________________
xv]
Bhāskara and Sankara late Dr Bhāwdājī in the Mārāghā country, near Nasik, in which it is stated that one Bhāskara Bhatta of the lineage (gotra) of Sāņdilya, son of Kavicakravarti Trivikrama, who was given the title of Vidyāpati, was the sixth ancestor of Bhaskarācārya of Sāņdilya lineage, the astronomer and writer of the Siddhānta-siromaņi; and he maintains that this senior Vidyāpati Bhāskara Bhatta was the commentator on the Brahma-sūtral. But, though this may be possible, yet we have no evidence that it is certain; for, apart from the similarity of names?, it is not definitely known whether this Vidyāpati Bhāskara Bhatta ever wrote any commentary on the Brahma-sūtra. All that we can say, therefore, with any degree of definiteness, is that Bhāskara flourished at some period between the middle of the eighth century and the middle of the tenth century, and most probably in the ninth century, since he does not know Rāmānuja?.
Bhāskara and Sankara. There is a text of the Chāndogya Upanişad, vi. 1. 1, which is treated from two different points of view by Sankara and Bhāskara in connection with the interpretation of Brahma-sūtra, II. 1. 144. Sankara's interpretation of this, as Vācaspati explains it, is that, when clay is known, all clay-materials are known, not because the clay-materials are really clay, for they are indeed different. But, if so, how can we, by knowing one, know the other? Because the claymaterials do not really exist; they are all, and so indeed are all that pass as modifications (rikāra), but mere expressions of speech (vācārambhaņam), mere names (nāmdheyam) having no real
1 Pandita Vindhyesvari Prasada's Introduction.
2 We hear of several Bhaskaras in Sanskrit literature, such as Lokabhāskara, Srāntabhāskara, Haribhāskara, Bhadantabhāskara, Bhāskaramiśra, Bhāskaraśåstri, Bhaskaradikşita, Bhattabhāskara, Pandita Bhāskarăcărya, Bhattabhāskaramiśra, Trikāndamandana, Laugākşibhāskara, Sandilyabhāskara, Vatsabhāskara, Bhāskaradeva, Bhāskaranssimha, Bhāskarāranya, Bhāskaranandanātha, Bhaskarasena.
He makes very scanty references to other writers. He speaks of Sandilya as a great author of the Bhāgavata school. He refers to the four classes of Māheśvaras, Pāśupata, Saiva, Kāpālika and Kāghaka-siddhantin, and their principal work Pañcādhyāyi-śāstra; he also refers to the Pancarātrikas, with whom he is often largely in agreement.
• tad-ananyatvam ārambhana-sabdādibhya). Brahma-sútra, II. 1. 14. yathā saumya ekenn mrt-pinden asarvam mınmayam rijñātam syādvācārambhanam vikāro nāmadheyam mrttike'ty'eva satyam (Ch. vi. 1. I).
1-2
work asupata, Salihagakata schoother writers.
