---
type: Concept
bundle: upanishadic-core
bundle_version: "0.6.0"
id: jivanmukti
title: "Jīvanmukti"
iast: "Jīvanmukti"
devanagari: "जीवन्मुक्ति"
description: "Liberation while living — the Advaita Vedānta position that complete liberation from Avidyā (ignorance) and its results is possible while the body still functions; the Jīvanmukta has recognized the non-dual nature of the Ātman and continues to operate in the world without being bound by it; not enlightenment in the Buddhist sense, not a permanent altered state, not moral perfection"
darshana:
  - Advaita Vedānta
  - Vedānta
school_scope: "Specific to Advaita Vedānta and some schools of Sāṃkhya-Yoga; Dvaita Vedānta does not accept the possibility of liberation before the death of the body; the Jīvanmukti doctrine is elaborated most fully in the Jīvanmuktiviveka (Vidyāraṇya) and Vivekacūḍāmaṇi (Śaṅkara)"
text_source: "Vivekacūḍāmaṇi vv. 428–570; Jīvanmuktiviveka (Vidyāraṇya); Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad 4.4.6"
tags: [jivanmukti, liberation, advaita, jnana, videhamukti, moksha, mukta]
not:
  - term: "enlightenment (Buddhist bodhi/nirvāṇa)"
    why: "Buddhist liberation (Bodhi, Nirvāṇa) is understood differently depending on the school — generally involving the cessation of craving (taṇhā), the dissolution of the illusion of a permanent self (anātman), and the ending of the cycle of rebirth. Jīvanmukti in Advaita involves the recognition of the non-dual Ātman as Brahman — not the dissolution of self but the recognition of its true (unlimited) nature. The two paths differ on what is discovered and what is dissolved."
    instead: "Read Jīvanmukti as liberation through Brahma-jñāna — the recognition 'I am Brahman' — not through the cessation of self but through the recognition that the apparent limited self was always the unlimited Brahman"
  - term: "a permanent altered state of consciousness"
    why: "If Jīvanmukti were a state, it would imply the Jīvanmukta is always in a high meditative absorption or samādhi — unable to function normally, always blissed out. The Vivekacūḍāmaṇi's description of the Sthitaprajña (person of stable wisdom, from the Bhagavad Gītā) and the Jīvanmukta describes someone who functions normally in the world — eats, sleeps, acts — but without being bound by the results of action or by the ego-identification. The change is in identity, not in state."
  - term: "moral perfection or sinlessness"
    why: "The Jīvanmukta is not described as someone who never makes errors. The Prārabdha Karma (the portion of past karma that has already begun to bear fruit, producing this current body) continues to operate. The Jīvanmukta may still experience Prārabdha-driven emotions and situations. The liberation is from bondage to the results — from the Jīva's sense of being the doer (Kartṛtva) and enjoyer (Bhoktṛtva) — not from the physical appearance of experience."
  - term: "the same as videhamukti (liberation at death)"
    why: "Advaita distinguishes Jīvanmukti (liberation while embodied) from Videhamukti (liberation upon the dissolution of the body). The Jīvanmukta has the knowledge already — the liberation is complete — but the Prārabdha body continues. On the exhaustion of Prārabdha, the body drops and Videhamukti occurs. The knowledge is the same in both; the distinction is whether the body continues as a Prārabdha vehicle or not."
related:
  - /concepts/videhamukti.md
  - /concepts/turiya.md
  - /concepts/brahmabhavana.md
  - /concepts/nididhyasana.md
  - /concepts/sakshin.md
timestamp: "2026-07-01"
okf_version: "0.2"
license: "CC BY-SA 4.0"
---

# Jīvanmukti — जीवन्मुक्ति

**Not:** Buddhist enlightenment, a permanent altered state, moral perfection, the same as Videhamukti

## Etymology

Jīvan (जीवन्) = while living (present participle of jīv, to live); Mukti (मुक्ति) = liberation, release (from muc, to release). Jīvanmukti = liberation while living. The compound makes the Advaita claim explicit: release from Saṃsāra does not require the death of the body.

## The Advaita Claim

The standard Hindu view (shared by several traditions) is that Mokṣa occurs when the individual soul leaves the body and is not reborn — the cessation of Saṃsāra through the end of bodily existence. Advaita's distinctive position is stronger: because the root of bondage is Avidyā (ignorance), and Avidyā is terminated by Jñāna (knowledge), and Jñāna can arise while the body is functioning — liberation is possible before physical death.

The argument from Karma: Karma is of three types:
- **Sañcita Karma**: accumulated past Karma not yet ripening — burned up by Jñāna
- **Āgāmin Karma**: new Karma that would have been accumulated going forward — the Jñānī no longer accumulates new binding Karma (because the sense of doership — Kartṛtva — is dissolved)
- **Prārabdha Karma**: the portion of past Karma already in motion producing this body — continues until exhausted

Jñāna destroys Sañcita and prevents Āgāmin. Prārabdha continues — this is why the Jīvanmukta has a body and experiences the world. The body's continuation is the continuation of Prārabdha Karma working itself out; it does not indicate incomplete liberation.

## The Jīvanmukta's Functional Life

The Vivekacūḍāmaṇi (vv. 428–570) describes the Jīvanmukta's functioning:

- Acts in the world without Kartṛtva (sense of being the agent): "the body acts; I do not"
- Experiences states (hunger, cold, emotion) through the body without bondage: Prārabdha-driven experience without Abhimāna (ego-identification)
- Sees all beings as Brahman — not as a thought but as the operative recognition
- Remains in Brahma-jñāna regardless of the state (waking, dream, deep sleep) — Turīya is the permanent background

This is the Sthitaprajña of the Bhagavad Gītā (2.54–72): one whose wisdom is stable, who is not agitated by sorrow, not elated by pleasure, free from attachment, fear, and anger. The Gītā's Sthitaprajña and Advaita's Jīvanmukta are aligned descriptions.

## The Prārabdha Question

A common question: if the Jīvanmukta still experiences the world through Prārabdha, is the liberation complete? Advaita's answer: yes, completely. The experience of Prārabdha-driven states is not binding — it does not create new Karma, does not reinforce the ego-identity, does not lead to further Saṃsāra. The potter's wheel continues to spin after the potter stops adding force — but it will come to rest. The Jīvanmukta's body continues under Prārabdha's momentum; liberation is complete; the wheel is already slowing.

## Audience Metaphor

A surgeon operates under bright lights. The lights illuminate the operating field — the surgeon sees clearly, acts precisely, responds to what is in front of them. The lights do not blind the surgeon; they enable work. But if the power is cut (death of body), the lights go out and the work ends. Jīvanmukti is the surgeon's clarity while the lights are on — full recognition, full functioning, no confusion about what is real. Videhamukti is when the lights go out for good: the Prārabdha power source is exhausted, and there is no further return to operating-room conditions.

## Citations

1. Vivekacūḍāmaṇi vv. 428–570 (Śaṅkarācārya) — the Jīvanmukta described; see [references/vivekachudamani.md]
2. Jīvanmuktiviveka (Vidyāraṇya) — the full treatise on Jīvanmukti; see [references/jivanmuktiviveka.md]
3. Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad 4.4.6 — the knower of Brahman becomes Brahman; see [references/brhadaranyaka-upanishad.md]
4. Bhagavad Gītā 2.54–72 — Sthitaprajña as the practical portrait of the Jīvanmukta; see [references/bhagavad-gita.md]
