Mīmāṃsā Philosophy: A Brief Note

 




Mīmāṃsā Philosophy: A Brief Note

Mīmāṃsā—also called Pūrva Mīmāṃsā or Dharma Mīmāṃsā—is one of the six orthodox (āstika) schools of Indian philosophy. It is primarily a philosophy of ritual interpretation, linguistic analysis, and hermeneutics, originally intended to justify the authority of the Vedas.

The term Mīmāṃsā means investigation, reflection, or critical inquiry.

1. Historical Background

Founder

Key Commentators

  1. Śabara Svāmin – wrote the earliest and most authoritative commentary Śabara Bhāṣya.

  2. Kumārila Bhaṭṭa (7th century) – developed the Bhāṭṭa school; works:

    • Ślokavārttika

    • Tantravārttika

    • Ṭupṭīkā

  3. Prabhākara Miśra (6th–7th century) – founded the Prābhākara school; main work:

    • Bṛhatī

These commentaries shape almost everything known about Mīmāṃsā.

Purpose of the School

Unlike Vedānta (which focuses on Brahman and liberation), Mīmāṃsā focuses on:

  • Understanding the Vedic injunctions (vidhi)

  • Ritual performance (karma)

  • Dharma (righteous action)

2. Main Objectives of Mīmāṃsā

Mīmāṃsā aims to establish:

(a) Eternity and self-validity of the Vedas

  • Vedas are beginningless (anādi) and authorless (apauruṣeya).
    Reference: Jaimini Sūtra 1.1.1 — codanā-lakṣaṇo dharmaḥ.

(b) Authority of ritual actions

Dharma is known solely through Vedic injunctions (codanā), not through perception or inference.

(c) Method for interpreting Vedic texts (Mīmāṃsā hermeneutics)

Provides rules for:

  • resolving contradictions

  • determining primary vs. secondary meaning

  • interpreting mantras and brāhmaṇa passages

3. Fundamental Principles

3.1 Dharma as a Central Concept

According to Jaimini:

Dharma is that which is indicated by Vedic injunctions
(codanā-lakṣaṇo dharmaḥ) — Mīmāṃsā Sūtra 1.1.2

Dharma cannot be known by other means (pramāṇas).

4. Epistemology of Mīmāṃsā (Pramāṇa Doctrine)

Pramāṇas Accepted

Both Bhāṭṭa and Prābhākara schools accept:

  1. Pratyakṣa (perception)

  2. Anumāna (inference)

  3. Upamāna (comparison)

  4. Arthāpatti (presumption)

  5. Anupalabdhi (non-perception) – accepted only by Bhāṭṭa school

  6. Śabda (verbal testimony) – primarily Vedic

Importance of Śabda Pramāṇa

  • The Veda is eternal and independent of any author.

  • The meaning of Vedic statements is intrinsic (svataḥ-prāmāṇya-vāda).

Kumārila Bhaṭṭa argues for intrinsic validity of knowledge (svataḥ-prāmāṇya).
Prabhākara argues for tripuṭī-pratyakṣa (threefold perception: knower, knowledge, known).

5. Ontology (Padārthas of Mīmāṃsā)

Mīmāṃsā focuses less on metaphysics than Nyāya or Sāṅkhya, but it does discuss:

  • Atman – eternal, conscious self

  • Karma – ritual action producing apūrva

  • Apūrva – invisible potency generated by ritual, leading to results

  • Svarga – heaven as the goal of rituals

  • Dravya, Guna, Karma, Sāmānya – accepted but not systematically elaborated

Apūrva is a unique concept of Mīmāṃsā:
It is the intermediate, unseen link between ritual action and its eventual result.

6. Mīmāṃsā Theory of Sentence Meaning (Śabdārtha)

A key contribution of Mīmāṃsā is its linguistic philosophy.

Prābhākara School – Anvitābhidhāna-vāda

  • Words convey meaning only in context (connected meaning).

  • No separate word-meanings; meaning arises from syntactic connection.

Bhāṭṭa School – Abhihitānvaya-vāda

  • Words convey independent meanings; then these meanings combine.

Reference: Kumārila’s Ślokavārttika, Vākya-adhikaraṇa.

7. Hermeneutical Principles (Mīmāṃsā Rules of Interpretation)

Mīmāṃsā developed sophisticated methods for interpreting Vedic texts.

Seven Principles (Mīmāṃsā-Nyāyas)

  1. Upakrama-Upasaṁhāra – Beginning and end

  2. Abhyāsa – Repetition

  3. Apūrvatā – Novelty

  4. Phala – Result

  5. Arthavāda – Explanatory statements

  6. Upapatti – Reasoning

  7. Prakaraṇa – Context

These principles are the earliest form of textual hermeneutics in world philosophy.

8. Moral Philosophy and Liberation

Mīmāṃsā does not emphasize liberation (mokṣa) originally.

Classical Mīmāṃsā View

  • Life’s goal = duty and ritual performance

  • Mokṣa is not a central aim

Later Mīmāṃsā View

Under influence of Vedānta, later commentators accept:

  • Mokṣa = cessation of pain

  • Achieved through knowledge of the Self

But still, Mīmāṃsā is primarily orthopraxy—emphasis on practice rather than metaphysical speculation.

9. Schools of Mīmāṃsā

(1) Bhāṭṭa School (Kumārila Bhaṭṭa)

  • Accepts Anupalabdhi (non-cognition) as pramāṇa

  • Word meaning: Abhihitānvaya

  • Strong defender of Vedic ritualism

  • Strong critic of Buddhism

(2) Prābhākara School (Prabhākara Miśra)

  • Rejects Anupalabdhi

  • Word meaning: Anvitābhidhāna

  • Holds duty for duty’s sake

  • Ethical orientation is purer than Bhāṭṭa school

10. Contributions of Mīmāṃsā to Indian Philosophy

Major Contributions

  1. Theory of Vedic authority

  2. Systematic rules of interpretation

  3. Advanced linguistic philosophy

  4. Doctrine of intrinsic validity of cognition

  5. Concept of apūrva

  6. Foundation for Hindu legal theory (Dharmashastra)

  7. Provided tools later used in Vedānta exegesis

11. Important References (Primary and Secondary)

Primary Sanskrit Sources

  1. Jaimini – Mīmāṃsā Sūtra

  2. Śabara Svāmin – Śabara Bhāṣya

  3. Kumārila Bhaṭṭa – Ślokavārttika, Tantravārttika, Ṭupṭīkā

  4. Prabhākara Miśra – Bṛhatī

Modern Authoritative Works

  1. Jha, Ganganatha – The Purva Mīmāṃsā Sūtras of Jaimini (translation)

  2. K. Kunjunni Raja – Indian Theories of Meaning

  3. P. T. Raju – The Philosophical Traditions of India

  4. Surendranath Dasgupta – A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I

  5. S. Radhakrishnan – Indian Philosophy, Vol. II

  6. Jha, G.N. – Śābara Bhāṣya (English translation)

  7. Julius Lipner – works on Mīmāṃsā hermeneutics

  8. Johannes Bronkhorst – studies on Mīmāṃsā ritualism

12. Conclusion

Mīmāṃsā remains one of the most rigorous philosophical systems in the world because:

  • It established rules of scriptural interpretation

  • It developed formal epistemology and semantics

  • It upheld a rational justification for ethical action

It is an essential foundation for understanding both Hindu ritualism and Vedānta.

Primary Texts - refrences

1. Mīmāṃsā Sūtra – Jaimini

2. Śabara Bhāṣya (Commentary on Mīmāṃsā Sūtra)

3. Ślokavārttika – Kumārila Bhaṭṭa

4. Tantravārttika & Ṭupṭīkā – Kumārila Bhaṭṭa

5. Prabhākara School – Bṛhatī

✅ B. University & Academic Reference Sites

1. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (SEP)

Highly reliable, peer-reviewed academic articles.

2. Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy (IEP)

Readable scholarly summaries.

3. Encyclopaedia Britannica

Good for quick summaries.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mimamsa

4. Oxford Bibliographies – Hindu Studies

(Subscription-based, but many universities provide access)
https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/

✅ C. Digital Sanskrit Libraries

1. GRETIL (Göttingen Register of Electronic Texts in Indian Languages)

Best source for critical Sanskrit texts
http://gretil.sub.uni-goettingen.de/

Search for:

  • Mimamsa Sutra

  • Sabara Bhashya

  • Slokavarttika

  • Tantravarttika

2. Muktabodha Digital Library

Free registration; excellent for manuscripts.
https://muktabodha.org/

3. Sanskrit Documents

Romanized text, good for learners:
https://sanskritdocuments.org/

4. Digital Library of India (DLI)

Scanned books and commentaries.
https://www.dli.gov.in/

✅ D. Books & PDFs (Freely Accessible)

1. Dasgupta – “A History of Indian Philosophy” (Vol I)

Chapter on Mīmāṃsā:
https://archive.org/details/historyofindianphilosophyvol1

2. Radhakrishnan – “Indian Philosophy” (Vol II)

Contains excellent analysis on Mīmāṃsā
https://archive.org/details/indianphilosophyvol2

3. Jaimini’s Purva Mimamsa Sutras – Translated by Ganganatha Jha

(Three volumes)
https://archive.org/details/purvamimamsasutraofjaiminivol1

4. “The Mīmāṃsā School of Indian Philosophy” – Jha

https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.221573

✅ E. Research Papers & Journals

1. JSTOR (Many free via open access)

Search terms: “Mimamsa”, “Kumarila”, “Sabara Bhashya”
https://www.jstor.org/

2. Academia.edu

Good for Mīmāṃsā hermeneutics research papers
https://www.academia.edu/

3. PhilPapers

Database of philosophical research:
https://philpapers.org/browse/indian-philosophy-authors-m

✅ F. Authentic Lecture Videos / Courses

1. IGNOU eGyankosh (PG Philosophy materials)

https://egyankosh.ac.in/

Modules available under:

  • Indian Philosophy

  • Mīmāṃsā & Vedānta

2. NPTEL

Video lectures by IIT Professors
Search “Indian Philosophy”
https://nptel.ac.in/

3. YouTube Lectures by Universities

Search terms:

  • "Purva Mimamsa"

  • "Kumarila Bhatta"

  • "Prabhakara Mimamsa"

📚 Recommended Modern Books (for purchase/library)

  1. “Pūrva Mīmāṃsā in Its Sources” – J. Bronkhorst

  2. “Indian Philosophy” – S. Radhakrishnan

  3. “Studies in Mīmāṃsā” – K. Kunjan Raja

  4. “The Mimamsa Theory of Meaning” – John Taber

  5. “The Philosophy of the Mimamsa” – Jaimini / Translator Jha

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