Sree Narayana Guru’s Perspectives and Advaita Philosophy: A Review of Guru’s Selected Works

Abstract

After Adi Shankara, Sree Narayana Guru was the greatest spiritual philosopher Kerala has ever produced. He offered a way of life that was both materialistic and spiritually balanced. Through his philosophical writings, he imparts knowledge on how to uphold a dialectical union of the conceptual and the practical manner of living. The predominant and best-known school of Indian philosophy, Advaita Vedanta, espouses the unchanging non-dualism between the Universal Soul and the Individual Soul. Narayana Guru dedicated his entire life to demonstrating to the world that Advaita may be put into practice and acknowledges Advaita as the philosophical foundation for man’s practical concerns in the world. The key distinction between the Advaita systems of Sankara and Narayana Guru is how they are used in the real world. Advaita Vedanta was synthesized by Narayana Guru. Narayana Guru combined the theistic Vedic practice of love and service with the Advaita Vedanta notion of Brahman’s oneness (ekatma vada). Through his works, Narayana Guru spread the holy message to all people and encouraged them to embrace timeless truths and aspirations. This essay attempts to examine a few of Narayana Guru’s writings in order to examine how the Advaita philosophy affected him and how he saw Advaita. This study uses the historical research method, and its conclusions show that Advaita philosophy directly influences both the religious teachings he imparts and the motivations for his socio-religious conduct.