The Indian Materialism

The word ‘Materialism’ is a commonly used word and more so in present times when capitalism and consumerism is on the rise in
India. There is a misconception that materialism is a modern age phenomenon. In reality this phenomenon is as old as the human
mankind irrespective of the place and time. It has been mentioned in ancient Indian literature also. Charvaka and Brahaspati have
been associated with philosophical school of materialism in Indian literature.

In its most generic sense, “Indian Materialism” refers to the school of thought within Indian philosophy that rejects supernaturalism. 
It is regarded as the most radical of the Indian philosophical systems.  It rejects the existence of other worldly entities such an
immaterial soul or god and the after-life.  Its primary philosophical import comes by way of a scientific and naturalistic approach to
metaphysics.  Thus, it rejects ethical systems that are grounded in supernaturalistic cosmologies.  The good, for the Indian
materialist, is strictly associated with pleasure and the only ethical obligation forwarded by the system is the maximization of one’s
own pleasure.  India has a very long tradition of materialistic philosophy, which dates back to the Vedic period. This philosophy is
the Charavaka, also known as Lokayata philosophy or Brhaspatya philosophy.

The founder of Charvaka philosophy as mentioned in the Vedas is Brihaspati, although there is no direct evidence of the existence
of him. The primary literature of the charvakas was mentioned to be the Brihaspati sutra, which has long being lost. So everything
that we know about Brihaspati sutra is through secondary literature, which talks about them. How did this philosophy got the name
Charvaka is unclear, some speculate that charv means to “chew” so Charavaka followers got their name someone who chews his
own self or soul. The name Lokayata means “popular amongst people” so scholars speculate that this philosophy got the Lokayat
for being popular amongst people. Brahaspatya is just the name given to the followers of Brihaspati.

 Some of the key principles of materialism were:

1. All things are made of earth, air, fire and water.

2. That which cannot be perceived does not exist; to exist implies to be perceivable.
3. Heaven and hell are nothing but inventions. The only goal of humans is to enjoy pleasures and avoid pain.

The members of this school did not believe in ideas such as the soul, reincarnation, spirits, or gods. Religion, they said, is nothing
but a fraud devised by clever men who want to take advantage of others. Soul or consciousness can be explained in natural terms
as a side effect of having a healthy body: When the body dies, consciousness simply disappears. No existence other than the
physical body exists for the Charvaka.

The materialism that the Charvaka school advocated in India was popular for quite a long time. It claimed that the truth can never be
known except through the senses: The body, not the soul, feels, sees, hears and thinks. Religions flourish only because people
have become accustomed to them. Faith is destroyed by true knowledge and when this happens, people feel a sense of loss and an
uncomfortable void that's difficult to handle. Nature is indifferent to human conventions, such as good and bad or even virtue and
vice. The sun shines equally upon sinners and saints.