Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v1.c7.s7.t17.32

v1.c7.s7.t17.32

For many Indian philosophical and religious schools, the real world is filled with pains, and a moment of delight or joy is always accompanied by pains and never lasts long. Man should free himself from this world and not seek after pleasures in this world. Moreover, they also hold, ascetic practice in secular life will produce good fruits and help avoid pains, while hedonism or sensual pleasures will produce evil fruits and pains. Lokayata disagrees, and asserts that only fools will refuse pleasure for the sake of its connection with pain. According to the *Sarva-Darsana-Samgraha*, Lokayata holds that “the only end of man is enjoyment produced by sensual pleasures. Nor may you say that such cannot be called the end of man as they are always mixed with some kind of pain, because it is our wisdom to enjoy the pure pleasure as far as we can, and to avoid the pain which inevitably accompanies it; just as the man who desires fish takes the fish with their scales and bones, and having taken as many as he wants, desists; or just as the man who desires rice, takes the rice, straw and all, and having taken as much as he wants, desists. Therefore for us, we should not reject pleasure through a fear of pain… While life remains let a man live happily, let him feed on ghee even though he runs in debt.” It is of the opinion, that ascetic practice cannot bring pleasure and avoid the pain, and so, is meaningless.