Essays on Vedanta

DETAILS : 

• Author : Swami Satchidanandendra Saraswathi
  
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Adhyatma Prakashan Karyalaya
  
• Publication date ‏ : ‎ 1 January 2008
  
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
  
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 190 pages
  
• Weight : 300 g

ABOUT THE BOOK

Essays on Vedanta is a profound collection of writings by Swami Satchidanandendra Saraswathi, arguably the most rigorous proponent of "Pure Shankara Vedanta" in the 20th century. This book serves as a vital corrective to the various interpretations of Advaita that have cropped up over the centuries. Swamiji’s primary objective is to lead the seeker back to the original method of Shankara Bhashya (Shankara's commentaries), stripping away the later scholastic additions of the Bhamati and Vivarana schools that he believed obscured the original message.

The essays delve into the heart of Advaita: the non-duality of the Self (Atman) and the Ultimate Reality (Brahman). Swamiji masterfully explains the fundamental Vedantic technique of Adhyaropa-Apavada—the method of "deliberate superimposition followed by subsequent negation"—to reveal the truth that remains when all false notions are removed. Whether discussing the nature of Avidya (ignorance), the three states of consciousness (waking, dream, and deep sleep), or the path to liberation, the writing is characterized by uncompromising logic and a deep devotion to the Upanishadic truth.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Swami Satchidanandendra Saraswathi (1880–1975) was a scholar-saint and the founder of the Adhyatma Prakasha Karyalaya in Holenarsipur, Karnataka. Before taking Sannyasa, he was a teacher known as Y. Subba Rao. He dedicated over 70 years to researching the works of Sri Adi Shankaracharya, concluding that the traditional teaching method had been distorted by post-Shankara commentators. His life's work was a "Return to Shankara," and he authored over 200 books in Sanskrit, Kannada, and English. He is revered by serious Vedantins for his intellectual integrity and his ability to make the most abstract metaphysical concepts accessible through rigorous analysis.