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Samkhya thoughts in the Mahabharata

by Shini M.V. | 2017 | 51,373 words

This page relates ‘Yajnavalkya king Janaka Samvada� of the study of Samkhya thought and philosophy as reflected in the Shanti-Parva of the Mahabharata. Samkhya represents one of the six orthodox schools of Indian Philosophy and primarily deals with metaphysical knowledge and explains the Universe without the need to introduce God. The Mahabharata is an ancient Sanskrit epic which includes many Sankhya theories while expounding twenty-five principles.

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This ṃv岹 comes from the 4th to 24th ślokas in the 310th in the Śāntiparva In this ñⲹ advises king Janaka. In it the twenty five principles in the ṃkⲹ philosophy and nine types of sargas etc are also explained.

Conversation between ñⲹ and king Janaka. King Janaka asked ṛṣi ñⲹ how many kinds of senses were there and the types of Nature. He also wanted to know what unmanifest was, the birth and death, the limits of Age etc. ñⲹ said that eight principles constitute Nature which are the views of the people who are familiar with science of spirituality. The eight principles of Nature are the unmanifest, greatness, consciousness, the five elements of Earth, wind, Ether, water and Light. The changes of these principles are the ear, the skin, the eye, the tongue, the nose, the sound, touch, form, taste, scent, speech, arms, two feet, the lower duct and the organ of pleasure.[1] վśṣa is that which commences with sound and that which originates with five principles. Saviśeṣa is the five senses of knowledge. Mind is the sixteenth principle. The unmanifest paves way to goodness, which in turn to consciousness and from consciousness to the mind. Mind is the birth place of great elements. Thus ñⲹ briefs twenty four principles.

Footnotes and references:

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[1]:

ⲹٲ� ca Գٲ� ca tathāhaṅkāra eva ca |
ṛt󾱱ī vāyurākāśamāpo jyotiśca pañcamam || etā� prakṛtayastvaṣṭau vikārānapi me śṛṇu |
śdzٰ� tvakcauva cakṣuśca ṇa� ca pañcamam ||
ś岹� 貹śś ū貹� ca raso gandhastathaiva ca |
vāk ca hastau ca pādau ca pāyurmeḍhra� tathaiva ca || Ѳٲ XII, 310, 11 -13.

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