Which among the following are Charvaka Schools of Philosophy? 1. Dhurtta 2. Nyaya 3. Sushikshita 4. Vaisheshika Select the correct answer using the code given below:
- (a)1, 2 and 3
- (b)2 and 3 only
- (c)2 and 4 only
- (d)1 and 3 only
Correct — D, 1 and 3 only. What settles this question is not the two names in the answer but the two names that are not in it. Nyaya and Vaisheshika are among the six orthodox systems of Indian philosophy — Samkhya, Yoga, Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Mimamsa and Vedanta — all of which accept the authority of the Vedas. Charvaka, also called Lokayata, stands on the other side of that line as a nastika or heterodox school, grouped with Ajivika, Buddhism, Jainism and Ajnana; it rejects Vedic authority, denies the soul, rebirth and karma, and treats perception as the only reliable source of knowledge. Nyaya and Vaisheshika therefore cannot be branches of Charvaka, every option carrying item 2 or item 4 falls away, and only option (d) survives. The two names the key does accept, Dhurtta and Sushikshita, appear in the tradition as the cruder and the more refined strands of Charvaka thought; that division could not be confirmed here against an accessible scholarly source, so it is set down as the key's reading rather than certified, and the elimination above is what the answer rests on.
- (a)1, 2 and 3 — Right about Dhurtta and Sushikshita and wrong about Nyaya, which is one of the six orthodox darshanas and accepts the Vedas as a valid source of knowledge — the opposite of the Charvaka position.
- (b)2 and 3 only — Drops Dhurtta and admits Nyaya, so it fails on both counts. Nyaya's whole enterprise is a theory of valid knowledge that accepts inference and testimony, and Charvaka is famous for rejecting exactly those.
- (c)2 and 4 only — The inversion of the answer. Nyaya and Vaisheshika are the classic paired orthodox systems — one supplying the logic and epistemology, the other the atomistic account of the physical world — and neither belongs to a school that denies Vedic authority.
Indian philosophy is conventionally divided into astika systems, which accept the authority of the Vedas, and nastika systems, which do not. The six astika darshanas are usually paired — Samkhya with Yoga, Nyaya with Vaisheshika, and Mimamsa with Vedanta. The nastika group holds Charvaka, Ajivika, Buddhism, Jainism and Ajnana. Charvaka is the materialist among them: it accepts perception as the sole trustworthy means of knowledge, treats inference as unreliable, and denies an afterlife, a soul and the fruits of ritual.
Treat any list question about Charvaka as a sorting exercise on the astika and nastika line first, because that line is firm and well documented while the internal divisions of the school are not. Charvaka's own texts are lost and the school survives mainly in the writings of its opponents, who quoted it in order to refute it, which is why accounts of its internal branches vary and why a candidate should lean on the elimination rather than on the branch names. The same discipline answers a whole family of questions — a UPSC item once asked which pair does not belong among the six systems, and the answer there was Lokayata paired with Kapalika, for precisely this reason.
- The six orthodox darshanas are Samkhya, Yoga, Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Mimamsa and Vedanta.
- Charvaka, also called Lokayata, is a heterodox or nastika school, alongside Ajivika, Buddhism, Jainism and Ajnana.
- Charvaka treats perception as the only reliable source of knowledge and regards inference as doubtful.
- It rejects the soul, rebirth, karma and the efficacy of ritual, and criticises Vedic authority.
- Nyaya supplies logic and a theory of valid knowledge; Vaisheshika supplies an atomistic account of the physical world.
Sorting the four names across one well-documented line answers the question without needing the branch names.
- Assuming any Sanskrit school name in a list must belong to the school being asked about.
- Confusing Lokayata with a Shaivite sect such as Kapalika; both sit outside the six systems but for different reasons.
- Treating Charvaka as atheist Buddhism; the two are separate heterodox traditions.
As a select-the-list item like this one, or as a which-pair-does-not-belong question on the six systems.
Which one of the following pairs does not form part of the six systems of Indian Philosophy?
- (a) Mimamsa and Vedanta
- (b) Nyaya and Vaisheshika
- (c) Lokayata and Kapalika
- (d) Sankhya and Yoga
Answer(c) Lokayata and Kapalika
The same line drawn from the opposite side. That item asks which pair falls outside the six systems and answers with Lokayata, the other name for Charvaka; this one asks what belongs inside Charvaka, and is answered by first ruling out the two orthodox systems planted in its list.
With reference to the history of philosophical thought in India, consider the following statements regarding Sankhya school : 1. Sankhya does not accept the theory of rebirth or transmigration of soul. 2. Sankhya holds that it is the self-knowledge that leads to liberation and not any exterior influence or agent. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- (a) 1 only
- (b) 2 only
- (c) Both 1 and 2
- (d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer(b) 2 only
A neighbouring school tested on doctrine rather than on membership. Samkhya is atheistic yet still accepts karma and rebirth, which shows how carefully these systems have to be separated — being sceptical about a creator is not the same as being materialist in the Charvaka sense.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Which one of the following is NOT one of the six orthodox systems of Indian philosophy?
- (a)Nyaya
- (b)Vaisheshika
- (c)Lokayata
- (d)Mimamsa
Answer(c) Lokayata — another name for Charvaka, a heterodox materialist school that rejects Vedic authority.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The Charvaka school holds which one of the following to be the only reliable source of valid knowledge?
- (a)Perception
- (b)Inference
- (c)Verbal testimony
- (d)Comparison
Answer(a) Perception — Charvaka regards inference as doubtful and rejects scriptural testimony altogether.