Consider the following statements about the Vedanta philosophy: 1. Shankara was the founder of Advaita Vedanta. 2. The philosophy of Dvaita was elaborated by Madhva. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Statement 1 is correct as Adi Shankara (Shankaracharya) is the most renowned exponent and founder of the Advaita Vedanta school of philosophy [1]. He expounded the doctrine of non-dualism (Advaita) and the concept of Maya (illusion), rooting his teachings in the Upanishadic philosophy [1]. Statement 2 is also correct because the Dvaita or 'dualist' school of Vedanta was elaborated and established by Sri Madhvacharya (Madhva) in the 13th century [2]. Madhva argued for a fundamental difference between the individual self (atman) and the ultimate reality (brahman), categorizing reality into independent (svatantra) and dependent (paratantra) orders [2]. While Shankara emphasized the oneness of the soul and Brahman, Madhva's philosophy focused on personal theism and the distinctness of the soul from the divine. Thus, both statements accurately identify the primary figures associated with these two major schools of Vedanta.

Sources

1. [1] History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 9: Cultural Development in South India > Advent of Adi Sankara > p. 131
2. [2] https://www.britannica.com/biography/Shankara