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Since the first Millennium AD (the time of the Muslim invasions into South-Asia) many religious leaders in India established and propagated
different schools of Vishnuism. These schools, basing on a very emotional devotion towards the god Vishnuand his incarnations, had one thing in common: They were all opposed to Shankara’s concept of kevaladvaita.
To Shankara’s (788-820 AD) opinion, world was a mere illusion (maya), and god (brahma), as the only and highest truth, created world out of himself and ruled it. The individual souls (jiva) worshipped brahma as their master and as the only means of salvation.
One of the most important schools of Vishnuism of that era was founded by Ramanuja (1017-1137AD). Up to the present time this particular school has many followers in South-India. Ramanuja, formerly being a follower of Shankara, adopted under the influence of the Alvars (prophet) and acaryas (master, teacher), the ideas of Vishnuism and finally became an ardent opponent of Shankara’s 'absolute monism' (kevaladvaita).
He wrote many comments to the holy scriptures (Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas), denying the kevaladvaita and replacing the 'absolute monism' by a 'qualified monism' (vishishtadvaita).
According to this, god creates universe periodically out of himself, the individual souls (jiva) and the material world (prakriti) being real and 'qualifying' god, as long as world exists. God is not
only their material cause, he is also penetrating and guiding them. Jiva and prakriti are understood as his 'attributes', becoming absorbed in times of cyclical destruction, being then existent only in a subtle form. This concept is based on the conviction, that Vishnu is the only eternal god, and that the only means of salvation is through the loving devotion towards Vishnu,
basing on an intimate relationship between god and individual soul.
R.K. Sundararajan, a professor of theology and profound knower of Indian philosophy and religion, analyzes in his article the different concepts of Vedanta, focusing on Ramanuja's vishishtadvaita and his understanding of 'self-consciousness'. In a very sophisticated way he reveals the main concepts of the ontological principles: Brahman, atman and prakriti and demonstrates, considering the concept of Shankara, their mutual relationship.
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