In Advaita Vedantaphilosophy Maya is the limited ,purely physical and mental reality in which our everyday consciousness gets entangled .It is a veiling of the existent true unitary self -the Cosmic Spirit also known as Brahman. On the battlefield of Kurukshetra Lord Krishna had advised Arjuna about Maya. The concept of Maya was expounded in the Hindu scriptures known as the Upanishads. The Brahman is the only truth and therefore Maya is not the truth .The two principle functions of Maya are -to cover up the Brahman and hide it from our mind .The other is to present the material world instead of Brahman. Just as this illusion gets destroyed when true knowledge of the rope is perceived, similarly, Maya gets destroyed for a person when they perceive Brahman with transcendental knowledge. Maya is the limited, purely physical and mental reality in Advaita Vedanta philosophy. The concept of Maya was introduced by Adi Sankaracharya. Maya is true but it is not the ultimate reality. Maya causes the material world to be visible; it is true in itself but not true when compared to the Brahman. Maya cannot be considered false. The two major functions of Maya - one is to veil Brahman and conceal it from one's consciousness; the other is to present the material world and the veil of duality. Maya can get destroyed for a person when he perceives Brahman with transcendental information. |