Parameshvara and nirguNa brahman

shankara bhAShya challenge

Challenge statement - Show any sentence from shAnkara bhAShya where “parameshvara”, by itself, unambiguously refers directly to nirguNa brahman (SB) without going via saguNa brahman (NB).

  • Challenge Video - YT
  • Failed responses - TW
    • neo-shAnkara algebra confusions, self-contradictions with (nirguNa brahman) NB +mAya = SB (saguNa): TW

Significance

Many shAnkarans fumble over this simple fact.
This signals their very poor grasp on shAnkara bhAShyas;
and the unreliability of the sampradAya which has produced such incompetence.

Word vs sentence meanings

There is a difference between word and passage meanings.

For example, if one says - “Ball is round”, it does not mean that Ball carries the exact same meaning as “round”.
If one says: “Man is crazy”, you cannot say that “Man” has been used in the sense of “crazy” here - rather, the word “Man” refers to its natural meaning (hominid ape).

I am not disputing that various passages may be teaching about nirguNa-brahman or ekAtmakatA. However, the particular word “parameshvara” has to refer to a saguNa entity as well, everywhere it is used, even if the “nirguNa-brahma” part/ svarUpa of it is noted.

Etymology

The fact that there is “parama” (highest) and “Ishvara” (lording over) makes it abundantly clear that saguNa-brahma is referred to by the word parameshvara. Neither पारम्य nor ऐश्वर्य can be attributed to an “attributeless” thing. I have my opinions about shankara - but it’s not that low!

Failed attempts

  • v subrahmanya went bonkers and claimed “स्यात्परमेश्वरस्यापीच्छावशान् मायामयं रूपं साधकानुग्रहार्थम् … Here, in that bhashya, Parameshwara is NB.” Details in YT.
  • “निरस्तसर्वविशेषं पारमेश्वरं” (proposed by shrI venkaT shiva) obviously doesn’t cut it - it explicitly deletes visheSha from parameshvara. Details in YT.
  • “आत्मेत्येव परमेश्वरः प्रतिपत्तव्यः ।” (proposed by shrI ravishankar)
    • Details in comments under YT.
    • भामती , for example, understands “आत्मेत्येव परमेश्वरः प्रतिपत्तव्यः । " as meaning “श्वेतकेतोरात्मैव परमेश्वरः प्रतिपत्तव्यो न तु श्वेतकेतोर्व्यतिरिक्तः परमेश्वरः । “. So, it equates shvetaketu’s Atman with parameshvara (presumably owing to both of them being actually nirguNa brahman). Here, shvetaketu’s Atman in jIvAtmA, while परमेश्वर is saguNa-brahma only. As an example, if I say - “रविशङ्करात्मेत्येव विश्वासः प्रतिपत्तव्यः”, does it mean that the word विश्वास means something else?
    • Even a later sentence in the same adhikaraNa makes it sa-guNa explicit - अद्वैतेश्वरस्य अपहत-पाप्मत्वादि-गुणता.
  • ईशिता परमेश्वरः परमात्मा सर्वस्य । स हि सर्वमीष्टे सर्वजन्तूनामात्मा … (proposed by shrI ravishankar)
    • Details in comments under YT.
    • “ईशिता” (←ईशितृ) - the quality and activity of lording over is explicitly ascribed to parameshvara. So, clearly saguNa.
  • BSB-1.3.42 - योऽयं विज्ञानमयः प्राणेषु संसारी लक्ष्यते, स वा एष महान् अज आत्मा परमेश्वर एवास्माभिः प्रतिपादित इत्यर्थः (proposed by shrI vikram jagannAthan)
    • Later sentences in the same adhikaraNa make it explicitly clear that parameshvara is saguNa - “प्राज्ञः परमेश्वरः, सर्वज्ञत्वलक्षणया प्रज्ञया नित्यमवियोगात्। “.