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Hindu philosophy encompasses the philosophies, world views and teachings of Hinduism that emerged in Ancient India which include six systems ('' shad-darśana'') – Samkhya, Yoga, Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Mimamsa and Vedanta.Andrew Nicholson (2013), Unifying Hinduism: Philosophy and Identity in Indian Intellectual History, Columbia University Press, , pages 2–5 In Indian tradition, the word used for philosophy is Darshana (Viewpoint or perspective), from the Sanskrit root ('to see, to experience').

These are also called the Astika (theistic) philosophical traditions and are those that accept the Vedas as an authoritative, important source of knowledge. Ancient and medieval India was also the source of philosophies that share philosophical concepts but rejected the Vedas, and these have been called (heterodox or non-orthodox) Indian philosophies. Nāstika Indian philosophies include Buddhism, Jainism, Chārvāka, Ājīvika, and others.P Bilimoria (2000), Indian Philosophy (Editor: Roy Perrett), Routledge, , page 88

Western scholars have debated the relationship and differences within āstika philosophies and with nāstika philosophies, starting with the writings of Indologists and Orientalists of the 18th and 19th centuries, which were themselves derived from limited availability of Indian literature and medieval doxographies. The various sibling traditions included in Hindu philosophies are diverse, and they are united by shared history and concepts, same textual resources, similar ontological and soteriological focus, and cosmology. While Buddhism and Jainism are considered distinct philosophies and religions, some heterodox ( nāstika) traditions such as Cārvāka are often considered as distinct schools within Hindu philosophy because the word ''Hindu'' is also an exonym and historically, the term has also been used as a geographical and cultural identifier for people living in the Indian subcontinent.KN Tiwari (1998), Classical Indian Ethical Thought, Motilal Banarsidass, , page 67; Quote: "Of the three heterodox systems, the remaining one, the Cārvāka system, is a Hindu system.";

Hindu philosophy also includes several sub-schools of theistic philosophies that integrate ideas from two or more of the six orthodox philosophies, such as the realism of the Nyāya, the naturalism of the Vaiśeṣika, the dualism of the Sāṅkhya, the non-dualism and knowledge of Self as essential to liberation of Advaita, the self-discipline of Yoga and the asceticism and elements of theistic ideas.Klaus K. Klostermaier (1984), Mythologies and Philosophies of Salvation in the Theistic Traditions of India, Wilfrid Laurier University Press, , pages 124–134, 164–173, 242–265 Examples of such schools include Pāśupata Śaiva, Śaiva siddhānta, Pratyabhijña, Raseśvara and Vaiṣṇava. Some sub-schools share Tantric ideas with those found in some Buddhist traditions.Klaus K. Klostermaier (1984), Mythologies and Philosophies of Salvation in the Theistic Traditions of India, Wilfrid Laurier University Press, , pages 219–223 The ideas of these sub-schools are found in the Puranas and Āgamas.

Each school of Hindu philosophy has extensive epistemological literature called ''Pramana, axiology, and other topics.Karl H. Potter (1961)
A Fresh Classification of India's Philosophical Systems
The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 21, No. 1, pages 25–32

Classifications

In the history of India, the six orthodox schools had emerged before the start of the Common Era, and some schools emerged possibly even before the Buddha. Some scholars have questioned whether the orthodox and heterodox schools classification is sufficient or accurate, given the diversity and evolution of views within each major school of Indian philosophy, with some sub-schools combining heterodox and orthodox views.

Since ancient times, Indian philosophy has been categorized into and schools of thought. The orthodox schools of Indian philosophy have been called ('six systems'). This schema was created between the 12th and 16th centuries by Vedantins. It was then adopted by the early Western Indologists, and pervades modern understandings of Indian philosophy.

Āstika

There are six (orthodox) schools of thought. Each is called a darśana, and each darśana accepts the Vedas as authority. Each also accepts the premise that '' Atman'' (eternal Self) exists.Klaus Klostermaier (2007), Hinduism: A Beginner's Guide, , Chapter 2, page 26 The schools of philosophy are:
# Samkhya – A strongly dualist theoretical exposition of consciousness and matter. Agnostic with respect to God or the gods.
# Yoga – A monotheistic school which emerged from Sankhya and emphasizes practical use of Sankhya theory: meditation, contemplation and liberation.
# Nyaya or logic – The school of epistemology which explores sources of knowledge.
# Vaisheshika – An empiricist school of atomism.
# Mīmāṃsā – An anti-ascetic and anti-mysticist school of orthopraxy. This school deals with the correct interpretation of the verses in Vedas.
# Vedanta – The last segment of knowledge in the Vedas, or ('section of knowledge'). Vedanta is also referred as ''Uttara-Mimamsa''. Vedānta came to be the dominant current of Hinduism in the post-medieval period.

Nāstika

Schools that do not accept the authority of the Vedas are nāstika philosophies, of which four (heterodox) schools are prominent:
# Charvaka, a materialism school that accepted the existence of free will.
# Ājīvika, a materialism school that denied the existence of free will.
# Buddhism, a philosophy that denies existence of ātman (Self) and is based on the teachings and enlightenment of Gautama Buddha.
# Jainism, a philosophy that accepts the existence of the ātman (Self), and is based on the teachings and enlightenment of twenty-four teachers known as tirthankaras, with Rishabha as the first and Mahavira as the twenty-fourth.

Other schools

Besides the major orthodox and non-orthodox schools, there have existed syncretic sub-schools that have combined ideas and introduced new ones of their own. The medieval scholar Madhavacharya, identified by some as Vidyaranya, in his book 'Sarva-Darsana-Sangraha', includes the following, along with Buddhism and Jainism, as sub-schools of Hindu philosophy:
* Pashupata Shaivism, developed by Nakulisa
* Shaiva Siddhanta, the theistic Sankhya school
* Pratyabhijña, the recognitive school of Kashmir Shaivism, Trika
* Raseśvara, a Shaiva school that advocated the use of mercury to reach immortality
* The Ramanuja school
* The Pūrṇaprājña ( Madhvācārya) school
* The Pāṇinīya

The above sub-schools introduced their own ideas while adopting concepts from orthodox schools of Hindu philosophy such as realism of the Nyāya, naturalism of Vaiśeṣika, monism and knowledge of Self (Atman) as essential to liberation of Advaita, self-discipline of Yoga, asceticism and elements of theistic ideas. Some sub-schools share Tantric ideas with those found in some Buddhist traditions.

Characteristics

Overview

Epistemology

Epistemology is called pramana