Within Dvaita Vedānta, the ātman is understood as an eternally distinct, conscious self that never becomes identical with Brahman, who is identified with Viṣṇu. It is a real, finite substance whose existence, knowledge, and activity are wholly dependent on the sustaining power of the supreme, independent reality. This dependence is not a temporary condition but an abiding ontological fact; the difference between ātman and Brahman is never erased, even in the highest spiritual state. The ātman is thus a dependent reality, while Brahman alone is truly independent.

The role of the ātman is that of a conscious experiencer and moral agent. It is the locus of pleasure and pain, the bearer of karma, and the one that reaps the fruits of its actions across births. As a knower and doer, it moves through bondage and the possibility of liberation, always under the overarching sovereignty of Brahman. Its capacities are real but limited, and whatever knowledge or power it possesses is ultimately derived from the supreme.

Dvaita Vedānta further portrays the ātman as an eternal servant (dāsa) of Viṣṇu, whose highest fulfillment lies in loving devotion and service. Bhakti, supported by right knowledge and divine grace, is the path by which the ātman turns from bondage toward its true purpose. Liberation does not mean absorption into Brahman, but rather eternal proximity, contemplation, and blissful service, with the individuality of the ātman fully retained. In that liberated state, the soul realizes most clearly its utter dependence and its unbridgeable difference from Brahman.

A notable feature of this vision is the affirmation of a real hierarchy among souls. Ātmans differ in capacity and destiny, and this gradation is itself regarded as a genuine, divinely ordered distinction. Some are bound yet capable of liberation, some attain higher or lower states, and some are held to be eternally liberated or eternally bound. Through all these variations, the essential role of the ātman remains constant: a finite, responsible, and devotional self whose consummation is everlasting, blissful service to the supreme Brahman.