A Study of Maya and Avidya Concepts within Vedanta System


Cicek Avci H.

DINBILIMLERI AKADEMIK ARASTIRMA DERGISI-JOURNAL OF ACADEMIC RESEARCH IN RELIGIOUS SCIENCES, vol.19, no.1, pp.89-105, 2019 (ESCI) identifier

Abstract

This study will include maya concept that has different meanings such as magic, sorcery, creative power, delusion, illusion in Vedanta, one of the Indian Orthodox Disciplines. In addition to Maya, the concept of avidya, which is sometimes used instead of it, which prevents the individual from realizing the truth and which is defined as ignorance, will be also analyzed. The role of Maya and avidya in the liberation and freedom of the individual, the meanings expressed by Maya in Indian scriptures, the place and importance of the Maya concept in Vedanta Discipline are the main subjects of the study. The aim of this study is to briefly examine the domain of Maya, which is one of the most -serving individual boundedness-, and to question its place in the Indian belief. The widely-accepted features of these two concepts are that they both carry negative characteristics and prevent the individual to reach freedom and salvation.