The Dignity and Unity of Atman and Brahman in Vedanta School- Hinduism Study
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Atman/Anatman in Buddhism
Åtman/Anåtman in Buddhism and Its Implication for the Wisdom Tradition by Nancy Reigle Does Christianity believe in reincarnation? Of course it does not. Yet, students of the Wisdom Tradition may seek to find evidence that early Christians did accept reincarnation. Similarly in Buddhism. Does Buddhism believe in the åtman, the permanent self? Certainly the Buddhist religion does not. Yet, there is evidence that the Buddha when teaching his basic doctrine of anåtman, no-self, only denied the abiding reality of the personal or empirical åtman, but not the universal or authentic åtman. The Wisdom Tradition known as Theosophy teaches the existence of “An Omnipresent, Eternal, Boundless, and Immu- table PRINCIPLE,” 1 often compared to the Hindu åtman, the universal “self,” while Buddhism with its doctrine of anåtman, “no-self,” is normally understood to deny any such universal principle. In regard to Buddhism, however, there have been several attempts to show that the Buddha did not deny the exist- ence of the authentic åtman, the self.2 Only one of these attempts seems to have been taken seriously by scholars3; namely, the work of Kamaleswar Bhattacharya. His book on this subject, written in French, L’Åtman-Brahman dans le Bouddhisme ancien, was published in Paris in 1973; and an English translation of this work, The Åtman-Brahman in Ancient Buddhism, was published in 2015.4 It is here that he set forth his arguments for the existence of the Upanißadic åtman in early Buddhism. This is the work that we will discuss. How must we understand -
The Need to Believe in Life After Death Questions About Islam?
“To the righteous soul will be said: O (thou) soul, in In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful (complete) rest and satisfaction! Come back to your Lord, well pleased (yourself), and well pleasing unto Him! Enter you, then, among my devotees! And enter you My “To the righteous soul will be said: O (thou) soul, in (complete) rest and satisfaction! Heaven!” [Al-Qur’an 89:27] Come back to your Lord, well pleased (yourself), and well pleasing unto Him! Enter you, then, among my devotees! And enter you My Heaven!” [Al-Qur'an 89: 27-28] In Islam, an individual's life after death or Him in the heavens or in the earth,but it is in a clear their Hereafter, is very closely shaped by Record.That He may reward those who believe and do their present life. Life after death begins with good works.For them are pardon and a rich provision. the resurrection of man, after which there will But those who strive against our revelations, come a moment when every human will be shaken as challenging (Us), theirs will be a painful doom of they are confronted with their intentions and wrath.” [Al-Qur’an: 34: 3-5] deeds, good and bad, and even by their failure to do good in this life. On the Day of Judgment the entire record of people from the age of puberty The need to believe in life after death will be presented before God. God will weigh Belief in life after death has always been part of the ath Lifeafter De everyone’s good and bad deeds according to His teachings of the Prophets and is an essential condition Questions about Islam? Mercy and His Justice, forgiving many sins and of being a Muslim.Whenever we are asked to do or would you like to: multiplying many good deeds. -
Abhinavagupta's Portrait of a Guru: Revelation and Religious Authority in Kashmir
Abhinavagupta's Portrait of a Guru: Revelation and Religious Authority in Kashmir The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citable link http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:39987948 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Other Posted Material, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#LAA Abhinavagupta’s Portrait of a Guru: Revelation and Religious Authority in Kashmir A dissertation presented by Benjamin Luke Williams to The Department of South Asian Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the subject of South Asian Studies Harvard University Cambridge, Massachusetts August 2017 © 2017 Benjamin Luke Williams All rights reserved. Dissertation Advisor: Parimal G. Patil Benjamin Luke Williams ABHINAVAGUPTA’S PORTRAIT OF GURU: REVELATION AND RELIGIOUS AUTHORITY IN KASHMIR ABSTRACT This dissertation aims to recover a model of religious authority that placed great importance upon individual gurus who were seen to be indispensable to the process of revelation. This person-centered style of religious authority is implicit in the teachings and identity of the scriptural sources of the Kulam!rga, a complex of traditions that developed out of more esoteric branches of tantric "aivism. For convenience sake, we name this model of religious authority a “Kaula idiom.” The Kaula idiom is contrasted with a highly influential notion of revelation as eternal and authorless, advanced by orthodox interpreters of the Veda, and other Indian traditions that invested the words of sages and seers with great authority. -
Annual Report 2016-17
Jeee|<ekeâ efjheesš& Annual Report 201201666---20120120177 केb6ीय ितबती अaययन िव िवcालय Central University of Tibetan Studies (Deemed University) Sarnath, Varanasi - 221007 www.cuts.ac.in Conference on Buddhist Pramana A Glance of Cultural Programme Contents Chapters Page Nos. 1. A Brief Profile of the University 3 2. Faculties and Academic Departments 9 3. Research Departments 45 4. Shantarakshita Library 64 5. Administration 79 6. Activities 89 Appendices 1. List of Convocations held and Honoris Causa Degrees Conferred on Eminent Persons by CUTS 103 2. List of Members of the CUTS Society 105 3. List of Members of the Board of Governors 107 4. List of Members of the Academic Council 109 5. List of Members of the Finance Committee 112 6. List of Members of the Planning and Monitoring Board 113 7. List of Members of the Publication Committee 114 Editorial Committee Chairman: Dr. Dharma Dutt Chaturvedi Associate Professor, Dean, Faculty of Shabdavidya, Department of Sanskrit, Department of Classical and Modern Languages Members: Shri R. K. Mishra Documentation Officer Shantarakshita Library Shri Tenzin Kunsel P. R. O. V.C. Office Member Secretary: Shri M.L. Singh Sr. Clerk (Admn. Section-I) [2] A BRIEF PROFILE OF THE UNIVERSITY 1. A BRIEF PROFILE OF THE UNIVERSITY The Central University of Tibetan Studies (CUTS) at Sarnath is one of its kind in the country. The University was established in 1967. The idea of the University was mooted in course of a dialogue between Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India and His Holiness the Dalai Lama with a view to educating the young Tibetan in exile and those from the Himalayan regions of India, who have religion, culture and language in common with Tibet. -
Heidegger and Indian Thinking: the Hermeneutic of a “Belonging-Together” of Negation and Affirmation
Comparative Philosophy Volume 6, No. 1 (2015): 111-128 Open Access / ISSN 2151-6014 www.comparativephilosophy.org HEIDEGGER AND INDIAN THINKING: THE HERMENEUTIC OF A “BELONGING-TOGETHER” OF NEGATION AND AFFIRMATION JAISON D. VALLOORAN ABSTRACT: According to Heidegger the questioning of Being is unique to western philosophical tradition, however we see that the hermeneutic of Being is explicit in inter- cultural context of thinking. Understanding Brahman as “one” and “the same” Śankara speaks together with Heidegger the same hermeneutic of ontological monism. Due to the reason that there is no explicit terminological equivalent of the word ‘Being’ in Śankara’s thinking, the hermeneutic of Śankara’s ontological understanding of Brahman and its distinction as “Saguna” and “Nirguna” are not sufficiently explored. In an inter-cultural ontological context, it is important not to insist on terminological equivalence, but to search for hermeneutic depth. Similarly Madhyamaka-Buddhism of Nāgārjuna describes the universe as totally devoid of reality, called ‘Śūnya’ or void, which is an expression of nihilism; it is comparable to Heidegger’s observation of the concealing of Being as “nihil”. The hermeneutic of these explicit ontological characters of Being, as concealment and un- concealment allow us to discover a sabotaging brotherhood, because the nihil and something are ontologically two essential sides of the same thinking. Keywords: Heidegger, Śankara, Nāgārjuna, Inter-cultural Ontology, Indian Philosophy 1. INTRODUCTION Philosophies give explanations of the world, of “what” of beings, and set norms for the right relationships between human beings. Therefore it is an exclusive property of mankind; still it is an intellectual engagement in an individual culture in its highest level. -
Kant's Theoretical Conception Of
KANT’S THEORETICAL CONCEPTION OF GOD Yaron Noam Hoffer Submitted to the faculty of the University Graduate School in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Philosophy, September 2017 Accepted by the Graduate Faculty, Indiana University, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Doctoral Committee _________________________________________ Allen W. Wood, Ph.D. (Chair) _________________________________________ Sandra L. Shapshay, Ph.D. _________________________________________ Timothy O'Connor, Ph.D. _________________________________________ Michel Chaouli, Ph.D 15 September, 2017 ii Copyright © 2017 Yaron Noam Hoffer iii To Mor, who let me make her ends mine and made my ends hers iv Acknowledgments God has never been an important part of my life, growing up in a secular environment. Ironically, only through Kant, the ‘all-destroyer’ of rational theology and champion of enlightenment, I developed an interest in God. I was drawn to Kant’s philosophy since the beginning of my undergraduate studies, thinking that he got something right in many topics, or at least introduced fruitful ways of dealing with them. Early in my Graduate studies I was struck by Kant’s moral argument justifying belief in God’s existence. While I can’t say I was convinced, it somehow resonated with my cautious but inextricable optimism. My appreciation for this argument led me to have a closer look at Kant’s discussion of rational theology and especially his pre-critical writings. From there it was a short step to rediscover early modern metaphysics in general and embark upon the current project. This journey could not have been completed without the intellectual, emotional, and material support I was very fortunate to receive from my teachers, colleagues, friends, and family. -
INTRODUCTION to Changdev Pasashti (1) Journey's
INTRODUCTION to Changdev Pasashti (1) Journey's end - 65 minutes to moksha (65 verses to Liberation) .…. the disciples are old, the guru is young So it is said to have been with the legendary guru Dakshinamurti (4). And so it was with Changdev (3) and Jnaneshwar (2). A lot of people are quite religious, in the sense that they follow the dictates of their particular form of organized religion, but most average people are not interested in real spiritual seeking and Enlightenment or Liberation. But for those who are, their lot is not easy. The life of the seeker is a difficult one. Although Liberation is said to be our natural, original state, the average man has drifted away from it, and though he may be (therefore) said to be having a natural tendency to regaining it, there are many obstacles to this. They may be preliminary ones like material interests and pursuits. This is not to say that such things are to be decried and that everyone should be exhorted to give up material interests and pick up the spiritual pursuit. This is the premise of the common religious preacher, not of the true (Enlightened) spiritual guru. The true guru simply leaves such people alone, and waits for their spiritual maturation. Meanwhile, he may indulge in some of their simple minded demands, giving them, as Sai Baba of Shirdi (5) remarked, what they want in the hope that they may "begin to want what he wants to give them." Or he may not. Such deemed miracles and such other trivia are not the guru's true purpose or message. -
An Understanding of Maya: the Philosophies of Sankara, Ramanuja and Madhva
An understanding of Maya: The philosophies of Sankara, Ramanuja and Madhva Department of Religion studies Theology University of Pretoria By: John Whitehead 12083802 Supervisor: Dr M Sukdaven 2019 Declaration Declaration of Plagiarism 1. I understand what plagiarism means and I am aware of the university’s policy in this regard. 2. I declare that this Dissertation is my own work. 3. I did not make use of another student’s previous work and I submit this as my own words. 4. I did not allow anyone to copy this work with the intention of presenting it as their own work. I, John Derrick Whitehead hereby declare that the following Dissertation is my own work and that I duly recognized and listed all sources for this study. Date: 3 December 2019 Student number: u12083802 __________________________ 2 Foreword I started my MTh and was unsure of a topic to cover. I knew that Hinduism was the religion I was interested in. Dr. Sukdaven suggested that I embark on the study of the concept of Maya. Although this concept provided a challenge for me and my faith, I wish to thank Dr. Sukdaven for giving me the opportunity to cover such a deep philosophical concept in Hinduism. This concept Maya is deeper than one expects and has broaden and enlightened my mind. Even though this was a difficult theme to cover it did however, give me a clearer understanding of how the world is seen in Hinduism. 3 List of Abbreviations AD Anno Domini BC Before Christ BCE Before Common Era BS Brahmasutra Upanishad BSB Brahmasutra Upanishad with commentary of Sankara BU Brhadaranyaka Upanishad with commentary of Sankara CE Common Era EW Emperical World GB Gitabhasya of Shankara GK Gaudapada Karikas Rg Rig Veda SBH Sribhasya of Ramanuja Svet. -
The Four Vedas
pdfMachine by Broadgun Software - a great PDF writer! - a great PDF creator! - http://www.pdfmachine.com http://www.broadgun.com The Four Vedas Rigveda contains mainly mantras in praise of various vedic deities and prayers to them. It is divided in two ways. 8 ashtakas comprising of 64 adhyayas ORversesverses 10 mandalas comprising of 85 anuvakas in total there are 1028 suktams made up of 10552 mantras. A suktam is a collection of mantras on a particular subject. Originally there were 21 branches of this veda, but now only to i.e.:- Bhashkala and Sakala are in existing. The sub texts of this veda are Brahmanas ( procedural instructions) - Kaushitaki, Sangrayana and Aithareya Aranyakas - Kaushitaki and Aithareya Upanishads - Kaushitaki and Aithareya Gruhya sutra - Asvalayana Yajurveda There are two schools of yajurveda. The shukla yajurveda and the krishna yajurveda. The main difference is that in shukla yajurveda we find mantras alone whereas krishna yajurveda is a mix of mantras and the relevant brahmana bhaga also. Yajurveda consists mainly of procedural mantras used in yajnas and it is in prose. The shukla yajurveda has got two main branches as of today. 1. Vajasaneyi madhyandiniya mainly found in north india 2. Kanva mostly found in Tamil Nadu. Vajasaneyi samhita consists of 303 anuvakas made up of 1975 kandikas classifiec into 40 chapters. Kanva samhita againa has got 40 chapters divided into 328 anuvakas comprising of 2086 kandikas. 1 The krishna yajurveda is made up of 7 kandas divided into 44 prasnas. There are 651 anuvakas made up of 2198 panchashatis (group of fifty words). -
9. Brahman, Separate from the Jagat
Chapter 9: Brahman, Separate from the Jagat Question 1: Why does a human being see only towards the external vishayas? Answer: Katha Upanishad states in 2.1.1 that Paramatma has carved out the indriyas only outwards and therefore human beings see only towards external vishayas. परािच खान यतणृ वयभूतमापरा पयत नातरामन .् Question 2: What is the meaning of Visheshana? What are the two types of Visheshanas of Brahman? Answer: That guna of an object which separates it from other objects of same jati (=category) is known as Visheshana. For example, the ‘blue color’ is guna of blue lotus. This blue color separates this blue lotus from all other lotuses (lotus is a jati). Therefore, blue color is a Visheshana. The hanging hide of a cow separates it from all four-legged animals. Thus, this hanging hide is a Visheshana of cow among the jati of four-legged animals. The two types of Visheshanas of Brahman which are mentioned in Shruti are as follows:- ● Bhava-roopa Visheshana (Those Visheshanas which have existence) ● Abhava-roopa Visheshana (Those Visheshanas which do not exist) Question 3: Describe the bhava-roopa Visheshanas of Brahman? Answer: Visheshana refers to that guna of object which separates it from all other objects of same jati. Now jati of human beings is same as that of Brahman. Here, by Brahman, Ishvara is meant who is the nimitta karan of jagat. Both human being as well as Brahman (=Ishvara) has jnana and hence both are of same jati. However, there is great difference between both of them and thus Brahman (=Ishvara) is separated due to the following bhava-roopa Visheshanas:- ● Human beings have limited power, but Brahman is omnipotent. -
Understanding the Super Excellence of Gaudiya Vaishnavism
Understanding the Super Excellence of Gaudiya Vaishnavism Understanding the Super Excellence of Gaudiya Vaishnavism. So that is the theme, understanding the super excellence of Gaudiya Vaishnavism. Srila Prabhupada ki jay! He was and he is Gaudiya Vaishnava, coming in the line of disciplic succession and we are getting connected. So we are making this presentation, I won’t say this is complete presentation but some introductory presentation to make the point that Gaudiya Vaishnavism is super excellent like, mattah parataram nanyat kincid asti dhananjaya mayi sarvam idam protam sutre mani-gana iva [Bg 7.7] Translation: O conqueror of wealth [Arjuna], there is no Truth superior to Me. Everything rests upon Me, as pearls are strung on a thread. Krishna said no one is equal to me and no one is superior to me. So Krishna is super excellent personality of godhead. So like that there are different features of Gaudiya Vaishnavism, so we have picked up a few items which are listed here. Achintya-Bheda-Abheda tattva or philosophy or the commentary on vedanta sutra is of Gaudiya Vaishnavas is super excellent, so that one. And Gaudiya sampradaya is super excellent and raganuga sadhana bhakti. And Goloka dhama, amongst all the dhamas and there are many of them, is the topmost realm, super excellent and that is Gaudiya Vaishnavas preference, they don’t settle on any other level they go all the way to the top, topmost abode, super excellent abode Goloka. Mellows of bhakti, Gaudiya Vaishnavas only settle for the topmost rasa, madhurya rasa. That is what Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu relished and shared. -
Buddhist Psychology
CHAPTER 1 Buddhist Psychology Andrew Olendzki THEORY AND PRACTICE ince the subject of Buddhist psychology is largely an artificial construction, Smixing as it does a product of ancient India with a Western movement hardly a century and a half old, it might be helpful to say how these terms are being used here. If we were to take the term psychology literally as referring to “the study of the psyche,” and if “psyche” is understood in its earliest sense of “soul,” then it would seem strange indeed to unite this enterprise with a tradition that is per- haps best known for its challenge to the very notion of a soul. But most dictio- naries offer a parallel definition of psychology, “the science of mind and behavior,” and this is a subject to which Buddhist thought can make a significant contribution. It is, after all, a universal subject, and I think many of the methods employed by the introspective traditions of ancient India for the investigation of mind and behavior would qualify as scientific. So my intention in using the label Buddhist Psychology is to bring some of the insights, observations, and experi- ence from the Buddhist tradition to bear on the human body, mind, emotions, and behavior patterns as we tend to view them today. In doing so we are going to find a fair amount of convergence with modern psychology, but also some intriguing diversity. The Buddhist tradition itself, of course, is vast and has many layers to it. Al- though there are some doctrines that can be considered universal to all Buddhist schools,1 there are such significant shifts in the use of language and in back- ground assumptions that it is usually helpful to speak from one particular per- spective at a time.