Kapila () (7th[), also referred to as Cakradhanus,][ regarded the founder of the Samkhya school of Hindu philosophy.][, Quote:"Kapila (fl. 550 BC), Vedic sage and founder of the system of Samkhya, one of the six schools of Vedic philosophy."]
His influence on Buddha and Buddhism has long been the subject of scholarly studies. There have been accusations by Theravada that Sarvastivada are heavily influenced by Sankhya school of philosophy.[W. Woodhill Rockhill (2000 Reprint), The Life of the Buddha and the Early History of His Order, Routledge, , pages 11–19]
According to the Brahmanda Purana, Kapila is described as an incarnation of Vishnu: "Bhagavān Nārāyaṇa will protect us all. The Lord of the universe has now been born in the world as Kapilācārya."
Many historic personalities in Hinduism and Jainism, mythical figures, pilgrimage sites in Indian religion, as well as an ancient variety of cow, are named after Kapila, or share his name.
Biography
The name Kapila appears in many texts, and it is likely that these names refer to different people.[ Kapila Encyclopædia Britannica (2014)] Others place him in the 7th century BCE.[PT Raju (1985), Structural Depths of Indian Thought, State University of New York Press, , page 304][, Quote: "Kapila was a Vedic sage (ca. 550 B.C.) and founder of the Samkhya school of Vedic philosophy.";]
Kapila is credited with authoring an influential sutra, called Samkhya-sutra (also called Kapila-sutra), which aphoristically presents the dualistic philosophy of Samkhya.[Kapila (James Robert Ballantyne, Translator, 1865), , pages 156–157][Max Muller et al. (1999 Reprint), Studies in Buddhism, Asian Educational Services, , page 10 with footnote] These sutras were explained in another well studied text of Hinduism called the Samkhyakarika.[ Beyond his Samkhya philosophy, he appears in many dialogues of Hindu texts, such as in explaining and defending the principle of ahimsa (non-violence) in the Mahabharata.]
Hinduism
Kapila is the tenth child of the sage Kardama and Devahūti. Kardama is provided a boon by Narayana that he would himself be born as his son. After attaining this, Kardama wished to leave for the forest for penance and research and Vedic study. Kardama had nine daughters who were very learned and went ahead to marry great sages mentioned in ancient Indian history.
Vedic texts
The Rigveda X.27.16 mentions Kapila ( daśānām ekam kapilam) which the 14th-century Vedic commentator Sayana thought refers to a sage; a view which Chakravarti in 1951 and Larson in 1987 consider unreliable, with Chakravarti suggesting that the word refers to one of the Maruts,
The Śata-piṭaka Series on the Śākhās of the Yajurveda – estimated to have been composed between 1200 and 1000 BCE[Michael Witzel (2003), "Vedas and Upaniṣads", in The Blackwell Companion to Hinduism (Editor: Gavin Flood), Blackwell, , pages 68–70] – mention of a Kapila Śākhā situated in the Āryāvarta, which implies a Yajurveda school is named after Kapila.
Puranas
Kapila, states George Williams, lived long before the composition of the Epics and the Puranas, and his name is coopted in various later composed mythologies.
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As an ascetic and as sleeping Vishnu: In the Brahma Purana, when the evil king Vena abandoned the Vedas, declared that he is the only creator of dharma, and broke all limits of righteousness. It is also believed that Kapila is the 5th incarnation of lord vishnu who was born in a village Mahangupur near the banks of river Saryu in Gonda district of Uttarpradesh
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As Vishnu's incarnation: The Narada Purana enumerates two Kapilas, one as the incarnation of Brahma and another as the incarnation of Vishnu. The Puranas Bhagavata Purana, Brahmanda, Vishnu Purana, Padma Purana, Skanda Purana, Narada Purana; and the Valmiki Ramayana mentions Kapila is an incarnation of Vishnu. The Padma Purana and Skanda Purana conclusively call him Vishnu himself who descended on earth to disseminate true knowledge. Bhagavata Purana calls him Vedagarbha Vishnu. The Vishnusahasranama mentions Kapila as a name of Vishnu. In his commentary on the Samkhyasutra, Vijnanabhikshu mentions Kapila, the founder of Samkhya system, is Vishnu. Jacobsen suggests Kapila of the Veda, Śramaṇa tradition and the Mahabharata is the same person as Kapila the founder of Samkhya; and this individual is considered as an incarnation of Vishnu in the Hindu texts.
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As son of Kardama muni: The Book 3 of the Bhagavata Purana,
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As son of Kashyapa: The Matsya Purana mentions Kapila as the son of Kashyapa from his wife Danu, daughter of Daksha Prajapati. Kapila is one among Danu's 100 sons, and her other sons (Kapila's brothers) mentioned in the Vishnu Purana include Dvimurddha, Shankara, Ayomukha, Shankhushiras, Samvara, Ekachakra, Taraka, Vrishaparvan, Svarbhanu, Puloman, Viprachitti and other Danavas.
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As son of Vitatha or Bharadwaja: In the Brahma Purana
Dharmasutras and other texts
As son of Prahlada: The Baudhayana Dharmasutra mentions the Asura Kapila is the son of Prahlada in the chapter laying rules for the Vaikhanasas. The section IV.16 of Baudhāyana Gṛhyasūtra mentions Kapila as the one who set up rules for ascetic life.
Imagery in the Agamas
Kapila's imagery is depicted with a beard, seated in Padmāsana with closed eyes indicating Dhyāna, with a Jaṭā-maṇḍala around the head, showing high shoulders indicating he is greatly adept in controlling breath, draped in deer skin, wearing the Yagñopavīta, with a Kamaṇḍalu near him, with one hand placed in front of the crossed legs, and feet marked with lines resembling outline of a lotus. This Kapila is identified with Kapila the founder of Sāṅkhya system;
Other descriptions
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The name Kapila is sometimes used as an epithet for Vasudeva with Vasudeva having incarnated in the place named Kapila.
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Pradyumna assumed the form of Kapila when he became free from desire of worldly influences.
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Kapila is as one of the seven Dikpalas with the other six being Dharma, Kala, Vasu, Vasuki, Ananta.
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The Jayakhya Samhita of 5th century AD alludes to the Chaturmukha Vishnu of Kashmir and mentions Vishnu with Varaha, Nrsimha and Kapila defeated the asuras who appeared before them in zoomorphic forms with Nrsimha and Varaha posited to be incarnations of Vishnu and Kapila respectively.
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the Vamana Purana, the Yakshas were sired by Kapila with his consort Kesini who is from the Khasa class; though the epics attribute the origin of Yakshas to a cosmic egg or to the sage Pulastya; while other puranas posit Kashyapa as the progenitor of Yakshas with his consort Vishva or Khasha.
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In some puranas, Kapila is also mentioned as a female, a daughter of Khaśā and a Rākșasī, after whom came the name Kāpileya gaņa.
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Kapila being a great teacher also had gardening as a hobby focusing his time around the babool (Acacia) tree everywhere he lived.
Kapila Devahuti Samvada
The Kapila-Devahuti Samvada, detailed in the Third Canto of the Bhagavat Purana, serves as a foundational dialogue for the theological presentation of Samkhya philosophy. Shri Krishna also mentioned this concept briefly to Arjun amidst their conversation during the Mahabharata war, which has been mentioned in the Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 2, called Samkhya Yog.[Easy Bhagavada Gita [2] Chapter Two. Retrieved on 18 January 2024.]
The narrative begins with Devahuti approaching her son Kapila, identified as the Supreme Lord, and expressing distress over a life spent in sense enjoyment, which she regards as wasted. She seeks fearlessness and liberation from suffering.
The dialogical analysis aims to dispel identification with the body and mind, reduce attachment to material existence, and ground yoga, meditation on God, devotion, and intellectual stability in systematic knowledge of nature.
Jainism
Kapila is mentioned in chapter VIII of the Uttaradhyayana, states Larson and Bhattacharya, where a discourse of poetical verses is titled as Kaviliyam, or "Kapila's verses".[
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The name Kapila appears in Jaina texts. For example, in the 12th century Hemacandra's epic poem on Jain elders, Kapila appears as a Brahmin who converted to Jainism during the Nanda Empire era.[
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According to Jnatadharmakatha, Kapila is a contemporary of Krishna and the Vasudeva of Dhatakikhanda. The text further mentions that both of them blew their shankha (conch shell) together.
Buddhism
Buddhists literature, such as the Jataka tales, state the Buddha is Kapila in one of his previous lives.
Scholars have long compared and associated the teachings of Kapila and Buddha. For example, Max Muller wrote (abridged),
Max Muller states the link between the more ancient Kapila's teachings on Buddha can be overstated.[ This confusion is easy, states Muller, because Kapila's first sutra in his classic Samkhya-sutra, "the complete cessation of pain, which is of three kinds, is the highest aim of man", sounds like the natural inspiration for Buddha.][ However, adds Muller, the teachings on how to achieve this, by Kapila and by Buddha, are very different.][
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As Buddhist art often depicts Vedic deities, one can find art of both Narayana and Kapila as kings within a Buddhist temple, along with statues of Buddhist figures such as Amitabha, Maitreya, and Vairocana.[P. 269 Introduction to Buddhist art By Chikyō Yamamoto]
In Chinese Buddhism, the Buddha directed the Yaksha Kapila and fifteen daughters of Devas to become the patrons of China.
Works
The following works were authored by Kapila, some of which are lost, and known because they are mentioned in other works; while few others are unpublished manuscripts available in libraries stated:
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Manvadi Shrāddha - mentioned by Rudradeva in Pakayajna Prakasa.
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Dṛṣṭantara Yoga - also named Siddhāntasāra available at Madras Oriental Manuscripts Library.
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Kapilanyayabhasa - mentioned by Alberuni in his works.
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Kapila Purana - referred to by Sutasamhita and Kavindracharya. Available at Sarasvati Bhavana Library, Varanasi.
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Kapila Samhita - there are 2 works by the same name. One is the samhita quoted in the Bhagavatatatparyanirnaya and by Viramitrodaya in Samskaras. Another is the Samhita detailing pilgrim centers of Orissa.
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Kapilasutra - Two books, namely the Samkya Pravacana Sutra and the Tattvasamasasutra, are jointly known as Kapilasutra. Bhaskararaya refers to them in his work Saubhagya-bhaskara.
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Kapila Stotra - Chapters 25 to 33 of the third khanda of the Bhagavata Mahapurana are called Kapila Stotra.
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Kapila Smriti - Available in the work Smriti-Sandarbha, a collection of Smritis, from Gurumandal Publications.
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Kapilopanishad - Mentioned in the Anandasrama list at 4067 (Anandasrama 4067).
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Kapila Gita - also known as Dṛṣṭantasara or Siddhāntasāra.
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Kapila Pancharatra - also known as Maha Kapila Pancharatra. Quoted by Raghunandana in Saṃskāra Mayukha.
Ayurveda books mentioning Kapila's works are:
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Vagbhatta mentions Kapila's views in Sutrasthana.
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Nischalakara mentions Kapila's views in his commentary on Chikitsa Sangraha.
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Kapila's views are quoted in Ayurvedadipika.
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The Kavindracharya list at 987 mentions a book named Kapila Siddhanta Rasayana.
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Hemadri quotes Kapila's views in Ashtangahradaya (16th verse) of the commentary Ayurveda Rasayana.
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Sarvadarsanasamgraha ( Sarva-darśana-saṃgraha) mentions Kapila's views on Raseśvara school of philosophy.
Significance
Kapila, the founder of Samkhya, has been a highly revered sage in various schools of Hindu philosophy. Gaudapada (~500 CE), an Advaita Vedanta scholar, in his Bhasya called Kapila as one of the seven great sages along with Sanaka, Sananda, Sanatana, Asuri, Vodhu and Pancasikha.
See also
Notes
Sources
External links
