Udyotakara (or Uddyotakara) (c. 6th century CE) was a philosopher of the
Nyaya
(Sanskrit: न्याय, ''nyā-yá''), literally meaning "justice", "rules", "method" or "judgment",brahmin of ''Bharadvaja''
gotra
In Hindu culture, the term gotra (Sanskrit: गोत्र) is considered to be equivalent to lineage. It broadly refers to people who are descendants in an unbroken male line from a common male ancestor or patriline. Generally, the gotra fo ...
and he belonged to the Pashupata sect. His philosophical treatise, the ' was written to defend Pakṣilasvāmin Vātsyāyana's ' against the criticisms made by Dignaga.Radhakrishnan, S. ''Indian Philosophy'', Vol. II, Oxford University Press, New Delhi, 2006, , p.39n