Vedanta: The Predominant School of Hindu Philosophy
The philosophical system that emerged out of the Upanishads is called Vedanta, which in Sanskrit means “the end of the Vedas”—“end” not only as conclusion but also as culmination.
The Vedanta school asserts that the Upanishads reveal the truth about the fundamental questions of existence. The Upanishads are both profound and challenging and are open to a variety of interpretations. Following the composition of the early Upanishads, philosophy became a very important part of Hinduism. Predictably, there even arose a number of different schools within Vedanta. Each school of Vedanta sought to understand the precise nature of the relationships between Brahman, atman, and the world.The impact of Vedanta on the development of Hinduism cannot be overestimated. As different Hindu sects emerged, their distinctive understandings of Vedanta shaped their philosophical orientations. Of the many schools of Vedanta, the three most important are Advaita, Vishishta-Advaita, and Dvaita.
Advaita Vedanta
Known as Hinduism’s uncompromisingly monistic school of philosophy, Advaita (“Nondualist”) Vedanta teaches that the atman is identical to Brahman and denies any distinction whatsoever between Brahman and everything else. This school of thought grew directly out of the Upanishads but was further developed in the eighth century ce by Shankara, its most famous proponent. Shankara posited that the world is maya, “illusion.” Earlier in this chapter we noted that the Vedas present maya as the magical power the gods used to create this world. For Shankara, maya veils the mind, such that it does not discern the true nature of the self (atman). According to Shankara, it is this lack of discernment, or ignorance, manifesting as attachment and desire, that keeps one bound to the cycle of death and rebirth (samsara). When one uses wisdom and discernment, one can cut through ignorance and recognize the inherent unity of all things, including the oneness of Brahman and atman.
This in turn results in moksha and the complete dissolution of one’s sense of individual selfhood.Vishishta-Advaita Vedanta
Many of the sects that worship Vishnu, which we consider later in the section “Vaishnavism,” differ on the subtler aspects of the relationship between Brahman and atman. For Vaishnavas, Brahman is identified with Vishnu. The school of Vishishta-Advaita Vedanta, founded by the twelfth-century ce philosopher Ramanuja, declared that all is Brahman and that the material world and individual souls also are real. The world is not illusion (maya); rather, it is the body of God. All beings are a part of God, eternally connected to Vishnu but not the same as him.
We are more like cells in the divine body. Unlike Shankara, Ramanuja interpreted the ignorance that obscures true knowledge as forgetfulness—in particular, the devotee’s forgetfulness of our eternal relationship with Vishnu. In this manner, Ramanuja’s Vedanta marries philosophy to the devotional, sectarian traditions of Vaishnavism.
Dvaita Vedanta
The school of Dvaita (“Dualist”) Vedanta, founded by the thirteenth-century theologian Madhva, advocates a complete distinction between Brahman and atman. It posits that there are five acknowledged aspects of complete separateness or difference: between the atman and Brahman, between Brahman and matter, between the various souls, between the souls and matter, and between various forms of matter. This philosophical strain, too, is associated with the worship of Vishnu, particularly in his avatar as Krishna.