Indian Philosophy: Origins, Vedic and Upanishadic Thought
Domain and scope
This domain tests the transition from Vedic ritual poetry to the speculative Upanishads. Expect questions on ṛta, devas, yajña, karma-saṃsāra, Brahman, Ātman, the mahāvākyas, and the Upanishadic method of negation.
Core concepts
- Vedic layer: the Ṛgveda contains hymns to deities such as Agni, Indra, and Varuṇa; ṛta is cosmic and moral order; yajña sustains order but is not merely mechanical.
- Upanishadic turn: inner inquiry into the self; Brahman is ultimate reality; Ātman is the inner self; the aim is mokṣa from saṃsāra.
- Method: neti neti (“not this, not this”) strips false identifications; mahāvākyas declare identity, e.g. tat tvam asi, aham brahmāsmi.
- Caveat: Upanishads are dialogic, symbolic, and plural; they are not a single system.
Worked example
Question: “Explain tat tvam asi.” Reasoning: identify the terms-tat (That, Brahman) and tvam (you, Ātman); read the sentence in its teaching context; distinguish essential identity from numerical or bodily identity; note that “you” is not the ego but the witnessing self freed from limiting adjuncts. Conclusion: the statement teaches non-dual identity, not that the individual body is Brahman.
Traps
Do not reduce Brahman to a creator deity; do not equate Ātman with the empirical ego; do not treat all Upanishadic passages as literal propositions. Marks are lost by ignoring context or by claiming the Vedas are only philosophy.