Evolution of Vijñanavada

The article compares Vedānta and Buddhist Vijñānavāda. It argues that both systems attribute the cause of saṃsāra and suffering to ignorance and desire, and that both seek liberation by overcoming ignorance. The author notes that the Upaniṣads identify Brahman or Ātman with pure knowledge (vijñāna), suggesting that Vijñānavāda is not a form of subjective idealism but an expression of this identity. Vedānta teaches that the self is identical with Brahman and that avidyā veils this reality; Buddhism similarly holds that attachment to the notion of an individual self is the root of sufferingfile:/home/oai/share/article_pdfs/Evolution_of_Vijnanavada.pdf. By comparing textual passages, the author shows that terms such as ‘cogniser’ and ‘knowledge’ in the Upaniṣads anticipate the Vijñānavāda conception of consciousness-only. He discusses interpretations by Śaṅkara and Bhāskara and suggests that the Buddhist doctrine of vāsanās (latent impressions) parallels Vedānta’s māyā. The article thus bridges Vedānta and Vijñānavāda, arguing that both philosophies posit an ultimate reality identified with knowledge and advocate the eradication of ignorance through spiritual discipline.

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