Virtue Ethics in Swami Vivekananda: A Novel Perspective on Vedanta

Abhishek Bandyopadhyay’s article ‘Virtue Ethics in Swami Vivekananda: A Novel Perspective on Vedanta’ begins with the Swami’s notable stance at the Parliament, where he uniquely championed the value of all faiths. Bandyopadhyay underscores Vivekananda’s emphasis on the phenomenological awareness of the non-dual (Advaita) as an ethical foundation. He notes that the Swami’s acceptance of the foundational non-dual is not in keeping with the traditional, nihilistic interpretation following from the great philosopher Shankaracharya according to which the world is cancelled (vadhita) the moment the realization dawns. The article delves into non-dualism as found in Tantra, as Vivekananda’s revered guru Sri Ramakrishna would emphatically assert the abiding, dynamic identity between the Primordial Energy of the universe, Shakti, or Prakriti, with Siva, the Primordial Passivity, or Purusha, comprising the other end, if we translate the concepts in the Tantra using the terminology in the Sankhya system. This identity is certainly contrary to the static non-dualism of the Shankarite kind. Having attained the coveted non-dualistic experience following the Shankarite tradition, as his guru did, Vivekananda took Advaita Vedanta to a dynamic direction, where the world remained, and would not disappear following the realization of non-dualism, waiting for service from the realized soul as needs arise. This certainly is a major contribution to the ancient thoughts in Indian Philosophy by Swami Vivekananda that seems to have escaped the attention of the philosophers of today. Bandyopadhyay mentions the relevance the Swami finds of the awareness of the non-dual to the ethical overtures of an agent. The author highlights a major contribution of the Swami to the Ethico-spiritual area in the Hindu tradition in continuation of his contributions to the Non-dual Vedanta, specifically as relating to care ethics.