"Understanding the root philosophy" is one of the main objectives which prevails among many people in this great nation of India.
Let us think about the "Root Philosophy" part first.....What could be the root philosopy for the hindus ?
When the whole of India was riding high on the Buddhist wave during the time of Buddha, a young unassuming saint from the Kerala, Adi Shankaracharya, reminded people about the Upanishads , Brahmasutras and the Gita, the most thought provoking part of the vedas. This was the core essence of Hindu philosophy. The Gita could also be adapted for a so called "Hindu way of life".
Chronologically, the Upanishads and the Brahmasutras are older than any other philosophical thought as far as our country is concerned. They are so old, that they were written (or passed on) when religion had no political intention of expansion and conversion as well and thought was alone the supreme thing.
But the catch is, this kind of philosophical works are open to multiple interpretations.And these interpretations might also contain some original research as well - So finally what is root - When was more detail added ? What were the references - All these kinds of information is lost forever!
About the interpretations themselves, let me give you an example :
Now, I was really clueless about one more guru among the madhwas called Jayatheertha. He is extremely respected for his proficiency and almost a "champion scholar" and literally worshipped in the madhwa community - But what was the reason he is so popular even today, after almost 800 years ?..Ask any average guy from our community, he will not know it, most likely.....I came to know he had written some kind of synopsis: called Nyayasudha: Which was some kind of interpretation of Madhwacharya's work which was again an interpretation of Upanishads..... I tried to read the english translation of this book, it is extremely difficult to understand - WHY and HOW did he think about so much about these kind of things ?
Nonetheless, these things are really interesting - I wish I had the time and energy to continue looking into these kind of works....
Let us think about the "Root Philosophy" part first.....What could be the root philosopy for the hindus ?
When the whole of India was riding high on the Buddhist wave during the time of Buddha, a young unassuming saint from the Kerala, Adi Shankaracharya, reminded people about the Upanishads , Brahmasutras and the Gita, the most thought provoking part of the vedas. This was the core essence of Hindu philosophy. The Gita could also be adapted for a so called "Hindu way of life".
Chronologically, the Upanishads and the Brahmasutras are older than any other philosophical thought as far as our country is concerned. They are so old, that they were written (or passed on) when religion had no political intention of expansion and conversion as well and thought was alone the supreme thing.
But the catch is, this kind of philosophical works are open to multiple interpretations.And these interpretations might also contain some original research as well - So finally what is root - When was more detail added ? What were the references - All these kinds of information is lost forever!
About the interpretations themselves, let me give you an example :
Now, I was really clueless about one more guru among the madhwas called Jayatheertha. He is extremely respected for his proficiency and almost a "champion scholar" and literally worshipped in the madhwa community - But what was the reason he is so popular even today, after almost 800 years ?..Ask any average guy from our community, he will not know it, most likely.....I came to know he had written some kind of synopsis: called Nyayasudha: Which was some kind of interpretation of Madhwacharya's work which was again an interpretation of Upanishads..... I tried to read the english translation of this book, it is extremely difficult to understand - WHY and HOW did he think about so much about these kind of things ?
Nonetheless, these things are really interesting - I wish I had the time and energy to continue looking into these kind of works....