Essays on the religion and philosophy of the Hindus by the late H. T. Colebrooke

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1858 Excerpt: ...and the Sangraha, which is cited for parallel passages explanatory of the text, being an abridged exposition of the same doctrines, in the form of a select compilation. Concerning the presumable antiquity of either Capila's aphorisms or Iswara-crishna's memorial couplets, I shall here only remark, that uotices of them, with quotations from both, do occur in philosophical treatises of other schools, whereby their authenticity is so far established. Besides the Sdnc'hya of Capila and his followers, another system, bearing the same denomination, but more usually termed the Yogasdstra or Ydga-siitra. as before remarked, is ascribed to a mythological being, Patanjali, the supposed author of the great grammatical commentary emphatically named the 'Mahdbhdshya: and likewise of a celebrated medical treatise termed Characa, and other distinguished performances. The collection of Yoga-sutras, bearing the common title of Sdnc'hya pravachana, is distributed into four chapters or quarters (pdda): the first, on contemplation (samdiFhi); the second, on the means of its attainment; the third, on the exercise of transcendent power (yibhuti); the fourth, on abstraction or spiritual insulation (caiwalya). An ancient commentary on this fanatical work is forthcoming, entitled Pdlanjala-bhdshya. It is attributed to Veda-vyasa, the compiler of the Indian scriptures and founder of the Veddnti school of philosophy, Va'chespati Mis'ra has furnished scholia on both text and gloss. This scholiast has been already noticed as an eminent interpreter of the Cdricd: and the same remark is here applicable, that the multiplicity of copies indicates the estimation in which his gloss is held above other scholia. Another commentary is by Vijnyana-Bhicshxj beforementioned. He refers to it in his...