Āstika and nāstika
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Āstika (
Āstika (
- as those who accept the epistemic authority of the Vedas;
- as those who accept the existence of ātman;
- as those who accept the existence of Ishvara.
Nāstika (Sanskrit: नास्तिक; from Sanskrit: na, 'not' + āstika), by contrast, are those who deny all the respective definitions of āstika;[5] they do not believe in the existence of Self.[13]
The six most studied Āstika schools of Indian philosophies, sometimes referred to as orthodox schools, are Nyāyá, Vaiśeṣika, Sāṃkhya, Yoga, Mīmāṃsā, and Vedānta. The five most studied Nāstika schools of Indian philosophies, sometimes referred to as heterodox schools, are Buddhism, Jainism, Chārvāka, Ājīvika, and Ajñana.[14][15] However, this orthodox-heterodox terminology is a construct of Western languages, and lacks scholarly roots in Sanskrit. Recent scholarly studies state that there have been various heresiological translations of Āstika and Nāstika in 20th century literature on Indian philosophies, but many are unsophisticated and flawed.[5]
Etymology
Āstika is a Sanskrit adjective and noun that derives from asti ('there is or exists'),[13] meaning 'knowing that which exists' or 'pious.'[16] The word Nāstika (na, not, + āstika) is its negative.
One of the traditional etymologies of the term āstika—based on Pāṇini's Aṣṭādhyāyī 4.4.60 ("astināstidiṣṭam matiḥ")—defines the concept as ‘he whose opinion is that Īśvara exists’ (asti īśvara iti matir yasya).[17] According to Sanskrit grammarian Hemachandra, āstika is a synonym for ‘he who believes’.[17] Other definitions include:
- 'opposite of nāstika' (nāstika bhinna);
- 'he whose idea is that Īśvara exists' (īśvara asti iti vādī); and
- 'he who considers the Vedas as authorities' (vedaprāmāṇyavādī).
As used in Hindu philosophy, the differentiation between āstika and nāstika does not refer to theism or atheism. sense. N. N. Bhattacharya writes:
The followers of Tantra were often branded as Nāstika by the political proponents of the Vedic tradition. The term Nāstika does not denote an atheist since the Veda presents a godless system with no singular almighty being or multiple almighty beings. It is applied only to those who do not believe in the Vedas. The Sāṃkhyas and Mīmāṃsakas do not believe in God, but they believe in the Vedas and hence they are not Nāstikas. The Buddhists, Jains, and Cārvākas do not believe in the Vedas; hence they are Nāstikas.
— Bhattacharyya 1999, pp. 174
Āstika is also a name, such as that of a Vedic scholar born to the goddess Mānasā ('Mind') and the sage Jaratkaru.[18]
Classification of schools
The views of six śramaṇa in the Pāli Canon (based on the Buddhist text Sāmaññaphala Sutta1) | |
Śramaṇa | view (diṭṭhi)1 |
Pūraṇa Kassapa |
Amoralism: denies any reward or punishment for either good or bad deeds. |
Makkhali Gośāla (Ājīvika) |
Niyativāda (Fatalism): we are powerless; suffering is pre-destined. |
Ajita Kesakambalī (Lokāyata) |
Materialism: live happily; with death, all is annihilated. |
Pakudha Kaccāyana |
Sassatavāda (Eternalism): Matter, pleasure, pain and the soul are eternal and do not interact. |
Nigaṇṭha Nātaputta (Jainism) |
Restraint: be endowed with, cleansed by and suffused with the avoidance of all evil.2 |
Sañjaya Belaṭṭhiputta (Ajñana) |
Agnosticism: "I don't think so. I don't think in that way or otherwise. I don't think not or not not." Suspension of judgement. |
Notes: | 1. DN-a (Ñāṇamoli & Bodhi, 1995, pp. 1258-59, n. 585).
|
The terms Āstika and Nāstika have been used to classify various Indian intellectual traditions.
Āstika
A list of six systems or ṣaḍdarśanas (also spelled Sad Darshan) consider Vedas as a reliable source of knowledge and an authoritative source.[19] These are the Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Samkhya, Yoga, Mīmāṃsā and Vedanta schools of Hinduism, and they are classified as the āstika schools:
- Nyaya, the school of logic
- Vaisheshika, the atomist school
- Samkhya, the enumeration school
- Yoga, the school of Patañjali (which assumes the metaphysics of Sāṃkhya)
- Mīmāṃsā, the tradition of Vedic exegesis
- Upaniṣadictradition.
These are often coupled into three groups for both historical and conceptual reasons: Nyāyá-Vaiśeṣika, Sāṃkhya-Yoga, and Mimāṃsā-Vedanta.
Nāstika
The main schools of Indian philosophy that reject the Vedas were regarded as heterodox in the tradition:[3]
The use of the term nāstika to describe Buddhism and Jainism in India is explained by Gavin Flood as follows:
At an early period, during the formation of the Upaniṣads and the rise of Buddhism and Jainism, we must envisage a common heritage of meditation and mental discipline practiced by renouncers with varying affiliations to non-orthodox (Veda-rejecting) and orthodox (Veda-accepting) traditions.... These schools [such as Buddhism and Jainism] are understandably regarded as heterodox (nāstika) by orthodox (āstika) Brahmanism.
— Gavin Flood[20]
Tantric traditions in Hinduism have both āstika and nāstika lines; as Banerji writes in "Tantra in Bengal":
Tantras are ... also divided as āstika or Vedic and nāstika or non-Vedic. In accordance with the predominance of the deity the āstika works are again divided as Śākta, Śaiva, Saura, Gāṇapatya and Vaiṣṇava.
— Banerji[21]
Usage in religion
Hinduism
Manusmriti, in verse 2.11, defines Nāstika as those who do not accept "
Manusmriti does not define, or imply a definition for Astika. It is also silent or contradictory on specific rituals such as animal sacrifices, asserting
Without reference to Vedas
In contrast to
The 7th century scholars Jayaditya and Vamana, in Kasikavrtti of Pāṇini tradition, were silent on the role of or authority of Vedic literature in defining Astika and Nāstika. They state, "Astika is the one who believes there exists another world. The opposite of him is the Nāstika."[5][23]
Similarly the widely studied 2nd–3rd century CE Buddhist philosopher Nagarjuna, in Chapter 1 verses 60–61 of Ratnāvalī, wrote Vaiśeṣika and Sāṃkhya schools of Hinduism were Nāstika, along with Jainism, his own school of Buddhism and Pudgalavadins (Vātsīputrīya) school of Buddhism.[24][25]
Based on belief in Atman
Astika, in some texts, is defined as those who believe in the existence of
Jainism
According to G. S. Ghurye, the Jain texts define na+astika as one "denying what exists" or any school of philosophy that denies the existence of the Self.[30] The Vedanta sub-traditions of Hinduism are "astika" because they accept the existence of Self, while Buddhist traditions denying this are referred to as "nastika".[30]
One of the earliest mentions of astika concept in Jain texts is by
The 5th–6th century Jainism scholar
The 12th century Jaina scholar Hemachandra similarly states, in his text Abithana Chintamani, that a nastika is any philosophy that presumes or argues there is "no virtue and vice."[33]
Buddhism
Nagarjuna, according to Chandradhar Sharma, equates Nastikya to "nihilism".[34]
The 4th century Buddhist scholar Asanga, in Bodhisattva Bhumi, refers to nastika Buddhists as sarvaiva nastika, describing them as who are complete deniers. To Asanga, nastika are those who say "nothing whatsoever exists", and the worst kind of nastika are those who deny all designation and reality.[35] Astika are those who accept merit in and practice a religious life.[35] According to Andrew Nicholson, later Buddhists understood Asanga to be targeting Madhyamaka Buddhism as nastika, while considering his own Yogachara Buddhist tradition to be astika.[35] Initial interpretations of the Buddhist texts with the term astika and nastika, such as those composed by Nagarjuna and Aśvaghoṣa, were interpreted as being directed at the Hindu traditions. However, states John Kelly, most later scholarship considers this as incorrect, and that the astika and nastika terms were directed towards the competing Buddhist traditions and the intended audience of the texts were Buddhist monks debating an array of ideas across various Buddhist traditions.[36]
The charges of being a nastika were serious threat to the social standing of a Buddhist, and could lead to expulsion from Buddhist monastic community. Thus, states Nicholson, the colonial era Indologist definition of astika and nastika schools of Indian philosophy, was based on a narrow study of literature such as a version of Manusmriti, while in truth these terms are more complex and contextually apply within the diverse schools of Indian philosophies.[35]
The most common meaning of astika and nastika, in Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism was the acceptance and adherence to ethical premises, and not textual validity or doctrinal premises, states Nicholson. It is likely that astika was translated as orthodox, and nastika as heterodox, because the early European Indologists carried the baggage of Christian theological traditions and extrapolated their own concepts to Asia, thereby distorting the complexity of Indian traditions and thought.[35]
See also
- Ātman (Buddhism)
- Atheism in Hinduism
- Atman (Hinduism)
- Jīva (Jainism)
- Śāstra pramāṇam in Hinduism
- Transtheism
Notes
- ISBN 978-0815336112. p. 88.
- ISBN 978-0415772273. pp. 729–30.
- ^ a b Flood 1996, pp. 82.
- ^ Flood: "These schools [such as Buddhism and Jainism] are understandably regarded as heterodox (nāstika) by orthodox (āstika) Brahmanism."[3]
- ^ ISBN 978-0231149877. ch. 9.
- ^ ISBN 978-0199360079. p. 46.
- ^ Grayling, A. C. (2019). The History of Philosophy. Penguin Books. p. 519.
- ^ Chatterjee, Satischandra, and Dhirendramohan Datta. 1984. An Introduction to Indian Philosophy (8th reprint ed.). Calcutta: University of Calcutta. p. 5n1: "In modern Indian languages, 'āstika' and 'nāstika' generally mean 'theist' and 'atheist,' respectively. But in Sanskrit philosophical literature, 'āstika' means 'one who believes in the authority of the Vedas'. ('nāstika' means the opposite of these). The word is used here in the first sense. The six orthodox schools are 'āstika', and the Cārvāka is 'nāstika' in both the senses."
- ^ For instance, the Atheist Society of India produces a monthly publications Nastika Yuga, which it translates as 'The Age of Atheism'. Archived 18 April 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
- ISBN 978-0-470-99868-7. "By Sāṃkhya reasoning, the material principle itself simply evolves into complex forms, and there is no need to hold that some spiritual power governs the material principle or its ultimate source."
- ^ Literature review of secondary references of Buddha as Dashavatara which regard Buddha to be part of standard list:
- Britannica
- A Dictionary of Asian Mythology By David Adams Leeming p. 19 "Avatar"
- Hinduism: An Alphabetical Guide By Roshen Dalal p. 112 "Dashavatara" ""The standard and most accepted list found in Puranas and other texts is: ... Rama, Krishna, Buddha, Kalki."
- The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A-M p. 73 "Avatar"
- Hindu Gods and Goddesses By Sunita Pant Bansal p. 27 "Vishnu Dashavatara"
- Hindu Myths (Penguin Books) pp. 62–63
- The Book of Vishnu (see index)
- Seven secrets of Vishnu By Devdutt Pattanaik p. 203 "In the more popular list of ten avatars of Vishnu, the ninth avatar is shown as Buddha, not Balarama."
- A Dictionary of Hinduism p. 47 "Avatara"
- BBC
- Flood, Gavin D. (13 July 1996). An Introduction to Hinduism. Cambridge University Press. p. 116. ISBN 978-0-521-43878-0.
- ^ ISBN 978-8171548071, page 354
- ^ a b Monier-Williams 2006
- ^ Flood 1996, pp. 82, 224–49
- ^ For an overview of this method of classification, with detail on the grouping of schools, see: Radhakrishnan & Moore 1989
- ^ Apte 1965, pp. 240
- ^ ISBN 9781843313977.
- ISBN 978-0195332612, page 65
- ^ Flood 1996, pp. 231–2
- ^ Flood 1996, pp. 82
- ^ Banerji 1992, pp. 2
- ^ Sanskrit: Manusmriti with six scholar commentaries VN Mandlik, page 1310
English: Manusmriti 10.63 Berkeley Center for World Religion, Peace and World Affairs, Georgetown University - ISBN 978-8860321145
- ISBN 978-0199782949, page 59 note 39
- ISBN 978-3700119159, pages 230–238
- ISBN 978-8120803657, page 66
- ISBN 978-0824815981, page 171
- ISBN 978-8120801585, page 63, Quote: "The Buddhist schools reject any Ātman concept. As we have already observed, this is the basic and ineradicable distinction between Hinduism and Buddhism".
- ISBN 978-1928706199, pages 128–129;, Brahman)
God, states Tilakaratna, in Brahmanic traditions is Parama-atma (universal Self, Ishvara - ^ ISBN 978-81-7154-807-1.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-231-14987-7.
- ISBN 978-0-231-14987-7.
- ISBN 978-0-85728-433-4.
- ISBN 978-81-208-0365-7.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-231-14987-7.
- ISBN 90-04-10613-8.
References
- Apte, V. S. (1965), A Practical Sanskrit Dictionary
- Banerji, S. C. (1992), Tantra in Bengal (Second Revised and Enlarged ed.), Delhi: Manohar, ISBN 81-85425-63-9
- Bhattacharyya, N. N. (1999), History of the Tantric Religion (Second Revised ed.), New Delhi: Manohar, ISBN 81-7304-025-7
- ISBN 81-7596-028-0
- ISBN 0-631-21535-2.
- ISBN 1-881338-58-4
- ISBN 0-691-01958-4
- ISBN 978-8185301761