Shiva Advaita

Shiva Advaita (Devanagari:शिवाद्वैत, Tamil: சிவாத்வைதம், Śivādvaitam, Kannada: ಶಿವಾದ್ವೈತ, Śivādvaita), also known as Śiva Viśiṣṭādvaita or Shaivite qualified nondualism,^[1][2] refers to Śrīkaṇṭha Śivācārya's (dated 11th-15th century CE^{[3][4][2][5][6][7]}) Southern India Shaivite commentary on the Brahma Sutras, which considers Shiva supreme,^[5] and to Appayya's 16th century CE^[8] commentary on Śrīkaṇṭha Śivācārya's stance.^[9]

Śrīkaṇṭha Śivācārya

Origins

Śrīkaṇṭha Śivācārya (also known as Nīlakaṇṭha Śivācārya) composed the Srikanta Bhashyam,^[10] a commentary on the Brahma Sutras, which became known as Śivādvaita.^[11] The time frame of Śrīkaṇṭha's work is not exactly known, but it is argued to fall somewhere between the 11th and 11 century,^{[3][4][2][5][6][7]} with the 14th to 15th century being more likely, according to Duquette.^[12][a] Sri Appayya Dikshita (16th century CE^[8]) contributed further to Shiva Advaita by expounding Śrīkaṇṭha's philosophy in his Sivarka Mani Dipika.^[11]

Tenets

The theory of Śivadvaita resembles very closely Ramanuja's Viśiṣṭādvaita non-dualism doctrine,^[b] but differs in who is considered Supreme. While Ramanuja considers Vishnu to be supreme, Śrīkaṇṭha considers Shiva supreme.^[11][2][11] While Śrīkaṇṭha does not deny Nirguna Brahman, which is central to Advaita,^[12], he affirms the supremacy of Saguna Brahman, typical of qualified non-dualism. However, Appayya affirms a form of pure non-dualism, and recasts Śrīkaṇṭha's work in an effort to establish Shiva Advaita in his Śivādvaitanirṇaya.^[12]

Notes

1. Kasivasi Senthinatha Iyer places it in the 7th century, arguing that it appeared before all the Bhashyams like Shankara, Ramanuja, and Madhva.^[13]
2. Compared to the Smārta tradition of Advaita, which regards Shiva as a manifestation of saguṇa Brahman ultimately dissolving into the impersonal nirguṇa Brahman, Srikanta’s Shiva Advaita is more sectarian and theistic, emphasizing Shiva as the unique and supreme Parabrahman.