CHAPTER 1
SHANKARA’S CONCEPT OF BRAHMAN
The philosophical presuppositions on the ultimate reality are most clearly seen in the Advaita Vedanta. Even though there are differences of opinions among the philosophers regarding the absolute reality, most of them remain in conformation with a one without a second, which is infinite and all- pervasives. The differant philosophical system in India came up with their of an understanding of pure subjective essence which is beyond our sense-perception, and to which all divisions of existence owe their origin. The Rig Veda revels the most ancient findings of the absolute. In a portion of Rig Veda the possibility of an absolute Being is elaborated. The Vedic scholars, out of their intensive thrust to
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Here Shankara has another concept of Brahman, which is totally different from the idea of Nirguna Brahman. Shankara brought this idea by saying that, ‘for the sake of his bhaktas Brahman become Saguna. Since his pure form is incomprehensive by his people Brahman allow them to give the attributions to him, so that they may understand the edge of his supreme reality. This aspect of Brahman is the creative power, he is imminent Prem Lata says “ Brahman is both the efficient course of the world as well as the material cause. In other words not only he create the world but also he created it from himself. This creative power of Brahman is Isvara.” This Isvara or the Brahman with qualities is not relay different from the absolute formless Brahman. The Upanishad says ‘there are two forms of Brahman, the material and the immaterial, the mortal and immortal, the solid and the fluid, Sat (being) and tya (that), that is Sat-tya which means true’. Shankara, as we saw, describes as having a nature (Svarupa) of its own, prier to his emerging. In Mandukya- bhashya Shankara says, ‘Brahman can never be a void of nothingness. It always underlines the changes and sustains them. It is the sustaining ground of all changes. It must necessarily have a positive nature of its own.’ In his Atmabodha he says ‘the world is the substratum of the eternal all pervading Vishnu whose nature is existence and intelligence, as bracelets and other such ornaments are made of the same gold.’ Some scholars have the idea that the world always preexisted in Brahman and when Brahman manifested as Isvara the world came to in its present form. If this world did not exist in Brahman as seed form, it could never have been produced as we see today. This all things show that Isvara or God with form is only another aspect of Brahman. Although Shankara emphasizes the formless aspect of Brahman, his hymns and
In the chapter on Hinduism in Philip Novak’s book The World’s Wisdom the section titled “The Transmigration of the Soul” describes the Hindu concept of reincarnation, the wheel of life, and ultimately becoming one with god. The lines in this passage very concisely describe the Hindu concepts of Brahman, Atman, Samsara, Karma, Maya and Moksha (Molloy). I believe that these concepts are at the core of all of the expressions of the Hindu religion; which makes understanding this paragraph the key to having a basic understanding of the Hindu religion.
Over the course we have seen how the Absolute has been linked to every concept or idea we covered. The one that holds the most weight however is within the gods and goddesses of the Hinduism religion. Three deities in particular have appeared to reference the Absolute the most; Vishnu, Siva, and the Devi. These references to the Absolute have become recognizable through the readings of Kinsely’s, Flood’s, and Clooney’s books. In their works they talk about how each deity has thought to be the Absolute throughout the ancient times. However, in each of the readings there is some overlap in who is thought to be the Absolute. Most of these examples occur between Vishnu and Siva. There is evidence within the Hindu tradition that labels both of the gods as the Absolute, and makes use of the same ideas to prove their title. One example would be the notion of Vishnu being the sustainer of the cosmos, and Siva being the “Lord of Dance” who creates, destroys, and sustains the cosmos. We must ask ourselves if this is simply a coincidence, or if there is an underlying body of knowledge that helps us to understand the similarities between the two.
The word interbeing explains the concept of emptiness through the idea of changeable and interdependent existence. The prefix “inter-” defines the changeable and interdependent nature of things and the verb “to be or being” means existence. According to the Prajnaparamita Heart Sutra, “Form is emptiness, and emptiness is form.” Emptiness does not mean that things do not exist but rather it means that things cannot exist by themselves alone. Thich Nhat Hanh uses an interesting example of paper to explain changeable and interdependent existence of things. Paper cannot exist without the trees from which it is made. Trees cannot exist or grow without rainwater which comes from clouds. Every aspect of existence is interrelated to each other. Paper and trees, trees and rain, rain and clouds are all manifestations of interbeing with each other.
Dogmatism can easily be equated to reductionism because it takes one aspect of reality and uses it to represent the whole of reality. In this case, a dogmatist is one who assumes and proceeds upon the assumption that human reason can comprehend ultimate reality. Dogmatism manifests itself through rationalism, realism and transcendence. In rationalism, it is possible to determine from pure a priori principles the ultimate nature of God, soul and the cosmos. Dogmatism claims that knowledge arises independently of ex...
In this term paper I will be comparing and contrasting Buddhism and Hinduism. Comparing both Hinduism belief, sacred text and overall view of how the world SHOULD be. Hinduism and Buddhism are two of the most influential and complex religions around the world. Both religions have similar philosophies and originated in India before 500 B.C. Both are among the top five major religions being practiced in today’s world. Hinduism ranks as the third most popular organized religion and is much older than Buddhism. Buddhism is based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama, or Lord Buddha, who considered himself a Hindu before being called to his path and attaining enlightenment, and therefore given this fact, it follows that Buddhism share many similarities and some very distinct differences in certain doctrinal sacred texts, ideals, practices, and beliefs of Hinduism.
It is controversial if existence is a general class that can be categorized into existence in the mind and existence in reality or if there are multiple levels of existence. It is also controversial that there are only two categories of existence, if at all it can be categorized. Hence, for a supreme being, for which, as suggested by Thomas Aquinas, it is not very clear whether humans can perceive all of its qualities, a conclusion that God does not solely exists in the mind, should not lead to a conclusion that it exists in
In the history of concepts, there is no concern that Al-Ghazali’s figure emerges as one of the best Western thinkers. Considered as the prominent Sunni theologian that ever lived, Al-Ghazali’s polemic againstNeoplatonic thinkers, mainly Ibn Sina, dealt a fatal rage to philosophy within Islamic world. Written following his period of private study of philosophy, and completed in 1094 CE, Tahafut al-Falasifa carried the purpose of pursuing the analysis of reason that inspired his stint of cynicism, and was attempting to illustrate that reason is not self-reliant in the sphere of metaphysics and is incapable out of itself to construct an absolute world-view. Whereas, as Goldziher (1981) explains, Al-Ghazali uniquely held certain beliefs which he refuted in Tahafut, he wanted to demonstrate that reason on its own cannot establish that the world has the creator, two gods are unfeasible, God is not an entity or a body, and that he understand both himself and others, that the spirit is a self-resilient body. This paper will analyze Al-Ghazali’s argument on the eternity of the world, as found in his first areas of debate with philosophers and evaluated against Ibn Rushd’s answers.
ABSTRACT: In this essay I examine the relationship between Sartre's phenomenological description of the "self" as expressed in his early work (especially Being and Nothingness) and elements to be found in some approaches to Buddhism. The vast enormity of this task will be obvious to anyone who is aware of the numerous schools and traditions through which the religion of Buddhism has manifested itself. In order to be brief, I have decided to select specific aspects of what is commonly called the Theravadin tradition as being representative of Buddhist philosophy. By choosing to look primarily at the Theravadin tradition, I am by necessity ignoring a vast number of other Buddhist approaches. However, in my view, the Theravadin sect presents a consistent Buddhist philosophy which is representative of many of the major trends within Buddhism.
These ideas can be found in Christianity as well. In the Christian faith, it is believed that there is a perfect being that is eternal, unchanging, has absolute truth, and creates all that is seen in the universe, this being is one they call God.
... subtle and elusive. It can’t be named, held, seen, or heard, but it is the essence of it. It is part of us and everything around us. It is first and foremost life itself. Unfortunately, we do not recognize it unless we truly destroy of our ignorance. Daoism and Hinduism influenced the Dao and the Brahman in their own unique ways but the core remains the same – indescribable. The Dao is motion-like and entails a process thus called “The Way,” while the Brahman relates to the transcendent spirit. Perhaps each possesses its own cultural uniqueness originating from India and China but both are pointing to the fundamental nature of reality. The Dao and the Brahman are in nature, are natures; they are the life force, and the core of nature. In order to experience them, we must at least follow world-renowned martial artists, Bruce Lee’s advice: “Be like water, my friend.”
The fundamental core of Hindu metaphysics is that Atman is Brahman. Atman refers to the conscious core of one’s being, as well as other sentient beings, and it is eternal, pure spirit (Bresnan, p.54). Brahman is “the ultimate inner essence of all things
Avicenna explains that if the body is first formed, and then the soul enters it, then the body would have to be the efficient cause of the soul’s existence. As Avicenna explains, “But the body cannot be the soul’s efficient cause, for body, as such, does not act; it acts only through its faculties” (Avicenna 203). By this Avicenna is explaining that it is impossible to think of the body as forming, as a substance, and then waiting for another substance, the soul, to enter it. This, for Avicenna, shows the improbability of the soul existing prior to the formation of the body.
While examining different religious paths within Hinduism from the perspective of four patterns of transcendence (ancestral, cultural, mythical and experiential) it is interesting to see how each pattern found its dominance over four segments of Hinduism: Vedic sacrifice, the way of action, the way of devotion and the way of knowledge.
Hinduism believers think different than others. The followers believe there is one supreme absolute in the entire world. He would be known as Brahman. Although Hindus believe in Brahman being the only absolute, it does not promote the worship of just this deity. They actually believe that there are thousands of gods and goddesses of Hinduism that represent the aspects of Brahman. This means the faith of Hinduism is characterized by multiple of idols. The most known and important deities of Hinduism though are the Trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva - all being the creator, the preserver, and the destroyer. Not only to Hindus look at these three as important roles in their religion, but they also worship animals, trees, and spirits (Das).
In Hinduism there is one ultimate God, Brahman, who lives within each individual. Hinduism is a belief system that is followed to help one find Atman, which is your personal part of Brahman inside of you. There are 330 million God/Goddesses that people can choose...