The S'iinkliya system however must be regarded as the first and most ancient, and this system, on certain mythological grounds, has been traced back to Kapila. It is founded on a duality of soul and matter (or nature); the first being the free, pure, untreated, and uncreating principle ; the second, the creating power of nature, blind and purposeless. The one cannot be thought of without the other ; they form for themselves the yet undeveloped being, and from them proceeds, by a regular gradation, from the spiritual to the intellectual, and then to the most corporeal, the whole visible world. Every human being indeed possesses the spirit, but in union with the senses; and his task is, by the conquest of the senses through the medium of the intellect, to attain to the final deliverance, " mokslia," or blessedness, which is accomplished in the " juAna," that is, the "gnosis," knowledge. But this system had an appearance of atheism, and therefore under went a reformation in the Yoga system of Patanjali. It is here established, that knowledge is the way to attain to the final deliverance, but knowledge itself can only be obtained through "yoga," absorption into God and mystical union with him, and a perfect abstraction from everything which can disturb the mind or awake the passions. The system further assumes, that the pure spirit is the creator, and thus it connects itself with the notions which belong to religion; it also adopts the metempsychosis, inasmuch as it fixes degrees of the yoga ; the spirit comes back to inhabit new bodies till it has attained the highest degree of the yoga- The Vedas are also held in esteem as means of knowledge, but they are not valued more highly than other means, since a man is to perform what is said in the Vedas freely, and not merely on account of the written word. Hence has arisen the saying, that the "yogin " is exalted above the Vedas.
The doctrines of the Buddhists are founded on the Sfinkhya system, which they carry out into all its consequences, both in their religion and politics. [Bemis.] The second system is the Xydea of which Gotaina is the author. This system is entirely confined to logic and dialectic, on which it has been constructed even in the most minute particulars. It is therefore more in accordance than the Sankliya with the other systems; and as the natives of India generally have bestowed 'much labour on the study of logic, so philosophers also of all the different sects have occupied themselves with it. The number of the NyAya writings is very great. The Vaiscs/iika system may be looked upon as a reformation of the Nyfiya. It is derived from KanAda. It applies the logical principle to nature, and has arrived at a complete atomic doctrine by the resolution of all substance» into their elements. It asserts that there is a union of atoms, which however is purely mechanical ; so that, contrary to the Sibilthya, in its consequences it necessarily leads to materialism.
The third system, the Affnisinssi, the first teacher of which was called Jaimini, is directly opposed to the two former. It maintains religion and the revealed word of the Vedas, and is a positive theological system. Accordingly it is occupied chiefly in commenting upon the Vedas, and in reconciling their contradictions. The first part of this system is predominantly practical ; it is called PfirvaminuansA; "the first 31IrnAnsA ;" here also it is affirmed that the final deliverance must be worked out by knowledge, but it limits the knowledge to that of the duties prescribed in the Vedas. The metaphysical part of this system is displayed in the Ultaranamansil, commonly called the redeinfu. here too knowledge is considered as the condition of deliverance, but still the sacred word of the Vedas is the great rule by which all thought is to be regulated. The Vedsinta required philosophy and dialectic, and has therefore adopted from the other systems every thing not contradictory to its objects ; the consequence of which is, that one-half of the philosophy is given up, and the VechInta is inter mediate between philosophy and dogmatism, as was the case in the Christian system of the schoolmen. It has been however of great service in the later corrupted times, in regenerating the old religious and political system, and in maintaining it to the present time. The two greatest restorers of this system were Kumarilabhatta in the 6th century A.D., and SankarfteLtArya in the 7th and 8th, both of whom contributed largely to the expulsion of the Buddhists. The latter
travelled through the whole of India, combating and refuting the opposite sects. The system is indebted to him for its perfection, and it is even now universally received throughout India in the form into which he brought it.
The heterodox systems ate chiefly known to ii8 through the refuta tions of them by their opponents, especially SankanIchArya, for tire writings themselves have been intentionally destroyed. They are alluded to in Mann, and they are combated in the ' IlulnaAyana ; ' which are proofs of their antiquity. The most important among them is that of the Lokilyalikao, a connected continuation and development of the roiseshika doctrine, and a perfect materialism. Those who adopt this system do not announce a final deliverance as the highest aim, but deny a future existence, and regard the soul as a material substance. The only source of knowledge is considered to be that of a true per ception by means of the senses ; and the world is held to be uncreatect and eternal ; they consequently deny the first cause of things, and are perfect atheists.
(Colebrooke, Essays on the Religion and Philosophy of the Hindu , London, 1858, pp. 143.269; Ballantyne, Christianity contrasted with Hindu Philoeephy; 1859, pp. xv.-xxxviii. ; Mullen. Religious Aspects of Hindu Philosophy; 1Sti0, pp. 1-174 ; Lassen, ' Ind. I. 830-36, ii. 509 f. 1165 f., iii. 421-30 ; Weber, • and. pp. 210-20 ; Dr. Billantyne commenced in 1849 to edit at Benares the Sultras (short aphorisms) of the six principal schools of philosophy, iu Sanskrit and English ; Sarvadaraanasangmha (short notices of the different systems of philosophy), by 3L1dhavAeliArya, Calc., 1858; Sinkhyapravachana bhasliya; ed. Hall, Cale., 1856; • SAnkhyskArikii: ed. Wilson, Oxford, 1837 ; ' BhagavadgItA; ed. Lawn. Bonn, 1846 ; Calc., 1856 (with the commentaries of Sankara and SrldharaewAniin); trans). by Thomson, Hertford, 1S55• 31. Muller, 'On the NyAya ' (app. to Thompson's ' lAws of Thought '); Pariehheda, and' SidclhAnta ed. Hoer, Cale., 1850; VedAntasttra; by SadAnanda Cale., 1855 • ' eel. liner, Cale., 1854 ; Illuntinsui Bh.l.shya; by SankarilehArya, Cale., 1829, 4to ; • Sankara, sive do Theo lognmenis such Windischmann; Bonn, 1838, Svo.) Gruntraar.—Tlic Sciencus arise among an ancient people as soon as a sacred literature gives occasion to their growth. The Vedas were written in a language which soon be;cturie obsolete. The necessity of defending them against corruption and innovation, and of ',reserving their correct interpretation, naturally led to grammatical inquiries ; and as the Sanskrit language is in itself so original, regular, and perfect, that its laws are easily discovered. 'Moles,. has become the most valuable part of Indian literature. The Indian grammarians are far above those of any other ancient people ; and they have a strong predilection for this science, and bare treated of it in number less writings. The first beginnings of Sanskrit grammar reach back to very remote times, and are Included in the collected system of the Vedas. The oldest grammarians appear also as the authors of the ' Here too we arc tunable to trace the gradual formation of the science; the system appears at once in its complete state in the ' Sutras; or Aphorisms, of Paoini, who certainly did not live later than the middle of the 4th century before Christ. He takes notice of a series of older grammarians, as well as of schools; and though in certain there was some variation in what they taught, yet in general the system was the 80111C, and they had the same technical terms. The form in which grammar is presented is ono peculiar to the natives of India, and they apply the same principles to other sciences, as for instance philosephy. Everything is compressed into rules, s bich are brought into the most concise forms of expression possible, and the grammatical categorioi are expreseol by a kind of figures or algebraical signs. They are intended to be committed to memory, and without a commentary they are unintelligible; they are all connected one with another. (Published at Calcutta, 1810; at Bonn, 1840, by 0. Boehtlinglc. A severe criticism on this edition is contained in the Introduction to' The edited by Dr. Coldstiicker, London, 1661. See also Lassen, ' Ind. Alt? ii. 479 ff.; Weber,' Ind.