Jivātman

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Jivātman (Skt., the ‘living-self’). The personal or individual soul as distinct from the paramātman, the ‘Supreme-self’. According to Advaita Vedānta, the distinction is only an apparent one. However, other schools of Indian philosophy, such as the Viśiṣṭādvaita-vedānta and the various devotional (bhakti) movements, affirm the reality of this distinction.