The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (2102 page)

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VI
U
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S
khya
.

One of the six orthodox schools of interpretation (
dar
ana
) in Hinduism. Its founder is said to have been
Kapila
. S
khya posits a fundamental contrast between
puru
a
and
prak
ti
. Puru
a is the conscious, intelligent self or essence, prak
ti the eternal, unconscious potentiality of all being or appearance. In itself, prak
ti rests in a state of perfect equilibrium, composed of three strands (
gu
as
),
sattva
(the subtle principle of potential consciousness),
rajas
(the principle of activity), and
tamas
(the principle of passivity). The unfolding or evolution of prak
ti from its state of equilibrium occurs when puru
a becomes present to it, creating the duality of subject and object. By the light of the consciousness of puru
a, humans are able to become aware of prak
ti. If puru