Mādhva Vedānta: A Brief Commentary on Pedagogical Paraṁpara

JOURNAL OF VAISHNAVA STUDIES Volume 25

No. 1

Fall 2016

Introduction

1

Jeffery D. Long/ Vedānta: An Overview

5

Steven Tsoukalas/ A Comparative Study on Vedānta Sūtra 1.1.1

17

Ankur Barua/ Knowledge of Brahman and Devotion to Brahman: Positioning Advaita and Vaiṣṇavism in Medieval Vedānta

41

Anantanand Rambachan/Advaita and Viśiṣṭādvaita Vedānta: A Call for Renewing Dialogue in Our Times Ithamar Theodor/ Resorting to Aesthetics: The Gradual Articulation of the Vaiṣṇava Vedānta Tradition

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Jon Paul Sydnor/ What is a Person? Rāmānuja’s Vedāntic Anthropology

85

Deepak Sarma/Mādhva Vedānta: A Brief Commentary on Pedagogical Paraṁpara

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Rev. Brooks St. Clair Morton/Madhvite Metaphors as Pedagogical Tools for Dvaita Vedanta

109

Frederick M. Smith/ The Siddhāntamuktāvalī: Vallabhācārya’s “Pearl Necklace of Correct Views”as an Epitome of His Vedānta

123

Kiyokazu Okita/ A Vedāntic Refutation of Buddhism in 18th-Century North India: The Tattvadīpikā of Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa

153

Adrian Burton/ When One Debate Becomes Many: Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa at the Court of Jai Singh II

163

Ravi M. Gupta/ Finding Bhagavān in the Bhāgavata: The Six Indicators of Meaning in Gauḍīya Vedānta

191

Vasudeva das/ Śrī Caitanya as a Teacher of Vedānta: the Philosophy of the Vedānta-Sūtra as Presented in the Caitanya-Caritāmṛta

205

Steven J. Rosen/ Deferring to Difference: The Essence of Śrī Chaitanya’s Acintya-Bhedābheda Vedānta

223

Book reviews

249

Contributors

255

Mādhva Vedānta: A Brief Commentary on Pedagogical Paraṁpara

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Deepak Sarma

he Mādhva School of Vedānta (also known as the Dvaita school) posits that the relationship between Brahman (the impersonal absolute) and the ātman (individual self) is dvaita (dual) and that this is the position found in the Vedas. Madhvācārya, the founder of the school, like his Advaita and Viśiṣṭādvaita counterparts and predecessors, offers commentaries on relevant passages and texts to justify and buttress this. In addition Madhvācārya also posits that he has an unusual pedagogical paraṁpara (lineage) that connects him directly with Vishnu. For this reason, he, and his followers, believe his interpretation to be more than mere speculation. Rather, his commentaries and characterizations derive from study with Vishnu himself. In this paper I offer a brief exposition of this unusual pedagogical paraṁpara. I also offer a translation of Madhvācārya’s Aṇubhāṣya, which is a brief commentary on the Brahma Sūtras and summary of the Mādhva position. History Madhvācārya (1238-1317 CE) was born of Sivalli Brahmin parents in the village of Pājakakṣetra near modern day Udupi in the Tulunadu area of southern Karnataka. Madhvācārya studied the Vedas and other relevant texts with a teacher who was of the Pūgavana family. He then studied aspects of the Advaita School of Vedānta. Madhvācārya, an inquisitive student, was still not satisfied with what he had learned, so he next sought a new teacher in order to be granted saṃnyāsa (ascetic) status. Madhvācārya met Acyutaprekṣa, an ascetic who was also dissatisfied with the tenets of Advaita Vedānta, and underwent the prescribed saṃnyāsa rites.1 99

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According to the hagiographic evidence, Madhvācārya did not have much luck with his new teacher due to their vehement disagreements. Madhvācārya studied with several teachers and his experiences with them may be why he advises students in his Brahma Sūtra Bhāṣya that they can opt to change teachers if the new one is superior!2 After becoming a saṃnyāsin, he studied Vimuktātman’s Iṣṭasiddhi (9th century CE), an Advaita text. After again disagreeing with his teacher, Madhvācārya was installed as the head of the maṭha by Acyutaprekṣa in deference to his student’s superior abilities.3 After completing his studies, Madhvācārya traveled around South Asia in order to argue his new Vedānta position with other scholars. Madhvācārya’s travels took him to Mahābadarikāśrama, the home of Vyāsa, and author of the Brahma Sūtras, to meet the founder of the Vedānta tradition himself. Vyāsa is believed to be an avatāra of Lord Vishnu, the deity around which the Mādhva Vedānta is centered.4 Under the guidance of Vyāsa, Madhvācārya is said to have composed his Brahma Sūtra Bhāṣya (BSB), a commentary on Vyāsa’s Brahma Sūtras.5 Having the author of the text on which one is commenting serve as an editor and be an avatāra of God Himself certainly gives one a great deal of epistemic authority! Data taken from colophons, along with genealogical and chronological data found in the maṭhas, lead non-Mādhva scholars to conclude that Madhvācārya died in 1317 CE. Paṇḍitācārya, however, records that Madhvācārya disappeared and was immediately honored with a shower of flowers from the deities.6 According to the Mādhva tradition, then, he did not die and is considered to be alive and residing to this day in Mahābadarikāśrama in the Himālayas with his teacher and father Vyāsa-Viṣṇu. Madhvācārya-Vāyu as guru Madhvācārya boldly informs his readers in colophons and elsewhere in his own texts that he is the third avatāra of Vāyu the son of Vishnu and Śrī.7 In fact, Vāyu incarnated himself two times before he appeared as Madhvācārya. Hanumān, the monkey deity of the Rāmāyaṇa epic and Bhīma, one of the Paṇḍavas in the Mahābhārata epic, are the first and second incarnations. According to the stories found in these two āgamas, both assist Rāma and Krishna, two avatāras of Vishnu, in defeating rākṣasas, demons, and others who threaten the stability of dharma.8 Many more passages extolling the glories of Madhvācārya-Vāyu can be found in Paṇḍitācārya’s Madhvavijaya. According to Madhvācārya, Vāyu has a dynamic position as a mediator between devotees and Vishnu. In addition to guiding jīvas who are about to achieve

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mokṣa he guides some to their next deha (body) in saṁsāra.9 Indeed, all, mukti-yogya devotees must thus rely on Vāyu to reach brahman.10 Madhvācārya’s most informative autobiographical statement occurs at the end of his BSB: Vāyu, whose three forms are described in the Vedas, who has the great radiance of a god, who is bestowed upon [us] and, in this way, visible [to us], whose first manifestation was as a messenger to Rāma, whose second was as [Bhīma,] the destroyer [of the Kaurava army] and whose third incarnation is Madhva by whom this bhāṣya, commentary, is made for the sake of [establishing the supremacy of] Hari [that is, Vishnu].11

Vāyu, also known as Madhvācārya, is thus the intermediary lying between the jīva and brahman. Without his assistance, achieving mokṣa is completely impossible. Believing himself to be an avatāra, Madhvācārya places himself in the penultimate position in his hierarchy. Given the belief that there is direct paraṁpara connecting Madhvācārya with Vishnu, it is possible for Mādhvas to argue that his position is undeniably accurate and is identical with the one found in the Vedas. The Aṇubhāṣya of Madhvācārya The Aṇubhāṣya is a brief commentary on the Brahma Sūtras. It is comprised of 34 anuṣṭubhs. The following is a translation of the entire text, regarded as a condensed summary of the Mādhva position.12 nārāyaṇaṁ guṇaiḥ sarvaiḥ udīrṇam doṣavarjitam | jñeyaṁ gamyaṁ gurūṁscāpi natvā sutrārtha ucyate ||1.1|| Bowing to Nārāyaṇa, who excels with all qualities, who is without defects, who is the object of knowledge, who is the intended [goal] for the teachers, the meaning of the [Brahma] Sūtras [of Bādarāyaṇa] is being presented. viṣṇur eva vijijñāsyaḥ sarvakaratā ‘gamoditaḥ | samanvaydīkṣateś ca purṇānando ‘ntaraḥ khavat ||1.2|| Vishnu, the creator of all, is the origin of the sacred texts. He alone is to be known. He is the object of [the Divine] vision in accordance [with the gradation of jīvas, individual selves]. He is filled with bliss. He is inside [all and like the] ether. praṇetā jyotirtyādyaiḥ prasiddhair anyavastuṣu | ucyate viṣṇur evaikaḥ sarvaiḥ sarvaguṇatvataḥ ||1.3||

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Journal of Vaishnava Studies Vishnu, who is the creator [and] who is entirely virtuous, is alone designated by all [words such as ] “light” etc. [which have] other meanings in mundane [usages] sarvago ‘tta niyantā ca dṛṣyatvādyujjhitaḥ sadā | viśvajīvāntaratvādyaiḥ lingaiḥ sarvair yutaḥsa hi ||1.4|| He is all pervading. He devours [everything] and is eternally free from perceptibility and other [defects]. Indeed He possesses all characteristics [such as] being immanent in the universe and in the individual selves and the like. sarvāśrayaḥ purṇaguṇaḥ so ‘kṣaraḥ san hṛdabjagaḥ | sūryādibhāsakaḥ prāṇa prerako daivatair api ||1.5|| He is the refuge for all [beings]. He is filled with [all] virtues. He is indestructible. He exists [in] the heart-lotus [of all]. He is the illuminator of the sun and the like. He is the progenitor for creation. He is [to be known] even by the gods. jñeyo na vedaiḥ śūdradyaiḥ kampako ‘nyaś ca jīvataḥ | patitvādiguṇair yuktas tadanyatra ca vācakaiḥ ||1.6|| Śūdras and others cannot know him by means of the Vedas. And he causes [all beings] to tremble. And he is other than the jīvas, individual selves. He possesses attributes [such as] being the ruler. And He [is even] designated [by words which have] other [meanings in mundane usage]. mukhyataḥ sarvaśabdaiś ca vācya eko janārdanaḥ | avyaktaḥ kārmavākyaiś ca vācya eko ‘mitātmakaḥ ||1.7|| Janārdana alone is preeminently signified by all words. He is unmanifested and is even signified by words that express actions. He, [though] one, possesses unlimited forms. avāntaraṁ kāraṇaṁ ca prakṛtiḥ śūnyam eva ca | ity ādyanyatra niyatair api mukhyatayoditaḥ śabdair ato ‘nantaguṇo yacchabdā yogavṛttayaḥ ||1.8|| The terms “antecedent cause” and “subordinate cause” and the terms “nature” and even “void” among others signify [Him] preeminently. Therefore, he [is understood to] have infinite virtues [when] the words are etymologically derived. śrautasmṛtiviruddhatvāt smṛtayo na guṇān hareḥ | niṣeddhuṁ śaknuyurvedā nityatvān mānamuttamam ||2.1|| The smṛti texts are unable to reject the qualities of Hari [simply] from their being contradictory [with other] smṛti text [that agree with] śruti. The Vedas

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are the most authoritative form of knowledge because of their eternality. devatāvacanādāpo vadantītyādikaṁ vacaḥ | nāyuktavādyasannaiva kāraṇam drṣyate kvacit ||2.2|| The passages such as “the waters spoke” [from Śatapathabrāhmaṇa 6.1.3] and the like are not wrong because they refer to gods. Nowhere is it seen [that] nonexistent [things can be] the cause. asajjīvapradhānādi śabdā bhrahmaiva nāparam | vadanti kāranatvena kvāpi pūrnaguṇo hariḥ ||2.3|| The terms “non-being,” “self,” originator,” etc. signify brahman alone [as] the cause and nowhere anything else. Hari is filled with virtuous qualities. svātantryāt sarvakartṛtvān nāyuktaṁ tad vadechhrutiḥ | bhrāntimūlatayā sarvasamayānāmayuktitaḥ ||2.4|| Śruti does not state anything wrong because [Hari] is independent and the cause of all. There is an incoherence in all other doctrinal systems because they are founded on false premises. na tadvirodhād vacanaṁ vaidikaṁ śankyatāṁ vrajet | ākāśādisamastaṁ ca tajjaṁ tenaiva līyate ||2.5|| Vedic statements would not become doubtful [just] because of [any] opposition to them. All things, like akāśa, ether, and the rest are born from Him and dissolve because of Him. so ‘nutpattilayaḥ kartā jīvastadvaśagaḥ sadām | tadābhāso hariḥ sarvarupeṣvapi samaḥ sadā ||2.6|| He is without origination and dissolution. He is the maker [of all]. The jīvas, individual selves, are eternally under [His] control and are [His] reflection. Hari is eternally the same in all [His] forms. mukhyaprāṇaścendriyāṇi dehaś caiva tadudbhavaḥ | mukhyaprāṇavaśe sarvaṁ sa viṣṇorvaśagaḥ sadā ||2.7|| The Mukhyaprāṇa (Primary Breath), the senses, and also the body arise from Him. All [else that is] under the control of the Mukhyaprāṇa (Primary Breath), is eternally under the control of Vishnu. sarvadośajjhitas tasmād bhagavān puruṣottamaḥ | uktā guṇaś cāviruddhā tasya vedena sarvaśaḥ ||2.8|| The Lord is the Supreme Being, and therefore, is free from all flaws. His attributes, declared by the Vedas, are entirely without contradiction.

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Journal of Vaishnava Studies śubhena karmaṇā svargaṁ nirayaṁ ca vikarmaṇā | mithyājñānena ca tamo jñānenaiva paraṁ padam ||3.1|| By good deeds [one goes] to heaven and by bad deeds to [a place of] suffering. And by false knowledge [one is led to] darkness. Only by knowledge [does one attain] the highest goal [i.e., mokṣa]. yāti tasmād viraktaḥ san jñānam eva samāśrayet | sarvāsthā prerakaś ca sarvarūpeṣvabhedavān ||3.2|| From this, it follows that one should renounce and resort only to knowledge [of Him]. He [Vishnu] actuates all states and is without difference in all [His forms]. sarvadeśeṣu kāleṣu sa ekaḥ parameśvaraḥ | tadbhaktitāratamyena tāratamyaṁ vimuktigam ||3.3|| He is in all places and at all times. He alone is the highest Lord. There is gradation in mokṣa because of the gradation in the devotion towards Him. saccidānanda ātmeti mānuṣais tu sureśvaraiḥ | yathākramaṁ bahuguṇair brahmaṇā tvakhilair guṇaiḥ ||3.4|| [He is to be meditated on] by men as “the ātman [of] being, consciousness, and bliss,” by the lord of the gods with many attributes in due order, and by Brahmā as [possessing] all of the attributes. upāsyaḥ sarvavedaiś ca sarvair api yathābalam | jñeyo viṣṇur viśeṣas tu jñāne syād uttarottaram ||3.5|| [He is] honored by all the Vedas. And Vishnu is to be known by all [beings] to the best of their abilities. But there will be difference in knowledge [of Him] in accordance with the gradation [of jīvas]. sarve ‘pi puruṣārthā˙ syurjñānād eva na samśaya˙ | na lipyate jñānavāṁś ca sarvadoṣair api kvacit ||3.6|| All the objects of aspiration will be [realized] because of the knowledge [of Him]. There is no doubt [of this]. He who knows [Him] is not at all polluted by any afflictions. guṇadoṣaiḥ sukhasyāpi vṛddhihrāsau vimuktigau | nṛṇāṁ surāṇāṁ muktau tu sukhaṁ klṛptaṁ yathākramam ||3.7|| Even the happiness in liberation increases and decreases because of [the performance of ] good and bad deeds. The happiness of men and gods in mokṣa is determined by the gradation [of their natures].

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viṣṇurbrahma tathādte ty evaṁ nityam upāsanam | kāryamāpadyapi brahma tena yātyaparokṣatām ||4.1|| Vishnu must be eternally worshipped as “brahman” even in times of crisis. Brahman is immediately perceived through this [worship]. prārabdhakarmaṇo ‘nyasya jñānād eva parikṣayaḥ | aniṣṭasyobhayasyāpi sarvasyānyasya bhogataḥ ||4.2|| The experience of all the disagreeable karmas other than those currently manifesting ends because of the knowledge [of Him]. [There is a destruction] of the other [i.e. those currently manifesting by means of their being] experienced. uttareṣūttareṣv evaṁ yāvadvāyuṁ vimuktigāḥ | praviśya bhunjate bhogāṁs tadantarbahir eva vā ||4.3|| Hierarchically arranged, those who are liberated enjoy the internal and external happiness until they reach Vāyu. vāyur viṣṇuṁ praviśyaiva bhogaścaivottarottaram | utkramya mānuṣā muktiṁ yānti dehakṣayātsurāḥ ||4.4|| And Vāyu also enters into Vishnu [in mokṣa]. The pleasures [of mokṣa] are [linked to the] gradation [of the individual jīva]. Having died, humans reach mokṣa. Gods [reach mokṣa] by leaving their bodies. arcirādipathā vāyum prāpya tena janārdanam | yāntyuttamā naroccādyā brahmalokātsahāmunā ||4.5|| The highest [jīvas] who are comprised of the highest humans and others, having reached Vāyu through the path beginning with the Light [and then] from the world of Brahma along with Amunā [four-faced Brahma], go to Janārdana. yathā sankalpabhogāś ca cidānanda śarīriṇaḥ | jagatsṛṣṭyādiviṣaye māhāsāmarthyam apy ṛte ||4.6|| yatheṣṭa śaktimantaś ca vinā svābhāvikottamān | ananyavaśagāś caiva vṛddhihrāsavivarjitāḥ duḥkhdirahitā nityaṁ modante ‘virataṁ sukhaṁ ||4.7|| Those whose bodies are [of the nature of] consciousness and bliss enjoy [liberation according to their] desire. And they are without the great power in emitting, creating, etc., the universe. And they are powerful according to their desire due to their excellent inherent natures. They are under no one’s control and are free from increase and decrease [of the body]. They are free from suffering and other [imperfections and] delight [in] pleasure eternally [and] continually.

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Journal of Vaishnava Studies pūrṇaprajñena muninā sarvaśastrārthasaµgrahaḥ | kṛto ‘yam prīyatāṁ tena paramātmā ramāpatiḥ ||4.8|| This collection of the meanings of the entire Śāstra [is composed] by the sage Pūrṇaprajña [i.e. Madhvācārya]. May the great spirit, the Lord of Ramā, be pleased with this [collection]. namo namo ‘śeṣadoṣa dūra pūrṇaguṇātmane viriñcaśarvapūrveḍya vandyāya śrīvarāyate ||4.9|| Salutations again and again to you who are without imperfections, who is full of [auspicious] attributes, who is venerated by the praised [gods] such as Brahma and Śiva and others, and who chooses Śrī [as His consort].

Endnotes 1. Madhvavijaya 4.4-30, 4.49-54. 2. na ca pūrvaprāpta eva gurur iti niyamaḥ | BSB 3.3.46-47. 3. Madhvavijaya 5.1 4. evaṁvidhāni sūtraṇi kṛtvā vyāso mahāyaśāḥ | brahmarūdrādideveṣu manuṣyapitṛpakṣiṣu | jnānaṁ saṁsthāpya bhagavānkriḍante puruṣottamaḥ | BSB 0. 5. For further reading about the link between Madhvācārya and Vyāsa, see Sheridan’s ‘Vyāsa as Madhva’s Guru.’ 6. Madhvavijaya 16.58. 7. vāyuṁ hare˙ sutaṁ . . . | Chāndogyopaniṣadbhāṣyam 3.15.1. 8. tasmād balapravṛttasya rāmakṛṣṇātmano hareḥ | antaraṅgaṁ hanumāṁś ca bhīmastatkāryasādhakau | MBhTN 2.34-35. 9. yadā ha vai puruṣo ‘smāllokātpraiti sa vāyumāgacchatīti vāyoḥ | BSB 4.3.1. This is a citation from the Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad 7.10.1. 10. . . . vāyumupagamya tenaiva brahma gacchati . . . . | BSB 4.3.5. 11. yasya trīṇyuditāni vedavacane rūpaṇi divyānyalaṁ baṭ taddṛṣatamittham eva nihitaṁ devasya bhargo mahat | vāyo rāmavaconayaṁ prathamakaṁ pṛkṣo dvitīyaṁ vapurmadhvo yattu tṛtīyakaṁ kṛtamidaṁ bhāṣyaṁ harau tena hi | BSB 4.4.23. 12. The text was first translated in 1973 by S. S. Raghavachar. I am reliant upon his creative translation as well as Chalāriśeṣācārya’s Tattvaprakāśikavyākhyāna, which is a gloss on the Aṇubhāṣya composed in the 17th century.

Bibliography Chalāri Śeṣācārya. Tattvaprakāśikavyākhyāna. In Aṇubhāṣya of Śrī Madhvācārya with the commentary, Tattvaprakāśikavyākhyāna of Śrī Chalāri Śeṣācārya. ed. R.G. Malagi Mysore: Oriental Research Institute, 1985. Madhvācārya. Sarvamūlagranthāḥ. Govindācārya ed. Bangalore: Akhila Bharata Madhwa Mahamandala, 1969-74.

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Madhvācārya. Aṇubhāṣya. In Aṇubhāṣya of Sri Madhvācārya with the commentary, Tattvaprakāśikavyākhyāna of Sri Chalari Seshacarya. Malledevaru ed. Mysore: Oriental Research Institute, 1985. Madhvācārya. Brahma Sutra Bhashya. Panchamukhi ed. Delhi: Indological Research Centre, 1994. Nārāyaṇa Paṇḍitācārya. Sumadhvavijayaḥ. Prabhanjanacharya ed. Bangalore: Varna Graphics, 1996. Paṇḍitācārya, Nārāyaṇa. Sumadhvavijayaḥ, Bhāvaprakāśikāsametaḥ Prabhañjanācārya, ed. Bangalore: Sri Man Madhwa Siddantonnahini Sabha, 1989. Raghavachar, S. S. Śrī Madhva’s Aṇubhāṣya or Sarvaśāstrārtha Sangrahaḥ of Śrī Madhva. Madras: Dharmaprakash Publications, 1973. Sheridan, Daniel P. ‘Vyāsa as Madhva’s Guru: Biographical Context for a Vedāntic Commentator.’ In Texts in Context: Traditional Hermeneutics in South Asia. ed., J. Timm. 109-126. NY: SUNY Press, 1992.