Brahman
metaphysical concept, unchanging Ultimate Reality in Hinduism
In the Vedic and Hindu religions, Brahman (Sanskrit: ब्रह्मन्; IAST: Brahman) has a "variety of meanings", but in the Upanishads and later Indian philosophies it connotes 'That' from which all existence proceeds, and to which everything returns, the origin and cause of all that exists. In contemporary Hindu metaphysics it is the highest universal principle, the Ultimate reality of the universe.
Brahman is a concept found in the Vedas, and it is extensively discussed in the early Upanishads, with a variety of meanings. According to Gavin Flood, the concept of Brahman evolved and expanded from the power of sound, words, and rituals in Vedic times to the "deeper foundation of all phenomena," the "essence of the self (Atman, Self)," and the deeper "truth of a person beyond apparent difference." Other scholars such as Barbara Holdrege, Hananya Goodman, and Jan Gonda, contend that the earliest Vedic verses suggest that this ancient meaning was never the only meaning, and the concept evolved and expanded in ancient India.
In the Upanishads, the concept of Brahman evolves to encompass metaphysical, ontological, and soteriological themes. Brahman is described as the unchanging "primordial reality" that creates, sustains, and ultimately withdraws the universe within itself, the final element in a dialectical process which cannot be eliminated or annihilated. Brahman is also portrayed as the "divine being" or "Lord," which may manifest as either a distinct deity or as an immanent presence within all individuals. It represents the "knowledge" that leads to spiritual liberation, the "Self."
Brahman is discussed in Hindu texts in relation to the concept of Atman (Sanskrit: आत्मन्, 'Self'), personal, impersonal or Para Brahman, or in various combinations of these qualities depending on the philosophical school. In dualistic schools of Hinduism such as the theistic Dvaita Vedanta, Brahman is different from Atman (Self) in each being. In non-dual schools such as the Advaita Vedanta, the substance of Brahman is identical to the substance of Atman, is everywhere and inside each living being, and there is connected spiritual oneness in all existence.
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