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Path profile

Vedanta

Classical Hindu philosophy of Self-inquiry into the nature of Atman and Brahman, transmitted through scripture, teacher lineages and rigorous study.

20Teachers
77Events
22Videos
Overview

What does vedanta point to?

Vedanta is the philosophical tradition built on the Upanishads, concerned with the relationship between the individual self (Atman) and the ultimate reality (Brahman). Its best-known school, Advaita ('non-dual') Vedanta, traces to the teacher Shankara and holds that Atman and Brahman are, on investigation, not two, a conclusion reached through structured study and inquiry rather than assumed at the outset.

Contemporary Vedanta is carried both by monastic orders such as the Ramakrishna Order (following Ramakrishna and Vivekananda) and by individual teachers who combine textual scholarship with meditation and Self-inquiry. It is worth distinguishing from the broader modern 'Non-duality' scene: many teachers there draw on Vedantic language and insight, but without the textual grounding, scriptural study and lineage transmission that classical Vedanta considers essential.

That which does not change while everything else does: that is what you are.
A central teaching within Vedanta
Teachers

Voices within this path.

Compare background, approach and format before choosing a teacher to follow.

Upcoming events

Upcoming events in vedanta.

Retreats, dialogues and online gatherings connected to this path.

Talks & videos

Selected talks.

Talks and conversations from teachers within this path.

58 min
Meditation · Neema Majmudar & Surya Tahora

Guided Morning Meditation, Manjakuddi — Surya Tahora

Surya Tahora leads a guided morning meditation recorded during a Vedanta seminar in Manjakuddi, South India.

67 min
Interview · Neema Majmudar & Surya Tahora

Conversation on Consciousness with Surya Tahora

Advaita Academy's curator interviews Surya Tahora about his life journey, his teacher Swami Dayananda Saraswati, and his path into Vedanta.

94 min
Talk · Neema Majmudar & Surya Tahora

The Quest for the Infinite: Stories from the Upanishads, Part 1 — Surya Tahora

Surya Tahora retells stories from the Upanishads that point toward the Vedantic vision and the search for the infinite.

61 min
Talk · Neema Majmudar & Surya Tahora

Vedanta and Leadership — Surya Tahora

Surya Tahora draws on Vedanta and the life of Adi Shankara to explore what they offer the practice of leadership, given at the Global Festival of Oneness.

Listen

Recordings from vedanta.

Voices from this path and the schools within it, playing from the platforms the teachers publish on.

Reading Room

Source texts

The source texts beneath this path, free to read.

4 public-domain texts

The Bhagavad Gita

Translated by Sir Edwin Arnold · 1885

The poetic translation that influenced Gandhi; still very readable.

Read free

The Upanishads

Translated by Swami Paramananda

A clear, devotional rendering by an Indian teacher rather than a Victorian academic.

Read free

The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

Translated by Charles Johnston

Published as The Book of the Spiritual Man — a readable, contemplative rendering.

Read free

The Gospel of Ramakrishna

Translated by Swami Abhedananda · 1907

Mahendra Nath Gupta's recorded conversations with Ramakrishna, revised into English by his direct disciple.

Read free
Discernment

Clarity should include the human context.

Vedanta's conclusions can sound identical to popular non-duality teaching, but the path there traditionally runs through years of guided study, not a single insight. Claims of realisation are worth weighing against that context.

Ask about contextIs a statement philosophical, meditative, relational or practical?
Notice powerHow are authority, money, intimacy and complaints handled?
Include embodimentDoes the teaching make room for emotion, the body and nervous-system limits?
Keep agencyA useful teacher supports clear choice rather than demanding surrender of judgement.
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