The Vedānta Philosophy

• 'Vedānta' literally means 'the end of the Vedas.’

• The Upaniṣads were the last literary products of the Vedic period.
• The Upaniṣads may be regarded as the end of the Vedas also in the sense
that they mark the culmination of the Vedic speculation.
• 'Upaniṣad' means 'what destroys ignorance and gets man near to God,' or
'what gets man near to the teacher (upa-niṣad)’.
• Bādarāyaṇa's Brahmasūtra (also known variously as Vedānta sūtra,
Śānraka-sūtra or Śāriraka-mimāṁsā, Uttara mīmāṁsā) undertakes this
task
Multiple schools of Vedanta emerged between the
8th and 16th century under the guidance of highly
influential gurus.

Advaita Vedanta VisistadvaitaVe Dvaita Vedanta

danta
Sankara Madhva
8th-9th
Century Ramanuja 13th Century
12th Century

Shuddhadvaita
Dvaitädvaita
Vedanta
Vedanta
Vallabha
Nimbarka
15th and 16th
13th century
Century
• 5 important schools of Vedanta Systems are, the schools of Śaṅkara(Advaita Vedanta)
Rāmānuja, Madhva, Vallabha, Nimbārka, of which we will be discussing three schools.
Advaita Vedanta: According to Advaita Vedanta Brahman (Ultimate Self) is the only
Reality; the world is ultimately false; and the individual soul (Self) is non-different from
Brahman.
• Brahman and Atman or the Supreme Self are synonymous terms.

• The world is a creation of Mâyâ (Illusion/Ignorance/ Avidya)

• The individual selves on account of their inherent Avidyâ imagine themselves as different
from Brahman and mistake Brahman as this world of plurality, even as we mistake a rope
as a snake.

• In liberation, Avidyâ is destroyed by Knowledge

• Knowledge of Brahman, leads to eternal bliss, does not depend on the performance of any
act, for Brahman is already an accomplished fact.
Visistadvaita Vedanta:
• Acharya Ramanuja was belong to the group of Alvar saints.
• Rämänuja was born in 1017 and died in 1137. He thus enjoyed a sufficiently long life of
one hundred and twenty years.
• Rämänuja holds vishistadvaita Vedanta or non-dualism qualified by difference.
• To him The Absolute is an organic unity, an identity which is qualified by diversity. It is a
concrete WHOLE (vishista) which consists of the interrelated and inter-dependent
subordinate elements which arc called ‘vishesanas’ and the immanent and controlling spirit
which is called ‘vishesya
• God or the Absolute is this whole. He is the immanent inner controller, the Supreme Real
who holds together in unity the dependent matter and individual souls as His body.
• The real knowledge is identified with the highest bhakti or devotion which is obtained by
prapatti or selfsurrender and by constant remembrance of God as the only object of devotion
(dhruva smrtih) which remembrance is also called pure meditation (upasana) or dhyana or
nididhyasana (concentrated contemplation).
Dvaita Vedanta:
Madhvacharya was born in - 1197 and lived for seventy-nine years.
• He is also known as Anandatirtha or Pürnaprajna.
• God alone is independent.
• He possesses infinitely good qualities.
• Existence, knowledge and bliss constitute His essence.
• He is the creator, preserver and destroyer of this universe.
• He is the Lord of Karma.
• He is pleased only by bhakti.
• Laksmi is His consort. She is all-pervading and eternal like Him, but her qualities
are a little less than those of her Lord. She is ever-liberated (nityamukta) and
possesses a divine body. She is the Power of God.
Dvaitädvaita Vedanta:
• Acharya Nimbärka or Nimbäditya or Niyamänanda, a Telegu Brähmana whose
philosophy is called Dvaitädvaita or Bhedä-bheda
• Liberation is due to knowledge which is brought about by God’s grace which itself
is due to devotion.
• God, is the highest Brahman and who by His very nature is free from all defects
and is the abode of all good qualities, who is the ruler of this universe, is identified
with Krsna, Rädhä is His consort
• Souls and bpdies (matter) are His parts in the sense that they are His powers.
• He is both the efficient and the material cause of this universe.
• He is the efficient cause because as the Lord of Karma and as the inner ruler of the
souls, He brings about creation in order to enable the souls to reap the fruits of
their Karma.
Shuddhadvaita Vedanta:
• Acharya Vallabha , a Telegu Brahmana, was born in 1479.
• Brahman is the independent reality and is identified with Shrikrsna.
• His essence is Existence (sat,) Knowledge (chit) and Bliss (ananda).
• Souls and bodies (matter) are His real manifestations, they are His parts.
• He is smaller than the smallest and greater than the greatest. He is one as
well as many. It is by His will that He manifests Himself as matter and as
souls.
• Bhakti is defined as a firm and all-surpassing affection (sneha) for God with
a full sense of His Greatness and is the only means of salvation.
• God, pleased by devotion, takes the devotee within Himself.
Hindu Ethics
• Indian ethics is one of the great traditions of ethics in the world
historical philosophies.
• Indian ethical insights have been influenced the great minds.
• The highest good or the summunm bonum of Indian ethics is, it
centered around the Rta, the cosmic or natural order
• And the Rta is the telos, the creative purpose that underpins
human behavior.
• There is a pattern prescribed for social and moral order in Rta
• And this cosmic and moral order is maintained by human
beings by the Dharma (Obligations)
Important concepts of Indian Ethics
• Purusarthas: Dharma, Artha, Kama, Moksa
• The Purusharthas are the blueprint for human fulfillment. Working with them can
help you create a satisfyingly balanced, meaningful life at the deepest and most
holistic level.
• Right action is that which supports the practice of Dharma, Artha and Kama
together in order to get Moksha
• In order for an individual to realize their supreme Self, they need to identify the
reasons and objectives why they came into being on this earth plane, and fulfill
them.
• The ancient seers clearly articulated the objectives of humankind as
"Purusharthas" -- 'Purusha' means an individual or person, and 'Artha' means
meaning or objective or pursuit. They articulated four Purusharthas as:
Dharma : Righteousness, Duty , Artha : Wealth, Kama : Desire
Moksha : Liberation
 Purusarthas: Dharma, Artha, Kama, Moksa
• The Purusharthas are the blueprint for human fulfillment. Working
with them can help you create a satisfyingly balanced, meaningful
life at the deepest and most holistic level.
• Right action is that which supports the practice of Dharma, Artha
and Kama together in order to get Moksha , or singularly.
• In order for an individual to realize their supreme Self, they need to
identify the reasons and objectives why they came into being on
this earth plane, and fulfill them.
• The ancient seers clearly articulated the objectives of humankind as
"Purusharthas" -- 'Purusha' means an individual or person, and
'Artha' means meaning or objective or pursuit. They articulated four
Purusharthas as:
Dharma : Righteousness, Duty , Artha : Wealth, Kama : Desire
Moksha : Liberation
Dharma:
• Dharma is very central concept in the Indian Philosophy. Dharma
does not mean religion. Dharma is derived from the Sanskrit root
“Dhr” which means “to hold, absorb and to assimilate”
• ‘Dharma’ is particularly associated with the performance of ‘Vedic’
rituals by a group of people called ‘Brahmans’ (the highest caste of
people according to caste system).
• ‘Dharma’ is an ideology, which includes both ritual and moral
behavior.
• According Manu: Dharma includes “abstention from injuring
(creatures), veracity, abstention from unlawfully appropriating (the
goods of others)” and “purity” (Ref: Manu X.63, Shyam
Ranganathan, Ethics and the History of Indian philosophy, page: 6)
• Halbfass says that: “We can’t reduce the meaning of Dharma to one
general principle; nor is there one single translation ”
• Like, The Dharma of ice is to sooth and cool anything it comes in
contact with.
• Dharma is interpreted as a path of righteousness.
• Dharma not only a central concept in Hinduism, it is also a central
concept in Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism.
• Dharma is a Mode of Conduct.
• At a universal level ‘dharma’ refers to a cosmic, eternal principle
• At theoretical level ‘dharma’ deals with questions of right and
wrong the modes of conduct. (The instances of battle field in
Mahabharata) .
• The word ‘dharma’ is used in different senses in The Mahabharata,
like ‘Rajadharma’, ‘Prajadharma’, or ‘Mittradharma’. It means a
code of conduct when used in terms such as ‘Desidharma’,
‘Kuladharma’ Jatidharma’, ‘Varnadharma’ and ‘Asramadharma’ etc.
There are three types of ‘dharma’ in The Mahabharata.

• ‘sadharana -dharma’ or ‘sva-dharma’: it is the duties of an individual

in terms of social status
• ‘Varna -dharma’ : code of morality that every person is bound to do in
a social system.
• ‘Asrama dharma’: code of morality in different stages of individual
life
Artha: The second objective (next to dharma) is artha.
• The primary meaning of artha is material wealth or money.
• Secondary meaning of artha is purpose.
• Artha can be known as acquisition of materialistic goods,
money, power and the purpose for which they are acquired
• Aristotle says artha or economic well-being is the only means
that distinguishes man from other beings. He clearly explains
that happiness requires the addition of external goods.
• In Mahabharata, it is also states that without profit or wealth
neither virtue nor the object of desire can be won.
• It is also mentioned in mahabharata, dharama and kama are two
limbs of artha.
• Artha can be understood from, physical, mental and spiritual
need perspectives.
• Artha is a Primary necessity, it has the status of the
means but it should not be treated as ends.
• It is ethically imperative, one should peruse artha for
the achievement of highest good.
• Artha is a means to satisfy the psycho-physic needs of
humans.
• Hindu philosophy recommends that wealth should be
earned well through hard work and right means. The
earned wealth should not only be enjoyed but also
given as charity. A Hindu scripture
(Vishnudharmottara Purana) recommends 1/6 th of
earning to be given as charity
• Kama:
• The third objective of life is known as kama in
Sanskrit. It refers to fulfillment of sensual and
materialistic desires.
• Kama is a comprehensive term, which includes not
merely sex but all desires.
• Vatsayana explains Kama as enjoyment o appropriate
objects by 5 sense organs.
• All dharma sastras explain that Kama should be
regulated by dharma.
• Although kama is third in order in the final form of fulfillment,
the general form of desire will be there as a driving force. For
example, desire to learn and desire to earn money are
prerequisite that would lead to the stage of fulfillment. Hence
desires play a major role in our life.
• The desires not only drive an individual’s life but also drive the
collective life in the society.
• Desire can lead a person either to ethical or unethical actions.
• If kama comes as within six-fold enemies namely unethical
desire (kama), anger (krodha), greed (lobha), delusion (moha),
arrogance (mada) and jealousy (matsarya), then kama must be
rejected. However if kama comes as in four-fold objective
namely dharma (righteousness), artha (wealth), kama (ethical
desire) and moksha (self-perfection and bliss), then kama is to
be respected
• Moksha: The term moksha in Sanskrit refers to total freedom
from bondages that cause miseries and suffering.
• Moksha is called as Parama-purusartha
• Moksa is not a state of attainment but it is the realization of
one’s own intrinsic nature
• Moksha does not negate the other three purusarthas rather is a
fulfillment of all three.
• Moksha would also mean spiritual consciousness that will
elevate a human being to become free from dualities such as
miseries and pleasures, birth and death, etc
• The state of Moksha is a trans-ethical state.
Hindu Religion
• Hinduism is believed to be one of the oldest Religions.
• Hinduism is followed by a vast majority of Indian population (more than 80%).
• The followers of Hinduism, the Hindus, spread over to Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri
Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Burma, Indonesia, East and South Africa, the Caribbean
Islands, Guyana, Fiji, U.K., U.S.A. and Canada and in many other countries of the
globe to a lesser extent.
Major Concepts of Hinduism (Theological and Metaphysical)
Brahman and Atman
Dharma
Purusartha
Rins/ Rna (obligations)
Varna ashrama
Karma
Moksha
Literature of Hinduism
Vedas
Upavedas
Vedangas
Epics
Brahmanas
Aranyakas
Upanishads
 Basic Feature of Hinduism
• It is the oldest and forth largest religion of the world
• Hinduism believes in the authority of Vedas
• Hinduism is more flexible than rigid
• It believes in the supernatural force/God as the creator of the universe. It is the creator,
sustainer and destroyer of the universe
• It hold god is both immanent and transcendent
• Hinduism believes in pluralism
• Hinduism considers the world to be both real and unreal under the influence of Advanta
School
• Hinduism is under the notion that the world goes on a continuous series of creation,
destruction and sustenance.
• Hinduism believes in immortality of Soul, law of karma, and rebirth.
• It believes Ignorance is the cause of suffering
• It suggests three ways of getting the Moksha(Liberation): Jnana Marga, Karma Marga and
Bhakti Marga