The Sarva-darsana-siddhanta-sangraha, also known as Sarva-siddhanta-sangraha, ascribed to the great Advaita teacher Shankaracharya, is a versified epitome of the basic tenets of the major schools of Indian philosophy-both theistic and atheistic. The work faithfully presents the conclusions of all the schools, each in a separate chapter in lucid and as for as possible nontechnical language. It avoids all the controversies among different schools. It is a very useful work for the students of any branch of Indian philosophy, because without the basic knowledge of all the branches, it is difficult to comprehend any particular school. Its ascription to Shankaracharya may be doubted, but it is, nevertheless, an early medieval work. The compendium was critically edited, for the first time, in 1908, on the basis of five South Indian manuscripts by Professor M. Rangacarya of the Presidency College, Madras, with a faithful translation and a glossary of philosophical terms. The learned translator has tried, in the introduction, to Shankaracharya may not be wrong. His arguments deserve serious attention.
Such an important work remained out of print for a long time and hence almost unknown to the resent generation of scholars. It is now being reprinted with a hope that it will be welcomed by the researchers in Indian philosophy. |
