Description

About the Book

This book is an attempt to outline the essence of the six classic systems of Hindu Philosophy, namely; Nyaya, Vai¼eÏika, SÊmkhya, Yoga, MÌmʱsÊ, and VedÊnta. Other schools of Hindu thought are variations of these six except the school of KʼmÌr #aivism which gives the most detailed analysis of the Ultimate Principle. Each schools based on the same metaphysical doctrine, while discussing some particular aspect of the whole. For example: Nyaya discusses the means by which knowledge may be had of the Ultimate Reality; Vai¼eÏika, the things to be known about that Ultimate Reality; SÊmkhya, the evolution of metaphysical doctrine; Yoga, the metaphysical doctrine in relation to the individual; MÌmʱsÊ, the rules and method of interpreting the doctrine; VedÊnta, the relationship between God, Matter, and the World; and KʼmÌr #aivism, the nature of the Ultimate Spirit and the Cause of the Initial Impulse. These philosophy is intended merely to show the interrelationship of these schools and how each assumes the doctrines of the other while it solves its special problem. This book is a synthesis rather than an original contribution. In its preparation, author has relied extensively upon the writings of recognized authorities on Hindu Philosophy.

About the Author

Theos Bernard was an eminent scholars of Indian and Tibetan studies at Columbia University. Bernard graduated from the University of Arizona first in 1931 with a LLB. He received MA in philosophy and Ph.D. form Columbia University. As an explorer, he was only the third American to ever set foot in Lhasa, Tibet, returning from his first expedition in 1937 with hundreds of volumes of books, film footage, and still photographs. The first American to be initiated into the rites of Tibetan Buddhism, Bernard published several accounts of the theory and practice of the religions of India and Tibet, including his PhD dissertation on Hatha Yoga: The Report of a Personal Experience that was subsequently published and served to introduce the practices of yoga to an American audience. The founder of the first Tibetan Buddhist research institute in America, Bernard compiled a Tibetan grammar and plan for the systematic translation of Indian and Tibetan literature into English.