Can you explain the difference between God and atma according to the Bhagavad-Gita?
Last Updated: 23.06.2025 01:14
Visiṣṭhādvaita Vedānta - (Qualified non-duality) They are one but ontologically distinct, like a flower and its smell or like a picture and its pixels.
Advaita Vedānta - (Non-duality) God (Paramātma) and the individual Self (jīvātma) are one and the same = identical.
Krishna sums the relationship up in two verses:-
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Asti = being
Dvaita Vedānta - (Duality) God and the individual Self are absolutely distinct and separate.
One may ask which of these three views is correct - well each school argues its case in depth and prolixity. The summary and take away information is that Param-ātma and jīvātma are intimately and inseparably related to each other and share three qualities:-
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Priyam = Love.
Bhāti = illumination - consciousness
So these verses affirm the identity of God and the Individual Self and there are three views according to the three major schools of Vedānta.