Chapter IV - The concept of Self

Self or soul is an important subject of Indian philosophy. The reality of the permanent self is generally admitted by most of the systems of Indian philosophy. The self is variously called ātman, jīva, puruṣa etc. Regarding the real nature of the self, however, there are great controversies among the philosophers. Among the heterodox schools, the Cārvāka rejects the reality of the permanent self and identifies it with the body endowed with consciousness. The Buddhists reject the reality of the permanent self and regard it as a series of momentary ideas. Only the Jainas admit the reality of the permanent self as knowledge, feeling and active agent. All the orthodox philosophies admit the existence of the self or ātman as a permanent spiritual substance. The Nyāya and the Vaiśeṣika regard the self as an eternal substance endowed with cognition, volition, impression, merit and demerit. The Sāṃkhya and the Yoga regard the self called Puruṣa as an eternal spirit whose essence is consciousness. The Advaita Vedānta admits the reality of the self, which is pure being, pure consciousness and pure bliss, and identifies it with Brahman. The Mīmāṃsā philosophy regards the self as an eternal substance. Kumārila regards knowledge as a mode of the self, while Prabhākara regards it as a quality of the self.