Adi Shankara (c. 788 – 820 AD) was the first philosopher to consolidate the doctrine of Advaita Vedanta, a sub-school of Vedanta. His teachings are based on the unity of the soul and God, in which God is viewed as simultaneously personal and attributeless. In the Smārta tradition, Adi Shankara is regarded as an incarnation of Shiva. Adi Shankara toured India with the purpose of propagating his teachings through discourses and debates with other philosophers. He founded four mathas which played a key role in the historical development and spread of Hinduism and Advaita Vedanta. Adi Shankara was the founder of the Dashanami monastic order and the Shanmata tradition of worship. His works in Sanskrit, all of which are extant today, concern themselves with establishing the doctrine of Advaita (Sanskrit, "Non-dualism"). Adi Shankara quotes extensively from the Upanishads and other Hindu scriptures in forming his teachings. He also includes polemics against opposing schools of thought like Samkhya and Buddhism in his works.
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_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
3761 BCE: The epoch of the modern Hebrew calendar. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebrew_calendar)
1571: The Ottoman Empire was decisively defeated by the Christian West for the first time, as a multinational fleet led by Don John of Austria crushed the Turkish navy near the Gulf of Corinth in the Battle of Lepanto. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Lepanto_(1571))
1949: The German Democratic Republic was proclaimed in East Berlin. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_Democratic_Republic)
1985: The Mediterranean ocean liner Achille Lauro was hijacked by Palestine Liberation Front terrorists while sailing from Alexandria to Port Said. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achille_Lauro)
2003: California recall: Californians voted to recall Governor Gray Davis from office and elected Arnold Schwarzenegger from a list of 135 candidates. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_recall_election%2C_2003)
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