Major Schools of Medieval Indian Philosophy. Indian philosophy. Philosophical schools and currents of ancient India

The Origin of Philosophy in Ancient India

The most ancient of those studied to date are the philosophical researches of Ancient India. Their origin is attributed to the II millennium BC. These teachings were based on the study of the surrounding world, human relations, everything that is connected with the nature of the existence of the human body and its soul. But the research did not have a solid scientific basis; rather, they related to logical conclusions from what they saw and felt. These were the first steps towards scientific teachings and explanations of various phenomena in human life.

We can say that the entire world philosophy is rooted in the depths of centuries and is based on the research of ancient India.

The preserved treasures of Indian philosophy, written in Sanskrit, have survived to our time. This work has common name "Veda", i.e. knowledge, vision. The collection includes various spells, rituals, appeals, prayers, etc., addressed to the forces of nature, and it is also an attempt to interpret the world around a person from a philosophical point of view. The doctrine explains the first ideas of people about their moral and moral essence in life.

The Vedas are divided into four parts, which should be discussed in more detail:

1. First part - Samhitas which means hymns, she the oldest from all parts.

2. The second part - Brahmins- ritual texts, on which religion is based or philosophy of Brahmanism, which had the main power and authority before the emergence of Buddhism.

3. The third part - Aranyaki (forest books)- this part gives recommendations and sets the rules for the life of people who have chosen hermit lifestyle.

4. The fourth part - Upanishads- what does it mean to sit at the feet of a teacher and receive sacred, secret knowledge - philosophical part of the Vedas. In it, a new character Purush appears, who appears to be omniscient and omnipotent, the soul of the world, the cosmic mind, that is, in our understanding, an omnipotent god. Further, he will receive the name Atman, from which the human student receives knowledge.

All schools of philosophy of ancient India rely on the "Vedas", hence the division of society into four varnas, or, as they are also called, castes - brahmins, kshatriyas, vaishyas and sudras. Varna is the status of a certain group of people in society, to be more precise - it is a shell, color, color, cover. The right to belong to a particular caste is determined by birth. Each caste is engaged a certain kind activities.

o Brahmins (color white)- this is the highest caste, she is engaged only in mental labor.

o Kshatriyas (color red)- their destiny is military affairs.

o Vaishya (colour yellow)- engaged only in handicrafts and agriculture.

o Sudras (color black)- this is the lowest varna, engaged in "black" work.

Only men of the first three castes had access to knowledge, the fourth caste, as well as all women, were excluded from knowledge. Their dignity was valued on a par with animals.

Major schools of philosophy in ancient India

As can be seen from the development of history, the division of society is also based on a kind of philosophy that comes from the ancient Vedas. With the development of society and its division into castes, currents appear that have formed orthodox and unorthodox direction of Indian philosophy. There are schools of these directions that adhere to the support or refutation of the Vedas. The division into these schools of philosophical knowledge occurs by the 6th century. BC. - this led to the development of society, the formation of new economic relations, moral perfection human, the emergence of new knowledge.

Orthodox schools(astika - violent) remained true to the philosophy of the Vedas. These included Vedanta, Sanhya, Nyaya, Mimamsa, Yoga and Vaisheshika. Adherents of these currents are those who believe in the continuation of life after leaving for another world. It is interesting to consider each direction of orthodox schools in more detail.

1. Vedanta or the completion of the Vedas, the school is divided into two streams, advanta and vishishta-advanta. The philosophical meaning of the first direction is that there is nothing but God, everything else is just an illusion. The second direction - vishishta-advaita, preaches three realities of which the world consists - this is God, soul and matter.

2. Sanhya- this school teaches the recognition of the material and spiritual principles. Material values ​​are in constant development, the spiritual principle is eternal. The material goes away with the death of a person, while the spiritual principle continues life.

3. Nyaya- a school whose supreme spiritual mentor is the god Ishvara . The teaching of the school is a conclusion from the feeling, analogy and evidence of others.

4. Mimansa- the school is based on the principles of logic, rational explanation, it recognizes the spiritual and material existence.

5. Vaisheshika- this school bases its principles on the knowledge that everything around a person, like himself, consists of indivisible particles that have eternal existence and are controlled by the world soul, i.e. god.

6. Yoga- This is the most famous direction of all schools. It is based on the principles of dispassion, contemplation and detachment from the material. To achieve a harmonious liberation from suffering and reunion with God, meditation leads. Yoga is loyal to all existing schools and their teachings.

Unorthodox schools(nastika - atheist) who do not take the ancient "Vedas" as the basis of their philosophy. These include Buddhism, Charvaka Lokayata, Ved Jainism. Adherents of this school are considered atheists, but the Jai and Buddhist schools still profess astika, as they believe in the continuation of life after death.

1. Buddhism- The philosophy of this school is proclaimed the official religion. The founder is Siddhartha, who was called the Buddha, i.e. enlightened. The philosophy of the school is based on the path of enlightenment, the achievement of nirvana. This is a state of complete peace and equanimity, liberation from the causes of suffering and pain, from the outside world and thoughts associated with it.

2. Charvaka (Lokayata)- the school is based on the wisdom of the teachings that everything that exists consists of air, water, fire and earth, i.e. four elements, in various combinations. After death, when these elements disintegrate, they join their counterparts in nature. The school denies the existence of any other world than the material one.

3. Jainism- the name of the school was given by the nickname of its founder - Jin, who lived in the 4th century BC. The main thesis is belief in Tattva. This is the essence, the material for creating the entire structure of the world - the soul (jiva) and everything that is not it (ajiva) - the material environment of a person. The soul is eternal, and it has no creator, it has always existed and it is omnipotent. The goal of the teaching is the way of life of a person who has renounced base passions - complete asceticism and obedience to a teacher who has conquered his own passions and is able to teach this to others.

Changes taking place in India with the emergence of nomadic tribes who called themselves arias destroyed the habitual way of life of society. With time the texts of the sacred "Vedas" became incomprehensible to the majority from people. There remained a small group of initiates who could interpret them - Brahmins. These changes are attributed to the middle of the 2nd millennium BC.

Arias brought to the culture of India new world philosophical teachings and ideas. They had their own gods who demanded sacrifices.

Over the centuries, Vedic philosophy acquired new knowledge and became more complicated with new rituals. The Brahmins continued to support and develop new forms of religious philosophy. They proclaimed the main god Prajapati - the Master of creatures and the Lord of creations. Sacrificing rituals have become a daily reality. Philosophy divided the world in two - the world of the gods and ordinary people. Brahmin priests put themselves on a par with the ancient gods and their teachings. But the Vedas were still considered the fundamental basis of the new philosophy.

In progress community development there was a rethinking of philosophical currents, the foundations of which were laid in the mists of time. Next they became the basis for the emergence of new religions, such as Hinduism(a continuation of Brahminism mixed with Vedic philosophy and local religions) and Buddhism.

As we now know Buddhism from a philosophical school grew to such heights that he became one of the three world religions and spread to the countries of the East and Southeast and Central Asia.

The human desire for knowledge, which subsequently leads to the development and progress of society, was taken from ancient philosophical treatises. Today, people are also searching for answers to the eternal questions of mankind, not suspecting that they are repeating the path of many generations trying to figure out the meaning of life.

The orthodox (recognizing the authority of the Vedas) schools of ancient Indian philosophy include Sankhya, the main concepts of which are Purusha and Prakriti. Purusha is a deep personality that underlies all our actions, thoughts, feelings, desires and actions, but is not identical to them. Purusha, as the spiritual essence of a person, is not connected with empirical existence, although immersion in prakriti leads to obscuration, distortion of his ideas about himself and is the cause of suffering. Prakriti can be correlated with the concept of "matter", but more precisely, it is a material force that generates the material world in its diversity. Prakriti has no cause, no source of origin, but is itself the source of everything except purusha, which itself is neither cause nor effect. The relationship between purusha and prakriti can be compared to the relationship between the spectator in the theater and the actors playing their roles. The viewer during the play can identify the character and the actor, in the same way, the purusha, forgetting about his essence, can be carried away by the transformations of prakriti, identify himself with it, then the person suffers. Salvation consists in the realization of the purusas of their fundamental difference from prakriti, the disidentification of the spiritual component of the personality and its corporality.

Today, one of the schools of ancient Indian philosophical thought, yoga, is very popular, the founder of which was Patanjali (II century BC), the author of the Yogasutra. Yoga has a practical orientation, it shares the Samkhya ontology, but requires the worship of a god (Ishvara), understood as absolute spirit, eternal, all-pervading, omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient, not subject to suffering and misfortune and ruling the world. The main content of yoga is the development of the path to liberation through the training of the body and spirit. It gives a system of rules for liberation from suffering: self-control, mastery of breathing, isolation of feelings from external influences, concentration (meditation) of thoughts, etc. The practice of yoga is, as it were, an individual way of salvation by curbing one's passions, achieving control over the spiritual world and mental states of a person .

The practice of yoga is aimed at clarifying the mind clouded by passions, immoderate desires, emotionality, etc. A participant in yogic procedures and training seeks to exclude external influences on the mind in order to cognize it in its purest form, without “contamination” with ideas about various objects. In order to gain salvation, one should, on the one hand, study psychotechnics, and on the other hand, lead a virtuous lifestyle, the most important principle of which is ahimsa (non-violence). Yoga means the cessation of the dependence of the pure spirit or "I" on the activities of the body, the senses, and also the mind, which is erroneously identified with the "I". As a result of enlightenment, the mind is so deeply absorbed in contemplation that it forgets about itself and completely merges with the object of reflection. Moksha is a state of unclouded consciousness, which is considered a significant value in Samkhya and yoga.

Nyaya- one of the most influential orthodox schools of Indian philosophy. Its founder was Gautama (or Akshapad), the author of the Nyaya Sutras (111 century BC). The main problems of the Nyaya school are the problems of knowledge that can lead a person to salvation, the development of polemical techniques. It must be said that ancient Indian philosophy as a whole was polemical in nature: thinkers did not just think about ideas and concepts, they regularly participated in public discussions that were conducted according to certain rules in the presence of noble citizens, rulers, even kings. Victory in a philosophical dispute could become a source of improvement in the material well-being of both an individual thinker and a group, a community of thinkers. Discussions made philosophers famous, popularized their teachings, provided high patronage. Nyaya supporters sought to defeat their rivals by any means, using illustrative arguments, developing verbal tricks, pseudo-argumentation, while paying attention to the methodology of cognition and reflection. ultimate goal cognitive activity The Nyayas declare the achievement of the highest good, which is impossible without gaining true knowledge about objects, mainly about the Atman, about suffering and pleasure, about the eternal and the transient, about the desirable and the disgusting. Liberation from suffering is possible only on condition that the Self is separated from all its attributes.

Nyaya recognizes four sources of reliable knowledge: sensory and supersensory perception, inference, comparison, proof (authoritative evidence. Knowledge based on these sources is reliable. Along with it there is unreliable knowledge based on memory, doubt, error and hypothetical argument. Teaching about the knowledge of nyaya laid the foundations of ancient Indian logic.

Nyaya also developed an original theory physical world based on the allocation of objects of knowledge. Among them is the Self (atman) which is distinct from the mind (manas) and the body. The connection of the "I" with objects gives rise to attachments, desires, antipathies, hatred, etc., i.e. that which causes the "I" to act, to be involved in the cycle of births and deaths, suffering and dreams. Right knowledge frees a person from this involvement. Liberation itself is understood as the cessation of negative factors (suffering), and not as a state of happiness. The liberated "I" acts as a pure substance, no longer associated with consciousness.

Nyaya created the doctrine of God as an infinite "I" that creates, preserves and destroys the world, which is created from eternal atoms, space, time, minds, souls and akasha - ether. The wisdom and all-goodness of God help a person who has free will and, therefore, the ability to choose between good and evil, through true knowledge of himself and the world to achieve liberation.

Vaiseishika- recognizes the existence of God, who created the universe from atoms. Ideas about the creation of the world are not identical to Christian ones (the biblical “creation of the world from nothing” is not meant). God, as in nyaya, is the efficient cause. Atoms are passive, not created by anyone and exist forever. Atoms receive the first impulse to move from an invisible force - adrishta and then enter into connections under the influence of the world soul of Brahma, which controls the eternal cyclic creation and destruction of the material world. The sensible world exists in time, space and ether and is governed by a universal moral law (dharma). The world consists of atoms and is created by a higher being so that the souls of people can go through the path of perfection and be freed.

Reality in Vaiseishika is viewed from the point of view of general concepts- categories of substance, quality, action, generality, peculiarity, inherence, non-existence. Substance is understood to mean everything that is capable of possessing qualities or in which action is possible. Nine substances (earth, water, light, air, ether, time, space, soul, mind), endowed with qualities (permanent properties) and "actions" (transient properties) make up the whole existing world. Qualities do not exist in isolation from objects, qualities do not have their own properties and do not show activity. The category of non-existence is closely related to the concept of difference, since non-existence cannot be denied: there is no water in an empty container, and this is quite obvious. A person distinguishes the full from the empty not because of the individual characteristics of perception, but because of the objectivity of non-existence.

Mimansa -- the school, which understood the Vedic texts primarily as a guide for performing rituals, attached them exceptional importance down to the smallest detail. From the point of view of the followers of this school, the exact following of the ritual (even if performed unconsciously) will bring the desired results. The creator of Mimansa Jaimini lived in the ІU-ІІ centuries. BC, he is the author of the Mimamsa Sutra. Faith in the infallibility of the Vedas, and also in the fact that our life in all the richness of actions and events is just a dream, as well as faith in the existence of the soul formed the basis of the mimamsa. The main theme of philosophizing Jaimini and his disciples was dharma - a type of socio-cultural activity specific to each person, which is significant and necessary. Fulfillment of one's dharma is the religious duty of everyone. You can understand its essence only by delving into the texts of the Vedas, which are recognized as infallible and uncreated even by the gods, and that they existed initially, therefore, true. The world in the interpretation of Mimamsa is real and eternal in its material and ideal incarnations, therefore the concept of God is not considered as necessary. The ideal of the Vedas does not involve worshiping them, just a person should perform the entire set of rituals as accurately and responsibly as possible, which will ensure the achievement of the highest good. If a person performs rituals for their own sake, without pursuing personal goals, a special eternal karma is created, which is equivalent to salvation.

Vedanta- this philosophical and religious system took shape much later than others and currently has in India big influence. The name itself can be translated as "completion of the Vedas", since Vedanta took shape around the texts called "Vedanta - Sutras" or "Brahma Sutras", the author of which is Badarayana. This book outlines the system of theistic monism: the only god (Brahman) is recognized as the basis and source of being, which is described as "existing, thinking, abiding in bliss." The sacred texts are the source of knowledge of the divine essence, since the deity is not available to direct perception.

Vedanta broke up into several schools, the most influential of which was Avaita Vedanta, whose creator, Shankara (788-820), put forward the following principles: the order of reality, the identity of Brahman and Atman, maya, the inapplicability of causality to primary reality, jnana or wisdom as direct a means to achieve moksha (liberation), the incomprehensibility of absolute nothingness. The world in which a person exists is an illusion created by Brahman, which cannot be known, since it acts as a subject. Brahman is not created by anyone or anything, is unknowable and can be defined only through negative characteristics - that is, one can say that it is “not this or not this”, but not otherwise. Brahman exists in two hypostases - the Highest Brahman as an absolute essence and "Lord", "Brahman having properties". This interpretation of being reflects the idea of ​​absolute and relative expression of truth: relative truth proves the existence of the world, while only Brahman exists in the absolute dimension. Shankara does not deny being as such, but delimits reality and existence. Man, like the world, is unreal, since the true Self is the coincidence of Brahman and Atman. Realizing his identity with God, a person will burn to be freed from illusions and the suffering caused by them. Brahman can pretend to be natural phenomena, animals and people, but ignorance as a source of suffering is eliminated by the understanding that man has never been anything other than Brahman. So sacred knowledge, ascending to the Vedas as a universal source, reveals the essence of being.

The unorthodox schools of ancient Indian philosophy include Lokayata or Charvaka, and the indisputability of the authority of the Vedas is not recognized by two great religions - Jainism and Buddhism.

The name of the lokayats (charvaks) is inexplicably unambiguous, but one of the translations is “spread in the world, among people”. The materialistic nature of the teachings of the Lokayatikas is manifested in the integrity of their ideas about the processes of cognition, the structure of the world and ethical attitudes. Direct sensory perception of the world leads us to the idea that it consists of four elements: fire, air, water and earth, and their components in different combinations form the whole variety of things. Sooner or later, any object breaks up into the same elements, which proves the absence of a soul, god, and other supernatural objects. Reliable knowledge is knowledge based only on sensory perception, since mental constructions without relying on veils cannot be reliable. The denial of the immortality of the soul lies at the heart of the Lokayata ethics, if there is no afterlife reward, therefore, you need to live here and now, getting maximum pleasure. The reasoning that earthly goods can become a source of suffering does not make sense, since we do not refuse to eat fish just because it contains bones.

philosophy india buddhism jainism

Prerequisites for the formation of ancient Indian philosophy. Fundamental ideas of the worldview of the ancient Hindus: 1. human soul immortal, she is doomed to eternal rebirth: 2. eternal rebirth leads to eternal suffering; 3. The goal of any sage is to find a way out of the circle of rebirths.

These ideas were expounded in the Vedas, the ancient mythological treatises of the Hindus. Vedic literature has evolved over a long historical period. (compiled 9 centuries, from 1500 to 600 BC). During this period, a class society is formed with developed agriculture, crafts, trade, a social structure and hierarchization containing four main varnas. The highest is the varna of brahmins (clerics, monks, priests), further, kshatriyas (warriors and representatives of the former tribal government), vaishyas (farmers, artisans and merchants), the lowest is shudras (a mass of direct producers). Further this system continues to develop and a complex structure of castes is formed.

Traditionally Vedic literature is divided into several groups of texts. First of all, these are the four Vedas (literally: knowledge). First part - Samhitas, which consist of rigveda (hymns in honor of the gods), atharvaveda (spells), self-veda (chants), glajurveda (writing rituals). The Samhitas summarize the ideas of the ancient Hindus about the creation of the world, about the life of the universe, about the gods. It describes that the world is huge, bright and inhabited by divine beautiful giants. In this part of the Vedas, the gods of the three spheres are glorified: Indra, the god of thunder; Sinkya is the god of fire; Mithra is the god of the sun. The Samhitas describe the life of gods and people. The gods communicate with each other, make friends, love, they have children. In addition, they quarrel, fight. This book describes the great war of Mahabarat. Second part - Brahmins, is a collection of ritual texts, the most important part of which is the Shatapathabrahmana (brahmana of a hundred paths). The third part - Aranyaki, this is a book for monks living in the forests, for hermits. Fourth part - Upanishads, this is the philosophical part of the Vedas, it is in it that the transition from mythology to philosophy takes place. Earlier it was stated that the world was born from the egg of a huge animal with the help of the gods, then in the Upanishads it is said that the world originated from wind, air and earth. Ancient Indian spiritual culture is divided into three periods: 1. Early Vedic; 2. period of the Upanishads; 3. the period of established philosophical schools. With the advent philosophical method comprehension of the world, various philosophical schools and trends were formed in ancient India. Two main directions can be distinguished: 1. orthodox, philosophical schools - Vedanta, Vaisheshika, yoga, nyaya, mimamsa, sankhya, etc. can be attributed to it; 2. unorthodox, it can include philosophical schools - Jainism, Buddhism, Charvaka Lokayata, etc.

Orthodox directions ancient Indian philosophy. Philosophical schools that accept the authority of the Vedas are considered orthodox schools of ancient Indian philosophy.

SANKHYA is one of the orthodox schools. Worldview attitudes - there are two principles: the principle of Brahman (absolute unity of everything or universal) and the principle of Atman (individual multiple principle or soul). At the foundation of the world lies absolutely one thing - brahma, which is the unity of Atman and Brahman. The world originated from two fundamental principles: purusha and prokriti. Purusha is the spiritual principle, the world soul, animating fire or energy. It consists of an infinite number of spiritual atoms - dhari (dharma). Life is the movement of the dharis or their agitation. Taking life into your own hands means calming this excitement. Prokriti is a material principle, a substance. Prokriti is divided into three parts or gunas: 1. Sattva is bright start leading to joy, happiness, goodness; 2. Rajas is an elemental principle leading to action; Tamas is the dark beginning, leading to laziness, to stupidity, to evil. These three gunas are not visible, but combined with dharis in different proportions, they create a sensually accessible being and a law of connection that connects these parts into a unity. This law is called karma, it arises from the sum of good and evil deeds, arises from within being, from its activity and activity. A person consists of two parts, united by karma, which determines not only today's life and destiny of a person, but also the transition from one physical life to another, i.e., from one circle of samsara (the wheel of life or the circle of rebirths) to another. The main goal of the Sankhya philosophy is to save a person from the need for rebirth and karma and achieve a state of bliss (moksha). Sankhya had a significant influence on the development of other philosophical systems, especially yoga and Buddhism.

VAISHESHIKA - an ancient Indian philosophical school that does not deny the authority of the Vedas, but was formed on independent grounds. Its creator is Canada (Uluka), who probably lived in the 2nd century BC. BC e. Vaisheshika, like her close nyaya, recognizes the liberation of the individual "I" as the ultimate goal of human life. At the same time, the main attention in it is focused on the problems of cosmology: the theory of the creation and destruction of the universe (the world cycle) is actively developed, and the presentation of the atomic concept of the universe is given. The whole world and all objects of knowledge are brought under seven categories; substance (dravya), quality (guna), action (karma), universality (samanya), peculiarity (vishesa), inherent (samavaya) and non-existence (abhava). Among substances, nine types are distinguished: earth, water, fire, air, ether (akasha), time, space, soul and mind (manas). The quality that exists only in substance has 24 types. Action, which is also peculiar only to substances, has five kinds. Non-existence has four types. The Nyaya philosophical system is close to Vaisheshika, with which she later formed a single school.

MIMANSA is one of the six orthodox ancient Indian philosophical systems based on the authority of the Vedas. Appeared around the 5th-4th centuries. BC e. Initially, its main goal was to protect and justify the correct performance of rituals. Later, the main task was the study of cognition. Mimamsa affirms the reliability of any knowledge in the presence of normal conditions (healthy feelings, the presence of objects, etc.). Particular importance is attached to the connection of knowledge with faith and the absence of doubt. Among the sources of knowledge are called perception, inference, comparison, evidence (or authority), postulation, non-perception. The philosophers of the Mimamsa school recognize the reality of the material world, as well as the immortal soul and gods (but deny supreme god who created the world) consider the law of karma to be universal; they teach about the special potential energy that arises when performing rituals, accumulates and manifests itself favorably in the future. Mimamsa theory of knowledge influenced the development of other schools, in particular, Vedanta.

NYAYA is one of the classical schools of Indian philosophy, created by the sage Gotama, apparently at the beginning of BC. e. Does not deny the authority of the Vedas, but builds his teaching on independent grounds. The philosophers of this school, as well as representatives of other systems of Indian philosophy, consider the main goal of human life to be the deliverance of the "I" from attachment to the body, to feelings and to objects. Liberation (moksha), which means the absolute cessation of suffering, in their opinion, becomes possible due to the correct knowledge of reality. Therefore, supporters of this school attach special importance to speculation based on logic and its laws. Nyaya recognizes four independent sources of knowledge: perception, conclusion, comparison and proof (evidence). Knowledge based on these sources is recognized as reliable. Knowledge that is guided by memory, doubt, error, hypothetical argument, is considered unreliable. Nyaya classifies in detail the sources of reliable knowledge, develops the doctrine of supersensory perception and its types, and offers a solution to a number of other important logical problems, which makes this system of exceptional importance in the history of philosophy and science.

VEDANTA (completion of the Vedas) - the most famous and influential system of ancient Indian philosophy, the basis of Hinduism, one of the six classical systems Indian philosophy, guided by the authority of the Vedas. Its main provisions are set forth in the "Brahma-sutra" of Badarayana (II-III centuries) - aphorisms systematizing the philosophical teachings mainly of the Upanishads - and in the comments on these sutras, compiled later: Shankara's Alvaita-Vedanta (late VIII-IX centuries BC). ) and vishishta-advaita Ramanuja (XI - XII centuries) Vedanta recognizes the Absolute reality, Brahman, as the only source of all things. The spiritual beginning of each individual, his Atman. The material universe is the result of the action of maya, the material cause, which Brahman acts like a magnet, arousing its activity. Therefore, the created material world is just an illusion. A true sage seeks, having known his Atman, his inner "I", to merge with Brahman and thus achieve peace. Vedanta played a leading role among the orthodox systems of Indian philosophy and had a noticeable influence on the development of philosophical and religious thought in India in the 19th-20th centuries. (teachings of Vivekananda, Rammohan Ray Ghosh, Ramakrishna, Radhzkrishnan, etc.).

YOGA- one of the six directions in Indian religious and philosophical thought, based on the authority of the Vedas. Formed around the turn of the IV-III centuries. BC e. The design of classical yoga is associated with the name of the "Yoga Sutra" of Patanjali (II century AD). According to philosophical views, yoga adjoins Sankhya, but unlike it, it recognizes the existence of the supreme god, whom he considers the highest object of reflection for concentration and self-knowledge. The goal of yoga, like Samkhya, is liberation (moksha). The main thing in the yoga system is practice, a complex set of techniques and methods, the mastery of which requires ascetic discipline, strict self-control, constant training, the ability to put your body under the control of the will, a complex that ensures entry into a state of contemplation (meditation) and the acquisition of true knowledge . Ancient ascetics and followers of all directions of Indian thought turned to the technique of yoga as a method of concentration and gaining true knowledge. In modern times, the most prominent representative of yoga was Vivekananda. Modern supporters of yoga do not consider adherence to a particular religion to be a decisive moment and do not aim to impose their system of views on the student. The main thing is to help master methods that would allow the student to develop his cognitive abilities, expand his consciousness to complete mastery of the intuitive level and an even higher spiritual level.

Unorthodox directions of ancient Indian philosophy (Buddhism) Philosophical schools that do not accept the authority of the Vedas are considered unorthodox schools of ancient Indian philosophy.

Jainism is an Indian religious and philosophical doctrine that took shape simultaneously with Buddhism in the 6th-5th centuries. BC e. as an ideological counterbalance to caste, aristocratically closed Brahmanism, denying the authority of the Vedas and as a teaching open to all segments of the population. The wandering preacher Vardhamana, nicknamed Mahavira ("Great Hero") and Jina ("Conqueror"), is considered its founder. Jain philosophy rejects the existence of God, affirms the reality of the external world, and believes in the presence of many primary substances. At the same time, spiritual reality, the soul and living things in general (false) are recognized as higher than inanimate substances (ajiva). Therefore, one of the main features of Jainism is compassion for all beings and the principle of ahimsa - not harming the living. Karma (as the totality of all tendencies generated by the life of the soul in its past incarnations) is considered the basis on which coarser matter "sticks". The goal is to get rid of karma, free the jiva from matter and achieve liberation (moksha). In the center of the teaching is the problem of personality and the substantiation of the ways of its transition from an imperfect being to a perfect one - nirvana. This requires true faith, true knowledge, a righteous life. Members of the Jain community (lay people) must fulfill five basic vows: do not harm the living, do not steal, do not lie, do not commit adultery, do not acquire. There are also many additional self-limitations. Especially strict rules lives are observed by ascetic monks. Jainism has retained significant influence in India to date (several million adherents), mainly among merchants and artisans ( Agriculture associated with the killing of living beings is unacceptable to Jains).

BUDDHISM - the doctrine created by Prince Siddhartha Gautama (623-544 BC) consists of three key ideas: 1) non-violence; 2) reverence for any form of life; 3) getting rid of passions - the causes of suffering. The prince, endowed with physical virtues, intellectual perfection, wealth, power, was "doomed" to an idle and carefree life, but one day Gautama saw human suffering and the path of salvation - the path of asceticism. Gautama becomes a hermit, trying to find a way to save humanity from suffering.

He creates a new teaching, formulating the "four noble truths of Buddhism":

1) life is suffering (birth, illness, death, separation from the beloved, lack of what one wants, i.e. five-fold attachment to the earthly - all human life, including pleasure, is suffering);

2) the cause of suffering is passion, human desire (Buddha said: "Avoid frivolity, avoid passion and pleasure"; it is fundamentally important that the source of suffering is the very desire for life;

3) in order to get rid of suffering, one must get rid of desires by achieving nirvana (nirvana is a state of overcoming suffering, the absence of suffering. Its essence is the absence of desires, passions, withdrawal from the world; complete peace, absolute impenetrability for desires and passions);

4) the path leading to nirvana is the octal path of salvation:

1. True view or assimilation of the four noble truths of Buddhism.

2. True intention: accepting these truths as a personal life program.

3. True speech: refraining from lying, from words that are not related to a moral goal.

4. True deeds: violence, non-harm to the living

5. True way of life: deployment of true deeds into a line of conduct.

6. True effort: constant vigilance and vigilance, for evil thoughts may return.

7. True mindfulness: constantly remember that everything is transient.

8. True concentration: spiritual self-immersion of a person who has renounced the world. The teaching of Buddhism required the creation of a carefully developed philosophy and a special logical system (this is the only logic in the world that does not go back to the teachings of Aristotle - the logic of Navya-Nyaya or " new method"). Fundamental philosophical encyclopedia Buddhism was the treatise "Abhidharmakosha", written in the V century. Vasubandhu. It reinterprets the main concepts of Buddhism (four noble truths, the law of cause and effect, the law of moral retribution, the path of salvation, rebirth, nirvana, etc.) based on the theory of the elements of being (dharma). Vasubandhu's treatise is distinguished by a clear formulation of questions, terminological certainty, logic, subtle analysis and evidence. It can be compared in its fundamental nature with the works of Aristotle and Hegel. Dharma is an element of being, a psychophysical component that makes up human personality. Dharma is material and non-material. As a rule, dharma exists only in the present moment, although its emergence from non-existence and disappearance into non-existence also implies some form of its life. Exists infinite set dharmas, the unceasing occurrence of which for one moment constitutes the material and non-material world human being and personality. Dharmas are divided into "obscured" and "unobscured"; this made it possible to develop a technique for a person to free himself from "obscured" elements and acquire favorable conditions on the path to achieve nirvana, which is interpreted by Vasubandhu as a form of non-existence, opposite to being. Man's existence is a momentary flickering of myriads of dharmas arising from non-existence and disappearing into non-existence, each of which has four characteristics: arising, staying, aging and destruction.

Buddhist understanding of karma: 1) volitional efforts and purposeful actions accompanying volitional efforts; 2) the will of the universe, the universal force that supports the current life and models its forms in different worlds, the vital effort. The adherents of the Hinayana insisted on the first point ("the small vehicle" or "narrow path of salvation" - only the path of a monk), on the second - the followers of the Mahayana ("the big vehicle", or "broad path of salvation", when the enlightened person can personally save himself, but remains V sea ​​of ​​suffering to save others). The decisive influence of karma occurs after physical death person. It is at the moment of death - the birth of karma in accordance with the accumulated virtues and vices real life must "shake up" all the components of the personality of dharma, distribute the merits not only for the future existence, but also determine the intensity of their impact in the next life. At this moment, karma must determine the place of birth, parents, country, race, appearance, character, state of consciousness, etc. The concept of karma is designed to ensure moral responsibility for one's actions, words and thoughts. It is not only universal, but also "is something fatal in the sense that a person cannot avoid the consequences of his actions." On the other hand, Buddhism somewhat limits the actions of karma and provides a person with a certain freedom to consciously choose his actions: actions and deeds are probably predetermined by karma, but a person still has the opportunity to perform them with varying degrees of goodness or sinfulness of thought. That is, we can talk about the existence of a certain area for the manifestation of some free will. The most general condition for its implementation will be the direction of the effort of consciousness in the direction of favorable, unfavorable or neutral. This approach allows us to translate theory into the plane of human practical activity and set the direction of movement precisely in the direction of the Buddhist ethical ideal. Buddhism denies God - the creator of the universe and the creator of a living being. Moreover, he denies the human soul. The transfer of moral responsibility from God to man himself was important point in the development of the doctrine of man in Indian philosophy. Man in Buddhism has become the creator of his own destiny and himself.

CHARVAK- the materialistic doctrine of ancient and medieval India. Often identified with lokayata (lit.: teaching "aimed at this world"), more ancient origin, which arose around the middle of the 1st millennium BC. The writings of the supporters of these teachings have not been preserved. Sources for the study of materialistic doctrines in Indian thought are the texts of other philosophical schools that polemize with them. Charvaka (as well as lokayata) denies the authority of the Vedas, the existence of God and the soul, the other world, the law of karma, and considers existing and cognizable only that which can be perceived by the senses. Lokayata approved the principle of svabhava - the individual nature of each thing, which determines its structure and destiny. This principle was accepted by the Charvaka and supplemented by the doctrine of existence as a spontaneous combination of four elements: earth, water, fire, air. The Charvaka ethical concept is characterized by the recognition of the concepts of good and evil as an illusion created by the human imagination. Hence the denial of rituals, asceticism, the assertion that the goal of human existence is not virtue or liberation, but pleasure, although it is associated with suffering. Each system of Indian philosophy tried to refute the views of the Charvakas, but thereby found itself forced to struggle with its own dogmatism and approach its theoretical constructions more responsibly.

Indian civilization is one of the oldest in the world. It originated on the Hindustan Peninsula almost 6 thousand years ago. In an attempt to comprehend themselves, the world around them and their place in it, the ancient Indian philosophers began to take the first steps in the development of worldview teachings. This is how the philosophy of ancient India was born, which had a significant impact on the entire world culture.

general characteristics

Indian philosophy originates in the middle of the first millennium BC. e. Depending on the various sources philosophical thought, ancient Indian philosophy is usually divided into three main stages:

• Vedic - the period of orthodox philosophy of Hinduism (XV-VI centuries BC).
• Epic - the period of creation of the famous epics "Mahabharata" and "Ramayana", which considered the global problems of the philosophy of that time, entering the arena of Buddhism and Jainism (VI-II centuries BC).
• Age of Sutras - a period of short philosophical treatises that describe individual problems (II century BC-VII century AD).

Since ancient times, Indian philosophy has developed continuously and naturally, without cardinal changes in ideas and points of view. All the main provisions are described in the Vedas dating back to the 15th century. BC e. Almost all the literature that followed the Vedas is associated with their interpretation. The Vedas were written in Sanskrit and included four parts: Samhitas, Brahmanas, Aranyakas and Upanishads.

Rice. 1. Vedas.

The main principles of the philosophy of ancient India include:

• improvement inner peace person;
• the desire to warn against mistakes that may cause suffering in the future;
• sincere faith in the immutable moral structure of the universe;
• perception of the Universe as a fertile field for moral deeds;
• ignorance is the source of all human suffering, while knowledge is required condition the salvation of everyone;
• comprehension of knowledge through prolonged conscious immersion;
• the subordination of weaknesses and passions to reason, which is the only way to salvation.

Philosophical schools of ancient India

In ancient India, philosophical schools were divided into two large groups: orthodox - those that developed on the basis of the teachings of the Vedas, and unorthodox.

Orthodox schools include:

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• Nya - the very first orthodox school, according to which the world can be known by man only with the help of his senses. This philosophical system is based on the study of metaphysical problems, not in a sensual, but in a logical way.
• Vaisheshika - preached the eternal cycle of life, consisting of a chain of numerous transformations and the change of one bodily shell to another. This is the so-called samsara - the wheel of eternal reincarnation. As a result of reincarnation, the soul is in constant motion and searching for harmony and ideal.

Rice. 2. Wheel of Samsara.

• Yoga - a philosophy of a practical nature, aimed at understanding the world around us and one's place in it. According to this doctrine, only harmonious personality able to control her own body with the help of the power of the spirit. the main task- complete subordination of the body to the brain.

The emergence of unorthodox philosophical schools is associated with the worship of materialism. The basis is only the body and its feelings, but not the ephemeral soul.
Unorthodox schools of ancient India include:

• Jainism - teaches that all creatures inhabiting the planet consist of identical atoms, and therefore are equal before the Universe. Harm to living terrible sin. Achieving enlightenment in Jainism is incredibly difficult. To do this, you need to completely replace the usual food with solar energy, never respond to evil with violence and not cause even the slightest harm to any living being.

The main goal of all the philosophical schools of Ancient India was to achieve nirvana - a state of complete harmony with the Universe, the loss of all earthly sensations, dissolution in the Cosmos.

• Buddhism - according to this philosophical teaching, the ultimate goal of the life of every person should be the destruction of all earthly desires, which invariably lead to suffering. The most important principle of personal behavior is not causing harm to others.

Rice. 3. Buddha.

What have we learned?

When studying the topic “Philosophy of Ancient India”, we briefly learned the most important thing about the philosophy of Ancient India: how it developed, what common features had what was laid in its foundation. We also got acquainted with the main orthodox and non-orthodox philosophical schools and their teachings.

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According to the traditional classification principles adopted by most orthodox Indian thinkers, the schools and systems of Indian philosophy are divided into two broad camps - orthodox (astika) and non-orthodox (nastika). In modern Indian languages, the words "astika" ("astika") and "nastika" (" nastika") stand for "theist" and "atheist" respectively. However, in the philosophical literature written in Sanskrit, the word "astika" denoted those "who believe in the authority of the Vedas", or those "who believe in life after death." ("Nastika" respectively means the opposite.) These words are used here in the first sense. In the second sense, even such unorthodox schools, like Buddhist and Jain, will refer to astika, since their representatives believe in life after death. The six orthodox schools refer to astika and the Charvaka school to nastika in both senses of the word.

The first group includes six major philosophies: Mimamsa, Vedanta, Samkhya, Yoga, Nyaya and Vaisheshika. They are considered orthodox, not because they admit the existence of a god, but because they recognize the authority of the Vedas. So, for example, although the Mimamsa and Sankhya schools deny the existence of God as the creator of the world, they are still considered orthodox, since they recognize the authority of the Vedas. The six systems listed above are among the main orthodox systems. In addition to these, there are also less important orthodox schools, such as grammar, medical and others noted in the work of Madhavacharya.

Among the heterodox systems are mainly three main schools - materialistic (such as Charvaka), Buddhist and Jain. They are called unorthodox because they do not accept the authority of the Vedas.

In order to make this division more understandable, it is necessary to understand what place the Vedas occupy in the history of the development of Indian thought. The Vedas are the earliest works of Indian literature, and all the subsequent development of Indian thought, especially philosophy, has been positively or negatively influenced by their influence. Alone philosophical systems accepted the authority of the Vedas, while others denied it. The Mimamsa and Vedanta systems can, for example, be seen as a direct continuation of the Vedic tradition.

Vedic traditions have two sides: ritual and speculative - karma and jnana. The Mimamsa system, emphasizing the ritual side, exalts the philosophy of the Vedas in every possible way in order to justify the Vedic rites and rituals and promote their cultivation. The Vedanta system, emphasizing the speculative side of the Vedas, seeks to develop a carefully worked out philosophy from the theoretical propositions of the Vedas. Since these schools were, in essence, the direct successors of the Vedic culture, both of them are sometimes called by the general word "Mimamsa", and only for the sake of accuracy one of them is called Purva-Mimansa (or Karma-Mimansa), and the other - Uttra-Mimansa (or jnana mimamsa). However, the more common names for these schools are Mimamsa and Vedanta, respectively, so we will stick to this common name here.

Although the Sankhya, Yoga, Nyaya, and Vaisheshika schools based their theories on the basis of ordinary human experience and reflection, they at the same time did not challenge the authority of the Vedas and sought to show that the text of the Vedas was in full accordance with their own mind-based theories. The Charvaka schools, Buddhist and Jain, which arose mainly in opposition to the teachings of the Vedas, naturally rejected their authority.

Bibliography

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