The Brahma-s?tra composed by the sage B?dar?yana, better known as Vy?sadeva, forms the basis of the Ved?nta system, which methodically presents the philosophical conclusion (anta) of the Vedas. Each of the four Vedas - Rg, S?ma, Yajur, and Atharva - consists of the Samhit?, Br?hma?a, ?ra?yaka, and Upani?ad portions. Thus, Ved?nta is also known as Uttara-m?m?ms?, �examination of the subsequent,� since it is concerned with the Upani?ads, the portion of the Vedas that deals with spiritual knowledge (j�?na-k??da). This designation contrasts with the P?rva-m?m?ms?, �examination of the antecedent,� a system propounded by Jaimini, which is concerned with the ritualistic portion (karma-k??da) of the Vedas, as seen in the mantra portion of the Samhit?s as well as in the Br?hmanas. This also implies that Ved?nta surpasses whatever falls within the scope of P?rvam?m?ms?, whose results are limited to earthly and heavenly delights. Among the multiple philosophical systems that originated in ancient India, Ved?nta has been enjoying the foremost position for more than a thousand years and has played a central role in curbing the influence of other systems that once thrived, some of which, consequently, no more exist as part of a living tradition at present. The total corpus of all Ved?nta schools, including the treatises that have been lost, is so extensive that it would not be possible to exactly ascertain the numbers, which may easily amount to over a thousand texts, or even more. The philosophical production of other systems in India is nowhere close to such numbers, which continue increasing even now, both in Sanskrit and vernacular. Complete commentaries on all aphorisms of the Brahma-s?tra are relatively few, but there are many hundreds of Ved?nta-prakara?as, philosophical treatises that deal with particular topics on Ved?nta. The Ved?nta-syamantaka is one of such treatises.