Sankhya is a dualistic philosophy that explains two principles: Purusha (witness consciousness) and Prakriti (matter).

How do Purusha and Prakriti interact?

Purusha and Prakriti are separate but can come together, leading to creation and the development of various 'tattvas' or elements.

What are the main components of Sankhya?

Sankhya includes Purusha, Prakriti, and 23 other components like Mahat, Ahamkara, and the three Gunas (Sattva, Rajas, Tamas).

What is the significance of the term 'Sankhya'?

The term comes from 'Sankhyaah,' meaning number, referring to the duality of Purusha and Prakriti and the other elements that arise.

How does Sankhya relate to Yoga?

Sankhya philosophy is integral to Yoga, providing a framework for understanding consciousness and matter.

What are the three Gunas?

The three Gunas are Sattva (purity), Rajas (activity), and Tamas (inertia), which characterize all created things.

How is Sankhya used in Ayurveda and Tantra?

Sankhya forms a philosophical basis for various practices in Ayurveda, Yoga, Tantra, and other vidyas of Bharata Varsha.

Sankhya Philosophy Explained: The Foundation of Yoga & Ayurveda

00:04:53

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-dM3MVLgL4

Summary

TLDRIn '5ish minutes with Dr. Robert,' the subject of Sankhya, a dualistic philosophy, is explored. It describes two main principles: Purusha (the witness consciousness) and Prakriti (the material world). The interaction between the two leads to the creation of various elements known as 'tattvas.' While traditional Sankhya suggests these principles are eternally separate, later philosophies propose that Prakriti evolves from and eventually returns to Purusha, allowing for a more unified understanding of reality. Sankhya is fundamental to other disciplines like Yoga, Ayurveda, and Tantra.

Takeaways

🧘‍♂️ Sankhya is a dualistic philosophy.
🌀 It features two principles: Purusha and Prakriti.
🔍 Purusha represents witness consciousness.
🌍 Prakriti embodies matter and creation.
🔢 The term 'Sankhya' relates to number and duality.
📚 Sankhya informs Yoga and other spiritual disciplines.
⚖️ The philosophy includes 23 elements beyond Purusha and Prakriti.
🎭 The three Gunas dictate the qualities of all creations.
💡 Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas are the three primary Gunas.
🌌 Purusha and Prakriti, in later interpretations, may unite rather than remain separate.

Timeline

00:00:00 - 00:04:53
In this segment, Dr. Robert introduces Sankhya, a dualistic philosophy that is part of the six traditional philosophies of India. He explains that Sankhya comprises two fundamental principles: Purusha, representing unconditioned consciousness, and Prakriti, symbolizing matter. The interplay between these principles is likened to a blind individual capable of movement (Prakriti) and a sighted individual unable to move (Purusha). The text elaborates that their combination leads to the creation of various elements, or tattvas, indicative of a numerical relationship derived from the term Sankhyaah, which means number. Further, Dr. Robert outlines the philosophical implications of the three Gunas (qualities) of Prakriti: Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas, and their roles in shaping the mind and sensory experience, leading to interactions with the world composed of five basic elements. He also notes a shift in the interpretation of Sankhya within yoga philosophy, suggesting an evolution where Prakriti may manifest from Purusha and ultimately return to it, aligning Sankhya with a more non-dualistic perspective.

Mind Map

Video Q&A

What is Sankhya?
Sankhya is a dualistic philosophy that explains two principles: Purusha (witness consciousness) and Prakriti (matter).
How do Purusha and Prakriti interact?
Purusha and Prakriti are separate but can come together, leading to creation and the development of various 'tattvas' or elements.
What are the main components of Sankhya?
Sankhya includes Purusha, Prakriti, and 23 other components like Mahat, Ahamkara, and the three Gunas (Sattva, Rajas, Tamas).
What is the significance of the term 'Sankhya'?
The term comes from 'Sankhyaah,' meaning number, referring to the duality of Purusha and Prakriti and the other elements that arise.
How does Sankhya relate to Yoga?
Sankhya philosophy is integral to Yoga, providing a framework for understanding consciousness and matter.
What are the three Gunas?
The three Gunas are Sattva (purity), Rajas (activity), and Tamas (inertia), which characterize all created things.
How is Sankhya used in Ayurveda and Tantra?
Sankhya forms a philosophical basis for various practices in Ayurveda, Yoga, Tantra, and other vidyas of Bharata Varsha.

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00:00:00
Namaste.
00:00:01
I'm Dr.
00:00:02
Robert and today on 5ish minutes with Dr.
00:00:05
Robert my subject is Sankhya.
00:00:08
Sankhya is a darshana, a philosophy.
00:00:11
Darshana literally means to see, so it's a way of seeing the world.
00:00:16
Sankhya is one of the six traditional philosophies that are mentioned
00:00:21
in an important book called the Shraddha Darshana Sangraha and it's
00:00:26
mentioned in the context with yoga.
00:00:28
So the yoga philosophy employs Sankhya though it shifts it in a particular way.
00:00:34
Sankhya is a dualistic philosophy.
00:00:38
According to Sankhya there are two principles in the universe.
00:00:41
One is the principle of Purusha, which means witness consciousness, consciousness
00:00:48
that has no limitations whatsoever.
00:00:50
Cannot be described.
00:00:53
Form, has no name.
00:00:54
It is simply that faculty of consciousness that is providing
00:00:58
consciousness to anything in the universe that has consciousness.
00:01:02
The other principle is called Prakriti and Prakriti represents
00:01:07
matter, it represents everything from which the universe is constructed.
00:01:12
And according to the original Sankhya philosophy, what these two principles do
00:01:19
is be separate from one another, forever.
00:01:23
But sometimes what happens is that Prakriti and Purusha come together
00:01:28
for reasons that are debated.
00:01:31
But when they come together, they have one of the, one of the analogies
00:01:35
that has been employed is that it is like having a, a person who can
00:01:42
see very well but is unable to move.
00:01:46
That would be the Purusha.
00:01:49
And someone who is an able bodied individual but is
00:01:53
blind, that would be Prakriti.
00:01:56
So when the two of them are together, let's say that the visually capable
00:02:01
person who can't move around is seated on the shoulders of the visually
00:02:05
incapable person who can move around, then things like creation can occur.
00:02:11
As a result of this combination, there is the production of a variety of what are
00:02:19
called tattvas, or thatnesses, things.
00:02:22
And, and this is really why the word Sankhya is employed, because comes from
00:02:29
the word Sankhyaah, which means number.
00:02:32
So Purusha and Prakriti are two, and then there's these 23 other things.
00:02:37
That includes Mahat, or Buddhi, which means a field of awareness, but
00:02:44
that is in the context of Prakriti.
00:02:46
And Ahamkara, which means the individual ability of people
00:02:53
like you and me as individuals to identify themselves as individuals.
00:02:59
Then there are the three Gunas, Sattva, which are said to be the
00:03:03
chief characteristics of Prakriti.
00:03:05
So they're the chief characteristics of anything that's created.
00:03:09
From sattva are evolved the mind, manas, the calculating
00:03:14
mind, the five sense organs of perception, sight, and smell, etc.
00:03:21
And the five sense organs of action, which are symbolized by various organs, but
00:03:27
really indicate locomotion, manipulation,
00:03:31
elimination, creation, or procreation, and also communication.
00:03:37
And their principle of Rajas is activity, and the principle of Tamas creates a
00:03:43
Tun Matra, which means what we get from our sense organs, which is a sampling
00:03:47
of reality, and that sampling of reality encourages us to interact with the world
00:03:54
by taking the world as being made up of five elements, which are effectively
00:03:59
earth, water, air, space, and, fire.
00:04:03
So Sankhya, what has happened with yoga and further iterations of this philosophy
00:04:09
is that Purusha and Prakriti have been, uh, postulated to, in fact, not be two
00:04:16
things that never can unite with one another, but rather that Prakriti herself
00:04:22
evolved from, manifested from Purusha and eventually will return to Purusha.
00:04:28
This permits Sankhya to be employed in a, a more adwaita sort of, um, reality.
00:04:38
This is Dr.
00:04:38
Robert saluting the Sankhya philosophy, which is employed in Ayurveda, Yoga,
00:04:45
Tantra, Vastu, and all the other various vidyas of Bharata Varsha.