Dr Jyotsna Bhattacharjee The words Philosophy and Darsana are
broadly regarded as identical in India — but many of the western
people do not think so. They remark that here religion passes as
philosophy and there is no philosophy worth the name in this
country. For them Socrates, Plato and Aristotle are
philosophers— while Nagarjuna, Sankara and Ramanuja are not —
because they were seekers of redemption from sorrows of life.
Their goal was liberation from the chain of birth, death and
rebirth, which is at the root of all human sufferings. Western
thinkers thought that Indian thinkers changed philosophy into
theology and mysticism and the diverse schools of Darsana are
nothing but exercise in the defence of some religious dogmas.
Philosophy implies love of wisdom — but no love of wisdom can be
seen in Darsana according to some thinkers. That is the reason,
they say, why it has not been possible to compile a history of
philosophy in India. It is perfectly true that till now no
history of philosophy has been wri