Classical Indian philosophy has eight (8) schools. These are known as the darshan (दर्शन, seeing). Darshan is not just seeing, but an approach to examining, questioning, and reasoning the “seen”. These eight schools are:
- Vedic – six (6) schools, shad-darshan (षड्दर्शन)
- Samkhya
- Yoga
- Nyaya
- Vaisheshik
- Mimamsa
- Vedanta
- Jain
- Buddhist – four (4) schools
All the six Vedic schools acknowledge the four purushaarths (पुरुषार्थ, endeavors of life) – dharma (धर्म, righteousness), artha (अर्थ, financial pursuit), kama (काम, fulfillment of desire), and moksha (मोक्ष, liberation). They all share their belief in the distinction between the body and the atma (आत्मा, soul). They all consider ignorance to be the cause of bondage, and recommend saadhna (साधना, endeavor) to attain moksha.
The difference between the six darshans lie in their approach to enquiry and investigation. The question could be any, but each of the darshans has a method to answer the question in more or less similar framework of logic. They are all looking for a praman (प्रमाण, proof). It could be pratyaksha (sensory), anumaan (inference), upamaan (comparison), or aptavakya (testimony). I see you, therefore you exist – pramaan. I see a fossilized bone that is larger than than the largest animal I have seen (elephant), therefore a large dinosaur like animal existed – anumaan. There’s smoke on the other side of the mountain, which is similar to the smoke from my campfire, therefore wood (forest) must be burning – upamaan. I have not seen an atom being split, but I will believe it since it is the testimony of many credible physicists – aptavakya.
Each school may emphasize on a different pramaan. E.g. Vedanta lays more stress on aptavakya. But in their pramaanic approach they all try to answer big existential questions:
- Are atma and param-atma the same?
- How does the creation and dissolution happen?
- Do things exist before creation? Do they exist after dissolution and before re-creation? Is there an un-manifest creation?
- What are the building blocks of creation? Can they be infinitely subdivided?
- How does karma work?
- What links action to outcome?
- What happens after moksha?
- Is there an Ishavar?
- Can we control our thoughts, desires, and actions?
- How do we know, what we know?
- How can we verify what we know? How can we prove? What’s the pramaana (proof)?
Despite being different, the six schools share their metaphyiscs in pairs. There are 3 pairs – Sankhya/Yoga (meditation), Nyaya/Vaisheshik (logic), and Mimansa/Vedanta (Vedas, and Vedic rituals).
The six Vedic schools are known as the aastik since they acknowledge their roots in the Vedas. Jain and Buddhist schools of Indian philosophy utilize Vedas partially and only in support as needed. These two schools, hence, are called the naastik schools of Indian philosophy.
Jain school of philosophy emerged around 500 BC. It emphasizes anekta (non-absoluteism). In upholding anekta (different points of view) Jainism, therefore, does not attempt to establish the concept of Brahman/Ishvara. Hence, it is naastik. Rather, adhering to the idea of karma, it lays an unparalleled and an unequivocal stress on ahimsa (non-violence).
Buddhist school of philosophy, which is yet another naastik school, propagated the core ideas of the Vedas, but without its rituals. It attempted to deal with the human condition of sorrow, and taught ways to acknowledge it, identify it, and eradicate it using the eightfold path.
It is important to understand the approach of these eight schools of Indian philosophy to understand the dharmic logic, reasoning, and rhetoric. With that foundation in place, the wisdom of India since the ancient times is much easier to appreciate. But more importantly, an appreciation of these darshans improves the everyday experience and meaning of life for a dharmic.
Further Reading: Six Streams of Hindu Philosophy
धार्मिक छवियाँ 
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