History of Mediaeval Hindu India (being a History of India from 600 to 1200 A.D.) v1.c10.21

Language: English

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Among all these different recluses namely Jainas (जैनै:) or Buddhists, Ārhatas (आर्हतै:) or Jains, Pāśupatas, Pārāśaris, Varṇis (Brahmacharis) (H. C. above quoted) and others were to be found men learned in the philosophies of their respective doctrines and a peculiar characteristic of this time was the extreme fondness of the people and the princes to hear learned discussions on philosophical questions between the professors of the different doctrines. The Indian religion, strangely enough, combines the highest philosophy with the grossest superstition. The Indo-Aryans in times remote, grappled with the most abstruse problems relating to God and soul, and have left us speculations in the Upanishads and the Vedas beyond which no people have yet gone. Imbued with a deep sense of the miseries of this world the Indo-Aryans applied themselves to a consideration of the world beyond while the western Aryans applied themselves to the problems of this world. And in their speculations, as Max-Muller has observed, they never shrank from accepting conclusions at which they logically arrived. Hence the diversity of schools in Indian philosophies and hence also their freedom from bigotry or intolerance of other opinions. The Indo-Aryan mind always took delight in logically discussing the various questions of religious philosophy. Buddhism especially was fond of such discussions.

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The development of Nyāya philosophy which Buddhism to some extent made its own lent indeed a scholastic character to such discussions and there was no criterion of truth except the opponent's defeat in discussion. Yet they have an interest and a value of their own as reason was held supreme or in other words as the argument from revelation was never resorted to. Bāṇa's work gives ample testimony to the popularity of such discussions in his time. Especially, Hiuen Tsang records the great assemblies of learned men which were convened at the time of the quinquennial alms-giving ceremonies which Harsha used to hold at Prayāga and at the last of which Hiuen Tsang himself was the president of the assembly. The usual procedure in such assemblies was that some one made a declaration of his doctrines and called upon all present to refute them. Sometimes a written declaration was posted at the gate of a monastery calling upon adversaries to tear it. Hiuen Tsang tells us of one such declaration posted by a Brahmin opponent to the door of the Nālandā monastery which no body daring to tear, he himself tore and then entering upon a controversy with the Brahmin defeated him, he having first sworn to be a slave of the man who would defeat him. Hiuen Tsang, however, relieved him from his oath and allowed him to depart a Buddhist.

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The Buddhist monasteries appear to have been constant scenes of such disputations, for the monks residing therein having no care for their maintenance had ample time for study and discussion besides performing their religious exercises. Hiuen Tsang notes also this feature of the life in Buddhist monasteries. The Buddhists themselves were divided into 18 sects and had as many disputations among themselves as with outsiders. "The Brethren are often assembled for discussion to test intellectual capacity and bring moral character into prominence. Those who bring forward or estimate aright fine points in philosophy and give subtle principles their proper place, who are ornate in diction and acute in refined distinctions ride richly caparisoned elephants," preceded and followed by a host of attendants. Bāṇa's discription in the Harsha-Charita evidences also the assembling of opponent philosophers at the hermitages of Buddhist recluses, and the passage is interesting as giving us a catalogue of the various schools which then contended in the field of discussion. In the Āśrama of Divākaramitra were assembled, Bāṇa tells us at page 316 H. C.

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Arhatas,* (Jains), Maskaris (Sanyāsis), Svetapaṭas (Śvetambara Jains), white-clothed Bhiksus, Bhāgavatas, Varṇis (Brahmachāris), Keśalunchakas (those who rooted out their hair), Kāpilas (Sānkhyas), Lokāyatikas (atheists), Jains (Buddhists), Kānādas (followers of Kanada’s Vaiśeṣika philosophy), Aupaniṣadas (Vedantins), Aiśvara Karaṇikas (Naiyayikas), Karandhamas (the philosophers of धातुवाद or elements), Dharmaśāstris, Purāṇikas, Śapta-tantavas (?), Śaivas, Śabdikas (gramarians), Pāncharātrikas (followers of the Pancharātra sect of Vaishnavas) and others. This catalogue of the philosophies which were current in the seventh century is historically important. The Buddhists are here called Jains, Jina being a name of Buddha while what are now called Jains are called Ārhatas. The Bhāgavatas are again distinguished from the Pāncharātras. The Mīmānsakas are probably intended by the term Dharmaśāstris for they based their arguments on revelation. Lastly, Varṇis or Brahmachāris are distinguished from the Aupaniṣadas and these again from the Maskaris. It is difficult to find out the nature of the exact differences in these several allied philosophies and we must content ourselves with noting the fact of the distinction.