met with small sympathy or success among
them. In India the extravagances of asceticism and of mystic
sensualism alike find devotees, but the simple philosophy of Let us
eat and drink for to-morrow we die, does not commend itself.
Nevertheless it is not wholly absent and was known as the doctrine of
Brihaspati. Those who professed it were also called Carvakas and
Lokayatikas.[790] Brihaspati was the preceptor of the gods and his
connection with this sensualistic philosophy goes back to a legend
found in the Upanishads[791] that he taught the demons false knowledge
whose "reward lasts only as long as the pleasure lasts" in order to
compass their destruction. This is similar to the legend found in the
Puranas that Vishnu became incarnate as Buddha in order to lead
astray the Daityas. But though such words as Carvaka and Nastika are
used in later literature as terms of learned abuse, the former seems
to denote a definite school, although we cannot connect its history
with dates, places or personalities. The Carvakas are the first system
examined in the Sarva-darsana-sangraha, which is written from the
Vedantist standpoint, and beginning from the worst systems of
philosophy ascends to those which are relatively correct. This account
contains most of what we know about their doctrines,[792] but is
obviously biassed: it represents them as cynical voluptuaries holding
that the only end of man is sensual enjoyment. We are told that they
admitted only one source of knowledge, namely perception, and four
elements, earth, water, fire and air, and that they held the soul to
be identical with the body. Such a phrase as _my body_ they considered
to be metaphorical, as apart from the body there was no ego who owned
it. The soul was supposed to be a physical product of the four
elements, just as sugar combined with a ferment and other ingredients
produces an intoxicating liquor. Among verses described as "said by
Brihaspati" occur the following remarkable lines:

"There is no heaven, no liberation, nor any soul in another world,
Nor do the acts of the asramas or castes produce any reward.
If the animal slain in the Jyotishtoma sacrifice will go to heaven,
Why does not the sacrificer immolate his own father?
While life remains let a man live happily: let him feed on butter even
if he runs into debt.
When once the body becomes ashes, how can it ever return?"