| Titel: | Reconciling dualism and non-dualism: three arguments in Vijnanabhiksu's Bhedabheda Vedanta |
|---|---|
| Autor: | Nicholson, AJ |
| Mediengruppe: | journal article |
| Herausgeber: | --- |
| Zeitschrift: | Journal of Indian Philosophy |
| Jahr: | 2007 |
| Band: | 35 |
| Heft: | 4 |
| Seiten: | 371-403 |
| Sprache: | englisch |
| Abstract: | The late 16th century Indian philosopher Vijnanabhiksu is most well known today for his commentaries on Samkhya and Yoga texts. However, the majority of his extant corpus belongs to the tradition of Bhedabheda (Difference and Non-Difference) Vedanta. This article elucidates three Vedantic arguments from Vijnanabhiksu's voluminous commentary on the Brahma Sutra, entitled Vijnanamrtabhasya (Commentary on the Nectar of Knowledge). The first section of the article explores the meaning of bhedabheda, showing that in Vijnanabhiksu's understanding, "difference and non-difference" does not entail a denial of the principle of contradiction. The second shows how the relation between the individual soul (jrva) and Brahman can be understood as a relation of part and whole. The third section discusses Brahman as cause of the world, and Vijnanabhiksu's particular formulation of Brahman as "locus cause" (adhisthanakarana). Understanding these arguments enables us to appreciate how Vijnanabhiksu's Difference and Non-Difference Vedanta is a credible alternative to the Advaita Vedanta schools prevalent in northern India in the late medieval period, and how in his later works Vijnanabhiksu built upon this Difference and Non-Difference metaphysical framework to argue for the unity of Vedanta, Yoga, and Samkhya philosophies. |