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Can you explain the difference between God and atma according to the Bhagavad-Gita?

12.06.2025 08:09

Can you explain the difference between God and atma according to the Bhagavad-Gita?

Krishna sums the relationship up in two verses:-

Asti = being

Priyam = Love.

I see ugly guys dating gorgeous, "hot" women all the time. I, too, am not very attractive but I'm not doing well with the ladies. What's their secret?

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.

Advaita Vedānta - (Non-duality) God (Paramātma) and the individual Self (jīvātma) are one and the same = identical.

Visiṣṭhādvaita Vedānta - (Qualified non-duality) They are one but ontologically distinct, like a flower and its smell or like a picture and its pixels.

How can the citizens of Russia accept the enormous difference between people? The richest 500 Russians own more than the poorest 99.8% of the entire Russian population combined. Why don't we see any protests?

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:-

Bhāti = illumination - consciousness

What misfortune led to an important discovery?