**Due to ignorance (avidyā), Brahman is perceived as the material world and its objects (nama rupa vikara).** According to Shankara, Brahman is in reality attributeless and formless. Brahman, the highest truth and all (Reality), does not really change; it is only our ignorance that gives the appearance of change. **Also due to avidyā, the true identity is forgotten, and material reality, which manifests at various levels, is mistaken as the only and true reality.**
***The notion of avidyā and its relationship to Brahman creates a crucial philosophical issue within Advaita Vedanta thought: …