Shankara and Indian Philosophy
According to Advaita-Vedanta, God or Brahman is identical with the inner self (the Atman) of each person, while the rest of the world is nothing but objective illusion (maya). Shankara maintains that there are two primary levels of existence and knowledge: the higher knowledge that is Brahman itself, and the relative, limited knowledge, regarded as the very texture of the universe. Consequently, the task of a human being is to reach the absolute unity and the reality of Brahman--in other words, to reach the innermost self within his or her own being, discarding on the way all temporary characteristics and attributes.
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Contents
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Introduction
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1 |
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The Beginning of Vedanta A Historical Sketch
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19 |
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2 Predecessors of Sankara
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30 |
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Biography of Śańkara and His Main Works
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69 |
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Reliability of Attribution and Compositional Peculiarities
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91 |
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Pure Brahman as Consciousness Apophatic Theology and the Problem of Contradiction
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105 |
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2 Advaita and Jainism
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130 |
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Brahman as Being Cataphatic Theology and the Boldness of Heretics
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145 |
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2 Sankara and Mahayana Buddhist Schools
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172 |
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Brahman in Language and Ritual Freedom and Moral Duties
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199 |
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Advaita and its Closest Counterparts
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218 |
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Conclusion
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236 |
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2 Vedanta after Sankara
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240 |
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Common terms and phrases
according adept Advaitist ākāśa arguments ātman attributes avidya Bādarāyaṇa's Bhartṛhari Brah Brahman Brahmasūtra Buddhist causality century cognition Commentary on Brahmasutra concept Dasgupta devoid disciples doctrine entity essence essentially eternal existence foundation Gauḍapāda Hacker hagiographies heretical heterodox higher Brahman higher reality ideas identical Indian Philosophy injunctions inner interpretation Iśvara Jainas Jainism jiva Kārikā karma Kumārila later liberation logical Lokāyata Lokāyatikas Madras Mahāyāna Mandanamiśra Māṇḍūkya-kārikā manifested māyā means Mīmāmsā Nāgārjuna nature notion object ontological opinion opponents orthodox Padmapāda perception phenomenal polemics prakṛti pramāņas problem pure consciousness Pūrva-Mīmāmsā Rāmānuja regarded religious and philosophical ritual sacred scripture sacred texts Samkhya samsāra Sankara Sankara's Advaita Sankara's Commentary Sankara's system Sankara's teaching Sankara's words Sarva-darśana-siddhānta-sangraha Sarvāstivāda scholars schools sense similar Śiva skandhas soul śruti śruti sayings standpoint Sureśvara sūtra T.M.P. Mahadevan teacher tenets tion tradition treatise ultimate Upanisads Vedanta Vedantin Vedas Vedic Vide vijñāna Vijñānavāda Visiṣṭa-Advaita