Vivarana Advaita is
a Sanskrit phrase that means "to live in the present moment."
Shankaracharya was the greatest figure in one of the later
Advaita Vedanta schools, a philosophical school.
The Advaita school adheres to the philosophical position of
monism, which is the belief in a single impersonal Ultimate Reality, which they
refer to as Brahman.
Despite the appearance of difference and diversity in the
perceptible world, Advaita proponents believe that reality is
"nondual" (advaita), that is, all things are nothing but the formless
Brahman.
This assumption of diversity is a manifestation of avidya
for Advaitins, who believe it is a fundamental mental misunderstanding of the
ultimate nature of things.
Although frequently translated as "ignorance,"
avidya refers to a lack of genuine understanding that leads to karmic bonds,
reincarnation (samsara), and suffering.
Because the Advaitins' real problem is this erroneous
understanding, realization (jnana) was the most effective spiritual path for
achieving ultimate liberation (moksha).
The Vivarana Advaita school is based on the ideas of
Padmapada (9th century), one of Shankaracharya's disciples, but takes its name
from a commentary written by Prakashatman in the thirteenth century.
Traditionally, the latter was a Padmapada disciple, but this
appears to be problematic.
The Vivarana school, like the Bhamati school, took firm
positions on a number of issues where Shankaracharya had been silent.
One of these was on the locus of ignorance, described by the
Vivarana school as being in Brahman.
The Vivarana Advaitins use the theory of reflectionism to
explain the apparent difference between Brahman and the Self, despite the fact
that the Selves are identical with Brahman, because it appears to compromise
the integrity of Brahman.
Their position appears to be based on an unwavering
affirmation of Brahman as the sole "reality," to which everything
that exists must belong.
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