Samkhya
one of six schools of Hindu philosophy
Samkhya or Sankhya (; Sanskrit: सांख्य, romanized: Sāṃkhya) is a dualistic orthodox school of Hindu philosophy. It views reality as composed of two independent principles, Puruṣa ('consciousness' or spirit) and Prakṛti (nature or matter, including the human mind and emotions).
Puruṣa is the witness-consciousness. It is absolute, independent, free, beyond perception, above any experience by mind or senses, and impossible to describe in words.
Prakṛti is matter or nature. It is active, unconscious, and is a balance of the three guṇas (qualities or innate tendencies), namely Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas. When Prakṛti comes into contact with Puruṣa this balance is disturbed, and Prakṛti becomes manifest, evolving twenty-three tattvas, namely intellect (buddhi, mahat), I-principle (ahamkara), mind (manas); the five sensory capacities known as ears, skin, eyes, tongue and nose; the five action capacities known as hands (hasta), feet (pada), speech (vak), anus (guda), and genitals (upastha); and the five "subtle elements" or "modes of sensory content" (tanmatras), from which the five "gross elements" or "forms of perceptual objects" (earth, water, fire, air and space) emerge, in turn giving rise to the manifestation of sensory experience and cognition.
Jiva ('a living being') is the state in which Puruṣa is bonded to Prakṛti. Human experience is an interplay of the two, Puruṣa being conscious of the various combinations of cognitive activities. The end of the bondage of Puruṣa to Prakṛti is called Moksha (Liberation) or Kaivalya (Isolation).
The public source identifies “Samkhya” as one of six schools of Hindu philosophy. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Samkhya, schools and Hindu.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Samkhya”, the useful work is to connect “one of six schools of Hindu philosophy” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 15, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q164828. The Library of Congress control number is sh85117304. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Samkhya”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Samkhya primary sources, Samkhya archive and Samkhya research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Samkhya”?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Samkhya” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.