Brahman is the most important word in Vedānta. And probably the most misunderstood. It is not a god, not an energy, not the universe. It is the reality that sustains all of these.
The Word Brahman
Brahman comes from the root "bṛh," meaning "great" or "that which expands without limit." Brahman is that which is infinite -- without boundaries, without beginning, without end.
Do not confuse it with Brahmā (the creator in mythology) or with brāhmaṇa (the social class). These are different words with different meanings.
What Vedānta Says about Brahman
The Upaniṣads define Brahman as sat-cit-ānanda:
Sat (existence): Brahman exists. It is not something that arose and may cease to exist. It is existence itself -- that because of which everything else exists.
Cit (consciousness): Brahman is conscious. Not consciousness of something -- pure consciousness, the capacity to illuminate all experience. Without consciousness, nothing can be known.
Ānanda (fullness): Brahman is complete. Nothing is missing, nothing is extra. Fullness is not pleasure -- it is the total absence of lack.
Brahman and the World
A natural question: if Brahman is everything, what is the world? Vedānta answers with the concept of mithyā -- the world is not separate from Brahman, but neither is it identical to Brahman in the way it appears.
The world is Brahman appearing as world, just as gold appears as different pieces of jewelry. The jewelry has name and form, but the substance is always gold.
Brahman and Ātman
The central revelation of Vedānta: Brahman and ātman are identical. The absolute reality and your innermost being are the same thing. Tat tvam asi -- "You are That."
This is not a belief. It is what the Upaniṣads reveal systematically, verse after verse, until understanding is established.
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