🧘Intro to Indian Philosophy Unit 9 – Sāṃkhya: Dualism and Causation Theory

What's Sāṃkhya?

• One of the six orthodox schools of Indian philosophy that emerged around the 6th century BCE
• Focuses on the nature of existence, the relationship between consciousness and matter, and the path to liberation
• Teaches that the universe consists of two eternal, independent realities: puruṣa (consciousness) and prakṛti (matter)
• Aims to provide a systematic understanding of the world and the self through rational analysis and introspection
• Influenced other Indian philosophical traditions, including Yoga and Vedānta
• Emphasizes the importance of discriminative knowledge (viveka) in attaining liberation from suffering
• Presents a dualistic worldview, distinguishing between the conscious self and the material world

Key Players and Texts

• Kapila, the legendary founder of Sāṃkhya, to whom the Sāṃkhya Sūtras are attributed
  • Considered an incarnation of Viṣṇu in some Hindu traditions
  • Believed to have lived around the 6th century BCE, though his historicity is debated
• Īśvarakṛṣṇa, the author of the Sāṃkhya Kārikā (4th-5th century CE), the oldest surviving systematic text on Sāṃkhya philosophy
  • Presents the core concepts of Sāṃkhya in 72 verses
  • Widely studied and commented upon by later scholars
• Gauḍapāda, an early commentator on the Sāṃkhya Kārikā (6th-7th century CE)
• Vācaspati Miśra, author of the Sāṃkhya Tattva Kaumudī (9th century CE), an influential commentary on the Sāṃkhya Kārikā
• Vijñānabhikṣu, a 16th-century scholar who wrote the Sāṃkhya Pravacana Bhāṣya, a commentary on the Sāṃkhya Sūtras
• The Sāṃkhya Sūtras, a collection of aphorisms attributed to Kapila, but likely compiled between the 14th and 15th centuries CE

Dualism Explained

• Sāṃkhya posits two fundamental, eternal, and independent realities: puruṣa (consciousness) and prakṛti (matter)
• Puruṣa is the conscious, unchanging, and inactive witness of the changes in prakṛti
  • It is the true self, distinct from the mind, senses, and body
  • Multiple puruṣas exist, each individual and separate
• Prakṛti is the unconscious, ever-changing, and active principle that gives rise to the manifest world
  • It consists of three guṇas (qualities): sattva (luminosity), rajas (activity), and tamas (inertia)
  • The interplay of these guṇas leads to the creation of the universe
• The dualism of puruṣa and prakṛti is the foundation of Sāṃkhya's explanation of the world and the self
• Liberation (kaivalya) is achieved when puruṣa realizes its true nature as distinct from prakṛti through discriminative knowledge (viveka)

The 25 Tattvas

• Sāṃkhya enumerates 25 tattvas (principles or categories) that constitute reality
  • Prakṛti (primordial matter)
  • Mahat or buddhi (intellect)
  • Ahaṃkāra (ego)
  • Manas (mind)
  • Five jñānendriyas (sense organs): eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and skin
  • Five karmendriyas (action organs): speech, hands, feet, anus, and genitals
  • Five tanmātras (subtle elements): sound, touch, sight, taste, and smell
  • Five mahābhūtas (gross elements): ether, air, fire, water, and earth
  • Puruṣa (consciousness)
• The 24 tattvas derived from prakṛti are divided into vyakta (manifest) and avyakta (unmanifest) categories
• The evolution of the tattvas from prakṛti occurs through the process of satkāryavāda (the effect pre-exists in the cause)
• Understanding the tattvas and their relationships is crucial for attaining liberation in Sāṃkhya

Causation Theory

• Sāṃkhya adopts the satkāryavāda theory of causation, which states that the effect pre-exists in the cause
  • The manifest world is an evolution or transformation of prakṛti, not a new creation
  • The cause and effect are essentially the same, with the effect being a modification of the cause
• This theory is illustrated through examples such as clay and pots, or gold and ornaments
  • The pot is not different from the clay; it is a modification of the clay
  • Gold ornaments are not separate from gold; they are different forms of the same substance
• Sāṃkhya rejects the asatkāryavāda theory, which holds that the effect is different from the cause and is newly produced
• The satkāryavāda theory supports the eternal and unchanging nature of puruṣa and prakṛti
  • Puruṣa remains unaffected by the changes in prakṛti
  • Prakṛti undergoes modifications, but its essential nature remains the same
• The cause-and-effect relationship is crucial for understanding the evolution of the tattvas from prakṛti

Prakṛti and Puruṣa

• Prakṛti is the primordial, unconscious, and active principle that gives rise to the manifest world
  • It is eternal, all-pervading, and consists of three guṇas (qualities): sattva, rajas, and tamas
  • The equilibrium of the guṇas is disturbed by the proximity of puruṣa, triggering the evolution of the tattvas
• Puruṣa is the conscious, unchanging, and inactive witness of the changes in prakṛti
  • It is the true self, distinct from the mind, senses, and body
  • Multiple puruṣas exist, each individual and separate
• The relationship between prakṛti and puruṣa is often compared to that of a blind person (prakṛti) and a lame person (puruṣa)
  • Prakṛti is active but lacks consciousness, while puruṣa is conscious but inactive
  • Their association leads to the creation of the world and the experience of life
• Liberation (kaivalya) occurs when puruṣa realizes its true nature as distinct from prakṛti
  • This realization is achieved through discriminative knowledge (viveka)
  • Once liberation is attained, puruṣa no longer identifies with the changes in prakṛti

Comparing Sāṃkhya

• Sāṃkhya shares some similarities with other Indian philosophical schools, such as Yoga and Vedānta, but also has distinct differences
• Like Yoga, Sāṃkhya emphasizes the importance of discriminative knowledge (viveka) in attaining liberation
  • However, Yoga includes the concept of Īśvara (God) and places greater emphasis on meditation and spiritual practices
• Sāṃkhya's dualism contrasts with the non-dualistic (advaita) view of Vedānta, which holds that ultimate reality is one (Brahman)
  • Sāṃkhya maintains the eternal distinction between puruṣa and prakṛti, while Advaita Vedānta considers the world to be an illusion (māyā) superimposed on Brahman
• Sāṃkhya's atheistic stance sets it apart from theistic schools like Yoga and Vedānta
  • Sāṃkhya does not accept the existence of a supreme creator God, as the evolution of the world is explained through the interaction of prakṛti and puruṣa
• Sāṃkhya's theory of causation (satkāryavāda) is shared by the Yoga school but differs from the asatkāryavāda theory accepted by Nyāya and Vaiśeṣika schools

Modern Relevance

• Sāṃkhya's emphasis on the distinction between the self (puruṣa) and the world (prakṛti) has influenced modern psychology and philosophy
  • The concept of the witness consciousness (sākṣī) is similar to the idea of the observing ego in psychoanalysis
  • The notion of the self as distinct from the mind and body resonates with some Western philosophical traditions, such as Cartesian dualism
• Sāṃkhya's analysis of the guṇas (sattva, rajas, and tamas) provides a framework for understanding human nature and behavior
  • This concept has been applied in various fields, such as Ayurvedic medicine, to explain individual constitutions and psychological tendencies
• The Sāṃkhya model of evolution has been compared to modern scientific theories, such as the Big Bang theory and the evolution of species
  • Some scholars have drawn parallels between the tattvas and the hierarchical organization of matter in physics and chemistry
• Sāṃkhya's emphasis on rational inquiry and logical reasoning has been appreciated by modern scholars as an early example of systematic philosophy in India
• The principles of Sāṃkhya continue to influence spiritual practices and philosophical discourse in contemporary Hinduism and Buddhism