HOME
*





Works Of Adi Shankara
Adi Shankara, a Hindu philosopher of the Advaita Vedanta school, composed a number of commentarial works. Due to his later influence, a large body of works which are central to the Advaita Vedanta interpretation of the Prasthanatrayi—the canonical texts consisting of the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita and the Brahma Sutras are also attributed to him. While his own works mainly consist of commentaries, the later works summarize various doctrines of the Advaita Vedanta tradition, including doctrines diverging from Adi Shankara. Overview Methodology Shankara formulates the doctrine of Advaita Vedanta by validating his arguments on the basis of quotations from the Vedas and other Hindu scriptures. A large portion of his works is polemical in nature. He directs his polemics mostly against the Sankhya, Bauddha, Jaina, Vaisheshika and other non-vedantic Hindu philosophies. Authorship Many works thought to be of his authorship are debated and questioned as to their authorship toda ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Adi Shankara
Adi Shankara ("first Shankara," to distinguish him from other Shankaras)(8th cent. CE), also called Adi Shankaracharya ( sa, आदि शङ्कर, आदि शङ्कराचार्य, Ādi Śaṅkarācāryaḥ, lit=First Shankaracharya, ), was an Indian Vedic scholar and teacher (''acharya''), whose works present a harmonizing reading of the ''sastras'', with liberating knowledge of the self at its core, synthesizing the Advaita Vedanta teachings of his time. The title of Shankracharya, used by heads of the amnaya monasteries is derived from his name. Due to his later fame, over 300 texts are attributed to his name, including commentaries (''Bhāṣya''), introductory topical expositions (''Prakaraṇa grantha'') and poetry (''Stotra''). However most of these are likely to be by admirers or pretenders or scholars with an eponymous name.W Halbfass (1983), Studies in Kumarila and Sankara, Studien zur Indologie und Iranistik, Monographic 9, Reinbeck Works known ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Stotra
''Stotra'' (Sanskrit: स्तोत्र) is a Sanskrit word that means "ode, eulogy or a hymn of praise."Monier Williams, Monier Williams' Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Oxford University Press, Article on 'Stotra'' It is a literary genre of Indian religious texts designed to be melodically sung, in contrast to a ''shastra'' which is composed to be recited. A stotra can be a prayer, a description, or a conversation, but always with a poetic structure. It may be a simple poem expressing praise and personal devotion to a deity for example, or poems with embedded spiritual and philosophical doctrines. Many ''stotra'' hymns praise aspects of the divine, such as Devi, Shiva, or Vishnu. Relating to word "''stuti''", coming from the same Sanskrit root *''stu-'' ("to praise"), and basically both mean "praise". Notable stotras are ''Shiva Tandava Stotram'' in praise of Shiva and ''Rama Raksha Stotra'', a prayer for protection to Rama. Stotras are a type of popular devotional literatur ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Kena Upanishad
The Kena Upanishad () is a Vedic Sanskrit text classified as one of the primary or Mukhya Upanishads that is embedded inside the last section of the ''Talavakara Brahmanam'' of the Samaveda.Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanishads of the Veda, Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass, , pages 207-213 It is listed as number 2 in the Muktikā, the canon of the 108 Upanishads of Hinduism. The Kena Upanishad was probably composed sometime around the middle of the 1st millennium BCE. It has an unusual structure where the first 13 are verses composed as a metric poem, followed by 15 prose paragraphs of main text plus 6 prose paragraphs of epilogue. Paul Deussen suggests that the latter prose section of the main text is far more ancient than the poetic first section, and Kena Upanishad bridged the more ancient prose Upanishad era with the metric poetic era of Upanishads that followed. Kena Upanishad is notable in its discussion of Brahman with attributes and without attributes, and for being a treatise ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Katha Upanishad
The ''Katha Upanishad'' (Sanskrit: कठोपनिषद् or कठ उपनिषद्) (') is one of the ''mukhya'' (primary) Upanishads, embedded in the last eight short sections of the ' school of the Krishna Yajurveda.Paul Deussen. ''Sixty Upanishads of the Veda''. Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass. . pages 269-273 It is also known as ' Upanishad, and is listed as number 3 in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads. The Katha Upanishad consists of two chapters (''Adhyāyas''), each divided into three sections (''Vallis''). The first ''Adhyaya'' is considered to be of older origin than the second. The Upanishad is the legendary story of a little boy, Nachiketa – the son of Sage Vajasravasa, who meets Yama (the deity of death). Their conversation evolves to a discussion of the nature of man, knowledge, Ātman (Hinduism), Atman (Self) and moksha (liberation). The chronology of Katha Upanishad is unclear and contested, but belongs to the later verse Upanishads, dated to the 5 ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Shvetashvatara Upanishad
The ''Shvetashvatara Upanishad'' ( sa, श्वेताश्वतरोपनिषद् or or , IAST: ' or ') is an ancient Sanskrit text embedded in the Yajurveda. It is listed as number 14 in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads. The Upanishad contains 113 mantras or verses in six chapters.Robert Hume (1921)Shvetashvatara Upanishad The Thirteen Principal Upanishads, Oxford University Press, pages 394–411 with footnotes The Upanishad is one of the 33 Upanishads from Taittiriyas, and associated with the ''Shvetashvatara'' tradition within ''Karakas sakha'' of the Yajurveda. It is a part of the "black" "krishna" Yajurveda, with the term "black" implying "the un-arranged, motley collection" of content in Yajurveda, in contrast to the "white" (well arranged) Yajurveda where Brihadaranyaka Upanishad and Isha Upanishad are embedded. The chronology of Shvetashvatara Upanishad is contested, but generally accepted to be a late period Upanishadic composition.Stephen Phillips (200 ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Taittiriya Upanishad
The Taittirīya Upanishad (Devanagari: तैत्तिरीय उपनिषद्) is a Vedic era Sanskrit text, embedded as three chapters (''adhyāya'') of the Yajurveda. It is a ''mukhya'' (primary, principal) Upanishad, and likely composed about 6th century BC. The Taittirīya Upanishad is associated with the Taittirīya school of the Yajurveda, attributed to the pupils of sage Vaishampayana. It lists as number 7 in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads. The Taittirīya Upanishad is the seventh, eighth and ninth chapters of ''Taittirīya Āraṇyaka'', which are also called, respectively, the ''Śikṣāvallī'', the ''Ānandavallī'' and the ''Bhṛguvallī''. This Upanishad is classified as part of the "black" Yajurveda, with the term "black" implying "the un-arranged, motley collection" of verses in Yajurveda, in contrast to the "white" (well arranged) Yajurveda where ''Brihadaranyaka Upanishad'' and ''Isha Upanishad'' are embedded. Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanishads ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Isha Upanishad
The ''Isha Upanishad'' (Devanagari: ईशोपनिषद् IAST ') is one of the shortest Upanishads, embedded as the final chapter (''adhyāya'') of the Shukla Yajurveda. It is a ''Mukhya'' (primary, principal) Upanishad, and is known in two recensions, called Kanva (VSK) and Madhyandina (VSM). The Upanishad is a brief poem, consisting of 17 or 18 verses, depending on the recension. It is a key scripture of the Vedanta sub-schools, and an influential Śruti to diverse schools of Hinduism. It is the 40th chapter of Yajurveda. The name of the text derives from its incipit, ', "enveloped by the Lord", Ralph T. H. Griffith''The Texts of the White Yajurveda'' pages 304-308 or "hidden in the Lord (Self)".Max Muller, ''The Upanishads, The Sacred Books of the East'', Part 1, Oxford University Press, Reprinted by Routledge in 2013, , Vol. 1, pages 311-319 The text discusses the Atman (Self) theory of Hinduism, and is referenced by both Dvaita (dualism) and Advaita (non-dualism) ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Yajurveda
The ''Yajurveda'' ( sa, यजुर्वेद, ', from ' meaning "worship", and ''veda'' meaning "knowledge") is the Veda primarily of prose mantras for worship rituals.Michael Witzel (2003), "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in ''The Blackwell Companion to Hinduism'' (Editor: Gavin Flood), Blackwell, , pages 76-77 An ancient Vedic Sanskrit text, it is a compilation of ritual-offering formulas that were said by a priest while an individual performed ritual actions such as those before the yajna fire. Yajurveda is one of the four Vedas, and one of the scriptures of Hinduism. The exact century of Yajurveda's composition is unknown, and estimated by Witzel to be between 1200 and 800 BCE, contemporaneous with Samaveda and Atharvaveda. The Yajurveda is broadly grouped into two – the "black" or "dark" (''Krishna'') Yajurveda and the "white" or "bright" (''Shukla'') Yajurveda. The term "black" implies "the un-arranged, unclear, motley collection" of verses in Yajurveda, in contrast t ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Brihadaranyaka Upanishad
The ''Brihadaranyaka Upanishad'' ( sa, बृहदारण्यक उपनिषद्, ) is one of the Principal Upanishads and one of the first Upanishadic scriptures of Hinduism. A key scripture to various schools of Hinduism, the ''Brihadaranyaka Upanisad'' is tenth in the Muktikā or "canon of 108 Upanishads". The ''Brihadaranyaka Upanishad'' is estimated to have been composed about 7th-6th century BCE, excluding some parts estimated to have been composed after the ''Chandogya Upanishad''. The Sanskrit language text is contained within the ''Shatapatha Brahmana'', which is itself a part of the Shukla Yajur Veda. The ''Brihadaranyaka Upanishad'' is a treatise on Ātman (Self), includes passages on metaphysics, ethics and a yearning for knowledge that influenced various Indian religions, ancient and medieval scholars, and attracted secondary works such as those by Adi Shankara and Madhvacharya. Chronology The chronology of ''Brihadaranyaka Upanishad'', like other Upa ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Rigveda
The ''Rigveda'' or ''Rig Veda'' ( ', from ' "praise" and ' "knowledge") is an ancient Indian collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (''sūktas''). It is one of the four sacred canonical Hindu texts (''śruti'') known as the Vedas. Only one Shakha of the many survive today, namely the Śakalya Shakha. Much of the contents contained in the remaining Shakhas are now lost or are not available in the public forum. The ''Rigveda'' is the oldest known Vedic Sanskrit text. Its early layers are among the oldest extant texts in any Indo-European language. The sounds and texts of the ''Rigveda'' have been orally transmitted since the 2nd millennium BCE. Philological and linguistic evidence indicates that the bulk of the ''Rigveda'' Samhita was composed in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent (see) Rigvedic rivers), most likely between 1500 and 1000 BCE, although a wider approximation of 19001200 BCE has also been given. The text is layered, consisting of the ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Aitareya Upanishad
The Aitareya Upanishad (Sanskrit: ऐतरेय उपनिषद् IAST ') is a Mukhya Upanishad, associated with the Rigveda. It comprises the fourth, fifth and sixth chapters of the second book of Aitareya Aranyaka, which is one of the four layers of Rig vedic text. Aitareya Upanishad discusses three philosophical themes: first, that the world and man is the creation of the Atman (Universal Self); second, the theory that the ''Atman'' undergoes threefold birth; third, that Consciousness is the essence of ''Atman''.Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanishads of the Veda, Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass, , pages 13–20 Chronology According to a 1998 review by Patrick Olivelle and other scholars, the Aitareya Upanishad was likely composed in a pre-Buddhist period, possibly 6th to 5th century BCE. Discussion Aitareya Upanishad is a primary ancient Upanishad, and is listed as number 8 in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads. Considered one of the middle Upanishads, the date of composition ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Brahma Sutra
The ''Brahma Sūtras'' ( sa, ब्रह्मसूत्राणि) is a Sanskrit text, attributed to the sage bādarāyaṇa or sage Vyāsa, estimated to have been completed in its surviving form in approx. 400–450 CE,, Quote: "...we can take it that 400–450 is the period during which the ''Brahma Sūtras'' was compiled in its extant form." while the original version might be ancient and composed between 600 BCE and 200 BCE.James Lochtefeld, Brahman, The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. 1: A–M, Rosen Publishing, , p. 746. The text systematizes and summarizes the philosophical and spiritual ideas in the Upanishads.James Lochtefeld, Brahman, The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. 1: A–M, Rosen Publishing, , p. 124. The scholar Adi Shankara's interpretation of the Brahmasutra attempted to synthesize diverse and sometimes apparently conflicting teachings of the Upanishads by arguing, as John Koller states: "that Brahman and Atman are, in some respects, ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]