” Andre Vas is a full-time teacher of traditional Advaita Vedanta – the teaching of non-duality. For the past nine years, he has taught the Bhagavad Gita, Upanishads and foundational Vedanta texts, combining traditional study with clear reasoning, everyday examples and detailed written notes.

His teaching brings together depth, precision and an energetic, approachable style. The emphasis is not simply on hearing the teachings, but on understanding them: examining their meaning, resolving doubts and recognising their relevance to your own life.

What studying with me is like

My aim is to make Vedanta understandable without diluting its depth.

A subtle teaching does not become clear merely because someone repeats its conclusion. It needs to be unfolded carefully, with the reasoning, examples and distinctions that allow you to see what is being pointed out for yourself.

That is how I teach: step by step, connecting each explanation to what came before it, and relating the subject to experiences you can recognise in ordinary life.

I welcome questions anytime during the class, because they reveal where something needs further attention. You should not have to pretend to understand, accept a statement on authority or leave an important doubt unaddressed.

Alongside each lesson, I prepare detailed written notes. These give you another way to engage with the teaching: you can revisit an explanation, examine a distinction more closely and reflect at your own pace. The live classes, video recordings and notes work together to support sustained study, rather than a passing moment of inspiration.

Over the years, I have taught the Bhagavad Gita, Mandukya, Mundaka and Kena Upanishads, as well as Tattva Bodha, Atma Bodha, Drg Drsya Viveka, Vivekachudamani and Nirvana Shatakam.

Whether you are encountering Vedanta for the first time or returning with years of study behind you, my responsibility is the same: to take your questions seriously and help you understand the teaching as clearly as possible.

Traditional roots and training

My teaching is rooted in the Advaita Vedanta tradition of Adi Shankaracharya, with particular emphasis on the teaching methodology of Swami Dayananda (Arsha Vidya) and Swami Paramarthananda.

My own learning has included several teachers and complementary forms of study:

• 8 years of learning from Neema Majmudar, a disciple of Swami Dayananda.
• 3 years of in-depth study of Swami Paramarthananda’s teachings, whose material formed the basis of my first three-year Bhagavad Gita course.
• 2 years of formal Sanskrit study at the Australian National University.
• 2 years of study with James Swartz, a disciple of Swami Chinmayananda.
• 2.5 years of study through the Chinmaya International Foundation in Kerala, specifically via online courses, face-to-face tutoring and in-person camps with Swami Advayananda.

These influences have shaped both my understanding and the way I teach. I value fidelity to the texts, careful use of language and a systematic approach that gives each explanation its proper context.

My role is not to invent a new version of Vedanta, but to communicate the traditional teaching in language you can examine and understand.

From business to self-inquiry

I began building businesses immediately after high school, choosing entrepreneurship rather than continuing further education.

Over the following decade, I worked across internet marketing, web hosting, wholesale and retail, investments and the automotive industry. Building these ventures required sustained effort, independent learning and the ability to turn complex problems into practical decisions. By thirty, I had achieved financial independence.

But the security I had worked so hard to attain did not bring the lasting peace I had expected. External success had changed my circumstances without resolving the underlying sense that something was still missing.

That recognition deepened my search. It led me to Arunachala, out of reverence for Ramana Maharshi, where I met my first Vedanta teacher and began the journey into traditional study.

I do not regard that earlier chapter as separate from my teaching. It helps me relate to people who are engaged in work, relationships and responsibilities – yet still find themselves asking fundamental questions about fulfilment, identity and freedom.

My interests in programming, biology and metaphysics also reflect an enduring inclination to investigate how things work. In teaching, that becomes careful analysis, attention to detail and a willingness to stay with a question until its meaning is clear.

Classes, retreats and getting started

I offer ongoing classes and thrice-yearly residential retreats (India, Germany, etc).

Classes provide continuity: time to work through a text, revisit difficult points and develop understanding gradually. Retreats offer a more concentrated setting for study, reflection, discussion and questions. The atmosphere is focused but informal, with room for both serious inquiry and human connection.

I do not present Vedanta as something you must believe, an extraordinary experience you must acquire or a way to withdraw from life. My approach is to unfold it as a means by which you can see realities previous missed.

You do NOT need to arrive knowing Sanskrit or already understanding non-duality.

However you do need an interest in inquiry and a willingness to examine what you understand.

To get a feel for my teaching, begin with an introductory lesson and its accompanying notes. The student testimonials below offer another perspective on what it is like to study with me. ”