Advaita (non-dualism) is the philosophical understanding that ultimate reality is one undivided consciousness, Brahman, and that the apparent separation between self (Atman) and the divine is illusory. The individual soul is not separate from the universal Self—this recognition is the heart of liberation.
Advaita derives from Sanskrit: 'a' (not) + 'dvaita' (duality). Literally, it means 'non-duality' or 'without a second.' The term crystallized as a formal philosophical school through Adi Shankara (8th century CE), though the insight appears throughout the Upanishads.
Henosis / Theosis — The union of the soul with God, experienced as dissolution of the separate self—particularly in Pseudo-Dionysius and later Christian contemplatives. Not identity of substance, but a realization of non-separation.
Tawhid / Fanā — Tawhid is the unity of God; fanā is the annihilation of the individual ego in the Divine. While orthodox Sufism preserves servanthood, the experiential recognition of 'no god but God' mirrors the non-dual realization.
Wu (non-being) / Ziran (spontaneity) — The return to an undifferentiated source, where the illusion of separate self dissolves into the one Tao. Both traditions see multiplicity as appearance within an undivided whole.
Rigpa / Emptiness (Śūnyatā) — The recognition of mind's true nature as non-dual awareness; emptiness of inherent selfhood. Differs from Advaita in affirming phenomena as neither real nor unreal, but the non-dual ground is equally central.
A seeker in the Advaita tradition today might engage in self-inquiry (ātma-vichāra)—asking 'Who am I?' not as intellectual question but as a lived investigation that dissolves identification with body, mind and thought. Simultaneously, they recognize the world not as unreal but as Brahman appearing as multiplicity, which can free them from grasping and fear. This ripens into a natural resting in one's true nature as boundless consciousness.
Does Advaita mean the world is an illusion?
Advaita teaches that the world is mithyā (neither wholly real nor unreal)—real as an appearance, but unreal as a separate thing independent of Brahman. The illusion is in believing yourself separate from it, not in the world's existence.
Is Advaita Buddhism?
No. Advaita is a Hindu philosophical school rooted in the Upanishads and systematized by Shankara. While both may point to non-dual realization, they differ in metaphysics: Advaita posits Brahman as eternal consciousness; Buddhism teaches anātman (no permanent self) and emptiness.
Can everyone realize Advaita?
Advaita teaches that the Self is already your true nature—not something to gain or become. However, the recognition of this requires ripeness, earnestness, and grace. Traditional Advaita recognizes the role of preparation through ethics, knowledge and devotion.
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