Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v1.c7.s8.t3.4

v1.c7.s8.t3.4

Vedanta directly inherits the Vimukti in Upanishad, and thinks that achieving the cognition of “Brahman and Atman are one” is liberation. Sankaracarya, the most influential ideologist of Vedanta, thinks that liberation can be divided into “gradual liberation” and “true liberation”. Gradual liberation means that people’s ego will enter Brahmaloka for enjoyments after they die, which is not a complete liberation, while true liberation is achieved after eliminating ignorance, knowing spiritual self or Brahman, which is “non-body liberation”. Sankaracarya believes that human nature is pure, and true liberation is to eliminate ignorance, know spiritual self or real Brahman. Two ideologists Prabhakara and Kumarila of Mimamsa in the 8th century or so had more discussions on liberation. They argue that liberation is that eliminating the proper dharma and improper dharma according to the principle stipulated in Brahman’s scripture makes “Atman” is unable to return to the world of Samsara. Kumarila thought that liberation is that “Atman” gets rid of all the pains to reach the state of self-nature, also keeps the state of the destruction of body possessed by “Atman” and unproduced body in the future.