An Introduction to Madhva Vedan Read online

significant effect on Madhvâcârya. His innovations, as I will show,

  included strategies for maintaining religious identity as well as ways to

  maintain the existing social system that he felt was being threatened.

  Madhvâcârya’s school of Vedânta is, in part, a reaction, against the

  multiplicity of theologies and social structures in 13th and 14th-century

  Karõâñaka.

  There is very little information about Madhvâcârya’s life in medieval

  Tuëunâóu. Aside from relevant colophons found in Madhvâcârya’s own

  works, his biographical data derives from the Madhvavijaya, The

  Triumph of Madhvâcârya (hereafter MV), a hagiography composed by

  his devotee and follower, Nârâyaõa Paõóitâcârya, and from inscriptional

  evidence and records found in Uóupi mañhas, monasteries.2 These and other sources help to answer questions about the prevailing theological

  environment as well as the intellectual and religious growth and

  development of Madhvâcârya. Before learning about Madhvâcârya’s

  life, however, it is essential to know what were the basic theological

  issues that he faced and what were the primary concerns of medieval

  South Asian theologies.

  Basic theological issues

  The philosophical and religious traditions extant in medieval South Asia

  other than Abrahamic ones, all shared a belief in circular time. The

  universe was held to be governed by this circularity as it is perpetually

  1 For further information about the establishment of the dates of Madhvâcârya see Sharma, History, 77–79 and Sharma, ‘The Question of the Date of Madhvacharya.’

  2 For further information regarding inscriptional and other biographical evidence refer to Sharma, History, 75–89.

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  born and destroyed. This exhibited itself on the microcosmic level as the

  cycle of rebirth and the mechanism of karma, that one’s actions in earlier

  lives affected both the rebirth and events that are to occur in one’s future

  lives. The entity which was reborn is the jîva, enduring self, also known

  as the âtman. One accumulates some combination of puõya, meritorious karma, or pâpa, demeritorious karma, popularly rendered in the West as ‘good’ and ‘bad’ karma, and is born again and again in saüsâra,

  worldly existence. Though many are tempted to equate the two, pâpa in

  Hinduism and sin in Christianity are based on, and refer to, significantly

  different concepts and theologies.

  One manifests one’s prârabdha, latent, karma. That is, the accumu-

  lated karma manifests itself until it is depleted or until more is accrued.

  Though the traditions differed widely on the origins and precise function

  of these mechanisms of karma and saüsâra, they all agreed that they existed. They also all shared an interest in ending this seemingly endless

  cycle and this desire was their raison d’être. The state that sentient

  beings enter after being liberated from the cycle is called nirvâõa in

  Buddhism and Jainism, and mokùa among the Hindu traditions. The

  ontological status and characteristics of nirvâõa and mokùa differ vastly and each tradition of thought offered methods by which adherents could

  break the cycle and attain the desired end (see Fig. 1.1).

  karma

  Jîva

  saüsâra

  Mokùa/Nirvâõa

  1.1 Cycle of birth and rebirth

  This required the development of elaborate ontologies and

  epistemologies that were juxtaposed to eschatologies and soteriologies.

  Learning one of these systems of thought is believed to be the first

  step on the path to breaking the cycle of birth and rebirth. Competition

  between the traditions involved showing that one’s own system

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  Madhvâcârya and the Mâdhva Tradition

  3

  was more coherent, convincing and easier to follow, than others, and

  converting potential adherents. In addition to disputing the claims of

  rival schools, the Mâdhva school of Vedânta was developed to offer

  another method to attain mokùa, liberation. As I will show below, the

  diverse religious environment of medieval Karõâñaka made the stakes of

  intra and inter-religious dialogue very high indeed!

  Sources

  Much of the data about Madhvâcârya’s life derives from biographies

  written by Nârâyaõa Paõóitâcârya. He was the son of Trivikrama

  Paõóitâcârya, who was one of the direct disciples of Madhvâcârya.

  Paõóitâcârya, a Úivaëëi Tuëu-speaking Brahmin belonging to the same

  regional subcaste as Madhvâcârya, was born and raised in the Tuëunâóu

  district. Nârâyaõa Paõóitâcârya was also a younger contemporary of

  Madhvâcârya. This gives his MV, the metrical biography that he

  composed, some social and historical accuracy. Further, the Mâdhva

  community views Paõóitâcârya’s hagiographies as accurate. In fact,

  students at the Pûrõaprajña Vidyâpîtþam, a monastic institution under

  the auspices of Úrî Viúveùa Tîrtha, the svâmiji, esteemed religious

  leader, of the Pejâvar mañha devoted to the training of Mâdhva priests

  and scholars in Bangalore, India, respects his work so highly that it

  requires its third, fourth and fifth-year students to memorize and pass

  examinations on the MV.

  Paõóitâcârya composed several hagiographies of Madhvâcârya in

  addition to the MV. The Aõu-Madhvavijaya is an outline of the MV,

  while the focus of the Madhvavijaya Bhâvaprakâúika is portions of

  the MV. His Maõimañjarî differs from the hagiographies and is a

  mythological account of the rise of Mâdhva Vedânta. For the purposes

  of this brief summary I rely exclusively on the MV.

  These biographies are not the only resources available. The

  aùñamañhas, the eight monasteries, of Uóupi are the second source for

  biographical records about Madhvâcârya. Madhvâcârya began the

  institution of the eight mañhas, monasteries, before he disappeared.

  According to the MV, Madhvâcârya disappeared rather than died. These

  aùñamañhas preserve the doctrines, practices and history of the Mâdhva

  tradition and are the centers for teaching and practicing Mâdhva

  methods to obtain mokùa. These mañhas have kept genealogical and

  inscriptional records regarding the paraüpara, lineage, of the svâmis, esteemed religious leaders, of each of the eight mañhas, funding and

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  land ownership and other economic and political matters.3 Madhvâcârya

  himself ordained the first svâmi of each of the eight mañhas.

  Though the validity of these sources can be challenged, just as the

  hagiographies of Jesus of Nazareth, I accept them as true for the

  purposes of this volume. After all, it behoves readers to know the history

  of the Mâdhva School according to Mâdhvas! Still, the history presented

  here is not intended to be comprehensive. Instead, it is intended to

  provide a basic understanding of the context within which Madhvâcârya

  propounded his doctrine and the theologies and social changes that he

  confronted.

  Education

  Aside from popular accounts, these tw
o sources are the bases for

  knowledge about Madhvâcârya’s historical background. There is even

  less information about his education, and much of it must be surmised

  from rather limited data. Madhvâcârya was, of course, familiar with

  the literature of the schools of Vedânta, proven by the 292 texts that

  he mentions by name in his works.4 The schools of Vedânta are

  commentarial traditions whose focus are the methods for obtaining

  mokùa as described in the Vedas and other canonical texts. According to the MV, Madhvâcârya studied the Vedas and other relevant texts with

  a teacher who was of the Pûgavana family. He then studied aspects

  of the Advaita School of Vedânta founded by Úaükarâcârya in the 8th

  century ce.5 This school was to become his greatest rival. Madhvâcârya, an inquisitive student, was still not satisfied, with what he had learned

  so he next sought a new teacher in order to be granted saünyâsa,

  ascetic, status. Madhvâcârya met Acyutaprekùa, an ascetic who was

  also dissatisfied with the tenets of Advaita Vedânta, and underwent the

  prescribed saünyâsa rites.6 According to Paõóitâcârya’s hagiography, Acyutaprekùa then changed Madhvâcârya’s name to Pûrõaprajña,

  3 For more about the accuracy of these genealogical records, see Sharma, History, 200. 4 For a detailed list of the texts that Madhvâcârya mentions and/or cites, see Mesquita.

  5 For more detailed analyses of the history of Advaita Vedânta see Dasgupta, A History of Indian Philosophy Vol. 1, Potter, Advaita Vedânta up to Úaükara and His Pupils, and Deutsch, Advaita Vedânta: A Philosophical Reconstruction.

  6 MV 4.4–30; MV 4.49–54.

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  ‘The One Whose Knowledge is Complete.’7 According to the

  hagiographic evidence, Madhvâcârya did not have much luck with his

  new teacher due to their vehement disagreements. Even the name given

  to Madhvâcârya did not last as Madhvâcârya refers to himself as

  nandatîrtha, ‘The Teacher of Bliss/ brahman,’ in colophons. Although

  Madhvâcârya has several names, including Pûrõaprajña, Pûrõabodha,

  ‘The One Whose Realization is Complete,’ Vâsudeva ‘The Descendent

  of Viùõu,’ among others, I hereafter refer to him only as Madhvâcârya.

  The word ‘Madhvâcârya’ is actually comprised of ‘Madhva,’ and

  ‘âcârya.’ The suffix ‘âcârya’ means ‘teacher’ and is used both

  descriptively and as an honorific. Madhvâcârya studied with several

  teachers and his experiences with them may be why he advises students

  in his Brahma Sûtra Bhâùya (hereafter BSB) that they can opt to change

  teachers if the new one is superior!8

  After becoming a saünyâsi, he studied Vimuktâtman’s Iùñasiddhi

  (9th century ce), an Advaita text. This is the only mention of an Advaita

  text in the MV, which is somewhat surprising since he devoted much

  of his life to refuting their doctrines.9 After again disagreeing with his teacher, Madhvâcârya was installed as the head of the mañha

  by Acyutaprekùa in deference to his student’s superior abilities.10

  Madhvâcârya’s education ended when he rose from the ranks of students

  to become the head of an educational institution and was able to teach

  his own methods for obtaining mokùa!

  It was a standard practice among the intellectual elite in medieval

  Tuëunâóu to travel and to participate in public debates. After completing

  his studies, Madhvâcârya traveled around South Asia in order to argue

  his new Vedânta position with other scholars.11 His exposure to, and interaction with, other schools of philosophy, both Vedânta and non-Vedânta, is evident in his hagiographies, his works and the broader

  7 For further reading on the etymological origins of several of these names, including

  ‘Madhva,’ see Siauve, La Doctrine de Madhva, 1–2.

  8 na ca pûrvaprâpta eva gurur iti niyamaþ | BSB 3.3.46–47.

  9 MV 4.45. According to Sharma, Madhvâcârya also directly cites and/or summarizes passages from Sarvajñâtmamuni’s Saükùepa Úârîraka in his Anuvyâkhyâna and Tattvodyota. I have not been able to locate such passages. Sharma, History, 123, 145, ft. 4. Sarvajñâtmamuni was a contemporary of Vimuktâtman as well as a direct disciple of Úaükarâcârya. Veezhinathan, 5.

  10 MV 5.1.

  11 According to C.R. Krishna Rao, Madhvâcârya came into contact with Vidyâúaükara, the svâmi of the Sçïgeri mañha, a monastery founded by Úaükarâcârya himself. Rao, 6–8, 23–27. This meeting is not mentioned in the MV. More on debate in Chapter 5.

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  An Introduction to Mâdhva Vedânta

  issues that he addresses. For example, Paõóitâcârya mentions that

  Madhvâcârya refuted the six systems, indicating that he must have

  been familiar with them. 12 It is unclear as to which six systems he is supposed to have refuted, though it is likely to be some combination

  of the Buddhist, Cârvâka, Jaina, Nyâya, Pûrva Mîmâüsâ, Sâükhya,

  Vaiùeúika, Uttara Mîmâüsâ and Yoga traditions. 13 Madhvâcârya shows his knowledge of these traditions in his examination and refutation of

  their doctrines in a section of his bhâùya, commentary, on the Brahma

  Sûtras. This section is known as Samayavirodha, the Contradictions [in Other] Doctrines. 14 Again, though such an exposure is not unusual, it helps to establish the range of interlocutors that Madhvâcârya confronted.

  Madhvâcârya’s travels took him to Mahâbadarikâúrama, the home

  of Vyâsa, and author of the Brahma Sûtras, to meet the founder of

  the Vedânta tradition himself. Vyâsa is believed to be an avatâra,

  incarnation, of Lord Viùõu, the deity around which the Mâdhva Vedânta

  is centered. 15 Above all, Mâdhva Vedânta is a Vaiùõava, Viùõu-oriented, tradition. Under the guidance of Vyâsa, Madhvâcârya is said to have

  composed his Brahma Sûtra Bhâùya, a commentary on Vyâsa’s Brahma

  Sûtras. 16 Having the author of the text on which one is commenting serve as an editor and be an avatâra of God Himself certainly gives one

  a great deal of epistemic authority!

  Madhvâcârya also has an unusual background as he proclaims

  himself to be the third avatâra of Vâyu, the wind God, who is also the

  son of Viùõu. 17 He is preceded by the first and second who are found in the two epics of Hinduism, namely Hanumân, the monkey deity in the

  Râmâyaõa and Bhîma, one of the Paõóavas in the Mahâbhârata. Vâyu,

  namely Madhvâcârya, is a guide for bhaktas, devotees, on their journey

  towards Viùõu and has a dynamic position as a mediator between

  devotees and Viùõu. This self-identification is unusual in the history of

  South Asian hagiographies.

  Data taken from colophons, along with genealogical and chrono-

  logical data found in the mañhas, lead non-Mâdhva scholars to conclude

  that Madhvâcârya died in 1317 ce.18 Paõóitâcârya records that

  12 ùañ ca tatra samayânakhaõóayat | MV 9.15.

  13 See Dasgupta’s History for detailed introductions to each of these traditions.

  14 BSB 2.2.

  15 evaüvidhâni sûtraõi kçtvâ vyâso mahâyaúâþ | brahmarûdrâdideveùu manuùyapitçpakùiùu | jnânaü saüsthâpya bhagavânkrióante puruùottamaþ | BSB 0.

  16 For further reading about the link between Madhvâcârya and Vyâsa, see Sheridan’s ‘Vyâsa as Madhva’s Guru.’

  17 vâyuü hareþ suta�
� ... | Chândogya Upaniùad Bhâùa 3.15.1.

  18 Sharma, History, 77–78.

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  Madhvâcârya disappeared and was immediately honored with a shower

  of flowers from the deities.19 According to the Mâdhva tradition, then, he did not die and is considered to be alive and residing

  in Mahâbadarikâúrama in the Himâlayas with his teacher and father

  Vyâsa-Viùõu.

  Political environment and patronage

  One may wonder how Madhvâcârya was able to fund his education

  and subsequent tour of South Asia. Who funded him? Did he have the

  support of the local government to help him to propagate his tenets?

  Were there any political impediments?

  Paõóitâcârya states in several places in his MV that Madhvâcârya

  came into contact with local kings, though only one, Jayasiüha, is

  named.20 Historical data does not show that Madhvâcârya was supported financially by any of them. In the MV, Madhvâcârya is said to have been

  on good terms with a king who may have been a Muslim. It is not

  explicitly stated in the MV that the king was a Muslim, yet contemporary

  biographers of Madhvâcârya refer to the king as a Muslim in their

  translations and accounts.21 Having impressed the king both with his ability to walk on water and with his language skills, the monarch is

  said to have given half his kingdom to Madhvâcârya.22 This meeting and exchange is not mentioned in histories of Tuëunâóu, Karõâñaka

  and South India.23 Although the granting of half the kingdom does seem a bit fantastic, it is not unlikely that Madhvâcârya came into

  contact with Muslim rulers, given their invasions at the beginning of the

  14th century ce. Still, there is no evidence, inscriptional or otherwise,

  that any Muslim king gave additional land grants or monetary gifts to

  Madhvâcârya.

  Paõóitâcârya reports that Madhvâcârya interacted with King

  Jayasiüha on several occasions. A popular account that is also found

  19 MV 16.58.

  20 See MV 15.1–141.

  21 For further details see Govindâcârya, Madhvâcârya (Life and Teachings), 10, Padmanabhacharya, Life and Teachings of Sri Madhvacharya, 59, Rau, Nârâyaõa Paõóitâcârya’s Úrî Madhva Vijaya, 125.

  22 gâübhîryaü dhçtim uruvîryam âryabhâvaü tejobhyaü giram api deúakâlayuktâm |