From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This page lists some links to ancient
philosophy. In Western philosophy, the spread of Christianity through
the Roman Empire
marked the end of Hellenistic philosophy and
ushered in the beginnings of Medieval philosophy, whereas in Eastern
philosophy, the spread of Islam through the Arab
Empire marked the end of Old Iranian philosophy and ushered in
the beginnings of early Islamic philosophy.
Western
philosophy
- Thales(624 BC–ca. 546
BC)
- Anaximander
(610-546 BC)
- Anaximenes of Miletus (c. 585-c.
525 BC)
- Pythagoras(582-496
BC)
- Philolaus (470-380
BC)
- Alcmaeon of Croton
- Archytas (428-347
BC)
- Xenophanes
(570-470 BC)
- Parmenides
(510-440 BC)
- Zeno of Elea
(490-430 BC)
- Melissus
of Samos (c 470 BC - unknown)
- Empedocles
(490-430 BC)
- Anaxagoras
(500-428 BC)
- Leucippus (first
half of 5th century BC)
- Democritus
(460-370 BC)
- Metrodorus of Chios (4th century
BC)
- Protagoras
(490-420 BC)
- Gorgias (487-376
BC)
- Antiphon (480-411 BC)
- Prodicus
(465/450-after 399 BC)
- Hippias (middle of the
5th century BC)
- Thrasymachus
(459-400 BC)
- Callicles
- Critias
- Lycophron
Hellenistic schools of
thought
Philosophers during Roman
times
Indian
philosophy
The ancient Indian philosophy is a fusion of two ancient
traditions : Sramana tradition and Vedic tradition.
Vedic
philosophy
Indian philosophy begins with the Vedas where questions related to laws of
nature, the origin of the universe and the place of man in it are
asked. In the famous Rigvedic Hymn of Creation the poet
says:
"Whence all creation had its origin, he, whether he fashioned it
or whether he did not, he, who surveys it all from highest heaven,
he knows--or maybe even he does not know."
In the Vedic view, creation is
ascribed to the self-consciousness of the primeval being
(Purusha). This leads to the inquiry into the one
being that underlies the diversity of empirical phenomena and
the origin of all things. Cosmic order is termed rta and
causal law by karma. Nature (prakriti) is taken
to have three qualities (sattva, rajas, and tamas).
Sramana
Philosophy
Jainism and Buddhism are continuation of
the Sramana school of thought. The Sramanas cultivated a
pessimistic worldview of the samsara as full of suffering and
advocated renunciation and austerities. They laid stress on
philosophical concepts like Ahimsa, Karma, Jnana, Samsara and
Moksa.
Classical Indian
philosophy
In classical times, these inquiries were systematized in six
schools of philosophy. Some of the questions asked were:
- What is the ontological nature of consciousness?
- How is cognition itself experienced?
- Is mind (chit) intentional or not?
- Does cognition have its own structure?
The Six schools of Indian philosophy are:
Other traditions of Indian philosophy include:
Ancient Indian
philosophers
- Asanga (c. 300), exponent
of the Yogacara
- Bhartrihari (c 450–510 AD), early figure in
Indic linguistic theory
- Bodhidharma (c.
440–528 AD), founder of the Zen
school of Buddhism
- Chanakya (c.350 -
c.275 BC) , author of Arthashastra, professor (acharya) of political science
at the Takshashila
University
- Dignāga (c. 500),
one of the founders of Buddhist school of Indian logic.
- Gautama
Buddha (563 BC - 483 BC), founder of Buddhist school of
thought
- Gotama (c. 2nd–3rd century
AD), wrote the Nyaya Sutras, considered to be the
foundation of the Nyaya
school.
- Haribhadra (8th
Century CE) , a Jaina thinker, author and great proponent of anekāntavāda and
classical yoga, as a soteriological system of meditation in Jaina
context. His works include Ṣaḍdarśanasamuccaya and Yogabindu.
- Hemacandra (1089–1172 CE) - a Jaina
thinker, author, historian, grammarian and logician. His works
include Yogaśāstra and Trishashthishalakapurushacharitra.
- Jaimini, author of Purva
Mimamsa Sutras
- Kanada (c. 600 BC),
founded the philosophical school of Vaisheshika, gave theory of atomism
- Kapila (c. 500 BC),
proponent of the Samkhya
system of philosophy
- Kundakunda (2nd
Century CE), exponent of Jain mysticism and Jain nayas dealing with the nature of the
soul and its contamination by matter, author of Pañcāstikāyasāra (Essence of the Five
Existents), the Pravacanasāra (Essence of the Scripture) and the Samayasāra (Essence of the Doctrine)
- Lonkā (15th
Century CE) – His opposition to idol worship and rituals eventually
led to establishment of non-iconic sects of Sthanakvasi and Terapanthi.
- Nagarjuna (c. 150 -
250 AD), the founder of the Madhyamaka (Middle Path) school of Mahāyāna Buddhism.
- Panini (520–460 BC), grammarian, author of
Ashtadhyayi
- Patañjali
(between 200 BC and 400 AD), developed the philosophy of Raja Yoga in his Yoga
Sutras.
- Pingala (c. 500 BC),
author of the Chandas shastra
- Adi Shankara
(788-820 AD), the first philosopher to consolidate the doctrine of
Advaita
Vedanta, a sub-school of Vedanta
- Siddhasena Divākara (5th Century CE), Jain
logician and author of important works in Sanskrit and Prakrit,
such as, Nyāyāvatāra (on Logic) and Sanmatisūtra (dealing with the
seven Jaina standpoints, knowledge and the objects of
knowledge)
- Syntipas (c. 100 BC),
author of The Story of the Seven Wise Masters.
- Tiruvalluvar
(between 100 BC and 300 AD), author of Thirukkural, one of the
greatest ethical works in Tamil language
- Umāsvāti or Umasvami (2nd Century CE),
author of first Jain work in Sanskrit, Tattvārthasūtra, expounding the Jain philosophy
in a most systematized form acceptable to all sects of
Jainism.
- Vasubandhu (c. 300
AD), one of the main founders of the Indian Yogacara school.
- Vyasa, author of several
important works in Hindu philosophy
- Yajnavalkya
(Prehistoric), linked to philosophical teachings of the Brhadaranyaka Upanishad, and the apophatic
teaching of 'neti neti'
etc.
- Yaśovijaya Gaṇi
(1624–88 CE) – Jain logician and considered last intellectual giant
to contribute to Jaina philosophy.
Old
Iranian philosophy
While there are ancient relations between the Indian Vedas and the Iranian Avesta, the two main families of
the Indo-Iranian philosophical traditions were characterized by
fundamental differences in their implications for the human being's
position in society and their view on the role of man in the
universe. The first charter of human rights by Cyrus the Great is widely seen as a
reflection of the questions and thoughts expressed by Zarathustra and developed in Zoroastrian
schools of thought.
Chinese
philosophy
In China, less emphasis was put upon materialism as a basis for
reflecting upon the world and more emphasis was put on conduct,
manners and social behaviour, as evidenced by Taoism and Confucianism.
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