Bihar Intermediate Philosophy (BSEB) study plan

Define the scope of Indian philosophy and distinguish its orthodox (astika) and heterodox (nastika) schools by listing which of the six classical systems accept Vedic authority

Explain at least five general characteristics of Indian philosophy (spiritual orientation, karma and rebirth, moksha as summum bonum, scriptural basis, synthetic tendency) and illustrate each with one school

Outline the three prasthanatrayi (Upanishads, Bhagavad Gita, Brahmasutra) as the textual foundation of Vedanta and state the core question each addresses

State the central thesis of Advaita Vedanta on Brahman, atman and maya, and distinguish it from Vishishtadvaita and Dvaita in one sentence each

Explain Shankara's concepts of nirguna Brahman, maya, adhyasa and jnana as the sole means to moksha, and answer the standard objection about the locus of avidya

Summarize Ramanuja's seven objections to Advaita (saptavidha anupapatti) at least in outline and state how Vishishtadvaita resolves the relation of Brahman, chit and achit

Present Madhva's doctrine of panchabheda and his account of moksha, and contrast it with Ramanuja's qualified non-dualism

Distinguish Purva Mimamsa's emphasis on dharma and ritual injunction from Uttara Mimamsa's emphasis on Brahman, and note Kumarila and Prabhakara positions on svatah pramanya

Explain Charvaka's epistemology (perception as the only pramana), its rejection of inference and testimony, and its accounts of the body-self and death

Trace the main themes of the Rigvedic hymns (Rita, cosmic order, deities) and the shift from ritual to knowledge in the Upanishads, citing the mahavakyas and their meaning

Explain the Upanishadic method of negation (neti neti) and the distinction between para and apara vidya

Define anekantavada and show how it follows from the Jaina theory of the manifold nature of reality (dravya, guna, paryaya)

Explain syadvada and saptabhangi naya, and distinguish naya from pramana while answering the charge that syadvada is self-contradictory

State the Jaina theory of karma as subtle matter (karmic pudgala) binding the jiva, and list the asravas and the path of samvara and nirjara

State the Four Noble Truths and explain each term (dukkha, samudaya, nirodha, marga) with the eightfold path grouped under sila, samadhi and prajna

Explain pratityasamutpada through the twelve links and show how it functions as a middle way between eternalism and annihilationism

Explain anatta and the five aggregates, and reconstruct the Buddhist argument that no permanent self is found among or apart from the aggregates

Distinguish nirvana from annihilation and describe the difference between sopadhishesha and nirupadhishesha nirvana

List the sixteen padarthas of Vaisheshika and the four pramanas of Nyaya, and explain vyapti, paksha, hetu and sadhya in inference

Explain the five-membered and three-membered inference forms, and classify hetvabhasa fallacies with one worked example of each major type

Distinguish pratyaksha, anumana, upamana and shabda, and explain savikalpaka versus nirvikalpaka perception

State Samkhya's satkaryavada and the argument from the production of the effect, and define prakriti, purusha and the three gunas with their respective functions

Explain the Samkhya account of evolution (mahat, ahamkara, manas, indriyas, tanmatras, mahabhutas) and its account of kaivalya as purusha's isolation from prakriti

List Patanjali's eight limbs in order and explain chitta-vritti-nirodha, the five kleshas and the distinction between samprajnata and asamprajnata samadhi

Summarize the positions of the pre-Socratics, Socrates, Plato and Aristotle on reality, knowledge and the good, and state Aristotle's four causes

Trace the rationalist line from Descartes through Spinoza and Leibniz, explaining substance, innate ideas and the ontological argument

Trace the empiricist line from Locke through Berkeley and Hume, explaining tabula rasa, primary and secondary qualities, and Hume's fork and problem of causation

State Kant's Copernican revolution in outline as a response to both traditions

Distinguish proposition, sentence and statement, and define truth and validity; test ten short arguments for validity using counterexample

Define key moral concepts (good, right, duty, virtue, value, moral judgement) and distinguish descriptive from normative ethics

Explain Indian ethical frameworks: rna and yajna, varnashrama dharma, the Bhagavad Gita's nishkama karma, and the Jaina triratna and ahimsa

Explain Buddhist sila and karuna, and contrast the Indian emphasis on dharma with Western duty-based and consequence-based approaches

Summarize Kant's categorical imperative and utilitarianism (Bentham and Mill), and state one standard objection to each

Identify and repair common formal and informal fallacies in ten short arguments drawn from the ethics material

Consolidate all ten domains by rewriting the week-1 school chart from memory and correcting it against notes

Answer three previous-style long questions across the heaviest domains within strict time limits, allocating roughly one minute per mark

Recite from memory the key definitional lists: sixteen padarthas, four pramanas, twenty-five Samkhya tattvas, eight limbs, seven bhangas, twelve links and five aggregates

Review all flagged weak areas from weeks 1 to 7 and rewrite each corrected answer in note form