संस्पृश्यते अवस्तुत्वात्, एवं परमात्मापि संसारमायया न संस्पृश्यते इति ।" "यथा च मायावी स्वयम्प्रसारितां मायामिच्छयानायासेनैवोपसंहरति &c." ॥ "बाध्यते हि स्वप्नोपलब्धं वस्तु प्रतिबुद्धस्य । मिथ्या मयोपलब्धो महाजनसमागम इति न ह्यस्ति मम महाजनसमागमो निद्राग्लानं तु मे मनो बभूव तेनैषा भ्रान्तिरुद्बभूवेति । एवं मायादिष्वपि भवति यथायथं बाधः:" ॥ In all these passages, and also in 3. 2. 3-6 where the creations of a dream are declared to be nothing but maya, the word maya has without doubt the sense of an illusory appearance, produced and withdrawn at will; but where, in the whole range of Vedantic literature, is there any such thing predicated of avidya ?
In an important description of Isvara in 2.1.14, we read:--
"सर्वज्ञस्येश्वरस्यात्मभूते इवाविद्याकल्पिते नामरूपे तत्त्वान्यत्वाभ्यामनिर्वचनीये संसारप्रपञ्चबीजभूते सर्वज्ञस्येश्वरस्य मायाशक्तिः प्रकृतिरिति च श्रुतिस्मृत्योरभिलष्यते । ताभ्यामन्यः सर्वज्ञ ईश्वरः…………….. । एवमविद्याकृतनामरूपोपाध्यानुरोधीश्वरो भवति व्योमेव घटकरकाद्युपध्यनुरोधि ।" Taking मायाशक्तिः as a compound[१] term, in accordance with the Anandasrama edition, we read here that name and form, products of avidya, are Isvara's illusion-producing-power; and the phrases अविद्याकल्पित, अविद्याकृत, अविद्याध्यस्त, अविद्याध्यारोपित, अविद्यानिमित्त, and अविद्याप्रत्युपस्थापित literally swarm in the bhasya, whilst such compounds as मायाकल्पित &c, are nowhere to be found. I think, therefore, that it is quite clear from the bhasya itself that maya is not used there as a synonym of avidya but is regarded as an illusory appearance produced by it; and to the passages to this effect, already quoted, may be added one met within 2. 2. 2, namely "अविद्याप्रत्युपस्थापितनामरूपमायावेशवशेन &c." The only exceptions to this signification that I have met with in the bhasya are in 1.3.19 and 1.4.3. In the former we read "एक एव परमेश्वरः कूटस्थनित्यो विज्ञानधातुरविद्यया मायया मायाविवदनेकधा विभाव्यते" where the working of avidya is compared with that of the magician's maya or magic-power, the old use
- ↑ Thibaut, in his translation, separates the two words.
