The word “vedānta” is a combination of two words “veda” and “anta”. “anta” means ‘end’. From these individual words, the meaning of the term “vedānta” is derived. It has two definitions – (1) ‘end of the Vedas’, (2) ‘end goal of the Vedas’. The first definition ‘end of the Vedas’ refers to the Upanishads that literally comes towards the end of the Vedic literature and the second definition ‘end goal of the Vedas’ refers to the philosophy expounded by the Upanishads
The canonical texts of Vedānta are (1) Upanishads, (2) Brahma Sutra and (3) Bhagavad Gita. These three sacred texts are called “prasthāna traya” meaning ‘three courses’ or ‘three systems’ in the understanding of the self for liberation or salvation. The study of the vedānta is incomplete without the understanding of prasthāna traya.
The philosophy of the vedānta is the essence of Hinduism. It is the sublime knowledge. It is the perfect vehicle for an individual seeking spiritual enlightment and liberation from the cycle of birth and death. It leads to the path of immortality and bliss by destroying one’s ego and ignorance
The fascinating aspect of Vedānta is that it is all about just two characters – individual and Brahman. It exposes and explains the divine relationship between the knower and the known, the subject and the object, the finite and the infinite in intimate and intricate detail. The analogies given by the authors are apt and coherent that stimulates self analysis and introspection.
To understand Vedānta, one must acknowledge and appreciate the following
· ‘Individual’ is a human being, a live person. The Vedāntic texts do not discriminate individuals based on gender, race, caste, wealth, health, education, character, profession, religion or location. Individual can be male or female, black or white, rich or poor, Gandhian or terrorist, virgin or prostitute. The texts use the term ‘man’ that refers to humanity and not to the male community
· Brahman is the Absolute, All-Pervading, Infinite and Transcendental Being. See http://hinduism-as-i-understand.blogspot.com/2011/04/who-is-hindu-god.html
The relationship between the individual and Brahman is subject to interpretation by the reader. This has led to three major schools of Vedāntic thought – (1) Advaita or non-dualism by Shri Ādi Shankara who believes that individual and Brahman are one and the difference lies only in realizing it, (2) Dvaita or dualism by Madhvāchārya who believes that individual and Brahman are different like purusa (life) and prakrti (matter), (3) Vishishtadvaita or qualified non-dualism by Rāmānuja who believes that individual and Brahman are similar but not the same
The philosophy of the Vedānta can be summarized in its most simplistic form as below
- Brahman is the Absolute Supreme. It is addressed as “Paramātma” or Universal Soul or Universal Self
- Ishvara or Personal Godhead like Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva came from “hiranyagarbha” or ‘golden womb’ whose source is Paramātma
- The universe that encompasses life and matter is created by Brahma, sustained by Vishnu and destroyed by Shiva
- Human life is the outcome of the play of Brahman which is its very nature
- The “prana” or life force within us is called the “jivātma” or Individual Soul or Individual Self
- This jivātma is a manifestation of the Paramātma. The Upanishads state that this relationship is analogous to a drop of water in an ocean or a spark flying out from a fire. Hence, the nature of jivātma is the same as that of Paramātma which is sinless, immutable, infinite and immortal
- The mahāvakyas from the Upanishads elucidates the relationship between jivātma and Paramātma as below
Chandogya Upanishad: “tat tvam asi” ‘You are It (Brahman)’
Mandukya Upanishad: “ayam ātma brahma” ‘The Self (jivātma) is Brahman’
Aitareya Upanishad: “prajnanam brahma” ‘Consciousness is Brahman’
Brihadaranyaka Upanishad: “aham brahmāsmi” ‘I (Self) am Brahman’
- The jivātma is constrained within a physical body giving the individual an identity, life and ego. Body and soul are different though the latter is embodied in the former
- The sole purpose of existence of jivātma is to merge, yoke or unify with the Paramātma. As soul is within the individual, the purpose of the jivātma is also the purpose of the individual
- Bhagavad Gita states that until the self merges with the Supreme Self, the cycle of birth and death of the self and hence the individual is unavoidable
- As the self is only a manifestation of the Self, to merge with the Supreme Self, one’s individual self is to be realized and experienced
- There are multiple ways to realize one’s self.
- The way of the Upanishads is to lead a life of renunciation and ascetism. Emphasis is given to controlling the mind and the senses through concentration, meditation and yoga of the Absolute
- The way of the Bhagavad Gita is three-fold. (1) Bhakti Yoga – Individuals are to surrender themselves completely to the service of God like performing rituals, puja, chanting mantras, singing devotional songs, etc, (2) Karma Yoga – Individuals are to carry out their duty for the maintenance of this world with a spirit of detachment to fruits of their action and dedicate it to God. They perform work as a service and sacrifice to God without any desire for themselves, (3) Jnana Yoga – Individuals lead a life of introspection and analysis with a spirit of non-attachment to worldly pleasures. Meditation is their way of life
- The individual is free to choose the way for the self realization. Immaterial of the way chosen, the individual must be non-attached to desires yet live among them just like a lotus leaf in a pond that never gets wet because of the surrounding water.
- Every attempt made by an individual towards self realization is rewarding and no attempt is useless
- It might take several births to attain this realization but in every birth, the individual must make every effort to realize It
- The realization leads to destruction of the ego and bondage to earthly life giving extraordinary freedom and unimaginable joy. This state is called “avadhoota”. Some of the great sages who have attained this state are Narada, Yajnavalkkya, Vyasa and Dattatreya. Dattatreya in his poem ‘Avadhoota Gita’ gives a wonderful description of his feeling on the realization of his self.
- Rebirth is no longer possible for a person who has realized his true self. That individual soul merges with the Brahman and remains with It forever