Shankara and Indian PhilosophyAccording to Advaita-Vedanta, God or Brahman is identical with the inner self (the Atman) of each person, while the rest of the world is nothing but objective illusion (maya). Shankara maintains that there are two primary levels of existence and knowledge: the higher knowledge that is Brahman itself, and the relative, limited knowledge, regarded as the very texture of the universe. Consequently, the task of a human being is to reach the absolute unity and the reality of Brahman in other words, to reach the innermost self within his or her own being, discarding on the way all temporary characteristics and attributes. |
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according adept Advaitist ākāśa arguments ātman attributes avidyā Bhagavadgītā Bhartṛhari Brah Brahman Buddhist causality century cognition Commentary on Brahmasūtra Commentary on Brhadāraṇyakopaniṣad concept Dasgupta devoid disciples doctrine entity essence essentially eternal existence foundation Gaudapāda Hacker hagiographies heretical higher Brahman higher reality ideas identical Indian Philosophy injunctions inner interpretation Iśvara Jainas Jainism jīva Kārikā karma Kumārila later liberation logical Lokāyata Lokāyatikas Madras Mahāyāna Mandanamiśra manifested māyā means Mimāmsā Nāgārjuna nature notion object ontological opinion opponents orthodox Padmapāda perception phenomenal polemics prakrti pramāņas problem pure consciousness Pūrva-Mimāmsā Rāmānuja regarded religious and philosophical ritual sacred scripture sacred texts Samkhya samsāra Sankara Śankara's Advaita Sankara's Commentary Sankara's teaching Sankara's words Sarva-darśana-siddhānta-sangraha Sarvāstivāda scholars schools sense similar Śiva skandhas soul śruti śruti sayings standpoint Śūnyavāda Sureśvara sūtra T.M.P. Mahadevan teacher tenets tion tradition treatise ultimate Upadeśasāhasri Upaniṣads Vedanta Vedantin Vedas Vedic Vide vijñāna Vijñānavāda