Shuddadvaita Vallabhacharya (1479–1531) was the first to propose a philosophical school.
Shuddadvaita is a Sanskrit word that means "to be ("absolute monism")
To distinguish himself from the Advaita Vedanta school
founded by the philosopher Shankaracharya, Vallabha named his school
shuddadvaita, or "pure monism." The latter school promotes
"nondual" (advaita) monism, which asserts that there is a single
Ultimate Reality that underpins all things, and that all things are merely
different manifestations of that reality.
Advaitins refer to this single reality as Brahman, which
they define as formless, impersonal, and lacking in distinguishing
characteristics other than being, consciousness, and bliss (sacchidananda).
Because all conceptions of particular deities have specific
attributes, they are condi tioned forms of the ultimate Brahman, according to
the Advaita viewpoint.
In fact, any assumption that the world as it appears is real
is a fundamental misunderstanding that leads to karmic bonds, reincarnation
(samsara), and suffering for human beings.
Shankaracharya's philosophical position was based primarily
on the Vedas, the oldest and most authoritative Hindu texts, and especially on
the Upanishads, the speculative Vedic texts.
Vallabhacharya based his Shuddadvaita school on both of
these sources, as well as the Bhagavata Purana, which he regarded as equally
authoritative.
One of the later sectarian collections known as puranas is
the Bhagavata Purana.
It is the most important source for worshiping the god
Krishna, whom Vallabha considered to be the ultimate manifestation of the
Supreme Being, as opposed to Shankaracharya's unqualified Brahman.
Aside from favoring a personal conception of God over an
impersonal one, another difference between the two schools was the world's
status.
The world as we see it is real, according to Vallabhacharya,
because it and human beings both evolved from God through the exercise of his
supreme power.
Krishna is depicted as being–consciousness–bliss in the
traditional threefold divine aspect.
Living beings have being and consciousness but not divine
bliss, whereas the nonliving, material world has only being.
Vallabhacharya called this conception "pure
monism" because it gives real value to everyday life.
God is the inner controller of all souls in Vallabhacharya's
system, making human beings reliant on God for thinking and perception (pratyaksha).
This reliance on God emphasizes the importance of grace,
which he refers to as "that which nourishes the soul," or
"pusti." Vallabhacharya's religious community is known as the Pushti
Marg because of its emphasis on grace.
The Pushti Marg believes that devotion (bhakti), which is
open to all and has no prerequisites, is the way to gain God's favor.
All other forms of religious practice have been marginalized
as a result of the Pushti Marg's emphasis on devotion, and the Pushti Marg is
particularly known for rejecting all ascetic endeavors such as celibacy,
fasting (upavasa), and renunciation.
Householders from merchant families, particularly from
Gujarat, make up the majority of its members.
The community's main temple is located in Nathdwara,
Rajasthan.
Richard Barz, The Bhakti Sect of Vallabhacarya, 1976, is a
good source of information.
