{{Short description|Philosophical traditions of the Indian subcontinent}}
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{{Infobox
| title = Indian philosophical traditions 
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{{image array|perrow=2|width=180|height=150
| image1 = Yajnavalkya and Janaka.jpg|caption1=[[Yajnavalkya]] (c. 8th century BCE), an important [[Vedic period|Vedic]] sage associated with the thought of the early [[Upanishads]].<ref name=benami9>{{Cite book |first=Ben-Ami |last=Scharfstein |date=1998 |title=A comparative history of world philosophy: from the Upanishads to Kant |location=Albany |publisher=State University of New York Press |pages=9–11 |isbn=978-0-7914-3683-7}}</ref> 
| image2 = Jain statues, Gwalior.jpg|caption2=[[Jain philosophy]] was propagated by [[Tirthankara]]s, notably [[Parshvanatha]] (c. 872 – c. 772 BCE) and [[Mahavira]] (c. 599-527 BCE).
| image3 = Rock-cut Lord --Buddha-- Statue at Bojjanakonda near Anakapalle of Visakhapatnam dist in AP.jpg|caption3=[[Buddhist philosophy]] was founded by [[Gautama Buddha]] (c. 563–483 BCE).
| image4 = GuruGobindSinghJiGurdwaraBhaiThanSingh.jpg|caption4=[[Sikh philosophy]] was developed by [[Guru Gobind Singh]] (c. 1666–1708 CE). 
}}
}}
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'''Indian philosophy''' consists of philosophical traditions of the [[Indian subcontinent]]. These philosophical traditions are often called darśana, meaning "to see" or "looking at."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Monier-Williams Sanskrit Dictionary 1899 Basic |url=https://www.sanskrit-lexicon.uni-koeln.de/scans/MWScan/2020/web/webtc2/index.php |access-date=2024-05-24 |website=www.sanskrit-lexicon.uni-koeln.de}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last1=Adamson |first1=Peter |title=Classical Indian philosophy: a history of philosophy without any gaps |last2=Ganeri |first2=Jonardon |date=2020 |publisher=Oxford university press |isbn=978-0-19-885176-9 |location=Oxford New York (N.Y.)}}</ref>  Ānvīkṣikī means “critical inquiry” or “investigation."  Unlike darśana, ānvīkṣikī was used to refer to Indian philosophies by classical Indian philosophers, such as [[Chanakya#Identification with Kautilya, author of the Arthashastra|Kautilya]] in the [[Arthashastra|Arthaśāstra]].<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Kauṭalya |title=King, governance, and law in ancient India: Kauṭilya's Arthaśāstra: a new annotated translation |last2=Olivelle |first2=Patrick |date=2013 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-989182-5 |location=New York}}</ref>

A traditional Vedic classification divides [[āstika and 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 (Hinduism)|Atman]]; and whether the school believes in afterlife and [[Deva (Hinduism)|Devas]].{{Sfn|Bowker|1999|p=259}}{{Sfn|Doniger|2014|p=46}}{{Sfn|Nicholson|2010|loc=Chapter 9}} (though there are exceptions to the latter two: Mimamsa and Samkhya respectively).

There are six major (āstika) schools of [[Hindu philosophy|Vedic philosophy]]—[[Nyaya]], [[Vaisheshika]], [[Samkhya]], [[Yoga (philosophy)|Yoga]], [[Mīmāṃsā]] and [[Vedanta]]—and five major non-Vedic or heterodox (nāstika or sramanic) schools—[[Jainism|Jain]], [[Buddhism|Buddhist]], [[Ajivika]], [[Ajñana]], and [[Charvaka]]. The āstika group embraces the [[Vedas]] as an essential source of its foundations, while the nāstika group does not. However, there are other methods of classification; [[Vidyaranya]] for instance identifies sixteen schools of Indian philosophy by including those that belong to the [[Shaivism|Śaiva]] and [[Raseśvara]] traditions.{{Sfn|Cowell|Gough|2001|p=xii}}{{Sfn|Nicholson|2010|pp=158-162}}

The main schools of Indian philosophy were formalised and recognised chiefly between 500 BCE and the late centuries of the [[Common Era]].{{citation needed|date=August 2021}} Some schools like [[Jainism]], [[Buddhism]], [[Yoga]], Śaiva and [[Vedanta]] survived, but others, like [[Ajñana]], [[Charvaka]] and [[Ājīvika]] did not.

Ancient and medieval era texts of Indian philosophies include extensive discussions on [[ontology]] ([[metaphysics]], [[Brahman]]-[[Atman (Hinduism)|Atman]], [[Sunyata]]-[[Anatta]]), reliable means of knowledge ([[epistemology]], [[Pramana]]s), value system ([[axiology]]) and other topics.{{Sfn|Perrett, Vol. 3|2000}}{{Page needed|date=July 2023}}<ref>{{cite book |first=Stephen H. |last=Phillips|title=Epistemology in Classical India: The Knowledge Sources of the Nyaya School |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ij4yOAP_6fcC |year=2013 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-136-51898-0 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first=Arvind |last=Sharma |title=The Puruṣārthas: a study in Hindu axiology |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=USBtAAAAMAAJ |year=1982|publisher=Asian Studies Center, Michigan State University |isbn=9789993624318 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |editor1-first=Purusottama |editor1-last=Bilimoria |editor2-first=Joseph |editor2-last=Prabhu |editor3-first=Renuka M. |editor3-last=Sharma |title=Indian Ethics: Classical traditions and contemporary challenges |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g78Cw4xQmsMC |year=2007 |publisher=Ashgate |isbn=978-0-7546-3301-3 }}</ref>

==Common themes==
Indian philosophies share many concepts such as [[dharma]], [[karma]], [[samsara]], [[dukkha]], [[renunciation]], [[meditation]], with almost all of them focusing on the ultimate goal of liberation of the individual from [[dukkha]] and [[samsara]] through diverse range of spiritual practices ([[moksha]], [[nirvana]]).<ref>{{cite book |editor-first=Kathleen |editor-last=Kuiper |title=The Culture of India |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=c8PJFLeURhsC |year=2010 |publisher=The Rosen Publishing Group |isbn=978-1-61530-149-2 |pages=174–178 |access-date=18 October 2016 |archive-date=3 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703144442/https://books.google.com/books?id=c8PJFLeURhsC |url-status=live }}</ref> While many sutra texts explicitly mention that the work leads to moksha, Indian philosophy is not exclusively concerned with moksha.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Krishna |first=Daya |url=https://archive.org/details/indianphilosophyacounterprespectivedayakrishna_202003_492_p/page/n11/mode/2up |title=Indian Philosophy A Counter Perspective Daya Krishna |pages=16–32}}</ref>

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.<ref>{{cite book |first=Sue |last=Hamilton |title=Indian Philosophy: A Very Short Introduction |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YWu4ygkh_O8C |year=2001 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-157942-4 |pages=1–17, 136–140 }}</ref>

==Hindu traditions==
{{Main|Hindu philosophy|Hinduism|Vedas|Upanishads}}
[[File:Raja Ravi Varma - Sankaracharya.jpg|thumb|Hindu philosophy has a diversity of traditions and numerous saints and scholars, such as Adi Shankara of Advaita Vedanta school.]]

Some of the earliest surviving Indian philosophical texts are the [[Upanishads]] of the [[Vedic period#Later Vedic period (c. 1000 – c. 600 BCE)|later Vedic period]] (1000–500 BCE), which are considered to preserve the ideas of [[Historical Vedic religion|Brahmanism]]. Indian philosophical traditions are commonly grouped according to their relationship to the Vedas and the ideas contained in them. The origins of [[Jainism]] remain enigmatic, with scholarly consensus divided between pre-Vedic roots, parallel development alongside Vedic civilization or post-Vedic emergence. The historical presence of its 23rd [[Tirthankara]], [[Parshvanatha]] in the 8th-7th century BCE provides one of the earliest anchors of the tradition.{{sfn|Dundas|2002|pp=30–31}} Despite the accepted historicity of Parshvanath, the historical claims such as the link between him and Mahavira, whether Mahavira renounced in the ascetic tradition of Parshvanatha, and other biographical details have led to different scholarly conclusions.{{sfn|Dundas|2002|pp=30–33}} Doubts about Parshvanatha's historicity are also supported by the oldest Jain texts, which present Mahavira with sporadic mentions of ancient ascetics and teachers without specific names (such as sections 1.4.1 and 1.6.3 of the ''Acaranga Sutra'').{{sfn|Dundas|2002|p=39}} Even the early archaeological finds, such as the statues and reliefs near [[Mathura]], lack [[iconography]] such as lions and serpents.{{sfn|Dundas|2002|pp=39–40}}{{sfn|Umakant P. Shah|1987|pp=82–85, Quote: "Thus the list of twenty-four Tirthankaras was either already evolved or was in the process of being evolved in the age of the Mathura sculptures in the first three centuries of the Christian era."}} [[Buddhism]] also originated at the end of the [[Vedic period]]. These traditions drew upon already established Brahmanical concepts, states Wiltshire, to communicate their own distinct doctrines.<ref name=wiltshire226>Martin Wiltshire (1990), Ascetic Figures Before and in Early Buddhism, De Gruyter, {{ISBN|978-3110098969}}, pp. 226–227</ref>

Hindu philosophy classify Indian philosophical traditions as either orthodox ([[Āstika and nāstika|''āstika'']]) or heterodox (''nāstika''), depending on whether they accept the authority of the [[Vedas]] and the theories of ''[[brahman]]'' and [[Ātman (Hinduism)|''ātman'']] found therein.{{Sfn|Bowker|1999|p=259}}{{Sfn|Doniger|2014|p=46}} Besides these, the "heterodox" schools that do ''not'' accept the authority of the Vedas include Buddhism, Jainism, Ajivika and Charvaka.{{Sfn|Perrett, Vol. 4|2000|p=88}}<ref>{{Cite book |title=The Hindu World |date=2004 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-77227-3 |editor1-last=Mittal |editor1-first=Sushil |pages=729–730 |editor2-last=Thursby |editor2-first=Gene}}</ref>{{Sfn|Flood|1996|pp=82, 224–49}} According to P.T. Raju, whilst heterodox schools rejected the label 'Vaidika' (derived from the Veda) due to a rejection of Vedic sacrifice, they accepted a broader term of 'Aryadharma' which also encompassed Hindu philosophies.<ref>{{Cite book |last=P.T. Raju |url=http://archive.org/details/USDG_the-philosophical-traditions-of-india-p.-t.-raju |title=The Philosophical Traditions Of India P. T. Raju |page=31}}</ref> 

This orthodox-heterodox terminology is a scholarly construct found in later Indian sources (and in Western sources on Indian thought) and not all of these sources agree on which system should be considered "orthodox".<ref name="andrew">Nicholson, Andrew J. 2013. [[Unifying Hinduism|''Unifying Hinduism: Philosophy and Identity in Indian Intellectual History'']]. [[Columbia University Press]]. {{ISBN|978-0231149877}}. ch. 9.</ref><ref name="wendy">Doniger, Wendy. 2014. ''On Hinduism''. [[Oxford University Press]]. {{ISBN|978-0199360079}}. p. 46.</ref> As such there are various [[Heresiology|heresiological]] systems in Indian philosophy.{{Sfn|Nicholson|2010|loc=Chapter 9}} Some traditions see "orthodox" as a synonym for "[[theism]]" and "heterodox" as a synonym for [[atheism]].<ref>For [http://www.iheu.org/node/185 instance], the Atheist Society of India produces a monthly publications ''Nastika Yuga'', which it translates as 'The Age of Atheism'. {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070418105244/http://www.iheu.org/node/185|date=18 April 2007}}.</ref> Other Hindu sources argue that certain systems of Shaiva [[tantra]] should be considered heterodox due to its deviations from the Vedic tradition.<ref>Bhattacharyya, N. N. (1999), History of the Tantric Religion (Second Revised ed.), p. 174. New Delhi: Manohar, ISBN 81-7304-025-7</ref>

One of the most common list of Hindu orthodox schools is the "six philosophies" (''ṣaḍ-darśana''), which are:<ref>{{cite journal |last=Kesarcodi-Watson |first=Ian |year=1978 |title=Hindu Metaphysics and Its Philosophies: Śruti and Darsána |journal=International Philosophical Quarterly |volume=18 |issue=4 |pages=413–432 |doi=10.5840/ipq197818440}}</ref>

* '''[[Samkhya|Sāṃkhya]]''' (school of "Enumeration"), a philosophical tradition which regards the universe as consisting of two independent realities: ''[[Purusha|puruṣa]]'' (the perceiving [[consciousness]]) and ''[[prakṛti]]'' (perceived reality, including mind, perception, ''[[kleshas (Hinduism)|kleshas]]'', and [[matter]]) and which describes a soteriology based on this duality, in which ''purush'' is discerned and disentangled from the impurities of ''prakriti''. It has included atheistic authors as well as some theistic thinkers, and forms the basis of much of subsequent Indian philosophy.
* [[Yoga (philosophy)|'''Yoga''']], a school similar to ''Sāṃkhya'' (or perhaps even a branch of it) which accepts a personal god and focuses on yogic practice (consisting of mental and physical acts) as a means for liberation.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Kesarcodi-Watson |first=Ian |date=1982 |title=Samādhi in Patañjali's Yoga Sūtras |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/1398753 |journal=Philosophy East and West |volume=32 |issue=1 |pages=77–90 |doi=10.2307/1398753 |issn=0031-8221|url-access=subscription }}</ref>
* [[Nyaya|'''Nyāya''']] (the "Logic" school), a philosophy which focuses on logic and epistemology. It accepts four kinds of ''Pramā'' (valid presentation): (1) perception, (2) inference, (3) comparison or analogy, (4) word or testimony.<ref name=S.C.Chatterjee>{{cite book |first=S |last=Chatterjee |title=Nyaya Theory of Knowledge |year=1939 |publisher=University of Calcutta |pages=21–22 |isbn=978-81-8090-146-1 |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.201767/page/n39/mode/2up}}</ref> ''Nyāya'' defends a form of direct [[Philosophical realism|realism]] and a theory of [[Substance theory|substances]] (''dravya'').
* [[Vaisheshika|'''Vaiśeṣika''']] (the school of "Characteristics"), closely related to the ''Nyāya'' school, this tradition focused on the metaphysics of substance, and on defending a theory of atoms. Unlike ''Nyāya'', they only accept two pramanas: perception and inference.
* '''[[Mīmāṃsā|Pūrva-Mīmāṃsā]]''' (the school of "Prior Investigation" [of the Vedas]), a school which focuses on exegesis of the Vedas, [[philology]] and the interpretation of [[Historical Vedic religion|Vedic ritual.]]
* '''[[Vedanta|Vedānta]]''' ("the end of the Vedas", also called ''Uttara Mīmāṃsā''), focuses on interpreting the philosophy of the [[Upanishad]]s, particularly the soteriological and metaphysical ideas relating to Atman and Brahman.

Sometimes these six are coupled into three groups for both historical and conceptual reasons: ''Nyāya''-''Vaiśeṣika'', ''Sāṃkhya''-''Yoga'', and ''Mīmāṃsā''-''Vedānta''. Each tradition also included different currents and sub-schools. For example, Vedānta was divided among the sub-schools of [[Advaita Vedanta|Advaita]] ([[Nonduality (spirituality)|non-dualism]]), [[Visishtadvaita]] (qualified non-dualism), [[Dvaita]] ([[Dualistic cosmology#In Hinduism|dualism]]), [[Dvaitadvaita]] (dualistic non-dualism), [[Suddhadvaita]] (pure non-dualism), and [[Achintya Bheda Abheda]] (inconceivable oneness and difference).

The doctrines of the Vedas and Upanishads were interpreted differently by these six schools, with varying degrees of overlap. They represent a "collection of philosophical views that share a textual connection", according to [[Monima Chadha]].{{Sfn|Chadha|2015|pp=127–28}} They also reflect a tolerance for a diversity of philosophical interpretations within Hinduism while sharing the same foundation.<ref name="Sharma1990p1">{{cite book |last=Sharma |first=Arvind |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jKewCwAAQBAJ |title=A Hindu Perspective on the Philosophy of Religion |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |year=1990 |isbn=978-1-349-20797-8 |pages=1–2 |quote=The attitude towards the existence of God varies within the Hindu religious tradition. This may not be entirely unexpected given the tolerance for doctrinal diversity for which the tradition is known. Thus of the six orthodox systems of Hindu philosophy, only three address the question in some detail. These are the schools of thought known as Nyaya, Yoga and the theistic forms of Vedanta. |access-date=11 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200112222617/https://books.google.com/books?id=jKewCwAAQBAJ |archive-date=12 January 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Hindu philosophers of the orthodox schools developed systems of epistemology (''[[pramana]]'') and investigated topics such as metaphysics, ethics, psychology (''[[guṇa]]''), [[hermeneutics]], and [[soteriology]] within the framework of the Vedic knowledge, while presenting a diverse collection of interpretations.<ref name="frazierintrop2">{{cite book |last1=Frazier |first1=Jessica |url=https://archive.org/details/continuumcompani00fraz |title=The Continuum companion to Hindu studies |date=2011 |publisher=Continuum |isbn=978-0-8264-9966-0 |location=London |pages=[https://archive.org/details/continuumcompani00fraz/page/n15 1]–15 |author-link=Jessica Frazier |url-access=limited}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Olson |first=Carl |title=The Many Colors of Hinduism: A Thematic-historical Introduction |publisher=Rutgers University Press |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-8135-4068-9 |pages=101–119}}</ref><ref name="Deutsch">{{cite encyclopedia |year=2000 |title=Karma as a 'Convenient Fiction' in the Advaita Vedānta |last=Deutsch |first=Eliot S. |author-link=Eliot Deutsch |pages=245–48}} In {{harvnb|Perrett, Vol. 4|2000}}.</ref>{{Sfn|Grimes|1996|p=238}} The commonly named six orthodox schools were the competing philosophical traditions of what has been called the "Hindu synthesis" of [[History of Hinduism|classical Hinduism]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Hiltebeitel |first=Alf |title=The Religious Traditions of Asia: Religion, History, and Culture |publisher=Routledge |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-7007-1762-0 |editor-last=Kitagawa |editor-first=Joseph |editor-link=Joseph Kitagawa |location=London |chapter=Hinduism |author-link=Alf Hiltebeitel}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Minor |first=Robert |title=Modern Indian Interpreters of the Bhagavad Gita |publisher=[[State University of New York Press]] |year=1986 |isbn=0-88706-297-0 |location=Albany |pages=74–75, 81}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Doniger |first=Wendy |year=2018 |title=Bhagavad Gita |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Bhagavadgita |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180821140609/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Bhagavadgita |archive-date=21 August 2018 |access-date=10 November 2018 |website=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |orig-year=1998}}</ref>

All these systems are not the only "orthodox" systems of philosophy, as numerous sub-schools developed throughout the history of Hindu thought. They are however the most well known Hindu philosophical traditions.

In addition to the six systems, the Hindu philosopher [[Vidyaranya|Vidyāraṇya]] (ca. 1374–1380) also includes several further Hindu philosophical systems in his ''[[Sarva-Darsana-Sangraha|Sarva-darśana-saṃgraha]]'' (A ''Compendium of all the Philosophical Systems''):{{Sfn|Cowell|Gough|2001|p=xii}}

* [[Pashupata Shaivism|Paśupata]], a school of [[Shaivism]] founded by Nakulisa
* [[Shaiva Siddhanta|Shaiva Siddhantha]], a theistic and dualistic school of Shaivism, which is influenced by Samkhya, and expands the Samkhya system further.
* [[Pratyabhijna|Pratyabhijña]] (the school of "Recognition"), which defends an idealistic monism and part of the [[Kashmir Shaivism]] tradition of Tantric Shaivism
* [[Pāṇini]] Darśana, a tradition focusing on Sanskrit linguistics and grammar which also developed the theory of [[Sphoṭa|''sphoṭavāda'']] under [[Bhartṛhari]], a theory which places speech and sound at the center of its metaphysics.
* [[Raseśvara]], an [[Alchemy|alchemical]] school which advocated the use of mercury as a way to attain enlightenment.

==Śramaṇic traditions==
{{Main|Śramaṇa}}
[[File:Shrine with Four Jinas (Rishabhanatha (Adinatha)), Parshvanatha, Neminatha, and Mahavira) LACMA M.85.55 (3 of 4).jpg|thumb|[[Parshvanatha]] led the shramana order in 9th century BCE]]
Several non-Vedic traditions of thought also flourished in ancient India and they developed their own philosophical systems. The [[Śramaṇa]]s included various traditions which did not accept the [[Historical Vedic religion|Brahmanical religion]] of the Vedas. These non-Vedic schools gave rise to a diverse range of ideas about topics like the [[Atman-Brahman|atman]], [[atomism]], ethics, [[materialism]], [[atheism]], [[agnosticism]], free will, asceticism, family life, [[ahimsa]] (non-violence) and [[vegetarianism]].{{Sfn|Jaini|2001|pp=57-77}} Notable philosophies that were a part of [[Śramaṇa]] family were [[Jainism]], [[Pre-sectarian Buddhism|early Buddhism]], [[Charvaka]], [[Ajñana]] and [[Ājīvika]].{{Sfn|Basham|2002|pp=94-103}}

Indian [[Śramaṇa]] tradition had one of its earliest known prominent exemplar as [[Parshvanatha]], the 23rd [[Tirthankar]] in 9th century BCE.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://jainqq.org/explore/007005/146 | title=Search, Seek, and Discover Jain Literature }}</ref><ref name="jainqq.org">{{cite web | url=https://jainqq.org/explore/007585/130 | title=Search, Seek, and Discover Jain Literature }}</ref> It became prominent in the 5th and 4th centuries BCE, and even more so during the [[Maurya Empire|Mauryan period]] (c. 322–184 BCE). [[Jainism]] and [[Buddhism]] were especially influential. These traditions influenced all later forms of Indian philosophy who either adopted some of their ideas or reacted against them.<ref name="reginaldray247">{{Cite book |first=Reginald A. |last=Ray |date=1999 |title=Buddhist Saints in India |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-513483-4 |pages=237–240, 247–249}}</ref>

===Jain philosophy===
{{Main|Jain philosophy|Jainism}}
[[File:Madhya pradesh, epoca candella, tirthankara rishabhanatha, x-xi sec.JPG|thumb|[[Rishabhadeva]], believed to have lived over a million years ago, is considered the founder of Jain religion in the present time cycle.]]

[[Jain]] philosophy is the oldest Indian philosophy that separates body ([[matter]]) from the [[soul]] (consciousness) completely.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/dravya |title=dravya |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica }}</ref> Each individual soul is inherently endowed with infinite knowledge and boundless bliss. However, since infinity its true nature has remained veiled by ignorance, causing it to mistakenly identify with the physical body. This misidentification leads to suffering and the accumulation of [[karma]]. As karma accumulates, the soul becomes bound to the cycle of birth and rebirth, perpetuating a continuous cycle of suffering and ignorance, until it ultimately attains liberation through [[self-realization]] (''atma-anubhuti'').<ref>{{cite web | url=https://archive.org/details/doctrineofkarman0000glas_q6k3/page/n1/mode/1up | title=The doctrine of karman in Jain philosophy | date=1942 }}</ref> [[Jainism]] lays down the path for the soul to realize its true nature through right faith and active awareness of the self (''bhedvigyān'') as an unchanging eternal ''gnāta'' (knower) and ''drashtā'' (witness) distinct from its worldly activities like thoughts, passions, etc.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://jainqq.org/explore/007719/177 | title=Search, Seek, and Discover Jain Literature }}</ref>

According to Jain tradition, [[Mahavira]], the 24th ''Tirthankara'', revitalized and unified the ancient teachings of the Śramaṇic tradition, originally established by Rishabhadeva, the first Jain Tirthankara, millions of years prior.<ref>{{Cite book|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=SXgEfiNY46sC&pg=PA271|title = Thoughts from the Cosmic Field in the Life of a Thinking Insect &#91;A Latter-Day Saint&#93; |isbn = 978-1-60693-846-1 |last1 = Patel|first1 = Haresh |date=2009 |publisher=Strategic Book Publishing |access-date = 16 August 2019|archive-date = 3 July 2023|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230703144438/https://books.google.com/books?id=SXgEfiNY46sC&pg=PA271|url-status = live}}</ref> Historians outside of the Jain tradition date Mahavira to the 6th century BCE, roughly contemporaneous with the [[Buddha]].{{sfn|Dundas|2002|pp=30–31}} This timeline would place the historical [[Parshvanatha]] approximately 250 years earlier, in the 9th century BCE.<ref name="jainqq.org"/>

Jainism is a Śramaṇic religion and rejects the authority of the Vedas. However, like all [[Indian religions]], it shares the core concepts such as karma, ethical living, rebirth, samsara and moksha. Jainism places strong emphasis on [[asceticism]], [[ahimsa]] (non-violence) and [[anekantavada]] (relativity of viewpoints) as a means of spiritual liberation, ideas that influenced other Indian traditions.<ref>{{cite book |last=Long |first=Jeffrey D. |chapter=Jain Philosophy |editor1-first=Jay L. |editor1-last=Garfield |editor2-first=William |editor2-last=Edelglass |title=The Oxford Handbook of World Philosophy |year=2011 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-532899-8 |pages=168 |doi=10.1093/oxfordhb/9780195328998.003.0016 }}</ref>

Jainism strongly upholds the individualistic nature of soul, holding that self-reliance and individual efforts alone are responsible for liberation. According to the Jain philosophy, the world (''[[Saṃsāra (Jainism)|Saṃsāra]]'') is characterized by ''hiṃsā'' (violence). Therefore, one should direct all efforts towards the attainment of [[Ratnatraya]], which consists of Samyak Darshan (right perception), Samyak Gnana (right knowledge) and Samyak Chàritra (right conduct), the key requisites to attain liberation.<ref>{{cite book |first1=Ravish |last1=Kumar |last2=Das |first2=B. K. |title=Jainism and Jain Architecture|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4K9GDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA4|year=2018|publisher=Lulu.com|isbn=978-1-387-50342-1|page=4|access-date=16 August 2019|archive-date=3 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703144933/https://books.google.com/books?id=4K9GDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA4|url-status=live}}{{self-published source|date=February 2020}}</ref>

===Buddhist philosophy===
{{Main|Buddhist philosophy|Early Buddhist schools}}
[[File:Gandhara Buddha (tnm).jpeg|thumb|upright=0.85|The Buddhist philosophy is based on the teachings of the [[Buddha]].]]
Buddhist philosophy refers to several traditions which can be traced back to the teachings of [[Gautama Buddha|Siddhartha Gautama]], [[Buddhahood|the Buddha]] ("awakened one"). Buddhism is a Śramaṇa religion, but it contains novel ideas not found or accepted by other Śramaṇa religions, such as the Buddhist doctrine of not-self ([[Anattā|anatta]]). Buddhist thought is also influenced by the thought of the [[Upanishads]].<ref>Jurewicz, Joanna (2000), "Playing with Fire: The pratityasamutpada from the perspective of Vedic thought", Journal of the Pali Text Society, 26: 77–103.</ref>

Buddhism and Hinduism mutually influenced each other and shared many concepts, however it is now difficult to identify and describe these influences.<ref name="williams84">{{cite book|first=Paul |last=Williams |title=Mahāyāna Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z3FuzkBnOxAC |year=2008|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-134-25057-8 |pages=84–85 }}</ref> Buddhism rejected the Vedic concepts of [[Brahman]] (ultimate reality) and [[Atman (Hinduism)|Atman]] (soul, self) at the foundation of Hindu philosophies.<ref>{{cite book |first=Robert Cummings |last=Neville |chapter=The Role of Concepts of God in Cross Cultural Comparative Theology |author-link=Robert Cummings Neville |editor1-first=Jeremiah |editor1-last= Hackett |editor2-first=Jerald |editor2-last=Wallulis |title=Philosophy of Religion for a New Century: Essays in Honor of Eugene Thomas Long |doi=10.1007/978-1-4020-2074-2_15 |year=2004|publisher=Springer |isbn=978-1-4020-2073-5 |pages=257 |quote=[Buddhism's ontological hypotheses] that nothing in reality has its own-being and that all phenomena reduce to the relativities of pratitya samutpada. The Buddhist ontological hypothesese deny that there is any ontologically ultimate object such a God, Brahman, the Dao, or any transcendent creative source or principle.}}</ref><ref name="britannicaanatta">{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/anatta |title=anatta |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210122042635/https://www.britannica.com/topic/anatta |archive-date=22 January 2021 |url-status=live |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |quote=[...] in Buddhism, the doctrine that there is in humans no permanent, underlying soul. [...] The concept of anatta, or anatman, is a departure from the Hindu belief in atman ('the self').}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|first=Christmas |last=Humphreys |title=Exploring Buddhism |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V3rYtmCZEIEC |year=2012 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-136-22877-3 |pages=42–43 |access-date=18 October 2016 |archive-date=11 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230111055822/https://books.google.com/books?id=V3rYtmCZEIEC|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Gombrich |first=Richard F. |date=2006 |title=Theravāda Buddhism : a social history from ancient Benares to modern Colombo |publisher=Routledge |page=47 |quote=[...] Buddha's teaching that beings have no soul, no abiding essence. This 'no-soul doctrine' (anatta-vada) he expounded in his second sermon.}}</ref>

Buddhism shares many philosophical views with other Indian systems, such as belief in ''[[Karma in Buddhism|karma]]'' – a cause-and-effect relationship, [[samsara]] – ideas about cyclic afterlife and rebirth, [[dharma]] – ideas about ethics, duties and values, [[impermanence]] of all material things and of body, and possibility of spiritual liberation ([[nirvana]] or [[moksha]]).<ref>{{cite book |first=Brian K. |last=Smith |title=Reflections on Resemblance, Ritual, and Religion |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nkruE6UCz54C |year=1998 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-1532-2 |pages=14 |access-date=18 October 2016 |archive-date=3 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703144933/https://books.google.com/books?id=nkruE6UCz54C |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia |first1=Peter J. |last1=Claus |first2=Sarah |last2=Diamond |first3=Margaret Ann |last3=Mills |title=Karma |encyclopedia=South Asian Folklore: An Encyclopedia |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ienxrTPHzzwC |year=2003 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-93919-5 |pages=322–323 |access-date=18 October 2016 |archive-date=3 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703144934/https://books.google.com/books?id=ienxrTPHzzwC |url-status=live }}</ref> A major departure from Hindu and Jain philosophy is the Buddhist rejection of an eternal soul (''[[Ātman (Hinduism)|atman]]'') in favour of ''[[anatta]]'' (non-Self).<ref name=britannicaanatta/><ref name=SCollins>{{Cite book |first=Steven |last=Collins |date=1994 |chapter=What Are Buddhists Doing When They Deny the Self? |title=Religion and Practical Reason |editor1-first=Frank |editor1-last=Reynolds |editor2-first=David |editor2-last=Tracy |publisher=State Univ of New York Press |isbn=978-0-7914-2217-5 |page=64 |quote=Central to Buddhist soteriology is the doctrine of not-self (Pali: anattā, Sanskrit: anātman, the opposed doctrine of ātman is central to Brahmanical thought). Put very briefly, this is the [Buddhist] doctrine that human beings have no soul, no self, no unchanging essence}}</ref><ref name=Plott>{{Cite book |first=John C. |last=Plott |date=1993 |title=Global History of Philosophy: Volume 1: The Axial Age |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-8120801585 |page=63 |quote=The Buddhist schools reject any Ātman concept. As we have already observed, this is the basic and ineradicable distinction between Hinduism and Buddhism}}</ref><ref name=Javanaud>{{Cite web |first=Katie |last=Javanaud |date=2013 |url=https://philosophynow.org/issues/97/Is_The_Buddhist_No-Self_Doctrine_Compatible_With_Pursuing_Nirvana |title=Is the Buddhist 'No-Self' Doctrine Compatible with Pursuing Nirvana? |work=Philosophy Now |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170913132314/https://philosophynow.org/issues/97/Is_The_Buddhist_No-Self_Doctrine_Compatible_With_Pursuing_Nirvana |archive-date=13 September 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |first=David |last=Loy |date=1982 |title=Enlightenment in Buddhism and Advaita Vedanta: Are Nirvana and Moksha the Same? |journal=International Philosophical Quarterly |volume=22 |issue=1 |pages=65–74 |doi=10.5840/ipq19822217}}</ref> After the death of the Buddha, several competing philosophical systems termed ''[[Abhidharma]]'' began to emerge as ways to systematize Buddhist philosophy.{{Sfn|Westerhoff|2018}}

==== Schools of thought ====
The main traditions of Buddhist philosophy in India (from 300 BCE to 1000 CE) can be divided into Mahayana schools and non-Mahayana schools (sometimes called [[Śrāvakayāna]] schools, [[Nikaya Buddhism]], "Mainstream" Buddhism or [[Hinayana]], "inferior" or "lesser" vehicle, a term used only in Mahayana to refer to non-Mahayana traditions).{{Sfn|Westerhoff|2018|p=xxiv}} The Mahayana schools accepted the [[Mahayana sutras]] and studied the works of Mahayana philosophers like [[Nagarjuna]]. The non-Mahayana schools drew their philosophical doctrines from the Tripitaka and on the Abhidharma treatises.

'''Śrāvakayāna schools (non-Mahayana):'''
* The [[Mahāsāṃghika]] ("Great Community") tradition (which included numerous sub-schools, all are now extinct). A key doctrine of this tradition was the supramundane and transcendent nature of the Buddha ([[Lokottaravāda|lokottaravada]]).
* The schools of the [[Sthavira nikāya|Sthavira]] ("Elders") tradition:
** [[Vaibhāṣika]] ("Commentators") also known as the [[Sarvastivada|Sarvāstivāda]]-Vaibhāśika, was an [[Abhidharma]] tradition that composed the "Great Commentary" (''[[Mahavibhasa|Mahāvibhāṣa]]).'' They were known for their defense of the doctrine of "''sarvāstitva''" (all exists), which is a form of [[Eternalism (philosophy of time)|eternalism regarding the philosophy of time.]] They also supported direct realism and a theory of substances (''[[Svabhava|svabhāva]]'').
** [[Sautrāntika]] ("Those who uphold the sutras"), a tradition which did not see the northern Abhidharma as authoritative, and instead focused on the Buddhist [[sutra]]s. They disagreed with the Vaibhāṣika on several key points, including their eternalistic theory of time, their [[direct realism]] and their realist theory of [[Nirvana (Buddhism)|nirvana]].
** [[Pudgalavada|Pudgalavāda]] ("Personalists"), which were known for their controversial theory of the "person" (''pudgala'') which is what undergoes rebirth and attain awakening. They are now extinct.
**[[Vibhajyavāda]] ("The Analysts"), a widespread tradition which reached Kashmir, South India and Sri Lanka. A part of this school has survived into the modern era as the Southeast Asian [[Theravada]] tradition. Their orthodox positions can be found in the ''[[Kathavatthu]].'' They rejected the views of the [[Pudgalavada|Pudgalavāda]] and of the [[Vaibhāṣika]] among others.

'''[[Mahayana|Mahāyāna]] traditions:'''
[[File:Eight Patriarchs of the Shingon Sect of Buddhism Nagarjuna Cropped.jpg|thumb|upright=0.85|A Japanese depiction of [[Nagarjuna]], one of the greatest Buddhist philosophers and founder of Madhyamaka]]
The [[Mahayana|Mahāyāna]] ("Great Vehicle") movement (c. 1st century BCE onwards) included new ideas and scriptures ([[Mahayana sutras]]). These philosophical traditions differ significantly from other schools of Buddhism, and include metaphysical doctrines which are not accepted by the other Buddhist traditions. Mahayana thought focuses on the universal altruistic ideal of the [[bodhisattva]], a being who is on the path to [[Buddhahood]] for the sake of all living beings. It also defends the doctrine that there are limitless number of Buddhas throughout limitless numbers of universes. These Indian traditions are the main source of modern Tibetan Buddhism and of modern East Asian Buddhism.

The main Indian Mahayana schools of philosophy are:

* [[Madhyamaka]] ("Middle way" or "Centrism") founded by [[Nagarjuna]]. Also known as ''Śūnyavāda'' (the [[Śūnyatā|emptiness]] doctrine) and ''Niḥsvabhāvavāda'' (the no [[Svabhava|''svabhāva'']] doctrine), this tradition focuses on the idea that all phenomena are empty of any essence or substance (''[[Svabhava|svabhāva]]'').
* [[Yogachara|Yogācāra]] ("Yoga-praxis"), an idealistic school which held that only consciousness exists, and thus was also known as ''Vijñānavāda'' (the doctrine of consciousness).
* The [[Buddhist logico-epistemology|Dignāga-Dharmakīrti tradition]] is an influential school of thought which focused on [[epistemology]], or ''[[Pramana|pramāṇa]]'' ('means of knowledge'). They generally followed the doctrine of ''Vijñānavāda.''
*Some scholars see the ''[[Tathāgatagarbha]]'' ("Buddha womb/source") or "buddha-nature" texts as constituting a third "school" of Indian Mahāyāna thought.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Kiyota |first=Minoru |date=1985 |title=Tathāgatagarbha Thought: A Basis of Buddhist Devotionalism in East Asia |journal=Japanese Journal of Religious Studies |volume=12 |issue=2/3 |pages=207–231 |doi=10.18874/jjrs.12.2-3.1985.207-231 |jstor=30233958|doi-access=free }}</ref>
*[[Vajrayana|Vajrayāna]] (also known as Mantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, and [[Tantra|Tantric]] Buddhism) is often placed in a separate category due to its unique [[Tantra|tantric]] theories and practices.

Many of these philosophies were brought to other regions, like Central Asia and China. After the disappearance of Buddhism from India, some of these philosophical traditions continued to develop in the [[Tibetan Buddhist]], [[East Asian Buddhist]] and [[Theravada Buddhist]] traditions.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dreyfus |first=Georges B. J. |title=Recognizing Reality: Dharmakirti's Philosophy and Its Tibetan Interpretations |date=1997 |page=22 |publisher=SUNY Press |isbn=978-0-7914-3097-2}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |first=JeeLoo |last=Liu |url=https://jeelooliu.net/Tian-tai%20vs.%20Hua-yan.pdf |title=Tian-tai Metaphysics vs. Hua-yan Metaphysics A Comparative Study}}</ref>

[[File:Sudama and Lomas Rishi Caves at Barabar, Bihar, 1870.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Monastic life has been a part of all Indian philosophy traditions. Mendicant caves of extinct Ājīvikas in Bihar.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|first=Pia |last=Brancaccio |chapter=Cave Architecture of India |year=2014 |editor-last=Selin |editor-first=Helaine |editor-link=Helaine Selin |encyclopedia=[[Encyclopaedia of the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures]] |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-94-007-3934-5 |pages= 1–9| doi=10.1007/978-94-007-3934-5_9848-1}}</ref>]]

===Ājīvika philosophy===
{{Main|Ājīvika}}
The philosophy of Ājīvika was founded by [[Makkhali Gosala]], it was a [[Śramaṇa|Śramaṇa movement]] and a major rival of [[Pre-sectarian Buddhism|early Buddhism]] and [[Jainism]].<ref>{{Cite book |first=Jeffrey D. |last=Long |date=2009 |title=Jainism: An Introduction |publisher=Macmillan |isbn=978-1-84511-625-5 |page=199}}</ref> Ājīvikas were organised renunciates who formed discrete monastic communities prone to an ascetic and simple lifestyle.{{sfn|Basham|2002|pp=145-146}}

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.{{sfn|Basham|2002|loc=Chapter 1}} 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.{{sfn|Basham|2002|loc=Chapter 1}}<ref name="james22"/> Ājīvika considered the [[karma]] doctrine as a fallacy.<ref name="philtarajiv"/> Ājīvikas were atheists<ref>{{Cite book |first=Johannes |last=Quack |date=2014 |chapter=India |title=The Oxford Handbook of Atheism |editor1-first=Stephen |editor1-last=Bullivant |editor2-first=Michael |editor2-last=Ruse |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-964465-0 |page=654 |doi=10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199644650.013.018}}</ref> and rejected the authority of the [[Vedas]], but they believed that in every living being is an ''[[Ātman (Hinduism)|ātman]]'' – a central premise of Hinduism and Jainism.<ref>{{Cite book |author=Anālayo |date=2004 |title=Satipaṭṭhāna: The Direct Path to Realization |isbn=978-1-899579-54-9 |pages=207–208|publisher=Windhorse Publications }}</ref>{{sfn|Basham|2002|pp=240-261, 270-273}}

===Ajñana philosophy===
{{Main|Ajñana}}
Ajñana was one of the nāstika or "heterodox" schools of ancient Indian philosophy, and the ancient school of radical Indian skepticism. It was a Śramaṇa movement and a major rival of early Buddhism and Jainism. Their ideas are 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 sophists who specialised in refutation without propagating any positive doctrine of their own.

===Charvaka philosophy===
{{Main|Charvaka}}
Charvaka ({{langx|sa|चार्वाक}}; [[IAST]]: ''Cārvāka''), also known as ''Lokāyata'', is an ancient school of Indian [[materialism]].<ref>{{cite news |first=Seema |last=Chishti |date=21 August 2018 |title=Indian rationalism, Charvaka to Narendra Dabholkar |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/govind-pansare-mm-kalburgi-gauri-lankesh-murder-5316465/ |website=The Indian Express |access-date=21 April 2021 |archive-date=22 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180822154123/https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/govind-pansare-mm-kalburgi-gauri-lankesh-murder-5316465/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Charvaka holds [[direct perception]], [[empiricism]], and conditional [[inference]] as proper sources of knowledge, embraces [[philosophical skepticism]] and rejects ritualism and [[supernaturalism]].{{sfn|Tiwari|1998|p=67}}{{sfn|Perrett|1984|pp=161-174}}{{sfn|Bhattacharya|2011|pp=21–32}}{{sfn|Radhakrishnan|Moore|1957|pp=187, 227–234}}{{sfn|Flint|1899|p=[{{Google books|id=7es0AQAAIAAJ|plainurl=yes|page=463}} 463]}} It was a popular belief system in [[ancient India]].{{Efn|"Aside from nontheistic schools like the [[Samkhya]], there have also been explicitly atheistic schools in the Hindu tradition. One virulently anti-supernatural system is/was the so-called Charvaka school."{{sfn|Raman|2012|pp=549–574}}}}

The etymology of [[Charvaka]] (Sanskrit: चार्वाक) is uncertain. Bhattacharya quotes the grammarian Hemacandra, to the effect that the word [[Carvaka|cārvāka]] is derived from the root carv, 'to chew' : "A Cārvāka chews the self (carvatyātmānaṃ cārvākaḥ). Hemacandra refers to his own grammatical work, Uṇādisūtra 37, which runs as follows: mavāka-śyāmāka-vārtāka-jyontāka-gūvāka-bhadrākādayaḥ. Each of these words ends with the āka suffix and is formed irregularly". This may also allude to the philosophy's hedonistic precepts of "eat, drink, and be merry".

[[Bṛhaspati|Brihaspati]] is traditionally referred to as the founder of Charvaka or Lokāyata philosophy, although some scholars dispute this.{{sfn|Bhattacharya|2002}}<ref>{{cite book |first=Jeaneane |last=Fowler |chapter=The Materialists of Classical India |editor1-first=Copson |editor1-last=Andrew |editor2-last=Grayling |editor2-first=A. C. |title=The Wiley Blackwell Handbook of Humanism |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-119-97717-9 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=8BotCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA114 114 with footnote 17] |doi=10.1002/9781118793305.ch6}}</ref> During the Hindu reformation period in the first millennium BCE, when [[Buddhism]] was established by [[Gautama Buddha]] and [[Jainism]] was re-organized by [[Parshvanatha]], the Charvaka philosophy was well documented and opposed by both religions.{{sfn|Quack|2011|p=50|ps=: see footnote 3}} Much of the primary literature of Charvaka, the [[Barhaspatya sutras]], were lost either due to waning popularity or other unknown reasons.{{sfn|Radhakrishnan|Moore|1957|pp=227–249}} Its teachings have been compiled from historic secondary literature such as those found in the [[shastra]]s, [[sutra]]s, and the [[Indian epic poetry]] as well as in the dialogues of Gautama Buddha and from [[Jain literature]].{{sfn|Radhakrishnan|Moore|1957|pp=227–249}}{{sfn|Bhattacharya|2011|pp=21–44, 65–74}} However, there is text that may belong to the Charvaka tradition, written by the skeptic philosopher [[Jayarāśi Bhaṭṭa]], known as the Tattvôpaplava-siṁha, that provides information about this school, albeit unorthodox.<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Balcerowicz |first=Piotr |title=Jayarāśi |date=2016 |url=https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2016/entries/jayaraasi/ |encyclopedia=The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy |editor-last=Zalta |editor-first=Edward N. |edition=Spring 2016 |publisher=Stanford University |access-date=2020-07-08 |archive-date=8 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200708083208/https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2016/entries/jayaraasi/ |url-status=live}}</ref>{{sfn|Kamal|1998}}

One of the widely studied principles of Charvaka philosophy was its rejection of [[inference]] as a means to establish valid, universal knowledge, and [[Metaphysics|metaphysical]] truths.{{sfn|Acharya|1894|p=5}}{{sfn|Bhattacharya|2011|p=58}} In other words, the Charvaka epistemology states that whenever one infers a truth from a set of observations or truths, one must acknowledge doubt; inferred knowledge is conditional.{{Sfn|Cowell|Gough|2001|pp=4, 42}}

==Comparison of Indian philosophies==
The Indian traditions subscribed to diverse philosophies, significantly disagreeing with each other as well as orthodox Indian philosophy and its six schools of [[Hindu philosophy]]. The differences ranged from a belief that every individual has a soul (self, atman) to asserting that there is no soul,<ref name=britannicaanatta/><ref name=SCollins/><ref name=Plott/><ref name=Javanaud/><ref name=Jayatilleke/> from axiological merit in a frugal ascetic life to that of a hedonistic life, from a belief in rebirth to asserting that there is no rebirth.<ref name=RCollins>{{cite book |first=Randall |last=Collins |title=The sociology of philosophies : a global theory of intellectual change |year=2000 |publisher=Harvard University Press |pages=199–200 |isbn=978-0-674-00187-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2HS1DOZ35EgC&pg=PA199}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+Comparison of ancient Indian philosophies
|-
! !! Ājīvika !! Early Buddhism 
!Mahayana Buddhism!! Charvaka !! Jainism !! Vedanta !! Samkhya/ Yoga !! Nyaya/ Vaisheshika !! Mimamsa
|-
|[[Karma]] || Denies<ref name=philtarajiv>{{Cite web |url=http://www.philtar.ac.uk/encyclopedia/hindu/ascetic/ajiv.html |title=Ajivikas |work=Overview of World Religions |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190717212839/http://www.philtar.ac.uk/encyclopedia/hindu/ascetic/ajiv.html |archive-date=17 July 2019 |url-status=live |publisher=University of Cumbria}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |first=Gananath |last=Obeyesekere |date=2005 |title=Karma and Rebirth: A Cross Cultural Study |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-8120826090 |page=106}}</ref> || Affirms, but not everything is caused by karma.<ref name=RCollins/><ref>{{Cite web |title=Basic Buddhism: The Theory of Karma |url=https://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/karma.htm |access-date=2023-09-04 |website=www.buddhanet.net }}{{Dead link|date=August 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> Karma is only one of the constraints. ([[Niyama]])
|Affirms|| Denies<ref name=RCollins/> || Affirms<ref name=RCollins/> || Affirms || Affirms || Affirms || Denies
|-
|[[Samsara]], Rebirth || Affirms || Affirms<ref>{{Cite book |first=Damien |last=Keown |date=2013 |title=Buddhism: A Very Short Introduction |edition=2nd |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-966383-5 |pages=32–46}}</ref> 
|Affirms|| Denies<ref>{{Cite book |author=Haribhadrasūri |translator-first=Mahendra Kumar |translator-last=Jain |date=1989 |title=Ṣaḍ-darśana-samuccaya |publisher=Asiatic Society |oclc=1075221825}}</ref> || Affirms<ref name=RCollins/> || Affirms<ref name="Halbfass 2000">{{Cite book |last=Halbfass |first=Wilhelm |date=2000 |title=Karma und Wiedergeburt im indischen Denken |language=de |publisher=Diederichs |location=Munich |isbn=978-3-89631-385-0}}</ref> || Affirms<ref name="Halbfass 2000"/> || Affirms<ref name="Halbfass 2000"/> || Denies<ref name="Halbfass 2000"/>
|-
|[[Asceticism|Ascetic]] life || Affirms || Affirms, but rejects extreme asceticism in favor of a more moderated version, the "[[Middle Way]]".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nakamura |first=Hajime |title=Indian Buddhism: a survey with bibliographical notes |date=2007 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-0272-8 |edition=Repr., 1. Indian |location=Delhi}}</ref>
|Affirms middle way|| Denies<ref name=RCollins/> || Affirms || Affirms as [[Sannyasa]]<ref name=patrickolivelle278>{{Cite book |first=Patrick |last=Olivelle |date=2005 |chapter=The Renouncer Tradition |title=The Blackwell Companion to Hinduism |editor-last=Flood |editor-first=Gavin |publisher=Wiley-Blackwell |isbn=978-1-4051-3251-0 |pages=277–278 |doi=10.1002/9780470998694.ch13}}</ref> || Affirms as [[Sannyasa]]<ref name=patrickolivelle278/> || Affirms as [[Sannyasa]]<ref name=patrickolivelle278/> || Denies
|-
|Rituals, [[Bhakti]] || Affirms || Affirms, optional<ref>{{Cite book |first=Karel |last=Werner |date=1995 |title=Love Divine: Studies in Bhakti and Devotional Mysticism |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-7007-0235-0 |pages=45–46}}</ref><br />(Pali: ''Bhatti'') 
|Affirms (Mahayana rites)|| Denies || Affirms, optional<ref>{{Cite book |first=John |last=Cort |date=2001 |title=Jains in the World : Religious Values and Ideology in India |publisher=Oxford University Press |pages=64–68, 86–90, 100–112 |isbn=978-0-19-513234-2}}</ref> || Theistic school: Affirms, optional<ref>{{Cite journal |first=Christian |last=Novetzke |date=2007 |title=Bhakti and Its Public |journal=International Journal of Hindu Studies |volume=11 |issue=3 |pages=255–272 |doi=10.1007/s11407-008-9049-9|s2cid=144065168 }}</ref><br />Others: Deny<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Jacobsen |first=Knut A. |title=Theory and Practice of Yoga |chapter=Yoga Traditions |year=2005 |pages=15–16 |publisher=BRILL |doi=10.1163/9789047416333_002|isbn=9789047416333 }} In {{Harvnb|Jacobsen|2008}}.</ref><ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |first=Lloyd |last=Pflueger |title=Person, Purity, and Power in the ''Yogasūtra'' |chapter=Person, Purity, and Power in the ϒogasūtra |date=2005 |pages=38–39 |publisher=BRILL |doi=10.1163/9789047416333_003|isbn=9789047416333 }} In {{Harvnb|Jacobsen|2008}}.</ref><ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Clements |first=Richa Pauranik |title=Being a Witness: Cross-Examining the Notion of Self in Śaṅkara's ''Upadeśasāhasrī'', Īśvarakṛṣṛa's ''Sāṃkhyakārikā'', and Patañjali's ''Yogasūtra'' |chapter=Being a Witness: Cross-Examining the Notion of Self in Śaṅkara's Upadeśasāhasrī, Īśvarakṛṣṛa's Sāṃkhϒakārikā, and Patañjali's ϒogasūtra |date=2005 |pages=76–78 |publisher=BRILL |doi=10.1163/9789047416333_005|isbn=9789047416333 }} In {{Harvnb|Jacobsen|2008}}.</ref>{{Sfn|Potter|2008|pp=16-18, 220}}<ref>{{Cite book |first=Basant |last=Pradhan |date=2014 |title=Yoga and Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy |publisher=Springer Academic |page=13 |isbn=978-3-319-09104-4}}</ref> || Vaishnavite and Shaivite Schools: Affirm, Others: Deny || Affirms, mandatory
|-
|[[Ahimsa]] and Vegetarianism || Affirms || Acts of violence which are purposeful have [[Karma|karmic]] consequences. Buddhism does not explicitly prohibit ordinary people (lay people) from eating meat{{Sfn|Tähtinen|1976|pp=75-78, 94-106}} However, goods that contribute to or are a result of violence should not be traded.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Vanijja Sutta: Business (Wrong Livelihood) |url=https://accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an05/an05.177.than.html#:~:text=Business%20in%20weapons,%20business%20in%20human%20beings,%20business,meat,%20business%20in%20intoxicants,%20and%20business%20in%20poison. |access-date=2023-09-04 |website=accesstoinsight.org}}</ref>
|Affirmed in numerous Mahayana sutras|| || Strongest proponent<br />of non-violence;<br />Vegetarianism to avoid<br />violence against animals{{Sfn|Tähtinen|1976|pp=57-62, 109-111}} || Affirms as highest virtue,<br />but [[Just war theory|Just War]] affirmed<br />Vegetarianism encouraged, but<br />choice left to the Hindu{{Sfn|Tähtinen|1976|pp=34-43, 89-97, 109-110}}<ref name="Chapple 1993 16–17">{{Cite book |first=Christopher Key |last=Chapple |date=1993 |title=Nonviolence to Animals, Earth, and Self in Asian Traditions |publisher=State University of New York Press |isbn=0-7914-1498-1 |pages=16–17}}</ref> || Affirms as highest virtue,<br />but [[Just war theory|Just War]] affirmed<br />Vegetarianism encouraged, but<br />choice left to the Hindu{{Sfn|Tähtinen|1976|pp=34-43, 89-97, 109-110}}<ref name="Chapple 1993 16–17"/> || Affirms as highest virtue,<br />but [[Just war theory|Just War]] affirmed<br />Vegetarianism encouraged, but<br />choice left to the Hindu{{Sfn|Tähtinen|1976|pp=34-43, 89-97, 109-110}}<ref name="Chapple 1993 16–17"/> || Affirms as highest virtue,<br />but [[Just war theory|Just War]] affirmed<br />Vegetarianism encouraged, but<br />choice left to the Hindu{{Sfn|Tähtinen|1976|pp=34-43, 89-97, 109-110}}<ref name="Chapple 1993 16–17"/>
|- 
|[[Free will]] || Denies<ref name=james22>{{Cite book |first=James |last=Lochtefeld |chapter=Ajivika |title=The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism |year=2002 |volume=1 |publisher=Rosen Publishing |isbn=978-0-8239-3179-8 |page=22}}</ref> || Buddhists believe in neither absolute free will, nor determinism.<ref>{{Cite book |date=2004 |editor-last=Campbell |editor-first=Joseph Keim |editor2-last=O'Rourke |editor2-first=Michael |editor3-last=Shier |editor3-first=David |title=Freedom and Determinism |publisher=The MIT Press |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/3104.001.0001 |doi=10.7551/mitpress/3104.001.0001|isbn=9780262269773 }}</ref> It preaches a middle doctrine of dependent arising - ''[[pratītyasamutpāda]].''
| Will is a dependent arising|| Affirms || Affirms || Advaita and Vishishtadvaita: Deny through theory of vivartavada and determinism, Dvaita Vedanta: Affirms|| Denies || Denies || Affirms
|-
|[[Maya (illusion)|Maya]] || Affirms{{Sfn|Basham|2002|p=237}} || Affirms<br />(''prapañca'')<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |first=Damien |last=Keown |date=2004 |encyclopedia=A Dictionary of Buddhism |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-860560-7 |title=Prapañca |quote=Term meaning 'proliferation', in the sense of the multiplication of erroneous concepts, ideas, and ideologies which obscure the true nature of reality}}</ref> 
|Affirms|| Denies || Affirms || Advaita: Affirms<ref>{{Cite book |first1=Lynn |last1=Foulston |first2=Stuart |last2=Abbott |date=2009 |title=Hindu Goddesses : Beliefs and Practices |publisher=Sussex Academic Press |isbn=978-1-902210-43-8 |pages=14–16}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |first=Wendy |last=Doniger |author-link=Wendy Doniger |date=1986 |title=Dreams, Illusion, and Other Realities |publisher=University of Chicago Press |page=119 |isbn=978-0-226-61855-5}}</ref> Dvaita: Denies|| Denies || Denies|| Denies
|- 
|[[Atman (Hinduism)|Atman]] (Soul, Self) || Affirms || Denies<ref name=britannicaanatta/><ref name=SCollins/><ref name=Plott/><ref name=Javanaud/><ref name=Jayatilleke>{{Cite book |last=Jayatilleke |first=Kulatissa Nanda |date=2010 |title=Early Buddhist Theory of Knowledge |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-8120806191 |pages=246–249}}</ref> 
|An atmavada is taught in Buddha-nature sources, but it is rejected in other Mahayana sources|| Denies{{Sfn|Bhattacharya|2011|p=216}} || Affirms{{Sfn|Jaini|2001|p=119}} || Affirms || Affirms || Affirms || Affirms 
|-
|Creator god || Denies || Denies<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mark |first=Joshua J. |title=Buddhism |url=https://www.worldhistory.org/buddhism/ |access-date=2023-08-25 |website=World History Encyclopedia |date=25 September 2020 |language=en}}</ref>
|Denies|| Denies || Denies || Advaita denies a creator god and states that avidya (ignorance) is the source of creation, Dvaita: Affirm<ref>{{Cite book |first=Oliver |last=Leaman |date=2000 |title=Eastern Philosophy: Key Readings |publisher=Routledge |page=251 |isbn=978-0-415-17358-2}}</ref><br />Others: Deny<ref>{{Cite book |last=Burley |first=Mikel |author-link=Mikel Burley |date=2012 |title=Classical Samkhya and Yoga : An Indian Metaphysics of Experience |publisher=Routledge |page=39 |isbn=978-0-415-64887-5}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |first=Paul |last=Hacker |date=1978 |chapter=Eigentümlichkeiten der Lehre und Terminologie Śaṅkaras: Avidyā, Nāmarūpa, Māyā, Īśvara |title=Kleine Schriften |editor-first=Lambert |editor-last=Schmithausen |publisher=Franz Steiner Verlag |location=Weisbaden |pages=69–99, 101–109 |language=de |isbn=3-515-02692-4}}</ref>|| Samkhya: Denies, Yoga: Affirms || Theistic Schools: Affirm, Others: Deny || Denies
|-
|[[Epistemology]]<br />([[Pramana]]) || [[Pratyakṣa]], [[Anumāṇa]], [[Śabda]]|| Pratyakṣa,<br />Anumāṇa{{Sfn|Grimes|1996|p=238}}<ref>{{Cite journal |first=Dhirendra |last=Sharma |date=1966 |title=Epistemological negative dialectics of Indian logic – ''abhāva'' versus ''anupalabdhi'' |journal=Indo-Iranian Journal |volume=9 |issue=4 |pages=291–300 |doi=10.1007/BF00190980|doi-broken-date=12 July 2025 |s2cid=170600886 }}</ref> 
|Pratyakṣa,<br />Anumāṇa|| Pratyakṣa{{Sfn|Kamal|1998}} || Pratyakṣa,<br />Anumāṇa,<br />Śabda{{Sfn|Grimes|1996|p=238}} || Advaita Vedanta: Six{{Sfn|Grimes|1996|p=238}}<ref name="Deutsch"/><br />Pratyakṣa,<br />Anumāṇa,<br />[[Pramana#Upamāna|Upamāṇa]],<br />[[Pramana#Arthāpatti|Arthāpatti]],<br />[[Pramana#Anupalabdhi|Anupalabdi]],<br />Śabda, Dvaita and Vishishtadvaita: Three  <br />Pratyakṣa,<br />Anumāṇa,<br />Śabda || Three:  <br />Pratyakṣa,<br />Anumāṇa,<br />Śabda || Vaisheshika: Two <br />Pratyakṣa,<br />Anumāṇa, Nyaya: Four <br />Pratyakṣa,<br />Anumāṇa,<br />Upamāṇa,<br />Śabda|| Five: <br />Pratyakṣa,<br />Anumāṇa,<br />Upamāṇa,<br />Arthāpatti,<br />Śabda
|-
|Epistemic authority||Denies: Vedas ||Affirms: [[Tripiṭaka|Tripitaka]]<ref name=bartley46>{{Cite book |first=Christopher |last=Bartley |date=2011 |title=An Introduction to Indian Philosophy |publisher=Bloomsbury Academic |pages=46, 120 |isbn=978-1-84706-449-3}}</ref><br />Denies: Vedas
|Affirms: Tripitaka, [[Mahayana sutras]]||Denies: Vedas ||Affirms: [[Jain Agamas]]<br />Denies: Vedas||Affirm: [[Vedas]], [[Upanishad]]s and [[Bhagavad-Gita]],{{Efn|{{Harvnb|Freschi|2012}}: The Vedas are not deontic authorities and may be disobeyed, but still recognized as an epistemic authority by a Hindu.{{Sfn|Freschi|2012|p=62}} Such a differentiation between epistemic and deontic authority is true for all Indian religions.}} ||Affirm: [[Vedas]], [[Upanishad]]s and Yoga: [[Bhagavad-Gita]],{{Efn|{{Harvnb|Freschi|2012}}: The Vedas are not deontic authorities and may be disobeyed, but still recognized as an epistemic authority by a Hindu.{{Sfn|Freschi|2012|p=62}} Such a differentiation between epistemic and deontic authority is true for all Indian religions.}} ||Affirm: [[Vedas]],{{Efn|{{Harvnb|Freschi|2012}}: The Vedas are not deontic authorities and may be disobeyed, but still recognized as an epistemic authority by a Hindu.{{Sfn|Freschi|2012|p=62}} Such a differentiation between epistemic and deontic authority is true for all Indian religions.}} ||Affirm: [[Vedas]],{{Efn|{{Harvnb|Freschi|2012}}: The Vedas are not deontic authorities and may be disobeyed, but still recognized as an epistemic authority by a Hindu.{{Sfn|Freschi|2012|p=62}} Such a differentiation between epistemic and deontic authority is true for all Indian religions.}}
|-
|Salvation<br />([[Soteriology]])|| Samsdrasuddhi{{Sfn|Basham|2002|p=227}} || [[Nirvana]]<ref>{{Cite book |first=Jerald |last=Gort |date=1992 |title=On Sharing Religious Experience : Possibilities of Interfaith Mutuality |publisher=Rodopi |isbn=978-0-8028-0505-8 |pages=209–210}}</ref> 
|[[Buddhahood]]|| Denies|| [[Siddha#Siddha in Jainism|Siddha]],<ref>{{Citation |first=John |last=Cort |date=2010 |title=Framing the Jina : Narratives of Icons and Idols in Jain History |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-538502-1 |pages=80, 188}}</ref>
[[Nirvana#Jainism|Nirvana]]
| Advaita: [[Moksha#Mokṣha in this life|Jivanmukti]]<ref>{{Cite book |first=Andrew |last=Fort |date=1998 |title=Jivanmukti in Transformation |publisher=State University of New York Press |isbn=978-0-7914-3904-3}}</ref><br />Dvaita, theistic: [[Moksha|Videhamukti]] || [[Moksha#Mokṣha in this life|Jivanmukti]]<ref>{{Cite book |first=Andrew |last=Fort |date=1998 |title=Jivanmukti in Transformation |publisher=State University of New York Press |isbn=978-0-7914-3904-3}} ||</ref>|| [[Moksha]] || Heaven
|-
|[[Metaphysics]]<br />(Ultimate Reality)|| || The [[Buddha]] of the early texts does not focus on metaphysical questions but on ethical and spiritual training and in some cases, he dismisses [[The unanswered questions|certain metaphysical questions]] as unhelpful and indeterminate [[Avyakta]], which he recommends should be set aside. The development of systematic metaphysics arose after the Buddha's death with the rise of the [[Abhidharma]] traditions.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ronkin |first=Noa |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9780203537060 |title=Early Buddhist Metaphysics |date=2005-02-28 |publisher=Routledge |doi=10.4324/9780203537060 |isbn=978-1-134-28312-5}}</ref>
|[[Anti-foundationalism]] (Madhyamaka), [[Idealism]] (Yogacara)|| Material elements||[[Anekantavada|Anekāntavāda]]<ref>{{Cite book |first=Christopher Key |last=Chapple |date=2004 |title=Jainism and Ecology: Nonviolence in the Web of Life |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |page=20 |isbn=978-8120820456}}</ref><br />||Advaita: [[Brahman]]<ref>{{Cite book |first=Poolla T. |last=Raju |date=2006 |title=Idealistic Thought of India |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-4067-3262-7 |page=426 and Conclusion chapter part XII}}</ref>{{Sfn|Perrett, Vol. 3|2000|p=xvii}}<ref>{{Cite journal |first=A.C. |last=Das |date=1952 |title=Brahman and Māyā in Advaita Metaphysics |journal=Philosophy East and West |volume=2 |issue=2 |pages=144–154 |doi=10.2307/1397304 |jstor=1397304}}</ref> Dvaita: God and various Jivatmans|| Samkhya: Purusha and Prakriti, Yoga: Purusha, Ishvara, Prakriti|| Atman, Buddhi, Chitta, Material World (atoms, especially in Vaisheshika)|| Atman and material world
|}

==Political philosophy==
The [[Arthashastra]], attributed to the [[Mauryan]] minister [[Chanakya]], is one of the early Indian texts devoted to [[political philosophy]]. It is dated to 4th century BCE and discusses ideas of statecraft and economic policy. The [[Kural|Kural text]], attributed to [[Valluvar]] and dated to around 5th century CE, deals with [[ahimsa]] and morality, extending them to political philosophy and love.<ref>{{cite book|last=Sundaram |first=P.S. |title=Kural (Tiruvalluvar)|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aPpv2F2RRgcC|year=1990|publisher=Penguin Books|isbn=978-9351180159 }}</ref>{{rp|7–16}}<ref>{{cite book |last=Zvelebil |first=Kamil |title=The Smile of Murugan: On Tamil Literature of South India |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=degUAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA155 |access-date=7 March 2018|year=1973 |publisher=E.J. Brill |location=Leiden|isbn=9004035915 }}</ref>{{rp|156–168}}

[[Shah Waliullah Dehlawi]]'s Magnum Opus, the [[Hujjat Allah al-Baligha]], considers political society to be a macrosm of the individual. Consequently, it distills a framework for social governance from the principles of self-governance.

The political philosophy most closely associated with modern India is the one of [[ahimsa]] (non-violence) and [[Satyagraha]], popularised by [[Mahatma Gandhi]] during the [[Indian independence movement|Indian struggle for independence]]. In turn it influenced the later independence and [[Civil Rights movement]]s, especially those led by [[Martin Luther King Jr.]] and [[Nelson Mandela]]. [[Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar]]'s [[Progressive Utilization Theory]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sarkar, Prabhatranjan |url=http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Sarkar,_Prabhatranjan |access-date=2020-10-13|website=Banglapedia |archive-date=27 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201127064234/http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Sarkar,_Prabhatranjan |url-status=live}}</ref> is also a major socio-economic and political philosophy.<ref>{{cite book|last=Weber|first=Thomas|title=Gandhi as Disciple and Mentor|url=https://archive.org/details/gandhiasdisciple0000webe|url-access=registration|year=2004|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-139-45657-9|page=[https://archive.org/details/gandhiasdisciple0000webe/page/136 136]}}</ref>

[[Integral humanism (India)|Integral humanism]] was a set of concepts drafted by Upadhyaya as political program and adopted in 1965 as the official doctrine of the Jan Sangh.{{Citation needed|date=December 2024}}

Upadhyaya considered that it was of utmost importance for India to develop an indigenous economic model with a human being at center stage. This approach made this concept different from [[Socialism]] and [[Capitalism]]. Integral Humanism was adopted as Jan Sangh's political doctrine and its new openness to other opposition forces made it possible for the Hindu nationalist movement to have an alliance in the early 1970s with the prominent Gandhian [[Sarvodaya#Sarvodaya movement|Sarvodaya movement]] going on under the leadership of [[J. P. Narayan]]. This was considered to be the first major public breakthrough for the Hindu nationalist movement.{{Citation needed|date=December 2024}}

==Influence==
In appreciation of subtlety and truth of the Indian philosophy, [[T. S. Eliot]] wrote that the great philosophers of India "make most of the great European philosophers look like schoolboys".<ref>{{cite journal |url= http://ccbs.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-PHIL/ew33375.htm |title= The Hidden Advantage of Tradition: On the Significance of T. S. Eliot's Indic Studies |first1=Jeffry M. |last1=Perl |first2=Andrew P. |last2=Tuck |volume=35 |issue=2 |publisher= University of Hawaii Press |journal= Philosophy East & West |year= 1985 |pages= 115–131 |doi= 10.2307/1399046 |access-date= 2012-08-13 |archive-date= 28 June 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110628204424/http://ccbs.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-PHIL/ew33375.htm |url-status=dead |jstor=1399046|url-access= subscription }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title= After Strange Gods: A Primer of Modern Heresy |last=Eliot |first=T. S. |author-link=T. S. Eliot |year= 1933 |location=London |publisher=Faber & Faber |page=40}}</ref> [[Arthur Schopenhauer]] used Indian philosophy to improve upon [[Kantian]] thought. In the preface to his book ''[[The World As Will And Representation]]'', Schopenhauer writes that one who "has also received and assimilated the sacred primitive Indian wisdom, then he is the best of all prepared to hear what I have to say to him."<ref>{{cite book |last=Barua|first=Arati|title=Schopenhauer and Indian Philosophy: A Dialogue Between India and Germany|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iX8PLajNrAIC|year=2008|publisher=Northern Book Centre|isbn=978-81-7211-243-1|page=3}}</ref> The 19th-century American philosophical movement [[Transcendentalism]] was also influenced by Indian thought.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |title=Transcendentalism |encyclopedia=The Oxford Companion to American Literature |editor-first=James D. |editor-last=Hart |publisher=Oxford University Press |date=1995 |isbn=978-0-19-506548-0}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Werner|first=Karel|title=Yoga and Indian Philosophy |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=c6b3lH0-OekC&pg=PA170 |year=1998 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-1609-1 |page=170}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal bar|India|Philosophy|Religion}}
* [[List of Indian philosophers]] 
* [[Affectionism]]
* [[Ancient Indian philosophy]]
* [[Hindu philosophy]]
* [[M. Hiriyanna]]
* [[Indian art]]
* [[Indian logic]]
* [[Indian psychology]]
* [[Svayam bhagavan]]
* [[Trikaranasuddhi]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
===Citations===
{{Reflist}}

===Sources===
{{refbegin|2|indent=yes}}
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* {{cite journal |last=Kamal |first=M. Mostafa |year=1998 |title=The Epistemology of the Carvaka Philosophy |journal=Journal of Indian and Buddhist Studies |volume=46 |issue=2 |pages=1048–1045 |issn=1884-0051 |doi=10.4259/ibk.46.1048 |doi-access=free}}
* {{Cite book | last=Nicholson | first=Andrew J. | year=2010 | title=[[Unifying Hinduism: Philosophy and Identity in Indian Intellectual History]] | publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=978-0-231-14987-7}}
* {{Cite journal |last=Perrett |first=Roy W. |date=1984 |title=The Problem of Induction in Indian Philosophy |journal=[[Philosophy East and West]] |volume=34 |issue=2 |pages=161–174 |doi=10.2307/1398916 |jstor=1398916 }}
* {{Cite book |editor-last=Perrett |editor-first=Roy W. |date=2000 |title=Indian Philosophy : A Collection of Readings, Volume 3: Metaphysics |publisher=Garland |isbn=978-0-8153-3608-2 |ref={{harvid|Perrett, Vol. 3|2000}}}}
* {{Cite book |editor-last=Perrett |editor-first=Roy W. |date=2000 |title=Indian Philosophy : A Collection of Readings, Volume 4: Philosophy of Religion |publisher=Garland |isbn=978-0-8153-3611-2 |ref={{harvid|Perrett, Vol. 4|2000}}}}
* {{cite book |editor-last=Potter |editor-first=Karl Harrington |editor-link=Karl Harrington Potter |title=Encyclopedia of Indian Philosophers : Volume III: Advaita Vedānta up to Ṣaṃkara and His Pupils |place=New Delhi |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |year=2008 |isbn=978-8120803107}}
* {{cite book |last=Quack |first=Johannes |title=Disenchanting India: Organized Rationalism and Criticism of Religion in India |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6YxpAgAAQBAJ |year=2011 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-981261-5}}
* {{cite book |last1=Radhakrishnan |first1=Sarvepalli |author-link=Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan |last2=Moore |first2=Charles A. |title=A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy |year=1957 |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=0-691-01958-4 |url=https://archive.org/details/sourcebookinindi00radh}}
* {{cite journal |last=Raman |first=Varadaraja V. |date=2012 |title=Hinduism and Science: Some Reflections |journal=Zygon |volume=47 |issue=3 |pages=549–574 |doi=10.1111/j.1467-9744.2012.01274.x|doi-access=free }}
* {{cite book |last=Shah |first=Umakant Premanand |author-link=Umakant Premanand Shah |title=Jaina-rūpa-maṇḍana: Jaina iconography |url={{Google books|m_y_P4duSXsC|page=|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}} |date=1987 |publisher=Abhinav Publications |isbn=978-81-7017-208-6 |ref={{sfnref|Umakant P. Shah|1987}} }}
* {{Cite book |last=Tähtinen |first=Unto |date=1976 |title=Ahiṃsā : non-violence in Indian tradition |publisher=Rider |location=London |isbn=0-09-123340-2}}
* {{cite book |last=Tiwari |first=Kedar Nath |date=1998|title= Classical Indian Ethical Thought |publisher= Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-8120816077}}
* {{Cite book |last=Westerhoff |first=Jan |author-link=Jan Westerhoff |date=2018 |title=The Golden Age of Indian Buddhist Philosophy |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-887839-1}}
{{refend}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin|2|indent=yes}}
* {{cite book |last=Apte |first=Vaman Shivram |title=The Practical Sanskrit-English Dictionary |url=https://archive.org/details/practicalsanskri00apteuoft |year=1965 |publisher=[[Motilal Banarsidass]] |location=Delhi |isbn=81-208-0567-4 |edition=4th Rev. and Enlarged}}
* {{cite book |last=Balcerowicz |first=Piotr |title=Early Asceticism in India: Ājīvikism and Jainism |year=2015 |edition=1st |publisher=Routledge |pages=368 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nfOPCgAAQBAJ |isbn=9781317538530}}
* {{cite book |editor-surname=Chattopadhyaya |editor-given=D. P. |editor-link=D. P. Chattopadhyaya |title=[[Project of History of Indian Science, Philosophy and Culture|History of Science, Philosophy and Culture in Indian Civilization]] |volume=15-volum + parts Set |place=Delhi |publisher=[[Centre for Studies in Civilizations]]}}
* {{cite book |surname=Dasgupta |given=Surendranath |year=1922–1955 <!--|authorlink=Surendranath Dasgupta--> |title=A History of Indian Philosophy |volume=1–5 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |place=London |url=https://www.indianculture.gov.in/reports-proceedings/history-indian-philosophy-vol-i}} [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.96713 Vol. 1] | [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.57593 Vol. 2] | [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.57392 Vol. 3] | [https://archive.org/details/dli.ernet.231099 Vol. 4] | [https://archive.org/details/AHistoryOfIndianPhilosophyVol5/page/n1/mode/2up Vol. 5.]
*{{cite book |last=Gandhi |first=M. K. |author-link=Mahatma Gandhi |title=Non-Violent Resistance (Satyagraha) |url=https://archive.org/details/nonviolentresist00gand |url-access=registration |year=1961 |publisher=Schocken Books |location=New York}}
*{{cite book |last=Hiriyanna |first=M. |title=Essentials of Indian Philosophy |publisher=Motilal Banarsidas |isbn=978-81-208-1304-5 |author-link=M. Hiriyanna |year=1995}}
*{{cite book |last=Jain |first=Dulichand |title=Thus Spake Lord Mahavir |year=1998 |publisher=Sri Ramakrishna Math |location=Chennai |isbn=81-7120-825-8}}
*{{cite book |last=Michaels |first=Axel |title=Hinduism: Past and Present |year=2004 |publisher=Princeton University Press |location=New York |isbn=0-691-08953-1}}
*{{cite book |last=Radhakrishnan |first=S. |author-link=Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan |title=Indian Philosophy, Volume 1 |url=https://archive.org/details/Sarvepalli.Radhakrishnan.Indian.Philosophy.Volume.1-2 |edition=2nd |series=Muirhead library of philosophy |year=1929 |publisher=George Allen and Unwin |location=London}}
*{{cite book |last=Stevenson |first=Leslie |title=Ten theories of human nature |year=2004 |publisher=Oxford University Press}} 4th edition.
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Sister project links|wikt=no|c=yes|q=yes|s=no|b=no|v=no}}
*[[Surendranath Dasgupta]]. [https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/a-history-of-indian-philosophy-volume-1/index.html A History of Indian Philosophy | HTML (vol. 1)] | [https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/a-history-of-indian-philosophy-volume-2/index.html (vol. 2)] | [https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/a-history-of-indian-philosophy-volume-3/index.html (vol. 3)] | [https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/a-history-of-indian-philosophy-volume-4/index.html (vol. 4)] | [https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/a-history-of-indian-philosophy-volume-5/index.html (vol. 5)], ebook at Wisdomlib.org
*Surendranath Dasgupta. [https://archive.org/details/Indian.Idealism.by.Surendranath.Dasgupta Indian Idealism] at [[archive.org]]
* A recommended reading guide from the philosophy department of [[University College, London]]: [http://www.ucl.ac.uk/philosophy/LPSG/Indian.pdf London Philosophy Study Guide – Indian Philosophy] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210723102517/http://www.ucl.ac.uk/philosophy/LPSG/Indian.pdf |date=23 July 2021 }}
* Articles at the [https://www.iep.utm.edu/category/traditions/indian/ Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy]
*[http://ipi.org.in Indian Psychology Institute] The application of Indian Philosophy to contemporary issues in Psychology
*[https://archive.org/details/Mysore.Hiriyanna-The.Essentials.of.Indian.Philosophy The Essentials of Indian Philosophy by Mysore Hiriyanna] at [[archive.org]]
*[https://archive.org/details/Mysore.Hiriyanna-Outlines.of.Indian.Philosophy Outlines of Indian Philosophy by Mysore Hiriyanna] at [[archive.org]]
*[https://archive.org/details/Sarvepalli.Radhakrishnan.Indian.Philosophy.Volume.1-2 Indian Philosophy by Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (2 Volumes)] at [[archive.org]]
*[https://archive.org/details/Radhakrishnan-History.of.Philosophy-Eastern.and.Western-Volume.1-2 History of Philosophy – Eastern and Western Edited by Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (2 Volumes)] at [[archive.org]]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20180228042935/https://www.jiva.org/indian-schools-of-philosophy-and-theology/ Indian Schools of Philosophy and Theology] (Jiva Institute)

{{Indian philosophy}}
{{Philosophy topics}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Indian philosophy| ]]
[[Category:Cultural history of India]]
[[Category:Indian literature]]