THE Doctrine of Maya - HolyBooks.com

""""""""PREFACEixof the Theistic Idealism of Ramanuja. Theseobjections have never before been collected togetherand discussed in reference to the doctrine of Mayaof the work wasproper. The brevity in this partintended in order not to make the essay unnecessarily long. I had a mind, however, to appendanother chapter on the analogies of the Conceptionof Maya in European philosophy, especially in thesystems of Plato, Plotinus, Berkeley, Kant, andSchopenhauer. But in the present volume I haveleft it out, since it was felt that the present essayis in a way complete in itself, and that the additionalpart, which would have taken a considerable lengthin itself, is not necessary for the purpose.I have given my own translation of passageswhich in my opinion have not been quite accuratelyrendered in the current translations. I have employed the words appearance and illusionrather indiscriminately in translating the word*maya," though I am conscious of the subtledifference in the two conceptions. The word illusionhas been most current in this connexion. Personally I would prefer the term appearance. Theworld, says the Maya theoryin its correct interpretation, is an appearance, not a mere illusion,since the latter as such is impossible. There aresome passages where the latter conception seems tobe held; e.g., maydmatram if rendered as amere illusion would implythis. But as I haveshown in some detail with reference to passages