Buddhism has
not proved the truth of Nonduality. There is no doubt Buddha pointed out the
unreality of the world. He told people they were foolish to cling to it. But he
stopped there. He came nearer to Advaita in speech but not to Advaita fully.
Dalai Lama said: Buddhism need not be the best religion
though it is most scientific and religion and inquisitive. But Buddhism has no
answer to certain questions like the existence of Atama [Soul] and rebirth.
Dali Lama said that as an individual he believes in rebirth as he had come
across a few cases of rebirth. Modern science, Dalai Lama hoped would unearth the mystery behind the
rebirth. (In DH –dec-212009-Gulbarga).
Advaita has the answer: ~ ‘The Soul is the
‘Self’. The Soul, the ‘Self ‘is birthless and deathless because it is the ever
formless, timeless, and spaceless existence.
When the Soul
is birthless and deathless then the question of rebirth does not arise. The
Soul is present in the form of consciousness. Buddhists identified the Soul as
emptiness and deny the existence of the Soul. It is an error to deny the Soul,
which is the cause of the world in which w exist and it itself is uncaused.
Remember: ~
The Soul is
Self-evident. It is not established by extraneous proofs. It is not possible to
deny the Soul because It is the very essence of the one who denies It. The Soul
is the basis of all kinds of knowledge, presuppositions, and proofs. Self is
within, the Self is without; the Self is before, the Self is behind; the Self
is on the right, the Self is on the left; the Self is above and the Self is
below. The soul is everything. Thus, the Soul, which is present in the form of
consciousness is the ultimate truth or Brahman.
Advaitic sages disagree with
Buddhists (Vijnanavadin) only on the Ultimate Question,
but they agree with their idealism
fully. Even when you say "I am not" you are thinking. Hence, every
thought means posting some existence. To exist is to be thought of hence our
criticism of Sunyavada which says there is nothing. In saying "There is
nothing" they are unconsciously positing something. The thought of nothing
is but existence itself. Hence only by refraining from thought can
they state their case. The thought itself is an object. The negation of
existence is a thought.
The presence of an object means duality. Hence, this proves that the Sunyavadins never understood non-duality, ie. Brahman. Buddhism agrees in thinking that the ego sees itself; they do not admit there is anything that sees the ego: they say there is no proof that any witness exists. When thoughts are there, thoughts become conscious of themselves. Skandhas which appear and disappear are an object only Buddhists are unaware of the subject.
Remember
Critics say Sage Sankara and Sage Goudpada
borrowed
their ideas from Buddhism. But in Manduka (page 281) these two declare they are
not Buddhists, only a number of their ideas agree with those of Buddhism,
whilst they point out their difference of view from Sunyavada Buddhists and
Vijnanavadins. Thus, Sage Sankara, and Sage Goudpada both agree and disagree with
Buddhists.
Sunyavadins say there is
nothing, neither matter nor mind: they are nihilists. How do they know the mind
ceases to exist? Where is the proof? When you know everything is mind, both the
changing forms and the underlying substances how can you posit its real change
into nothingness? Mind, Brahman always remains really itself because of its
nature. We see change every minute but by an inquiry into the nature of change
and cause, we see that it is only when we imagine that there is cause and
change.
The distinction between Sage Sankara's Advaita, and Vijnanavadin
Buddhism is that the former is mentalism i.e. mind is the real, whereas the
latter is idealism, i.e. ideas are real. We follow the former.
Remember
Remember
Buddhism did not graduate its teaching to suit people of varying grades; hence its failure to affect society in Asia.
Bhagavan Buddha's teachings that all life is
misery belongs to the relative standpoint only. For you cannot form any idea of
misery without contrasting it with its opposite, happiness. The two will always
go together. Buddha taught the goal of cessation of misery, i.e. peace, but
took care not to discuss the ultimate standpoint for then he would have had to
go above the heads of the people and tell them that misery itself was only an
idea, that peace even was an idea (for it contrasted with peacelessness). That
the doctrine he gave out was a limited one, is evident because he inculcated
compassion. Why should a Buddhist sage practice pity? There is no reason for
it. Advaita is the next step higher than Buddhism because it gives the missing
reason, viz. unity, non-difference from others, and because it explains that it
used the concept of removing the sufferings of others, of lifting them up to
happiness, only as we use one thorn to pick out another, afterward throw both
away. Similarly, Advaita discards both concepts of misery and happiness in the
ultimate standpoint of non-duality, which is indescribable.
Buddhists say that a thing exists only for a moment, and if that thing has still got some of the substance from which it was produced how then can they deny that its cause is continuing in the effect; hence its existence is more than a moment. Vedanta is concerned with whether it is one and the same thing which has come into being or has it come out of nothing.
Even the Sunyavada ultimate of the "void" is really a breath, and therefore an imagination and not the truth.
Remember:~
Bhagavan Buddha as a construction worker committed an error in failing to give
the masses a religion, something tangible they could grasp something materialistic,
if symbolic that their limited intellect could take hold of, in addition to his
ethics and philosophy.
Sage Sankara gave religion; such as rituals and worship, etc.--to the
ignorant masses, as well as Advaita to those who were able to grasp.
Bhagavan Buddha gave as the central feature
of his doctrine the great law of Karma in order to reiterate its ethical
meaning. He did more good in this to uplift the
people than the ritualists.
Why the founder of Zen has
failed to influence the Japanese in practicing Zen, whether it is because Zen
Buddhism has degenerated into religion instead of philosophy.
Tibetan and Chinese Buddhists
who say that there are many Buddhas living in spirit bodies and helping our
earth from the spiritual world are still in the sphere of religious illusion,
not the ultimate truth. Their statements are wrong. Every sage realizes that
the only way to help mankind is to come down amongst them, for which he must
necessarily take on flesh-body. When people are suffering how can he relieve
their suffering unless he appears amongst them? When people are suffering how
can he feed them from an unseen world whether their struggle is for material
bread or for spiritual truth? No! He must be here actually in the flesh. It is
impossible to help them in any other way and all talk of Shiva living on Mount
Kailas in spiritual body or Buddha in Nirmanakaya, invisible body belongs to
the realm of delusion or Self-deception.:~Santthosh Kumaar
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