Brahman
In the Vedic and Hindu religions, 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," 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, 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 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.
Etymology and related terms
Brahman is a neuter noun to be distinguished from the masculine —denoting a person associated with Brahman, and from Brahmā, the creator God in the Hindu Trinity, the Trimurti. Brahman is thus a gender-neutral concept that implies greater impersonality than masculine or feminine conceptions of the deity. Brahman is referred to as the supreme self. Puligandla states it as "the unchanging reality amidst and beyond the world", while Sinar states Brahman is a concept that "cannot be exactly defined".In Vedic Sanskrit:
- Brahma , brahman from root bṛh-, means "to be or make firm, strong, solid, expand, promote".
- Brahmana , from stems brha + Sanskrit -man- which denotes some manifest form of "definite power, inherent firmness, supporting or fundamental principle".
- Brahma , brahman means the concept of the transcendent and immanent ultimate reality, Supreme Cosmic Spirit in Hinduism. The concept is central to Hindu philosophy, especially Vedanta; this is discussed below.
- Brahmā , Brahman , means the deity or deva Prajāpati Brahmā. He is one of the members of the Hindu trinity and is associated with creation, but he does not have a cult in present-day India. This is because Brahmā, the creator-god, is long-lived but not eternal i.e. Brahmā gets absorbed back into Purusha at the end of an aeon, and is born again at the beginning of a new kalpa.
These are distinct from:
- A brāhmaṇa , is a prose commentary on the Vedic mantras—an integral part of the Vedic literature.
- A brāhmaṇa , means priest; in this usage the word is usually rendered in English as "Brahmin". This usage is also found in the Atharva Veda. In neuter plural form, Brahmāṇi. See Vedic priest.
- Ishvara,, in Advaita, is identified as a partial worldly manifestation of the ultimate reality, the attributeless Brahman. In Visishtadvaita and Dvaita, however, Ishvara has infinite attributes and is the source of the impersonal Brahman.
- Devas, the expansions of Brahman/God into various forms, each with a certain quality. In the Vedic religion, there were 33 devas.
History and literature
Vedic
Brahman is a concept present in Vedic Samhitas, the oldest layer of the Vedas dated to the late 2nd millennium BCE. For example,The concept Brahman is referred to in hundreds of hymns in the Vedic literature. The word Brahma is found in Rig veda hymns such as 2.2.10, 6.21.8, 10.72.2 and in Atharva veda hymns such as 6.122.5, 10.1.12, and 14.1.131. The concept is found in various layers of the Vedic literature; for example: Aitareya Brahmana 1.18.3, Kausitaki Brahmana 6.12, Satapatha Brahmana 13.5.2.5, Taittiriya Brahmana 2.8.8.10, Jaiminiya Brahmana 1.129, Taittiriya Aranyaka 4.4.1 through 5.4.1, Vajasaneyi Samhita 22.4 through 23.25, Maitrayani Samhita 3.12.1:16.2 through 4.9.2:122.15. The concept is extensively discussed in the Upanishads embedded in the Vedas, and also mentioned in the vedāṅga such as the Srauta sutra 1.12.12 and Paraskara Gryhasutra 3.2.10 through 3.4.5.
Jan Gonda states that the diverse reference of Brahman in the Vedic literature, starting with Rigveda Samhitas, convey "different senses or different shades of meaning". There is no one single word in modern Western languages that can render the various shades of meaning of the word Brahman in the Vedic literature, according to Jan Gonda. In verses considered as the most ancient, the Vedic idea of Brahman is the "power immanent in the sound, words, verses and formulas of Vedas". However, states Gonda, the verses suggest that this ancient meaning was never the only meaning, and the concept evolved and expanded in ancient India.
Barbara Holdrege states that the concept Brahman is discussed in the Vedas along four major themes: as the Word or verses, as Knowledge embodied in Creator Principle, as Creation itself, and a Corpus of traditions. Hananya Goodman states that the Vedas conceptualize Brahman as the Cosmic Principles underlying all that exists. Gavin Flood states that the Vedic era witnessed a process of abstraction, where the concept of Brahman evolved and expanded from the power of sound, words and rituals to the "essence of the universe", the "deeper foundation of all phenomena", the "essence of the self ", and the deeper "truth of a person beyond apparent difference".
Upanishads
The central concern of all Upanishads is to discover the relations between ritual, cosmic realities, and the human body/person. The texts do not present a single unified theory, rather they present a variety of themes with multiple possible interpretations, which flowered in post-Vedic era as premises for the diverse schools of Hinduism.The concept of Brahman in the Upanishads evolves to encompass metaphysical, ontological, and soteriological themes. Brahman is described as the "primordial reality" that creates, sustains, and ultimately withdraws the universe within itself. It is characterized as the "principle of the world," the "absolute," the "universal" force, the "cosmic principle," and the "ultimate cause" of all existence, including gods. 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" that is fearless, luminous, exalted, and blissful, and the "essence" of freedom. Brahman is not only the universe within every living being but also the universe beyond, representing both the internal and external worlds in their entirety.
Brahman in the Upanishads is also described as the "essence" and "smallest particle of the cosmos," as well as the infinite universe itself. It is the "Self" within every being, the "truth," the "reality," the "absolute," and "bliss". While Brahman cannot be directly perceived through the senses, it can be experienced through deep self-realization.
In the words of philosopher Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, the sages of the Upanishads teach that Brahman is the ultimate essence underlying material phenomena. Though Brahman cannot be seen or heard, its true nature can be comprehended through the cultivation of self-knowledge. This form of knowledge enables one to transcend the illusions of the material world and attain a higher state of consciousness and liberation.
The Upanishads contain several mahā-vākyas or "Great Sayings" on the concept of Brahman:
| Text | Upanishad | Translation | Reference |
| अहं ब्रह्म अस्मि aham brahmāsmi | Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 1.4.10 | "I am Brahman" | |
| अयम् आत्मा ब्रह्म ayam ātmā brahma | Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 4.4.5 | "The Self is Brahman" | |
| सर्वं खल्विदं ब्रह्म sarvam khalvidam brahma | Chandogya Upanishad 3.14.1 | "All this is Brahman" | |
| एकमेवाद्वितीयम् ekam evadvitiyam | Chandogya Upanishad 6.2.1 | "That is one, without a second" | |
| तत्त्वमसि tat tvam asi | Chandogya Upanishad 6.8.7 et seq. | "That thou art" | |
| प्रज्ञानं ब्रह्म prajnānam brahma | Aitareya Upanishad 3.3.7 | "Wisdom is Brahman" | |
| नेति नेति Neti Neti | Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 2.3.6 | "Not This Not That" | |
| अंतरात्मा AntarAtman | Katha Upanishad 2.2.12 | "Inner Atman" | |
| उत्तमपुरुषः Uttam Purusha | Chandogya Upanishad 8.12.3 | "Supreme Being" | |
| पूरुषः Purusha | Purusha Sukta | "Supreme Being" | |
| ब्रह्मणो नाम सत्यमिति Brahmano naam Satyamiti | Chandogya Upanishad 8.3.4 | "Brahman is also called Satya " | |
| प्राणो ब्राह्मणः Prano brahman | Chandogya Upanishad 7.15.1 | "Vital Force is Brahman " |
The Upanishad discuss the metaphysical concept of Brahman in many ways, such as the Śāṇḍilya doctrine in Chapter 3 of the Chandogya Upanishad, among of the oldest Upanishadic texts. The Śāṇḍilya doctrine on Brahman is not unique to Chandogya Upanishad, but found in other ancient texts such as the Satapatha Brahmana in section 10.6.3. It asserts that Atman exists, the Brahman is identical with Atman, that the Brahman is inside man—thematic quotations that are frequently cited by later schools of Hinduism and modern studies on Indian philosophies.
Paul Deussen notes that teachings similar to above on Brahman, re-appeared centuries later in the words of the 3rd century CE Neoplatonic Roman philosopher Plotinus in Enneades 5.1.2.