The pursuit of knowledge in human beings is a necessity rather than a luxury. Therefore, Philosophy emerges as the noble endeavor to satiate this profound longing. However, the notion of Western Philosophy and Indian Darśana differ from one another. This blog tries to list a few of such distinctions.
Distinction between Darśana and Philosophy
If we look at the very origin of the word, etymologically, ‘philosophy’ means ‘love for learning’ or ‘love for knowledge.’ In this sense, Western Philosophy has remained more or less accurate to the etymological meaning of ‘philosophy.’ In stark contrast, Indian philosophy transcends the realms of intellectuality, delving deep into the spiritual essence of existence. In India, philosophy translates to ‘Darśana,’ which means ‘vision’, and ‘instrument of vision.’ It stands for direct vision of Reality. The keynote of all schools of Indian Philosophy is ‘See the self.’ Thus, it identifies as being spiritual, unlike Western Philosophy.
Another crude distinction between Western philosophy and Indian Darśana is related to the approach. While most Western philosophers talk about logic and give a somewhat analytical point of view, Indian philosophers take mostly spiritual paths to realize the truth.
Further, Philosophy as a subject matter tries to look for knowledge related to various topics of the universe, for example, man, nature, and God. These topics have frustrated the minds of humans from the very dawn of civilization, and philosophy tries to deal with problems of this nature. Moreover, the fundamental problem of philosophy has been the same in the West and the East, and the chief solution also has striking similarities. However, the method of philosophical inquiry differs in certain respects.
Philosophy has branches like metaphysics, epistemology, logic, ethics, aesthetics, etc. Western Philosophy discusses the problems related to each branch separately. On the other hand, Indian philosophy does not discuss the different issues of metaphysics, ethics, logic, and epistemology separately. Every problem is discussed by the Indian philosophers from all possible approaches. This tendency is known as the synthetic outlook of Indian philosophy.
These are only a few outlined points that scratch the surface of the disparities between Darśana and philosophy; however, their intricate nature defies simplistic explanations, demanding a profound exploration to grasp their true essence.
Reference
- Dutta & Chatterjee: An Introduction to Indian Philosophy, University of Calcutta, 1968
- Sharma, C.D.: A Critical Survey of Indian Philosophy, MLBD, New Delhi 1973