Hindu philosophy

People have many ways to see the world. In India, these ways are called Darshana. This word means a way to see or feel things.

Some groups follow very old books. They call these the Vedas. These groups have six main ways of thinking.

One way uses breathing and quiet time. This is called Yoga. Another way uses logic to find truth.

Other groups do not use those old books. They have their own ideas about life. They might think about how things are made.

Many different ideas help people learn. It is fun to wonder about them.

People have many ways to think about life. In India, these ways are called Darshana. This word means a viewpoint or a way to see things. Hindu philosophy grew alongside old religious traditions.

Some groups are called orthodox. These groups follow the Vedas. The Vedas are a very old collection of books. There are six main orthodox schools. Samkhya is one of the oldest. It looks at how mind and matter work. Yoga uses Samkhya ideas with breathing and meditation. Nyaya is a school that uses logic. Vaisheshika looks at how the world is made of tiny parts. Mimamsa focuses on special rituals and faith. Vedanta is a very big school. It looks at the last parts of the Vedas.

Other groups are called non-orthodox. These groups do not follow the Vedas. Buddhism is one of these groups. It teaches that there is no unchanging self. Jainism is another group. It follows the teachings of twenty-four teachers. Some groups also think about how much we can know. This helps people wonder about the world.

Hindu philosophy is a wide collection of ideas from India. It grew alongside the first Hindu religious traditions. These ideas developed during the iron and classical ages. In India, people use the word Darshana for philosophy. This word comes from a Sanskrit root meaning to see or to experience. It means having a specific viewpoint or perspective. Many different groups of thinkers have shared history and concepts. They often focus on how the world works and how to find truth. These traditions are united by their use of ancient texts and shared ideas about the universe.

Some schools are called orthodox, or āstika. These groups accept the Vedas as a true source of knowledge. The Vedas are the oldest collection of Sanskrit texts. There are six main orthodox schools. Samkhya is an early school that looks at mind and matter. Yoga uses Samkhya ideas with meditation and breathing. Nyaya is a school that focuses on logic. Vaisheshika is an offshoot of Nyaya that studies atoms. Mimamsa focuses on religious duties and rituals. Vedanta looks at the final parts of the Vedas.

Other groups are called non-orthodox, or nāstika. These schools do not accept the Vedas as an authority. Buddhism is a famous example of this. It is based on the teachings of Gautama Buddha. Buddhism teaches that there is no unchanging self or soul. Jainism is another non-orthodox group. It follows the teachings of twenty-four teachers called tirthankaras. The first teacher was named Rishabha. The twenty-fourth teacher was Mahavira. Charvaka and Ajivika are also part of these non-orthodox traditions.

History shows that these ideas have changed over a long time. The six orthodox schools emerged before the start of the Common Era. Some might have even appeared before the Buddha. Between the 12th and 16th centuries, thinkers created a specific way to group these schools. This system was later used by Western scholars. Some sub-schools even mix ideas from different groups. For example, some sub-schools share Tantric ideas with Buddhist traditions. The scholar Madhavacharya listed sixteen different systems in the 14th century. This shows how many different ways people have thought about life.

Many of these ideas help us understand how people see the world today. Some schools, like Charvaka, focused on materialism. This means they looked at the physical world. Other schools, like Yoga, focus on how to use the body and mind. Some thinkers even studied how to use mercury to reach immortality. Whether people follow the Vedas or not, these ideas are part of India's history. They show how humans have always wondered about the self and the universe. Even today, scholars continue to study these many different viewpoints.

Hindu philosophy, also known as Vedic philosophy, is a vast collection of systems. These systems grew alongside early Hindu religious traditions. They developed during the iron and classical ages of India. In the context of Indian philosophy, the term for philosophy is Darshana. This Sanskrit word means "viewpoint" or "perspective." It comes from a root meaning to see or to experience. This suggests that philosophy is a way of perceiving reality.

Philosophical schools are often categorized by their relationship to the Vedas. The Vedas are the oldest collection of Sanskrit texts. The āstika schools are considered orthodox because they accept the Vedas as authoritative. These schools also accept the existence of the Ātman, or the eternal Self. The nāstika schools are considered heterodox because they reject Vedic authority. Some nāstika groups also interpret or reject the concept of the Ātman.

There are six main orthodox Darshanas. Samkhya is an early school of dualism. It explores the relationship between consciousness, called purusha, and matter, called prakriti. Yoga emerged from Samkhya and adds practical techniques. It uses meditation and breathwork to achieve liberation. Nyaya is a school focused on logic and epistemology. It emphasizes direct realism and the sources of knowledge. Vaisheshika is an offshoot of Nyaya. It is an empiricist school that focuses on atomism and naturalism.

The remaining two orthodox schools are Mimamsa and Vedanta. Mimamsa is known as Pūrva-Mīmāṃsā because it focuses on earlier Vedic texts. It emphasizes ritual, faith, and religious obligations. Vedanta is also called Uttara-Mimamsa. It focuses on the final section of the Vedas. Vedanta became the dominant current of Hinduism in the post-medieval period. It considers the Upanishads, the Brahma Sutras, and the Bhagavad Gita as authoritative. Within Vedanta, various traditions like Advaita, Vishishtadvaita, and Dvaita have evolved.

Several prominent nāstika schools exist outside the orthodox tradition. Buddhism is based on the teachings of Gautama Buddha. A central Buddhist doctrine is the denial of the Ātman, or the unchanging self. Jainism is another major school. It follows twenty-four teachers known as tirthankaras. The first was Rishabha, and the twenty-fourth was Mahavira. Jainism accepts the existence of the Ātman. Charvaka is a school of materialism that accepted free will. In contrast, the Ajivika school was a materialist system that denied free will.

History shows that these classifications have changed over time. The six orthodox schools emerged before the start of the Common Era. Some may have appeared even before the Buddha. The specific schema of the "six systems" was created between the 12th and 16th centuries. This work was done by Vedantins. Later, Western Indologists adopted this classification. The medieval scholar Madhavacharya listed sixteen different systems in the 14th century. This included various sub-schools that combined different ideas.

Many complex sub-schools have developed through syncretism. Syncretism occurs when different traditions combine their ideas. For example, some sub-schools integrate theistic ideas with orthodox concepts. Pāśupata Śaiva and Śaiva siddhānta are examples of these theistic sub-schools. Raseśvara is a Shaiva school that advocated using mercury to reach immortality. Some sub-schools even share Tantric ideas with Buddhist traditions. These schools often adopt elements like the realism of Nyaya or the self-discipline of Yoga. This diversity shows how deeply these ideas interact with one another.