| From The River Of Heaven |
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| Books By David Frawley |
| DHARMIC PHILOSOPHIES : THEORIES OF TRUTH |
| Vedanta Vedanta recognizes a cosmic Lord or Ishwara as the creator, sustainer and destroyer of the universe. Many Vedantic systems also consider Prakriti, primal Nature, to be Maya, a power of illusion which is ultimately unreal. The systems that teach Maya as illusion are non-dualist (advaita); they say that reality is One only, even God being ultimately unreal. There are also realistic forms of non-duality which see all things as manifestations of the One truth. Dualistic systems of Vedanta exist as well, being primarily theistic in nature. Yet even these accept non-duality as one aspect of truth. In this regard they are much more complex and sophisticated than the dualistic systems of Judeao-Christian and Islamic religion, who do not allow for any experience of monism or the identity of the individual soul with the transcendent Divine. Basic Vedantic Concepts: Atman---the inner or higher Self. There is the individual self (jivatman) and the supreme or absolute Self (paramatman). The two in essence are one just as the universal space is one with the space enclosed within a jar. Brahman----the absolute or supreme reality, the unborn, uncreate transcendent existence. Ishvara----the personal God or the power of Brahman in creation.
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