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This thesis analyzes the metaphysical interpretations of Shankara and René Guénon and the methods they promote regarding spiritual realization. Shankara was an 8th-century Indian spiritual teacher whose method and teachings were associated with Advaita Vedanta, a philosophic tradition originating from Upanishadic texts. René Guénon (1886 -1951) was a French philosopher who pioneered the Traditionalist school of thought. Guénon’s interpretation of reality argued an all-pervading unitive metaphysic principle that shares notable similarities with Shankara’s Advaita Vedanta. Through comparative exegesis, this thesis demonstrates that Shankara and Guénon share significant parallels in certain aspects, such as their conceptualization of ultimate reality and their views on the role of the guru. Additionally, this analysis reveals stark contrasts found among their works, such as their differing emphasis on theory and their views on initiation and lineage. In addition to analyzing their interpretations of reality, this study offers insights into Shankara and Guénon’s respective lives and unique positions in history. The intention of this thesis is to contribute to a deeper understanding of the similarities and differences between Shankara and René Guénon and provide valuable insights into their approaches to spiritual realization and how they conceptualize reality.

Příspěvek je představením autorova doktorandského výzkumu, jehož teore-tickým zázemím je program Komparativní studium kultur. Jednou z hlavních teorií tohoto programu je, že dosavadní poznání indické kultury je závislé na křesťanském světonázoru. Autor testuje tuto teorii studiem zá-padního porozumění raného buddhismu, avšak jelikož se jedná o široké té-ma, v příspěvku se zaměří na předpokládanou hlavní doktrínu buddhismu: nauku o anátmanu. Hlavní otázka příspěvku tedy je: Jak čeští autoři od konce 19. století po současnost rozumí pojmu anátman? Autor ukáže, že na přelomu 19. a 20. století byl pojem átman překládán křesťanskými koncep-ty duch a duše, což se projevilo také na porozumění tohoto pojmu. V průběhu 20. století však pozorujeme příklon k neteologickému termínu já. Znamená tato změna také odklon od teologického porozumění indického pojmu, nebo se jedná o změnu pouze na úrovni terminologie?, The paper is an introduction to author’s doctoral research guided by Com-parative Study of Cultures program. One of the main theories of the pro-gram is that existing understanding of Indian culture depends on Christian-theological framework. The author tests the theory by studying western re-ception of early Buddhism but, since the topic is so broad the paper shall focus on supposed main doctrine of Buddhism: anatman. Hence, the main question is formulated as follows: What is an understanding of anatman by Czech authors since the end of 19th century until today? The author shall show how the term atman was translated by theological conceptions spirit and soul and how this move effected an understanding of the term. During 20th century a shift is observed: atman is translated by non-theological con-cept self. Does this shift entail a change in understanding of the term or does it lie only on the level of terminology?

Praśna upanišad ili Upanišad pitanja i odgovora prikazuje razgovor šestorice mudrih učenika sa premudrim Pipaladom. Cilj njihove posete je sticanje najvišeg znanja, koje može da ih izbavi od kruga ponovnih rađanja. Dijalog je podeljen u šest celina, a svaka predstavlja pitanje jednog od Pipaladinih posetilaca. Njihov razgovor se odnosi na stvaranje sveta, fiziologiju i psihologiju čoveka, aktivnost uma tokom spavanja, posmrtnu sudbinu ljudi, osobine živototvornog daha i drugo. Čitalac se neprimetno kreće između razmatranja principa makrokosmosa i mikrokosmosa, upoznajući se, istovremeno, sa osnovnim načelima upanišadske misli. Ova upanišad se datira krajem prvog veka pre naše ere ili početkom naše ere. Prema izboru filozofa Śankare, smatra se jednom od glavnih upanišadi. Nakon prevoda svakog od šest pitanja nalaze se kraće primedbe, koje treba da služe kao pomoć čitaocu.

Breve comentario reflexivo sobre el impacto de la pandemia en la cultura contemporánea, desde un punto de vista filosófico., Brief reflective commentary on the impact of the pandemic on contemporary culture, from a philosophical point of view.

Brief reflective commentary on the impact of the pandemic on contemporary culture, from a philosophical point of view., Breve comentario reflexivo sobre el impacto de la pandemia en la cultura contemporánea, desde un punto de vista filosófico.

Robert Browning is a positive poet among the great poets of the Victorian age. He is an optimistic, moralist and religious instructor. He occupies a unique place in English Literature. He seeks optimism in any situation of life by preaching universality of soul and advocacy of God. In his poems, Religion holds a prominent place, and religious teachings get expression in a commendable manner. Religion is subject dear to Browning's heart, and several of his poems deal with the theme of religion Faith in God and immortality of the soul. Besides, staunch faith in godly ways and equally profound faith in the earnest endeavour are the salient features of Browning’s philosophy of life. His famous poem Rabbi Ben Ezra is an epitome of Browning’s philosophy. In many of his poems, we encounter the matching ideas of Vedas and Upanishads. He says that God is everywhere, and we need to seek Him. He is a believer in the immortality of the soul and life after death.

This research article is about Siddhartha’s journey towards salvation and his efforts to leave behind his self. It also throws light on the segments of his life, the various roles he plays in his journey to ward off self. Siddhartha is a tale of a Brahman who is thirsty for wisdom as what he learns and taught proves to be inadequate to him. The titular protagonist has many unanswered questions and unsolved mysteries in his mind which he slowly begins to understand in the due course of life. In the journey of life he takes up various roles, and also learns to approach and appreciate life for what it is.

By accepting the fact of creation and Brahman as the creator, Rāmānuja has to face the seemingly insoluble problem that the human being has raised through his turbulent history. The problem of compatibility of an infinite, perfect, eternal, immutable, creative creator, and a finite, imperfect, temporal and mutable creature. That is why in an imperfect world and by nature mutable and perishable, man has always sought Something or Someone perfect, immutable and permanent that gives meaning to life. What is the relationship between the Creator and the creature? And the answer, for Rāmānuja, is in the discovery that, at the heart of all imperfection, of every mutation, of all destruction, there is something perfect, immutable, imperishable. Something, in the end, that gives meaning to our life as creatures, and this something is the very Creator, who is not only not far from the creature, but is the immovable core of his being, as the true imperishable Soul of his limited ontological reality. In India, this permanent host of every creature has always been known as the Ātman, Brahman, the Spirit who dwells in all beings from the first moment of his existence, and who, being different from everything, ontologically distinct from man, is Present in everything, guiding everything from within, to the final reunion with Him., Al aceptar el hecho de la creación y a Brahman como el creador, Rāmānuja tiene que enfrentarse al problema, aparentemente insoluble, que el ser humano se ha planteado a través de su turbulenta historia; la compatibilidad de un Ser infinito, perfecto, eterno, inmutable, creador, y una criatura finita, imperfecta, temporal y mutable, por eso en un mundo imperfecto y por naturaleza mutable y perecedero, el hombre ha buscado siempre Algo o Alguien perfecto, inmutable y permanente que dé sentido a la vida. ¿Qué relación hay entre el Creador y la criatura? Y la respuesta, para Rāmānuja, está en el descubrimiento de que, en el corazón de toda imperfección, de toda mutación, de toda destrucción, hay Algo perfecto, inmutable, imperecedero. Algo, en fin, que da sentido a nuestra vida como criaturas, y este algo es el mismísimo Creador, que no solo no está lejos de la criatura, sino que es el núcleo inamovible de su ser, como verdadera Alma imperecedera de su limitada realidad ontológica. En la India, este permanente huésped de toda criatura ha sido siempre conocido como el Ātman, Brahman, el Espíritu que mora en todos los seres desde el primer instante de su existencia, y que, siendo distinto de todo, distinto ontológicamente del hombre, está presente en todo, guiándolo todo desde dentro, hacia el reencuentro final con Él.

Manuel d'hindouisme incluant l'histoire à partir de l'époque védique jusqu'à nos jours, une présentation de la littérature brahmanique, les principales doctrines et leur évolution jusqu'à nos jours.

Brève présentation du courant indien de l'Advaita-Vedânta non dualiste selon Shankara, qui s'inspire des Upanishads anciennes. Illustré par des extraits de textes de Shankara et de Swami Tandavaraya.

Ve své práci jsem se zaměřila na rozdíly a problémy v interpretacích, které vznikají při přenášení obsahů jedné kulturní tradice do kulturního rámce tradice jiné, značně odlišné. Na konkrétním případě staroindických upanišad argumentuji to, jak jsou badatelé, kteří usilují o věrné tlumočení těchto obsahů, ovlivněni a limitováni rámcem doby a společnosti, ve které žijí. Porovnání významů původních sanskrtských pojmů v upanišadách a jejich překladů do západních jazyků je dokladem toho, jak chápe naše západní tradice, založená na křesťanství, tradice indické., I focused in my work on differencess and problems in interpretations that appear in transfering the content of one culture tradition into the frame of another tradition, quite dissimilar. I used the specific case of the ancient Upanishads to show, how the scholars, that trying to interpret these contents truly are influeded by the specifics of their time and society they live in. The comparison of the original sanskrit terms in the Upanishads and their translations into western languages are the proof of how our western tradition, which is based on Christianism , understands the traditions of India., Katedra religionistiky, 1) Čtení posudků 2) Obhajoba studentky, Dokončená práce s úspěšnou obhajobou

After having pointed to the different religious concepts of the origin of evil, the author focuses on the discussion of Hinduism as a typical paradigm of monism. Since the Indian deities are actually manifestations of the eternal arch principle, they contain within themselves the unity of opposites, i.e. they have both light and dark side. Evil which affects an individual is interpreted as sinning against the universal cosmic and moral order. The doctrine that man’s destiny is determined by one’s deeds in the previous incarnations is almost widely accepted in India. The idea of karma at the same time provides the cosmic justice and releases God from the responsibility for evil in the world. The impersonal law of karma also has the educational purpose. The whole world derived from the brahman and under the process of evolution. Through the numerous lives and the different experiences, suffering from the consequences of one’s own behavior, an individual learn from the spiritual lessons. In the times of the cosmic crises, when evil prevails in the world, Vishnu incarnates in the figure of avatar to win over evil and to restore the blocked evolution. Although evil is defeated, it still cannot be entirely uprooted from the physical world. The salvation for man is possible only after dissolving personal ego and, having enlightened oneself, transcends to the sphere of dualism.

Den här undersökningen har visat att reinkarnationstanken finns inom ett flertal olika religioner. De religioner jag har tagit upp är Aboriginerna, några afrikanska religioner (Bambara, Benin, Edo, Yoruba, Evéerna, Igbo, Zulu), Antroposofi, Asatro, Buddhism, Cao Dai, Druser, Hare Krishna, Hinduism, Jainism, New Age, Scientologi, Taoism, Teosofi, Transcendental Meditation och Wicca. Jag hittade även andra religioner där reinkarnationstanken ingår men på grund av tidsbrist så hann jag inte sätta mig in i dessa. Begreppet karma återfinns i nästan hälften av de religioner jag har tagit upp i min undersökning. De religioner där karma ingår är: Antroposofi, Buddhism, Cao Dai, Hare Krishna, Hinduism, Jainism, New Age, Transcendental Meditation och Wicca. De har alla rötter i den indiska religiösa traditionen, förutom kanske Wicca. Även andra begrepp var gemensamma för några religioner. Ett är begreppet samsara som används av flera religioner, Hinduismen, Jainismen och TM. Det andra begreppet är nirvana, som används av buddhisterna och jainisterna. Det är vissa skillnader när det gäller vad som händer med människor efter döden. Det är fascinerande att människor har så skilda uppfattningar om livet efter döden och hur och om våra gärningar påverkar nästa liv. Det som är gemensamt är just detta att de flesta som tror på reinkarnation faktiskt tror att våra handlingar i detta liv påverkar de kommande liven eller det kommande livet. Det är också intressant att se skillnaderna i hur många liv vi kommer att leva, det spänner från fjorton liv till all evighet. Den mest intressanta skillnaden som jag hittade var Bambaras tro på att de kan bli gudomliga redan i detta liv och att de har som mål att återfödas i all evighet. Det är väldigt fascinerande och intressant eftersom de flesta religioner i undersökningen faktiskt strävar efter att slippa återfödas och få leva i en gudomlig tillvaro i himlen medan Bambara strävar efter en gudomlig tillvaro på jorden som levande människor till s