Cultural Climate and Conceptual Roots of Indian Psychology

Abstract

This chapter sketches the cultural background of Indian psychology going back to the earliest times. The ṚgVedic counterpart of the Biblical myth of genesis is briefly described, and its basically agnostic conclusions are noted. Its implications for psychology are pointed out against the backdrop of the history of Western psychology, where the debates between Biblical and Darwinian perspectives and the mind–body problem continue to be divisive. It is pointed out that since the time of the Upaniṣads the predominant view of the relationship between humans and nature is one of man-in-nature, as distinguished from the Biblical as scientific perspectives imply a man-over-nature attitude. The Doctrine of Karma, which presumes the ongoing and inevitable effect of willed action on experience and behavior of persons, is explained and its implications for positive as well as normative views of psychology are pointed out. The concept of dharma is briefly explained, and its main conceptualization as a society’s dominant ethos, rather than as a “religion” analogous to Abrahamic faiths, is pointed out. It is recognized that, insofar as social norms shape individual behaviors, dharma is a persistent factor influencing behavior. Hence, the concepts of dharma and karma form a foundational pair in Indian psychology. Finally, the concept of duḥkha as pervasive suffering in human life is explained, and the goal of its removal is recognized as the theme shaping the applied aspect of Indian psychology.