Vedanta - Discussion Forum I (introductory))

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With Bhagavan's prodding, i have started reading the Paramachary's discourse on Soundrya lahiri. The following is very relevant to our earlier discussion. For those who did not have the time to read the entire digest

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Throughout his bhAshyas and all his minor works, our Acharya is
never tired of repeating: All worldly activities are MAyA; one should
aspire to realise and become the changeless and actionless nirguNa
Brahman. Thus the immutable ShivaM is the object of all his writing and
advice. What produces movement out of that Brahman was called MAyA
by him and he spared no pains to paint that MAyA in uncomplimentary
colors and warn us strongly against getting into her clutches.
But the very same Acharya, now, in the first shloka of
Soundaryalahari, exclaims with great admiration of Shakti (that very
same MAyA): Oh, Goddess, without you even Shiva cannot move!

How can the same person talk in two contradictory ways like this?
Which is true? If one of them is not true, can the Acharya tarnish his
name by speaking an untruth?

If you look at these things only by logic, you will not get anywhere.
The definition of Truth does not come by logic. WHATEVER WILL DO
GOOD TO WHOMSOEVER IT IS INTENDED, THAT SHOULD BE STATED
LOVINGLY; THAT IS TRUTH (SATYAM). For those who can tread the path
of jnAna, he recommended retirement from the world.


For those who have yet to evolve to that stage of spiritual maturity, he recommended the path of Bhakti and Karma; this will make them reach the kArya-
Brahman through worldly actions of work and worship. When one does
not have an evolved attitude to a certain path, it is counterproductive to
advise him go that path.

So it is not a question of being logical; it is a question of seeing the psycho-logical (!) perspective. The ancients called it ‘adhikAri-bheda’, that is, difference in prerequisite qualifications. Secondly, it is not just that he understood the psychology of
different types of seekers of spirituality and preached accordingly. It is
more. <b>Both the advices he gave, though seemingly opposite, are ‘true’,
each at a particular stage of evolution. In the phenomenal world, creation
and the universe and the activator of all of them, namely, Ishwara, are all
‘real’ certainly</b> <i>(relative realism?)</i>.

But when we enquire into the root cause of all this, we find that the more basic Reality is the Existent Self-in-itself that is actionless but through a miraculous magic wand of MAyA brings about all this moving world. Thus, when an Acharya or the scripture compares two paths or two objects of worship and speaks of one as the better or greater of the two, it does not always mean that the other thing, that had a lower estimate, is worthless. That which our Acharya talked about as the thing
to be discarded, namely, perception of duality, in all his works – that
very same thing he now praises to the sky, saying that this is what you
have to hold steadfastly in the bhakti path. In one case it is duality, in
the other case it is ‘sva-svarUpa-anu-sandhAnaM’ (remaining steadfast in
one’s own Self).
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As Sundar ji said, where is the icon for sashtanga namaskaram?