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philosophyof India
I proposeto discuss in this paper the materialistic
knownas Lokãyata or Cãrvãka. Unfortunately, the basic sources of this
systemare notavailabletoday. Probably,thesourceshavebeendestroyed due to
lack of royal patronizerand also due to Brahmanic,Buddhistand Jainphilo-
sophers. To understand thedoctrines of thissystem,we haveto remainsatisfied
withwritingsof the opponentsof Lokãyata. The Brhaspati-sütra , supposed
to have beenwrittenby Brhaspati,the founderof this system,is lost. I have
madean attemptin this paper to reconstruct the Brhaspati-sütrathroughcross
referencesscatteredin Sanskritliterature. The presentpaperis dividedinto two
sections: Section I deals wite Lokãyata in ancientIndia and SectionII with
ancientChina.
I
" »
The term Lokãyata is made of two Sanskritwords,viz. loka and
äyata i.e. " worldview•' or " lifeview " or ,cview prevalentamong people".
Lokãyatawas also knownas Cãrvãka whowas a discipleof Brhaspati.This was
a kindof primitive in ancientIndianclan society. In all proba-
pre-materialism
bility,it was linked with Tantrism when Aryans came to India. Lokãyata
declaredthe identityof body and soul and that all beingswere resultsof the
combination of twosexes. Accordingto D. Chattopadhyaya, fromabout 10th
century B. C. to the beginningof Christianera,when slave systemwas developing,
Indian materialistic philosophyincludingLokãyata verymuchdevelopedas a
popularsystemof philosophy and did exertgreatiufluenceamong the traders,
craftsmen and otherlowercastes of the thenIndian society.Lokãyata was the
oldest heterodoxsystemin India and certainlypre-Jainand pre-Buddhistic.
Several references to Lokãyata are available in the oldesttexts of Jain and
Buddhistliterature. The Sütra-krtangaand theBhagavati Sütra ( V Section)
ofJainliterature, and the Samanna-phala-sutra , the Mahãvibhãsã-éãstra, the
Mahâyâna-nirvâria-sïitra and the Lankävatära-sütra of Buddhist literature
containvaluableinformation regarding Lokãyata.
The Sütra-krtañgais one of theoldestand most important worksof the
JainAgama Prakrtliterature,áílãnka, the oldestcommentator of the Sutra-
krtänga, has usedfourtermsforCãrvãka, viz. ( 1 ) Bärhaspatya( 2 ) Lokãyata
SGB...50
: 1.1.1.11-12.
1. (a) Siitra-krtãúga
(b) :
ŠUcíňka-TiM I. I. 1.7-8.
of
firstfour basic elements. He gives an analogyto supporthis stand-point
certainflowers,molace and waterwhcih,put together,produceliquor.2 Thè
doctrinesof Indrabhuti
and Väyubhütidefinitely
belongedto Lokäyatatradition.
Several otherJainwriters suchas Hemacandra,thegreatdialectician* and
Malli Sen Süri, the philosopher, have severelycriticisedthe Cärväka epistemo-
logyin theAnya-yoga-vyavachedadvätrifisikä and the validityof perception as
theonlyproofof knowledgein the Syãd-vãda-Manjari respectively.3Besides,
boththeseJaincriticsrefutetheLokäyataviewof theproduction of consciousness
by the combination of thefirstfour basic elements. Hemacandra also gives a
long accountin his Tri-^stilaksana-ialäka-purusa-caritaMahãkãvya,of the
previouslife of l^sabhadevaas the king Mahãbala who was verylustfuland
fallenperson. Sambhinna-mati, oneofhis ministers, supported theKing'sway of
life,advocating that therewas no soul and rebirth. It is useless to perform any
religiousritualor to follow rules of moralconduct. Here, we findseventeen
arguments whichgivea clearpictureof Lokäyataphilosophy in ancientIndia.4
In theBuddhistliteraturetheLokäyata is also frequently
referred
to as
Nästika i. e. NatthikaDariana. I give below threereferencesto provethat
Buddhistliteraturewas also fullyfamilarwithLokäyata:
2. VefesãvafyaJca-Mahãbhãsya(Ganadharavãda)Gãthã.1549-1553 ; 1650-1651.
3. " Pratyaksam evaikam iti
pramãnammanyante CärväkäfrSyád-váda-mañjari,
4. na-íalãhã-puru
Trisastilaissa sa-Carita11.1. 329-345.
5. S. N. Dasgupta, History ofIndianPhilosophy (III) p. 52U-21.
6. B. M. Baruaj History ofPre-BuddhisticIndianPhilosophy , p.278.
7. Digha-Nikãy %
( 3) In Pali literature,
too,we findthedoctrineof Sañjaya Velaththi-Putra
who was totallyindifferent to this question of the originof the
universe, cycles of births and rebirthsand the theoryof action.
He was rathera sceptic ( saméayavãdin) and agnostic ( afiiãna-
vãdin). Obviously,he was influenced by Lokãyata.
II
In Chineseclassical Buddhistliterature,
Lokãyata has beentranscribedas
" Lu-kã-yã-tuo "
", Lu-ge-ye-duo "
M, and Lu-kã-yi-duo it was translated
as 11Zhuo-bo-ka " whichwas none else but Sanskrit"Cãrvãka". We also
find some othertermssuch as " Wu-hou-shi-lun " of
(doctrine denyinglife
afterdeath), " Shi-Lun" (doctrineof this world); " Shi-Jian-Xing M
(popular
doctrine " "
of thisworld) and Shun-shi-Wai-Dao ( populardoctrine prevalentin
thisworld).
Revelation
8« Chich-chou, ofVidyã -niãtra
siddha-fästra, Vol.I.
Sütra( ed.) BunyuNanjio,Kyoto,1923,p.174.
9. TheLaúhãvatãra
I givebelowtheresuméof thedoctrines
of Lokãyata:
I haveno hesitation
to acceptthatmystudyof ChineseBuddhistliterature
is not very profoundbut I believethat a deeperresearchin thesesourceswill
bringout morefactsaboutthismaterialistic
systemof Indianphilosophy whichis
in no way less important.
Reconstruction
of the Bihaspati-sütra
1. athätas tattvamvyãkhyãsyãmah
/
( Now onwardswe shallexplaintheelements.)
2. prthivyaptejovãyuriti
tattvani/
4. tebhyaécaitanyam'
(Fromthemconsciousness
[ appears]. }
5. kirivädibhyo ìwda-èaktitvat
/
( As intoxicating
powerfrom kinva( seed) etc. ingredients.
)
6. kãma evaikah purusarthah/
( Sex is thesole objectof humanlife.)
7. anumãnam apramanamj
is notvalid.)
( Inference
8. caitanya-viéistah
kãyah purusah/
( Body endowed with is man.)
consciousness
9. maranam evapavargah/
( Death itselfis liberation.
)
10. na dharmamicaret/
( one shouldnotfollowreligiousduties.)
11. esyat-phalatvãt/
( Since theresultis in future.)
12. sãméayikatvãcca I
( And doubtful.
)
13. ko hy abãliéo hastagatamparagatam knryãt/
( Who buta sillywill handover( his) possessionto other? )
14. varam adya kapotahsvomayurãt/
( Bettera pegeonof todaythana peacockof tomorrow.
)
15. varamsãméayikãnniskãd asamšayikahkãrsãpartah/
( Bettera definite coin thana doubtful
ordinary goldencoin.)
theminds
( Since bodiesof this worldand next worldare different,
are also different,
henceno continuity.
)
20. etãvãneva purusoyãvãn indriyagocarah
/
( That muchis manwhichis seenby senses.)
21. pratyaksamemikampramãnam/
( Perceptionis theonlyvalid proof.)
22 käyad èva tatojnãnam prãnãpãnãdyadhisthitãd yuktamjãyate /
( Thereforeknowledge arisesonlyfrombodypossessedof prãm and
apana etc., thevitalbreaths.)
23. sarvatraparyanuyoga-parãny èva sütrani Brhaspateh/
( The sütrasof Brhaspatiare alwaysintenton refuting.
)
24. lokãyatamèva êãstram/
( OnlyLokãyatais a scripture.
)
25. pratyaksameva pramartam /
( in
Perception theonlyvalid proof.)
26. prthivyaptejovãyavas tattvãni/
( Earth,water,fireand air are elements.
)
27. artha-kämaupurusãrthau/
( The purposeof lifeis wealthand sex. )
28. bhütänyeva cetayanti/
( The elementsaloneproduceconsciousness.
)
29. nästiparalokah/
( Thereis no nextworld.)
30. mrtyur evãpavargah/
( Death itselfis liberation.
)
31. dan$a-nitireva vidyã/
( The onlyloreis scienceof politics.)
32. atraiva vartantarbhavati
/
( Hereinis includedagriculture.
)
33. dhürta-pralapastrayi/
of a swindler.
( The threevedas are nonsensicalprattling )
34. svargotpãdakatvenaviéesãbhãvãt/
( Theydon'thave any excellenceas theysimplyproduceheaven.)
39. loukikomãrgo'nusartavyah/
( The worldviewshouldbe followed.)
40. loka-vyavahãrafn prati sadršau bãla-panditau/
( Equal are a childand scholartowardsworldlybehavior.)
Nos. nine to fifteenin the Käma-sütra stating " Thus the LaukãyatikasM
{iti laukâyatikãh). Numberseventeenis quotedby áaňkara in his Gltã-bhâsya
and numbereighteenby Kamalasíla in the Tattvasamgraha-panjikã . Saňkara
"
clearly says This is the view point of the Laukãyatikas( iti Laukãyatika-
drstiriyam). Kamalasíla states: tathã hi tasyaetatsütram.Fromthecontext,
it is clear that the wordtasya standsforLokâyata. Numbereighteenis also
quoted verbatumin the commentary of the Sammati-tarka-pralcarana.Nos.
nineteenand twenty-one are quotedby Kamalasíla as Lokãyata-Sutra. Number
twenty-one quotedby Abhayadevaas Cãrvãka Sütrain the Tarka-prakarava-
is
tikã. Twenty-twois quoted in the Tattva-samgrahaas ( tathã ca sütram/
kâyãd eveti,Kambalãévataroditamiti). Let us remember thatKambaläsvatara
was anotherwriterof Lokâyata philosophylike Purandarain thematerialistic
philosophyof Brhaspati. Numbertwenty-three is available in the Sammati-
tarka-prakarallatas spokenby Cãrvãkas ( iti cãrvãkair abhihitam). Eleven
sütras,nos.twenty -fourto thirty-four,are quotedbyKrsnamisra in thePrabodha-
Candrodaya . The textruns as follows: iti eta dasmãlcam abhiprãyãnuvartinã
Vãcaspatinã pranïya cãrvãkãya samarpitam, tena ca sisyopasisyadvãrena
asmin loke bahulikrtamtattvam . Numberthirty-five is quotedby áãntaraksita
in the Tattva-safagraha. áãntaraksita states : purandaras tvãha ( Purandara
spoke) and laukikam lingam iti cet (in case of worldview). Nos. thirty-six
to thirty-eight are quotedby Sadänandain the Vedãntasara. Sadãnanda refutes
them as "others' opinions" ( iti kecit, ity anye). The last two sütras are
quotedby Jayarãsi-Simha in the Tattvopaplavasimha.
Bibliography
Lakãyata*DarèanatCalcutta,1956.
3, DeviprasadChattopadhyaya,
4. Deviprasad Chattopadhyaya,Lokayata - A Study of Ancient
, New Delhi, 1959.
Indian Materialism
5. Guiseppe Tucci, Linee di una storia del Materialismo Indiano,
Roma, 1923.
6. Huang Hsin-chuan,Lokayata and its Influencein Chinât Peking,
1978.
7. Mãdhavãcãrya,Sarva-darsana-saňgraha , Uma Shanker Shastri,
Varanasi,1964. EnglishTr. : E. B. Cowell& A. E. Gough,Varanasi,
1961.