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Oppiliappan List Archive: Message 00013 Jun 2006

 
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Dear Swamin
   
  Thank you for the good postings explaining the basic concept of 
Visishtadvaita as expounded by Emperumanar.
  I was looking for further postings on Visishtadavaita  from Smt Saraja 
Ramanujam explaining how the ghataka srutis reconcile the bheda and abheda 
srutis which is held as prime importance for the dwaitha and advaita siddhantas 
respectively.
   
  I find that this is not much attempted.
   
  I attempt to interpret these in the context of Sarira sariri bhava of 
visishtadvaita.
  I shall take one or two examples only.
   
  Abheda sruti
   
  Tat tvam asi swetaketo |
   
  Sarvam kal idam sarvam |
   
  Bheda sruti
   
  Bhoktha bhogyam  preritharam cha matva|.
  ksharatmanau ishate deva ekah.||
   
  Nityo nityanam chetanas chetananam |
  Bhaguno ye vidhatati kaman ||
   
  These are explained by means of ghataka srutis 
   
  Yasya atma sariram yasya prithivi sariram|
   
  Ye atmani thishtan ye ya atmano antarah sa the atmi antaryami amruthah||at
                                                  - Brihadaranyaka upanishad.
   
  The explanation is that 
   
  The word that denotes the body ultimately refers to the person who owns the 
body. 
  As the jivas , Brahma , Rudra ,akasa etc. have their actual meaning in sriman 
Narayana only.
   
  The jivas are the sarira (body)of  the Braman suppored, dependent and 
subservient.
  This is indicated by the sruti vakya from Brihadarayaka upanishad.
   
    Antah pravishta satha jananam sarvatma||
   
  In the maha vakya  "tat tvam asi"
                                 -Chandokya upanishad.6-8-4
  tat denotes Brahman  in the causal aspect.
  tvam represents the jivas , a particular example bring Svetaketu.The jivas 
are the effected aspect as they form the creation after the maha pralaya.
  The sentence says that the Brahman in the causal and effected state are one 
and the same. 
   
  The whole cosmos is God as He pervades all This is indicated by the maha vakya
  .
    Sarvam kal idam sarvam |
                    Chandokya upanishad.

   
  There is plurality of jivas and other achits.This is denoted by  sarvam in 
the previous quote.
   
  I now deal with the bheda srutis.
   
  The plurality is qualified by Brahman.
  THe plurality is ditinct yet they are Brahman.
     
  Bhoktha bhogyam  preritharam cha matva|.
  ksharatmanau ishate deva ekah.||
                            -svetasvatara upanishad.

   
  Bhokta denotes the enjoyer or the "jivas".
  Bhoghyam denotes what is enjoyed that is" achit"
  Preritharam is the controller of these two that is the highest self  Sriman 
Narayana.
   
  Chetas are infinite and eternal but they are the body of the Bahman. 
     
  Nityo nityanam chetanas chetananam |
  Bhaguno ye vidhatati kaman ||
                                  Svesvatar upanishad

     
  I request to be excused for any mistakeas. Correct me if any.
   
  Adiyen Ramanujadasan
  Soundararajan
   
  
sarojram18 <sarojram18@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:


  6.sarira-sariri bhava


      Sarira-sariri bhava is the key concept of Visishtadvaita. The 
vedanta sastra is known as saarirakasastra which indicates the sarira-
sariri sambhandha  advocated by Visishtadvaita. Ramanuja defines  
sarira as a substance which a sentient soul completely supports, 
aadhara-aadheya bhava, and controls, niyantha-niyaamya bhava for 
serving its own purpose and which is subordinate to the sentient 
soul, sesha--seshi bhava..

      The world of cit and acit  form the sarira of Brahman because 
they are supported, controlled and used by Brahman. The entry of 
Brahman into the cit and the acit in order to diversify them into 
name and form is supported by the sruti 'tadhaikshatha bahusyaam 
prajaayeya'  Hence they exist in an inseparable relation with Brahman 
similar to the body and soul. 

      Let me explain this. The body has no identity without the 
soul . So the soul is the supporter, aadhara and the body is the 
aadheya. Without the soul the body cannot function. Hence the soul is 
the controller, niyantha. The body exists for the soul and dependent 
on the soul  not vice versa as we imagiine! The last point may not be 
understood in the worldly sense but in spiritual aspect the soul 
takes the body to exhaust its karma and as soon as the karma for that 
particular embodiment is exhausted it leaves that body. So the soul 
is the seshi and the body is the sesha.

      Now Brahman being the antaryamin, the real self of all 
beings, everything other than Brahman form the sarira of Brahman. 
This concept is the pradhaanaparithanthra, the most important 
doctrine of Visishtadvaita. The inseparable relation, aprthaksiddhi, 
between the body and the soul is similar to that of substance and 
attribute which are inseparable. in the sense that one cannot exist 
without the other. So Brahman is the prakari and the world is the 
prakara, mode of Brahman. Hence all words that describe any sentient 
or insentient being has its connotation only with Brahman., their 
real and ultimate self.

      Ramanuja illusrtrates this by saying that the words cow, 
horse or man denote not their physical body but the sentient soul 
within their physical form. Since Brahman  is the real self of all 
beings all words connote only Brahman by saamaanaadhikaranya.

      The concept of  aprthaksiddhi emphasises both unity and 
difference between Brahman and jiva. The universe of finite and 
imperfect beings and the Brahman , infinite, truth and knowledge, 
form one organic whole. The entities which exist in  relation of 
aprthaksiddhi with each other are always cognised together as in the 
statement 'I am a human being.'  The unity here is not absolute but 
visishtaaikya.

      Sadvidya of the Chandogya is thus interpreted  in terms of 
the sarira- sariri  bhava by Ramanuja. Sadvidya states the cause of 
everything to be Brahman, by knowing which everythig else becomes 
known and this leads to the satkaaryavada, according to which both 
the cause and the effect are real.. Sat, Brahman, the only existence 
willed to become many and created the world of cit and acit, out of 
itself and entered into them to be their innerself and got 
differentiated into the world of names and forms. Brahman the case is 
real  its effect the world is also real because it arises from and 
ensouled by the infinite. Thus the sadvidya section of the Upanishd , 
the prormissory statement,'ekavijnaanena sarvavijnaanam' and the 
illustrations of mud , gold etc. therein imply only Brahman  to be 
the cause of the universe. 

      Ramanuja sums up the cosmological and ontological nature of 
Brahman in the Sribhashya thus: the terms satyam,  jnanam, anantham 
define the svarupa of Brahman as being distinct from everything else 
and the Brahman has already been shown as the cause of creation, 
sustenanace and annihilation by the causal statements of the sruti, 
yatho vaa imaani bhoothaani jaayanthe yene jaathaani jeevanthi yasmin 
abhisamvisanthi thadvijinjaasava thadbrahma'  Then Ramanuja proceeds 
to define Brahman and to show that Brahman is synonymous with Narayana


















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