The Five Pillars of Advaita as Expounded by Adi Sankara

1. ब्रह्मन्  (Brahman).  the ultimate reality, pure consciousness ( jnAnasvarUpa),  attributeless निर्गुण (nirguNa)  and beyond intellect निर्विशेष ( nirviSeSa).

2. ईश्वर (Isvara).  Brahman conditioned by माया (mAyA) or अविद्या (avidyA). Isvara is Sat, Cit, Ananda ( existence, consciousness and  bliss).

3. जीव (Jiva), the subject-object complex as an appaearance of Brahman.
Jiva is diferent from isvara in that it is the agent and the enjoyer. It acquires merit and demirit , experiences pleasure and pain , while Isvara is not touched at all by these. When avidya is destroyed both Isvara and Jiva are identified as one and the same as Brahman.

4. माया(Maya) or अविद्या (avidyA) is not only illusion, not only absence of  knwoledge but presence of wrong knowledge and a mixture of the real and the unreal, and the neither real nor unreal.

5. Knowledge is the only means of liberation. Knowledge that Jiva is Brahman will destroy माया (mAyA) or अविद्या ( avidyA). Knowledge rather than action (karma) or upAsana is the source of liberation


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