Darshana #6 of 6 · c. 5th–2nd century BCE
वेदान्त
Vedanta Darshana
Vedānta
Founder: Maharshi Badarayana (Vyasa)
Root text: Brahma Sutras (ब्रह्मसूत्र)
Central thesis
"Uttara Mimamsa" — the "later inquiry" — reads the Upanishads, the concluding portion of the Veda (veda-anta = end of the Veda), as the source of liberating knowledge of brahman, the one absolute reality. The Self (atman) and brahman are not different; bondage is ignorance of this identity, liberation is its direct realization.
Summary
Vedanta is by far the most influential of the six darshanas — every living Hindu sampradaya, from Sringeri to ISKCON to Pejavar Math, is a Vedantic school. Its three foundational texts (prasthana-trayi) are the Upanishads, the Brahma Sutras of Badarayana, and the Bhagavad Gita; every Vedantic acharya must commentate on all three. From Badarayana's terse sutras three great sub-schools later emerged: Advaita (Shankara, 8th c.) — the Self and brahman are non-different and the world is mithya; Vishishtadvaita (Ramanuja, 11th c.) — brahman is qualified by sentient and insentient modes; Dvaita (Madhva, 13th c.) — the soul and brahman are eternally distinct. Despite their differences they share the Vedantic conviction that the Upanishads, not ritual, hold the final teaching of the Veda, and that direct knowledge of brahman is liberating.
Key concepts
- ●Brahman — the one infinite reality
- ●Atman = Brahman (Advaita); atman dependent on Brahman (Vishishtadvaita); atman distinct from Brahman (Dvaita)
- ●Prasthana-trayi — Upanishads, Brahma Sutras, Bhagavad Gita
- ●Avidya / maya — the obscuring power that produces world-appearance
- ●Jivanmukti — liberation while embodied
Accepted pramanas
Means of valid knowledge
- · Pratyaksha (perception)
- · Anumana (inference)
- · Upamana (comparison)
- · Shabda (verbal testimony, especially shruti)
- · Arthapatti (postulation)
- · Anupalabdhi (non-apprehension)
Liberation path
Moksha through brahma-jnana — direct, immediate, supersensible knowledge of brahman, attained by hearing (shravana), reflecting (manana), and meditating (nididhyasana) on the mahavakyas of the Upanishads under a qualified guru.
Key texts
- · Brahma Sutras of Badarayana
- · Principal Upanishads
- · Bhagavad Gita
- · Shankara's Bhashyas (Advaita)
- · Sri Bhashya of Ramanuja (Vishishtadvaita)
- · Anuvyakhyana of Madhva (Dvaita)
Modern relevance
Vedanta is the philosophical engine of contemporary Hindu thought — Vivekananda's global Vedanta movement, the Ramakrishna Mission, Chinmaya Mission, Arsha Vidya, ISKCON, and almost every contemporary acharya teach a Vedantic system. Modern consciousness studies and comparative philosophy continue to engage Advaita most prominently.