Advaita Vedanta

Advaita Vedanta (IAST Advaita Vedānta; Sanskrit अद्वैत वेदान्त; IPA /əd̪vait̪ə veːd̪ɑːnt̪ə/) is a sub-school of the Vedānta (literally, end or the goal of the Vedas, Sanskrit) school of Hindu philosophy. Other major sub-schools of Vedānta are Dvaita and Viśishṭādvaita. Advaita (literally, non-duality) is often called a monistic system of thought. The word "Advaita" essentially refers to the identity of the Self (Atman) and the Whole (Brahman). The key source texts for all schools of Vedānta are the Prasthanatrayi – the canonical texts consisting of the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita and the Brahma Sutras. The first person to explicitly consolidate the principles of Advaita Vedanta was Adi Shankara.

Adi Shankara

Further information: Adi Shankara

File:Sankara.jpg

Adi Shankara (centre) with the Four Disciples; Sureshwaracharya, Hastamalaka, Padmapada, and Totakacharya. Adi Shankara placed each of the disciples in charge of a matha (a monastery or religious order), one of which was located in each of the cardinal directions.

Adi Shankara consolidated the Advaita Vedanta, an interpretation of the Vedic scriptures that was approved and accepted by Gaudapada and Govinda Bhagavatpada siddhānta (system). Continuing the line of thought of some of the Upanishadic teachers, and also that of his own teacher's teacher Gaudapada, (Ajativada), Adi Shankara expounded the doctrine of Advaita — a nondualistic reality.

He wrote commentaries on the Prasthana Trayi. A famous quote from Vivekacūḍāmaṇi, one of his Prakaraṇa graṃthas (philosophical treatises) that succinctly summarises his philosophy is:

Brahma satyaṃ jagat mithyā, jīvo brahmaiva nāparah — Brahman is the only truth, the world is illusion, and there is ultimately no difference between Brahman and individual self

This widely quoted sentence of his is also widely misunderstood. In his metaphysics, there are three tiers of reality with each one sublating the previous. The category illusion in this system is unreal only from the viewpoint of the absolutely real and is different from the category of the Absolutely unreal. His system of vedanta introduced the method of scholarly exegesis on the accepted metaphysics of the Upanishads, and this style was adopted by all the later vedanta schools. Another distinctive feature of his work is his refusal to be literal about scriptural statements and adoption of symbolic interpretation where he considered it appropriate. In a famous passage in his commentary on the Brahmasutra's of Badarayana, he says "For each means of knowledge{PramaNam} has a valid domain. The domain of the scriptures {Shabda PramaNam} is the knowledge of the Self. If the scriptures say something about another domain - like the world around us - which contradicts what perception {Pratyaksha PramaNam} and inference{Anumana PramaNam} (the appropriate methods of knowledge for this domain) tells us, then, the scriptural statements have to be symbolically interpreted..."

Adi Shankara's contributions to Advaita are crucial. His main works are the commentaries on the Prasthanatrayi (Brahma Sūtras, Bhagavad Gītā and the Upanişads) and the Gaudapadiya Karikas. He also wrote a major independent treatise, called Upadeśa Sāhasrī, expounding his philosophy.

Prerequisites

The necessity of a Guru

Advaita vedānta requires anyone seeking to study advaita vedānta to do so from a Guru (teacher). The Guru must have the following qualities (see Mundaka Upanishad 1.2.12):

1. Śrotriya — must be learned in the Vedic scriptures and sampradaya
2. Brahmaniṣṭha — literally meaning established in Brahman; must have realised the oneness of Brahman in everything and in himself

The seeker must serve the Guru and submit questions with all humility in order to remove all doubts (see Bhagavad Gita 4.34). By doing so, advaita says, the seeker will attain moksha (liberation from the cycle of births and deaths).

See also: Guru-shishya tradition

Sādhana Chatuṣṭaya

Any mumukṣu (one seeking moksha) has to have the following four sampattis (qualifications), collectively called Sādhana Chatuṣṭaya Sampatti (the fourfold qualifications):

1. Nityānitya vastu viveka — The ability (viveka) to correctly discriminate between the eternal (nitya) substance (Brahman) and the substance that is transitory existence (anitya).
2. Ihāmutrārtha phala bhoga virāga — The renunciation (virāga) of enjoyments of objects (artha phala bhoga) in this world (iha) and the other worlds (amutra) like heaven etc.
3. Śamādi ṣatka sampatti — the sixfold qualities of śama (control of the antahkaraṇa), dama (the control of external sense organs), uparati (the refraining from actions; instead concentrating on meditation), titikṣa (the tolerating of tāpatraya), śraddha (the faith in Guru and Vedas), samādhāna (the concentrating of the mind on God and Guru).
4. Mumukṣutva — The firm conviction that the nature of the world is misery and the intense longing for moksha (release from the cycle of births and deaths).

Advaita vedānta categorically states that moksha, or liberation, is available only to those possessing the above-mentioned fourfold qualifications. Thus any seeker wishing to study advaita vedānta from a teacher must possess these.

Epistemology

Pramāṇas

Pramā, in Sanskrit, refers to the correct knowledge, arrived at by thorough reasoning, of any object. Pramāṇa (sources of knowledge, Sanskrit) forms one part of a tripuṭi (trio), namely,

1. Pramātṛ, the subject; the knower of the knowledge
2. Pramāṇa, the cause or the means of the knowledge
3. Prameya, the object of knowledge

In Advaita Vedānta, the following pramāṇas are accepted:

• Pratyakṣa — the knowledge gained by means of the senses
• Anumāna — the knowledge gained by means of inference
• Upamāna — the knowledge gained by means of analogy
• Arthāpatti — the knowledge gained by superimposing the known knowledge on an appearing knowledge that does not concur with the known knowledge
• Āgama — the knowledge gained by means of texts such as Vedas (also known as Āptavākya, Śabda pramāṇa)

Ontology

Kārya and kāraṇa

The kārya (effect) and kāraṇa (cause) form an important area for investigation in all the systems of Vedanta. Two kāraṇatvas (ways of being the cause) are recognised:

1. Nimitta kāraṇatva — Being the instrumental cause. For example, a potter is assigned Nimitta kāraṇatva as he acts as the maker of the pot and thus becomes the pot's instrumental cause.
2. Upādāna kāraṇatva — Being the material cause. For example, the mud is assigned Upādāna kāraṇatva as it acts as the material of the effect (the pot) and thus becomes the pot's material cause.

Advaita assigns Nimitta kāraṇatva to Brahman vide the statements from the Vedas (only two are given below):

Sarvāṇi rūpāṇi vicitya dhīraḥ. Nāmāni kṛtvābhivadan yadāste — That Lord has created all the forms and is calling them by their names (Taitiiriya Aranyaka 3.12.7)

Sa īkṣata lokānnu sṛjā iti — He thought, “Let Me create the worlds” (Aitareya Upanishad 1.1.1)

Advaita also assigns Upādāna kāraṇatva to Brahman vide the statements from the Vedas (only two are given below):

Yathā somyaikena mṛtpinḍena sarvaṃ mṛnmayaṃ vijñātaṃ syādvācāraṃbhaṇaṃ vikāro nāmadheyaṃ mṛttiketyeva satyaṃ — Dear boy, just as through a single clod of clay all that is made of clay would become known, for all modifications is but name based upon words and the clay alone is real (Chandogya Upanishad 6.1.4)

Sokāmayata bahu syāṃ prajāyeti — (He thought) Let me be many, let me be born (Taittiriya Upanishad 2.6.4)

The Chandogya Upanishad 6.2.1 states

Ekamevādvitīyaṃ — It is One without a second

Thus, based on these and other statements found in the Vedas, Advaita concludes that Brahman is both the instrumental cause and the material cause.

Kārya-kāraṇa ananyatva

Advaita states that kārya (effect) is non-different from kāraṇa (cause). However kāraṇa is different from kārya. This principle is called Kārya-kāraṇa ananyatva (the non-difference of the effect from the cause). To elaborate,

• If the cause is destroyed, the effect will no longer exist. For example, if from the effect, cotton cloth, the cause, threads, are removed, there will be no cloth, i.e., the cloth is destroyed. Similarly if in the effect, thread, the cause, cotton, is removed, there will be no thread, i.e., the thread is destroyed. This is brought out by Adi Shankara in the Brahmasūtra Bhāṣya , commentary on the Brahma sutra, 2.1.9, as:

  Ananyatve'pi kāryakāraṇayoḥ kāryasya kāraṇātmatvaṃ na tu kāraṇasya kāryātmatvaṃ — Despite the non-difference of cause and effect, the effect has its self in the cause but not the cause in the effect. The effect is of the nature of the cause and not the cause the nature of the effect. Therefore the qualities of the effect cannot touch the cause.

• During the time of its existence, one can easily grasp that the effect is not different from the cause. However that the cause is different from the effect is not readily understood. As to this, it is not really possible to separate cause from effect. But this is possible by imagining so. For example, the reflection of the gold ornament seen in the mirror is only the form of the ornament but is not the ornament itself as it (the reflection) has no gold in it at all. Adi Shankara says in the Chāṃdogya Upaniṣad Bhāṣya, commentary on the Chandogya Upanishad, 6.3.2:

  Sarvaṃ ca nāmarūpādi sadātmanaiva satyaṃ vikārajātaṃ svatastu anṛtameva — All names and forms are real when seen with the Sat (Brahman) but are false when seen independent of Brahman.

This way Advaita establishes the non-difference of effect from cause. To put it in a nutshell,

Kārya is not different from kāraṇa; however kāraṇa is different from kārya

In the context of Advaita Vedanta,

Jagat (the world) is not different from Brahman; however Brahman is different from Jagat

Salient features of Advaita Vedanta

Three levels of truth

• The transcendental or the Pāramārthika level in which Brahman is the only reality and nothing else;
• The pragmatic or the Vyāvahārika level in which both Jiva (living creatures or individual souls) and Ishvara are true; here, the material world is completely true, and,
• The apparent or the Prāthibhāsika level in which even material world reality is actually false, like illusion of a snake over a rope or a dream.

Brahman

According to Adi Shankara, God, the Supreme Cosmic Spirit or Brahman (pronounced as /brəh mən/; nominative singular Brahma, pronounced as /brəh mə/) is the One, the whole and the only reality. Other than Brahman, everything else, including the universe, material objects and individuals, are false. Brahman is at best described as that infinite, omnipresent, omnipotent, incorporeal, impersonal, transcendent reality that is the divine ground of all Being. Brahman is often described as neti neti meaning "not this, not this" because it cannot be correctly described as this or that. It is the origin of this and that, the origin of forces, substances, all of existence, the undefined, the basis of all, unborn, the essential truth, unchanging, eternal, the absolute. How can it be properly described as something in the material world when itself is the basis of reality? Brahman is also beyond the senses, it would be akin a blind man trying to correctly describe color. It (grammatically neutral, but exceptionally treated as masculine), though not a substance, is the basis of the material world, which in turn is its illusionary transformation. Brahman is not the effect of the world. Brahman is said to be the purest knowledge itself, and is illuminant like a source of infinite light.

Due to ignorance (avidyā), the Brahman is visible as the material world and its objects. The actual Brahman is attributeless and formless (see Nirguna Brahman). It is the Self-existent, the Absolute and the Imperishable (not generally the object of worship but rather of meditation). Brahman is actually indescribable. It is at best "Sacchidananda" (merging "Sat" + "Chit" + "Ananda", ie, Infinite Truth, Infinite Consciousness and Infinite Bliss). Also, Brahman is free from any kind of differences. It does not have any sajātīya (homogeneous) differences because there is no second Brahman. It does not have any vijātīya (heterogeneous) differences because there is nobody in reality existing other than Brahman. It has neither svagata (internal) differences, because Brahman is itself homogeneous.

Though Brahman is self-proved, Adi Shankara also proposed some logical proofs:

• Shruti — the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita and the Brahma Sutras describe Brahman in almost exact manner as Adi Shankara. This is the testimonial proof of Brahman.
• Psychological — every person experiences his soul, or atman. According to Adi Shankara, Atman = Brahman. This argument also proves the omniscience of the Brahman.
• Teleological — the world appears very well ordered; the reason for this cannot be an unconscious principle. The reason must be due to the Brahman.
• Essential — Brahman is the basis of this created world.
• Perceptible feeling — many people, when they achieve the turīya state, claim that their soul has become one with everything else.

Māyā

Māyā (/mɑːjɑː/) According to Adi Shankara, Māyā is that complex illusionary power of Brahman which causes the Brahman to be seen as the distinct material world. It has two main functions — one is to "cover up" Brahman from the human minds, and the other is to present the material world in its stead. Māyā is also indescribable. It is neither completely real nor completely unreal—hence indescribable. Its shelter is Brahman, but Brahman itself is untouched by the profanity of Māyā, just like a magician is not tricked by his own magic. Māyā is temporary and is destroyed with "true knowledge".

Since according to the Upanishads only Brahman is real, but we see the material world to be real, Adi Shankara explained the anomaly by the concept of this illusionary power Māyā.

Status of the world

Adi Shankara says that the world is not true, it is an illusion, but this is because of some logical reasons. Let us first analyse Adi Shankara's definition of Truth, and hence why the world is not considered true.

• Adi Shankara says that whatever thing remains eternal is true, and whatever is non-eternal is untrue. Since the world is created and destroyed, it is not true.
• Truth is the thing which is unchanging. Since the world is changing, it is not true.
• Whatever is independent of space and time is true, and whatever has space and time in itself is untrue.
• Just as one sees dreams in sleep, he sees a kind of super-dream when he is waking. The world is compared to this conscious dream.
• The world is believed to be a superimposition of the Brahman. Superimposition cannot be true.

On the other hand, Adi Shankara claims that the world is not absolutely false. It appears false only when compared to Brahman. In the pragmatic state, the world is completely true—which occurs as long as we are under the influence of Maya. The world cannot be both true and false at the same time; hence Adi Shankara has classified the world as indescribable. The following points suggest that according to Adi Shankara, the world is not false (Adi Shankara himself gave most of the arguments, Sinha, 1993):

• If the world were false, then with the liberation of the first human being, the world would have been annihilated. However, the world continues to exist even if a human attains liberation.
• Adi Shankara believes in Karma, or good actions. This is a feature of this world. So the world cannot be false.
• The Supreme Reality Brahman is the basis of this world. The world is like its reflection. Hence the world cannot be totally false.
• False is something which is ascribed to nonexistent things, like Sky-lotus. The world is a logical thing which is perceived by our senses.

Consider the following logical argument. A pen is placed in front of a mirror. One can see its reflection. To one's eyes, the image of the pen is perceived. Now, what should the image be called? It cannot be true, because it is an image. The truth is the pen. It cannot be false, because it is seen by our eyes.

Īshvara

Īshvara (pronounced as /iːʃvərə/, literally, the Supreme Lord) — According to Advaita Vedanta, when man tries to know the attributeless Brahman with his mind, under the influence of Maya, Brahman becomes the Lord. Ishvara is Brahman with Maya — the manifested form of Brahman. Adi Shankara uses a metaphor that when the "reflection" of the Cosmic Spirit falls upon the mirror of Maya, it appears as the Supreme Lord. The Supreme Lord is true only in the pragmatic level — his actual form in the transcendental level is the Cosmic Spirit.

Ishvara is Saguna Brahman or Brahman with innumerable auspicious qualities. He is all-perfect, omniscient, omnipresent, incorporeal, independent, Creator of the world, its ruler and also destroyer. He is causeless, eternal and unchangeable — and is yet the material and the instrumental cause of the world. He is both immanent (like whiteness in milk) and transcendent (like a watch-maker independent of a watch). He may be even regarded to have a personality. He is the subject of worship. He is the basis of morality and giver of the fruits of one's Karma. However, He himself is beyond sin and merit. He rules the world with his Maya — His divine power. This association with a "false" knowledge does not affect the perfection of Ishvara, in the same way as a magician is himself not tricked by his magic. However, while Ishvara is the Lord of Maya and she (ie, Maya) is always under his control, the living beings (jīva, in the sense of humans) are the servants of Maya (in the form of ignorance). This ignorance is the cause of the unhappiness and sin in the mortal world. While Ishvara is Infinite Bliss, humans are miserable. Ishvara always knows the unity of the Brahman substance, and the Mayic nature of the world. There is no place for a Satan or devil in Hinduism, unlike Abrahamic religions. Advaitins explain the misery because of ignorance. Ishvara can also be visualized and worshipped in anthropomorphic form as deities such as Vishnu, Krishna or Shiva.

Now the question arises as to why the Supreme Lord created the world. If one assumes that Ishvara creates the world for any incentive, this slanders the wholeness and perfection of Ishvara. For example, if one assumes that Ishvara creates the world for gaining something, it would be against His perfection. If we assume that He creates for compassion, it would be illogical, because the emotion of compassion cannot arise in a blank and void world in the beginning (when only Ishvara existed). So Adi Shankara assumes that Creation is a sport of Ishvara. It is His nature, just as it is man's nature to breathe.

The sole proof for Ishvara that Adi Shankara gives is Shruti's mentions of Ishvara, as Ishvara is beyond logic and thinking. This is similar to Kant 's philosophy about Ishvara in which he says that "faith" is the basis of theism. However, Adi Shankara has also given few other logical proofs for Ishvara, but warning us not to completely rely on them:

• The world is a work, an effect, and so must have real cause. This cause must be Ishvara.
• The world has a wonderful unity, coordination and order, so its creator must have been an intelligent being.
• People do good and sinful work and get its fruits, either in this life or after. People themselves cannot be the giver of their fruits, as no one would give himself the fruit of his sin. Also, this giver cannot be an unconscious object. So the giver of the fruits of Karma is Ishvara.

Status of God

To think that there is no place for a personal God (Ishvara) in Advaita Vedanta is a misunderstanding of the philosophy. Ishvara is, in an ultimate sense, described as "false" because Brahman appears as Ishvara only due to the curtain of Maya. However, as described earlier, just as the world is true in the pragmatic level, similarly, Ishvara is also pragmatically true. Just as the world is not absolutely false, Ishvara is also not absolutely false. He is the distributor of the fruits of one's Karma. In order to make the pragmatic life successful, it is very important to believe in God and worship him. In the pragmatic level, whenever we talk about Brahman, we are in fact talking about God. God is the highest knowledge theoretically possible in that level. Devotion (Bhakti) will cancel the effects of bad Karma and will make a person closer to the true knowledge by purifying his mind. Slowly, the difference between the worshipper and the worshipped decreases and upon true knowledge, liberation occurs.

Ātman

The swan is an important motif in Advaita. It symbolises two things: first, the swan is called hamsah in Sanskrit (which becomes hamso if the first letter in the next word is /h/). Upon repeating this hamso indefinitely, it becomes so-aham, meaning, "I am That". Second, just as a swan lives in water but its feathers are not soiled by water, similarly a liberated Advaitin lives in this world full of maya but is untouched by its illusion.

The soul or the self (Atman) is identical with Brahman. It is not a part of Brahman that ultimately dissolves into Brahman, but the whole Brahman itself. Now the arguers ask how the individual soul, which is limited and one in each body, can be the same as Brahman? Adi Shankara explains that the Self is not an individual concept. Atman is only one and unique. Indeed Atman alone is {Ekaatma Vaadam}. It is a false concept that there are several Atmans {Anekaatma Vaadam}. Adi Shankara says that just as the same moon appears as several moons on its reflections on the surface of water covered with bubbles, the one Atman appears as multiple atmans in our bodies because of Maya. Atman is self-proven, however, some proofs are discussed—eg., a person says "I am blind", "I am happy", "I am fat" etc. The common and constant factor, which permeates all these statements is the "I" which is but the Immutable Consciousness. When the blindness, happiness, fatness are inquired and negated, "I" the common factor which, indeed, alone exists in all three states of consciousness and in all three periods of time, shines forth. This proves the existence of Atman, and that Consciousness, Reality and Bliss are its characteristics. Atman, being the silent witness of all the modifications, is free and beyond sin and merit. It does not experience happiness or pain because it is beyond the triad of Experiencer, Experienced and Experiencing. It does not do any Karma because it is Aaptakaama. It is incorporeal and independent.

When the reflection of atman falls on Avidya (ignorance), atman becomes jīva — a living being with a body and senses. Each jiva feels as if he has his own, unique and distinct Atman, called jivatman. The concept of jiva is true only in the pragmatic level. In the transcendental level, only the one Atman, equal to Brahman, is true.

Adi Shankara exposed the relative and thus unreal nature of the objective world and propounded the truth of the Advaita {One without a second} by analysing the three states of experience of the atman — waking (vaishvanara), dreaming (taijasa), and deep sleep (prajna).

Salvation

Liberation or Moksha (akin to Nirvana of the Buddhists) — Advaitins also believe in the theory of reincarnation of souls (Atman) into plants, animals and humans according to their karma. They believe that suffering is due to Maya, and only knowledge (called Jnana) of Brahman can destroy Maya. When Maya is removed, there exists ultimately no difference between the Jiva-Atman and the Brahman. Such a state of bliss when achieved while living is called Jivan mukti. While one is in the pragmatic level, one can worship God in any way and in any form, like Krishna or Ayyappa as he wishes, Adi Shankara himself was a proponent of devotional worship or Bhakti. But Adi Shankara believes that while Vedic sacrifices, puja and devotional worship can lead one in the direction of jnana, true knowledge, they cannot lead one directly to Moksha.

Theory of creation

In the relative level, Adi Shankara believes in the Creation of the world through Satkaryavada. It is like the philosophy of Samkhya, which says that the cause is always hidden into its effect—and the effect is just a transformation of the cause. However, Samkhya believes in a sub-form of Satkaryavada called Parinamavada (evolution) — whereby the cause really becomes an effect. Instead, Adi Shankara believes in a sub-form called Vivartavada. According to this, the effect is merely an apparent transformation of its cause — like illusion. eg., In darkness, a man often confuses a rope to be a snake. But this does not mean that the rope has actually transformed into a snake.

At the pragmatic level, the universe is believed to be the creation of the Supreme Lord Ishvara. Maya is the divine magic of Ishvara, with the help of which Ishvara creates the world. The serial of Creation is taken from the Upanishads. First of all, the five subtle elements (ether, air, fire, water and earth) are created from Ishvara. Ether is created by Maya. From ether, air is born. From air, fire is born. From fire, water is born. From water, earth is born. From a proportional combination of all five subtle elements, the five gross elements are created, like the gross sky, the gross fire, etc. From these gross elements, the universe and life are created. This series is exactly the opposite during destruction.

Some people have criticized that these principles are against Satkaryavada. According to Satkaryavada, the cause is hidden inside the effect. How can Ishvara, whose form is spiritual, be the effect of this material world? Adi Shankara says that just as from a conscious living human, inanimate objects like hair and nails are formed, similarly, the inanimate world is formed from the spiritual Ishvara.

Status of ethics

Some claim that there is no place for ethics in Advaita, because everything is ultimately illusionary. But on analysis, ethics also has a firm place in this philosophy—the same place as the world and God. Ethics, which implies doing good Karma, indirectly helps in attaining true knowledge. The basis of merit and sin is the Shruti (the Vedas and the Upanishads). Truth, non-violence, service of others, pity, etc are Dharma, and lies, violence, cheating, selfishness, greed, etc are adharma (sin).

Advaita Vedanta in a summary

Adi Shankara's treatises on the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita and the Brahma Sutras are his principal and almost undeniably his own works. Although he mostly adhered to traditional means of commenting on the Brahma Sutra, there are a number of original ideas and arguments. He taught that it was only through direct knowledge of nonduality that one could be enlightened.

Adi Shankara's opponents accused him of teaching Buddhism in the garb of Hinduism. However, while the Later Buddhists arrived at a changeless, deathless, absolute truth after their insightful understanding of the unreality of samsara, historically Vedantins never liked this idea. Although Advaita also proposes the theory of Maya, explaining the universe as a "trick of a magician", Adi Shankara and his followers see this as a consequence of their basic premise that Brahman is real. Their idea of Maya emerges from their belief in the reality of Brahman, rather than the other way around.

Adi Shankara was a peripatetic orthodox Hindu monk who traveled the length and breadth of India. The more enthusiastic followers of the Advaita tradition claim that he was chiefly responsible for "driving the Buddhists away". Historically the decline of Buddhism in India is known to have taken place long after Adi Shankara or even Kumarila Bhatta (who according to a legend had "driven the Buddhists away" by defeating them in debates), sometime before the Muslim invasion into Afghanistan (earlier Gandhara).

Although today's followers of Advaita believe Adi Shankara argued against Buddhists in person, a historical source, the Madhaviya Shankara Vijayam, indicates that Adi Shankara sought debates with Mimamsa, Samkhya, Nyaya, Vaisheshika and Yoga scholars as keenly as with any Buddhists. In fact his arguments against the Buddhists are quite mild in the Upanishad Bhashyas, while they border on the acrimonious in the Brahma Sutra Bhashya.

The Vishistadvaita and Dvaita schools believe in an ultimately saguna Brahman. They differ passionately with Advaita, and believe that his nirguna Brahman is essentially not different from the Buddhist Sunyata (wholeness or zeroness) — much to the dismay of the Advaita school. A careful study of the Buddhist Sunyata will show that it is in some ways metaphysically similar as Brahman. Whether Adi Shankara agrees with the Buddhists is not very clear from his commentaries on the Upanishads. His arguments against Buddhism in the Brahma Sutra Bhashyas are more a representation of Vedantic traditional debate with Buddhists than a true representation of his own individual belief.

The Buddha as a non-dualist

The Amarakosha-grantha, the Sanskrit dictionary, written by Amarasimha one of the nine gems of the Gupta court, lists many of the names and epithets by which the Buddha is traditionally known:

sarvajñas sugato buddho dharmarājas tathāgatah

samastabhadro bhagavān mārajil-lokajij-jinah

şadabhijño daśabalo ’dvayavādī vināyakah

munīndraś śrīghanaś śāstā muniś śākyamunis tu yah

“All-knowing, transcendental, awakened, king of righteousness, he who has come, beneficent, all-encompassing, lord, conqueror of the god of love-mara, victorious of three worlds, he who controls his senses, protector from the six enemies, possessor of the ten powers, speaker of non-dualism, peerless, lord of the sages, embodiment of splendor, teacher, the saint known as Śākyamuni.”

David Loy of the National Univ. of Singapore writes, "The similarities between Mahayana and Advaita Vedanta have been much noticed; they are so great that some commentators conceive of the two as different stages of the same system. Curiously, both Shankara and his predecessor Gaudapada were accused of being crypto-Buddhists, while on the other side, Theravadins criticized Mahayana for being a degeneration back into Hinduism."

Hindusim has no founder and cannot be considered as a religion . It is a way of life and is as complex as the universe itself. A precise definition of Hinduism is not available. All schools of thoughts find a place in Hinduism. Hinduism can accommodate all Darshanas / Views / Philosophies of the world because it encompasses and surpasses all possible views of the mankind. Vedic Wisdom is the strong foundation upon which Hinduism is built up.The understanding of the Vedic Wisdom varies with the individual. Chaarvaka Siddhantha says that nothing other than what we see and hear is true. But Advaitha Siddhantha says that Brahma alone is real and all other things are unreal and the universe itself has functional existence only . A careful study of Hinduism will reveal that all darshanas right from Chaarvaka Siddhantha to Advaitha Siddhantha are various steps leading to the ultimate reality. Advaitha Darshana is considered to be the highest level of thoughts the mankind has ever made. This is an attempt to examine the cross section of the foundation of Hinduism .

BASIC TENETS OF HINDUISM

PARABRAHMAM / PARAMAATMA / PARAASAKTHI is the eternal Truth and Ultimate Reality. It is the smallest among the small ones and biggest among the big ones ( anoraneeyaan mahatho maheeyaan). Eventhough the truth is one, people call it by different names( ekam sat vipra bahudha vadanti)

The entire universe is an expression of Parabrahmam in the form of vibrations caused by its own desire just as the waves in the ocean are the expression of water caused by wind .Different ‘worlds ’ co-exist in the universe and all of them are not subjected to our senses as they have differences in the frequencies of vibrations. The variations in nature are due to variations in permutations and combinations of triguna namely, Satwam, Rajas and Thamas.The Living things have three constituent bodies; Sthoolam (Physical) Sookshmam (Astral) and Kaaranam(Causal). The latter two are described as Jeevaatma and Paramaatma respectively. Jeevaatma or Sookshmasareeram is a reflection of Paramaatma impregnated with ego (aham), intellect(buddhi), chittham and mind loaded with karmabandham. Out of these three constituents, physical body perish ,astral body with bondages (karmabandham) reincarnates, and causal body remain eternal as it is Parabrahmam in its pure form , which is described as ‘Satchitanandam’. The union of astral with physical is worldly life and that with causal is liberation or Moksham. In other words the unique experience of identifying oneness of Jeevaatma with Paramaatma is liberation or Moksham.

Each karma-word deed and thought- creates unprecedented invisibles. These invisibles are energy modules and in the nascent form they are called‘ aagaami’ or incoming energy modules. At the time of the death of an individual these invisibles remain attached to the ’ sookshmasareeram’(subtle body) in the form of ‘ sanjitham‘or acuumulated energy modules. Because of this attachment which is called ‘karmabandham’ or “Karma” the sookshmasareeram accepts another body after the death of the individual and this process is called re-birth or re-incarnation. The form of new life , place and time of re-birth depend on the quality of karmabandham. In the new life the invisible energy modules or karmabandham carried forward from previous life remain in the form of praarabdham. The meaning of the word praarabdham is that which is initiated.

The praarabdham express themselves as instincts or Vaasanas. These instincts are the driving forces of new life which lead to new karma and creation of new energy modules. One can change the effects of his/her praarabdham by controlling his/her instincts by practicing restraint or developing them by exerting conscious extra efforts. Availability of this option is a unique privilege of human life. As long as one maintains sense based materialistic individuality he/she continues in this worldly life . The development of cosmic, transcendental, spiritual individuality leads to disintegration of materialistic sense based personality and such people move to the ‘cosmic worlds’ and attain Paramapurushaartha sooner or later depending again on the quality of “ samskaara” . The time required for this transformation or evolution from primitive life form to perfect human being which is a pre-requisite to attain Paramapurushaartha varies with the individual .Hence different forms of life and among the same form different characters with varying degree of “ samskaara” are seen in this world and it is inevitable also.

The life is the experience of invisibles-good and bad- created by one’s own karma. It continues in search of purushartha viz; Dharma, Artha, Kaama and Moksha. Moksham is the ultimate reality and is called Paramapurushartha. All are destined to attain moksham-the Final Destination and Ultimate Reality. Infact, life is a journey commences from the Almighty and ends in the Almighty. But no one can attain the destination without being a Perfect Man in this world through the process of evolutions. No one can be a Perfect Man as long as he has karmabandham. The practice of any one or a combination of four yogas namely Nishkamakarma, Ashtangayoga, Bhakthiyoga and Jnanayoga are the four methods of liberating oneself from the clutches of karmabandham.All these yogas ultimately lead to Jnana or knowledge .The seeds of karma or karmabandham roasted in the fire of knowledge will not germinate. Knowledge is the most precious asset in life which enables one to liberate from the clutches of worldly life. Liberation is moksham.

The purpose of human life is attainment of Purushartha, which are four in number, namely Dharma Artha, Kaama and Moksha. Earn Artha through the practice of Dharma ; fulfill kaama without sacrificing Dharma and that will make one eligible for the attainment of Moksham which is termed as Paramapurushartha – the ultimate goal . In other words, destination of all human being is Moksham and the path proposed to this destination is that of Dharma. Non-violence, Truthfulness, Self control and Sacrifice are the four pillars of Dharma. Thus says Vedanta the essence of Hinduism.

These are the basic tenets of Hinduism and are considered eternal truths and hence Hinduism is eulogized as ‘Sanathana Dharma’.The Hindu mythology elucidate these Truths for the benefit of ordinary people.

The theory of evolution, theory of relativity, atomic theory, quantum theory ,laws of inheritance laws of motion, findings of human genome project etc are the materialistic explanations and not negation of our vedic wisdom .It encompasses and surpasses the findings of modern science.

VEDAS – THE TREASURE OF KNOWLEDGE

THE VEDA is the basis of Hinduism. A Rishi named Krishna Dwaipayanan divided Veda in to four viz ; Rig , Yajur, Saamam and Atharavam and the Rishi later known as Veda Vyasa. The meaning of the words Veda Vyasa is ‘one who divided Veda ‘ The word Veda means knowledge. Knowledge is divided into two – spiritual(paraa) and material(aparaa). Modern science seeks to find the truth through the materialistic analysis of the universe. Our scientific knowledge is confined to three states of living things viz; Swapnam (Dream), Sushupti, (Sleep) and Jaagrat (Active).Attainment of a fourth state called Thureeyam (Transcendental) is unknown / beyond the purview of modern science. Those who attained this fourth state could realize the eternal truth and these are revealed in the form of Vedas. The last part of Vedas are called Vedantha or Upanishads . Spiritual knowledge is the subject matter of Upanishads.

Eternal Truths are discussed and revealed in Upanishads .It is an embodiment of timeless wisdom, the understanding of which is limited by our level of knowledge or ‘Samskaara”. Obviously there are several schools of thoughts and many scholars have interpreted the vedic mantras in their own way. A Rishi named Chaarvaka stated that there is nothing other than what we see around. According to Chaarvaka Siddhantha the truth is one which we see around .The meaning of the word Chaarvaka is one who speaks beautiful words. According to him there is no Brahman or God or any such supernatural power. Materialistic interpretation and dialectical analysis of the universe are the recent development in that school of thoughts and can be considered as a derivative of Charvaaka Siddhantha. Other important schools of thoughts in Hinduism are Nyaya(Goutama) , Vyseshika(Kanaada) Sankhya(Kapila), Yoga(Pathanjali) , Purva meemamsa(Gaimini) & Uthara meemamsa (Badarayana).Each one of these schools of thoughts is complete in itself .Apparently they are contradicting .But a close and deep study of all these thoughts will reveal that the differences are superfluous and all darshanas are tributaries to the Advaitha Philosophy which trace back its origin in Nasadeeya Suktham in the Rigveda ., developed by Badarayana and explained by many scholars especially by Aadi Sankaraeacharya of Kaladi who is considered to be the greatest scholar the world has ever seen. ONENESS OF TRUTH PLURALITY OF VISION AND DIVERSITY OF BELIEF When we teach natural sciences in schools, first the student is told that the sun rises in the east. After some time he is told that the Sun is not moving but the earth is moving. When the student attains higher level he is taught that both the Sun and earth are moving. At still higher levels he learns that the sun is only a small star and there are several stars and galaxies in the universe .Later he understands that the entire universe is moving and that is why it is called jagath. Similarly a student of vedantha passes through various phases of learning . He may learn that what is seen and experienced by the senses alone is correct as stated by Chaarvaka. Paradoxically after passing through several beliefs and darshanas, later he realizes that the entire Jagath ( universe) is actually not existing but it is only a derivative of his conscience as stated by Aadi Sankara in his discourse on Advaita Vedantha . It is a process of development by acquiring knowledge. One can understand and assimilate things commensurate with his level of “ Samskaara” All darshanas or schools of thoughts lead ultimately to Advaitha darshana. Probably only those who understand Advaitha Darshana can say this because a person at higher level alone can have better vision of all. When the spirituality of individuals attain higher planes ie; when the Jeevaatma possesses higher level of “samskaara “ the differences disappears and the individual realizes the Advaitha nature of universe.

One who in darkness may misunderstand a rope as a snake , he may get frightened , he can escape from the scare only when the darkness is removed and truth is revealed. Light is necessary for reasoning in this example. Similarly the light of wisdom is necessary for the realization of eternal truth. This wisdom is very precious and is acquired through the process of innumerable experiences passing through several incarnations.

The Upanishads are the basis of “ Brahmasutra” The sum and substance of all Upanishads is discussed in Bhagavad Gita.The Upanishads, Brahmasutra and Bhagavad Gita are collectively known as “Prasthana threya”. Aadi Sankara has given scholarly interpretation to these three books and as a result he became the greatest scholar and even now he continues to be the greatest scholar the world has ever seen.

When Aadi Sankara enunciated Maaya Theory which strongly plead that the jagath (universe) has no real existence other than a functional existence people could not understand. When modern scientists described matter as a derivative of conscience people pretend to have understood the same. When Aadi Sankara said“Brahma satyam, Jagat midhya, Jeevo Brahmaiva na para” nobody could understand, but when Albert Einstein said “ nature is composed of matter and energy; and matter can be converted in to energy” our modern scientists accepted it. Energy is the ultimate reality known to modern science and it emanates from Paramaatma according to Hinduism. Hence Paramaatma is also called Parasakthi. The understandings of the vedic dictum is limited by our level of samskaara and level of knowledge.

PARABRAHMA : Brahma means big. Parabrahma means biggest of all ,which indicates the Omnipotent ,The Omnipresent, The Almighty. It is represented by the word “ AUM”. When we say that the entire universe is its own expression the universal brotherhood of all living, nonliving, visible and invisible things are proclaimed Hence a Hindu says” Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam”- the entire universe is a family.

One who believes this, cannot see himself alienated from the universe - he is part of it. Therefore he wishes “ loka samastha sukhino bhavanthu”- let the entire universe be happy. His prayer is “ Aum Bhadram Karnebhi…..Aum Bhadram pasyemakshabhir…….” – let all that heard be good, let all that seen be good. This is the greatest and noblest prayer one can make to the God because all that heard and seen can be good only when the entire universe is good. This is one among the many noble, selfless prayers found in Upanishads for universal well being. All prayers in Hinduism are concluded with the words “ shanty shanty shanty”. It seeks materialistic, spiritual and godly peace.

When Hinduism says “ekam sat vipra bahudha vadanti” it accepts supreme oneness of parabrahma and at the same time it proclaims the possible plurality of vision and diversity of belief. As far as a Hindu is concerned Islam , Christianity , Saivaism, Budhism , Vaishnavaism , Jainism Zorastrianism Marxism etc are only the parts of this plurality and these do not in any way hurt or interfere with his belief. Hinduism provides maximum freedom of thoughts and belief to individuals. A Hindu respects the religion, belief, rituals etc of others because of the greatness of his own belief .It is the only religion which advocates for critical analysis of the principles and their acceptance only if found correct. The word’ correct’ means compatible in respect of self. It also proclaims that the distance traveled by each individual towards the ultimate destination and also the level of knowledge and understanding of Paramaatma( ie the quantum of Samskaara)may differ from person to person and hence the rituals belief and mode of worship are bound to vary.

These variations are tolerated in Hinduism as long as it does not intrude into the belief of another person. It does not divide people on the basis of belief. A Hindu can visit and offer prayer in a Sikh Gurudwara, Jewish Synagogue, Muslim Mosque, Christian Church and temples of any kind of worship without compromising with his own belief as a Hindu. When one fails to accept the existence of the plurality of vision and diversity of belief it amounts to negation of Hinduism. In Hinduism spirituality is purely personal. Therefore the word Hinduism can be used as a better synonym for secularism. The actual meaning of secularism is a matter of debate. The secularism as is being practiced in India appears to be a policy of negation and appeasement . But Hinduism denotes tolerance and convergence of various philosophies of the world.

For a Hindu , life is a journey commences from the Almighty and ends in the Almighty. In between we are spending time here in this mortal world in search of purushartha, undergoing evolutions , through the process of reincarnations , in most of the times, without knowing or rather forgetting our real goal or destination. In each life the Jeevaatma is acquiring more experiences and knowledge and gradually it becomes aware of its real destination. This knowledge leads him to spirituality and to Ultimate Reality or Self- Actualization. This is the process of evolution which takes one from primitive form of life to perfect manhood. The Theory of evolution enunciated by Charles Darwin is only an exploration of the tips of an ice berg. Actual evolution takes place through the process of reincarnations.

Hindus believe that all are bound to reach the Ultimate Reality. Life is a trial and error method of self seeking practiced by jeevaatma the ultimate goal being self-actualization. The materialistic development including the inventions and discoveries of modern science is the bye-product of this trial and error method of self seeking. If all the Jeevaatmas could understand its destination and path to the destination the world would have been different from its present state. Lack of knowledge of the real destination and path leading to the same is the secret behind the game. Life will be a pleasant experience to all those who practice Dharma without attachment. All sorts of maladies and sorrows associated with worldly life is the result of one’s failure to understand his/her real destination and path to it. The Jeevaatma overcome these ignorance by evolution / refinement over a period of time passing through the process of several re-incarnations. Experience of life is the price we are paying to acquire this knowledge . The Rishi or Guru is a person who experienced the truth .The Jeevaatma has the option to learn the truth from these Rishis or to gain knowledge from their own experience. One who learns from his own experience is definitely wise , but those who learn from others’ experience is wiser. The sum total of the advancement made by one towards the Ultimate Reality through the process of refinement/evolution is called Samskaara. In other words the Samskaara indicates the progress made by one in his / her evolutionary process.

A Jeevaatma can understand and assimilate truth commensurate with his / her level of samskaara only. This is the reason for restricting exposure of eternal truth to certain categories of people.This categorization was attributed to the caste system and used to deny knowledge to vast majority of the mankind. Actually knowledge is open to all. Let us broadcast the seeds of vedic knowledge through out , the seeds that fall in fertile soil will germinate grow and yield fruits. Let us not sit on judgement on other peoples’ eligibility to understand Vedas. Let the seeds of vedic wisdom be sown far and wide. Eligible people who acquired the required level of “ samskaara “ will understand and assimilate. It is just like giving a lamp into the hand of a person struggling to find out his way in darkness . The option to use or through it away is left to the person. Another argument is that the wisdom will lead to inaction and development of indifferent attitude towards worldly affairs. It is also totally incorrect. Life has its own rules to safeguard worldly interest and sustenance of the universe. A seed will have to germinate , grow , flourish , contribute to natural beauty , provide shade , food , shelter etc before it return and contribute to the soil of its origin to complete the life cycle. If it prefers a shortcut method and refuse to germinate at all or refuse to grow and prefers to disintegrate into the soil immediately after germination , there would not be a world of this kind. Similar is the case of human being. Wisdom should lead to identification of one’s own Dharma. Practice of Dharma is inevitable for attaining Paramapurushartha-the ultimate reality. Inaction or abstention from Dharma will not help attainment of Paramapurushaartha. Earn Artha through the practice of Dharma , enjoy all worldly pleasures without sacrificing Dharma , it will make one eligible for attainment of Paramapurushaartha. There are several life to live and several worlds of different frequencies of vibrations to pass through before reaching the destination. There is no short-cut to complete the cycle. Remember that Ahimsa or non violence which is a result of universal love and forgiveness, Thyagam or sacrifice wherein one remains in a state of non-attachment , Indriyanigraha or self restrains wherein one control his/her harmful instincts and Truthfulness wherein the thoughts words and deeds are in agreement with each other are the essential pre-requisites for the practice of Dharma.These are the area which demand greater attention of each and every human being.

Practice of Dharma is the mission of each individual. Each individual is accountable to himself / herself for his/ her words , deeds and thoughts. The effect of a negative energy module created by the thoughts/ words / action can be neutralized by creating another energy module with same magnitude in its opposite direction. Vedantha indicates that the process of neutralization is not possible in all cases and therefore one has to be very careful in his words thoughts and actions

Hinduism is not a negation of worldly life and its enjoyment. It places the plain truth regarding this universe before the mankind and the option to choose the way of life is left to the individuals If one chooses the correct path of Dharma he may enjoy all good things in worldly life and liberate himself / herself , in due course , without much sufferings. Otherwise he/ she will have to suffer a lot in this mortal world undergoing several incarnations in favourable and unfavourable circumstances depending on the quality of Karma. The sookshmasareeram consisting of mind buddhi (intellect) chittham and ego(ahamkaram) having karmabandham reincarnate. The mechanism of independent assortment taking place at the time of fertilization is likely to be the process by which the sookshmasareeram is inducted into the genome. The word genome and genes are derivatives of the Greek root “ Jen “ which trace back its origin to Sanskrit word Jenm .

Astrology or Jyothishastra is a derivative of Vedas. It, inter alia, deals with the relationship between form / time / place of birth and praarabdham Astrology provides basic information regarding praarabdham based on the form place and time of birth . It can be successfully used as a tool for planning and designing one’s own life. Astrological predictions on future course of life of an individual need not necessarily be correct because the human being has the exclusive options to modify the effect of his praarabdham to some extend by exerting extra efforts. The Grahanila-planetary positions - in one’s horoscope indicate the direction of the flow of “samsarasagara” in relation to the life of the individual. .Planets like Sun, Moon , Mars , Mercury, Jupiter, Venus ,Saturn, Rahu , Kethu , and Gulikan are not directly or indirectly influencing the Jeevaatma but they are definitely indicative of certain traits and qualities attributed to them. A train which keeps punctuality indicate the time to a villager who is residing near the railway track, though the train is not an instrument to measure the time. Similarly planetary positions in horoscope are indicative of many things relating to one’s “karmabandham” particularly praraabdham. though the planets are not deciding on anybody’s fate. Each Jeevaatma is the Architect of its own fate. Planetary positions in the horoscope indicate what the fate could be, depending on the time of birth, because of its reciprocal relationship with the quality of Karmabandham ( due to the fact that place, time, and form of reincarnation is decided by the quality of Karmabandham.) But the individual human being has the option to swim across……by exerting extra efforts , creating new favorable energy modules and reducing the bad effects of past karma

This kind of refinement or evolution taking place in human life, leads him / her to prosperity and perfection. Lord Krishna said : “ The seeds of karma roasted in the fire of knowledge will not germinate”. Selfless service to the mankind, sincere, heart-felt repentance for the bad karma, prayer, hard work , devotion, practice of Dharma etc may change the effects of one’s praarabdham. Followers of all religions are doing these things in one way or other for self improvement. Dharma is the keynote of Hinduism. Dharma is defined as“ Jagath sthithi kaaranam, praaninaam saakshaat abhyudaya nishreyasm hethu” –that which sustains the world and results in prosperity and happiness of all living things. Ahimsa (non-violence) Satyam(truthfulness)Thyagam (sacrifice) indriyanigraha(self control) are the four pillars of Dharma. Thus Non violence ,Truthfulness, Sacrifice, and Self Control are considered to be the most important qualities of the practitioner of Dharma.

Ahimsa or non- violence is not non killing alone. Ahimsa means not hurting any one by word deed or thought. Universal love and forgiveness are the essential pre-requisites for a practitioner of Ahimsa. Satyam or truthfulness is the practice of keeping words deed and thought alike. Thyagam or sacrifice is the state of being uninterested in all sorts of personal gains name ,fame ,wealth etc when they are within the reach. Sacrifice of one’s own ego is manifested in the form of forgiveness. Love as such is associated with ego possessiveness and selfishness. It leads to attachment and consequential problems. Practice of Love without sacrificing selfishness and ego will not take anyone to the path of Dharma. Therefore universal love and sacrifice of ego - practice of Ahimsa –gets predominance over love in Hinduism. But one cannot practice Ahimsa without passing through several phases of refinement. Therefore love for others is important

Therefore the people may start love each other, love all alike, experience the need for sacrifice, then practice sacrifices in abundance, selflessness will develop and the continuance of universal love and forgiveness will result in Ahimsa and the practitioner will naturally emerges in to the path of Dharma. Self control or indriyanigraha is necessary to curb the undesirable instincts ,It plays an important role in the evolutionary advancement to the perfection of human being and attainment of ultimate reality.

The Caste System as it is practiced in India is the result of misinterpretation of vedic tenets by vested interests Bhagavan Sri.Krishna said “ Chathurvarnyam Mayaa srushtam, gunakarma vibhagasa.” I have created four types of people based on their qualities of Karmabandham” -it is based on the permutations and combinations of trigunas.

If a person has more than 80 % of Satwa guna he is a Brahmin even if born in the family of so called dalits. If one possesses more than 80 % Rajoguna irrespective of the caste of his/her parents he/she should be treated as Kshetriya. If one possesses 40 % Thamoguna and 40 % Rajoguna it can be classified as the qualities of Vaisya. If one possesses 80 % Thamoguna he is Sudra even if he is born to Brahmin or Kshatriya or Vaisya parents.

An analysis of the cross –section of society will reveal that all the above four combinations with natural variations , are existing in all castes and creed all over the world. Those who possess excess of Thamoguna, irrespective of the man made caste system to which they belong should, strive hard to improve their qualities following the practice of Non-violence( Ahimsa) Truthfulness, (Satyam) Sacrifice ( Thyagam) and Self control ( Indriyanigraha) – path of Dharma. This will enable them to improve their samskaara in successive incarnations. This is evolution. A British Emperor who practiced apartheid centuries ago may reincarnate as a Black leader in modern democratic set up. A Hindu Emperor who kept Muslims away from him on religious ground may reincarnate as a Muslim Prince in modern world. A person who is indulging in cruelty to others may get a rebirth with permanent ailment which force him to pray for continuous help from others. The past sins-the energy modules created due to cruelty- are generally expressed in the form of illness - Remember Life is an experience of one’s own Karma. Each Jeevaatma is getting its due share without fail. But no human being has the right to condemn others on account of their past deeds .

If someone take the divine rules of nature into his/ her hand and torture the less privileged , remember that he/she is committing another mistake or sin which will definitely come back to him/her in the form of some unpalatable experience in the same or subsequent incarnations. So take the path of Dharma. Care should be taken to maintain the path of dharma throughout life. The life is a journey as depicted by many poets .The journey commences in search of happiness and without knowing the ways and means to acquire the same. Each Jeevaatma spends several , probably several thousands , incarnations in search of artha and kama from which he / she expects happiness. During this search he invents and discover many things which add to his convenience and improve his worldly conditions of life. This journey in wilderness in search of happiness is not unwarranted. It is necessary for the sustenance of the universe. But the problem is that Jeevaatma during its search for artha and kama forget about dharma. Practice of Dharma is possible only if people follow the paths of Non-violence ( Ahimsa ) , Truthfulness ( Sathyam ) , Sacrifice ( Thyagom ) and Self Control (Indriyanigraha ). Nobody can escape from this world without acquiring these qualities and practicing Dharma. The position of an individual who acquired these qualities and realized the fact that happiness is not attached to artha and kama can be compared to the position of the individual nearing his actual destination. In the next incarnation he / she may travel straightaway from the very beginning to the end of life without deviating from the path of Dharma and he / she will have all the qualities of a Perfect Human being or “Sthithaprajnan”. Lord Krishna explains the qualities of a ‘Sthithaprajnan ‘ in Chapter II of Bhagavat Gita .He is not inactive .He is aggressive in performing his duties without expecting anything in return , other than the well being of the entire universe.

“Dharmah  evam hatho hanthi,  Dharmah  Rakshathi Rakshithah:” The Dharma destroy its destroyer  and  save  the  saver. Therefore : 

Practice your dharma , do not practice another’s dharma , do not abstain from dharma , - it will give you everything required for the fulfillment of your life namely artha kaama and moksha, through the process of several incarnations - evolutions.

The word deed and thought that lead to promotion of wellbeing and sustenance of all organisms in the universe is considered as Dharma. Identification of one’s own Dharma is the most important task of each individual. Swadharmah nidhinam sreya , Paradharmah bhayavaha. Life of one who perform his/ her own destined dharma will be meaningful and that of one who deviate from own dharma is dangerous. In either case, the performer will have to meet the consequences if the performance is made with attachment. Therefore Hinduism advocates for performance of Dharma without attachment. It is called Nishkaamakarma. Mahatma Gandhi was a real Hindu. Jesus Christ, Narayana Guru, Ramana Maharshi, Sant Jnaneshwar , Aurabindo, Sri Sathya Sai Baba, Mata Amritananda Mayi Devi – all these dhanyatmans shows the Hindu way of life.

The impact of Advaita

Advaita rejuvenated much of Hindu thought and also spurred debate with the two main theistic schools of Vedanta philosophy that were formalized later: Vishishtadvaita (qualified nondualism), and Dvaita (dualism). Advaita further helped to merge the old Vedic religion with popular south-Asian cults/deities, thus making a bridge between higher types of practice (such as jnana yoga) and devotional religion of ordinary people.

Mahavakya

Mahavakya, or "the great sentences", state the unity of Brahman and Atman. There are many such sentences in the vedas, but one sentence from each veda is usually chosen. They are shown below

Sr. No.	Vakya	Meaning	Upanishad	Veda
1	प्रज्नानम ब्रह्म (Prajñānam brahma)	Consciousness is Brahman	aitareya	Rig Veda
2.	अहम ब्रह्मास्मि (Aham brahmāsmi)	I am Brahman	brihadāranyaka	Yajur Veda
3.	तत्त्त्वमसि (Tattvamasi)	That thou art	chhandogya	Sama Veda
4.	अयमात्मा ब्रह्म (Ayamātmā brahmā)	This Atman is Brahman	mandukya	Atharva Veda

List of texts

See also: Works of Adi Shankara

Prasthānatrayī

Advaita Vedānta, like other Vedanta schools of Hindu philosophy, recognises the following three texts (known collectively as the Prasthānatrayī) of the Hindu tradition: Vedas- especially the Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita and Brahma Sutras. Many advaitin authors, including Adi Shankara, have written Bhashyas (commentaries) on these texts. These texts are thus considered to be the basic texts of the advaita tradition.

Other texts

Other texts include, Advaita Siddhi, written by Madhusudana Saraswati, Shankara Digvijaya — Historical record of Adi Shankara's life accepted by scholars worldwide. Among other ancient advatic texts, two of the most prominent are Avadhuta Gita and Ashtavakra Gita.

Adi Shankara wrote Bhāṣya (commentaries) on

• Brahmasūtra
• Aitareya Upaniṣad (Rigveda)
• Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad (Śukla Yajurveda)
• Īśa Upaniṣad (Śukla Yajurveda)
• Taittirīya Upaniṣad (Kṛṣṇa Yajurveda)
• Kaṭha Upaniṣad (Kṛṣṇa Yajurveda)
• Chāndogya Upaniṣad (Samaveda)
• Māṇḍūkya Upaniṣad (Atharvaveda) and Gauḍapāda Kārika
• Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad (Atharvaveda)
• Praśna Upaniṣad (Atharvaveda)
• Bhagavadgīta (Mahabhārata)
• Vishnu Sahasranama (Mahabhārata)
• Gāyatri Maṃtra

Adi Shankara wrote the following treatises

• Vivekacūḍāmaṇi (Crest-Jewel of Discrimination)
• Upadeśasāhasri (A thousand teachings)
• Śataśloki
• Daśaśloki
• Ekaśloki
• Pañcīkaraṇa
• Ātma bodha
• Aparokṣānubhūti
• Sādhana Pañcakaṃ
• Nirvāṇa Śatakaṃ
• Manīśa Pañcakaṃ
• Yati Pañcakaṃ
• Vākyasudha
• Tattva bodha
• Vākya vṛtti
• Siddhānta Tattva Vindu
• Nirguṇa Mānasa Pūja

In fact, the consensus now among scholars is that only Upadeśasāhasri can be securely attributed to Shri Shankara himself.

Adi Shankara composed many hymns on Shiva, Vishnu, Devi, Ganesha and Subrahmanya[2]

• Bhaja Govindaṃ, also known as Mohamuḍgara
• Śivānandalahiri
• Saundaryalahiri
• Śrī Lakṣmīnṛsiṃha Karāvalamba Stotraṃ
• Śāradā Bhujangaṃ
• Kanakadhāra Stotraṃ
• Bhavāni Aṣṭakaṃ
• Śiva Mānasa Pūja

List of teachers

Main article: List of teachers of Advaita Vedanta

Advaita Vedanta has had many teachers over the centuries in India and other countries.

See also

• Nondualism
• Jnana yoga, the yoga of knowledge
• Satsang, a sort of spiritual meeting
• Dvaita, an opposing philosophy that accepts duality
• Vishishtadvaita, an opposing philosophy that propounds "qualified nonduality"

An index of articles related to Advaita Vedanta can be found at List of Advaita Vedanta-related topics

References

• Madhukar, The Simplest Way, Editions India, USA & India 2006, ISBN 81-89658-04-2
• Madhukar, Erwachen in Freiheit, Lüchow Verlag, German, 2.Edition, Stuttgart 2004, ISBN 3-363-03054-1
• Mishra, M., Bhāratīya Darshan (भारतीय दर्शन), Kalā Prakāshan.
• Sinha, H. P., Bharatiya Darshan ki ruparekha (Features of Indian Philosophy), 1993, Motilal Benarasidas, Delhi–Varanasi.
• Swāmi Paramānanda Bhārati, Vedānta Prabodha (in Kannada), Jnānasamvardhini Granthakusuma, 2004
• Madhava Vidyaranya, Sankara-Digvijaya, translated by Swami Tapasyananda, Sri Ramakrishna Math, 2002, ISBN 81-7120-434-1. Purchase online at www.sriramakrishnamath.org
• Karl H. Potter (ed.), Advaita Vedanta up to Sankara and his Pupils: Encyclopedia of Indian Philosophies, vol. 3, Princeton University Press, Princeton, 1981.
• Karl H. Potter, Austin B. Creel and Edwin Gerow, Guide to Indian philosophy, G. K. Hall, Boston, 1988.
• Eliot Deutsch and J. A. B. van Buitenen, A source book of Advaita Vedanta, University Press of Hawaii, Honolulu, 1971.
• Eliot Deutsch, Advaita Vedanta: a philosophical reconstruction, East-West Center Press, Honolulu, 1969
• Raghunath D. Karmarkar, Sankara's Advaita, Karnatak University, Dharwar, 1966.
• S. G. Mudgal, Advaita of Sankara, a reappraisal: Impact of Buddhism and Samkhya on Sankara's thought, Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi,
• A. Ramamurti, Advaitic mysticism of Sankara, Visvabharati, Santiniketan, 1974.
• Kapil N. Tiwari, Dimensions of renunciation in Advaita Vedanta, Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi, 1977.
• Kokileswar Sastri, An introduction to Adwaita philosophy : a critical and systematic exposition of the Sankara school of Vedanta, Bharatiya Publishing House, Varanasi, 1979.
• A. J. Alston, A Samkara source-book, Shanti Sadan, London, 1980-1989.
• Satyapal Verma, Role of Reason in Sankara Vedanta, Parimal Publication, Delhi, 1992.
• Arvind Sharma, The philosophy of religion and Advaita Vedanta : a comparative study in religion and reason, Pennsylvania State University Press, 1995.
• M. K. Venkatarama Aiyar, Advaita Vedanta, according to Sankara, Asia Publishing House, New York, 1965.
• Sangam Lal Pandey, The Advaita view of God, Darshana Peeth, Allahabad, 1989.
• Rewati Raman Pandey, Scientific temper and Advaita Vedanta, Sureshonmesh Prakashan, Varanasi, 1991.
• Adya Prasad Mishra, The development and place of bhakti in Sankaran Vedanta, University of Allahabad, 1967.
• Natalia V. Isaeva, Shankara and Indian philosophy, SUNY, New York, 1993.
• V. Panoli, Upanishads in Sankara's own words : Isa, Kena, Katha, and Mandukya with the Karika of Gaudapada : with English translation, explanatory notes and footnotes, Mathrubhumi, Calicut, 1991-1994.
• Sriraman,B., & Benesch, W., "Consciousness and Science: An Advaita-Vedantic perspective on the Theology-Science dialogue." Theology and Science, vol.3, no.1, pp. 39-54, 2005

External links

• Open Directory - Society: Religion and Spirituality: Advaita Vedanta