MANDUKYA UPANISHAD with GAUDAPADA’S KARIKA: 33 - Swami Advayananda.

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Saturday 07, Aug 2024, 06:10.
MANDUKYA UPANISHAD 
GAUDAPADA’S KARIKA
Agama Prakarana – “The Scriptural Treatise”

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GAUDAPADA’S KARIKA:  PART 4/4:   ALAATA-SHANTI PRAKARANA (100 mantras): Quenching the Firebrand:
The SANKHYANS Refuted:
Karika Section 4.3:   
Mantras - 14-23 (10 No.) 
Mantram - 4.17: The Chain of Illogic  
Post-33.

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Mantram - 4.17: The Chain of Illogic:

1 Phalaat utpadyamaanah san, = If it be produced from the ‘effect’, 

2 na te hetuh prasiddhyati; = a cause cannot (logically) be established. 

3 aprasiddhah katham hetuh, = How can a cause, which is itself unestablished, 

4 phalam utpaadayishyati. = then give birth to an effect? 

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1-2 The silence of the Meemamsaki makes Sri Gaudapadacharyaji conclude with the 

erroneous logic of the first two statements, as stated in 4.15 (“father born from a son”). 

3-4 The error in logic is driven to its own illogical conclusion: How can such a cause, 

itself not established on a sound logical basis, become the cause of another effect?  

The chain of ‘illogic’ is set rolling. Once a step in the chain is found to be illogical, 

nothing logical can be built upon it thereafter. The thrust of pure logic is unbearable to it. 

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Mantram - 4.18: Cause & Effect – Which Comes First?  

1 Yadi hetoh phalaat siddhih, = If the cause is produced from the effect, 

2 phala siddhih cha hetutah; = and the effect is again produced from the cause; 

3 katarat poorva nishpannam, = then (at least tell me) which one is born first? 

4 yasya siddhih apekshayaa. = Upon which is the birth (of the other) dependent?  

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1-4 Sri Gaudapadacharyaji becomes a little more compassionate here: “If the 

sequence of cause and effect cannot be stated, nor can it be accepted that they are 

simultaneous, then at least tell which one came first, that is all.” 

Sri Gaudapadacharyaji is a teacher par excellance. His task is to bring out Truth, 

however deeply it may be buried! His efforts to do so are relentless – to the other party – 

but enlightening to the keen student. In this case, the Truth that the Teacher is aiming to 

bring out is: “Why are you worrying over the cause of that which is plainly ‘Unreal’?” 

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 Next

Mantram - 4.19:  The Logical Conclusions Presented 

Continued

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