Vedanta as we discuss here is also known as Advaita Vedanta.

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This is a philosophy that originated over multiple centuries in ancient India. It can be traced back to as far as Indian civilization goes which is perhaps the only continuously living and one of the oldest civilizations in the world. Vedanta philosophy forms the foundations of various major religions that originated in India like Hinduism (and later Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism etc).

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Advaita is a Sanskrit* word meaning ‘a-dvaita’ or ‘non-dual’ or in simple terms ‘one-without-a-second’.

Vedanta is a Sanskrit word meaning ‘veda-anta’   or   ‘end of vedas’   or in simple terms  ‘the culmination of veda’.

Veda literally means 'Knowledge' in Sanskrit. And the holy scriptures of ancient India were thus synonymously called ‘Veda‘**.

So literally, Vedanta means the culmination of knowledge or highest type of knowledge.

Thus, taken together the term ‘Advaita Vedanta’ here refers to the philosophy originating in ancient India, which preaches the highest type of knowledge. The foremost preceptor of Advaita Vedanta philosophy was Sri Adi Sankaracharya who appeared in 7th century AD in India.

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So what is this highest knowledge (vedanta)?

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Per the Advaita philosophy, the knowledge referred to here is the knowledge of the Supreme self, the non-dual consciousness that pervades everything and everyone in the Universe, the one that cannot be described in words but which is the Absolute. This consciousness is also called ‘God‘ for lack of a better word.

Note that Vedanta thus asserts that by understanding God, all other knowledge is automatically understood, hence the phrase ‘end of all knowledge’ (veda+anta). That is, beyond ‘this’ knowledge (of God) there is no other knowledge left to know. The important thing to note though is that this knowledge itself is Infinite. So in a way we can try to go as high as possible in this quest but there is no end; and as we do so, we ultimately become united and ‘one’ with this knowledge – we lose ourselves to it and merge with it..This is the basis of the impersonal spiritual philosophy that is at the core of Advaita Vedanta.

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The fact that this knowledge is ‘Advaita’ or ‘one without a second’ means that the ‘knowledge’ of God is unique experience. That whatever path you take, whatever faith you practice, the God you reach is the One and the same. There are no ‘two’, ‘three’ or multiple Gods.

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Thus you see Advaita Vedanta actually asserts:

• God is One. You can take any path or faith to reach God but you will always and eventually reach the same One God.

• God knowledge is the Highest Knowledge. This knowledge and Understanding of God is the highest type of knowledge anyone can attain. Beyond this there is no other.

Here are two other terms that we frequently find in Vedanta literature.

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Brahman – The Supreme consciousness that pervades the entire Universe – the visible or external Universe (matter, living beings, non living entities, planets, moons, stars, galaxies etc) and the invisible or internal Universe (the mind and its imagination).  This ‘consciousness’ is the inherent reality or the ‘soul’ or the ‘spirit’ of the entire Universe. And since the Universe is endless, Brahman is thus Infinite. It is not limited by space, time, laws of nature etc. Its beyond all that.

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Note: The Brahman is not simply an inert collection of matter; rather it is matter AND its pervading consciousness. Brahman is conscious. It perceives, it responds, it Lives..it Experiences.

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Atman – The individual consciousness (or soul of an individual) that is the inherent reality of each individual. Qualitatively, it is the same as Brahman but quantitatively it is in a finite form. It also is not limited by space, time, laws of nature etc. It is beyond all that. Both Brahman and Atman are eternal.

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To understand this concept better, lets take an example and think of Brahman as an Ocean. And the Atman as a drop of water from that Ocean. It does not matter which part or shore of that ocean you take a drop out of, it has the same properties as any other drop from any other part of the ocean. The same chemical physical material properties the only difference is in the amount or magnitude.

The idea is that each individual takes rise (like a drop of water from ocean caused by crashing of waves on the shore),  assumes a body, lives for a while, gathers experiences and then eventually merges back in the ocean (like a drop that eventually falls back into the ocean and merges with it). Each such individual drop is the lifetime of a soul in a physical body to gather experience and grow in knowledge.

This here is the central idea of Vedanta, that the individual Atman eventually Unites back to its primal source - the infinite Brahman and thus the term 'Impersonal' that is generally used to describe Advaita Vedanta.

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For further reading on Vedanta philosophy visit here.

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Additionally, there is more about the essential tenets of Vedanta here.

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Notes:

*Sanskrit the classical language of ancient India. It forms the root language of most contemporary languages spoken in the Indian subcontinent. Further reading on Sanskrit here.

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**Veda (or plural Vedas) were originally spiritual revelations that mystics discovered through their spiritual practices (yoga, meditation, contemplations, concentration of mind) and passed from one generation to next via oral traditions. They were later compiled into four major written texts or Vedas that form the foundational scriptures of Hinduism. Here it should be noted that each of the Vedas were divided into multiple sections, the last sections which summarized the knowledge of the Veda were known as Upanishads. Thus Vedanta also means the ‘end of Vedas’ or ‘Upanishads’.

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Upanishad itself is a Sanskrit term meaning ‘sitting near’ which refers to the ancient traditions of Teachers and their disciples assembled in a group setting (or sitting together) to discuss spiritual subjects. Their discussions and the knowledge gathered from their discussions are documented as the Upanishads or Vedanta (end of Vedas).

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