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Lecture 2. Part 1. Indian philosophy

The term Indian philosophy, may refer to any of several traditions of philosophical thought that originated in the Indian subcontinent, including Hindu philosophy, Buddhist philosophy, and Jain philosophy. Having the same or rather intertwined origins, all of these philosophies have a common underlying theme of Dharma, and similarly attempt to explain the attainment of emancipation. They have been formalized and promulgated chiefly between 1,000 BC to a few centuries A.D, with residual commentaries and reformations continuing up to as late as the 20th century by Aurobindo and ISKCON among others, who provided stylized interpretations.
The characteristic of these schools is that they may belong to one "masthead" and disagree with each other, or be in agreement while professing allegiance to different banners.
Competition between the various schools was intense during their formative years, especially between 800 BC to 200 AD. Some like the Jain, Buddhist, Shaiva and Advaita schools survived, while others like Samkhya and Ajivika did not.
The Sanskrit term for "philosopher" is dārśanika, one who is familiar with the systems of philosophy, or darśanas.

Common themes

Indian thinkers viewed philosophy as a practical necessity that needed to be cultivated in order to understand how life can best be led. It became a custom for Indian writers to explain at the beginning of philosophical works how it serves human ends. They centered philosophy on an assumption that there is a unitary underlying order. The efforts by various schools were concentrated on explaining this order. All major phenomena like those observed in nature, fate, occurrences, etc. were outcomes of this order.
The earliest mention of this appears in the Rig Veda, which speaks of the Brahman, or the universally transcendent and  real  building block of all the world. It is described as dimensionless, timeless and beyond reach of the known frontiers of happiness and knowledge.
The idea of ṛta, translated as "righteousness" or "the cosmic and social order", also plays an important role.
The Vedas (Sanskrit वेद, véda, "knowledge") are a large corpus of texts originating in Ancient India. They form the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature  and the oldest sacred texts of Hinduism.
According to Hindu tradition, the Vedas are not of human agency, being supposed to have been directly revealed, and thus are called śhruti ("what is heard"). Vedic mantras are read at Hindu prayers, religious functions and other occasions. The mystic dimensions and applications of these mantras as a way of obtaining the physical immortality was written in Sri Aurobindo's Secret of the Veda.
The class of "Vedic texts" is aggregated around the four canonical Saṃhitās or Vedas proper, of which three are related to the performance of yajna (sacrifice) in historical (Iron Age) Vedic religion:

• the Rigveda, containing hymns to be read by the priest;
• the Yajurveda, containing formulas to be recited by the priest;
• the Samaveda, containing formulas to be sung by the priest.
• the Atharvaveda, is one of the oldest and is relatively great in extent from a collection of praises, stories, predictions.

The Upanishads are Hindu scriptures that constitute the main teachings of Vedanta. They do not belong to any particular period of Sanskrit literature: the oldest, such as the Brhadaranyaka and Chandogya Upanishads, date to the late Brahmana period (around the middle of the first millennium BCE), while the latest were composed in the medieval and early modern period.
The Upanishads speak of a universal spirit (Brahman) and an individual soul, (Atman) and at times assert the identity of both. Brahman is the ultimate, both transcendent and immanent, the absolute infinite existence, the sum total of all that ever is, was, or shall be.

Schools

Classical Indian philosophy can be roughly categorised into "orthodox" (astika) schools of Hindu philosophy, and "heterodox" (nāstika) schools that do not accept the authorities of the Vedas.

[Orthodox Schools (Astika)

Many Hindu intellectual traditions were codified during the medieval period of Brahmanic-Sanskritic scholasticism into a standard list of six orthodox (astika) schools, the "Six Philosophies", all of which cite Vedic authority as their source:

• Nyaya, the school of logic
• Vaisheshika, the atomist school
• Samkhya, the enumeration school
• Yoga, the school of Patanjali (which assumes the metaphysics of Samkhya)
• Purva Mimamsa (or simply Mimamsa), the tradition of Vedic exegesis, with emphasis on Vedic ritual, and
• Vedanta(also called Uttara Mimamsa), the Upanishadic tradition, with emphasis on Vedic philosophy.

These are often coupled into three groups for both historical and conceptual reasons: Nyaya-Vaishesika, Samkhya-Yoga, and Mimamsa-Vedanta.

Heterodox schools (Nastika)

Schools that do not accept the authority of the Vedas are by definition unorthodox (nastika) systems.

Jain philosophy

One of the main characteristics of Jain belief is the emphasis on the immediate consequences of one's physical and mental behavior. Because Jains believe that everything is in some sense alive with many living beings possessing a soul, great care and awareness is required in going about one's business in the world. Jainism is a religious tradition in which all life is considered to be worthy of respect and Jain teaching emphasises this equality of all life advocating the non-harming of even the smallest creatures.
Non-violence ( Ahimsa) is the basis of right View, the condition of right Knowledge and the kernel of right Conduct in Jainism.

Jainism encourages spiritual independence (in the sense of relying on and cultivating one's own personal wisdom) and self-control which is considered vital for one's spiritual development. The goal, as with other Indian religions, is moksha which in Jainism is realization of the soul's true nature, a condition of omniscience (Kevala Jnana). Anekantavada is one of the principles of Jainism positing that reality is perceived differently from different points of view, and that no single point of view is completely true. Jain doctrine states that only Kevalis, those who have infinite knowledge, can know the true answer, and that all others would only know a part of the answer. Anekantavada is related to the Western philosophical doctrine of Subjectivism.

Buddhist philosophy

Buddhist philosophy is a system of beliefs based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama, an Indian prince later known as the Buddha. Buddhism is a non-theistic philosophy, one whose tenets are not especially concerned with the existence or nonexistence of a God or gods. The question of God is largely irrelevant in Buddhism, though some sects (notably Tibetan Buddhism) do venerate a number of gods drawn in from local belief systems.
Buddhism has had a strong philosophical component. Buddhism is founded on the rejection of certain orthodox Hindu philosophical concepts. The Buddha criticized all concepts of metaphysical being and non-being, and this critique is separate from the founding of Buddhism.
Buddhism shares many philosophical views with Hinduism, such as belief in karma, a cause-and-effect relationship between all that has been done and all that will be done. Events that occur are held to be the direct result of previous events. The goal for both Hindu and Buddhist practitioners is to avoid karma (both good and bad), end the cycle of rebirth and suffering, and attain freedom (Moksha or Nirvana). However, a major difference is the Buddhist rejection of a permanent, self-existent soul (atman). This view is a central one in Hindu thought but is rejected by all Buddhists.
All traditions recognize Gautama Buddha as an enlightened teacher who shared his insights in order to help beings end their suffering in accordance with the laws of Karma by understanding the Four Noble Truths; realizing the true nature of phenomena and thereby escaping the cycle of suffering and rebirth known to Buddhists as Saṃsāra. Among the methods Buddhist schools apply towards that goal are ethical conduct, the cultivation of wisdom, the training of one's mind through learning and meditation, altruistic behaviour, renunciation of worldy matters, devotional practices and, in some branches, the invocation of holy beings to seek their help in achieving Nirvana. A Buddhist is one who takes refuge in The Three Jewels: Buddha;
Nirvana is a concept that comes from Sanskrit and means "extinction" (of suffering) or "quited", "calmed"; it's also known as "Awakening" or "Enlightenment" in the West. Also, Buddhists believe that anybody who has achieved nirvana (also known as bodhi) is in fact a Buddha.
Karma means literarily "action" or "work"; in a religious context it has an ethical or moral sense. Karma can be either negative or positive; Rebirth means to be born again in one of many possible types of lifes.

The Cycle of Samsara

Human beings wish pleasure and satisfaction of the six senses (seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, touching and thinking) from birth to death. After another rebirth they do the same, and continue repeating this cycle (Samsara). Humans always expect pleasure and do not like to feel pain.

The Four Noble Truths

According to the Pali Tipitaka, the Four Noble Truths were the first teaching of Gautama Buddha after attaining Nirvana. They are sometimes considered as containing the essence of the teachings of the Buddha:

• the noble truth of the nature of "suffering",
• the noble truth that is the fundamental cause or arising of all suffering,
• the noble truth that is the end or escape of suffering,
• the noble truth that is the way or effort leading to the end of suffering and to "attain happiness."

Cārvāka

Cārvāka is characterized as a materialistic and atheistic school of thought. While this branch of Indian philosophy is not considered to be part of the six orthodox schools of Hinduism, it is noteworthy as evidence of a materialistic movement within Hinduism.