The Devotional Metaphysics of Śaṅkaradeva (1449–1568): The Advaitic Brahman as the Beloved Friend

Compared to the rich literature that exists on the classical triumvirate of Śaṅkara, Rāmānuja, and Madhva, as well as the ongoing modernised transformations of these Vedāntic streams, the body of scholarly works on the metaphysical and theological reformulations of the Vedāntic sources in the late medieval centuries remains relatively insignificant. Certain contemporary readings of the Vedāntic traditions present the interiorised apprehension of the transcendental self (jñāna) and the devotional love of the supremely personal Lord (bhakti) as sharply opposed. However, as we will see, various forms of Advaita Vedānta as well as devotional Vedānta developed during the medieval centuries diverse hermeneutic strategies of positioning and repositioning jñāna and bhakti in their own conceptual-soteriological systems. These Vedāntic systems do not place jñāna and bhakti in hermetically sealed compartments but interweave them from within their distinctive metaphysical structures. Our discussion of the Assamese poet-saint Śaṅkaradeva (1449–1568) will highlight these broader themes in the reception histories of the Vedāntic materials. Śaṅkaradeva developed a distinctive pattern of devotional metaphysics rooted primarily in the Bhāgavata-purāṇa, where the ultimate reality, which is indicated with highly characteristic Advaitic analogies, is also repeatedly described as the beloved friend who lovingly protects the devotees and who even becomes subservient to them. Perhaps not surprisingly, a major point of contention in the contemporary literature on Śaṅkaradeva, in Assamese, Bengali, and Hindi, relates to whether he should be classified as an Advaitin or as a follower of Rāmānuja’s theological system.