Page 33 - Hinduism
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CHAPTER V
DARŚANAS
It is very difficult to draw a hard and fast line of distinction between religion and philosophy, especially our religion and philosophy. The former deals with doctrine and rituals and the latter with the ultimate problems of life, like the nature of the world, the soul and God and their interrelations. The one is practical add the other is theoretical. But our ancestors were of a philosophic bent of mind from the beginning and they translated their philosophy into practice. Our religion and philosophy are intermixed and so in an exposition of religion, philosophy legitimately comes in. Our people identify the ultimate reality of philosophy with the highest Godhead of religion and give a theistic colouring to their philosophy. So our religion supplies the spiritual needs of our people and at the same time satisfies the mental wants of a high order. In one isolated school of philosophy this distinction is maintained, and naturally it did not appeal to the majority of the nation. There is therefore much discrepancy between their mode of life and their speculations. It may be all right for highly intellectual and gifted people but for the ordinary man, it is of no use.
Philosophy, as we have said, discusses the nature of the three ultimate entities, matter, soul and God
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