An Outline of the Religious Literature of India c9.45

c9.45

§ 146. The primary authority for the Sāṅkhya system is the Sāṅkhya-kārikā,¹ a poem consisting originally of seventy verses and attributed to Īśvara Kṛṣṇa. It seems clear from Chinese authorities that this writer was also known as Vindhya-vāsin, and that he was a little senior to Vasubandhu, the famous Buddhist scholar.² Until recently it was believed that Vasubandhu's date was the first half of the fifth century, but fresh evidence which has become available has led most scholars to conclude that he lived from about A.D. 270 to 350.³ If that be so, we must place Īśvara Kṛṣṇa towards the beginning of the fourth century.⁴