Richard H. Jones - Early Advaita Vedanta Philosophy, Volume 2: Shankara’s Commentary on the Brahma Sutra in Plain English

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

EarlyAdvaitaVedantaPhilosophy,Volume2/translationswithnotesandessaysby Richard H. Jones.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN-13: 978-1501066191
ISBN-10: 1501066196
1.1.

ii Abbreviations................................................... vPreface......................................................... vi
I. Translation and Summary

The Brahma Sutra................................................ 1
Book 1...................................................... 1
Book 2..................................................... 8
Book 3..................................................... 17
Book 4..................................................... 27

Summary of Shankaras Commentary on the Brahma Sutra............. 33
Book 1...................................................... 33
Book 2..................................................... 76
Book 3..................................................... 135
Book 4..................................................... 165

II. Essays

The Theology of the Brahma Sutra................................. 182
Understanding the Text..................................... 183
Brahman.................................................. 184
The World................................................. 186
The Person................................................. 186
Enlightenment.............................................. 186

Shankara, His texts, and His Development........................... 188

Shankaras Philosophy.......................................... 192
The Criterion of Reality...................................... 193
Brahman................................................... 195

iii

Two Forms of Brahman...................................... 198
Atman, Atmans, and the Individual Person...................... 203
The Phenomenal World...................................... 206
Root-Ignorance (Avidya)..................................... 213
Knowledge of Brahman...................................... 214
The Path to Enlightenment.................................. 222
The Enlightened Way of Life................................. 226
Enlightenment and Morality................................. 230

Shankaras Arguments........................................... 234
A Theological Framework................................... 234
Consciousness and Brahman................................. 237
Arguing by Analogy........................................ 239
False Attribution and Negation............................... 242
Arguing from Within the Dream: Two Points of View............ 243
The Problem of Root-Ignorance............................... 248
The Phenomenal World and Individuals........................ 252
The Inadequacy of Shankaras Metaphysics...................... 256
Shankaras One-Track Mind................................... 259

References and Further Reading.................................. 262

BGThe Bhagavad-gita
BGBShankaras Commentary on the Bhagavad-gitaBSBrahma Sutra
BSBShankaras Commentary on the Brahma SutraBSRRamanujas Commentary on the Brahma SutraBUBrihadaranyaka Upanishad
BUBShankaras Commentary on the BrihadaranyakaUpanishadCUChandogya Upanishad
GKGaudapada-karikas
GKSShankaras Commentary on the Gaudapada-karikasIUIsha Upanishad
KaUKatha Upanishad
KeUKena Upanishad
KsUKaushitaki Upanishad
ManUMandukya Upanishad
MunUMundaka Upanishad
RVRig Veda
SUShvetashvatara Upanishad
TUTaittiriya Upanishad
TUBShanakaras Commentary on the Taittiriya UpanishadUpad.Upadeshasahasri

v

Volume 1 of Early Advaita Vedanta Philosophy covered Gaudapadas Gaudapada-karikas and Shankaras commentary upon it. The Brahma Sutra is nota workof Advaita nondualism, but it is translated here into readable Englishas the platform for the most important work in all of Advaita Shankarascommentary on it. The portions of the commentary that are important fortheir philosophical claims or reasoning are translated or summarized.Explanatory essays on both texts are also included.

TheaphorismsoftheBrahmaSutraareveryterseandrequireinterpretation.Thefirstaphorismliterallytranslatesassimply:NowBrahmaninquiry.Materialmustbeaddedtoanytranslationtomakeintelligiblesentences.Butthisprocessisoftenverymuchamatterofatranslators interpretation.Ihaveadded material in parentheses to indicate my understanding. But there aredisputes between the various schools of Vedanta over virtually everyaphorism beginning with what the word now indicates in the first line!ThetextofShankarascommentaryismuchmorecomplete,butIhaveaddedmaterialwithoutparentheseswhenwhatisindicatedisfairlyclearandaddedmaterial in parentheses in other places to indicate my interpretation.

I have not attempted to translate Shankaras entire commentary English translations are usually 800 to 900 pages long with small print.Instead, I have relied mainly upon others translation to guide me to thephilosophicalmaterialinhiscommentaryandhavetranslatedorsummarizedthe philosophical portions that may remain of interest today. In order tomake it more readable, I often changed the grammar, skipped some words,or paraphrased passages, but I retained the meaning (I hope), if not theliterary feel of the work.

And it should be noted that I am departing from convention in a majorway for one of the two central terms: I am not translating atman as selfwhen it is related to Brahman. For clarity, I distinguish three senses ofatman in the Brahma Sutra and in Shankaras commentary: Atman asBrahman (i.e., the ontic essence of everything), as the essence (atman) ofa transmigrating individual (jiva), and as a reflexive reference to oneselfwithout any metaphysical implications. As explained in the essays, the termselfpsychologizestheconcepttoomuchatmanratherisamatteroftheontic essence of any phenomenon and will be left untranslated whentranslating it as self would be susceptible to too much misunderstanding.

Book 1: The Nature of BrahmanChapter 1

[1] After (the ritualportion of the Vedas),1there is then the inquiry into(the nature of) Brahman (in the knowledge portion of scripture [shruti], i.e.,the Upanishads).2

[2] Brahman is that from which proceeds the origin, existence, anddissolution of this (world). [3] (Brahman) is the source of scripture, i.e., theVedas (or scripture is the source of knowledge). [4] But (Brahman is knownfrom scripture) because (knowing Brahman) is the aim (of scripture).

[5] (The Samkhyas thinknonconscious primal matter [pradhana] is theorigin of the world), but since (the Upanishads state that the cause of theworld) sees, (an unconscious cause) cannot be founded on scripture.