20201228 Māyāvāda Bhāṣya Taught by Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya is Refuted by Lord Caitanya (Part 4)

Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book Compilation  By His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja

on 28^th December 2020 in Śrīdhāma Māyāpur, India

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim
yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande śrī-guruṁ dīna-tāraṇam
paramānandaṁ mādhavaṁ śrī caitanya iśvaram

hariḥ oṁ tat sat

Introduction: Today we are continuing with the compilation of Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya book, Part 4 of the chapter entitled:

Māyāvāda Bhāṣya Taught by Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya is Refuted by Lord Caitanya

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 6.173

দেহে আত্মবুদ্ধিরূপ বিবর্ত্তই মিথ্যা জগৎ—সত্য, কিন্তু নশ্বর :—

jīvera dehe ātma-buddhi — sei mithyā haya
jagat ye mithyā nahe, naśvara-mātra haya

Translation: The theory of illusion can be applied only when the living entity identifies himself with the body. As far as the cosmic manifestation is concerned, it cannot be called false, although it is certainly temporary.

Purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda: The living entity is the eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa. Being part and parcel of the Lord, he is constitutionally pure, but due to his contact with material energy, he identifies himself with either the gross or the subtle material body. Such identification is certainly false and constitutes the genuine platform of the theory of illusion. The living entity is eternal: he can never be subjected to the limits of time, as are his gross and subtle bodies. The cosmic manifestation is never false, but it is subject to change by the influence of the time factor. For a living entity to accept this cosmic manifestation as the field for his sense enjoyment is certainly illusory. This material world is the manifestation of the material energy of the Lord. This is explained by Kṛṣṇa in the Bhagavad-gītā (7.4):

bhūmir āpo ’nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca
ahaṅkāra itīyaṁ me bhinnā prakṛtir aṣṭadhā

“Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and false ego—all together these eight constitute My separated material energies.”

The material world is the inferior energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but it is not a fact that the Supreme Lord has been transformed into this material world. The Māyāvādī philosophers, devoid of true understanding, have confused the theory of illusion and the theory of the cosmic manifestation by word jugglery. The theory of illusion can be applied to a person who identifies himself with the body. The living entity is the superior energy of the Supreme Lord, and the material world is the inferior energy. Both, however, are prakṛti (energy). Although the energies are simultaneously one with the Lord and different from Him, the Lord never loses His personal form due to the transformation of His different energies.

Jayapatākā Swami:  So, all are energies are in relation to the Lord, just like in the government there is the police department and welfare department, and different departments. So in Government they are all departments. But for the criminals, they look at the police department different. So like that the conditioned is put under illusion by the material energy but the Supreme Lord He is not put under the illusion.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 6.174

ওঙ্কারই আদি-মহাবাক্য ও ঈশ্বর-মূৰ্ত্তি এবং বেদ-কল্পতরুর বীজ

‘praṇava’ ye mahā-vākya — īśvarera mūrti
praṇava haite sarva-veda, jagat-utpatti

Translation: The transcendental vibration oṁkāra is the sound form of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. All Vedic knowledge and this cosmic manifestation are produced from this sound representation of the Supreme Lord.

Purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda: Oṁkāra is the representation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead in sound. This form of His holy name is accepted as the transcendental vibration (mahā-vākya) by virtue of which the temporary material manifestation has come into being. If one takes shelter of the sound representation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead (oṁkāra), he can realize his constitutional identity and engage in devotional service even though in conditioned life.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, the Māyāvādīs they try to ignore the oṁkāra. But the oṁkāra is actually a representation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore, the devotees they chant the oṁkāra – oṁ namo bhāgavate vāsudevaya.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 6.175

তত্ত্বমস্যাদি বাক্য—বেদের একদেশ-সূচক :—

‘tat tvam asi’ — jīva-hetu prādeśika vākya
praṇava nā māni’ tāre kahe mahā-vākya

Translation: The subsidiary vibration tat tvam asi [“you are the same”] is meant for the understanding of the living entity, but the principal vibration is oṁkāra. Not caring for oṁkāra, Śaṅkarācārya has stressed the vibration tat tvam asi.”

Purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda: Tat tvam asi is accepted as the primary vibration by one who does not accept praṇava, the transcendental sound incarnation of the holy name of the Lord, as the chief principle in the Vedic literature. By word jugglery, Śaṅkarācārya tried to create an illusory presentation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His relationship with the living entities and the cosmic manifestation. Tat tvam asi is a warning to the living entity not to mistake the body for the self. Therefore tat tvam asi is especially meant for the conditioned soul. The chanting of oṁkāra or the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra is meant for the liberated soul. Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī has said, ayi mukta-kulair upāsyamānam (Nāmāṣṭaka 1). Thus the holy name of the Lord is chanted by the liberated souls. Similarly, Parīkṣit Mahārāja says, nivṛtta-tarṣair upagīyamānāt (SB 10.1.4). The holy name of the Lord can be chanted by those who have fully satisfied their material desires or who are fully situated on the transcendental platform and devoid of material desire. The name of the Lord can be chanted by one who is completely freed from material contamination (anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyaṁ jñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam [Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 1.1.11]). Śaṅkarācārya has indirectly minimized the value of the principal Vedic mantra (oṁkāra) by accepting a subordinate vibration (tat tvam asi) as the most important Vedic mantra.

Jayapatākā Swami:  Here Śrīla Prabhupāda has emphasized how the oṁkāra is the principle Vedic mantra and impersonally, Śaṅkarācārya he emphasizes tat tvam asi thus bewildering the people.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 6.176

সার্ব্বভৌমের নানা পূৰ্ব্বপক্ষ ও প্রভুর তৎসমুদয়-খণ্ডন :—

ei-mate kalpita bhāṣye śata doṣa dila
bhaṭṭācārya pūrva-pakṣa apāra karila

Translation: Thus, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu criticized Śaṅkarācārya’s Śārīraka-bhāṣya as imaginary, and He pointed out hundreds of faults in it. To defend Śaṅkarācārya, however, Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya presented unlimited opposition.

Caitanya Carita Mahā Kāvya 12.26

asau vitaṇḍāc chala-nigrahādyair
nirasta-dhīr apy atha pūrva-pakṣam
cakāra vipraḥ prabhunā sa cāśu
sva-siddha-siddhāntavatā nirastaḥ

Translation: Sārvabhauma, his intellect defeated by vitaṇḍa, chala and nigraha, presented a proposal to be countered. He was quickly defeated by the Lord with his perfect conclusions.

Caitanya Carita Mahā Kāvya 12.27

advaita-vādī prathamaḥ padābja-
vādī prabhuś ca pratibhaika-sindhū
tau bhakta-sevyau bahu dīrgha-kāḷaṁ
vadāvadair ninyatur anyathaiva

 Translation: Sārvabhauma, advocating Advaita, and the Lord, advocating bhakti, both oceans of great intellect, served by their followers, spent a long time in arguing back and forth in various ways.

Jayapatākā Swami:  So, some of the principal arguments are given in Caitanya-caritāmṛta. But as was said, Lord Caitanya found out hundreds of defects in the Śaṅkarācārya bhāsya, Śārīraka-bhāṣya. But then Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya, he countered with unlimited arguments and Lord Caitanya refuted those. In this way, they were arguing back and forth.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 6.177

vitaṇḍā, chala, nigrahādi aneka uṭhāila
saba khaṇḍi’ prabhu nija-mata se sthāpila

Translation: The Bhaṭṭācārya presented various types of false arguments with pseudo logic and tried to defeat his opponent in many ways. However, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu refuted all these arguments and established His own conviction.

Purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda: The word vitaṇḍā indicates that a debater, not touching the main point or establishing his own point, simply tries to refute the other person’s argument. When one does not touch the direct meaning but tries to divert attention by misinterpretation, he engages in chala. The word nigraha also means always trying to refute the arguments of the other party.

Jayapatākā Swami:  So, in Vedic debate there are certain principles, so when one has no actual argument to counter, they take shelter of certain tricks like vitaṇḍā, chala and nigraha. So, this was explained how these are used in some pseudo logic. But when they have a debate actually, one should know all the rules and not get distracted by the tricks.

 

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 6.178

প্রভুকর্ত্তৃক যথার্থ বেদমত-স্থাপন :—

bhagavān — ‘sambandha’, bhakti — ‘abhidheya’ haya
premā — ‘prayojana’, vede tina-vastu kaya

Translation: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu continued, “The Supreme Personality of Godhead is the central point of all relationships, acting in devotional service to Him is one’s real occupation, and the attainment of love of Godhead is the ultimate goal of life. These three subject matters are described in the Vedic literature.

Purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda: In the Bhagavad-gītā (15.15) Lord Kṛṣṇa confirms this statement: vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ. The actual purpose in reading the Vedas is to learn how to become a devotee of the Supreme Lord. The Lord Himself advises, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (Bg. 9.34). Therefore, after studying the Vedas, one must then execute devotional service by thinking always of the Supreme Lord (man-manā), becoming His devotee, worshiping Him and always offering Him obeisances. This is called viṣṇu-ārādhana, and it is the supreme occupational duty of all human beings. It is properly discharged in the varṇāśrama-dharma system, which divides society into brahmacārya, gṛhastha, vānaprastha and sannyāsa and brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya and śūdra. This is the whole scheme of Vedic civilization. However, this institution is very difficult to establish in this age; therefore Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu advises that we not worry about the Vedic system of varṇāśrama-dharma. Rather, we should take directly to the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra and simply hear about the Supreme Personality of Godhead from pure devotees. This is the process recommended by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and this is the purpose for studying the Vedas.

Jayapatākā Swami:  So, Śrīla Prabhupāda confirms that it is very difficult to establish varṇāśrama in the age of Kali. Therefore, as Lord Caitanya advised, we should directly take to the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra and hear about the Supreme Personality of Godhead from pure devotees. So this is the process recommended for this age and not varṇāśrama-dharma.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 6.179

ঐ সম্বন্ধাভিধেয়-প্রয়োজন-নির্দ্দেশ ব্যতীত সব মতবাদই কাল্পনিক :—

āra ye ye-kichu kahe, sakala-i kalpanā
svataḥ-pramāṇa veda-vākye kalpena lakṣaṇā

Translation: If one tries to explain the Vedic literature in a different way, he is indulging in imagination. Any interpretation of the self-evident Vedic version is simply imaginary.

Purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda: When a conditioned soul is purified, he is called a devotee. A devotee has his relationship only with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and his only occupational duty is to execute devotional service to satisfy the Lord. This service is rendered through the Lord’s representative, the spiritual master: yasya deve parā bhaktir yathā deve tathā gurau [ŚU 6.23]. When the devotee executes devotional service properly, he attains the highest perfection of life—love of Godhead: sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo yato bhaktir adhokṣaje [SB 1.2.6]. The ultimate goal of understanding the Vedas is to be elevated to the platform of rendering loving service to the Lord. The Māyāvādī philosophers, however, consider the central point of relationship to be the impersonal Brahman, the function of the living entity to be the acquisition of knowledge of Brahman, resulting in detachment from material activity, and the ultimate goal of life to be liberation, or merging into the existence of the Supreme. All of this, however, is simply due to the imagination of the conditioned soul. It simply opposes him to material activities. One should always remember that all Vedic literatures are self-evident. No one is allowed to interpret the Vedic verses. If one does so, he indulges in imagination, and that has no value.

Jayapatākā Swami:  So, the Vedas should be understood directly not by some imaginative commentary. The Vedas are to be understood directly.  Lord Caitanya used that direct understanding but the Māyāvādī arguers were using indirect imaginary commentaries.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 6.180

ঈশ্বরের আদেশে শঙ্করের অসুর-মোহন :—

ācāryera doṣa nāhi, īśvara-ājñā haila
ataeva kalpanā kari’ nāstika-śāstra kaila

Translation: Actually there is no fault on the part of Śaṅkarācārya. He simply carried out the order of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He had to imagine some kind of interpretation, and therefore he presented a kind of Vedic literature that is full of atheism.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 6.181

পদ্মপুরাণ উত্তরখণ্ড সহস্রনামকথনে (৬২৩১)—

svāgamaiḥ kalpitais tvaṁ ca
janān mad-vimukhān kuru
māṁ ca gopaya yena syāt
sṛṣṭir eṣottarottarā

Translation: [Addressing Lord Śiva, the Supreme Personality of Godhead said:] ’Please make the general populace averse to Me by imagining your own interpretation of the Vedas. Also, cover Me in such a way that people will take more interest in advancing material civilization just to propagate a population bereft of spiritual knowledge.’

Purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda: This is a quotation from the Padma Purāṇa, Uttara-khaṇḍa (62.31).

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 6.182

পদ্মপুরাণ উত্তরখণ্ড (২৫৭)—

māyāvādam asac-chāstraṁ
pracchannaṁ bauddham ucyate
mayaiva vihitaṁ devi
kalau brāhmaṇa-mūrtinā

Translation: “[Lord Śiva informed goddess Durgā, the superintendent of the material world:] ’In the Age of Kali I take the form of a brāhmaṇa and explain the Vedas through false scriptures in an atheistic way, similar to Buddhist philosophy.’”

Purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda: The word brāhmaṇa-mūrtinā in this verse refers to the founder of Māyāvāda philosophy, Śaṅkarācārya, who was born in the Mālabara district of southern India. Māyāvāda philosophy states that the Supreme Lord, the living entities and the cosmic manifestation are all transformations of illusory energy. To support this atheistic theory, the Māyāvādīs cite false scriptures, which make people bereft of transcendental knowledge and addicted to fruitive activities and mental speculation.

This verse is a quotation from the Padma Purāṇa, Uttara-khaṇḍa (25.7).

Jayapatākā Swami: Sankaracarya, in order to bring India back to the Vedas, He preached a kind of Vedic Buddhism and in that way He can convince all the people to leave Buddhism and come back to the Vedas So in India and practically all the people left Buddhism and took to the philosophy of Śaṅkarācārya. Of course there are still followers of Lord Buddha in Sri Lanka and in Southeast Asia and in China.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 6.183

প্রভুর ব্যাখ্যাশ্রবণে ভট্টাচার্য্যের বিস্ময় :—

śuni’ bhaṭṭācārya haila parama vismita
mukhe nā niḥsare vāṇī, ha-ilā stambhita

Translation: Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya became very much astonished upon hearing this. He became stunned and said nothing.

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya when He wanted to refute Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya, He did it so very emphatically that Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya became stunned. In all his life he had been following Śaṅkarācārya and then he knew that Śaṅkarācārya was giving a false philosophy on the order of Viṣṇu to bring the people back from Buddhism.

Caitanya Carita Mahā Kāvya 12.28

athaiṣa vismera-manā dvijāgryo
hṛdāhṛdi vyākulito jagāda
ka eṣa mat-prātibha-khaṇḍanārtham
ihāvatīrṇaḥ kim u gīṣpatiḥ syāt

Translation: Most astonished, the best of brāhmaṇas, his heart confused by the Lord’s mind, spoke. “Who is this? He has appeared in this world to defeat my intelligence. Is he Bṛhaspati?

Caitanya Carita Mahā Kāvya 12.29

itīha tarko mama sarvadāsīd
bṛhaspatir mat-pratibhā-samudre
na pāram āsādayitā kadāpi
sadyodyataḥ sann api buddhinā vā

Translation: “I have always wondered about this. Bṛhaspati even with great effort cannot cross over the ocean of my intellect.

Caitanya Carita Mahā Kāvya 12.30

ayaṁ tu kaiśora-vayāḥ kiyad vāpy
adhītam āste vada pāṭhitaṁ kim
tathāpi śaktir mama naiva bhūtā
parābhavāyāsya mamaiva sābhūt

Translation: “He is a youth.  How much has he studied or taught?  But I did not have the power to defeat him, and he has the power to defeat me.

Jayapatākā Swami: Hari Bol! Gaurāṅga !

Murāri Gupta Kaḍaca 3.12.13

vedānta-siddhāntam idaṁ viditvā
gataṁ purā yat tad alaṁ sa matvā
caitanya-pādābja-yuge mahātmā
sa vismayotphulla-manāḥ papāta

Translation: At this time Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya could comprehend that the principle taught by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was the perfectional conclusion of Vedānta study. Thus, he considered all he had previously thought knowledge to be ignorance, and he therefore discarded it. That great soul fell at Śrī Caitanya's lotus feet, his heart blossoming in wonder.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, this was the principle that was followed previously that if you are defeated then you would surrender yourself at the lotus feet of the person that defeated you. So, Lord Caitanya presented such a perfect idea that Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya was defeated and he surrendered at Lord Caitanya’s lotus feet

Caitanya Maṅgala, Madhya-khaṇḍa 16.238

শুনি’ সার্বভৌম হৈলা বিস্মিত অন্তর
বুঝিল–মনুষ্য নহে শচীর কোঙর ২৩৮

Jayapatākā Swami: Hearing these words, Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya was struck with wonder inside. He understood that the son of Mother Śacī was not an ordinary human being.

Caitanya Maṅgala, Madhya-khaṇḍa 16.239

সজ্জায়ে পীড়িত হৈলা হৃদয়ে তরাস 
এতকাল নাহি শুনি’ এমত নিৰ্য্যাস ২৩৯

Jayapatākā Swami: Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya became embarrassed and he was afflicted within his heart.  So far, during his whole life he had never heard such an essence of philosophy.

Caitanya Maṅgala, Madhya-khaṇḍa 16.240

পঢ়িল শুনিল যত এতকাল ধরি 
পঢ়াইল শিষ্যগণে অহঙ্কার করি’ ২৪০

Jayapatākā Swami: All this time, whatever I listened, studied, and taught to my disciples was out of my false ego. So Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya had understood from Caitanya Mahāprabhu that what he was teaching was incorrect and therefore now he understood that pure devotion was the goal of life. So Lord Caitanya had a strategy and He humbly submitted and Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya was educating Him. But when Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya asked, “Why don’t You say anything?” He said that, “I understand the verse, but I cannot understand your commentary” So he then he said, oh, can You tell me the truth? Thinking that the Lord was just being egoistic and He did not tell the truth. But Lord Caitanya defeated all the statements of Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya and Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya tried to use various tricks of debate but he was unable to defeat Lord Caitanya. But Lord Caitanya defeated him and it changed his heart. Sometimes people ask, “how can we preach when people are egoistic?” So we can take a lesson from this, how Lord Caitanya humbly submitted and in the end He refuted all the statements of Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya. Of course, one should also know the philosophy.

I went to Jagannātha Purī met the head Paṇḍita of a particular sampradaya. Śrīla Prabhupāda had said that this sampradāya cut up various mantras, śrī kṛṣṇa caitanya prabhu nityānanda hare kṛṣṇa hare rama śrī rādhā govinda. So, he said, well, they all like Rādhā Govinda in Vṛndāvana and they like śrī Kṛṣṇa caitanya and prabhu nityānanda in Bengal, and everywhere they like Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Rāma so a little bit for everyone. So Śrīla Prabhupāda said that they are good businessmen, they had something in the store but their mantra was speculative. Why don’t they sing the full mantra - śrī kṛṣṇa caitanya prabhu nityānanda śrī advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādī gaura bhakta vṛṇdā, Hare Kṛṣṇa hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare. This Paṇḍita was very expert that he used various questions, and used all these tactics of improper debate. But I just stuck to the point that Śrīla Prabhupāda said, then finally the Paṇḍita said, well, actually we chant the full Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra every Gaura Pūrṇimā.  So, if we stick to the points that Śrīla Prabhupāda makes we can also face these great Paṇḍitas. He knew the Caitanya-caritāmṛta by heart but he was not giving the correct interpretation, the correct meaning. He was giving an imaginative commentary. So anyway we can learn from the example of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

Here we are giving only a synopsis, but Lord Caitanya gave hundreds of slokas, hundreds of arguments and Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya tried to refute but he was unable. In the end he realized that Śacīnandana was not an ordinary human being.

Hari Bol! Gaurāṅga! Nityānanda!

Thus ends the chapter entitled Māyāvāda Bhāṣya Taught by Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya is Refuted by Lord Caitanya.