Dictionary of Philosophy of Religion

SHAME

214

overriding theistic understanding of
God as a beneficent creator, united ethics
and aesthetics. His works include Charac-
teristics of Men, Manners, Opinions, and
Times (1711), Soliloquy: or, Advice to an
Author (1710), and Speeches of the Earl
of Shaftesbury in Glasgow, August 1871
(1871).

SHAME. A feeling or emotion of embar-
rassment, dishonor, or a sense of regretta-
ble failure. Shame need not be due to a
moral failure for which one is personally
responsible. So, while one may feel guilt
as well as shame, a person can feel shame
without feeling guilt. For example, a per-
son may feel shame about being small of
stature, but not feel guilty over his or her
size. See also GUILT.

SHANKARA (a.k.a. Śan ̇ kara Bhaga-
vatpādācārya or Ādi Śan ̇ karācārya) (c.
788–820 CE). Shankara was the most
influential proponent of the Advaita
Ve d a n t a school of Hinduism. He was born
in Kalady (in the southwestern Indian
state of Kerala) and reportedly mastered
the Vedas by the age of eight. He became a
sannyasin (itinerant holy man) and trav-
elled to North India, where he became
a disciple of Govinda Bhagavatpada.
Shankara travelled throughout India,
preaching Advaita and debating with phi-
losophers of opposing schools of thought.
Drawing mainly upon the Upanishads,
the Brahma Sutras, and the Bhagavad

Gita, Shankara taught the unity of the

infinite and indivisible Brahman and

atman (the self ). Since Brahman is the

only ontological reality, the world does

not have a separate or independent

existence from Brahman. The essence of

Shankara’s interpretation is that Brahman

is everything. While the Vedas, as shruti

(revealed texts), are the ultimate source

of knowledge, Shankara understands

liberation to mean the direct and imme-

diate understanding, with the help of

the Vedas, of the identity of atman and

Brahman. He opposed the ritualistic

Mimamsa school and accorded impor-

tance to the wisdom teachings of the

Upanishads (final sections of the Vedas).

He founded four monasteries (mathas)

for the dissemination of the teachings

of Advaita. His works include commen-

taries (Bhashyas) on the Upanishads, the

Brahma Sutras, and the Bhagavad Gita,

in addition to a philosophical treatise

(Upadeshasahasri) and devotional hymns.

SHINTOISM. Shintoism or Shinto, from

the Sino-Japanese shin (gods) and tō (way

or dao) refers to the indigenous religion

that existed in Japan before the introduc-

tion of Buddhism and has coexisted with

Buddhism to the present. It originated

as a form of prehistoric animism and

polytheism, emcompassing the worship

of spirits representing different phenom-

ena of nature and ancestors of clans.

Eventually local religious cults were inte-

grated with mythology. The Sun Goddess