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Re: Lots of hogwash!NOT!!!!!!
In article <ghenDryBHF.Hvy@netcom.com>,
vallabha_gautam <gautam@nskernel.tandem.com> wrote:
>I don't think the Advaitin position is that the "perceived universe"
>is illusory - the universe, however it is perceived, does exist. The
I assume you meant does not, rather than does.
>maaya is in the 'I'-ness : the perception that I, Gautam, am a
>distinct entity, separate from the Universe around me.
The problem, of course, is that this begs the question: who, or what,
is the entity afflicted by maayaa? The universe itself? Then, the
whole of the universe is afflicted by maayaa, causing a small part of
it to develop a feeling of `I' with respect to the rest. This is an
unprecedented conclusion, and cannot be supported by any kind of
evidence. If one says that no, the individual himself, rather than the
whole universe, is afflicted by maayaa, then the individuality that is
the substance of the feeling of `I' is accepted as true, and is not
due to maayaa at all. In fact, note that the feeling of `I' is used by
Shankara himself in denouncing shuunyavaada, and cannot thus be
dismissed easily.
>So it seems a moot question whether the tree in front of me "exists",
>or whether it is illusory. The thought "Is what I am perceiving just
>an illusion?" is part of the illusion because of the limited
>"I"-ness implicit in the question. As the quote goes (paraphrased),
>"It is the mind that is moving, not the wind or the flag". The
>"mind movement" is, I think, the maaya.
I'd say this is closer to the Buddhist position than to the Advaitic
one: in fact, I'd go a step further, and say that the above is a
variation of a Buddhist theme that Gaudapaada and Shankara do not
accept.
One point to be noted is that even the notion that "mind is moving" is
not comprehensible or expressible unless one accepts the motion of
external entities as flags to be real; if all external motion is
illusory, then `motion' itself is illusory.
Regards,
Shrisha Rao
>--gautam
>(email: gautam@nskernel.tandem.com)
