Vageesh Express

November 2006 Edition

Vedic Wisdom

Advaita-I

Vedanta is a principal branch of Hindu philosophy. The word Vedanta is a tatpurusha compound of veda "knowledge" and anta "end, conclusion", translating to "the culmination of the Vedas". In this article we shall look at the Advaita school of vedanta.

Literally meaning, "non-dualism," Advaita is the name of the oldest extant school of vedanta. Advaita bases itself upon the Upanishads, the Brahma-sutras and the Bhagavad-Gita. Advaita asserts that the real, essential identity of the jiva, the individual self, is nothing other than brahman Itself. The teaching follows from upanishadic statements (mahAvAkyas) like tat tvam asi and aham brahmAsmi. It is in this cardinal doctrine that Advaita differs from all other schools of vedanta. The main tenets of Advaita are detailed in commentaries written by Sankaracarya, the famous philosopher who lived in the 7th - 8th centuries A.D.

There is no single founder of Advaita. Since the philosophy of Advaita is rooted in the upanishads, which are part of the eternal vedas, the Advaita tradition does not trace itself to a historical personality. However, Sankaracarya is venerated as the most important teacher of Advaita vedanta, as he wrote commentaries to the basic scriptural texts, and placed the living Advaita tradition on a firm footing. Before Sankaracarya's time, the tradition was passed down mainly through oral instruction. Even today, the traditional way to learn Advaita is to sit at the feet of an accomplished guru. Mere reading of the texts is insufficient.

The essential identity of the Atman and brahman is the most important tenet of Advaita. Brahman is the substratum on which all phenomena are experienced, and also the antaryAmin, the One Lord who dwells in all beings. The innermost Atman, the real Self, is the same as this antaryAmin, and identical to brahman. Liberation (moksha) consists in realizing this identity, not just as a matter of literal or intellectual understanding, but as something that is to be grasped by the individual in his/her own personal experience. Yogic practices help in the road towards such realization, because they help the seeker in practising control of the senses, and in directing the antahkaraNa (the 'internal organ' - consisting of the mind, intellect, awareness and I-ness) inwards. The practice of ashTAnga-yoga is recommended to seekers by teachers of Advaita. The seeker has to be equipped with requisite qualifications - qualities such as patience, forbearance, ability to focus one's concentration in an intense manner, an ability to discriminate between the Real and the non-Real, dispassion, and a desire for liberation. However, it is important to remember that moksha is not a result of mere ritualistic practice. Being identical to brahman, moksha always exists. Ritualistic practices help only to the extent of achieving citta-Suddhi, and in developing the above-mentioned qualities.

Advaita is a non-dual teaching. When asked why duality is perceived in this world, Advaita has a multi-pronged answer to the question. The world of multiplicity can be explained as due to mAyA, the power of creation wielded by the Creator, who is therefore also called the mAyin. From the point of view of the individual, the perception of duality/multiplicity is attributed to avidyA (ignorance) due to which the unity of brahman is not known, and multiplicity is seen instead. This is akin to the false perception of a snake in a rope. When the rope is known, the snake vanishes. Similarly, on brahman-realization, the world of multiplicity vanishes. This does not mean that the individual's ignorance creates the external world. However, the perception of multiplicity in the world, instead of the One brahman, is due to avidyA, i.e. ignorance. When avidyA is removed, the individual knows his own Self (Atman) to be brahman, so that there is no more world and paradoxically, no more individual. Here, the Self alone IS. Removal of avidyA is synonymous with brahman-realization, i.e. moksha.

We will look at more aspects of Advaita in the next article.

Reference: Wikipedia.com, www.vedanta.org, www.Advaita-vedanta.org

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