THE SUB-CHAPTERS:
The four chapters of Vedanta Sootram have four subsections each. The first sub-section of the first section discusses different aspects (अधिकरण)
The first sub-section of the fourth section discusses 13 different aspects of liberation (मोक्ष) in 19 sootras. The second sub-section of the fourth section discusses 10 aspects of after-life processes in 21 sootras. The third sub-section of the fourth section discusses the transit and nature of transition from 9 aspects in 16 sootras. The last sub-section of the fourth section discusses nature of liberation (मोक्ष) from 11 aspects in 22 sootras. Govinda Bhashya by Shrimad Baladev Vidyabhushan discusses these elaborately according to the doctrine of Shri Chaitanya Charitamrita. Since this is the final teaching of the Vedas, the subject is called Vedanta.
Vedantic literature enjoys great prestige and the five major schools of Vedanta have contributed their commentaries to explain its meaning. All five branches essentially talk about the same truth from different starting and end points – thus they only appear as different. While all agree that the final goal is avoidance of sorrow and attainment of permanent bliss; and renunciation from worldly affairs is the first step in this regard, the ways to attain this has been described differently. For example, regarding sadhana-tattwa (साधनतत्व), Shankara says, only knowledge of eternal Brahma can lead to liberation (मोक्ष). For this purpose, one must differentiate between permanent and impermanent aspects to attain renunciation of worldly comforts (वैराग्य) and practice servitude (उपासना). Ramanuja says, devotion is the best way for renunciation from worldly affairs. He is much more ritualistic and advocated a five-fold devotional practice – अभिगमन, उपादान, इज्या, स्वाधाय, भगवदनुसन्धान. This is a simple way of keeping the mind focused for common men, which is the first stage of progress. Thereafter, the devotion guides the mind. Madhwacharya has classified devotion into three branches: साधारणी भक्ति, परमा भक्ति, स्वरूप भक्ति. According to him, starting from devotion, one should progress through hearing, speaking and thinking only of Godhead, which will lift the soul towards getting indirect knowledge (अपरोक्ष ज्ञानबल), which will lead to परमा भक्ति and then to स्वरूप भक्ति.
Vishnuswamy follows a much more conceptual and unifying aspect of devotion by treating the object of devotion, mechanism of devotion and the devotee as eternal, exemplified by the devotion of Prahlad for Vishnu as Nrasimha. Nimvarka adds integrity (निष्ठा) to attachment (श्रद्धा) by following the Vedic dictums “श्रद्धा va aapah” and “aapo vai satyam”. Thus he advocates worshiping only one deity – Krishna. According to him, devotion can be of two types: i) apara bhakti; which are only 9 different means (navadhaa bhakti), towards reaching the goal; and ii) uttama bhakti, which is absolute ideal love (prema lakshana) for God through listening and recitation of the names of God. Ballabhacharya classified devotion into two different branches from the perspective of mechanism (sadhana roopa) and goal (sadhya roopa). The second one is absolute ideal love (prema lakshana) for God. Blessing of God is most essential in this process. Approach to devotion can be of two types: idealism (maryada) and fulfillment (pushti). The first is obtained by following scriptural injunctions. The second is obtained only through devotion for Krishna and His followers. He treats the last one (pushti marga) as the best way.
According to Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, absolute devotion is the cause for liberation. Though devotion is the path to liberation, it has no specific cause (ahaituki). Only serving noble souls (sadhu seva) and the teacher (guru seva) can lead to devotion and ultimately to liberation. Thus, devotion should be the goal of all worldly affairs. This is blissful (hladini) and the essence of perceiving power (samvit shakti). Thus, by nature, devotion leads to knowledge and bliss (Chaitanya Charitamrita – Madhya – 22). Essentially, it is a simplified version of Yoga of Patanjali (Yoga Sootram 1-2). Similarly, other aspects of the different Vedantic concepts can be harmonized.
Epistemology
Epistemological treatment started with Nyaya Sootram of Gautama, which is the ancient research methodology. He classified the knowables into 16 different categories, the first of which is evidence (pramana), which is defined as the instrumentation of judging the time-invariant aspects of everything in the universe (prama karana) through observation and experiment. He divides evidence into four categories: i) direct evidence (pratyaksha), ii) indirect evidence (paroksha) or inference (anumana), iii) Similarity (upamana), which some treat as a part of ii), and iv) Self realization through some source (Shabda or aparoksha). Other branches extended these according to their requirement. Buddhists curtailed these. Vedanta also deals with it in its own way.
Vedanta recognizes five epistemological categories, viz., (i) Pratyaksha: here knowledge comes based upon faith on one’s own direct sensory capacity, (ii) Paroksha: here knowledge comes from inference coming from other’s sense observation. For example in science we rely on the data collected by others as well as certification of qualified scientists, (iii) Aparoksha: knowledge comes from self, (iv) Adhokshaja: knowledge coming from above the plane of self from the plane of Absolute Truth. It comes of its own accord. We can’t do anything to get it again after it withdraws by any of our own efforts, and (v) Aprakrita: Continuous life in the plane of transcendence. The Vedantic literatures therefore are in the plane of adhokshaja and they are not man made.
