SARA GRANT AND THE QUESTION OF RELATION IN ŚAṄKARA VEDANTA

Sara Grant (1922-2000), influenced by Adi Saṅkaracarya and shaped by Richard De Smet, rethinks key metaphysical categories-relation, non-duality, and personhood-without reducing Advaita to Western monism or Christian theism. This article examines her account of relation (saṃbandha) in Saṅkara's thought, situating it within the De Smet School and engaging concepts such as tādātmya, avidyā, adhyāsa, and lakṣaṇā. It argues that Grant develops a philosophically rigorous account of relation as epistemologically necessary and soteriologically significant, though not ultimately real, thereby opening new avenues for comparative philosophy and Hindu-Christian dialogue.