Vedanta can be put as: ![]() b) Vishishta Advaita or qualified monism of Ramanuja: Ramanuja is the founder of Vishishta-Advaita Vedanta. This is a philosophy of religion; and therefore it gives a synthetic view of the spiritual experiences of God or Brahman. It affirms the Upanishadic truth by realizing Brahman everything else is realized. Heavily depending upon theory of Karma, this philosophy applies the law of cause and effect to moral experiences. Sub-schools of Vedanta: Advaita: This is one of the dominant sub-schools of the Vedanta theory. Advaita literally means non-dualism and is based on the Upanishads, Brahma Sutra and Bhagavad Gita. The word "Advaita" essentially refers to the identity of the Self (Atman) and the Whole (Brahman). Ramanuja's Visishtadvaita: This is a non-dualistic sub-school of Vedanta. VishishtAdvaita is characterised by multiplicity. Ramanuja, the founder, maintained that God himself is composed of parts; individual souls and physical world comprise the body of God. Ramanuja unified a personal theist god with the single universal god of monism. This unification made the system popular among the common folk. Ramanuja proposed that the Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, and Brahma Sutras are to be interpreted in way that shows this unity in diversity. ![]() Dvaitadvaita: The originator of this philosophy was Nimbarka, a 13th Century Vaishnava Philosopher. He believed in three categories of existence which are similar to Vishisht Advaita. These are the Chit, Achit and Isvara. Boht Chit and Achit have attributes (Guna) and capacities (Swabhaava), which are different from those of Isvara, who is the God, is independent and exists all by himself. Chit and Achit, both depend on Isvara. Therefore Isvara has independent existence and Chit and Achit have a dependent existence. ![]() Eight disciples of Vallabhacharya are called the ashta-chaap (eight reprints). Bhakti is the only path to obtain this bliss of Lord Krishna. Pushti Bhakti is recommended in this age and this path is called the 'pushti maarg'. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's Achintya Bheda Abheda: Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486-1534), was a devotee of Lord Krishna. He was an ascetic Vaishnava monk and social reformer in 16th century Bengal. He proposed a synthesis between the monist and dualist philosophies by stating that the soul is both distinct and non-distinct from God. He identified this soul with Lord Krishna. He said that this philosophy maybe experienced through a process of loving devotion. A Vedantist adopts the cosmogony of the Sankhyas in its main features. |
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Vedanta Philosophy