Bādarāyaṇa

Bādarāyaṇa was a Vedic theologian who is commonly credited with the authorship of the canonical Vedānta text, the Śārī raka-or Brahma-Sūtra.Nothing is known about his life and personality, and he can only provisionally be dated to the first several centuries of the common era.Even his name is just a patronym, meaning "the son of Bādari" and "the grandson of Badara."His significance for Indian philosophy and theology, on the other hand, is massive, not only through the Brahma-Sūtra, but also because of the doctrine of the impersonal origin of the Veda, with which he is credited in the Mī māṁsā-Sūtra.Although it is common for commenters on the Brahma-Sūtra to refer to its author as the sūtrakāra, "author of the aphorisms," Śaṅkara himself at the end of his commentary (4.4.22) identifies this sūrakāra with "the venerable Bādarāyaṇa."This identification is echoed by Śaṅkara's student Padmapāda in the second introductory verse to his Pan ˜ca-pādikā: "Homage to the sage by the name of Bādarāyaṇa, an abode of tranquility and an embodiment of the sun for the cluster of lotuses that constitute the summit of scripture."Furthermore, from the time of the other great commentator on Śaṅkara's Śārī raka-Bhāṣya, the ninth century Vācaspati Miśra, Bādarāyaṇa becomes identified with the author of the Mahābhārata, Vedavyāsa, who is also commonly considered the editor of the Vedas and an incarnation of Kṛṣṇa.The fifth introductory verse to Vācaspati's Bhāmati runs: "Homage to Vyāsa, the author of the aphorisms on Brahman, a rival creator [to Brahmā] and an incarnation of Lord Hari's power of knowledge" ([5, 8], p. 96).The later commentators on Śaṅkara's Bhāṣya, such as Ānandagiri and Govindānanda, as well as other Vedāntins including Rāmānuja, Madhva, Vallabha, Śrīnivāsa, and Baladeva, all follow this tradition of identifying Bādarāyaṇa with Vyāsa [3].This identification is common in the Purāṇic tradition, including the Bhāgavata.It is conveniently summarized by Madhva and Baladeva in the introduction to their Brahma-Sūtra commentaries.At the end of the age of Dvāpara, the Vedas are forgotten, and the gods pray to Nārāyaṇa for their restoration.Nārāyaṇa is born as Kṛṣṇa-Dvaipāyana Vyāsa, restores the Veda, divides it into four -Ṛg, Yajur, Sāma, and Atharvāand begins the various branches of their transmission (s ´ākhā).Many dimwits, however, misunderstand the Vedas and promote erroneous teachings in # Springer Science+Business Media B.V.