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According to Advaita Vedanta, there are three levels of reality:

  1. Pāramārthika (परमार्थिक)
  2. Vyāvahārika (व्यवहारिक)
  3. Prāthibhāsika (प्रतिभासिक)

The wikipedia article on Advaita Vedanta says that:

Shankara uses sublation as the criterion to postulate an ontological hierarchy of three levels

Also in a recent chat I found that it is told by Adi Shankaracharya. These three levels of reality are very helpful to understand the absolute truth. (Visit this and this).

So, I want to know if it is described by Adi Shankaracharya, and if it's so, in which text.

More accurately, Which scripture are they defined in?

Pandya
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    Sankara says there is only one Reality - all else is delusion. Why does everyone keep on referring to the Wikipedia articles on Hinduism that are written for the most part by Western Christian academics?? Simply because it is easy access on the internet? Read your scriptures for yourself!! Find your guru! – Swami Vishwananda Jun 10 '16 at 07:19
  • @SwamiVishwananda I am totally agree with you and very good point "Read your scriptures for yourself". Well, shankaracharya didn't tell three levels right? – Pandya Jun 10 '16 at 09:04
  • @SwamiVishwananda need suggestion – Pandya Jun 10 '16 at 10:02
  • @Pandya See page no. 84 of this book 'Vedanta Paribhasa' ... It is described there... http://estudantedavedanta.net/Vedanta%20Paribhasa%20of%20Dharmaraja%20Adhvarindra%20-%20Swami%20Madhavananda%20[Sanskrit-English].pdf – Tezz Jun 10 '16 at 10:28
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    quote scripture, don't quote wikipedia. Wikipedia is not a valid referable source for Hindu scripture. If you have a valid reference from Sankara use it. If not, find it and use it as the basis for your question. Brahman is One - homogeneous, unchangeable, infinite, self-existent, and eternal - not homogeneous except for 3 levels, not unchangeable except for 3 levels. One. – Swami Vishwananda Jun 11 '16 at 09:26
  • To try and frame Sankara or Advaita in Western theological terms is misleading and invalid. There is no 'ontological hierarchy' as the quote implies. If their comment was valid this would be pantheism - and Advaita is not pantheism. The two 'levels' other than the Absolute referred to by @Tezz in the 'Vedanta Paribhasa' are not levels but illusionary perceptions of Brahman and only seen from/through maya. If Sankara had accepted the world as real then it would be pantheism. What Sankara said is that it is 'Adhyasa' or superimposition - taking a thing for what it is not. – Swami Vishwananda Jun 11 '16 at 09:55
  • @Swami Vishwananda Yes, I also mean the same... level doesn't mean it exists in real... it means it only exists for that level... In the absolute perception nothing exists except Brahman in Satchitaananda form... but as Vyavahirik term itself implies it is empirical...(for the purpose of living only)... not absolute truth... – Tezz Jun 11 '16 at 11:49
  • Those are forms of your experiencing. 1 absolute and 2 relative ones. Scripture references are to be find in sanskrit dictionary . http://sanskritdictionary.com/p%C4%81ram%C4%81rthika/133999/1 – Julio Olivieras Apr 29 '18 at 17:04
  • @SwamiVishwananda Btw, can you suggest me an Advaita work that describe these Vyavharika, Pratibhaisika and Paramarthika? – Pandya Jun 12 '18 at 07:13
  • "Brahman is real, the universe is mithya (neither real nor unreal). The jiva is Brahman Itself and not different. This is understood as the Truth of the scriptures. This is the drum-beat of Vedanta." - Shankara "Brahma Jnanavali Mala" verse 20. See also Sankara "Vivekacudamani" verses 230-252. See here the section entitled "Adhyasa or Superimposition" - https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/brahma-sutras/d/doc62758.html – Swami Vishwananda Jun 29 '18 at 06:42

1 Answers1

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Parmarthika Sathya is implicitly mentioned in Mandukya Upanishad verse 7:

नान्तःप्रज्ञं न बहिःप्रज्ञं नोभयतःप्रज्ञं न प्रज्ञानघनं न प्रज्ञं नाप्रज्ञम् |

अदृश्यमव्यवहार्यमग्राह्यमलक्षणमचिन्त्यमव्यपदेश्यमेकात्मप्रत्ययसारं प्रपञ्चोपशमं शान्तं शिवमद्वैतं चतुर्थं मन्यन्ते स आत्मा स विज्ञेयः || 7 ||

Translation:

Turīya is not that which is conscious of the internal (subjective) world, nor that which is conscious of the external (objective) world, nor that which is conscious of both, nor that which is a mass all sentiency, nor that which is simple consciousness, nor that which is insentient. (It is) unseen (by any sense organ), not related to anything, incomprehensible (by the mind), un-infer-able, unthinkable, indescribable, essentially of the nature of Consciousness constituting the Self alone, negation of all phenomena, the Peaceful, all Bliss and the Non-dual. This is what is known as the fourth (Turīya). This is the Ātman and it has to be realized.

The first word which is written in bold letters is Avyavaharyam, which means opposite of Vyavaharika reality, i.e., that which is not conventional reality. This verse is saying Turiya is something which can never come into conventional reality and thus it is Avyavaharika. The second bold word is Advaitam which implies Turiya is Non-dual.

Spark Sunshine
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