The ''Mokṣopāya'' or ''Mokṣopāyaśāstra'', also known as the '' Yogavāsiṣṭha'', is a

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

philosophical text on salvation for non-ascetics (), written in

Kashmir Kashmir ( or ) is the Northwestern Indian subcontinent, northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term ''Kashmir'' denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir P ...

in the 10th century. The main part of the text forms a dialogue between

Vasiṣṭha Vasishtha (, ) is one of the oldest and revered Vedic rishis or sages, and one of the Saptarishis (seven great Rishis). Vasishtha is credited as the chief author of Mandala 7 of the ''Rigveda''. Vasishtha and his family are mentioned in Rigved ...

and

Rāma Rama (; , , ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the seventh and one of the most popular avatars of Vishnu. In Rama-centric Hindu traditions, he is considered the Supreme Being. Also considered as the ideal man (''maryāda'' ...

, interchanged with numerous short stories and anecdotes to illustrate the content. This text was later (11th to the 14th century) expanded, showing influences from the Saivite Trika school, resulting in the '' Yogavāsiṣṭha'', which became an orthodox text in Advaita Vedanta.

Text

Dating and development

According to Slaje, the ''Mokṣopāya'' was written on the Pradyumna hill in Śrīnagar,

, in the 10th century. The ''Mokṣopāya'' was later (11th to the 14th century) modified, showing influences from the Saivite Trika school, resulting in the '' Yogavāsiṣṭha'', which became an orthodox text in Advaita Vedanta.

Composition

It has the form of a public sermon and claims human authorship and contains about 30,000

śloka Shloka or śloka ( , from the root , Macdonell, Arthur A., ''A Sanskrit Grammar for Students'', Appendix II, p. 232 (Oxford University Press, 3rd edition, 1927).) in a broader sense, according to Monier-Williams's dictionary, is "any verse or stan ...

's (making it longer than the '' Rāmāyaṇa''). The main part of the text forms a dialogue between

and

, interchanged with numerous short stories and anecdotes to illustrate the content.

The ''Mokṣopāya'' expounds a

monism Monism attributes oneness or singleness () to a concept, such as to existence. Various kinds of monism can be distinguished: * Priority monism states that all existing things go back to a source that is distinct from them; e.g., in Neoplatonis ...

('advaita') that is different from Advaita Vedanta. It makes use of other

Darśana In Indian religions, a ''darshan'' (Sanskrit: दर्शन, ; 'showing, appearance, view, sight') or ''darshanam'' is the auspicious sight of a deity or a holy person. The term also refers to any one of the six traditional schools of Hind ...

s in an inclusive way. The text teaches that the recognition that

cognitive Cognition is the "mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses". It encompasses all aspects of intellectual functions and processes such as: perception, attention, thought, ...

objects are

non-existent Existence is the state of having being or reality in contrast to nonexistence and nonbeing. Existence is often contrasted with essence: the essence of an entity is its essential features or qualities, which can be understood even if one doe ...

, leads to ultimate detachment, which causes an attitude of "dispassion and non-involvement with worldly things and matters", though still fulfilling one's daily duties and activities. It is only by one's own effort (''pauruṣa'') that one can be liberated from the bonds of existence. For one who knows the reality, "fate" (''daiva'') does not mean anything, something like "fate" does not exist and has, accordingly, no consequences at all. Liberation is available for everyone, no matter their sex, caste or education, as long as one uses reason and maintains an active life in this world. To reach this liberation, one has to go through three stages: rational thinking and discernment ('' vicāra''), true understanding (''

jñāna In Indian philosophy and religions, ' (, ) is "knowledge". The idea of ''jñāna'' centers on a cognitive event which is recognized when experienced. It is knowledge inseparable from the total experience of reality, especially the total or divin ...

'') and detachment (''

vairāgya Vairāgya () is a Sanskrit term used in Hindu philosophy, Hindu as well as Eastern philosophy that roughly translates as dispassion, detachment, or renunciation, in particular renunciation from the pains and pleasures in the temporary material w ...

''). ''Vicāra'' specifically involves knowledge that the world is non-existent. ''Jñāna'' is the true understanding of the ''atman'' as the ultimate reality, due to which one loses ''

ahamkara Ahamkara (Sanskrit: अहंकार; Romanized: Ahaṁkāra), "I-making," is a Sanskrit term in Hindu philosophy referring to the construction of a Self-concept, or the false identification of the self ( Purusha, atman) with impermanent entit ...

''. The last stage of ''vairagya'' is dispassionate and without a cause.

Mokṣopāya Project

The Mokṣopāya Project supervised by professor Walter Slaje at the

Martin Luther University of Halle-Wittenberg Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (), also referred to as MLU, is a public university, public research university in the cities of Halle, Saxony-Anhalt, Halle and Wittenberg. It is the largest and oldest university in the German State o ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

is currently working on a

critical edition Textual criticism is a branch of textual scholarship, philology, and literary criticism that is concerned with the identification of textual variants, or different versions, of either manuscripts (mss) or of printed books. Such texts may range i ...

of the ''Mokṣopāya''. The project is embedded in the Centre for Research in the Historiography and Intellectual Culture of Kashmir (under the Patronage of the Academy of Sciences and Literature, Mainz). A commentary by Bhāskarakaṇṭha (''"Mokṣopāya-ṭīkā"''; late 17th century) and more than thirty manuscripts in Nāgarī, Śāradā, Grantha, and Telugu scripts are being used. The goal of the project is a critical edition of the complete Sanskrit text, accompanied by a German translation, a philological commentary and a dictionary of its Sanskrit vocabulary.

Translations

References

Sources

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External links

{{commons category, Moksopaya

(includes introduction, bibliography and gallery) * Manuscript of the Mokṣopāya from the collection of Makhan Lal Kokilu, Śrīnagar, scanned by eGangotri. Metaphysics literature 10th-century Sanskrit literature Advaita Madhyamaka Yogacara Kashmir Shaivism 10th-century Indian books