A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy [Paperback]

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (Author), Charles A. Moore (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1967

Features significant works from the Vedic and Epic periods, the Heterodox and Orthodox systems, and contemporary Indian thought.

Editorial Reviews

Review

This book . . . is not only for the Western student, but for all of us who must gauge our impacted twentieth-century world and find our path in its confusion. -- The New York Times

Product Details

• Paperback: 720 pages
• Publisher: Princeton University Press (April 1, 1967)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0691019584
• ISBN-13: 978-0691019581
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #47,895 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #73 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Hinduism

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Most concise and precise book on Indian Philosophy, September 25, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy (Paperback)

1) The best feature of this book is: it has the actual texts of so many great works like Vedas, Upanishads, Gita etc. For this one reason itself, it is a must have book, where else will you get such a concise and precise translations of all the major Indian texts all in one place.

2) It deals extensively not only with Upanishads and other six Darshanas but also includes Arth Shastra by Kautilya(Chanakya), the famous Indian economist/politician (contemporary to Alexander). It also included Bhagvat Gita and the famous Karma Yoga, as one would expect in any Indian philosophy book!

3) It summarizes the key-features of all the seemingly different Indian philosophies Buddhism/Jainism/Charvaka/Hinduism very succintly in the first chapter. I particularly liked the seven key similarities of Indian thought on page xxiii from the general introduction.

4) Another interesting part is on page xxx where the authors argue why one should undertake the study of Indian philosophy and how should it be taken. It takes historical, political and philosophical stand-points. Again, a must read!

4) One flaw of the book is that they have kind of assumed whole-heartedly with the Aryan Invasion Theory stating that Aryans came from outside India and settled in India around 2000 bc. However, this theory is seriously debated by many contemporary scholars like Prof Edwin Bryant (PhD from Columbia, now teaching at Rutgers), Prof Klaus Klostermaier (author of many Hinduism books, one of which was assigned reading in this class too, retired from Univ of Manitoba, Canada, now teaching at Oxford, UK), Prof Subhash Kak etc. Some of these scholars maintain that Aryans were native inhabitants of India who went to other parts of the world, starting from India. But, it is still a big controvery until solid evidences are found.

5) Other problem is: on page xxix, it is mentioned that the people from the varna, Shudra (sudra), are not religiously initiated Hindus and they dont have to undergo the four Aashrams (stages) of the human-life. This is also not agreeable statement as the same Manu-Smriti which has stated this has also stated elsewhere, that one becomes Dvija(twice born) of the first there varnas, ONLY by character and not just by birth alone. It prescribes the mobility between different varnas.

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars easily the best of its kind, August 5, 2004

By 

N. Chandran "vpcnk" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy (Paperback)

the book is invaluable for the student of indian philosophy. but please note that it is not an exposition of indian philosophy by the authors. it is a "source book" ie the book presents original translated tracts and abstracts from various original works.

radhakrishnan was a true philosopher par excellence and knew his subject. so whatever is philosophically crucial and important in the set of literature he surveyed he has presented relevant passages and abstracts and excerpts from these texts. from the vedas to the upanishads to the dharma shaastra (manu) to the arthashastra to the various schools of philosophy - lokayata (book includes an excerpt from the rare jayarashi bhatta's tattvopaplavasimha), jainism (syaadvaadamanjari etc), buddhism (several of the suttas, chapters from milinda and visuddhimagga, last two chapters of the mulamaadhyamika kaarika, the whole of vaasubandhu's vijnaaptimaatrataasiddhi etc) and the so called orthodox schools (important verses from ishvara krishna's samkya karika with gaudapada's commentary, patanjala yoga sutra with vyaasa's commentary, nyaya and vaiseshika sutras with their commentaries including some chapters from udhayana's kusumanjali, mimamsa sutra with kumarilla's shloka/tantra vaarika, shankara's, ramanuja's and madhva's commentary on on the brahma sutras etc) important verses/passages are presented.

finally there are even chapters on modern philosophers like sri aurbindo.

notable omissions are sphotavaada and saiva siddhaanta.

only thing to fault with radhakrishnan is that he uncritically accepted the so called invasion theory which today is heavily disputed and discredited as a tool of colonial imperialism and slowly being negated. but that does take away from the professor the penetration of his intellect or his respect and knowledge for the subject.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Most concise and precise book on Indian Philosophy, September 25, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy (Paperback)

1) The best feature of this book is: it has the actual texts of so many great works like Vedas, Upanishads, Gita etc. For this one reason itself, it is a must have book, where else will you get such a concise and precise translations of all the major Indian texts all in one place.

2) It deals extensively not only with Upanishads and other six Darshanas but also includes Arth Shastra by Kautilya(Chanakya), the famous Indian economist/politician (contemporary to Alexander). It also included Bhagvat Gita and the famous Karma Yoga, as one would expect in any Indian philosophy book!

3) It summarizes the key-features of all the seemingly different Indian philosophies Buddhism/Jainism/Charvaka/Hinduism very succintly in the first chapter. I particularly liked the seven key similarities of Indian thought on page xxiii from the general introduction.

4) Another interesting part is on page xxx where the authors argue why one should undertake the study of Indian philosophy and how should it be taken. It takes historical, political and philosophical stand-points. Again, a must read!

4) One flaw of the book is that they have kind of assumed whole-heartedly with the Aryan Invasion Theory stating that Aryans came from outside India and settled in India around 2000 bc. However, this theory is seriously debated by many contemporary scholars like Prof Edwin Bryant (PhD from Columbia, now teaching at Rutgers), Prof Klaus Klostermaier (author of many Hinduism books, retired from Univ of Manitoba, Canada, now teaching at Oxford, UK), Prof Subhash Kak etc. Some of these scholars maintain that Aryans were native inhabitants of India who went to other parts of the world, starting from India. But, it is still a big controvery until solid evidences are found.

5) Other problem is: on page xxix, it is mentioned that the people from the varna, Shudra (sudra), are not religiously initiated Hindus and they dont have to undergo the four Aashrams (stages) of the human-life. This is also not agreeable statement as the same Manu-Smriti which has stated this has also stated elsewhere, that one becomes Dvija(twice born) of the first there varnas, ONLY by character and not just by birth alone. It prescribes the mobility between different varnas.