The term “Indian” philosophers is somewhat misleading. To call them thus suggests that the authors of these texts saw themselves as part of a nation-state, India, but that had yet to exist, and would not until 1947. The course groups these texts together rather because of their shared conceptual vocabulary, and their participation in a shared tradition of conversation. It is also important to note that Sanskrit manuscripts did not usually include dates until a later period. Thus, the dating of these texts—especially those from before the Common Era—are less certain than that of manuscripts from China or Europe.
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References
- Johnson, W.J. “Ramanuja”, “Sankara”. A Dictionary of Hinduism, in Oxford Reference, 2014.
- Khan, Omar. “A Brief Introduction to the Ancient Indus Civilization”. Harappa.com, 2017, harappa.com/har/indus-saraswati.html. Accessed 14 April 2017.
- McLeod, John. The History of India, Greenwood, 2015.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Mauryan empire”. Encylopaedia Britannica, Dec 10, 2015, britannica.com/place/Mauryan-Empire. Accessed 14 April 2017.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Brahmana”. Encylopaedia Britannica, Feb 19, 2015, britannica.com/topic/Brahmana. Accessed 14 April 2017.
- Tiwari, Shashi. “Brahmanas”. Vedic Heritage Portal, 2014, http://ignca.nic.in/vedic_heritage_brahmanas.htm. Accessed 14 April 2017.
- Violatti, Cristian. “Aryan”. Ancient History Encyclopedia, 19 January 2013, ancient.eu/Aryan. Accessed 14 April 2017.