Six Heretical Teachers

Views of the six heretical teachers
The views of six śramaṇa in the Pāli Canon, known as the six heretical teachers, based on the Sāmaññaphala Sutta.[1]
Pūraṇa Kassapa
Amoralism
(akiriyavāda; natthikavāda)		There is no reward or punishment for either good or bad deeds.
Makkhali Gośāla (Ājīvika)
Fatalism
(ahetukavāda; niyativāda)		We are powerless; suffering is pre-destined.
Ajita Kesakambalī (Charvaka)
Materialism
(ucchedavāda; natthikavāda)		Live happily; with death, all is annihilated.
Pakudha Kaccāyana
Eternalism and categoricalism (sassatavāda; sattakāyavāda)Matter, pleasure, pain and the soul are eternal and do not interact.
Mahavira (Jainism)
Restraint
(mahāvrata)		Be endowed with, cleansed by, and suffused with [merely] the avoidance of all evil.[2]
Sañjaya Belaṭṭhiputta (Ajñana)
Agnosticism
(amarāvikkhepavāda)		"I don't think so. I don't think in that way or otherwise. I don't think not or not not." Suspension of judgement.

The Six Heretical Teachers, Six Heretics, Six Śramaṇa, or Six Tirthikas (false teachers) were six sectarian contemporaries of Gautama Buddha (Śākyamuni), each of whom held a view in opposition to his teachings.[3][4] Except for Nigantha Nataputta or Mahavira, the twenty-fourth Tirthankara Of Jainism, the other five heretical teachers were regarded as the holders of some or other form of Akiriyavada views.[5]

In Buddhist tradition, they were defeated by Buddha in the miracle contest known as the Twin Miracle.

The six heretics and their views on Indian philosophy are described in detail in the Samaññaphala Sutta of the Digha Nikaya in the Pali Tipitaka.[6]

Dazu Rock Carvings depicting five of the Six Heretical Teachers: Purana Kassapa, Makkhali Gosala, Sanjaya Belatthiputta, Ajita Kesakambali, Pakudha Kaccāyana (left to right)
  1. ^ "DN 2 Sāmaññaphala Sutta; The Fruits of the Contemplative Life". www.dhammatalks.org. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  2. ^ Bhikku, Ñāṇamoli; Bhikku, Bodhi (9 November 1995). The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Majjhima Nikaya (Fourth ed.). Simon and Schuster. pp. 1258–59. ISBN 978-0-86171-072-0. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
  3. ^ Green, Arnold L.; Coomaraswamy, Ananda (1965). "Buddha and the Gospel of Buddhism". The Journal of Asian Studies. 24 (3): 547. doi:10.2307/2050403. hdl:2027/hvd.32044010328052. ISSN 0021-9118. JSTOR 2050403. S2CID 171346113.
  4. ^ "Six heretical teachers | Encyclopedia.com". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2019-01-02.
  5. ^ "Six Contemporary Teachers During The Time Of The Buddha" (PDF). stylomilo.com. Retrieved 2021-04-21.
  6. ^ Alex., Wayman (1997). Untying the knots in Buddhism : selected essays. Motilal Banarsidass Publishers. ISBN 978-8120813212. OCLC 925708140.