Is Prakruti or Maya in Advaita considered to be sentient?
praNAms
Hare Krishna
mAya is shakti and mAyin is shaktivanta, there is no difference in these two says bhAshyakAra. However there is a trend that equates mAya with avidyA in Advaita vedAnta. And that avidyA shakti is brahmAshrita so says some mUlavidyAvAdins. That aside, the Chaitanya (sentient) is only one in Advaita no second Chaitanya entertained in Advaita.
Hari Hari Hari Bol!!!
bhaskar
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Namaskaram Vikram Ji,
In BSB 1-4-3, Purva Pakshi claims that according to SAnkhya,
// अस्यैव जगतः प्रागवस्थायाः प्रधानत्वेनाभ्युपगमादिति । //
// asyaiva jagataH prAgavasthAyAH pradhAnatvenAbhyupagamAditi | //
Translation (Swami Gambhirananda) // for the primordial (undifferentiated) state of this very universe is called PradhAna //.
Objection of PP is that Advaita also understands avyAkruta as the primordial (undifferentiated) state of this very universe. Hence just a change of terminology cannot make the Advaitin’s avyAkruta any different from the sAnkhyAn’s PradhAna.
Response of the advaitin is as below.
// यदि वयं स्वतन्त्रां काञ्चित्प्रागवस्थां जगतः कारणत्वेनाभ्युपगच्छेम, प्रसञ्जयेम तदा प्रधानकारणवादम् । परमेश्वराधीना त्वियमस्माभिः प्रागवस्था जगतोऽभ्युपगम्यते, न स्वतन्त्रा । //
// yadi vayaM svatantrAM kA~nchitprAgavasthAM jagataH kAraNatvenAbhyupagachChema, prasa~njayema tadA pradhAnakAraNavAdam | parameshvarAdhInA tviyamasmAbhiH prAgavasthA jagato.abhyupagamyate, na svatantrA | //,
Translation // Should we admit some primal state as an independent cause of the world, we shall be opening the door for the theory of PradhAna as the cause. But this primal state is held by us to be subject to the Supreme Lord, but not as an independent thing //.
As per SiddhAnta, mAyA (another term for avyAkruta) is capable of undergoing transformation, but is jada (inert). It cannot do so by itself. Chaitanya is changeless. Hence cannot create anything by itself. It is the combination of the two which enables Creation. That is the प्रागवस्था (prAgavasthA) (primal state) of this universe. mAyA derives its sattA (existence) and sphuraNa (ability to activate its capacity for transformation) from Chaitanya. That is what is addressed by the Swamiji in the Foot Note 9
// If the Sankhyan view of prakṛti is modified so as to make it sentient and dependent on God, then Vedanta will have no objection to accepting it as a synonym of māyā //.
Swamiji also adds
// The author, who accepts the three gunas as the constituents of māyā, may have some such compromise in his mind //.
Swamiji’s statement is not to be understood as Prakruti or mAyA in Advaita is considered to be sentient.
Regards
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This we can say prakriti is jada but chaitanya activates it
praNAms Sri Putran prabhuji
Hare Krishna
Infact, it is other way round !! prakruti as mAyA shakti activates the nishkriya Chaitanya And when it is said nishkriya Chaitanya gets activated through its shakti there is no difference between shakti and shaktimaan hence mAyA as shakti is brahmAbhinna😊
Namaskaram Vikram-ji,
I give possibly a variant perspective:
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Suppose we still ask, "how and whence this duality of nama-rupa as an appearance/denotation in/of chaitanya?" The answer is that Chaitanya as Ishvara is cause of world (nama-rupa) appearance that He projects by recourse to His maya-shakti aka His self-determining will-power.
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