darshana

(Sanskrit, vision). The schools of Hindu thought crystallized in the Sutra period (400 BC-AD 500). As usually counted there are six orthodox schools accepting the authority of the Vedas, which can be divided into three pairs. These are the Nyaya and Vaisheshika; Samkhya and Yoga; Mimamsa and Vedanta. In each case the first member of the pair may be regarded as a codification or methodology for the metaphysical system represented by the second. Characteristic doctrines are described under the separate headings. There are three unorthodox schools: Buddhism, Jainism, and Carvaka.