Re: Tanmatras and Mahabhutas
hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~
namasté
It seems proper to start at the beginning , no ? And I ask others to add their insights/offers/knowledge as they see fit.
First, where do these mahābhūta-s and tanmātra-s fit in ? That is, what is the overall conversation ? Macro-scopically
(niravaśeṣatas¹) we are talking of all that is. But all that is what ? All that is manifest and unmanifest ( vyāvahātika + pāramārthika ) which helps
us understand the subject matter at hand, yet is not the final view ; it helps us describe some of these concepts .
In general we can say vyāvahātika + pāramārthika is that what easily perishes and that which never perishes.
From another point of view ( which I prefer) it is how the Supreme enters this level of creation.
From a mundane point of view , and if I where in industry , we could call this a bill of material list of all that is.
From a more profound level of inquisition we call this the tattva-s of all that is.
That is, mahābhūta-s and tanmātra-s reside as ~callouts~ as part of a family of tattva-s that describe all that is.
Pending one's point of view ( darśana¹) the number of total tattva-s may ( and will) differ.
Most often the śāṁkhya school is quoted with 25 ( some argue 26) tattva-s. The school
I prefer within śaivism call out 36. This view includes all of the tattva-s we find in the śāṁkhya school
but has a more refined view on this matter and is able to discern a few more other then the ones
called out in the śāṁkhya school , the same way the śāṁkhya school has discerned more tattva-s
found in other schools.
Now many begin to take sides as to who is right or wrong; this is not the best orientation to approach this subject.
The various lists of tattva-s are there to help us get closer to the truth and that is why there are different lists and definitions ( and implications thereof).
The mahābhūta-s and tanmātra-s fall within a grouping structure outlining all the tattva-s, from earth (pṛthvī) to śiva ( Being).
Yet before we list out the groups, a better undersanding of this word tattva is needed.
I will offer my views in the next post.
iti śivaṁ
words
- niravaśeṣatas - completely , totally, fully
- darśana - specifically it means seeing, knowing or ~school~ of thought; classically we talk of 6 :
- śāṁkhya
- yoga
- vedānta
- mīmāṃsā
- nyāya
- vaiśeṣika
What do these 6 schools of thought address ? The views of Reality:
Reality = vyāvahātika + pāramārthika ( the manifest or the world of diversity + the transcendent). And what then comes of this thought ?
How they view this Reality:
- advaita - no separateness or not two - unity
- dvaita - separateness or 2 - diversity
- viśiṣṭādvaita - separate yet - unity in diversity
Last edited by yajvan; 26 July 2014 at 08:29 AM.
यतस्त्वं शिवसमोऽसि
yatastvaṁ śivasamo'si
because you are identical with śiva
_
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