A Thousand Teachings: The Upadeśasāhasrī of Śaṅkara (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780791409442)

This is the best introduction to Vedanta and to Śaṅkara's philosophy. The Upadeśasāhasrī, or A Thousand Teachings consists of a metrical part and a prose part. In the metrical part, Sankara discusses the basic philosophical problems of non-dualism, at the same time refuting the teachings of other philosophical schools. In the prose part, he explains how to teach the way to self realization--to enlightenment.

Śaṅkara and the great Abhinavagupta are generally regarded as the two greatest thinkers in the long history of Indian philosophy. Sankara represented Advaita Vedanta, a non-dualistic view of ultimate reality. Most of his works are commentaries on classics of Indian thought. A Thousand Teachings is the only non-commentarial work that can be attributed to him; the other independent writings ascribed to him are probably spurious.

Author: Sengaku Mayeda
ISBN-10: 0791409449
ISBN-13: 9780791409442
Publisher: State University of New York Press
Language: English
Published: 01/31/1992
Pages: 288
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.83lbs
Size: 8.95h x 5.86w x 0.64d