Athiest Hindu Philosophical Schools

Is atheist Hindu an oxymoron? It is hard to say. Hinduism by itself started off as a culture and it had nothing to do with the belief in God. It is interesting to note that atheist or nAstic schools of philosophy flourished a thousands years ago along with the theistic schools of philosophy.

In this post, let us look at how atheistic schools were possible within Hinduism. Broadly, the Vedic philosophical schools of thought were broken down into the ones that took the Vedas as their basis and ones that didn't. The Vedic schools of thought were philosophies like Samkhya, Nyaya, Visheshika, Vedanta, etc.

However, along with these philosophies that believe in the existence of a God, there were many that didn't make this assumption. The most notable among them is the Charvaka school which took to skeptical materialism - a philosophical viewpoint that is today popular. It is really interesting to note that the Charvaka school had arguments very similar to the present philosophical viewpoints among philosophers. Unfortunately, as with everywhere else, it is the theists that survive and the knowledge and teachings of the Charvaka school have been lost.

Vedic Knowledge: What the Vedas Talk About

Veda comes from the Sanskrit for knowledge. Vedic knowledge is therefore a culmination of all that was known to a civilization at that time.

Vedic knowledge is not limited in scope. It is true that Vedas are a storehouse of wisdom and some of the most profound philosophical schools in ancient India have their origins in the Vedas. However, Vedic knowledge is also comprised of the everyday mundane. For example, a large part of the Vedas discuss matters like rituals. These were the rituals practiced in the Vedic period. In addition, Vedic knowledge also comprises of a lot of practical knowledge, like Ayurveda, Hatha Yoga, etc.

Vedas are a storehouse of knowledge and not just philosophies and spiritual knowledge. The vedas contain a huge variety of knowledge. This of course shouldn't really be surprising. In the Vedic culture, there was a thin line between philosophy, spirituality and ritual. Hinduism propounds that one can reach the Truth through a variety of methods (the famous example of many streams ultimately meeting the ocean).

Use of 'Gyan' in Vedas

This blog has the name "Vedic Gyan". For those who do not know, Gyan is a Sanskrit word for knowledge. However, as with any other word, there are diverse meanings and shades to this word. The word 'Gyan' has a very positive connotation. It usually means not just knowledge but wisdom as well.

For example, a 'Gyani' is a person who is not only knowledgeable but also wise.



I think that the word Gyan is a very appropriate one while referring to the Vedas. The Vedas are a storehouse of knowledge, but more importantly, of wisdom. The Vedas contain deep knowledge on various subjects known to civilization in those days, and you would be surprised by how much people knew then.

Aspects of Vedas like Ayurveda contains deep knowledge of various herbs found in nature and their uses in curing diseases and improving health in general. This is the knowledge aspect of it. There are also of course various hymns that describe history and geography as known at that time. This would also come under the knowledge aspect.

The wisdom aspect of the Vedas are mostly contained in the end parts, known as Vedanta. Most philosophical schools of thought in India had their origins in the Vedas. These were the Vedic schools and they accepted the wisdom of the Vedas. The diversity of these schools can be guessed from the fact that you had theistic, monoist and atheistic schools all originating their beliefs and arguments in the Vedas!

Vedic Gyan therefore contains not just knowledge but also wisdom. It would be wrong to think that we know everything today that was known then. There are many different types of knowledge and wisdom (I'll write a lot about these later). The truth is, we know so little.