Vedanta Philosophy — II

Arjuna uvaca:

evaṁ satata-yuktā ye bhaktās tvāṁ paryupāsate
ye cāpyakṣhara mavyaktaṁ teṣhāṁ ke yogavittamāḥ

This is the 1st verse from Bhagavad Gītā 12th chapter Bhakti Yoga where Arjuna asks the lord “ O Krishna Who is and whom do you consider the topmost between the yogis who worship the parameswara as saguṇarūpa or sat cit ānanda ghananirakararūpa who is imperishable”

śrībhagavānuvācha:

mayyāvēśya manō yē māṃ nityayuktā upāsatē
śraddhayā parayōpētāstē mē yuktatamā matāḥ

yē tvakṣaramanirdēśyamavyaktaṃ paryupāsatē
sarvatragamachintyaṃ cha kūṭasthamachalaṃ dhruvam

sanniyamyēndriyagrāmaṃ sarvatra samabuddhayaḥ
tē prāpnuvanti māmēva sarvabhūtahitē ratāḥ

klēśō’dhikatarastēṣāmavyaktāsaktachētasām
avyaktā hi gatirduḥkhaṃ dēhavadbhiravāpyatē

The lord replies “ Those who engage in unwavering devotion on me with faith in my saguṇarūpa are the best and also those who worship my nirākara satcitānanda ghanaparabrahmaūpa always with their senses restrained, being unprejudiced, engaged in welfare will also obtain me. But these people face difficulties in their path.”

The great Indian philosopher Bhagavad Rāmānujācārya interprets these verses in the following manner as they realise that the Jīva is not subject to birth and death and is of a similar nature to the self that the Supreme Brahman is different from the liberated jīva devoid of modification and the highest person is other than this imperishable. There is high vexation among the minds of the people who are attached to this unmanifested path of nirākāra. He takes a dig at mayavadis who are deluded by thinking that the body is the self.

Sripad Ramanujacharya (1017–1137)

Rāmānujācārya’s Viśiṣṭādvaita talks about the nature of Brahman with manifold personal attributes of unlimited excellence such as beauty, affability, friendliness, affection, compassion, sweetness, majesty, magnanimity, fortitude, valour, omnipotence, omniscience, freedom from wants, accomplished of resolves, supreme sovereignty, the ultimate Cause of all, and of being the antithesis of all that is negative. It explains the relationship between the Brahman that is lord Nārāyaṇa and jivātmas in the universe which are the parts of the body of the lord. Viśiṣṭādvaita acknowledges the oneness of everything with Visesha(attributes). Everything that is observed is the manifestation of lord narayana. Unlike Sankara’s advaita where all the manifestations are temporary, according to Ramanuja they are permanent and are controlled by Brahman. Hence, Viśiṣṭādvaita is oneness of god with Viśeṣas.

Rāmānujācārya’s systematization of tradition created Śrīvaiṣṇavism as we know today. The Śrī here represents goddess Lakṣmī. Lakṣmī and Viṣṇu are together revered in this tradition. He describes the Brahman as a plural form which consists of cit(soul) and acit(matter). The together make the body of lord Nārāyaṇa. Matter and souls are the subordinate elements. They are termed Visesaṇas, attributes. God is the Visesya or that which is qualified.

Going back to the origins of Viśiṣṭādvaita, the philosopher Bodhayana, who wrote in his vritti 2500 years ago, is credited with introducing this idea. Ramanuja followed him in his interpretation of Brahma Sūtras. Ramanujacarya is the successor of Yamunācārya built his philosophy whose foundations were laid by the latter. Ramanuja wrote the commentaries on the Brahma Sutras known as the Sri Bhashya, commentary on Bhagavat gita. Vedanta Sara, Vedartha Sangraha and Vedanta Dipa are written by him which are regarded as the central texts in Viśiṣṭādvaita.

Continuing the talk about the nature of brahman according to Ramanuja, Brahman is a Personal God — the all-knowing, all-powerful Ruler of a physical world, infused with his spirit. He is full of auspicious attributes. His features are satya, Jnana and Ananda. He is the supporter of everything. The five forms of the lord are

• Para(supreme),
• Vyuha(the invisible, impermanent supreme),
• Avatara(incarnation),
• Antaryamin(inner-guidance)
• Archa(filled with symbolism).

Thus, the distinction between Brahman and Isvara, or between Nirguna and an Saguna Brahman, is impossible. Visesha Brahman, or Brahman with qualities, is the Brahman identified with Ramanuja. Ramanuja identifies God with Nārāyaṇa who dwells in Vaikuṇṭha with his consort Lakṣmī.

Salvation to the jīvās is only attainable when the soul leaves the body, the departed soul reaches Vaikuṇṭha and meditates upon the lord and retains its individuality. This suggests that the jīvā cannot become the lord himself according to him. And thus the difference of god, soul and world are explained by Bhagavad Rāmānujācārya . The work can be simply put as “Man is the ray of god”.

As we have told in the last article “different conceptions of Brahman are but different approaches to the Reality”. Effective discipline of the mind is essential to transform it into a capable tool for comprehending the principles of Vedanta. Embrace the good ideals laid by our acharyas and always strive to be better.

śaṅkaraṃ śaṅkarācāryaṃ keśavaṃ bādarāyaṇam
sutra bhāśya kṛtau vande bhagavantau punaḥ punaḥ

In the next part we will discuss about the Dvaita vedanta of Madhvāchārya translated as unqualified dualism. We shall talk about bhakti and seva to the lord, which in Dvaita philosophy are seen in their greatest manifestations.

AUTHOR: Dwadasi Karthikeya, MFD19I005: I am very fascinated by Indian Philosophy because of its vastness and diversity. Different schools of thought co-existed in our land for centuries all together because of our nature which wishes well being of humanity. I take lot of interest in reading our scriptures and understand them.