Unit 1: Advaita Vedanta of Sankara

1. Brahman: The Ultimate Reality

For Sankara, Brahman is the only truth. He distinguishes between two aspects of Brahman to explain how the One appears as many:

• Nirguna Brahman: The Higher Brahman. It is without attributes, indeterminate, and beyond thought. It is Sat-Chit-Ananda (Being-Consciousness-Bliss).
• Saguna Brahman (Ishvara): The Lower Brahman. When Brahman is viewed through the lens of Maya, it appears as a personal God, the creator of the universe.

2. Maya: The Principle of Illusion

Maya is the mysterious power that hides the truth and projects the false. It has two functions:

1. Avarana: It conceals the true nature of Brahman.
2. Vikshepa: It projects the world of multiplicity upon Brahman.

3. Atman (The Self)

Sankara argues that the individual self (Jiva) is limited by Upadhis (limiting adjuncts like the body, mind, and senses). Once these are removed through knowledge, the Jiva realizes it is Atman, which is identical to Brahman.

Adhyasa (Superimposition): Just as we mistake a rope for a snake in the dark, we mistake the material world/ego for the true Self due to ignorance (Avidya).

4. The Three Levels of Reality (Satta-traiya)

Sankara provides a unique ontological hierarchy to explain our experience:

1. Pratibhasika Satta: Apparent reality (Dreams, illusions). Subsided by waking experience.
2. Vyavaharika Satta: Empirical/Practical reality (The everyday world). Valid until one achieves Brahma-jnana.
3. Paramarthika Satta: Ultimate reality (Brahman). The only level that is never contradicted.

5. Liberation (Moksha)

Liberation is not the "attainment" of something new, but the "removal" of ignorance. Sankara emphasizes Jnana Yoga (Path of Knowledge) over Karma (Action) or Bhakti (Devotion).

• Jivanmukti: Liberation while still alive. The body continues to exist due to Prarabdha Karma, but the soul is free from the cycle of birth and death.