TATVAVADA (SPECIAL ISSUE) 89 90
U"{C‰"{iEß"y"{i ‹"E"{Â"∫# $ A"‰"l{ª∫ª‚" |"{E"Ø k"aØ><˙"ù{l{|"|"{<Î"E"# $$). Weighing both
the sides of arguments, I order as follows for you to obey.
Carry out your promise made to Drowpadi while consoling
her in her grief and as well as fulfill the opinion of Bhima,
which again is also mine and which Panchali also agrees to'.
In accodance to Sri Krishna's words Arjuna half shaved the
hairs and uprooted the Mani (Gem) on the head of Ashvatthama
thus inflicting shame on him which is equivalent to death for
a Brahmana. Ashvatthama was released from the ropes tied on
him and was driven out of the Shibira (tent) of Pandavas.
The story ends in Bhagavata with the statement, µ"E‹"E"w
ÿ<˙"Ó"{l{E"w C¨"{E"{|"Ø <E"Î"{fÂ"Ó"w |"¨"{ $ Ãk" <∫ µ"‡h"µ"E‹"±E"{w ˙"‹"{i E"{EÎ"{i&<C|" l <∫÷Ò# $$í
There should be no other physical torture inflicted upon
a Brahmabandhu than arresting, snatching away the wealth
he possess and also driving him away from the scene'. (This
means insult and desrespect inflicted upon him is equivalent
to death.)
From page 96
knowlege seekers and the ordinary people should listen to such
discourses. Acharya Madhva, we learn from his history, did
preach his listeners to preserve the above right tradition
(Dharmasukshma) through his own Brahma Sutra Bhashya.
.... Acharya Madhva had within him Aloukika Ananda and
through his Tatvajnana he gave such bliss to those interested.
To follow the way of life motivated by materalistic expreriences
and craze is like the blind following the blind. But the way
of life as sanctified by Tatvajnana is full of eternal peace and
bliss. This material life should keep such high ideals as its
goal for achievement. Acharya Madhva has bestowed upon this
world such a high culture of Tatvajnana'."
TATVAVADA (SPECIAL ISSUE)
Madhva Vedanta Beyond India
Professor Deepak Sarma
During my research trips to India, I am often asked about
the popularity of Vedanta among Western students. Though
there is an interest in Vedanta, this interest rarely extends to
an interest in Madhva Vedanta. The history of scholarship in
Vedanta in the West has been dominated by studies of both
Advaita and Visistadvaita Vedanta. Only a handful of non-
Indian scholars have studied Sri Madhvacarya’s school of
Vedanta and can claim a modicum of proficiency in his
doctrine. The end result is that most Western students of
Hinduism believe that all Hindus are monists and, in some
way or another, followers of Advaita Vedanta. Some are so
convinced of the veracity of this position that they believe that
the theism propounded by Madhvacarya is not “really” Hindu
and that his interpretation of sruti is inaccurate or farfetched!
Why has this not been prevented? Why is there little interest
in Madhva Vedanta among Western Indologists? How can such
misconceptions about Hinduism be changed?
The earliest scholars of Indian philosophy in the West
sought perspectives that were most different from Christian
theism. Seeking the unusual, they came upon Sankara’s Advaita
Vedanta and subsequently invested much of their intellectual
efforts in trying to understand a tradition that most clearly
opposed their own. Madhvacarya’s realism, in contrast, was not
so different from the theism to which they were accustomed
leading some to claim that Madhvacarya was influenced by
Christianity. Combined with this quest for the “mystical
45 orient” was a deliberate and calculated effort to promote
Advaita vada by so-called neo-Vedantins, such as Vivekananda,
 TATVAVADA (SPECIAL ISSUE) 91
who traveled across the United States, and President Sarvapalli
Radhakrishnan, who used Advaita Vedanta to unify and pacify
India. The effect was that many Westerners (and Hindus in
India and diasporic Hindus) began identifying Hinduism with
a variety of Advaita Vedanta, an unfortunate identification
which continues to the present time. Other schools, such as
Madhvacarya’s, have been ignored or categorized as the
exception, rather than the norm. Since Vivekananda first spoke
in Chicago in 1893 most publications on Vedanta in English
by and for Westerners have concerned Advaita. A quick search
of the online catalogue of the library of the University of
Chicago reveals that their holdings include 107 books in
English on Advaita Vedanta and only 41 in English on Madhva
Vedanta. Madhva Vedanta research in Western universities is
so sorely lacking that it is essential that the Madhva Sampradaya
help to fill this deficiency.
How can Madhvas and Madhva pandits alter this
unfortunate trajectory? In his article in Tatvavada (Vol. 2, Issue
4), Sri Dr. V. R. Panchamukhi makes several valuable suggestions
about disseminating Madhva Vedanta which concern primarily
the preservation, collection, and publication of manuscripts.
In this article he also indirectly touches upon the controversial
issue of adhikara (page 22), the rules and regulations that limit
sastraic training to a small group of qualified aspirants. Such
pedagogical restrictions may be the biggest reason why Madhva
Vedanta has not found a place among Western researchers.
Following the Vedas and Upanisads, Madhvacarya reminds
readers in his Bhasya on the Brahma Sutras (1.1.1, athato
brahmajijnasa, Then, afterwards, the inquiry into the Supreme
Being (brahman) is to be undertaken), that only a limited
group of qualified aspirants are eligible to learn the depths
92 TATVAVADA (SPECIAL ISSUE)
of sruti. Madhva pandits have upheld this edict and, until
recently, have neither published many books on Madhva
Vedanta nor made the Sarvamula and subsequent commentaries
available to the masses. This exclusivity is slowly changing
thanks to Sri HH Vishvesha Tirtha Swamiji, the scholars that
he supports at the Purnaprajna Samshodana Mandiram, and
the members of the ABMM. These people are among the first
to make texts and teachings more widely available. Their effort
has led to many ABMM, Purnaprajna Vidyapitham, and
Dvaita Vedanta Research Foundation publications, including
this bimonthly journal. Additionally, the PPSM has developed
a web site where devotees can download Madhva texts freely
and easily, as well as read clear and concise introductions to
Madhva teachings. Sri Panchamukhi’s advice is good and
Madhva pandits must continue to publish and digitize texts.
But is this enough? Will it help to spread the truth of Madhva
Vedanta? The Sanskrit medium is far from inviting and many
Madhvas and non-Madhvas have neither the resources nor the
patience to read the Sanskrit originals. For this reason, Madhva
pandits must also strive to publish readable translations of
Madhva texts and continue to publish lucid English summaries
of doctrine on-line. Most Madhva pandits, despite being superb
Sanskritists and scholars, lack the skills to convey their
unparalleled wisdom using the English language. The older
generation of pandits may not be able to satisfy this need,
so it is up to younger Madhvas to learn scholarly English and
to publish in English and in English journals. Not only will
this help to propagate Madhva Vedanta to the non-Sanskrit
reading Hindu public, but it will also provide a way, perhaps
the only way, for Madhva pandits and Madhva Vedanta to enter
the Western academic world, have an impact on the field of
46 Vedanta studies in the West, and dispel the dark cloud of
Advaita Vedanta.
 TATVAVADA (SPECIAL ISSUE) 93
Some may insist that making texts available conflicts with
Madhva doctrine. But I do not think that the adhikara rules
will be violated if Madhva pandits translate texts into English.
After all, it is still the case that the texts must be read with
a teacher and must be read in the Sanskrit original for a student
to gain complete understanding of Madhva doctrine. Though
the claim is a controversial one, according to many pandits,
an English translation can never fully communicate the essence
of the Sanskrit original. Furthermore, his Bhasya on the Brahma
Sutras (1.1.1, strisudrabrahmabandhunam tantrajnane ‘dhikarita
| ekadse parokte tu na tu granthapurassare, For women, sudra,
and unworthy Brahmins, there is eligibility with regard to the
knowledge [that is found] in the tantras. However, [they are
eligible to hear only] a potion [of the text when it] is narrated
[to them] and [they are] not [eligible] with regard to [direct]
study from a [sruti] text), Madhvacarya himself approves of
pandits who teach the gist of portions of the sastra to the masses
who do not have adhikara. In light of Madhvacarya’s own
interpretation pandits would not break any rules regarding
adhikara if they were to address the needs of the masses.
In summary, there is little interest in Madhva Vedanta in
Western universities and it is incumbent upon the Madhva
Sampradaya to create and to foster its study. It is only through
the effort and devotion of Madhva pandits that the glory and
truth of Madhva Vedanta can be shared with the world.
(Deepak Sarma is a follower of Madhva Vedanta who is
currently living in Hyde Park, Chicago and enjoying an
affiliation with the University of Chicago as a Research
Associate of the Committee on Southern Asian Studies. He
is also a Research Scholar of the Purnaprajna Samshodana
Mandiram, and vice president of the Society for Hindu-
Christian Studies.)
94 TATVAVADA (SPECIAL ISSUE)
Some distinctive Characteristics of
Madhva's doctrines
(Extracts from Sri Jayachamarajendra Vodeyar's address)
[Late Sri Jayachamarajendra Vodeyar who was the King of
Mysore prior to independance and then became the Rajyapala of
old Mysore State inaugurated the first Sammelana of ABMM in
1953. Again in 1960 the Sammelana held in Madras was also
inaugurated by him. Vidyarthi Nilaya at Mysore was also declared
open by him. Thus in many ways he had involved himself in the
developmental programmes of ABMM.
Without himself being partison to any school of thought studying
the doctrines of Madhva he has identified many unique distinctive
Prameyas in Acharya Madhva's Sutra Bhashya. He has brought
them out in his address delivered in ABMM's programme. Madhva's
open discourses in Sutra Bhashya, Sri Vodeyar liked heartily.
Acharya Madhva's Hari Sarvottama doctrines had been understood
in their real spirit by the Vodeyar. A few of his expressed
appreications as learnt by him are rendered in English here. (From
Tatvavada Kannada Special (Feb. 03) Issue.)]
....... For the recognition of particular school of thought
in Vedanta its uniqueness of thinking about certain concepts
of Vedanta becomes the landmark. Also such distinctions speak
for the relevance of that particular Vedanta school of thought.
Conceptual description commonly found in other schools also
cannot plead for the establishment of speciality of given school
of thought. Let us identify some of the topics uniquely rasised
and founded by Madhvacharya.
.... Brahma Mimamsa Shastra's supreme authoritativeness
is established by Madhva in his Anuvyakhyana statements ëÈ|"{i
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