly set the stage for the appearance of the last
incarnation
of the Supreme Lord Kåñëa as Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu in
the year
1486 at Mayapur in Bengal.
Çré
Caitanya Mahäprabhu unified the four sampradäyas into one
harmonious
philosophy, showing that each äcärya was
setting the
foundations
for a gradual revelation of the complete Truth. This was shown
by His
acceptance of two principles from each of the four Vaiñëava äcäryas.
From
Rämänuja He accepted the concept of unalloyed devotion untainted
by karma
(material gain) and jïäna (monism)
and service to the Vaiñëavas.
From
Madhväcärya He accepted the complete rejection of Mäyävädism
and the
principle of deity worship of the form of the Supreme Lord Kåñëa.
From
Viñëusvämé, He accepted the philosophy of total dependence on
Kåñëa and
the beauty of spontaneous devotional service; while from
Nimbärka
He accepted as the topmost ideal, the exalted love that the
gopés
(cowherd maidens) exhibited for Kåñëa in His Vraja pastimes, and
the
necessity of taking exclusive shelter of them. Unifying the four
sampradäyas, He
revealed the aphorismacintya-bheda-äbheda-tattva which
is the
philosophy that the Supreme Lord, by his unfathomable
transcendental
potency is inconceivably (acintya),
simultaneously ‘one
with’ and
‘different’ from His creations.
Çré
Caitanya appeared to reveal the most esoteric and confidential truths
relating
to the living entities’ relationship with the Supreme, and at the
same time
gave practical instruction on how that relationship could be
awoken
from its dormant state. The saìkértan mission2
of Çré Caitanya
quite
literally exploded as an all embracing movement that shook the
Vedic
world to it’s roots, attracting sincere and enlightened men and
89
women
regardless of race, caste, or creed. It is interesting to note that
while this
devotional rebirth was taking place in India, the shock waves
of change
were simultaneously reaching the West in the form of the
European
renaissance. A beautiful quote from Caitanya Caritämåta, Madhya
lilä,
chapter 17, verse 233 succinctly illustrates:
jagat
bhäsila caitanya-lilära päthäre
yäìra
yata çakti tata päthäre säìtäre
The
whole world floated by the inundation of the pastimes of Çré
Caitanya
Mahäprabhu. One could swim in that inundation
according
to the extent of one’s spiritual power.
Çré
Caitanya Mahäprabhu’s sublime pastime directs our attention to
an
unfolding truth. Like the banks of the river Gaìgä, the land rises and is
hidden
again with the movement of the water over the centuries. The
truth
sometimes appears partially, each new chapter being divinely
arranged
to shed further light and understanding. Çré Caitanya’s saìkértan
mission is
as eternal as it is contemporary. It is the fullest expression of
salvation,
the most magnanimous manifestation of creation, the most
benevolent
expression of compassion, a universal panacea for a suffering
world
assailed by the onslaught of Kali.
The
Heliodorus Column
Heliodorus
was a Greek ambassador to India
200 years before the
birth of
Christ. As a foreign diplomat, he obviously had the full confidence
of the
Grecian government and would have possessed a sophisticated
understanding
of the world as it existed at that time. It is not however,
his
political and diplomatic record that he is most well-known for,
especially
within the archaeological community, but rather the
construction,
in 113 BC, of a monumental pillar at Besnagar in Madhya
Pradesh, India. Although
it is now known as the Heliodorus column, in
all
archeological circles and literatures this pillar is acknowledged as a
‘Garuòa-stambha’
similar to the one situated at the famous Jagannätha
temple in
Puri, Orissa, India. To the common man, the
existence of this
column is
not so well known, but in archeological circles it is quite rightly
considered
an ancient phenomena whose discovery gave a profound
perception
of the universal influence of Vedic culture throughout the ages.
In light
of the fact that the western countries received the vast majority of
their
knowledge and assumptions from the Greek civilisation, it makes
this a
significant and unique archeological discovery of world wide
importance.
Mäyävädism
in the Four Yugas
90
Beyond Nirväëa
The
Heliodorus column first came to the attention of the western
intelligentsia
in 1877 during a British archeological expedition headed by
Sir
Alexander Cunningham. After analysing the style and form of the
column,
Cunningham incorrectly deduced that it was erected during the
reign of
the Imperial Gupta period, (second century AD) never dreaming
that,
underneath the coating of red silt at the bottom of the column, there
lay a
hidden inscription. However thirty-two years later in 1901, an
independent
researcher accompanied by Dr. J.H Marshall, had the coating
of red
silt removed. On closer inspection, an inscription was brought to
light
revealing that the pillar was factually erected in the second century
BC and not
in the Imperial Gupta period as had been previously assumed.
Dr.
Marshall described in an article he wrote in the ‘Journal of the Royal
Asiatic
Society’ that Cunningham had miscalculated the age of the column
and could
never have imagined the value of the discovery that he had let
slip
through his fingers. The language was Prakrit, a Sanskrit derivative,
and one
look at the ancient Brahmi inscription chiseled into the base
clearly
indicated that the Garuòa-stambha was many centuries older than
the 200
AD. This came as a great surprise to Dr. Marshall, but what
amazed
him, and later also electrified the international archeological
community,
was the translation of the ancient Brahmi script itself:
devadevasya
väsudevasya garuòa dhvajaù ayaà kärétaù
heliodoreëa
bhägavatena diyasa putreëa täkñaçiläkena
This
Garuòa pillar is dedicated to Väsudeva, the Lord of lords,
and
has been erected here by Heliodorus, a follower of the
Bhägavata
devotional path, the son of Dion, and a resident of
Täkñaçila.
Täkñaçila
is Taxila, and according to the book ‘Select Inscriptions on
Indian
History and Civilization’ by Professor Dines Candra Sircar,
published
by the University
of Calcutta, the exact
location of Taxila is in
the
Räwalpindi District of present day West Pakistan.
yavanadütena
ägatena mahäräjasya antalikitasya upäntät sakäçaà
räjïah
käçé
putrasya bhägabhadrasya trätuù varñena caturdaçena räjyena
vardhamänasya
Who
has come as ambassador of the great King Antialkidas, to
the kingdom of King Bhägabhadra the son of the Käçé,
the
protector,
now reigning prosperously on the fourteenth year of
his
kingship.
91
To very
briefly try to put this in perspective, we should remember that
Greece’s
greatest philosophers, starting with Pythagoras who lived in 560
BC,
Socrates in 450 BC, Hippocrates (400 BC), and Plato and Aristotle
(350 BC),
had by this time already preached their doctrines, promulgated
their
philosophies, compiled their books and begun to spread their
influence.
Ambassador Heliodorus, being among the educated Greek elite
in the
second century BC, would most certainly have been familiar with
all of
their philosophies and reputations. In mind of this social and
historical
background, it is all the more illuminating that the Greek
ambassador
Heliodorus became an avid Vaiñëava devotee of Väsudeva
Kåñëa and
left a monumental pillar in the form of a Garuòa-stambha as
testament
to this, for all of posterity. In 1955 after tremendous research
Dr. M.D.
Khare uncovered in the same area the remains of a huge temple
complex
dedicated to the worship of Lord Kåñëa and dating to the same
period.
To
conclude this brief section - it is clear and interesting that in the
broad
expanse of history, we can uncover minute personal details that
shed light
on an individual’s life experience and events of personal
transformation.
Thanks to Heliodorus and his column, we can see that
Vaiñëavism
was an exquisite enough philosophy to capture the hearts of
refined
and cultured Greeks (and catholic enough to admit them into its
ranks),
even at a time when Indian and European cultures were largely
ideologically
separate.
Çakya
Siàha
Çakya
Siàha Buddha was born approximately one thousand years after
the
appearance of Viñëu Avatära Buddha. Differing theories exist regarding
the exact
year of Çakya Siàha’s birth. Vedic scholars determined he lived
from 563
BC – 483 BC, while Mahäyänic Buddhists calculated 566- 486
BC.
Irregardless of the extact date, what is clear is that after an extended
break the
Mäyäväda school of thought again received a tremendous boost
from this
point on and continued to spread (albeit in various forms) for a
thousand
years as Buddhism until the appearance of Çré Çaìkaräcärya’s
appearance.
It has already been discussed that Çaìkaräcärya’s Mäyävädism
is
Buddhism with a different nomenclature. The inveterate monist, the
venerable
Rajendranätha Ghosa writes in his book Advaita siddhi, that:
Mäyävädism
in the Four Yugas
92
Beyond Nirväëa
‘From the
time of Çakya Siàha Buddha’s appearance up to the
time of
Çaìkaräcärya’s appearance, the precepts of monism were
vigorously
propagated under the banner of Buddhism’.
Statements
of well-known monist scholars such as venerable Çré Ghosa,
firmly
establish this truth that there is no difference between monism and
Buddhism.
(Footnotes)
1 Räkñasa: An
ancient demoniac creature described in the Vedas; which
possesses
mystical powers.
2 The saìkértan
mission of Lord Caitanya is based on the Vedic scriptural
injunction
(i.e. Kali santarana Upaëiñadä) that the yuga-dharma
is the
congregational
chanting, remembering and glorifying of the Holy Name of
Bhagavän
Çré Kåñëa. Lord Caitanya’s implementation of the yuga-dharm
externally
validates the Vedic references to Him as the yuga- avatära – and
the direct
full incarnation of Çré Kåñëa.
93
The
Changing Shapes of Mäyävädism
Seven
Philosophical Schools
Mäyävädism,
like the multi-hooded Hydra, existed in many forms under
different
appellations. The following seven were the main schools of
Mäyäväda
thought:
__ Sage
Cäåvaka’s epicurean school of atheism
__ Jina’s
Jainism or Arhata
__ Kanada’s
atomic theory of Vaiçeñika
__ Gautama
Åñé’s system of logic and rhetoric, Nyäya
__ Sage
Kapila’s school
of Säìkhya
__ Pataïjali’s
Yoga system
__ Jamini’s
Mémäàsa (which argues that if there is a God, he is
not
omnipotent).
Mäyävädism
in these variant forms became hyperactive and spawned
a plethora
of promulgation outlets in an attempt to devour the
transcendental
Vedic concept of acintya–dvaita–advaita–Vaiñëava-siddhänta
– the
Vaiñëava ontological precept that the Supreme Lord and all His
multifarious
energies are transcendental. Thus, they are not bound by
material
considerations, and are inconceivably, simultaneously dual and
non-dual,
one and different. The reason these other philosophies are also
termed as
Mäyäväda is because they consider the divine ‘energy’ herself
as mäyä
or illusory, and all their debates and discourses focus on and are
anchored
in the mundane and the phenomenal. The above philosophies
became
especially rampant during the intervening period between Çakya
Siàha
Buddha and Çaìkaräcärya.
In a
peculiar but predictable twist to their successful propagation work,
they ended
up bitterly bickering amongst themselves, not able to bear
each
other’s ascendancy. This debilitating infighting undermined their
collective
endeavours, a direct consequence of which was, fortunately for
human
society, the near collapse of Carvaka’s Nastikya school of atheism.
The same
fate also followed Jainism. When Çré Çaìkaräcärya appeared on
the scene
in 786 AD he saw these disparate groups of Mäyävädis
embroiled
in internecine strife, and resolved to find a way to bring them
to share
the same podium. He selected from each of them a few
philosophical
points, but pruned and interpolated them to suit his needs
on the
pretext of making them coherent and congruent. In doing so he
then used
them to further bolster his own philosophy. If one factually
scrutinises
these seven philosophies with a fine-toothed comb, one will
conclude
that with the addition of Çakya Siàha’s voidism and
Mäyävädism
in the Four Yugas
94
Beyond Nirväëa
Çaìkaräcärya’s
brahman-ism there are in total, nine Mäyäväda
schools of
thought.
For the present it is not possible to expatiate with comprehensive
arguments
and quotes on the reason for terming the above seven
philosophical
schools of thought as Mäyävädism. However, if necessary,
we shall
do so in a separate book in the future.
Bharttåhari
Approximately
150 years prior to Çré Çaìkaräcärya’s appearance,
Bharttåhari
created a cult based on the teachings of the Upaniñadäs and
gave
Mäyävädism a new direction. He took support of Buddhist arguments
and
rhetoric and then established a set of conclusions based on the
Upaniñadäs.
With the creation of this new ‘Vedic’-based cult he attempted
to preach
and spread Buddhism in the name of Hinduism. Bharttåhari was
a contemporary
of the famous Buddhist Amara Siàha, and it is believed
that the
two were half-brothers, both being the sons of the famous
Buddhist
Sabara Svämé. It is probable that Çré Çaìkaräcärya gleaned many
pertinent
points from Bharttåhari in order to promulgate his own brand
of
Mäyävädism. Bharttåhari’s new Upaniñadä-based cult of Buddhism
became the
mouthpiece of Mäyävädism.
The
True Face of Mäyävädism
Gauòapäda
Gauòapäda’s
biography sheds a great deal of light on the history and
biography
of Mäyävädism. Hence it is enormously relevant to discuss his
life and
works. Not only did Çré Çaìkaräcärya have an extremely intimate
bond with
him, but also most of Çaìkaräcärya’s philosophical conclusions
were
constructed by using his arguments and rhetoric as their foundation.
Çaìkaräcärya’s
guru was Çré Govindapäda whose guru
was Çré Gauòapäda
– this
means Çré Gauòapäda was Çré Çaìkara’s ‘grand-guru’,
(sometimes
Gauòapäda
is also referred to as Gaurapäda). Çré Govindapäda did not
write a
book or leave behind any writings. As such although Saìkaräcarya
was
formerly inducted into brahmanism by Govindapäda, it was his ‘grand
guru’ who
helped form his philosophy and therefore Gauòapäda is factually
Çré
Çaìkaräcärya’s çikñä-guru (instructing spiritual master).
During
Çaìkaräcärya’s
time, his brand of Mäyävädism acquired such a formidable
stature
that whenever the followers of the Indian Hindu society of
Sanatäna-dharma
referred to ‘Mäyäväda’, they meant only Çaìkaräcärya
and his
followers. Thus to know more about Çaìkaräcärya we must turn
to his
real instructing çikñä-guru, Gauòapäda, and find out more about
him. The
following information is found in ‘Harivamsa’:
95
paräçara-kulotpalaù
çukonäma mahäyaçäù
vyäsäd
araëyäà saàbhüto vidhu moha’gniriva jvalan
satasyäà
pitå-kanyäyäm viriëyäm jana yañyati
kåñëaà
gauòam prabhuà çambhum tatha bhuriçrutam jayam
kanyäà
kértimatià ñañöhém yogéném yogamätaram
brahmadattasya
jananém mahisé mänuhasya ca
Çuka
appeared in the illustrious family of Paräñara Muni as the
son of
Çréla Vyäsa in the womb of Arané. Çuka fathered Kåñëa,
Gauòapäda,
Sambhu, and Jaya in the womb of Virini. He also
fathered
daughters like Kirtimati and his sixth child Mahisi, a yogéni,
who
gave birth to Brahmadatta, a descendant of Manu. Some
persons
confuse the two Çukas – one mentioned in the Çrémad-
Bhägavatam
in the verse çuka kanyayam’ brahmadattam ajijanat
and
the other, Çukadeva Gosvämé, the son of Çréla Vyäsadeva and
Vitika,
was a life long celibate, hence there is no question of him
having
progenies. The other Çuka, (also known as Chaya Çuka),
entered
householder life and is the one referred to in the
Harivaàsa.
Çréla
Çrédhara Svämé writes in his commentary to this verse:
yadapi
çuka utpattyeva vimukta-saìgo
nirgatas
tathäpi virahäturaà vyäsa
manuñänta
dåñövä chäyä çukaà nirmäya gatavän
tad
abhipräyenaivam gärhasthyädi
vyavahäraù
ityaviodhaù sa ca
brahmadatto
yogé gavé vacé sarasvatyäm
From
birth, the great sage Çukadeva was renounced and left home
immediately.
However, when he saw his father Çréla Vyäsadeva
afflicted
by the pangs of separation from him, Çukadeva
manifested
an exact replica of himself and left again, this time for
good.
His mystically expanded replica is Chaya Çuka, who entered
household
life and fathered children. Brahmadatta (his grandson)
was a yogé
who had both mind and senses under control, residing
on the
banks of the sacred river Sarasvaté.
There is
no contradiction regarding the renounced Çukadeva Gosvämé
in the
above. The Devé Bhagavata specifically mentions that Gauòapäda
was the
son of Chaya Çuka, and some scholars believe that Gauòapäda
received
initiation from his own father. So it is clear that Gauòapäda was
born into
a powerful family of saints and sages, a clear indication of the
The
Changing Shapes of Mäyävädism
96
Beyond Nirväëa
important
role he would soon play in assisting the ‘cosmic drama’ that
was
unfolding with the imminent appearance of Çré Mahädeva Çiva as
Çaìkaräcärya.
Born as the son of Chaya Çuka and Vériëi, he soon impressed
everyone
with his scholarship and erudition. He is one of the brightest
stars in
the firmament of Mäyävädism. His timeless contribution to the
world of
philosophy is his two commentaries – Säëkhya-kärikäand
Mäëòukya-kärikä.
These two kärikäs (commentaries) are the
cornerstones
of Mäyävädism.
Refuting
the Guru’s Views
Çaìkaräcärya
compiled his own commentary based on Gauòapäda’s
kärikäs. The
famous Mäyäväda scholar and philosopher Väcaspati Miçra
was a
contemporary of Çré Çaìkara. He wrote the commentary Tattvakaumudi
to confute
Gauòapäda’s kärikäs and one needs only to refer to
his
statement ‘51’ to be completely free of any doubts as to his intention.
A general
practice among the Mäyävädés is that they habitually undermine
the
authority and reputation of the person or persons they depend on
most for
support and help – ‘biting the hand that feeds’. Similarly
Çaìkaräcärya
showed his true colours as a seasoned Mäyävädé in his
Çärérika
Bhäñya commentary to Vedänta Sütra, when he attempted to
undermine
Çréla Vyäsadeva, the compiler of the Vedas. The illustrious
poet Çréla
Kåñëadäsa Kaviräja Gosvämi has succinctly penned this betrayal
in his Çré
Caitanya-caritämåta Adi 7/121:
vyäsera
sütrete kahe ‘pariëäma’-väda
‘vyäsa
bhränta’ – bali’tära uöhäila viväda
Çréla
Vyäsadeva’s ‘Vedänta-sütra’ describes that everything in
reality
is a transformation of the Supreme Lord’s divine energies.
However,
Çaìkaräcärya has deceived the innocent public by
commenting
that Çréla Vyäsa was mistaken, and raised a hue and
cry
over this statement of truth.
To prove
his misdeeds, we cite a couple of examples: Çré Çaìkara tried
his utmost
to twist the meaning of the Vedänta-sütra to favour his theories,
but his
attempts backfired. In his commentary to sütra 1/1/12 –
‘änandamäyäù
abhyäsät’, he tried to juggle the meaning of änandamayo
which means
‘the One who is saturated bliss’, and alone refers to
Parabrahman,
the Supreme Godhead. Regardless, Çré Çaìkara tried
desperately
to extrapolate that änandamayo refers to impersonal brahman,
and not a
Supreme Personality. According to him, the affixed ‘mäyän’
in
‘änanda’
implies that the impersonal brahman accepts a vikara,
(transformation).
But in truth, only the Lord’s energies or çaktis are
97
transformed
without Kåñëa Himself having to accept any transformation
or
modification. If the true meaning of ‘mäyäh’ was
accepted by
Çaìkaräcärya,
his theory that brahman is impersonal would have to be
instantly
rejected. Consequently frustrated in failing to come up with a
coherent
explanation to refute Çréla Vyäsadeva, he unabashedly reverted
to
character assassination and declared that Çréla Vyäsadeva had composed
a faulty sütra
claiming- “it should have been ‘ananda’ without
the affix
‘mäyäh’, because ‘ananda’
refers only to brahman”.
Çaìkaräcärya
did not stop at defaming only Çréla Vyäsadeva, but went
to the
extent of offending his own çikñä-guru
Çré Gauòapäda, from whom
he had
received all his original training. He tried to confute Gauòapäda’s
kärikäs, finding
fault in them. Çré Çaìkara wrote in his book Ajïänabodhini
– anavagatau
brahmatma bhavam syat – about Gauòapäda, asserting that
his guru
was ‘devoid of knowledge of brahman’, and
therefore inexperienced
and
ignorant about spiritual subject matters. How is it possible that a
person,
knowledgeable in the Vedas could affront his çikñä-guru
and
preceptor,
and still dare to present himself as a torch bearer of the Vedic
tradition?
The Vedas categorically condemn offences to one’s own guru,
how then
can anyone take Çré Çaìkaräcärya as anything other than an
aparädhi
(offender) or take his words seriously.
Çré
Çaìkara’s Birth
Çaìkaräcärya
was the guardian of Mäyävädism, the prime exponent
and
propagator of voidism, the initiator of the modern form of monism
and the
crest jewel of the Mäyäväda lineage. Practically all educated,
literate
persons are familiar with the story of his birth, at least those in
India. Many
learned persons from the Çaìkara cult have effusively penned
his
eulogies in biographical works such as Çaìkara Vijaya and Çaìkara
Digvijaya.
Further information and incidences of his life are also available
in
authoritative treatises of the Mädhva cult such as ‘Mädhva Vijaya’ and
‘Manimanjari’.
The Mädhva cult and the Çaìkara cult are opposed to each
other. To
draw a composite picture of Çré Çaìkara’s biography it is
therefore
imperative to harvest facts from both these sources and their
authorised
media. In addition to these sources there are plenty of
biographical
works written about Çré Çaìkara. Thanks to all these reliable
sources we
think it unnecessary to dwell at length on this topic.
There are
numerous opinions regarding the exact date of Çré Çaìkara’s
birth. Our
personal estimate is that he was born approximately 700 years
after
Christ in the village of Chidambaram in Kerala, South
India. His
mother was
a brähmaëi (female brähmaëa) named Viçiñöhä who married
The
Changing Shapes of Mäyävädism
98
Beyond Nirväëa
the
brähmaëa Viçvajita. For a very long time the couple were unable to
have a
child, which destroyed family life for a deeply morose Viçvajita
who,
cutting all bonds, left home and entered the forest to live as a hermit.
Later,
this same Viçvajita became famous as Çivaguru.
The
following account is an excerpt from the ‘conclusion’ of the
Çabdärtha
Maïjaré by Çivanatha Çiromani, published in the Bengali era
1308:
“Viçiñöhä
was left all by herself in the home. In her solitude
she lived
piously and vowed to worship the village deity of Lord
Mahädeva,
Çiva, daily, making this her life purpose. She became a
disciple
of the temple’s head priest and fully surrendered herself
in her
worship of Lord Çiva, applying her body, mind and soul.
However,
an amazing incident soon happened, she became
pregnant.
The word spread like wild fire. The council of righteous
men in the
village ostracised her from the village thinking her to
be immoral
and unchaste. Viçiñöhä, unable to bear the shame,
insult and
false accusations from the community, resolved to take
her own
life. At this time, Viçiñöhä’s father, Maghamaëòana,
received
providential instructions in a dream saying: ‘Lord Çiva
has
incarnated in Viçiñöhä’s womb, make sure she does not end
her life’.
Maghamaëòana immediately went to his daughter and
dissuaded
her from committing suicide. After a short while, under
the care
and nursing of her father, Viçiñöha gave birth to Çaìkara.
Çaìkara
was an extremely intelligent and talented child. He
completed
his studies on Saëskåit grammar and glossary even
before his
sacred-thread initiation. After initiation (upanayana)
at the age
of eight he began his Vedic studies. Very quickly he
went
through studying the Vedas and then concentrated his
attention
on mastering the six schools of Vedic philosophy and
the
Upaniñadäs. It is known that Çaìkara was apathetic towards
family
life and material existence, and his entire time was taken
up by
scriptural studies and worshipping Lord Çiva.
Once
Çaìkara was accompanying his mother to another
village,
when they had to cross a narrow and shallow rivulet on
the way.
As they began to wade through the water, the mother
was
suddenly aware that young Çaìkara was drowning. Çaìkara
was her only
son, sole family member and meant more to her
than her
own life. Seeing him in that condition was more than she
could bear
and her heart began to shudder. Watching from only a
little
distance she became paralysed with fear, as he seemed unable
99
to save
himself. It must have been a most pathetic scene as the
helpless
mother stood rooted to the ground, powerless to rescue
her only
child. Finally she waded out to him and in this drowning
condition
he made his mother promise to give him permission to
take sannyäsa. He said,
“Mother if you do not promise to allow
me to
enter the renounced order, I will not make the least attempt
to save
myself.” Finding no other recourse she desperately agreed
to his
demand. Çaìkara then lifted himself from the water and
returned
home with his mother.”
From the
above narration about Çaìkaräcärya it can be easily concluded
that he
was unsuccessful in his attempts to convince his mother to grant
him
permission to enter the renounced order, a spiritual order meant to
benefit
the entire world. Neither scriptural injunctions nor any form of
consoling
words helped him to convince her. Instead he inveigled his
abandoned
mother into giving him permission to take sannyäsa by
pretending
to drown in a shallow rivulet, taking full advantage of her
weakness
due to maternal feelings and sympathy. This sort of duplicity
and
emotional blackmail is probably not known in the annals and
biographies
of other great personalities. When Çré Caitanya, the universal
spiritual
master of every living entity, embraced the renounced order of
sannyäsa, He did
so with the blessing of His aged mother Çacédevé and the
consent of
His young, beautiful wife Viñëupriya Devé. He had patiently,
and with
deep understanding of the condition of their mind and heart,
made them
realise the importance of His decision. Indeed, one must not
forget
that Lord Caitanya is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who
appeared
to perform transcendental pastimes for the benefit of the entire
world,
while Çré Çaìkara is the incarnation of His dear devotee, Lord
Çiva.
The fact
of the matter is that Çré Çaìkara did not hesitate to use any
means or
method available, be it chicanery, duplicity, or aggression to
achieve
his desired objective whenever logic and argument failed him. By
his extraordinary
scholarship and genius he penned scores of books. His
commentaries
on Brahma-Sütra and selected Upaëiñadäs, which
complimented
his theories, are all exceptional literary accomplishments
and his
treasured legacy to the world. He travelled widely with the sole
objective
of promulgating and cementing his views and philosophy. He
embarked
on a world conquest. A few incidences on his ostensible victories
are
narrated below.
The
Changing Shapes of Mäyävädism
100
Beyond Nirväëa
Çaìkara
Vijaya
One of
many impressions one gets from reading Çaìkaräcärya’s
biography
is that he had to debate on the scriptures with many Çmärta
brähmaëas
(ritualisitc brähmaëas), Çaivites, Çäktas (Devé worshippers)
and
Käpälika (Tantrikas of the left-hand path, which ignores scriptural
rules and
regulations). A certain Käpälika by the name of Ugrabhairava,
from
Mähärashtra became Çré Çaìkara’s disciple, but under bizarre
circumstances.
In debate Çré Çaìkara was unsuccessful in refuting his
arguments
and satisfactorily answering the questions posed by him, rather
he became
convinced by his points. By a previously agreed draconian
pact and
wager, the loser of the debate would have to offer his severed
head as
prize to the winner. It was only on the intervention of Çré Çaìkara’s
senior
disciple Padmapäda that the Käpälika was finally defeated
successfully
saving his guru from certain death.
In another
incident Çré Çaìkara was locked in an acrimonious debate
with one
Krakaca, a guru of the Käpälika sect in Karnätaka.
Çré Çaìkara
found he
had exhausted all his arguments without successfully convincing
Krakaca,
and was forced to beat a hasty retreat. In an attempt to save his
face and
reputation, he induced the king of Ujjaini, Sudhanvä to execute
Krakaca on
trumped-up charges.
In one
shameful incident, this time in Assam,
Abhinava Gupta, a Çäkta
(worshiper
of Durga Devé), was impressed by Çré Çaìkara’s personality
and
influence and became his disciple after an inconclusive debate on
Mäyävädism.
However, Abhinava’s disciples refused to follow their guru
in
surrendering to Çré Çaìkara because their guru could not
convince
them about
the superiority and absolute position of Mäyävädism. Çré
Çaìkara
perceived this as an affront and falsely accused Abhinava Gupta
of
inflicting him with an unpleasant skin infection delivered through a
dark tantrika
curse – at least this is the heresay. Whatever the case may
be it is
quite clear that neither Abhinava Gupta nor his disciples were
convinced
by Çré Çaìkara’s philosophy. Finally, Padmapäda hatched a plot
and had
Abhinava murdered.
On another
visit to Ujjaini, Çré Çaìkara crossed swords with
Bhaskaräcärya
over his brand of Mäyävädism. Bhaskaräcärya was the
custodian
of the Çaiva-Viçiñöa-advaita philosophy of non-dualism. Not only
was Çré
Çaìkara unsuccessful in converting him to his own persuasion, he
was
thoroughly drubbed. Bhaskaräcärya exposed him as a Mahäyanika
Buddhist,
by refuting all his arguments in his own commentary to the
Vedänta-sütra,
as we have already discussed above.
101
One of the
most bizarre and incredible chapters in the life of
Çaìkaräcärya
concerns a debate with the wife of a scholar. Ubhaya Bhäraté
was a wise
and learned brähmaëa lady, wife of the illustrious scholar
Maëòana
Miçra. After Maëòana Miçra was defeated in a scriptural debate
by
Çaìkaräcärya, Ubhaya Bhäraté refused to concede defeat. She cited
from the
scriptures that Çré Çaìkara had defeated only one half of the
complete
whole – meaning after marriage husband and wife form one
unit,
hence in order for Çaìkaräcärya to claim full victory he must also
defeat
her. However, Ubhaya Bhäraté defeated Çaìkaräcärya in a debate
on kama, the art
and science of material love and sex. Dejected,
Çaìkaräcärya
vowed to avenge defeat. It so happened that the king of a
small
kingdom in the vicinity had, unknown to his subjects, just passed
away.
Çaìkaräcärya, by dint of his substantial yogic powers, possessed
the
deceased body of the king and went back to his royal palace. He
entered
the inner chambers of the king’s queens undetected where for
the next
two nights he learned the art of love from many of them. He later
abandoned
the king’s corpse leaving its body in a state of rigor mortis
while the
queens slept and returned to his own body, which had been
kept in
the safe keeping of his trusted disciple Padmapäda. He was then
able to
re-enter the debate, having experienced the world of sex and was
able to
defeat Ubhaya Bhäraté without any difficulty. There are obvious
problems
in reconciling this piece of biographical data, such as how can a
strict
celibate, bound by the vows of renunciation, spend time in the lap
of luxury
and sensual indulgence? The nagging questions are:
a) Did Çré
Çaìkaräcärya deviate and fall down from his vow of
celibacy
and renunciation?
b) Did he
really need to prove that he could master the theory and
practise
of the art of kama?
We should
normally think it highly praiseworthy for a sannyäsa, a
controller
of the senses, to be ignorant about scriptures dealing with
physical
union between sexes. Our conclusion is therefore, that for a
sannyäsi
of Çré Çaìkaräcärya’s stature it is dishonourable to deceptively
learn
about sex from a dead man’s wife.
Maëòana
Miçra was the biggest luminary to be defeated by Çré Çaìkara,
and became
the most prized feather in Çré Çaìkara’s cap. Miçra was the
most
renowned and erudite Çmärta scholar of his time. Çré Çaìkara
registered
victories only over Buddhists, Tantriks, Çäktas, Çmärtas and
Karmis –
but never over a Vedic scholar. Through the ages there was
never a
doubt in anyone’s mind that jïäna,
empirical knowledge based on
the Vedas,
was far superior to both Buddhism and the ritualistic practices
in the
realm of Tantra. The tradition of Vedic scholarship enjoyed a long,
The
Changing Shapes of Mäyävädism
102
Beyond Nirväëa
illustrious
pedigree of preceptors and commentaries. In contrast the
Mäyäväda
philosophy, not being an established school with a recognised
philosophy
never enjoyed a high-profile victory against a respected Vedic
authority.
In the light of this well-known fact, it would therefore seem
likely
that Çré Çaìkara’s followers have exaggerated the impact of the
forementioned
conquests. Certainly, Bhäskaräcärya powerfully
substantiated
this during Çré Çaìkara’s presence.
Padmapäda
Another
noteworthy aspect in Çré Çaìkaräcärya’s life is that almost at
every
juncture when he was confronted with adverse situations, his loyal
disciple
Padmapäda was required to save him. For this, Padmapäda will
always
remain a luminary in the firmament of Çré Çaìkara’s life history. In
fact, long
before Çré Çaìkara made public his Çärérika-bhäñyacommentary
to the
Vedänta Sütra, Padmapäda had already completed his own
commentary
to the same treatise. We learn from history that Padmapäda’s
maternal
uncle had stolen these invaluable manuscripts from Padmapäda,
plunging
the author in an ocean of grief. His guru Çré
Çaìkara, stepped in
to salvage
the disaster and assured his loyal disciple that there was no
cause for
worry since Çaìkaräcärya, had perfectly committed to memory
all
Padmapäda’s commentaries to the first four sütras. Saying
this, he then
recited
them all verbatim to Padmapäda. Given this event, it would not
be wrong
to assume that Çré Çaìkaräcärya composed his famous Çärérika
Bhäñya
commentary borrowing heavily from his disciple Padmapäda’s
commentary.
Now it is for all to judge which one of these two
commentaries
is the first and original. Nevertheless, the expropriation of
Padmapäda’s
commentary did not deter him in the least to always come
to the
rescue of his guru in dire situations.
The
Final Act
Çré
Çaìkaräcärya’s last and final challenge was a debate with the then
leader of
the Tibetan Buddhists, one Lämä guru. At that
time all the sects
of
Buddhism revered the Lämä as their Jagadguru (world leader and
preceptor).
Before the debate began it was agreed by both parties that
the loser
of the debate would have to relinquish his life by plunging himself
into a
large vat of boiling oil. The debate is poignantly described in the
book
Sabdärtha Maïjäri, written by the famous monist scholar, the
venerable
Çiromani:
‘Çré
Çaìkaräcärya, after conceding defeat in a scriptural debate
with the
Buddhist Jagadguru, gave up his life by plunging into a
103
vat of
boiling oil, as per the terms of debate. In this manner, in
the year
818 AD the world lost a beacon of light upon the
departure
of Çré Çaìkaräcärya.’
The
‘Çaìkara Vat’, as it is known, is preserved in Tibet till today. The
Buddhist
monks honour it to commemorate their spiritual leaders’ grand
victory.
It seems that history refuses to sweep the noble sacrifice of Çré
Çaìkaräcärya
into oblivion.
Çré
Çaìkaräcärya’s Influence
There is
almost a thousand years between the appearance of Çré
Çaìkaräcärya,
the incarnation of the Supreme Lord’s devotee and the
appearance
of the Supreme Lord Himself as Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu.
The
history of Mäyävädism in this intervening period will now be briefly
described.
The bitter
taste of voidism and its categorisation as a non-Vedic religion
in
Buddhism was expertly sugar-coated by Çaìkaräcärya by rubberstamping
it as
Vedic, so that it became palatable and popular among the
Indian
masses. As a consequence Buddhism was rooted out and the masses,
instead of
identifying themselves as Buddhists, began to call themselves
Hindus.
The Hindu religion or ‘Hinduism’ generally refers to the religious
interpretations
of Çaìkaräcärya. Other religious theologies, which spread
later,
mistakenly believed they had refuted Hinduism but in truth they
only
crossed swords with Çaìkaräcärya’s brand of Hinduism. What follower
of the
Vedas could be so miserly as to fail to acknowledge Çaìkaräcärya’s
momentous
contribution to Hinduism, made by his uprooting Buddhism
from the
soil of India?
His effort notwithstanding, real Hinduism bears a
different
definition than the one given by Çré Çaìkara. Real Hinduism is
based on
the Vedic conclusion known as Sanätana-dharma or the eternal
‘religion’
of Man. In
other words, Sanätana-dharma is founded on the
ontological
principle of the living entities inconceivable and simultaneous
oneness
and difference with God and His multifarious energies. The
practical
application of this eternal esoteric principle (tattva)
is manifested
in a
loving relationship expressed as bhakti, pure
devotional service to
the
Supreme Personality of Godhead. The thousand years since
Çaìkaräcärya’s
disappearance have witnessed the gradual decline of
Mäyävädism,
in some places losing its face, in others being stripped of its
veneer of
legitimacy and respectability with its proponents and adherents
wisely
going ‘underground’ to avoid any further embarrassment.
The
Changing Shapes of Mäyävädism
104
Beyond Nirväëa
Yädava
Prakäça
After the
demise of famous Mäyäväda preceptors like Padmapäda
Sureçvara
and Väcañpati Miçra, the most prominent Mäyävada guru
who
took over
was one Yädava Prakäça. He made the city of Kaïchi in South
India his place
of residence. His contemporary, Çré Yämunäcarya of the
Çré
Vaiñëava sampradäya was endowed with profound wisdom and a
spiritual
genius. Seeing his extraordinary expertise in argument and
spiritual
debate, Yädava Prakäça failed to muster the strength and
intrepidity
to face him in a deciding scriptural debate. Yämunäcärya’s
famous
disciple was the great spiritual preceptor Çré Rämänujäcärya, who
had
actually studied Vedänta from Yädava Prakäça as a young brähmacari.
Despite
his status as his student, Çré Rämänuja would consistently point
out the
philosophical fallacies in Çré Çaìkara’s commentary on Vedänta.
Yädava
Prakäça tried hard to influence young Rämänuja with Mäyäväda
philosophy
but was rebutted each time by the young student’s watertight
logic and
scriptural arguments. Rämänuja’s incredible intellect and
profound
spiritual insight made his teacher jealous, and so burning with
envy
Yädava Prakäça conspired to kill the young Rämänuja. But before
the
heinous plot could be executed it reached Rämänujäcärya’s ears and
the plan
was scuttled. Not only did Rämänuja forgive Yädava Prakäça, he
showered
mercy to him and accepted him as his disciple. Yädava Prakäça
was
extremely moved by this bountiful gesture and exalted Vaiñëava
humility.
Yädava turned over a new leaf and became a different person
altogether,
heartily embracing the life of a Vaiñëava bhakta (devotee).
Çré
Çaìkaräcärya faced a similar situation in regards to Abhinäva Gupta.
Unfortunately,
instead of showing mercy to Abhinäva, Çré Çaìkaräcärya
had him
assassinated. From this, one can easily see that Rämänujäcärya’s
character
was in comparison to Çré Çaìkaräcärya’s role, far more noble,
exalted
and compassionate. Yadava Prakäça was plotting his murder, yet
Çré Rämänujäcärya
not only forgave him but by his benign grace redeemed
him as
well. Each of the above incidents, one involving Çré Rämänujäcärya
and the
other Çré Çaìkaräcärya were similar and crucial to them and reflects
their
individual characters. Çré Rämänujäcärya was indeed a more
compassionate,
tolerant and elevated personality than the Mäyäväda role
Çré
Çaìkara was playing. Throughout the ages the Supreme Lord’s pure
devotees
have always exhibited, under all circumstances, superior
character
and greater wisdom than others have. Mäyävädism during this
time went
through its leanest period, debilitated by the sharp, irrefutable
logic and
arguments of Çré Rämänujäcärya who flew the victory flag of
105
Viçiñöädvaita-väda. (This is
the ontological principle that the Supreme
brahman, is by
nature different from the jéva [living
entities] and the jagat
[material
nature] – although both jéva and jagat are a part
of the complete
brahman
and therefore never separate from Him).
Çré
Çrédhara Svämé
Çré
Çrédhara Svämé was born in the province
of Gujaräta. Not much
can be
said about the details of his appearance in the absence of an
accurate
and authentic date. One important fact deserves mention, which
is that
regardless of what monist scholars and historians speculate about
the date
of birth, their conjectures are totally unfounded, and at best
based on
hearsay. While Çré Madhväcäryä does not mention Çrédhara Svämé
in any of
his writings, therefore, to chronologically place Çrédhara Svämé
after
Madhväcäryä simply on the basis of Çrédhara Svämé apparent absentia,
would be
illogical and unreasonable. Çré Çrédhara Çvämé did not write a
commentary
on the Vedänta Sütra or on the Upaëiñadäs. This is the
probable
reason why Madhväcäryä never mentioned Çrédhara Çvämé in
any of his
own writings, otherwise he surely would have. On the other
hand
Çrédhara Çvämé mentions only Çré Çaìkaräcärya’s name in his
commentary
to the Bhagavad-gétä, making no mention of Çré Madhväcäryä.
These
facts indicate that Çrédhara Çvämé lived after Çré Çaìkaräcärya but
before Çré
Madhväcäryä’s advent.
Çré
Rämänuja wrote his famous Çré Bhäñya commentary to the Vedänta
based on
the conclusions of the Viñëu Puräëa. Çré Çrédhara Çvämé also
wrote a
commentary on the Viñëu Puräëa. If Rämänujäcärya had known
about this
commentary he would have certainly cited it selectively or
would have
referred to it in his writings as evidence. The fact is that each
of them
fails to mention the other. In the light of these factors one would
be
hard-pressed to conclusively ascertain the chronological order of their
respective
periods. To this day the Mäyäväda impersonalist cults still
endeavour
to try and pull Çrédhara Svämé into their monist camp. The
reason for
this is that in the very early stages of his spiritual journey
Çrédhara
Svämé closely associated with a Mäyävädä scholar, was influenced
by his
teachings and for a time accepted the path of monism. This part of
his life
was sometimes indirectly alluded to in Çrédhara Svämé’s writings.
Later
however, Çrédhara Svämé famously rejected Mäyävädism and
embraced
Vaiñëavism under the guidance and by the association of
Paramänanda
Tértha.
Paramänanda
Tértha, a Vaiñëava sannyäsé of the çuddhä-advaita
sampradäya
was an itinerant preacher, and was a devotee of Lord
The
Changing Shapes of Mäyävädism
106
Beyond Nirväëa
Nåsiàhadeva,
Çré Viñëu’s lion incarnation. The most prominent preceptor
of this
Vaiñëava line of çuddhä-advaita, (pure, transcendental
non-dualism),
was Çré
Viñëu Svämé and he appeared long before Çaìkaräcärya. (Viñëu
Svämé was
also known as Adiviñëu Svämé).
Paramänanda
Tértha was a sannyäsé in this illustrious Vaiñëava
sampradäya
and by his mercy Çrédhara Svämé realised the spiritual
bankruptcy
in Mäyävädism. After severing his past association with
Mäyävädism
he wholeheartedly entered the hallowed Vaiñëava fold and
received
spiritual initiation from Paramänanda Tirtha. Çrédhara Svämé’s
transformation
emerged due to his enlightenment to the truth, which is
that mokña
(impersonal liberation) was not only extremely difficult to
attain by
following the path of dry speculation, it was actually impossible.
He
understood that only through devotional surrender to the Supreme
Personality
of Godhead is liberation eternally ensured. In his commentary
to
Bhagavad-gétä, Çrédhara Svämé writes:
çruti-småti-puräëa-vacanänyevaà
sati samaïjasäni bhavanti
tasmäd-bhagavad-bhaktir
eva mukti hetur iti siddhaà
‘paramänanda
çré-pädäbja-rajaù çré-dhärinädhuna
çrédhara
svämé-yatinä kåta géta-subodhiné.
When
properly understood, the meanings of the words of Çruti,
Småti,
Puräëa, Çrémad-Bhägavatam, Bhagavad-géta – the entire
Vedic
literatures become clear. They all agree on this point that
devotion
to the Supreme Lord is the primary cause of attaining
mokña,
liberation – The sannyäsé Srédhara
Svämé is writing the
Subodhiné
commentary to the Bhagavad-gétä, taking the dust from
the
lotus feet of Çré Paramänanda Tértha.
The
Mäyävädés’ contention that Çréla Çrédhara Svämé was one of them,
a monist,
is easily refuted by the above truth in Bhagavad-gétä. Their denial
of his
devotional status is useless and their arguments both incoherent
and
unsubstantiated.
A
remarkable, but true historical fact surrounds Çrédhara Svämé’s
commentary
of Bhagavad-gita. Once Çrédhara Svämé visited all the holy
pilgrimages
and arrived in Käçi. He stayed there for an extended period
writing
his Subodhiné commentary to the Bhagavad-gita. He approached
the
scholars and Paëòits of Käçi, giving them a manuscript of this work
for their
response. Discovering that the ontological conclusions in his
commentary
were contrary to their Mäyäväda precepts, the Mäyävädé
Paëòits
became alarmed and began to fine toothcomb it for mistakes and
irregularities.
However, Çrédhara Svämé rebutted all their arguments with
107
an amazing
display of ingenious debating skill. In spite of this, and
unfortunately
for them, the proud Mäyäväda scholars refused to
acknowledge
the excellence of his commentary. For a final arbitration
both
parties approached the deity of Lord Viçvanätha (Siva) in the temple.
The best
of the Vaiñëavas, Lord Siva let his decision be known in a dream
to the
Mäyäväda Paëòitas in the form of a verse, given below:
ahaà
vedmi çuk vetti vyaso vetti na vetti vä
çrédharaù
sakalaà vetti çré nåsiàha prasädataù
I
(Siva) know, Çukadeva Gosvämé knows, Çréla Vyäsadeva may
or may
not know. But Çré Çrédhara (Svämé) knows everything by
the
mercy of Lord Nåñémhadeva.
This verse
unequivocally declares that Çrédhara Svämé defeated the
Mäyäväda
Paëòitas by the grace of Lord Nåsiàhadeva, and so Çrédhara
Svämé, by
his guru’s grace became successful. Once again we find yet
another
account of monists, impersonalists and Mäyävädés all exposed
by the
Supreme Lord via his empowered devotee.
Çré
Bilvamaìgala - Alchemy of the heart
Çré
Vilvamaìgala was born in a small village on the bank of the river
Venna in South India. His father’s name was Rämadäsa. Some are of
the
opinion
that Çré Vilvamaìgala was previously known as Sihlanmiçra or
Citsukhäcärya.
According to the book Vallabha-digvijaya he lived in the
8th
Century AD. In his early life he was a monist and impersonalist but he
later
rejected Mäyävädism and entered the Vaiñëava Tridandi sannyäsa
order of
renunciation. In the Dväräka chapter of the monastery records
of the Çré
Çaìkara cult, Vilvamaìgala’s name is mentioned against the
year
‘2715’, (years after the start of Kali-yuga). Again, according to
Vallabha-digvijaya,
he was the foremost disciple of Çré Räjäviñëu Svämé
and
credited with installing the Deities of Çré Çré Dvärakädhéça. It is said
that
Vilvamaìgala Öhäkura lived in Våëdävana near Brahmakunda for
seven
hundred years performing bhajana, spontaneous devotional yoga.
He
authored the famous book ‘Çré Krñëa-karëämåta’ and since then he
became
widely known as Léläçuka. He writes in his own poetic words
about his
rejection of Mäyävädism and blissful conversion to Vaiñëavism:
advaita-véthé
pathikairupäsyäù svänanda siàhäsana
labdha
dékñäù haöhena kenäpi vayaà
çaöhena
däsékåtä gopavadhü viöhena
I was
worshipped by those who tread the path of monism and I
was
hoisted upon the throne of self-bliss. Yet by force, I was
The
Changing Shapes of Mäyävädism
108
Beyond Nirväëa
appointed
to be the maidservant of that supreme trickster; by Him
alone
who cheats the gopés.
Trivikrama-Äcärya
Çré Änanda
Tértha Madhväcäryä appeared at a time when the cult of
Çaìkaräcärya
was being widely broadcast. Çré Madhväcäryä was born in
the South
Indian district of Kannaòa (Mangalore) in a place called Päjakäkñetra,
7 miles
from Uòupé in the year 1238 AD. Other sources place the
year of
his birth three centuries earlier – but these are not considered
very
authentic sources. His father Madhyageha Bhaööa was a learned
Brahman,
Vedic scholar, and his mother was called Vedävidyä. Around
this time
Acyuta Prekña was a very prominent Mäyävädä äcärya. He had
four
leading disciples namely, Çaìkaränanda, Vidyaçaìkara, Trivikramaäcärya
and
Padmanäbha-äcärya all of whom were proficient preachers of
monism.
Just as Rämanuja-äcärya, for the express purpose of delivering
Yädava
Prakäça went through the motions of becoming his disciple,
similarly
Sré Madhväcäryä for the same purpose took initiation from Acyuta
Prekña.
Çré Madhväcäryä, vastly learned in Veda and Vedänta, was
vehemently
espousing the ontological principal of spiritual dualism – that
God and
the jéva were eternally individual identities. His extraordinary
skills in
debating and profound realisations of Vedic conclusions were
tools with
which he demolished the arguments and theories of
Mäyävädism.
His guru, Acyuta Prekça was defeated by Çré Madhväcäryä
in a
philosophical debate. He also defeated both Trivikrama-äcärya and
Padmanäbha-äcärya
who became his disciples, and shunning the path of
Mäyävädism
wholeheartedly embraced Vaiñëavism. It was their good
fortune
that Çré Madhväcäryä saved them from the atheistic path of monism,
which
attempts to deny the Lord his unlimited opulence and infinite blissful
qualities,
thereby creating many offences at His divine lotus feet.
Trivikram-äcärya
was a prodigious scholar of Mäyävädism. The great
author of
the far-famed books Madhvavijaya and Maëimaïjari was none
other than
his son Näräyaëäcärya. Later, Trivikräm-äcärya became a preeminent
preceptor
in the spiritual lineage of Çré Madhväcäryä. His added
advantage
over others was that he was expert in both the philosophies of
spiritual
dualism and impersonal non-dualism. He schooled his son
Näräyaëa-äcärya
so expertly, that his son was able to successfully bring
to light
many ontological concepts in Çré Madhväcäryä’s teachings and
expose the
many fallacies in Çaìkaräcärya’s philosophy. Thus both these
philosophical
schools must try and acknowledge Çré Näräyaëa-äcärya’s
books as
evidential and authentic. It is a shortsighted, baseless accusation
109
to say
that since Çré Näräyana-äcärya was in the Madhväcärya sampradäya
his books
are corrupted by prejudices and sympathies for his own lineage.
Vidyäraëya-
Çaìkaräcärya the Second
Madhava
was an alias of Vidyäraëya. His father’s name was Säyana
and was
therefore also known by the alias Säyana Madhava. He was an
erudite
scholar possessing an intense and forceful personality. He had
risen to
such heights of popularity and influence within the Çaìkara cult
that some
say that after Çaìkaräcärya no other äcärya achieved
as much,
either in
learning or in influence. It is for this reason that the Çaìkaräcärya
sampradäya
honoured him as Çré Çaìkaräcärya’s incarnation and awarded
him the
unofficial title ‘Çaìkaräcärya the second’.
At this
time Akñobhyäcärya of the Madhva-Sampradäya was making
his
presence and influence felt in the learned circles. He was a towering
scholar in
Nyäya (rhetoric and logic) and was trying to lure Vidyäraëya
into a
scriptural debate. After many attempts Vidyaranya finally took the
bait. Both
agreed on having the renowned stalwart paëòita Çré
Vedänta
Deçikäcärya
of the Rämänuja-Sampradäya as judge although the Madhva-
Sampradäya
did not completely see eye-to-eye on many fine ontological
principles
within the Rämanuja-Sampradäya. Vidyäraëya was not
proficient
in Nyäya çästra, so he lost the debate with Akñobhyäcärya.
Although
Vidyäraëya himself was a great scholar he was dwarfed by
Akñobhya’s
towering erudition. There is a verse glorifying Akñobhya that
was very
well known to the learned circles:
asinä
tat-tvam-asinä para-jéva prabhedinä
vidyäraëyam
araëyäni hy akñobhya-munir acchinat
With
the sword of the Vedic mantra ‘tat-tvam-asi’,
‘thou art that’,
and by
establishing the eternal distinction between the jéva
and
the
Supreme Lord; Akñobhya Muni cut the dense forest (of
monism)
by cutting down Vidyäranya’s arguments.
After
conceding defeat to Akñobhya Muni in this momentous scriptural
debate,
which drew the attention of the entire scholarly society,
Vidyäraëya’s
influence and reputation waned considerably.
The
Changing Shapes of Mäyävädism
110
Beyond Nirväëa
The
Turning of the Tide
Jayatértha
After
Akñobhya, the Vaiñëava community saw the emergence of his
disciple,
the illustrious Jayatértha. By the grace of his guru,
Jayatértha
triumphed
over every notable pandit in contests of scriptural debate and
was
crowned with the title ‘mahä-digvijaya’ – meaning, ‘one who has
conquered
in all directions’. The Tattva-prakäçika (his annotation of
Madhväcäryä’s
commentary of Vedänta) and his book ‘Nyäya Çuddhä’ are
especially
acclaimed in learned circles. Scholars even coined a phrase
acknowledging
the brilliance of his authorship. Both guru Akñobhya
and
his
disciple Jayatértha were such towering spiritual personalities and
treasure
houses of erudition that the powerful force of their preaching
sent the
impersonalist monists running for shelter in mountain caves rather
than be
philosophically disrobed in public.
The Madhva
sampradäya continued to lay a sustained siege on
Mäyävädism
for the next 300 years. A barrage of brilliant, potent literatures
were
written, all of which fuelled the fight against atheism.
Gauòapürëänand-äcarya
wrote the Tattva-Muktävalé and Mäyäväda-çatadüñané
both of
which exposed a hundred fallacies in Mäyävädism. Vyäsa
Tértha
composed ‘Nyayämåtam’ and Bhedojévanam. Vädiräja Tértha, also
known as
the second Madhväcäryä, wrote Yukti-mallikä, Päñaëòamata
Khaëòanam
and Çuddhä-tippané. All of these texts philosophically
demolished
and analytically shredded the precepts of Mäyävädism and
monism. By
fearlessly propagating the esoteric tenets of personalism, these
authors
shattered the Mäyävädi hypothesis and helped thousands and
thousands
of seekers to come to the Absolute Truth.
In doing
so innumerable Mäyäväda scholars came to reject the scourge
that is
atheism and which is the ultimate core precept of Mäyävädism.
Thus they
surrendered themselves to the exquisite, transcendental
precepts
of Çrémad-Bhägavatam. In significant contrast it deserves mention
that there
is not one recorded dialogue, scripture or recollection of any
pure
Vaiñëava leaving the path of bhakti for the
sake Mäyävädism.
Prakäçänanda
Sarasvaté
Guru
of Väräëasé
Looking
back over the 500 years since the appearance of Çré Caitanya
Mahäprabhu
it is evident that the course of the Vaiñëava world was
transformed
forever and that with His divine advent Vaiñëavism as a living
111
philosophy
was suffused with inexhaustible incandescence. The bright
flame of
Vaiñëavism, beautified by the highest ontological and spiritual
truths,
attracted Mäyävädés in droves inspiring them to surrender.
Srépäd
Prakäçänanda Sarasvaté appeared between the later half of the
15th
century and the first half of the 16th century. He was the undisputed
head of
the entire Mäyävädé clan in Väräëasé. The old city was, as it is
today, a
famous center of learning and a beacon of Vedic study, as such
Prakäçänanda
commanded a high status in the society. His erudition
inspired
both awe and respect among his contemporaries everywhere,
and his
book Vedänta Siddhänta Muktävalé brought new life into the
monist
community. Far away in Mäyäpura, West Bengal,
Çré Caitanya,
was told
about him and commented, (Caitanya Bhägavat, Madhya 3/37):
käçite
paòäya beöä prakäçänanda
seha
beta kare mora anga khanda-khanda
That
youngster Prakäçänanda is a teacher (of Advaita) in Käçé,
Väräëasé
and by his impersonal philosophy he is dismembering
My
Person.
The
meaning of this verse comes from the fact that Çré Caitanya
Mahäprabhu
is Himself considered the fountainhead of all incarnations.
Prakäçänanda
was teaching his disciples the philosophy of monism,
contending
that the Supreme Lord Bhagavän is formless, and without
attributes.
In short, he taught a philosophy that does not accept that
Bhagavän
is a person. Hence, by denying God’s personal aspect all their
philosophising
and arguments were no different than attempts to slash
and
dismember His blissful transcendental form. This is the purport of Çré
Caitanya’s
statement. In other yugas the Supreme Lord incarnated on the
earth and
either delivered or vanquished so many demoniac Mäyävädis,
according
to His own sweet will. Yet, in this present Kali-yuga age it is
understood
that the most munificent Supreme Personality Çré Caitanya
Mahäprabhu
did not choose to slay the asuras and
Mäyävädés, rather He
simply
extirpated their evil and iniquities. Like an irresistible, devotional
alchemist
He transformed both their hearts and minds inspiring them to
either
embrace the path of pure goodness propogated by Him, or to engage
directly
in His sublime service.
When Çré
Caitanya decided to deliver Prakäçänanda He arrived in
Väräëasé with
a group of His followers. They met together with
Prakäçänanda’s
vast assembly of disciples and debated over the conclusions
of the
scriptures. Çré Caitanya lucidly enumerated the galaxy of
discrepancies
inherent in Mäyäväda philosophy, unraveling both the fallacy
The
Turning of the Tide
112
Beyond Nirväëa
of monism,
while simultaneously revealing the deepest hidden truths of
the
Vedänta. After doing so, He waited patiently for Prakäçänanda’s riposte.
Thousands
of Prakäçänanda’s disciples sat in stunned silence with bated
breath.
Prakäçänanda could not find a single fault in Çré Caitanya’s system
of logic
and his scriptural argument. Finally, He conceded defeat and
surrendered
both himself and his disciples at Çré Caitanya’s lotus-feet,
which is
confirmed by the statements of the Çré Caitanya Caritämåta, Ädi
7/149:
prakäçänanda
täïra äsi dharilä carana
sei
haite sannyäséra phire gela
mana
Prakäçänanda
Sarasvaté came and caught hold of Çré Caitanya
Mahäprabhu’s
lotus-feet. From that moment on he experienced a
change
of heart.
Çré
Caitanya Mahäprabhu’s merciful preaching not only delivered
Prakäçänanda
Sarasvaté but also all the Mäyävädés in Väräëasé were
delivered.
The effect of this conversion was so great that Väräëasé, the
grand
citadel of Mäyäväda philosophy and the refuge of the devotees of
Lord Çiva
was transformed into a second Navadvipa, the devotional abode
of Çré
Caitanya. Çréla Kåñëadäsa Kaviräja writes in Caitanya Caritämåta,
Madhya
25/166-167:
sannyäsé-pandita
kare bhagävata vicära
väräëasé-pura
prabhu karilä nistära
nija
loka laïä prabhu äilä väsäghara.
väräëasé
haila dvitéya nadéyä-nagara
Thereafter
all the Mäyävädé sannyäsés and
learned scholars of
Väräëasé
began discussing Çrémad-Bhägavatam, and in this way
Çré
Caitanya Mahäprabhu delivered them all. He then returned to
His
residence with His personal associates, having transformed
the
entire city of Väräëasé
into a centre of bhakti.
Väsudeva
Särvabhauma Bhaööäcärya
In the
same way that Prakäçänanda Sarasvaté was acknowledged as
the head
of Mäyäväda society in Väräëasé, Särvabhauma Bhaööäcärya was
the
undisputed leader of the Mäyäväda community in Çré Kñetra or
Jagannatha
Puri, which in Orissa shared an equivalent stature to Väräëasé.
It is
recorded that he was vastly learned in the six Vedänta schools of
philosophy,
and thus was awarded the accolade of the title ‘Särvabhauma’.
While
residing in Puri, Çré Caitanya, on the pretext of hearing Vedänta
Om Tat Sat
(Continued...)
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