Swami Sarvapriyananda - What is Vedanta?

What Is Vedanta?

I have been speaking about Vedanta ever since I became a monk. But I had never spoken on What is Vedanta? When I was requested to speak on the topic recently, I asked myself this question repeatedly and got seven answers. Here I will share those seven answers to the question, What is Vedanta?

1. The Philosophy of Hinduism

Swami Vivekananda gave a talk on Vedanta at Harvard University on 25th March, 1896. He started with this very question, What is Vedanta? He said, Vedanta comprises all the various sects of Hinduism. This is true. Vedanta is the philosophy of all of Hinduism, broadly speaking. It may not appear so on the surface, but if one approaches a Hindu organization and looks beyond the rituals, temples and deities, one is likely to find there a branch of Vedanta.

The ISKCON is well known across the world, but not many know that it is a branch of Vedanta. The core philosophy of Gaudiya Vaishnavas (from which the ISKCON has emerged), is Achintya bheda abheda (meaning: Inconceivable Identity-in-difference) , a major school of Vedanta. Similarly, the Swami Narayan sect has magnificent temples located across the world, yet not many know that this is also a school of Vedanta. It was originally a branch of Vishishta Advaita (meaning: Qualified monism). They have recently developed their own unique school of Vedanta, but it is nevertheless, a school of Vedanta. The Vedanta Societies (the Ramakrishna Order of monks) also belong to a particular school of Vedanta. Our core philosophy is the Advaita Vedanta (meaning: Non-dual Vedanta), studied and understood in the light of Sri Ramakrishnas life and teachings.

So, Vedanta is at the heart of Hinduism. Orthodox Indian philosophy includes philosophies such as Nyaya, Vaishesika, Sankhya, Yoga, Purva Mimamsa and Uttara Mimamsa (Vedanta). If one looks at a textbook on Indian philosophy, one will find various chapters on different philosophies, and Vedanta will be one among them. However, this does not give an accurate picture of what happens on the ground. In practice, on inquiring about the background of any tradition of Hinduism, one will find that it is based on some school of Vedanta or the other. At present, the other schools of Hindu philosophy are more academic than practical. For example, if you ask scholars of the Nyaya school whether they are Naiyayika in practice, they will say no - maybe they are Vaishnavas. This means they follow one of the Bhakti schools of Vedanta. On the ground, you will find various schools of Vedanta underlying various sects of Hinduism. So this is the first answer we get when we consider what Vedanta is. It is the core philosophy of Hinduism, consisting of various schools which underlie the various Hindu sects.

2. Meaning of the word Vedanta

Let us consider what Vedanta means etymologically - the meaning of the word Vedanta. Veda refers to the ancient fundamental texts of Hinduism, and anta means the end. So the word Vedanta means the end of the Vedas, or in other words, the final teachings of the Vedas. According to Sanskrit scholars, anta does not literally mean the end here. It means Siddhanta , the final conclusion of the Vedas. Vedanta comprises the highest teachings of the Vedas or the highest teachings in Hinduism. The eminent philosopher, Professor Arindam Chakrabarti, gave a new meaning to the word Vedanta. He says that anta is the edge, like the edge of a razor. So Vedanta is the cutting edge of knowledge and not an ancient and obsolete philosophy. Veda literally means knowledge. According to this interpretation, the term Vedanta can justifiably have a new meaning the cutting edge of knowledge. A translation that tells us that Vedanta is most ancient and yet, most modern!

3. Textual foundation of Vedanta

Let us ask once again: what is Vedanta? The classical Vedanta text, Vedantasara , has been used for over 600 years to introduce novices to classical Advaita Vedanta. As a novice, I too studied Vedantasara under the guidance of masters in our main monastery in India. The first lesson we learnt and memorized about Vedanta was the definition of Vedanta - Vedanta nama Upanishad pramanam - Vedanta is the source of knowledge called the Upanishads. The traditional definition of Vedanta is this - the knowledge you get from the texts called the Upanishads is called Vedanta. In a secondary sense, the texts themselves are called Vedanta. In the primary sense, the spiritual knowledge that we get from the Upanishads is called Vedanta. Even Bhagavad Gita, the text that is most popularly associated with Hinduism, contains teachings from the Upanishads. The message that Sri Krishna gives Arjuna in the Bhagavad Gita is Upanishadic. If one studies the Upanishads, at times one can find almost exactly the same verses Sri Krishna teaches Arjuna. The Bhagavad Gita is the essence of the teachings of the Upanishads and it is considered a part of the canonical texts of Vedanta.

Another text, a less popular one, called the Brahma Sutras, was composed by the great sage Vyasa. These are very cryptic Sanskrit aphorisms which deal with the various philosophical questions arising from the Upanishads. The Upanishads are poetic and mystical and when one reads them, one is likely to have many questions. These questions are dealt with in a logical fashion in the Brahma Sutras. Vedanta, as a coherent philosophy, is woven out of the teachings of the Upanishads.

These three texts, the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita and the Brahma Sutras, are together called the triple foundation of Vedanta, or the Prasthana Traya . The Upanishads are called Shruti Prasthana because they come from the Vedas ( Shruti ). The Gita is called Smriti Prasthana as it forms part of the Mahabharata, and the Brahma Sutras are called Nyaya Prasthana because they are the logical foundation of Vedanta.

Also, these Brahma Sutras were the foundation for the various schools of Vedanta. Great spiritual masters and philosophers like Adi Shankaracharya and others who came after him, wrote commentaries explaining the Brahma Sutras as they are cryptic, obscure and difficult to understand. These Sanskrit commentaries became the foundations of the different schools of Vedanta. For example, Shankaracharyas commentary on the Brahma Sutras is the foundation for Advaita Vedanta, the non-dual Vedanta. Ramanujacharyas commentary on the Brahma Sutra, the Sri Bhashyam, is the foundation of qualified monism, Vishishta Advaita Vedanta. Madhvacharyas commentary on the Brahma Sutras is the foundation of dualistic Vedanta or Dvaita Vedanta. Nimbarkacharyas commentary is the foundation of Dvaita Advaita Vedanta. Vallabhacharyas commentary is the foundation of Shuddha Advaita Vedanta. In this way, the different schools of Vedanta are based on commentaries of the Brahma Sutras.

Once again answering the question of what Vedanta is, we find that
Vedanta comprises the Upanishads, the Brahma Sutras, the Bhagavad Gita as well as the commentaries which give rise to the various schools. This is the textual foundation of Vedanta.

4. What Vedanta is not

Let us ask once again: what is Vedanta? What we have discussed until now has just been the surface of Vedanta. Now we will enter the heart of Vedanta.

The different schools of Vedanta, described by Swami Tapasyananda as the Bhakti schools of Vedanta which comprises Vishishta advaita, Dvaita Advaita and Shuddha Advaita , are not so difficult to understand in principle. Each is a glorious tradition with extensive scriptures and inspiring traditions of worship and prayer, but in principle these are not difficult to grasp because they are all devotional schools. Bhakti (devotion to God) is the common and central feature of all these schools. The followers of these schools believe that God exists. They teach have faith in God, surrender to God, love and worship God, lead moral and ethical lives, and by the Lords grace, you will be rescued from samsara, suffering and death. This is the kind of religion that we are familiar with. It is practised all over the world; broadly speaking, it is not so different in spirit from, say, Christianity, Islam or Judaism. But here we will concentrate on the one school of Vedanta that is closest to my heart, the Advaita Vedanta or non-dual Vedanta, which is in fact unique and quite different from the rest.