Advaita Vedanta is one of the most influential schools of Hindu philosophy, founded by the 8th-century sage Adi Shankaracharya. The word 'Advaita' means 'not-two' — a declaration that ultimate reality is non-dual. There is no fundamental separation between the individual self (Atman) and the ground of all being (Brahman). What appears as multiplicity — the world of separate objects, people, and experiences — is, from the highest perspective, a single undivided awareness.
Shankara argued that the apparent world of multiplicity is not unreal in an absolute sense, but is rather a superimposition (adhyasa) upon the one reality — like mistaking a rope for a snake in dim light. The practice of Advaita Vedanta involves the systematic removal of these superimpositions through study of scripture (shravanam), reflection (mananam), and deep meditation (nididhyasanam).
Advaita Vedanta has had an enormous influence on Western philosophy and spirituality, particularly through figures like Arthur Schopenhauer, who called the Upanishads 'the consolation of my life,' and through the 20th-century teacher Ramana Maharshi, whose method of self-inquiry ('Who am I?') distilled Advaita into its simplest possible form.
What makes Advaita Vedanta so enduringly compelling is its radical simplicity: the liberation it points to is not something to be earned through years of effort but something to be recognized as already the case. The self that seeks liberation is the same self that is already free. The practice of Advaita is not the acquisition of a new state but the removal of the mistaken belief that one is anything other than the boundless awareness one has always been.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Advaita mean?
Advaita means 'not-two' in Sanskrit — it is the teaching that ultimate reality is non-dual, that the individual self and the ground of all being are one and the same.
Who founded Advaita Vedanta?
Advaita Vedanta was systematized by the 8th-century Indian philosopher Adi Shankaracharya, though its roots lie in the Upanishads themselves.