Hindu atheism

Samkhya	Kapila;
Yoga	Patanjali;
Vaisheshika	Kanada, Prashastapada;
Secular	Valluvar;

Hindu atheism or non-theism, which is known as Nirīśvaravāda (Sanskrit: निरीश्वर्वाद, nir-īśvara-vāda, lit. "Argument against the existence of Ishvara") has been a historically propounded viewpoint in many of the Astika (Orthodox) streams of Hindu philosophy.^[1] Hindu spiritual atheists, agnostics or non-theists who affirm the sanctity of the Vedas and the concept of Brahman, as well as those who follow astika (orthodox) philosophies but reject personal god(s), are also called Dharmic atheists, Vedic atheists or Sanatani atheists.^[2]

In current Indian languages, such as Hindi or Bengali, āstika and its derivatives usually mean 'theist', and nāstika and its derivatives denote an 'atheist'; however, the two terms in ancient- and medieval-era Sanskrit literature do not refer to 'theism' or 'atheism'.^[3] In ancient India, astika meant those who affirmed the sanctity of the Vedas, atman and Brahman, while nastika, by contrast, are those who deny all the aforementioned definitions of āstika; they do not believe in the existence of self or Ishvara (God) and reject the sanctity of the Vedas.^[4]

Sometimes nastika philosophies are also considered as a part of Hindu philosophy because the word 'Hindu' is actually an exonym and historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for people living in the Indian subcontinent.^[5] Many scholars ^[who?] consider the Nāstika philosophies, i.e. the Indian 'Heterodox' Philosophies like Buddhism, Jainism and Charvaka, to be distinct schools of philosophies,^[6] while some others consider them parts of Hindu philosophy.^[7] Although Buddhism initially started as yet another school of Indian philosophy with neutral or undiscussed views of most other philosophies,^[8] its spread through the Silk Road during the rule of emperor Ashoka, eventually led to a religious kind of self-organisation with structure, rituals and practises.^[9]

There are six major orthodox (astika) schools of Hindu philosophy — Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Samkhya, Yoga, Mīmāṃsā and Vedanta. Among them, Samkhya, Yoga and Mimamsa, while not rejecting either the Vedas or Brahman,^[10] typically reject a personal god, creator god, or a god with attributes.

Some schools of thought view the path of atheism as a valid one, but difficult to follow in matters of spirituality.^[11]

^ Daga, Mahesh (22 May 2004). "The Speaking Tree – The Atheistic Roots of Hindu Philosophy". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 11 February 2012.
^ "Hindu Atheist and their Arguments". Aminoapps.com. 9 February 2018.
^ Nicholson, Andrew J. (2013). Unifying Hinduism: Philosophy and Identity in Indian Intellectual History. Columbia University Press. pp. Ch.9. ISBN 978-0231149877.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^ Nicholson, Andrew J. (2013). Unifying Hinduism: Philosophy and Identity in Indian Intellectual History. Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0231149877.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^ Pennington, Brian K. (2005). Was Hinduism Invented?: Britons, Indians, and the Colonial Construction of Religion. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-803729-3.
^ "Atheism in India". Quartz.com. 3 April 2019.
^ "Heterodox Hinduism: Supreme Court does well to uphold plural, eclectic character of the faith". Times of India Blog. 21 December 2015. Retrieved 12 February 2022.
^ Mason, GJ (21 February 2022). "Buddhism and Hinduism". Oxford Bibliographies. Archived from the original on 25 November 2023. Retrieved 25 November 2023.
^ "How did Buddhism become a global religion? An overview". Tricycle. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 25 November 2023.
^ Hari Ravikumar (27 August 2015). "Why Indian philosophy is incomplete without atheism". Daily O.
^ Chakravarti, Sitansu (1991). Hinduism, a way of life. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 71. ISBN 978-81-208-0899-7. According to Hinduism, the path of the atheist is a very difficult one to follow in matters of spirituality, though it is a valid one.

[1] Daga, Mahesh (22 May 2004). "The Speaking Tree – The Atheistic Roots of Hindu Philosophy". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 11 February 2012.

[2] "Hindu Atheist and their Arguments". Aminoapps.com. 9 February 2018.

[3] Nicholson, Andrew J. (2013). Unifying Hinduism: Philosophy and Identity in Indian Intellectual History. Columbia University Press. pp. Ch.9. ISBN 978-0231149877.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

[4] Nicholson, Andrew J. (2013). Unifying Hinduism: Philosophy and Identity in Indian Intellectual History. Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0231149877.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

[5] Pennington, Brian K. (2005). Was Hinduism Invented?: Britons, Indians, and the Colonial Construction of Religion. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-803729-3.

[6] "Atheism in India". Quartz.com. 3 April 2019.

[7] "Heterodox Hinduism: Supreme Court does well to uphold plural, eclectic character of the faith". Times of India Blog. 21 December 2015. Retrieved 12 February 2022.

[8] Mason, GJ (21 February 2022). "Buddhism and Hinduism". Oxford Bibliographies. Archived from the original on 25 November 2023. Retrieved 25 November 2023.

[9] "How did Buddhism become a global religion? An overview". Tricycle. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 25 November 2023.

[10] Hari Ravikumar (27 August 2015). "Why Indian philosophy is incomplete without atheism". Daily O.

[11] Chakravarti, Sitansu (1991). Hinduism, a way of life. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 71. ISBN 978-81-208-0899-7. According to Hinduism, the path of the atheist is a very difficult one to follow in matters of spirituality, though it is a valid one.

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