The VedÀnta has been rightly called the Finest Fruit of Indian Thought and the UpaniÈads as the Finer Flowers. VedÀnta grows out of the teachings of the  UpaniÈads and passes into the various systems in the writings of Œaôkara, BhÀskara, RÀmÀnuja, Madhva and Vallabha, the great founders of Advaita, BhedÀbheda,  ViœiÈÇÀdvaita, DvaitÀdvaita and ŒuddhÀdvaita, respectively. However, there is a perception among Orientalists that while the UpaniÈads favour the Monistic doctrine,  BÀdarÀyaõa’s BrahmasÂtra fundamentally opposes it on some of the most crucial points.  The book thus delves deep into the philosophies of both BÀdarÀyaõa and Œaôkara in enunciating the essential features of Brahman and Its association with the world. It thus discusses topics such as what sort of cause Brahman is?,  and what sort of material causality is to be ascribed to It? It also addresses the conflicting views on the nature of Brahman like that of VivarttavÀda and of RÀmÀnuja’s Saguõa-Brahman. This book proposes to take up the question of Universal Causation to examine thoroughly as how far it is right to regard Brahman  as the Universal Cause and how far sÂtrakÀra himself lent his support to each of the inter-conflicting schools of VedÀnta. This book should, therefore,  benefit all who are devoted to the philosophic teachings of Advaita VedÀnta and its preceptors.