ESSAYS

Where did matter come from? Modern science claims consciousness arose from inert particles, but this leaves the “hard problem” unsolved: how can atoms think? Vedanta flips the question: matter is an appearance in consciousness, sustained by māyā. Why it appears at all is ultimately inscrutable.

Consciousness, according to Vedanta, is not an object to be discovered in the brain or a fleeting mental state—it is the ever-present, unchanging witness behind all experience.

Is science a threat to spiritual enlightenment? It all depends on how you define "consciousness."