Philosophy of Vedanta Comparison
Levels of evolution in History:
There are mainly five levels of evolution
pointed out by scholars. They are Pantheism, Polytheism, Monotheism, Henotheism
and Monism.
1. Pantheism:
Pantheism is the doctrine that the universe as a
whole is God, and conversely that there is no other God than the composite
matter, forces, and law manifested in the existing universe.
2. Polytheism:
Polytheism is the belief in more than one deity,
usually combined with the gods' and goddesses' own religious sects and
practices.
3. Monotheism:
Monotheism is the theory or doctrine that denies
the existence of a distinction or duality between matter and mind or God and
the world. The doctrine that only one supreme being existed.
4. Henotheism:
Henotheism is devotion to a primary deity while
acknowledging the existence or possible existence of other deities. In fact, it
is polytheism and Monotheism only in principle.
5. Monism:
Monism is the belief of a head of “God” and it
implies the possibility of diversity.
Culture of Greek:
Greek Culture began after the collapse of the Mycenaean civilization in the 8th century BC. Greece began to emerge from the Dark Ages. The Greeks had contributed immensely in the field of philosophy, mathematics, astronomy, and medicine. Literature and theatre was an important aspect of Greek culture and influenced modern drama. The Greeks were known for their sophisticated sculpture and architecture. Even though they spoke many dialects there was a language in common and the Greeks had a religion and cultural traits.
The drawback of Greek Culture:
Greek has a great history originally where humanism was cultivated but with limitations. Citizenship in Athens and other Greek cities were confined only to certain groups of people. Although humanism originated in Greece had its own limitations and had contributed immensely to western history. The slaves outnumbered more than the citizens and the women had no citizenship and fundamental rights.
Roman humanism:
Even though Roman humanism was wider the slaves
had no status and human dignity. This enslavement continued for centuries and
the majority of people were deprived of basic needs of food and shelter.
Christianity:
After the arrival of Jesus Christ, the complete picture and scenario had changed dramatically and a ray of hope descended on the human being. Its own ideal of humanism the love for man is the greatest teaching of Christ. He formulated his whole message in a single statement “Love thy God, with all thy heart, all thy soul and all thy mind”. The greatest in the commandment was “Love thy neighbour as thyself” which was a wonderful formulation. The entire population of Europe were fascinated by this philosophy of humanism and the entire slowly proselytize into the Christian religion.
Christian Churches:
This was circumscribed within the Christian denomination and outside the Christian religion, there was no humanism at all. This type of narrow and sectarian approach affected the practice of humanism in the west during all these centuries when Christianity dominated the western world.
Enigma of Christian Churches:
In Europe, by the end of the middle ages, the church was very powerful. The clergies amassed wealth by corruption. The use of its political and economic power caused resentment among all classes, especially the aristocracy. People were left with the impression that church priests were more concerned with acquiring wealth. They did not find enough time to minister to their followers and their well-being. This led to the weakening of the Catholic Church and loss of faith. Political strife and humanist ideals added momentum. Many Catholics were disillusioned with the worldliness and immorality of the priests. The selling of indulgences for money and practices of simony was rampant. Followers were raising the issues again and again and priests were not ready to listen to their grievances. The reformers rejected many of the principles and practices of Catholicism at that time. The fundamental tenets of the Reformation were that the Bible was the sole authority for all matters of faith and conduct, and that salvation was by God's grace and faith in Jesus Christ. Reformers were harassed and humiliated on all occasions. Pope and Catholic authorities did not allow any kind of discussions and debates and were very rigid. This led to a split in Christendom.
Split in Christendom:
The Protestant Reformation was a religious reformation movement that swept across Europe in the 1500s. This fallout resulted in the creation of a branch of Christianity called Protestantism, a name used collectively to refer to several sects that broke away from the Roman Catholic Church due to differences in doctrine. There were several reformation movements before Martin Luther. Martin Luther was the pioneer who started the Reformation with the publication of his Ninety-Five Theses in 1517. He was not excommunicated by Pope Leo X until January 1521. There were several reformation movements before Martin Luther namely by John Calvin, Huldrich Zwingli and other scholars who called for the necessary changes. Meanwhile, the invention of the mechanised printing press by Guttenberg allowed religious ideas and Bible translations to spread and circulate widely. In the 16th century, this reformist movement created religious and political challenges to papal authority promoted by Martin Luther. The emperor adopted repressive measures. The Emperor had the leading army in Europe and was planning to march into Germany and put down the reformists.
Consequences of Protestant Reformation
Economic secularisation:
While the Protestant Reformers aimed to elevate the role of religion, we see that the Reformation produced rapid economic secularisation. The interaction between religious competition and political economy explains the shift of investments from the religious sector to human and fixed capital.
Individual freedom:
The basic theory of the reform movement led to the growth of individualism, which resulted in serious social, political and economic conflicts. It ultimately led to the growth of individual freedom and democracy.
The Reformation is still important today because Scripture is our
supreme authority for faith and practice. In the minds of many mediaeval
Christians, Scripture and church tradition were considered more or less equal
authorities. The Reformation touched all aspects of culture, and Protestantism
released human energies through the doctrine of labour and made them serve the
welfare of the whole society. Reformers restored the glory of secular work by
giving it religious significance. The Reformation led to the revision of some
basic tenets of the Christian faith.
Democratic values:
Reforms led some German rulers to defy papal authority, which eventually helped spread democratic values throughout Europe.
Literacy:
Literacy rates improved dramatically as Protestants encouraged Bible reading, and education became a high priority. It ignited a new passion for education and led to academic excellence.
Development of modern nation-states:
The Reformation set the stage for the modern world because it led to the development of the modern nation-
states. Rulers of nations sought more power for themselves and their kingdoms. It led to the rejection of all religions and the overthrow of existing governments.
Growth of Federalism:
Reformation leads to the growth of federalism. The churches wanted to be ruled by people who would listen to them and help them rule. Churches began to lead their own congregations, gained political power and increased power, and the national government began to share power with local governments.
Political implications:
The political effects of the Reformation led to a decline in the moral and political authority of the Catholic Church and increased power to monarchs and states.
Result of the Protestant Reformation:
Ultimately the Protestant Reformation introduced modern democracy, scepticism, capitalism, individualism, civil liberties and modern values.
The situation in Europe during Swami
Vivekananda’s visit:
When Swami Vivekananda visited the western world
in the year 1893 especially Europe was facing serious social challenges. In
Europe, the Roman Catholic Church strongly resisted liberalism and cultural
conflicts launched in Germany, Italy, Belgium and France and stressed the need
for personal devotion. Followers drifted away from religious adherence and
belief in Christian teachings and moved towards secularism. There are biblical
revivals in some largely protestant countries and later the effects of modern
biblical scholarship on the churches. Liberal or modernist theology was one
consequence of this and slowly deserted away from religion and refused to
follow religious teachings. The position of churches on social and religious
issues and the disgrace of priests alienated the believers.
Before Swami Vivekananda was born Carl Marx and
Frederic Engels had already published the “communist manifesto” which contained
revolutionary theories. The teachings of socialism and the destruction of
capitalism which emphasises profit and private ownership had made a
considerable impact on the western world. The working class, especially the
thinkers of the society, were annoyed by the inequality among citizens and are
overwhelmed by this philosophy. During this period positivism became prominent
and the intellectual class brought these subjects for discussion everywhere in
society. These developments led to the decline of believers in churches and
were facing existential threats and challenging the claims of organised
religions. There were bloodshed and battles in the name of God and religion due
to the divisiveness among peoples and inquisitions, genocides and massacres
were common. The intellectuals and educated people began to think and were
looking for a religion that teaches the whole of humanity as one spiritual
fraternity. Since the industrial revolution was going on many people were able
to earn and their financial position became sound. In this context, people
argued that religion that goes against the development of technology and is not
tested by laboratories has no right to exist.
The majority of the people who were looking for
religion were of four categories. The first category of people thinks that it
must support technological advancement and the reasoning of science and
technology. The second category is supporters of Charles Darwin's theory of
evolution who believe in that kind of religion. Third, the supporters of
radical humanists wanted a religion which allowed complete freedom. The fourth
is the supporters of the philosophy of communism by Carl Marx and Frederic
Engels intended to have a religion with equality and non-discrimination between
human beings. Finally, supporters of Hegel's philosophy wanted a religion that
supports the concepts of freedom, reason, recognition and self-consciousness.
This was the actual scenario when Swami
Vivekananda visited the western world. More precisely the western world was
going through a tough time and was facing a deceleration of spiritual
conviction among the believers of the churches. A “God '' that after creating
this universe and sits above the clouds, dividing man into believers and
non-believers, and promising believers with heaven and non-believers with fire
is not a true “God”. This gives the notion that the existence of “God” is
completely dependent upon our recognition is miserable and such a God is not
almighty instead it is divine less.
Philosophical teachings of Swami Vivekananda:
In this course of such a situation, Swami
Vivekananda propounded a “universal spiritual humanism” that accepts all human
beings and embraces all philosophical ideas. This view was based on the
“Vedanta” philosophy since it explains that the “Supreme reality” is one and it
is omnipresent, attribute less, transcendental and absolute reality lies within
all of us. Swami Vivekananda worked to disseminate his religious thoughts and
it does not discard the other philosophies and belief systems. He advocated
“Neo Vedanta” which accommodates spirituality with the material progress of
every creature of this universe.
Swami Vivekananda advocated for the adaptation
of eternal universal spiritual values and the exclusion of secondary things.
This is called the universal religion and is the humanistic interpretation of
Vedanta. The non-Dualist form of Vedanta proclaims that all human beings are
divine and this divinity exists with all the creatures of this universe. We
will foster brotherhood and love instead of hurting others since all creatures
of this world belong to the same and are part of the ultimate reality.
Influence of Vedanta on Greek Culture:
Vedanta has been influencing the western world for more than 2000
years. During the time of Socrates, the ancient Greeks were coming in touch
with the philosophy of Vedanta. When the Persian empire stretched from Greece
in the west and the Indian subcontinent in the east Indian Philosophical ideas
flew to the channels of communication. When we go through the history of
Socrates (BCE 470 - BCE 399), Plato (BCE 429 - BCE 347) and Aristotle (BCE 384
- BCE 322) they were already in touch with Vedanta and Hindu philosophy.
According to the English scholar, E.J.Urwick who wrote the book “Platonic
Quest” in 1940 states that without referring to Upanishads we could not
understand Socrates. They were very well versed in the messages of the Upanishads
and Vedas. Even though the classical Greek civilization was a great
civilization it dealt with the world of sensual pleasures. The Greeks made
important contributions to philosophy, mathematics, astronomy, and medicine.
The knowledge that lies beyond these worldly pleasures and the sensory level
was not part of Greek culture. The People of Greece did not recognize the
trinities of Greek philosophy Socrates, Plato and Aristotle and found them
outside of their tradition. Nevertheless, Socrates propounded the deeper vision
of Vedanta, the transcendental reality that lies within every human being.
Therefore, this aspect could not find a place in the Greek community and
charged Socrates with spoiling the youth of Greece and was condemned to death.
When he was forced to drink the poison common hemlock, he said that “You must
catch the real me, truly I am not this body”. In this statement, he proclaims a
profound vision of human nature, the infinite divine reality beyond these
physical and sensory limitations. This is the essence of the philosophy of
Vedanta. The body perishes and there is an imperishable, immutable and eternal
reality that dwells within all of us called “Atman”. The knowledge of the
Philosophy of Vedanta had transferred to the west whenever channels of
communication were created. The empires uniting east and west were the Persian
empire and the empire of Alexander the “Great”. An example of these
visible in India is the monument called “Heliodorus pillar”. It is a stone
monolithic column that was erected around 110 BCE in central India in the
Besnagar area in the district of Vidisha in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India.
The pillar was also called the “Garuda pillar” referring to the deity “Garuda”
the conveyor of Lord “Vishnu”. The pillar is commonly named after Heliodorus,
who was an ambassador of the Indo-Greek king Antialcidas from Thakshila. A dedication
written in Brahmi script was inscribed on the pillar, venerating "Vasudeva" or "Krishna" as the "Supreme Deity".
The biggest contribution of India lay in the field of philosophy
and spirituality. Bhagavad Gita 2nd Chapter verse 22nd
says as follows,
“Vasamsi jeernani yathavihaya navani grihnani naroparani
yathashareerani vihaya jeerna nyanyathi samyani navani dehi”
This says that “Our body is like clothes we wear and when it is
old and torn we throw it away and put on new clothes”. When the body is unfit
to survive it discards and put on new bodies. This is the profound teaching in
the Upanishads regarding the depth dimension of human personality. Behind this
body-mind complex which is subject to change and death, there is an immortal
divine “Atman” in every human being. There is only one “Self” in all of us and
in that “Self” we are all one. Many of the Greeks were fascinated by this
unitary vision.