This book, "Understanding Samkhya Philosophy: Exploring the Ancient Wisdom of Kapila," seeks to unravel the intricate web of ideas that constitute Samkhya thought. It delves into the rich historical tapestry from which this philosophy emerged and provides a comprehensive exploration of its core principles. Through these pages, we invite you to embark on a journey of discovery, to engage with the profound teachings of Sage Kapila, and to contemplate the timeless questions that Samkhya philosophy addresses. As the reader, you are invited to explore the intricate dualism of Purusha and Prakriti, to contemplate the enumeration of tattvas that make up the universe, and to consider the path to liberation through discriminative knowledge. Whether you are a seasoned scholar of Indian philosophy or a newcomer to this ancient tradition, we hope this book will serve as a valuable resource and a source of inspiration. Our aim in writing this book is not only to elucidate the philosophical intricacies of Samkhya but also to convey the enduring relevance of its ideas in our contemporary world. As we navigate the complexities of our existence, the insights offered by Samkhya can shed light on fundamental questions about the nature of consciousness, the human experience, and the pursuit of inner freedom.

Hinduism in Practice offers a unique understanding of the living tradition. Drawing on eye witness reports of Hinduism on the ground, the book provides a reflective context within which practices can be understood and appreciated.

Exploring Samkhya Philosophy: The Path to Self-Realization

We are aware of the Puranas in Hindu society. As an Indian even if you have not read them, they shape your behavior. These stories permeate the air of Bharat. Whether we believe in them or not, they determine our value system. All our festivals, ceremonies, and the way we celebrate them, are narrated to us in these Puranic stories. There are thousands of stories, and even for a brilliant mind, it is impossible to remember all of them. Collectively, as a society, we remember these stories, but as individuals, we struggle to know all. The purpose of these stories was to unite society. The stories that unite people depend on the society. The type of stories that will unite people depends on the political system, ethnic diversity in society, available resources, wealth distribution among citizens, geographical features such as deserts, snowy mountains, overflowing riverbanks, plateaus with good agriculture and water, or areas surrounded by dense forests with unknown diseases, etc. After twelve hundred years of barbaric invasions and colonization, when Bharat became free on 15th August 1947 and chose to be a democratic nation with immense diversity, the question arises: how do we unite the society? Stories revolving around military heroes or successful business ventures are one way to connect with people and unite society. However, these individual stories do not provide us with the broader narrative of a civilizational nation. We cannot unite Bharat in the same way as the USA, Greece, Iran, Saudi Arabia, or China. Bharat is a civilizational nation, and on top of that, we have vast diversity, population, and poverty. Engaging 1.4 billion people of a democratic nation who speak over 400+ languages, and embrace dozens of religious and ethnic diversities in nation-building is an immense challenge. That's why, despite one's education, experience, or intelligence, without divine blessings, whether you are a nation or an individual both will suffer. Bharat has a long tradition of writing and narrating Pauranic stories, and in a democratic system, we need to harness this art to unite society. However, this time, the stories should steer clear of concepts like heaven and hell. They should also avoid focusing on the gods and goddesses of the sky. Citizens should not prioritize to an afterlife but instead strive for a meaningful, peaceful existence on the land we call Rashtra or nation. Namo Purana is a grand narrative of Bharat. Glory, struggle, and progress from Vedic times to 2023 are compressed within this book. It encapsulates everything essential about Bharat, its Vedic time, peaks, struggle, rise, and resurgence. This is not a book focused on any specific topic like spirituality, history, geography, or economy. Instead, it is a Purana that delves into every aspect of Maa Bharati's life. Readers will encounter a wide range of topics in this work, including spirituality, dharma, religion, history, geography, trade and business, economy, culture, politics, geopolitics, war and conflicts, agriculture, literature, biographies, Bhakti Yoga, Jnyana Yoga, Karma Yoga, sociology, colonization, patriotism, nationalism, constitution, law and order, and the dos and don'ts of good governance. Each is discussed briefly to inspire the citizens of Bharat to understand their motherland, its struggles, and challenges. One should neither look up to any other nation with awe nor look down on any other nation. All nations on the planet are equal, and their residents are our family members residing in different houses. Therefore, it's important to respect and care for all, while ensuring that our Rashtra, our home, is safe and peaceful for ourselves and future generations.

Today healing yoga helps you to do just this, by teaching you how to integrate an awareness of the panchatattva - the five forces of vitality - into your yoga practice.

This volume develops a unique framework to understand India through indigenous and European perspectives, and examines how it copes with the larger challenges of a globalized world. Through a discussion of religious and philosophical traditions, cultural developments as well as contemporary theatre, films and media, it explores the manner in which India negotiates the trials of globalization. It also focuses upon India’s school and education system, its limitations and successes, and how it prepares to achieve social inclusion. The work further shows how contemporary societies in both India and Europe deal with cultural diversity and engage with the tensions between tendencies towards homogenization and diversity. This eclectic collection on what it is to be a part of global network will be of interest to scholars and researchers of South Asian studies, philosophy, sociology, culture studies, and religion.

The work appears in five volumes. Vol. I comprises Buddhist and Jaina Philosophy and the six systems of Hindu thought, viz.., Samkhya, Yoga, Nyaya, Vaisesika, Mimamsa and Vedanta. It also contains the philosophy of the Yogavasistha, the Bhagavadgita and speculations in the medical schools. Vol. III contains an elaborate account of the Principal Dualistic and Pluralistic Systems such as the philosophy of the Pancaratra, Bhaskara, Yamuna, Ramanuja, Nimbarka, Vijnanabhiksu and philosophical speculations of some of the selected Puranas. Vol. IV deals with the Bhagavata Purana, Madhva and his School, Vallabha, Caitanya, Jiva Gosvami and Baladeva Vidyabhusana. Vol. V treats the Southern Schools of Saivism, viz., Saiva Siddhanta, Vira Saivism, philosophy of Srikantha. Saiva Philosophy in the Puranas and in some important texts. In the words of the Oxford Journal 'the collection of data, editing and the interpretation of every school of thought is a feat unparalleled in the field of history of philosophy.'

This spiritual self-help book offers easy, step-by-step procedures to master the ancient arts of meditation and enlightenment. It offers practical techniques to increse love, power, and energy; reduce stress and tension; improve health; reverse aging; and bring well-being, contentment, and peace of mind to everyday life.

Why the Observer Needs a Central Place in Science The dominantly materialist outlook of modern science leaves a lot unexplained. This includes the nature of sensation, concepts, beliefs and judgments, and an understanding of morality. Science was developed by evicting all aspects of the subject from its theories, and this has now become a hindrance in the scientific study of the observer. Does the eviction of subjective qualities only impact the understanding of the subject, or does it also affect the understanding of matter within science? The dominant belief today is that the current view of matter is nearly final and mind and consciousness will be soon explained based on it. Sankhya and Science argues to the contrary. The nature of material objects if they are created and perceived by conscious beings is different than if they are independent of consciousness. If objects are created and perceived by conscious beings, they should be described as symbols of meanings rather than as meaningless things. Questions Tackled in This Book First, the author discusses a wide variety of problems in modern science, including mathematics, computing, physics, chemistry, biology and neuroscience and how they cannot be solved in the materialistic view.Then, the author offers the alternative view of matter based on Sankhya philosophy--meanings in consciousness are reflected in matter to create symbols of meaning. Now, to know all aspects of matter we need to understand all aspects of the observer, otherwise the theory of matter is incomplete. Mind and Matter Integrated into a Semantic Science The book connects a semantic view of matter to the problems of indeterminism and uncertainty in quantum physics, the problem of meaning in computing theory, the nature of information in chemistry and biology, and the problem of sensation and cognition in psychology and neuroscience. Unlike in modern science, where meaning and information are emergent properties of physical objects, in Sankhya, objects are created when the mind transfers meanings into space-time. The reader will see how mind and matter can be integrated without stepping outside the rational-empirical approach to science. Moreover, this integration can engender new kinds of empirical theories, better able to explain phenomena currently lying outside the reach of science. This deeper understanding of mind and matter also builds up the conceptual framework for understanding other complex topics such as Vedic Cosmology, meditation, mantras, prana, reincarnation and karma. The book illustrates how the choices of consciousness are first converted into meanings in the mind, which are then converted into energy, which is then converted into material objects through incremental steps. By the end of the book, the author builds a new approach to doing science. This paradigm will be able to explain more phenomena than current theories, and will solve the problems of indeterminism, uncertainty and incompleteness which plague current sciences. How Is This book Different? Most people drawing parallels between science and Eastern philosophy end up claiming that the Eastern mystics knew thousands of years back what modern science discovered only recently. This conclusion may be satisfying as a bridge between religion and science, but it is ultimately futile--if the mystical viewpoint is similar to the materialist view then why we still need mysticism? Instead of parallels, this book offers a contrarian view of matter and science. It hopes to show that current science and mysticism are not convergent (although a new science and mysticism could be). The convergence requires not faith but an evolution of science itself. This approach is interesting because it tells us that the convergence will be rational rather than a matter of faith.