Adi Shankaracharya not opposing vaishnav siddhanta

[maadhav 0]

Yes, this very clear from his book:

sarva-siddhAnta-sangraha.

 

In the last chapter of this book Sri Shankaracharya

discusses what philosophy Sri Vyasadev has described in Mahabharat. One verse is:

 

sarvashAstravirAdhena vyAsoktau bhArate dvije.

gR^ihyatam sAnkhyapakshAdi vedasAro'tha vaidikaiH..

 

"The summary of the Vedas given in Mahabharat by Sri Vedavyasa is in consonance with all scriptures, and actually it is taken from sankhya principle."

 

In 46th verse of the chapter he says:

"Four handed Vishnu has created fourfold universe, and four varnas. .." Then he says:

 

"Srimad Bhagavatam composed by Vyasadev has avadhUta marg as Krishna discribed it to Uddhav."

 

I found this in preface of a Bhagavatam in a Bharatiya language.

 

This preface says that Sri Shankarachary just paid less attention to vaishnava siddhanta, but was not an anti-vaishnav at all. There are reasons to beleive that the priority of the time for hims was to expell Buddhism from Bharat and re-establish vedic dharma.

 

Sri Prabhupada has said that Sri Shankara was a mahavaishnav, and sang Bhaja govindam mUdha mate.

 

i would add that his sarva siddhata meant all the vedic paths, and does not inlude islam and other anti-vedic paths.

 

hope this will help vaishnavas and advaitis see each other in friendly manner, and continue their own sadhana without wasting times in dvaita-advaita debates.

 

[Guest guest]

Adi Shankaracharya was not anti-vaishnava and was not against shaivites or shaktas either. He saw them as different paths. Some say Adi Shankara was a Shaivite, but this is not true either. Adi Shankara himself was a Smarta. Smarta's believe that all the gods are different manifestations of Brahman. This was the same sort of belief for the ancient vedic religion. Smartism was an ancient sect that was dying out but was revived by Adi Shankara and made popular again.