Samkhya Karika of Kapila
Description
Sankhya Karika "Sankhya" is one of the six main philosophical views in Hinduism. It was conceived by Kapila. "Sankhya Karika" is oldest surviving text of Sankhya philosphy is Sankhya. It was written around 350 CE by Ishvara Krishna - one of the disciples of Kapila. It consists of 72 slokas. The current English translation was done by H.T.Colebrook in 1832 CE. After Vedantha, the Sankhya school has biggest influence on Hindu thought and culture. According to Samkhya school the universe consists of two realities, Purusha (consciousness) and Prakriti (matter). Jiva (a living being) is that state in which puru?a is bonded to prakriti in some form. This composite created intellect and consciousness. The universe was created by Purusha-Prakriti entities infused with various permutations and combinations of variously enumerated elements, senses, feelings, activity and mind. During the state of imbalance, one of more constituents overwhelm the others, creating a form of bondage, particularly of the mind. The end of this imbalance, bondage is called liberation. Samkhya school considers the Vedas as a reliable source of knowledge. The existence of God is not directly confirmed. It is an atheistic philosophy.