The Realistic Aspect of Indian Spirituality

Abstract

A widespread view persists among Western scholars that the spiritual perspective of Indian philosophy is incompatible with ethical practice and the ordinary values of life. In this view, Hinduism, especially in its non-dualistic aspect, is an otherworldly faith concerned with the salvation of the individual and leaves the great mass of the people to their fate. This attitude, it is often argued, accounts for India's poverty, illiteracy, and general backwardness. If the world is unreal, as the non-dualists contend, why bother about it? Let it be stated at the outset that the practicing non-dualists in India are far out-numbered by the dualists, though the philosophy of non-dualism is considered the peak of Indian philosophical thinking and its special contribution to world philosophy. Furthermore, students of non-dualism accept humanitarian activities as a part of their spiritual discipline. Prior to their realization of Brahman, undifferentiated consciousness, they accept the relative world as real. Thus, they cannot remain indifferent to the world or repudiate moral and social values. The fulfillment of social obligations is a condition precedent for the realization of identity with Brahman. Enlightened non-dualists see embodied souls as manifestations of Brahman and devote themselves to their welfare. Social values were emphasized in the Vedas. Their fulfillment is a discipline for the enjoyment of happiness here and hereafter, which the Vedas recognize as a universal craving. Hymns were composed by the Vedic seers in honor of the cosmic order, ethical laws, and social virtues. They never denied the existence of the physical world and the legitimate pleasures it offers. One finds in the Vedas striking hymns about marriage, procreation, a woman's conduct in her husband's house, hospitality, harmony among participants in a council, health and vigor, longevity, the duties of a householder, battles and the proper attitude toward enemies, and general prosperity. From these hymns it is apparent that the Indo-Aryans of Vedic times lived a full and happy life and did not repudiate the world. The Upanisads, which form the essence of the Vedas, aim to establish the sole reality of the non-dual Brahman. They also emphasize the fact that the world of name and form is real for the vast majority of people, who are under the spell of maya, cosmic nescience. Such people should recognize