The Smarta Tradition is a Hindu religious tradition that belongs to the broader class of orthodox (āstika) schools of Indian philosophy and is distinguished by its synthesis of six major Vedic deity worship forms (Śaiva, Vaiṣṇava, Śākta, Saura, Gāṇapatya, and Kumāra traditions) under the framework of nonsectarian monism (advaita), with an emphasis on the identity of Ātman and Brahman as taught by Adi Śaṅkara.