| God and the
individual soul are kept sharply distinct with an infinite gap between them. About the
first aspect, all schools of interpretation-Dwaita, Adwaita and Visishmadwaita-agree. In
fact, no religion is possible without three postulates - the existence of God, the
immortality of the soul, and freedom of the will; and these are insisted on repeatedly in
Vedanta which conveys also the assurance of success to the sincere seeker. Questioned by Arjuna about the fate of the seeker who
fails-"whether losing both worlds he is not lost like a rag of a cloud in the
infinite sky"-Sri Krishna assures him that the seeker after good never comes to
grief, but goes on improving in efficiency from birth to birth till finally he reaches his
goal.
In fact, the Vedanta doctrine, though continuous, can for
purposes of clear understanding be regarded in two aspects. The first is that of the
evolution of the soul when it moves in maaya till it reaches the stage of eligibility for
Jnaana which alone results in emancipation. The second aspect is the nature of
emancipation itself. |
