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).