Vaisheshika
Part of a series on Hindu philosophy | |
Schools | |
---|---|
Samkhya · Yoga | |
Nyaya · Vaisheshika | |
Purva Mimamsa · Vedanta | |
Schools of Vedanta | |
Advaita · Vishishtadvaita | |
Dvaita · Shuddhadvaita | |
Dvaitadvaita · Achintya Bheda Abheda | |
Ancient figures | |
Kapila · Patañjali | |
Gotama · Kanada | |
Jaimini · Vyasa | |
Medieval figures | |
Adi Shankara · Ramanuja | |
Madhva · Madhusudana | |
Tukaram · Namadeva | |
Vedanta Desika · Jayatirtha | |
Vallabha · Nimbarka | |
Chaitanya | |
Modern figures | |
Ramakrishna · Ramana Maharshi | |
Vivekananda · Narayana Guru | |
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada | |
N.C. Yati · Coomaraswamy | |
Aurobindo ·Sivananda | |
Satyananda · Chinmayananda | |
Vaisheshika, also Vaisesika, (Sanskrit: वैशॆषिक, IAST Vaiśeṣika)is one of the six Hindu schools of philosophy (orthodox Vedic systems) of India. Historically, it has been closely associated with the Hindu school of logic, Nyaya.
Vaisesika espouses a form of atomism and postulates that all objects in the physical universe are reducible to a finite number of atoms. Originally proposed by the sage Kanāda (or Kana-bhuk, literally, atom-eater) from around the 6th century B.C.E.
Overview
Although the Vaishesika system developed independently from the Nyaya, the two eventually merged because of their closely related metaphysical theories. In its classical form, however, the Vaishesika school differed from the Nyaya in one crucial respect: where Nyaya accepted four sources of valid knowledge, the Vaishesika accepted only perception and inference. Vaishesika atomism also differs from the atomic theory of modern science: according to the Vaishesikas, the functioning of atoms was guided or directed by the will of the Supreme Being. This is therefore a theistic form of atomism.
An alternative view would qualify the above in that the holism evident in the ancient texts mandate the identification of six separate traditional environments of philosophy, consisting of three sets of two pairs.
The logic of Vaisheshika
Being associated with the school of logic, early Vaisesika texts use logical argument to prove that the world is made of indivisible atoms: Assume that the world is not made of indivisible atoms, and that matter is continuous. Take a stone. One can divide this up into infinitely many pieces (since matter is continuous). Now, the Himalayan mountain range also has infinitely many pieces, so one may build another Himalayan mountain range with the infinite number of pieces that one has. One begins with a stone and ends up with the Himalayas, which is obviously ridiculous - so the original assumption that matter is continuous must be wrong, and so all objects must be made up of a finite number of pieces, called atoms.
Later Vaisesika philosophers tried to develop a theory to explain the properties of materials as the interaction of different types of atoms that make up the material. However, Vaisesika philosophy states that these interactions are driven by divine will, making this school of philosophy a theistic one.
Epistemologically, the Vaisesika school accepts perception (pratyaksha) and inference (anumāna) as valid sources of knowledge.
Later Vaisesika commentators include Prasastapada and Sridhara. Over the centuries, the school merged with the Nyaya system of Indian philosophy to form the combined school of Nyaya-Vaisesika. The school suffered a natural decline in India after the 15th century.
See also
External links
Indian philosophy | |
---|---|
Topics | Logic · Idealism · Monotheism · Atheism · Problem of evil |
Āstika | Samkhya · Nyaya · Vaisheshika · Yoga · Mimamsa · Vedanta (Advaita · Vishishtadvaita · Dvaita) |
Nāstika | Carvaka · Jaina (Anekantavada) · Bauddha (Shunyata · Madhyamaka · Yogacara · Sautrantika · Svatantrika) |
de:Vaisheshika hi:वैशेषिक id:Vaisiseka it:Vaisheshika nl:Vaisheshika ja:ヴァイシェーシカ学派 ru:Вайшешика sk:Vaišéšika sv:Vaisheshika
Credits
New World Encyclopedia writers and editors rewrote and completed the Wikipedia article in accordance with New World Encyclopedia standards. This article abides by terms of the Creative Commons CC-by-sa 3.0 License (CC-by-sa), which may be used and disseminated with proper attribution. Credit is due under the terms of this license that can reference both the New World Encyclopedia contributors and the selfless volunteer contributors of the Wikimedia Foundation. To cite this article click here for a list of acceptable citing formats.The history of earlier contributions by wikipedians is accessible to researchers here:
The history of this article since it was imported to New World Encyclopedia:
Note: Some restrictions may apply to use of individual images which are separately licensed.