Advaita Vedanta and the Ontological Argument

AI Art Midjourney of person standing in golden library

This essay investigates Western theology’s ontological argument for God’s existence, analyzes its shortcomings, and puts forward the thesis that Advaita Vedanta’s ontological argument based on phenomenology escapes from Kant’s famous criticism. As always, I am indebted to Swami Sarvapriyananda from the Ramakrishna Order for his lectures on Advaita Vedanta. Any failure to do justice to … Read more

From Physicalism to the Pure Consciousness of Vedanta

AI Midjourney art of abstract whirls of oil paint

This is an essay about how I went from the world of physicalism and thinking consciousness is a mere linguistic illusion to the sublime heights of Advaita Vedanta, which argues Consciousness is the ultimate ontological foundation of reality. First, let me state I am not a teacher of Vedanta. I am but a mere student … Read more

Vedanta, Metamodernism, and the Future of Western Spirituality

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Many students of the Western humanities are familiar with modernism and its historical response, postmodernism. But what comes after postmodernism? Some cultural theorists have proposed a synthesis of modernism and postmodernism that includes both but simultaneously transcends them. This transcendental-synthetic project is called metamodernism. In this essay, I will argue that the Hindu philosophy of … Read more

Advaita Vedanta and Sri Ramakrishna’s Divine Immanence

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Preliminary note: I want to admit at the start that I have the utmost respect for Swami Medhananda, and I consider him to be a vastly superior scholar in the domain Advaita Vedanta and Ramakrishna-Vivikenananda studies. Furthermore, in full disclosure, I have not finished reading his book Swami Vivekananda’s Vedantic Cosmopolitanism. Some might think this automatically … Read more

Advaita Vedanta: the One and the Many

bust statue of Plotinus

Why did the One become the Many? Any student of philosophy, East or West, knows this question to be perhaps the most fundamental of all questions. In my opinion, traditional Advaita Vedanta has the most eloquent, precise, and spiritually enlightening answer to this question of any other competing philosophical school. I do not proclaim to … Read more

What is Brahman in Advaita Vedanta?

Painting of the cosmos flowing into a human brain

What is Brahman in Advaita Vedanta? What is the Absolute? This short essay will attempt to answer this question in plain English, to the extent that is even possible given the inherent limitations of language when talking about this subject matter. I owe an infinite debt to the wisdom and erudition of Swami Sarvapriyananda for … Read more

Advaita Vedanta: Why You Are Not the Body

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“You are not the body, nor is the body yours; you are not the doer nor the enjoyer. You are Consciousness itself, the eternal Witness, and free. Go about happily.” ~ Ashtavakra Gita, Chap. 15, verse 4 In this statement is contained the essence of Advaita Vedanta. In this essay, I will defend the following … Read more

A Gesture Towards a Perennial Philosophical Idealism

Pebbles in a river

The fundamental and most basic thing we have knowledge of is that of our subjective experience, our point of view, and our perspective on the world. Every sight, every sound, every feeling, every thought, every emotion—all of these experiences are experienced from a particular subjective perspective. This subjective perspective is what philosophers mean by “inner … Read more

Soul or No-Soul? Advaita Vedanta and the Metaphysics of Self

Statue of eyeball

This essay is about Advaita Vedanta and Buddhism. Let me state at the outset that I am not an expert on either one, so any mistakes in understanding are entirely my own. According to my understanding, Advaita Vedanta states that (1) There is a True Self or Soul (The Atman) (2) This True Self is … Read more