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Samkhya
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Samkhya or Sankhya (; ) is a dualistic orthodox school of Hindu philosophy. It views reality as composed of two independent principles, Puruṣa ('consciousness' or spirit) and Prakṛti (nature or matter, including the human mind and emotions).
Samkhya is an ancient Hindu philosophy that divides reality into two separate, independent elements: Puruṣa, which is pure consciousness or spirit, and Prakṛti, which is nature and matter (including the human mind). This framework matters because it offers a distinctive way of understanding the relationship between consciousness and the physical world, influencing how practitioners think about the mind, body, and spiritual liberation.
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~45 min read
Article
35 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- Philosophy
- ''Puruṣa'' and ''Prakṛti''
- ''Puruṣa'' – witness-consciousness
- ''Prakṛti'' - cognitive processes
- Liberation or ''mokṣa''
- Epistemology
- Causality
- Historical development
- Ancient speculations
- Ascetic origins
- Rig Vedic speculations
- Early Upanishads
- Proto classical samkhya
- Buddhist and Jainist influences
- Middle upanishads
- Bhagavad Gita and Mahabharata
- Classical Samkhya
- Traditional credited founders
- Samkhyakarika
- Yuktidipika
- Samkhya revival
- Views on God
- Arguments against Ishvara's existence
- Influence on other schools
- Vaisheshika and Nyaya
- Yoga
- Tantra
- Advaita Vedanta
- See also
- Notes
- References
- Sources
- Further reading
- External links
Samkhya or Sankhya (; ) is a dualistic orthodox school of Hindu philosophy. It views reality as composed of two independent principles, Puruṣa ('consciousness' or spirit) and Prakṛti (nature or matter, including the human mind and emotions).
Puruṣa is the witness-consciousness. It is absolute, independent, free, beyond perception, above any experience by mind or senses, and impossible to describe in words.