Brahma Sutra Bhashya

Introduction

Madhva wrote a short commentary on the Brahma Sutras and supplemented it with longer works such as the verse commentary Anuvyakhyana. His reading turns the sutras against Shankara: they teach a God, Vishnu, who is distinct from souls and matter, and a real world of differences. Madhva often cites scriptural sources that are not known from other traditions, a point that modern scholars have discussed at length. His commentaries are usually read with those of Jayatirtha (14th century), who systematised the Dvaita school. In the sixteenth century Vyasatirtha’s debates with Advaita thinkers carried the controversy further.

Connections

Builds on

• Brihadaranyaka Upanishadc. 700 BCE · Yajnavalkya

Criticizes

• Commentary on the Brahma Sutrasc. 730 · Adi Shankara