Ishvara () is a concept in Hinduism, with a wide range of meanings that depend on the era and the school of Hinduism.Monier Monier Williams, Sanskrit-English dictionary, Search for Izvara , University of Cologne, Germany In ancient texts of Hindu philosophy, depending on the context, Ishvara can mean lord, ruler, king, husband, queen, soul or the Supreme Self (Paramatman). In medieval-era Hindu texts, depending on the school of Hinduism, Ishvara means God, Supreme Being, personal God, or special Self. In Shaivism, Ishvara is an epithet of Shiva.James Lochtefeld, "Ishvara", The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Vol. 1: A–M, Rosen Publishing. , page 306 In Vaishnavism, it is synonymous with Vishnu, like in his epithet of Venkateswara. In traditional Bhakti movements, Ishvara is one or more deities of an individual's preference (Iṣṭa-devatā) from Hinduism's polytheistic canon of deities. In modern-day sectarian movements like Arya Samaj and Brahmoism, Ishvara takes the form of a monotheistic God.RK Pruthi (2004), Arya Samaj and Indian Civilization, , pages 5–6, 48–49 In the Yoga school of Hinduism, it is any "personal deity" or "spiritual inspiration". In Advaita Vedanta, Ishvara is the manifested form of Brahman (Saguna brahman).
Etymology The root of the word Ishvara comes from ( ) meaning "capable of" and "owner, ruler, chief of".Arthur Anthony Macdonell (2004), A Practical Sanskrit Dictionary, Motilal Banarsidass, , page 47 The second part of the word Ishvara is ( ), which means depending on context, "best, excellent, beautiful", "choice, wish, blessing, boon, gift", and "suitor, lover, one who solicits a girl in marriage".Arthur Anthony Macdonell (2004), A Practical Sanskrit Dictionary, Motilal Banarsidass, , page 270 The composite word, Ishvara literally means "owner of best, beautiful", "ruler of choices, blessings, boons", or "chief of suitor, lover".
As a concept, Ishvara in ancient and medieval Sanskrit texts variously means a ruler or king, a husband, God, Supreme Being, Supreme Self, Shiva, the god of love, one of the Rudras and the number 'eleven'.Apte Sanskrit-English dictionary, Search for Izvara , University of Cologne, Germany
The word Īśvara does not appear in Rigveda. However, the verb īś- does appear in Rigveda, where the context suggests that the meaning of it is "capable of, able to".Madhav Deshpande (1991), Sense and Syntax in Vedic (Editors: Joel Brereton and Stephenie Jamison), Volumes 4–5, Brill, , pages 23–27 It is absent in Samaveda, is rare in Atharvaveda, but it appears in Samhitas of Yajurveda. The contextual meaning, however as the ancient Indian grammarian Pāṇini explains, is neither god nor supreme being.
The word Ishvara appears in numerous ancient Dharmasutras. However, there Ishvara does not mean God, but means Vedas. Ishvara in Dharmasutras could alternatively mean king, with the context literally asserting that the Dharmasutras are as important as Ishvara (the king) on matters of public importance".Patrick Olivelle (2006), Between the Empires : Society in India 300 BCE to 400 CE: Society in India, Oxford University Press, , page 176
The term is used as part of the compounds Maheshvara ("The Great Lord") and Parameshvara ("The Supreme Lord") as the names of Vishnu and Shiva. In Mahayana Buddhism it is used as part of the compound "Avalokiteśvara" ("lord who hears the cries of the world", but see etymology section there), the name of a bodhisattva revered for his compassion. When referring to divine as female, particularly in Shaktism, the feminine Ishvari is sometimes used.
In Advaita Vedanta school, Ishvara is a monistic Universal Absolute that connects and is the Oneness in everyone and everything.Lance Nelson (1996), Living liberation in Shankara and classical Advaita, in Living Liberation in Hindu Thought (Editors: Andrew O. Fort, Patricia Y. Mumme), State University of New York Press, , pages 38–39, 59 (footnote 105)
Schools of thought
Among the six systems of Hindu philosophy, Samkhya and Mimāmsa do not consider the concept of Ishvara (i.e., a supreme being) relevant. Yoga, Vaisheshika, Vedanta and Nyaya schools of Hinduism discuss Ishvara, but assign different meanings.
Ishvara is a metaphysical concept in the Yogasutras.Michele Marie Desmarais (2008), Changing Minds: Mind, Consciousness And Identity in Patanjali's Yoga-Sutra, Motilal Banarsidass, , page 131 The book does not mention a specific deity or describe any devotional practices (Bhakti), nor does it provide characteristics of Ishvara typically associated with a deity. In the Yoga school of Hinduism, states Ian Whicher, a professor of religion at the University of Manitoba, Ishvara is neither a creator God nor the universal Absolute of Advaita Vedanta. Whicher also notes that some theistic sub-schools of Vedantic philosophy of Hinduism, inspired by the Yoga school, explain the term Ishvara as the "Supreme Being that rules over the cosmos and the individuated beings".Ian Whicher, The Integrity of the Yoga Darsana, State University of New York press, , pages 82–86 Angelika Malinar, a professor of Indian studies at the University of Zurich, too, writes that, among the Samkhya-Yoga schools of Hinduism, Ishvara is neither a creator God nor a salvific God.A Malinar (2014), Current Approaches: Articles on Key Themes, in The Bloomsbury Companion to Hindu Studies (Editor: Jessica Frazier), Bloomsbury Academic, , page 79
Bhakti sub-schools refer to Ishvara as a divine lord or the specified deity of the Bhakti sub-school.Zimmer (1951), Philosophies of India, Reprinted by Routledge in 2008, , pages 242–243, 309–311 Some contemporary sectarian movements have emphasised Ishvara as a supreme lord—for example, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness theology is monotheistic, with Krishna being the universe's supreme divinity.Karel Werner (1997), A Popular Dictionary of Hinduism, Routledge, , page 54 In traditional theistic sub-schools of Hinduism, such as the Vishishtadvaita of Ramanuja and Dvaita of Madhva, Ishvara is identified as Vishnu and/or Narayana, who is distinct from the prakṛti (material world) and purusha (Self).
The diversity in interpretations of Ishvara aligns with theistic Hinduism's notion of a personal God.Radhakrishnan and Moore (1967, Reprinted 1989), A Source Book in Indian Philosophy, Princeton University Press, , pages 37–39, 401–403, 498–503 Thus, Hinduisms also allow practicing individuals choice in their conceptualisations of Ishvara, whether that be in the form of a specific deity or the formless Brahman of ultimate reality.Mircea Eliade (2009), Yoga: Immortality and Freedom, Princeton University Press, , pages 73–76Dale Riepe (1961, Reprinted 1996), Naturalistic Tradition in Indian Thought, Motilal Banarsidass, , pages 177–184, 208–215RC Zaehner (1975), Our savage god: The perverse use of eastern thought, , pages 69–72R.C. Zaehner (1966), Hinduism, Oxford University Press, 1980 edition: pages 126–129, Reprinted in 1983 as
In Samkhya
Samkhya is commonly considered an atheistic school of Hindu philosophy.Lloyd Pflueger, Person Purity and Power in Yogasutra, in Theory and Practice of Yoga (Editor: Knut Jacobsen), Motilal Banarsidass, , pages 38–39Mikel Burley (2012), Classical Samkhya and Yoga – An Indian Metaphysics of Experience, Routledge, , page 39Richard Garbe (2013), Die Samkhya-Philosophie, Indische Philosophie Volume 11, , pages 25–27 (in German) However, some, such as Norwegian scholar Knut A. Jacobsen, consider Samkhya to be more accurately described as a form of nontheism.Knut Jacobsen (2008), Theory and Practice of Yoga: 'Essays in Honour of Gerald James Larson, Motilal Banarsidass, , pages 15–16 Still others, including State University of New York Indologist and professor Andrew J. Nicholson, argue that Samkhya was originally theistic but transitioned to atheism during the Middle Ages. Ishvara as a being is occasionally affirmed—but more often denied—in the Samkhya school.Knut Jacobsen (2008), Theory and Practice of Yoga: 'Essays in Honour of Gerald James Larson, Motilal Banarsidass, , pages 76–77 For example, arguments are advanced in the Samkhya Pravachana Sutra and its commentaries against the existence of Ishvara, chiefly that a being that is both a creator and free cannot exist.Andrew J. Nicholson (2017), 'Refuting Vedantic Theism in the Samkhya-Sutra' in The Oxford Handbook of Indian Philosophy, ed. Jonardon Ganeri, Oxford University Press , pages 598–622
In Yoga
The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, the foundational text of the Yoga school of Hinduism, uses the term Ishvara in 11 verses: I.23–I.29, II.1, II.2, II.32 and II.45. Since the Sutras were compiled, Hindu scholars have debated the identity and purpose of Ishvara, with beliefs ranging from Ishvara-as-"personal god" to it being "special Self", and to "anything that has spiritual significance to the individual".Hariharānanda Āraṇya (2007), Parabhaktisutra, Aporisms on Sublime Devotion, (Translator: A Chatterjee), in Divine Hymns with Supreme Devotional Aphorisms, Kapil Math Press, Kolkata, pages 55-93; Hariharānanda Āraṇya (2007), Eternally Liberated Isvara and Purusa Principle, in Divine Hymns with Supreme Devotional Aphorisms, Kapil Math Press, Kolkata, pages 126–129 Whicher explains that while Patanjali's terse verses can be interpreted both as theistic or nontheistic, the compiler's concept of Ishvara in Yogic philosophy functions as a "transformative catalyst or guide for aiding the yogin on the path to spiritual emancipation".Ian Whicher (1999), The Integrity of the Yoga Darsana: A Reconsideration of Classical Yoga, State University of New York Press, , page 86
Patanjali defines Ishvara (Sanskrit: ईश्वर) in verse 24 of Book 1 as "a special Self (पुरुषविशेष, puruṣa-viśeṣa)",
– Yoga Sutras I.24
This sutra adds the characteristics of Ishvara as the special Self which is unaffected (अपरामृष्ट, aparamrsta) by one's obstacles/hardships (क्लेश, klesha), one's circumstances created by past or one's current actions (कर्म, karma), one's life fruits (विपाक, vipâka), and one's psychological dispositions/intentions (आशय, ashaya).aparAmRSTa , kleza, karma, vipaka and ashaya ; Sanskrit English Dictionary, Koeln University, GermanyLloyd Pflueger (2008), Person Purity and Power in Yogasutra, in Theory and Practice of Yoga (Editor: Knut Jacobsen), Motilal Banarsidass, , pages 31–45
Patanjali's concept of Ishvara is neither as a creator God nor the universal Absolute of Advaita Vedanta.Knut Jacobsen (2008), Theory and Practice of Yoga: 'Essays in Honour of Gerald James Larson, Motilal Banarsidass, , page 77
In Vaisesika