( 6 ) Journal of Indian and Buddhist Studies Vol. 46, No. 2, March 1998
An Introduction to the *Brhadayanyakaloka: Vijnanabhiksu's Commentary on the Brhadaranyakopanisad
Noriaki HOSODA
1. About the Manuscript
Among the commentaries on the Brh. (=Brhadaranyakopanisad), there are two manuscripts called Brhadaranyakavyakhya by Vi jnanabhiksull, kept in the Sanskrit College, Calcutta. Of these two incomplete manu- scripts remarked as follows.") I've obtained the photocopies of the important one'), i.e. No. 138.
No. 138. Brhadaranyaka-vyakhya Substance, country-made paper, 10X4'/,? inches. Folia, 101. Lines, 8-9 on a page. Extent, 2,000 slokas. Character, Nagara. Date,? Appearance, very old, decayed, and worm-eaten. Prose. Correct. Incomplete. A commentary on the Brhadaranyaka Brahmana Upanisat by Vijnana Bhiksu, a famous Hindu ascetic and author of the Sankhyasara, the Yogavarttika, the Sankhya Pravacana Bhasya, and many other philosophical works. This commentary belongs to the series of commentaries on the Vedanta philosophy by the same author called Aloka (see page 82 of manuscripts). The manuscript is incomplete, coming down to the beginning of the second Brahmana of the fourth adhyaya. No. 139. Brhadaranyaka-vyakhya Substance, foolscap, 15'/,X5 inches. Folia, 101. Lines, 7 on a page. Character, Nagara. Date,? Appearance, new. Prose. Correct. Incomplete (coming down to the beginning of the second Brahmana of the fourth adhyaya. The manuscript seems to be a fresh copy of the last, most probably made by some officer of the Sanskrit College).
According to the information above, extant part of the manuscript would be down to the Brh. 4, 2, which contains Yajnavalkya and Janaka's
-1055- An Introduction to the *Brhadaranyakaloka (N. HOSODA) ( 7 ) dialogue. But actually it is down to the Brh. 2, 2. This is due to the counting of the chapter (adhyaya) number of the . Upanisad as the Ara- nyaka of SB. (= Satapatha-Brahmana). This commentary of the Brh. is based on l(anva-sakha, so that the Upanisad begins SB. xvi (kanda), iii (adhyaya). Each end of brahmana specifies the ordinal number and the extant part of the manuscript is:
chapter (Kanva)
Brh. SB. xvi folios End
1, 1 iii, 1 fol. 1b3-5b8 "prathamam brahmanam." i, 2 iii, 2 fol. 5b8-15a5 "dvitiyam brahmanam." i, 3 iii, 3 fol. 15a5-29a4 "trtiyam brahmanam." i, 4 iii, 4 fol. 29a4-61b8 "trtiyadhyaye caturthabrahmanam." i, 5 iii, 5 fol. 61b8-81a6 "paficamam brahmanam." i, 6 iii, 6 fol. 81a6-82b7 "sastham brdhmanam. iti Vijnanabhiksukrte Vedantaloke Brhadaranyakasya trtiyayalokah. " ii, 1 iv, 1 fol. 82b7-100a3 "caturthadhyayasya prathamam brahmanam." ii, 2 iv, 2 fol. 100a3- (fol. 102- missing)
So this manuscript contains the commentary to the beginning of the Brh. 2, 2, 3. Although the last line of fol. 101b has a colophon:
"iti sri-Brhadaranyals'I-vyakhyayamvisaya(?) samaptah. sri-Kasi visvesvaraya. namo namah."
But this is written in the tenth line, which any other folio has (mostly 9 lines), and the letters are new and by the different hand. It is obvio- usly the later alteration.
2. Vijnanabhiksu's Vedantaloka
The reason for this commentary's author is Vi jnanabhiksu is based on the account "iti Vijnanabhiksukrte Vedantaloke Brhadaranyakasya trtiyadhyalokah" at the end of the Brh. i (SB,xvi, iii). "Vedantaloka" is generally known as Vijnanabhiksu's commentaries on the eight Upa- nisads. 4) This series of works has been not published before, and the
-1054- (8) An Introduction to the *Brhaddranyakdloka (N. HosoDA) manuscripts are kept in the Asiatic Society, Calcutta. 5'
No. 1798. Taittiriyakopanisadaloka6' Beginning. "san no mitrah sam varuna ityadi Taittiriyakopanisadvyakhyayate." End. "iti VijnanabhiksukrteVedantaloke Taittiriyakopanisadalokah samaptah." No. 1808. Mandukyopanisadaloka Beginning. "om ity etad aksaram idam sarvam ityadi Mandukyopanisadvya- khyayate." End. "iti Vijnanabhiksukrte Vedantaloke Mandukyopanisadalokahsamaptah." No. 1809. Svetasvataropanisadaloka Beginning. missing End. "iti Vijnanabhiksukrte Vedantaloke Svetasvataropanisadalokah samaptah." No. 1810. Kaivalyopanisadaloka". Beginning. "athasvarayan.aityadya Kaivalyopanisadvyakhyayate." End. "iti Vijnanabhiksukrte Vedantaloke Kaivalyopanisadalokah samaptah." No. 1811. Maitreyopanisadaloka.8' Beginning. "atha Maitreyopanisadvyakhyayate. anayai'va ca Maitreyopanisad- vyakhyaya Maitrayanopanisatsarabhago 'pi vyakhyata-prayo bhavisyati, Kanva-Madhyandinayoriva ' ipam eva bhedad iti." End. "iti caturtha-prapathaka1okah.iti Vijnanabhiksukrte Vedantaloke Maitre- yopanisadalokahsamaptah." No. 1812. Kathavallyupanisadaloka9' Beginning. "usan ha vai vajasravasa ityadya Kathavallyupanisata' yathasruta vyakhyayate." End. "iti Vijnanabhiksukrte Vedantaloke Kathavallyalokah samaptah." No. 1813. Mundakopanisadaloka Beginning. "brahma devanam prathamah sambabhuve 'tyadir Mundakopanisat yathasruta vyakhyayate." End. "iti Vijnanabhiksukrte Vedantaloke Mundaka1okahsamaptah." No. 2051. Prasnopanisadaloka.10) Beginning. "atha Prasnopanisadvyakhyayate." End. "iti Vijnanabhiksukrte Vedantaloke Prasnopanisadalokahsamaptah."
Each colophon in every manuscript ends "iti Vijnanabhiksukrte Vedan- taloke 00 (-upanisad-) alokah samaptah", as in our manuscript. That is
-1053- An Introduction to the *Brhadaranyakdloka (N. HosoDA) ( 9 ) to say the Brhadaranyakavyakhya is also one of the Vedantaloka. The reason why this aloka called vyakhya is adopted from the opening verses (fol. bl-4)
orn namo narayanaya I nityanandaya purnnaya sada sarvasya saksine I pa (m) cavimsatitattvanam atmane brahmane namah I I vedantagnau samabaddho vyakhya-yajno 'tivistrtah I Brhadaranyakavyakhya-purnnahutya samapyate usa va asvasye 'ty-evam-adya Vajasaneyi-Brahmanopanisat. tasya ayain aloko durvyakhyadhvantanasaya 'rabhyate.
The word "Brhadaranyakavyakhya" is found in soka and should not be interpreted as a title. Next prose reads "ayam alokah," so that the original title must be "*Brhadaranyakaloka," and omission of the term upanisad is also found in the Katha- and the Mundaka-Aloka.
3. Brhadaranyakaloka and Vijnanabhiksu's Other Works
The verses also contain the Samkhya term pancavimsatitattva, which confirms the Vijnanabhiksu's stand point of view. He criticizes not the whole Vedanta school, but the recent (adhunika) Vedantins as Mayavadas or pracchanna Bauddhas. In the SPBh. (==Samkhya-Pravacana-Bhasya),11' he argues similar way and following passages (fol. 96a9-96b9, cf. fol. 31b) are comparable to the SPBh., especially as to the same quotations.
•••iti adhunikanam atmaikya-vyavasthapakam kutarkajalam va 'smabhir Brahma- Mimamsa-Bhasye tatprakarane co ' padesaratnamaladau srutismrti-nyayakhadgair bahudha chinnam. kim bahuna. "mayavadam asac chastram pracchannam bauddham eva ca. mayai 4va kathitam Devi kalau brahmana-rupind. karmasvarupatya (jya) tvam atra ca pratipadyate. paratma-j-1vayor aikyam maya 'tra pratipadyate." (Padmapurana vi, 236, 7-9) 12) [-SSPBh. p. 4, ll. 23-28; p. 16, ll. 7-8] ityadina13) ... mahesavakyena ' dhunika atmaikyabhidhayako mayavadah praccha- nna-bauddha uktah.
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tatha ca 'nusasanam api "sadabhijno dasabalo 'dvayavadi vinayakah." (Amarakosa i, 1, 14ab) [--~SPBh. p. 15, 11.9-10] iti advayavadi bauddha-paryayataya pathati. "asatyam aprastham to jagad ahur anisvaram ." (Bhagavadgita xvi, 8ab) [--PSPBh. P. 2, 1. 34] iti ca Gitadau ca jagato 'tyantam asatya-vado nirisvaravadas ca 'suratvena nindito 'sti . tasmad adhunikanam mayavado mumuksubhir upeksaniyah. Brahma- Mimamsayam api jiva-brahmanor bheda eva punah punah siddhantito 'sti "adhikam to hhedanirdesad" (Brahnia -Sutra ii, 1, 22) ityadi-sutra-jatena.
He mentions the Brahma-M1marnsa-Bhasya,14' his commentary on the Brahmasutra, eight times in this Aloka (ten times in the SPBh.) to avoid repetitions of the same arguments, and also the Upadesaratnamala15', his earliest work, but there is no mention about the SPBh. or the Yogavarttika. It affirms that this Aloka is not only Vijnanabhiksu's genuine work, but also the chronological order of his works16', i. e. "Vedantaloka" is written after the Upadesaratnamala and the Brahma -Mimamsa-Bhasya, before the SPBh. and the Yogavarttika.
4. Vijnanabhiksu and Upanisads
For a further study, I'm preparing a romanized text of this Aloka, .and a survey of remaining parts is necessary. Besides, the other eight commentaries should be published and examined not only for the Samkhya- or Vedanta-study, but also for the Upanisad-study.
Comparing his commentaries of the Upanisads with the Sarnkara's:
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Vijnanabhiksu disregards Chandogya, Kena, Aitareya and H ii, and adds Svetasvatara, Maitrayana and Kaivalya. Although Isa belongs to the Sukla-Yajurveda and Kaivalya is a new Upanisad,18' he neglects the Samaveda and the Rgveda, and limits the Yajurveda and the Atharva- veda. Furthermore, among the principal Upanisads, Katha, Svetasvatara and Maitrayana are remarkable for containing the Samkhya system and the Yoga thought.
1) Th. Aufhecht, Catalogus Catalogorum, Part II , 1896, P.85. 2) A Descriptive Catalogue of Sanskrit Manuscripts in the Library of the Govern- ment mentSanskrit College, Hrsakesa Siva Chandra Gui, Vol. I , Calcutta 1985, pp. 95. 3) I thank Mrs. Kazuyo Sakaki for the photocopies and information about the catalogue below. According to her reports, the another manuscript No. 139 is not found in the library. 4) Th. Aufrecht, Catalogus Catalogorum, Part I , 1891, p. 571; p. 609. 5) Notices of Sanskrit Manuscripts, Rajendralala Mitra, Vols. v-vi, Calcutta, 1871-1890. 6) Cf. New Catalogus Catalogorum, Vol. viii, K. Kunjunni Raja, 1974, p. 22. 7) Cf. New Catalogus Catalogorum, Vol. v, V. Raghavan, 1969, p. 82. 8) This Upanisad has various names and several recensions. From the passages of the beginning and the end, it'll be understood that, firstly, Vijnanabhiksu comments on the 4 prapathaka recension, which J.A.B. van Buitenen calls the Southern Maitrayana (SM). Secondly, Vijnanabhiksu uses "Maitreya" for SM and "Maitrayana" for Vulgate Maitrayana (V: 6 prapdthaka). Cf. van Buitenen, The Maitrdyaniya Upanisad, 1962, pp. 21-22. 9) Cf. New Catalogus Catalogorum, Vol. iii, V. Raghavan, 1967, p. 125. 10) Cf. New Catalogus Catalogorum, Vol. xiii, N. Veezhinathan, 1991, p. 120.
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11) Ed. by R. Garbe, 1895 HOS 2. 12) Venkatesvara Ed. (Anandasrama Ed.: vi, 263, 70cd-73ab.) The quotation lacks vv. 8ab, gab (An.: 71cd, 72cd). 13) There is a blank space for two letters and "purvasam tu." "purvasam" seems to be a corruption of "parvatim." SPBh. (p. 4, l. 11) reads "yatha tatra Parvatim Pratl 'svaravakyam." 14) Alias Brahmasutra-Vijnanamrtabhasya or -Rjuvyakhya. Ed. by Pt. Kedaranatha Tripathi, Banaras Hindu University, Pracyavidya Series: First Issue, 1979. 15) Not published. The only manuscript is in the Asiatic Society, whose MS No. 1797 is before the No. of Taittiriyakopanisadaloka. Cf. New Catalogus Catalogorum, Vol. ii, V. Raghavan, 1966, p. 353. 16) Cf. R.T. Rukmani, Yogavarttika of Vijnanabhiksu, Vol. 1, 1981, pp. 5-8. 17) Madhva's Commentaries are also on these ten principal Upanisads. Mr. Kazuhiro Ikebe, Postgraduate Student, Hokkaido University, is now zealously studying Madhva's works. 18) Acccording to the Muktikopanisad 2, 3, this Upanisad belongs to the Krsna- Yajurveda, but some other recentions are of the Atharvaveda. Anyway, this is one of the Upanisads which mentions the Satarudriya (Vajasaneyi-Samhita-l xvi [M.; K.: xvii, 66 vv]). Cf. P. Deussen, Sechzig Upanishad's des Veda, 19213, p. 738; N. Tsuji, Existent Yajurveda-Literature (Genzon Yajurveda Bunken), 1970, p. 69; pp. 177-178, nn. 639-646.
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