Indian philosophy

Indian philosophies share many concepts such as dharma (an ultimate principle or truth), karma (ethical action), pramana (epistemic warrant), the nature and existence (or not) of the atman (eternal self), samsara (the round of rebirth), reincarnation (or rebirth), dukkha (suffering), ahimsa (nonviolence), renunciation, meditation (dhyana), with almost all of them focusing on the ultimate goal of liberation of the individual through diverse range of spiritual practices (moksha, nirvana).[5]

They differ in their assumptions about the nature of existence as well as the specifics of the path to the ultimate liberation, resulting in numerous schools that disagreed with each other. Their ancient doctrines span the diverse range of philosophies found in other ancient cultures.[6]

A traditional Brahmanical classification divides orthodox (āstika) and heterodox (nāstika) schools of philosophy, depending on one of three alternate criteria: whether it believes the Vedas as a valid source of knowledge; whether the school believes in the premises of Brahman and Atman; and whether the school believes in afterlife and devas.[7][8][9]

From this Hindu point of view, there are six major schools of orthodox (astika) Indian Hindu philosophy—Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Samkhya, Yoga, Mīmāṃsā and Vedanta, and five major heterodox (nastika) schools—Jain, Buddhist, Ajivika, Ajñana, and Charvaka. However, there are other methods of classification; Vidyaranya for instance identifies sixteen schools of Indian philosophy by including those that belong to the Śaiva and Raseśvara traditions.[10][11]

Buddhist traditions meanwhile have their own doxographical categories. The main division is between Buddhists (who accept the word of the Buddha as authoritative in some way) and non-Buddhists (who do not accept the Buddhist teachings) which are labeled "tīrthikas" (forders, i.e. those who are, unsuccessfully, trying to make a ford to cross the river of samsara). For example, in Tibetan Buddhist classifications, which are derived from medieval Indian Buddhism, the main doxographical division is between the "The Buddha Dharma of the insiders" (which includes all the main Buddhist schools like Theravada, Vaibhasika, Sautrantika, Yogacara and Madhyamaka) and the Dharma systems of the "outsiders".[12]

The Vedas are the oldest texts of the Indian tradition. They contain the main ideas, rituals and hymns of the Historical Vedic Religion. These ideas were the main source for the philosophies of the various Hindu schools of thought.[14]

The earliest portion of the Vedas are termed the karma khaṇḍa, and includes hymns (Samhitas) and descriptions of rituals (Brahmanas). Key concepts which are found in these sections which later influenced the development of Hindu thought include the idea of Rta (cosmic harmony or universal order) and Brahman (an ultimate metaphysical principle).[15] Other ideas found in the karma khaṇḍa include the necessity of ritual sacrifices (yajna), which includes animal sacrifice, and the division of society into castes or varnas (which can be found in the Puruṣa Sūkta).[14]

Regarding theology, the Vedas do not present a single theological position. Instead, one can find multiple views and ideas regarding the gods and scholars have pointed out verses that can support monotheism, henotheism, polytheism and pantheism.[16]

The most philosophical texts found in the Vedas are the Upaniṣads, which are also termed uttara mīmāṃsā (“higher inquiry”), or the vedānta (the end of the Vedas). These texts focus on metaphysical, axiological and cosmological issues, such as the ideas of Atman (the eternal individual self) and Brahman (here seen as the universal consciousness). The Upaniṣads associate Brahman with the cosmos, and further associate Brahman with Atman. They also include discussions on the nature of dharma and karma, on Māyā, on how to gain jñāna (knowledge), and on how to reach moksha (liberation).[14][17] The different Upaniṣads also provide a variety of philosophical perspectives, from monism to dualism.[18]

Vedic thought was further developed in other later texts (sometimes termed the Smṛti Literature), the most popular and important of which are the Mahābhārata and the Rāmāyana. While these are generally epic narratives, they include philosophical themes, and in some sections, are purely focused on philosophical exposition. The Bhagavad Gītā is the most influential of these philosophical discussions.[14] One of the key ideas in these works is the ethics of Varna (varna) and life station (āśrama) and how this ethic relates to Dharma, yoga, and mokṣa. The Bhagavad Gītā presents these ideas alongside the idea of svadharma (one's own duty or individual role), which refers to an individual's duty in life which is based on their varna and birth. The Bhagavad Gītā exhorts individuals to follow their duty without attachment, and this is seen as true renunciation (which is important in order to reach mokṣa). The text also discusses the nature of God, and the practice of the yoga of devotion (bhakti).[14]

A modern statue of Patañjali, author of the Pātañjalayogaśāstra, an influential Samkhya-Yoga text

Hindu philosophy has a diversity of traditions and numerous saints and scholars, such as Adi Shankara of Advaita Vedanta school.

After the Vedic period, a series of philosophical traditions developed among the Sanskrit literate classes (mainly Brahmins). Their ideas were closely influenced by the philosophies of the Vedas and the Upanishads, but also by the ideas of the Śramaṇa schools (to a lesser extent). The philosophers working in these traditions wrote new philosophical texts, which are often called "sutras". Some of these philosophical schools (called darśanas, "worldviews") are often classified into a standard list of six "orthodox" (Astika) darśanas, all of which accept the testimony of the Vedas.

These "Six Philosophies" (ṣaḍ-darśana) are:[19][20][21]

• Sāṃkhya, a philosophical tradition which regards the universe as consisting of two independent realities: puruṣa ('consciousness') and prakṛti ('matter') and which attempts to develop a metaphysics based on this duality.[22] It has included atheistic authors as well as some theistic thinkers.
• Yoga, a school similar to Sāṃkhya (or perhaps even a branch of it) which accepts a personal god and focuses on yogic practice.[23]
• Nyāya, a philosophy which focuses on logic and epistemology. It accepts six kinds of pramanas (epistemic warrants): (1) perception, (2) inference, (3) comparison and analogy, (4) postulation, derivation from circumstances, (5) non-perception, negative/cognitive proof and (6) word, testimony of past or present reliable experts. Nyāya defends a form of direct realism and a theory of substances (dravya).[24][25]
• Vaiśeṣika, closely related to the Nyāya school, this tradition focused on the metaphysics of substance, and on defending a theory of atoms.[26][27] Unlike Nyāya, they only accept two pramanas: perception and inference.
• Pūrva-Mīmāṃsā, a school which focuses on exegesis of the Vedas, philology and the interpretation of Vedic ritual.[28][29]
• Vedānta (also called Uttara Mīmāṃsā), focuses on interpreting the philosophy of the Upanishads, particularly the metaphysical ideas relating to Atman and Brahman.[30][31]

Sometimes these groups are often coupled into three groups for both historical and conceptual reasons: Nyāya-Vaiśeṣika, Sāṃkhya-Yoga, and Mīmāṃsā-Vedānta.

Each tradition included different currents and sub-schools, for example, Vedānta was divided among the sub-schools of Advaita (non-dualism), Visishtadvaita (qualified non-dualism), Dvaita (dualism), Dvaitadvaita (dualistic non-dualism), Suddhadvaita, and Achintya Bheda Abheda (inconceivable oneness and difference).

While the Vedic based "Six Darśanas" were extremely influential systems of thought in India, there were other systems which were also quite influential. The philosophical schools of Shaivism are often classified separately because of their commitment to texts other than the Vedas, mainly the Shaiva Agamas and Shaiva Tantras. There are several schools of Shaiva thought such as:

• Pāśupata, a theistic tradition of devotion and asceticism derived from the Pāśupatasūtra
• Śaiva siddhānta, a theistic and tantric tradition with a theology that presents three universal realities: the pashu (individual soul), the pati (the lord, Shiva), and the pasha (soul’s bondage) through ignorance, karma and maya. It focuses on ritual action as a means to achieve liberation.
• The Pratyabhijñā philosophy of Trika Shaivism (also known as Kashmir Shaivism), which defends a form of monistic idealism. This tradition rejects the Advaita Vedanta view that says the world is an illusion (maya), instead it sees the world as being created by the vibration (spanda) of the single universal consciousness. This is generally associated with Shaiva-Shakta Tantra.

There are also other minor schools which are mentioned by Indian scholars like Vidyāraṇya. These include traditions such as Raseśvara (which focused on alchemical ideas which make use of mercury) and the linguistic philosophies of Pāṇini and Bhartṛhari.[10]

Several Śramaṇic movements existed before the 6th century BCE, and these influenced most traditions of Indian philosophy.[51] The Śramaṇa ("striver," "ascetic") schools gave rise to a diverse set of beliefs. These include the acceptance or denial of the concept of atman, atomism, antinomian ethics, materialism, atheism, agnosticism, fatalism, free will, extreme asceticism, affirmation of family life, strict ahimsa (non-violence), vegetarianism and the permissibility of violence and meat-eating.[52] Notable philosophies that arose from Śramaṇic movement were Jainism, early Buddhism, Charvaka, Ajñana and Ājīvika.[53]

Ajñana was one of the Śramaṇa schools of Indian philosophy, which was based on a radical skepticism. It was an ascetic renouncer movement and a major rival of early Buddhism and Jainism. They have been recorded in Buddhist and Jain texts. They held that it was impossible to obtain knowledge of metaphysical nature or ascertain the truth value of philosophical propositions; and even if knowledge was possible, it was useless and disadvantageous for final salvation. They were skeptics who specialised in refutation of other doctrines, without propagating any positive doctrine of their own.

The philosophy of Ājīvika was founded by Makkhali Gosala, it was another Śramaṇa rival of early Buddhism and Jainism.[54] Ājīvikas were organised renunciates who formed discrete monastic communities prone to an ascetic and simple lifestyle.[55]

Original scriptures of the Ājīvika school of philosophy may once have existed, but these are currently unavailable and probably lost. Their theories are extracted from mentions of Ajivikas in the secondary sources of ancient Indian literature, particularly those of Jainism and Buddhism which polemically criticized the Ajivikas.[56] The Ājīvika school is known for its Niyati doctrine of absolute determinism (fate), the premise that there is no free will, that everything that has happened, is happening and will happen is entirely preordained and a function of cosmic principles.[56][57] Ājīvika considered the karma doctrine as a fallacy.[58] Ājīvikas were atheists[59] and rejected the authority of the Vedas, but they believed that in every living being is an ātman – a central premise of Hinduism and Jainism.[60][61]

Charvaka or Lokāyata was a philosophy of scepticism, hedonism and materialism, founded in the Mauryan period. They were extremely critical of other Indian religions and schools of philosophy. Charvaka deemed Vedas to be tainted by the three faults of untruth, self-contradiction, and tautology.[62] Likewise they faulted Buddhists and Jains, mocking the concept of liberation, reincarnation and accumulation of merit or demerit through karma.[63] They believed that, the viewpoint of relinquishing pleasure to avoid pain was the "reasoning of fools".[62]