by Deepak Sarma
sçtisaüsthitâs
daityas
râkùasas
piúacas martyâdhamas
3.6 Tamo-yogyas
The tamo-yogyas are either immediately born or after some time
eventually reborn in a place called tamas, Hell. In South Asian
cosmologies, it is typically the case that sentient beings temporarily
go to Hell to work through their individual karma and manifest their
prârabdha, latent, karma. Hell is generally considered to be a place of provisional residence, except for its governor Yama and his wife
Yami.16 Madhvâcârya’s characterization of Hell as a place of permanent residence is thus different from the typical South Asian cosmology.
He states: ‘... wicked [and stupid], they descend from there into Hell.
And they, moreover, never rise up [out of it]. That [place] they call the
pit.’17 The two deepest Hells he labels Mahâ Tamas, Great Hell, and Pañcakaùña, the [Place] of Five Miseries. He explains:
14 iti dvidhâ muktyayogyâ daityarakùaþpiúâcakâþ | martyâdhamâú caturdhaiva tamoyogyâþ prakîrtitâþ | TS 6. Many thanks to Alf Hiltebeitel for an explanation of the differences between these creatures.
15 te ca prâptândhatamasaþ sçtisaüsthâ iti dvidhâ | TS 6.
16 see èg Veda 10.14 for a hymn invoking Yama.
17 ... úañþâ mûrkhâ iti te vai tato ‘varuhya tamasi prapanti naivaita uttiùñþante ‘pi karhicid vavra§ vâ etad ity âhur atha | BSB 3.1.14.
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For those who sink down to the Mahâ Tamas, Great Hell, there is
never a rising up [out of it] ... Everywhere else there is an
alternation between pleasure and pain, but, in the Pañcakaùña,
the [Place] of Five Miseries, there is restriction to that unending
[pain] ...18
There are other Hells in addition to these. Raurava, [Place of] Terror,
Mahâraurava, [Place of] Great Terror, Vahni, [Place of] Fire, [Place of the] Vaitaraõi [River], and Kumbipâka, the Pottery [Kiln] are temporary places for jîvas to fulfill their prârabdha, latent, karma. Tâmisra, [Place of] Darkness, and Andhatâmisro, [Place of] Complete Darkness, are
permanent places and are for the tamo-yogyas. Madhvâcârya arranged
these places according to dreadfulness.19
This tripartite distinction, jîva-traividhya, three-fold classification
of jîvas into the ucca, highest, madhya, middling, and nîcâ, lowest, is Madhvâcârya’s doctrine of predestination, svarûpatraividhya, threefold classification of natural kinds.20 This unusual link between ontology to eschatology is not found in many other traditions of thought in South
Asia. The earlier Pâñcarâtrika thinkers have a similar doctrine of
predestination. Their three-fold scheme is comprised of mukti-yogyâþ,
nityabaddha, the eternally bound, and tamo-yogyâþ.21 Râmânuja also holds that there are nityasûris who are never subject to birth and rebirth
while the Jains separate jîvas into those who possess bhavyatva, the capability to achieve nirvâõa, and abhavya, those who do not.22
This doctrine may remind readers of similar features in Calvinist
theology, where some chosen souls are saved and others damned. This
and other similarities have led some scholars such as G.A. Grierson
to claim that Christianity influenced Madhvâcârya.23 Although
Madhvâcârya’s doctrine certainly made itself vulnerable to such claims
18 mahâtamasi magnân⧠na teùâm uthitiþ kvacit | ... sukhasyânantara§ duþkhaü duþkhasyânantara§ sukham | iti sarvatra niyamaþ pañcakaùñe tu tatsadâ ity âdi | BSB
3.1.15.
19 rauravo ‘tha mahâüúcaiva vahnîrvaitaraõî tathâ | kumbîpâka iti proktâny anityanarakâõi tu | tâmisraúcândhatâmisro dvau nityau samprakîrtitau | iti sapta pradhânâni balîyastûttarottaram | BSB 3.1.16. According to pte, Kumbipâka is ‘a particular hell in which the wicked are baked like potter’s vessels ... .’ pte, 585.
20 amukrâstrividhâs tatra nîcamadhyoccabhedataþ | TV 6.
21 Schrader, 86.
22 Srinivasachari, 241. Jaini, 139–140.
23 Grierson, ‘Mâdhvas, Madhvâchârîs,’ 234, nt. 3, 235, nt. 1. Grierson summarizes a debate whose origins lay in earlier speculations of A. Burnell and Collins, who
addressed the same topic in The Indian Antiquary beginning in 1873.
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and there certainly is a similarity at first glance, the influence on
Christianity upon Madhvâcârya remains unlikely.24
Acentanas , non-sentient entities
Non-sentient entities are known to be three-fold: nitya, eternal, anitya, non-eternal, and nityânitya, both eternal and non-eternal.25 The only eternal non-sentient entity is the Vedas. As already mentioned in
Chapter 2, Lord Viùõu did not create the Vedas. If they had been, they would be created at some time and would not be eternal. Despite being
eternal they are nevertheless dependent on Viùõu to be revealed. For this
reason they are still classified as paratantra, dependent upon another,
and not svatantra, independent.
In contrast to the eternal Vedas, Madhvâcârya holds that the Purâõas
and the other smçti, kâla, time, and prakçti, material cause, are both eternal and non-eternal (see Fig. 3.7).
acetanas
nitya
nityânitya
anitya
Vedas
Purâõas smçti
kâla prakçti
3.7 Acetanas
As mentioned in Chapter 2, smçti such as the Purâõas, Tantras and Mânava-dharma-úâstra, are humanly created. Given the flaws inherent
in most human beings, these texts are not reproduced perfectly in each
yuga, age, and so they are subject to change. This makes them anitya, non-eternal. Still, the purport of these texts is nitya, eternal. Therefore
Madhvâcârya categorizes smçti as nityânitya, both eternal and non-eternal.
Much of Madhvâcârya’s conception of time is based on the Purâõas.
The universe proceeds through a cycle of four yugas, ages. These yugas,
24 See Sarma, ‘Is Jesus a Hindu? S.C. Vasu and Multiple Mâdhva Misrepresentations’
for more on this topic see also Kamath, Christian Influence on Madhvâcârya: A Myth Exploded and Glasenapp, 34.
25 nityânityavibhâgena tridhaivâcetanaü matam | TS 7.
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namely kçta, the first, tretâ, second, dvâpara, third, and kali, fourth age, are distinguished by the degree to which the sentient beings of the
universe adhere to dharma, law or proper behavior.26 In kçta- yuga, dharma is upheld, while in kali-yuga, it is ignored. The names of the ages refer to throws in a game of dice. Kçta-yuga is the throw showing
four points and is considered to be the luckiest. Tretâ-yuga shows three
points and is less lucky. Even less lucky is dvâpara-yuga, the roll of the
die resulting in only two points. Kali-yuga, the last yuga, is the side of the die marked with only one point and is not lucky. In the introduction
to his BSB, Madhvâcârya cites a passage from the Skanda Purâõa when
he describes the degeneration of dharma.27 According to Madhvâcârya, the Brahma Sûtras themselves were composed when Brahmâ, Rudra
and other deities requested Viùõu’s assistance during dvâpara-yuga. 28
At the end of kali-yuga when the universe is chaotic and filled with
adharma, unlawful activities, Viùõu will return in his avatâra,
incarnation, as Kalki who will destroy the universe and begin the cycle
/> anew with the kçta-yuga. This periodic dissolution of the universe is
called pralaya. One cycle is called a manvantara, age of a Manu, which is a portion of a kalpa, one day in the life of the god Brahmâ. Brahmâ, as
I show, is in an integral part of the evolution of the universe.
Why is kâla, time, held to be nityânitya, both eternal and non-eternal?
Time is eternal in the sense that it comprises past, present and future, and
moreover the past and future continue infinitely. Even conceiving of a
time before or after time necessitates a concept of time! Hence it must be
infinite in both ‘directions.’ As a continuous chain of events, it is eternal.
On the other hand, it is finite since there are instances and parts of
time, such as the yugas described above and as individual units of time,
second, millisecond, and the like, which are fleeting. Every second that
passes exhibits the non-eternal aspect of time. These non-eternal aspects
of kâla, time, is made possible by the viúeùa, distinguishing property, which is described below. Kâla, time, is thus held to be nityânitya, both eternal and non-eternal.29
Prakçti, material cause, is also nityânitya, eternal and non-eternal.
Prakçti is the material stuff from which all other entities are evolved or
created. It is categorized as both eternal and non-eternal, as it exists at all
26 Descriptions of Purâõic time can be found in any introduction to Hinduism such as Klostermaier’s Introduction to Hinduism.
27 nârâyaõâdviniùpannaü jñânam kçtayuge sthitam | kiücitttadanyathâ jâtaü tretâyâü dvâpare ‘khilam | BSB 0.
28 dvâpare sarvatra jñâna âkulîbhûte tannirõayâya brahmarudrendrâdibhirarthito bhagavanânnârâyaõo ... | BSB 0.
29 For more on time see Puthiadam, 221–225 and Siauve, 154 and following.
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times but its emanations are anitya, non-eternal. The events and entities
that evolve from prakçti change and dissolve and are not eternal. This is
why prakçti is held to be both eternal and non-eternal.
These two groups of non-sentient entities, the eternal ones and those
that are simultaneously eternal and non-eternal, are both dependent on
Viùõu. But Viùõu does not create them. This kind of monotheism is very
different from other types, such as Christian ones, where God is the
creator of all things, including the material stuff from which the universe
is produced. The Mâdhva god is like a ‘chef’ who uses eternally existent
‘ingredients,’ namely prakçti, to ‘cook’ the universe. The Mâdhva god is
an instrumental, rather than material, cause. The degree of omnipotence
ascribed to the Mâdhva god is different from comparable Christian
conceptions. I will examine Madhvâcârya’s ‘mitigated monotheism’ in
more detail below.
Madhvâcârya holds that anitya, non-eternal, entities are separable
into saüsçùña, combined, and asaüsçùña, not combined entities.30
Entities that are not combined evolve from prakçti. Though they
originate from prakçti, it is not an absolute, ex nihilo, origination. The idea that material entities evolved from prakçti has its roots in the
Sâükhya tradition, one of the oldest traditions of South Asian
speculation. Though the mechanism of the evolution of prakçti differs,
Madhvâcârya shares the belief that previously unmanifested prakçti
manifests itself and differentiates itself into worldly entities through
the will of Viùõu. Unlike one version of the Sâükhya vision, the
Mâdhva process is not self-contained and requires that Viùõu impels
the undifferentiated prakçti to manifest and evolve. In his BSB,
Madhvâcârya explains that Viùõu enters into prakçti to make it evolve
and He abides in its emanations to guide their evolution.31 The universe could and would not develop without Viùõu’s initiative and impetus.
According to Madhvâcârya, prakçti has twenty-four emanations.
Each of the twenty-four emanations in the Mâdhva system can be
connected with components of the epistemology outlined in Chapter 2.
They are the mahat, the great principle, the ahaükâra, ‘I’-ness, the buddhi, intellect, the manas, mind, the ten indriyas, sense organs, the pañca-tanmâtras, five subtle elements, and the pañca-bhûtas, the five
elements.32 Aside from the buddhi which is not found in the Sâükhya
30 nityânityaü tridhâ proktam anityaü dvividhaü mataü | TS 8.
31 prakçtâvanupraviúya tâü pariõâmya tatpariõâmakatvena tatra sthitvâ ‘tmano bahudhâkaraõât | BSB 1.4.27.
32 asaüsçùñaü ca saüsçùñaü asaüsçùñaü mahân aham | buddhir manaþ khâni daúa mâtrâ bhûtâni pañca ca | TS 9.
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system, each has correlates in Sâükhya.33 Though Madhvâcârya does not list each of the sub-categories of the twenty-four in either his TS or
TV, it is safe to assume that he was familiar with those of his Sâükhya
predecessors and expected his readers to have the same knowledge.
The mahat is the first emanation and the first thinking principle. It
gives rise to the ahaükâra which is the organ that produces self-
consciousness. From it arises the buddhi, the intellect, which gives rise
to discrimination between objects. The manas evolves from the buddhi
and, as already described in Chapter 2, it is the organizer of sensory data and intermediary between the senses and the sâkùî.
The ten indriyas, sense organs, are next in the manifestation of
unmanifested prakçti. These derive from the ahaükâra and are
separable into the five buddhi-indriyas, senses, and five karma-indriyas, organs of action. The buddhi-indriyas, senses, are ghrâõa, smell,
rasana, taste, cakùus, sight, úrotra, hearing, and tvak, touch. The karma-indriyas, organs of action, are vâc, speaking, pâõi, grasping , pâda, going, pâyu, excreting, and upastha, procreation. The pañca-tanmâtras, five subtle elements, also derive from the ahaükâra. These are the
mâtras, objects, of the indriyas, senses, namely, úabda, sound, sparúa, feeling, rûpa, color, rasa, taste, and gandha, smell. The last set of emanations to derive from the ahaükâra is the pañca-bhûtas, the five elements. These are the gross aspects of the pañca-tanmâtras. They are
âkâúa, ether, vâyu, air , agni, fire, jala, water , pçthivî, earth. kâúa corresponds to úabda, vâyû to sparúa, and the like. The gross elements are the substrate of the subtle elements (see Fig. 3.8).
These non-eternal entities are not combined and, in theory, account
for all non-sentient entities. They cannot be broken down into
constituent parts, so other entities and events are all comprised of them.
In contrast to these twenty-four, combined entities are proclaimed to
be brahmâõóa, Brahmâ’s egg, and other entities found in it.34 This primordial egg was the locus for the evolution of the mahat and the
birthplace of the god Brahmâ, as well as all other gods and goddesses. It
is from this egg that the material universe is born. All events and
combined entities are found within the brahmâõóa. It is the ‘pot’ within
which is contained the primordial ‘stew.’
Madhvâcârya does not propose the existence of any other elements
in the universe aside from these in either his TS or his TV. He believes
33 See Larson, Classical Sâükhya, 179–187 for m
ore on these terms and concepts.
See Sharma, Philosophy, 234–236, Siauve, 124–125, and von Glassenapp, pp. 125–127
for more on the Mâdhva characterization of these twenty-four emanations.
34 saüsçùñaü aõóaü tadgaü ca samastaü parikîrtitam | TS 10.
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anitya
asaüsçùña – prakçti
saüsçùña – brahmâõóa
mahat ahaükâra buddhi manas indriyas
pañca-tanmâtras
pañca-bhûtas
buddhi-indriyas
karma-indriyas úabda sparúa rûpa rasa gandha
ghrâõa rasana cakùus úrotra tvak
vâc
pâõi pâda
pâyu upastha
âkâúa vâyu
agni
jala pçthivî
3.8 Anitya
that all objects in the universe can be located in this taxonomy. As
mentioned, later Mâdhvas posit components in addition to the ones
described here but their commentaries are beyond the scope of the
present inquiry.
Svatantra, the only independent entity: Viùõu
The Lord Viùõu is [the only] independent thing ... .35
Madhvâcârya makes this strong claim in the first verse of his TS. This
independence emerges as a result of being self-caused. In an argument
reminiscent of Aquinas’s cosmological argument for the existence of
God in his Summa Theologica,36 Madhvâcârya writes: ‘In the world, creation is seen [to occur] with the help of many [things which are]
independent [of the putative] cause. This is not so for brahman [that is,
Viùõu, who has no cause].’37 Like Aquinas, Madhvâcârya argues that things that at first seem to be self-caused are themselves caused. This
leads both Aquinas and Madhvâcârya to hold that God is the first cause
35 svatantro bhagavân viùõur ... | TS 1.
36 See Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Part One, Question Two, Article Three.
37 svatantrabahusâdhanâ sçùñir loke dçùtâ | naivaü brahmaõaþ | BSB 2.1.15
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which is self-caused and does not necessitate another cause, thereby
avoiding what they consider to be an undesirable doùa, flaw, specifically
an anavasthâ, infinite regress. 38
As mentioned earlier, though Viùõu is independent and everything
