Bhedābheda refers to a tradition in Vedānta, which teaches that the individual self ( Jiva) is both different and not different from Brahman (Ultimate Reality).
Etymology
Bhedābheda (
Devanagari: भेदाभेद) is a Sanskrit word meaning "difference and
non-difference".
History
Bhedabheda refers to a tradition of scholars who share the view that the individual soul and Brahman are simultaneously distinct and non-distinct.
It was primarily developed in the 7th Century CE, with key contributions from Bhāskara and Nimbarka.
Bhāskara, who was either
Shankaracharya contemporary or lived shortly after Shankara, was the principal author.
Under this overarching tradition, there are specific schools.
Philosophy
There are multiple ways that difference and non-difference is interpreted in Bhedābheda traditions. Bhaskara and
Nimbarkacharya mark two ends on the spectrum in this tradition. Bhaskara believes that the non-difference aspect is more real because he believes that Brahman is in its natural state without difference. Nimbarka believes that Brahman's essential nature includes equally real states of difference and non-difference.
Epistemology
Of the main sources of knowledge,
śāstra is taken as the ultimate source.
According to Bhaskara, liberation can only be achieved after death.
Difference from Advaita Interpretations
The philosopher
Vijnanabhiksu took the Bhedabheda philosophy to be superior to other interpretations as it could make sense of seeming contradictions in the Vedas. He points out that Advaita interpretations fall short because they only prioritize statements that suggest the identical nature of Brahman and the soul. However, these interpretations subordinate statements that point to the difference between Brahman and the soul, resorting to interpreting them as figurative. In order to make sense of the Vedas' statements as consistent, Vijñānabhikṣu argues that difference and non-difference can also mean separation and non-separation, rather than identity and negation of identity. The meaning of
bheda and
abheda, then, determined according to the context, solves the problem of taking some statements from the Vedas as untrue or merely figurative.
Per Bhedabheda, Brahman is the material cause of everything in the world, similar to how clay transforms into different forms like pots and cups. Advaita Vedanta argues that Brahman does not undergo any change; the difference that appears in the world is unreal.
Influence
Bhedābheda ideas had an enormous influence on the devotional (
bhakti) schools of India's medieval period. Among medieval Bhedābheda thinkers are:
-
Nimbarka (dates proposed by scholars range from 7th century – 15th century), who founded the Svābhābika Dvaitādvaita school.
[Malkovsky, The Role of Divine Grace in the Soteriology of Śaṃkarācārya, Leiden: Brill, p. 118.]
-
Bhāskara (8th and 9th centuries), who founded the Aupādhika Bhedābheda school.
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Vallabha, proponent of the Shuddhadvaita philosophy
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Caitanya (1485–1533), the founder of Gaudiya Vaishnavism based in the eastern Indian State of West Bengal, and the theological founder of Achintya Bheda Abhedavedanta
-
Guru Nanak (1439-1569), the founder of Sikhism based in north india.
-
Ramanujacharya, founder of Vishishtadvaita Vedanta and Sri Vaishnavism.
Other major names are Ramanuja's teacher Yadava Prakaasa,
See also
-
Dvaitadvaita
-
Gaudiya Vaishnavism / Achintya Bheda Abheda
Sources
Further reading
-
Complete English Translation of Sri Subodhini jee, published in Collected Works of Sri Vallabhcharya series, Sri Satguru Publications
External links
