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नमो नम: ।
प्रस्थानत्रयी - The syllabus for study of Indian Philosophy
By S. L. Abhyankar
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As a 12-year old boy I had overheard my father mutter this word प्रस्थानत्रयी. My impression of the manner of my father muttering the word is that he had himself overheard it from his Guru गुरुदेव रानडे of निंबाळ but did not know it in any great detail.
Since my father very much inculcated the dictionary habit in me, I guess that he must have himself looked up the word in Apte’s dictionary. Yes, we had that dictionary. In Apte’s dictionary it is listed as
प्रस्थानम् -Comp. -त्रयी, -त्रयम् Bhagwadgītā, Upaniṣadas and Brahmasūtras.
In शब्दकल्पद्रुमः only the word प्रस्थानम् is detailed as
प्रस्थानं, क्ली, (प्र + स्था + ल्युट् ।) विजिगीषोः प्रयाणम् । इत्यमरः । २ । ८ । ९५ ॥ (यथा, देवीभागवते । ५ । ४ । १२ ।
“सेनाभियोगं प्रस्थानं बलसंख्या यथार्थतः ।
धीराणाञ्च परिज्ञानं कृत्वा यान्तु त्वरान्वितः ॥”)
गमनमात्रम् । यथा, पदाङ्कदूते ।
“प्रस्थानन्ते कुलिशकलनान्निश्चितं पण्डिताग्र्यैः ॥”
It comes to mind that प्रस्थानत्रयी as The syllabus for study of Indian Philosophy was so set by आदिशङ्कराचार्यः by virtue of his शाङ्करभाष्याणि on the three scriptures viz. श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता, दशोपनिषदः and ब्रह्मसूत्राणि.
I guess that down the ages in the tradition शङ्कराचार्याः of शाङ्करमठाः the मठाधिपतिः has to himself complete the study of this syllabus of प्रस्थानत्रयी and nominate his successor only by examining that the successor also would have completed this study.
Having overheard my father mutter this word, now when surveying the authorship of गुरुदेव रानडे I get to realize that there are three books of his which are like nectars of his study of प्रस्थानत्रयी →
Bhagavadgita as a philosophy of God-Realisation
Constructive Survey of Upanishadic Philosophy
Vedanta - The Culmination of Indian Thought
There is another perspective of the word प्रस्थानत्रयी based on the detail of the word प्रस्थानम् in शब्दकल्पद्रुमः as विजिगीषोः प्रयाणम्, गमनमात्रम्. Among Marathi saints one can identify three ways of God-Realisation -
ज्ञानमार्गः eminently epitomized by संत ज्ञानेश्वर of late 13th century detailed in his authorship of primarily भावार्थदीपिका alias ज्ञानेश्वरी, चांगदेवपासष्टि, अमृतानुभव though there is much more vast literature of his such as हरिपाठाचे अभंग
भक्तिमार्गः eminently epitomized by संत तुकाराम of 17th century detailed in his authorship of primarily तुकारामाची गाथा though there is much more vast literature of his such as बारा अभंग
कर्ममार्गः eminently epitomized by संत समर्थ रामदास also of 17th century detailed in his authorship of primarily दासबोध+आत्माराम, मनाचे श्लोक though there is much more vast literature of his such as करुणाष्टके
Study of these three approaches to God-Realisation also can be considered as प्रस्थानत्रयी-syllabus.
Although ज्ञानमार्ग:, भक्तिमार्गः and कर्ममार्गः are regarded as three approaches to God-Realisation, one can include study of दर्शनग्रन्थाः as a part of ज्ञानमार्ग: -aspect of the syllabus of Indian philosophy.
Major दर्शनानि or शास्त्राणि are regarded to be six viz. वैशेषिक, न्याय, मीमांसा, साङ्ख्य, योग, वेदान्त and are attributed to कणाद, गौतम, जैमिनि, कपिल, पतञ्जलि, वेदव्यास.
सायणमाधवीयः सर्वदर्शनसंग्रहः <https://sa.wikisource.org/wiki/सर्वदर्शनसंग्रहः > is a compilation of as many as 16 दर्शनानि.
Study of ऋचः and सूक्तानि of ऋग्वेदः and of सामानि of सामवेदः and of मन्त्राः of यजुर्वेदः may fit in as भक्तिमार्गः-aspect of the syllabus of Indian philosophy.
In the वेदाः there are ब्राह्मणग्रन्थाः and आरण्यकाः
Note ब्राह्मणम् 1 An assemblage or society of Brāhmaṇas. -2 That portion of the Veda which states rules for the employment of the hymns at the various sacrifices, their origin and detailed explanation, with sometimes lengthy illustrations in the shape of legends or stories. It is distinct from the Mantra portion of the Veda. -3 N. of that class of the Vedic works which contain the Brāhmaṇa portion (regarded as Śruti or part of the revelation like the hymns themselves). Each of the four Vedas has its own Brāhmaṇa or Brāhmaṇas :-- ऐतरेय or आश्वलायन and कौषीतकी or सांख्यायन belonging to the Ṛigveda; शतपथ to the Yajurveda, पञ्चविंश and षड्विंश and six more to the Sāmaveda, and गोपथ to the Atharvaveda.
आरण्यकम् it is one of a class of religious and philosophical writings (connected with the Brāhmaṇas) which are either composed in forests, or must be studied there; e. g. ऐतरेयारण्यकम्; बृहदारण्यकम् and तैत्तिरीयारण्यकम्; अरण्येऽनूच्यमानत्वात् आरण्यकम्, Bṛi. Ar. Up.; (अरण्येऽध्ययनादेव आरण्यकमुदाहृतम्); वेदवादानतिक्रम्य शास्त्राण्यारण्यकानि च Mb.12.19.17.
Since ब्राह्मणम् states rules for the employment of the hymns at the various sacrifices, its study may fit in as कर्ममार्गः-aspect of the syllabus of Indian philosophy.
Since आरण्यकम् is a philosophical writing, its study may fit in as ज्ञानमार्गः-aspect of the syllabus of Indian philosophy.
There are also स्मृतिग्रन्थाः such as
मनुस्मृतिः the code of laws ascribed to the first Manu, the institutes of Manu.
पराशरस्मृतिः Note पराशरः N. of a celebrated sage, father of Vyāsa and the author of a Smṛiti.
याज्ञवल्क्यस्मृतिः Note याज्ञवल्क्यः N. of a celebrated ancient sage, the first reputed teacher of वाजसनेयी संहिता (शुक्ल यजुर्वेद) and the author of a well-known code of laws only next in importance to that of Manu.
Note स्मृतिः A code of laws, law-book, What was delivered by human authors, law, traditional law, the body of traditional or memorial law (civil or religious) (opp. श्रुति).
Being books of law स्मृतिग्रन्थाः would fit in as कर्ममार्गः-aspect, rather the sociological aspect of the syllabus of Indian philosophy.
There are also पुराणानि. Note पुराणम् [पुरा नवम् Nir.] 1 A past event or occurrence. -2 tale of the past, legend, ancient or legendary history. -3 N. of certain well-known sacred works; these are 18; these are supposed to have been composed by Vyāsa, and contain the whole body of Hindu mythology. A Purāṇa treats of five topics (or लक्षणानि), and is hence often called पञ्चलक्षण; सर्गश्च प्रतिसर्गश्च वंशो मन्वन्तराणि च । वंशानुचरितं चैव पुराणं पञ्चलक्षणम् ॥
The names of the 18 Purāṇas
ब्राह्मं पद्मं वैष्णवं च शैवं भागवतं तथा ।
तथान्यन्नारदीयं च मार्कण्डेयं च सप्तमम् ॥
आग्नेयमष्टकं प्रोक्तं भविष्यन्नवमं तथा ।
दशमं ब्रह्मवैवर्तं लिङ्गमेकादशं तथा ॥
वाराहं द्वादशं प्रोक्तं स्कान्दं चात्र त्रयोदशम् ।
चतुदर्शं वामनं च कौर्मं पञ्चदशं तथा ॥
मत्स्यं च गारुडं चैव ब्रह्माण्डाष्टादशं तथा ॥
There are also उपपुराणम् a secondary or minor Purāṇa;
अष्टान्युपपुराणानि मुनिभिः कथितानि तु ।
आद्यं सनत्कुमारोक्तं नारसिंहमतः परम् ।
तृतीयं नारदं प्रोक्तं कुमारेण तु भाषितम् ।
चतुर्थं शिवधर्माख्यं साक्षान्नन्दीशभाषितम् ।
दुर्वाससोक्तमाचर्यं नारदोक्तमतः परम् ।
कापिलं मानवं चैव तथैवोशनसेरितम् ।
ब्रह्माण्डं वारुणं चाथ कालिकाह्वयमेव च ।
माहेश्वरं तथा शाम्बं सौरं सर्वार्थसंचयम् ।
पराशरोक्तं प्रवरं तथा भागवतद्वयम् ।
इदमष्टादशं प्रोक्तं पुराणं कौर्मसंज्ञितम् ।
चतुर्धा संस्थितं पुण्यं संहितानां प्रभेदतः ॥
Oh ! This list does not include श्रीमहाभारतम् !
Does study of all these books and scriptures fit in a syllabus of study of Indian philosophy ?
Let me quote from <https://philosophy.fsu.edu/undergraduate-study/why-philosophy/What-is-Philosophy>
“....
What is Philosophy?
Quite literally, the term "philosophy" means, "love of wisdom." In a broad sense, philosophy is an activity people undertake when they seek to understand fundamental truths about themselves, the world in which they live, and their relationships to the world and to each other. As an academic discipline philosophy is much the same. Those who study philosophy are perpetually engaged in asking, answering, and arguing for their answers to life’s most basic questions. To make such a pursuit more systematic, academic, philosophy is traditionally divided into major areas of study.
Metaphysics
At its core the study of metaphysics is the study of the nature of reality, of what exists in the world, what it is like, and how it is ordered. In metaphysics philosophers wrestle with such questions as:
Is there a God?
What is truth?
What is a person? What makes a person the same through time?
Is the world strictly composed of matter?
Do people have minds? If so, how is the mind related to the body?
Do people have free wills?
What is it for one event to cause another?
Epistemology
Epistemology is the study of knowledge. It is primarily concerned with what we can know about the world and how we can know it. Typical questions of concern in epistemology are:
What is knowledge?
Do we know anything at all?
How do we know what we know?
Can we be justified in claiming to know certain things?
Ethics
The study of ethics often concerns what we ought to do and what it would be best to do. In struggling with this issue, larger questions about what is good and right arise. So, the ethicist attempts to answer such questions as:
What is good? What makes actions or people good?
What is right? What makes actions right?
Is morality objective or subjective?
How should I treat others?
Logic
Another important aspect of the study of philosophy is the arguments or reasons given for people’s answers to these questions. To this end philosophers employ logic to study the nature and structure of arguments. Logicians ask such questions as:
What constitutes "good" or "bad" reasoning?
How do we determine whether a given piece of reasoning is good or bad?
History of Philosophy
The study of philosophy involves not only forming one’s own answers to such questions, but also seeking to understand the way in which people have answered such questions in the past. So, a significant part of philosophy is its history, a history of answers and arguments about these very questions. In studying the history of philosophy one explores the ideas of such historical figures as:
What often motivates the study of philosophy is not merely the answers or arguments themselves but whether or not the arguments are good and the answers are true. Moreover, many of the questions and issues in the various areas of philosophy overlap and in some cases even converge. Thus, philosophical questions arise in almost every discipline. This is why philosophy also encompasses such areas as:
….”
Unfortunately, the above note does not take cognisance of Indian philosophy and Indian philosophers the ऋषयः मुनयश्चैव
Certainly the Indian books listed qualify to be in the syllabus of study of not only Indian philosophy but for study of philosophy at large. I would only pity and forgive the lapse of not taking cognisance of Indian books.
I do not like the mention of ‘philosophy of religion’. I do not like the word ‘religion’ itself. I abhor it. The word ‘religion’ has only caused division of the societies. The philosophy of religion has even caused controversy in administrative and judicial authorities of the church and the throne. There has been no such controversy between राजानः the kings and ऋषयः the sages.
If religious practices are supposed to guide people to piety and spiritual upliftment, then अध्यात्मम् is the word, far more correct and far more comprehensive.
But the word ‘religion’ is often taken to be translation of the Sanskrit word धर्मः. This translation is again totally inappropriate. धर्मः is code of righteous conduct, inclusive of codes of congenial interpersonal relationships. Translation of धर्मः can be only by phraseology, not by any singular word.
Interpersonal relationships are many - husband and wife, father and children, brothers and sisters, youngsters and elders, precepts and disciples, between generations, among friends and teams, even relationships with pets, relationships even with serpents and reptiles, the environment and the entire creation. That is the logic of the word being used in plural in
सर्वधर्मान्परित्यज्य मामेकं शरणं व्रज ।
अहं त्वा सर्वपापेभ्यो मोक्षयिष्यामि मा शुचः ॥ १८-६६॥
The mention of philosophy of ethics brings to mind पञ्चतन्त्रम्, हितोपदेशः, सदाचारः (of रमणमहर्षी), विवेकचूडामणिः (of आदिशङ्कराचार्यः), thousands of सुभाषितानि and most of all, श्रीरामायणम्. See श्रीरामायणम् dwells upon relationship between humans and monkeys and with huge birds as जटायुः and सम्पातिः, prayer to the ocean, before the army crossing over to श्रीलङ्का. For all these relationships, there are धर्माः not religions.
Actually having made mention of वेदाः, their study has to include study of वेदाङ्गानि also.
Note वेदाङ्गम् 'a member of the Veda', N. of certain classes of works regarded as auxiliary to the Vedas and designed to aid in the correct pronunciation and interpretation of the text and the right employment of the Mantras in ceremonials; (the Vedāṅgas are six in number :--
शिक्षा कल्पो व्याकरणं निरुक्तं छन्दसां चयः ।
ज्योतिषामयनं चैव वेदाङ्गानि षडेव तु ॥
i. e.
शिक्षा 'the science of proper articulation and pronunciation'
छन्दस् 'the science of prosody'
व्याकरण 'grammar'
निरुक्त 'etymological explanation of difficult Vedic words'
ज्योतिष 'astronomy'; and
कल्प 'ritual or ceremonical'
As can be noted, the first four वेदाङ्गानि viz.
शिक्षा 'the science of proper articulation and pronunciation'
छन्दस् 'the science of prosody'
व्याकरण 'grammar'
निरुक्त 'etymological explanation of difficult Vedic words'
are essential components of the study of Philosophy of language, the philosophy of the संस्कृत language and hence essential components of the study of Indian Philosophy.
Is that a good view of the syllabus of the study of Indian Philosophy ?
Oh ! It is vast ! It is vast because it all has evolved over millennia, has served the cause of universal benevolence all along and has the potential to keep delivering benevolence infinitely.
One life is not enough to study, digest and imbibe all this Indian philosophy. We can only pray to Him to give us strength and urge to study whatever we can !
शुभमस्तु !
-o-O-o-
