The Samksepasariraka of Sarvajnatman (An Old and Rare Book)

Foreword

Dr N. Veezhinathan, Lecturer in Sanskrit at this Centre, worked as Research Scholar from 1960 to 1963 in the Deccan College Post-graduate and Research Institute, Poona, and wrote his doctoral thesis on the Samksepasariraka of Sarvajnatman. The thesis earned for him the Ph. D. Degree of the University of Poona in 1964. He joined this Centre as Lecturer, in 1964. My own observation of his thesis and the encomiums it has received from scholars who had occasion to see it made me feel that the thesis was a distinctively valuable contribution to scholarship in the field of Advaita and that its publication would do credit to any institution that sponsored it, more so to an institution like this Centre which has devoted itself to study and research in Advaita Vedanta for the past forty years. Accordingly, it was recommended for publication by this Centre, and, thanks to the publication grant made available by the University Grants Commission to the Centre and facilities provided by the University of Madras, it is now being published as No. 18 in the Madras University Philosophical Series.

The Samksepasariraka is an' important classic in the Advaita tradition, being a full metrical summary of the central teachings of Sri Sankara's Brahma-sutra-bhasya. The importance of the work for a student of Advaita is evident from the fact that it has eight commentaries, as Dr Veezhinathan has identified in his Introduction. The author of the work, Sarvajnatman, himself occupies a position of eminence in the line of preceptors following Sri Sankara, having been, according to tradition, ordained by the Bhagavatpada himself and nominated to succeed him and Suresvara in the central Sri Kamakoti-Pitha at Kanci.

The present work is a Critical Edition and English Translation of the classic, with a detailed Introduction, Notes, and Indexes. In the Introduction, Dr Veezhinathan discusses systematically the basic issues of Advaita Vedanta, such as Brahman, maya, adhyasa, jiva, Isvara, jagat, and moksa, and brings out the special contribution made by Sarvajnatman to the development of Advaita thought. The text has been definitively edited after collating several manuscripts. The translation is faithful and readable. The notes add to information and clarify subtle points. The four detailed Indexes render the edition highly useful to scholars.

I have great pleasure m commending this work to serious students of Advaita.

Preface

The present Critical Edition of the Samksepasariraka, a work on Advaita Vedanta, with Introduction, English Translation, Notes and Indexes, represents the research work completed under the guidance of the late Dr A. Sankaran, M.A., ph.d., Assistant Editor, Sanskrit Dictionary Department, and Honorary Professor of Sanskrit, Deccan College Post-graduate and Research Institute, Poona, for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy of the University of Poona. The Samksepasariraka is a work of Sarvajnatman the disciple of Suresvaracarya ; it sets forth, in verses, the views of Sri Sankara as expounded i is bhasya on the Brahma-sutra. It contains 1240 verses and is divided into four Adhyayas.

The present thesis consists of three parts. The first part, the Introduction, again, is divided into two sections. In the first section, I discuss the life, date, and works of Sarvajnatman. In the second section, I discuss the basic doctrines of the Advaita Vedanta according to Sarvajnatman: (i) the Nature of the Ultimate Reality, (ii) Nescience (iii)(maya-avidya), (iii) Superimposition (adhyasa), (iv) the Individual soul and God (jiva and isvara), (v) the Phenomenal World (jagat), and (vi) Liberation (moksa). And, in the end, I have given an evaluation of Sarvajnatman's contribution to Advaita Vedanta. The second part presents the text with an English translation. Explanatory notes are added wherever necessary. In the notes are provided-the identification of the authors presupposed and references to the texts cited and implied. The third part consists of an alphabetical index of quotations, an index of the views of other authors referred to and implied in the text, an index of terms used in the text, and an index of the verses of the Samksepasariraka.

This edition of the Samksepasariraka of Sarvajnatman, who was a younger contemporary of Adi Sankaracarya and who, under the fostering care of his preceptor Suresvaracarya, adorned the great Kamakoti-pitha at Kanci as its head, I humbly dedicate to His Holiness Sri Candrasekharendra Sarasvati Sripujyapadah, the present head of that hoary Sankarite Institution at Kanci. All my activities in the pursuit of my study of Advaita and publications relating thereto have been possible only through the benign grace of His Holiness who remains ever for me as my inspiring Light and Guide. I offer my most respectful homage at the lotus-feet of His Holiness.

I offer my most respectful salutations to His Holiness Sri Anantanandendra Sarasvati Svami of the Upanisad-brahmendra Matha at Kanci for the inspiration and guidance I have always received at His feet.

To Dr S. M. Katre, the former Director of the Deccan College Post-graduate and Research Institute, Poona, I express my sincere gratitude for providing me with all facilities to carry on my research work there.

To the authorities of the University of Poona, I am thankful for permitting me to work for the doctorate degree of the University of Poona and also for granting me permission to publish the present thesis.

I express my sincere thanks to Brahmasri T.S. Srinivasa Sastri of the Dictionary Department, Deccan College Postgraduate and Research Institute, Poona, for suggesting to me this Advaita Classic for my thesis and for teaching me the text.

I express my deep sense of gratitude to my esteemed Professor the late Dr A. Sankaran for his kind guidance at every step.

To Dr T. M. P. Mahadevan, Director, Centre for Advanced Study in Philosophy, University of Madras, I am now, as in the past, greatly indebted not only for recommending this work for publication under the auspices of the Centre for Advanced Study in Philosophy, but also for kindly scrutinizing the entire typescript before it was sent to the press and for his kindness in having written a Foreword to this work. My obligations to him are indeed great.

To my friend and colleague Dr T. P. Ramachandran, I offer my grateful thanks for the encouragement he gave me at every stage in the printing of this work and for rendering valuable help in seeing the work through the press.

I am thankful to the authorities of the University of Madras for sanctioning the publication of this work under the auspices of the Centre for Advanced Study in Philosophy and to the University Grants Commission for the permission to utilize their grant.

I thank the Ramayana Printing Works for the care they have bestowed on the printing of this work.

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