Brahma Sutras

The Brahma Sutra, also called the Vedanta Sutra, one of Hinduism to the writings of the orthodox Brahmanical tradition.

In order to detect and can bring in a systematic, philosophical context, the relevant passages from the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita and other scriptures, a guide in strict verse form ( Sutra ) was created. He closed the scattered individual utterances of the texts into a single system. Such a guide is available in the Brahma - sutras, as the authors of the way Badarayana applies. Indian tradition identifies him with Vyasa, the mythical author of the epic Mahabharata. The time of origin of the Brahma Sutra is unclear. Since in the factory but already the teachings spätbuddhistischer systems are criticized, it may not be incurred prior to the first centuries after the beginning of our era in its present form. Perhaps there was an older literature that has not been preserved.

Form

The Brahma Sutra consists of 555 aphorisms that are arranged in four chapters of four sections. The aphorisms usually consist of a few words that remain incomprehensible without a comment or a teacher. Apparently, it was the intention of the author to give the students of the Secret Doctrine with keywords a reminder. For this reason, ruled over the true doctrine Badarayanas and the sense of individual sutras already in ancient times in India ambiguity and there were various comments written about the enigmatic, yet highly regarded work.

Content

The Brahma Sutra leads to the views of a larger number of masters, representing completely different points of view on important points. It seems that about different theories about the relationship of the individual soul existed as of the universal spirit of Badarayana and an attempt was made to establish a doctrine that included the following key points:

The view that Brahman is the material cause of the world is converted in later comments as meaning that all plurality is an apparent manifestation of an otherwise unchanging being. This idea of ​​the " non-duality ", Advaita, was first mentioned by the philosopher Gaudapada and his disciple Govinda.

Outstanding representatives of this doctrine is one of the most important philosophers of Hinduism, Shankara (probably 788-820 ), a disciple of Govinda. In his system of Advaita Vedanta ( non-duality ), he comes from an all- a spirit which " magic " Maya appears as a result of the multiplicity. In his great commentary on the Brahma - Sutra Shankara tries to interpret all posts in this sense. This theory Shankara of the absolute non-duality or " maya- vada " (Doctrine of the world illusion ) practiced up to the present from a great influence on the development of Indian philosophy.