(adapted from Swami Shuddhabodhananda's book on Tattva-viveka Prakaranam of Panchadashi)
Vedanta is shabda-pramana
– a means of knowledge in the form of words. It’s subject matter is to reveal
the identity between the individual and Brahman.
The literal meaning of words
cannot reveal the nature of Brahman. Why? The nature of Brahman or the self
defies description through the direct meaning of any word or sentence. Brahman/
the self is free from all attributes. How can it is be on object of perception
or words. Words can describe only those things which can fit into the
categories of species (jati), attributes (guna), action (kriya), relation (sambandha).
Brahman the Self, who is all-pervasive is free of all these
categories. Therefore the Upanishads themselves declare Brahman as the one from
whom words along with the mind returns without being able to objectify it.
However the
Upanishads uses special means of communication within a known context to
convey the nature of Brahman, using LAKSHANA VRITTI.
When a sentence is used as means
of knowledge (pramana), its operation
is effective, provided the meaning of the words therein and the sentence as a
whole are properly understood.
The meaning of a given word or a
sentence can be literal, implied or figurative depending on how it is employed.
The inherent capacity of words to yield the appropriate meaning as per a
context is called as VRTTI. It indicates the relation (sambandha) between the word (pada)
and its meaning (padartha), resulting in an understanding of the word (shabda-bodha).
Vrttis are of three types.
1. Abhidha Vritti : It gives the literal
meaning (vaacyartha) of a word. It is also called mukhya vritti. For example, ‘this is a
cup’ – the direct meaning of cup is immediately understood.
2. Lakshana Vritti: When the literal meaning of a word or a
sentence does not fit in with the meaning then either the meaning must be
wrong, or we have to look for the implied meaning. If the sentence is not
wrong, there may be a possibility of conveying some meaning other than the
direct one. This is called lakshana
vrtti. It gives the lakshyartha – the implied meaning. In
this case some aspects of the word or words may have to be deleted, retained or
added, depending on the context. We will see the three sub-division of this vritti.
In the case of the maha-vakya tat
tvam asi, this type of vritti is
employed as the direct meaning does not make sense.
3. Vyanjana Vritti: This gives the figurative meaning. When the
first two vrittis fail to convey the meaning, one can look into this.
The three sub-divisions of lakshana vritti are as follows.
a.
JAHAL-LAKSHANA VRITTI
Jahal-lakshana vrtti is the lakshana vritti which discards (jahati) some aspect. Here the primary sense of a word
is given up, yielding a different sense which is connected to the primary one
in some way.
A familiar instance is gangaayaam
ghoshah – “a village on the Ganga. A village on a flowing river is not
possible. So we discard the meaning of a flowing river Ganga and interpret the
word Ganga as the ‘bank of the Ganga’.Thus the implied meaning is that
there is a village on the banks of the Ganga.
b.
AJAHAL-LAKSHANA VRITTI
Here the original sense of a word used is not given up but it is
supplemented by a relevant word.
‘Shono dhaavati’ – meaning “the
red runs”. Now the red colour by itself cannot run; therefore it means “a red
horse runs”.
c.
BHAAGATYAAGA –LAKSHANA VRITTI
In bhaagatyaaga-lakshana vritti
or jaha-ajahal-lakshana vritti, words
convey the implied sense by discarding the mutually contradictory aspects. “Soyam devaduttah”- This is that Devadutta’ .
You were going to your office. On the way you met your friend who was
talking to a bearded man in a suit. You friend introduces this man as “This is
that Devadutta’. Immediately you recall who the person is – you remember the
owner of the chai shop in Calcutta where you used to drink tea in your college days.
That guy never had a beard, and used to be dressed in a dirty lungi and banian. Later he also came to Dehradun and became a
successful businessman, which you never knew about.
In this sentence, “that” represent Calcutta, the time twenty years ago
and the person the chai-shop owner. “This” means the present time at Dehradun,
and the businessman. In point of fact,
both these group of characteristics qualify the same person, Mr Devadutta. Yet
there is an apparent contradiction because they differ from each other and
cannot be the same. So to understand the statement what happens in your mind,
before recognition takes place is that you have discarded the mutually opposite
aspects, (the place and the looks) (bhaaga-tyaaga)
and retained only the locus, who is the individual Mr. Devadutta.
Bhaaga-tyaaga is an important means of communication
provided the context is known. This lakshana
vrtti is used to understand the maha-vakya
“That You Are”.
Om
Tat Sat
