Logic & Philosophy of Science
Empiricism and skepticism (Charvaka)
c. 6th c. BCE onwardCharvaka/Lokayata schoolFragmentary; via criticsPan-Indian / unspecified
600 BCE
A materialist school insisting on perception/empirical evidence and rejecting unverifiable claims.
- Dated
- 600–501 BCE
- As scholars put it
- c. 6th c. BCE onward
- Originator
- Charvaka/Lokayata school
- Source text
- Fragmentary; via critics
- Region
- Pan-Indian / unspecified
- Discipline
- Logic & Philosophy of Science
- Evidence
- Documented
- Confidence
- Medium
- Verification
- Reference-cited
Meanwhile in the West
Parallels later empiricist philosophy.
Fair to say
Known mostly through opponents' quotations, so its exact doctrines are partly reconstructed.
Path to modern innovation
An early Indian voice for evidence-based reasoning.
Transmission
Independent tradition.
References
- 1R. Bhattacharya, Studies on the Carvaka/Lokayata
Further reading
Corrections and additional sources: edit IND-022 on GitHub.