Letter to a Vedantist: On Mixing the Phenomenal World with Ultimate Reality

A Vedantist recently responded to my article, in which I questioned the existence of a metaphysical observer using the Buddha’s teaching of Anatta (no-Atman). In short, Anatta refutes both the existence of an individual self and a cosmic Self. The Buddhist monk-scholar Buddhaghosa states that there is no doer, sufferer, or experiencer. To address this reader’s concerns, I offer the following clarification:

Dear Emily,

Thank you for your thoughtful response. I appreciate your insights and your attempt to clarify the nature of awareness from an Advaita Vedanta perspective. I would like to offer some clarifications regarding the purpose of my article and the importance of distinguishing philosophical categories to avoid confusion.

The Issue with Quantum Mysticism

First, my article aimed to refute Quantum Mysticism, particularly the claim that quantum mechanics proves the existence of a cosmic, all-pervading consciousness. Many proponents of this view conflate Advaita Vedanta’s notion of Brahman with quantum physics, which I believe is a category mistake. Brahman, as traditionally understood, is beyond conceptualization and verbalization — hence the use of neti, neti (“not this, not that”). Attempting to fit it into the…