Editing Akasha

{{Short description|Term for space or æther}}
{{Italic title}}
{{other uses|Akasha (disambiguation)|Akash (disambiguation)|Akasa (disambiguation)}}
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'''Akasha''' ([[Sanskrit]] ''{{IAST|ākāśa}}'' {{lang|sa|आकाश}}) means [[Aether (classical element)|aether]] in traditional [[Hindu cosmology]]. The term has also been adopted in Western [[occult]]ism and spiritualism in the late 19th century CE. In many modern [[Indo-Aryan languages]] and [[Dravidian languages]] the corresponding word retains a generic meaning of "aether". The [[Hinduism|Hindu]] [[Deva (Hinduism)|god]] of Akasha is [[Dyaus]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Dictionary of World Philosophy |first=A. Pablo |last=Iannone |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2001 |page=30 |isbn=0-415-17995-5}}</ref>

==Etymology and meaning==
The word in [[Sanskrit]] is derived from a root {{Lang|sa-latn|kāś}} meaning "to be". It appears as a masculine noun in [[Vedic Sanskrit]] with a generic meaning of "aether". In Classical Sanskrit, the noun acquires the neuter gender and may express the concept of "aether" ([[Manusmriti]], [[Shatapatha Brahmana]]). In [[Vedanta|Vedantic]] philosophy, the word acquires its technical meaning of "an ethereal fluid imagined as pervading the cosmos".

[[Indian philosophy]] classify Akasha into three categories. The first category, represented by the ''[[Nyaya]],'' ''[[Vaisheshika]]'', [[Mīmāṃsā|Purva Mimamsa]], and [[Jain philosophy|Jain]] traditions, considers Akasha to be an independent, all-pervading, and eternal substance essential to the structure of the universe. The second category  encompassing the [[Samkhya]]-[[Yoga]] and [[Vedanta]], views Akasha as an evolute of something else. The third category regards Akasha as a mental concept, a view particularly reflected in later [[Buddhist philosophy|Buddhist]] systems.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Jhaveri |first=Indukala H. |date=1956 |title=The Concept of Ākāśa in Indian Philosophy |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/44082931 |journal=Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute |volume=37 |issue=1/4 |pages=300–307 |issn=0378-1143}}</ref>

==Hinduism==
In Hinduism, ''akasha'' means the basis and essence of all things in the material world; the first element created.  A Hindu mantra "''pṛthivyāpastejovāyurākāśāta''" indicates the sequence of initial appearance of the five basic gross elements. Thus, first appeared aether, from which appeared air, from that fire, from which water, and therefrom the earth. It is one of the [[Classical element#Classical elements in Hinduism|''Panchamahabhuta'']], or "five gross elements"; its main characteristic is ''[[Shabda]]'' (sound). The direct translation of ''akasha'' is the word meaning 'aether' in Hinduism.

The ''[[Nyaya]]'' and ''[[Vaisheshika]]'' schools of Hindu philosophy state that ''akasha'' ([[Aether (classical element)|aether]]) is the fifth physical substance, which is the substratum of the quality of sound.  It is the one, eternal, and all-pervading physical substance, which is imperceptible.<ref>{{cite book |title=Indian Metaphysics and Epistemology |first=Karl H. |last=Potter |place=Usharbudh Arya |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass Publications |year=1977 |page=71 |isbn=81-208-0309-4}}</ref>

According to the ''[[Samkhya]]'' school, ''akasha'' is one of the five ''[[Mahābhūta]]s'' (grand physical elements) having the specific property of sound.<ref>{{cite book |title=Six Systems of Indian Philosophy; Samkhya and Yoga; Naya and Vaiseshika |first=F. Max |last=Müller |author-link=Max Müller |publisher=Kessinger Publishing |year=2003 |orig-year=1899 |pages=40 |isbn=0-7661-4296-5}}</ref>

In the ''[[Shiva Purana]]'', it identifies ''akasha'' as having "the only attribute of sound".<ref>{{Cite book |editor-last=Shastri |editor-first=J. L. |title=Ancient Indian Tradition and Mythology |volume=IV: The Siva Purana |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |year=2017 |location=Delhi |page=1743 |isbn=978-8120838710}}</ref>

In the ''[[Linga Purana]]'' (Volume I, Chapter 65), ''akasha'' is translated as "aether" and listed as one of the 1000 names of [[Shiva]].<ref>{{cite book |translator=Shanti Lal Nagar |title=Linga Mahapurana |volume=1 |publisher=Parimal Publications |year=2011 |isbn=978-81-7110-392-8 |location=Delhi |page=261}}</ref>

==Jainism==
{{Main|Ākāśa (Jainism)}}

Akasha is space in the [[Jainism|Jain]] conception of the cosmos. Akasha is one of the six ''dravyas'' (substances) and it  accommodates the other five, namely sentient beings or souls (''[[Jīva (Jainism)|jīva]]''), non-sentient substance or matter (''[[pudgala]]''), principle of motion (''[[Dharma (Jainism)|dharma]]''), the principle of rest (''[[adharma]]''), and the principle of time (''[[kāla]]'').

It falls into the ''[[Ajiva]]'' category, divided into two parts: ''Loakasa'' (the part occupied by the material world) and ''Aloakasa'' (the space beyond it which is absolutely void and empty). In ''Loakasa'' the universe forms only a part. Akasha is that which gives space and makes room for the existence of all extended substances.<ref>{{cite book |title=Encyclopaedia of Jainism |first=Narendra |last=Singh |publisher=Anmol Publications |year=2001 |page=1623 |isbn=81-261-0691-3}}</ref>

At the summit of the ''lokākāśa'' is the ''[[Siddhashila]]'' (abode of the liberated souls).<ref>{{cite book |last=Sharma |first=C. |year=1997 |title=A Critical Survey of Indian Philosophy |place=Delhi |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=81-208-0365-5 |page=64}}</ref>

==Buddhism==
In [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] [[Phenomenology (philosophy)|phenomenology]], ''akasha'' is divided into limited space (ākāsa-dhātu) and endless space (ajatākasā).<ref>{{cite book |title=Buddhist Dictionary |author=Nyanatiloka |publisher=Buddhist Publication Society |year=1998 |pages=24–35 |isbn=955-24-0019-8}}</ref> The [[Vaibhāṣika]], an early school of Buddhist philosophy, hold the existence of ''akasha'' to be real.<ref>{{cite book |title=Encyclopedia of Asian Philosophy |editor1-first=Oliver |editor1-last=Leaman |first=Oliver |last=Leaman |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2001 |isbn=0-415-17281-0 |page=476}}</ref> Ākāsa is identified as the first [[Dhyana in Buddhism|arūpa jhāna]], but usually translates as "infinite space."<ref>{{cite book |title=The Ideas and Meditative Practices of Early Buddhism |first=Tilmann |last=Vetter |publisher=Brill |place=Leiden |year=1988 |isbn=978-9004089594 |page=65}}</ref>

'''Ākāśa''' (Sanskrit: "space") holds two primary meanings in [[Abhidharma]] analysis:<ref name=":0">Buswell, Robert E; Lopez, Donald S. ''The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism'', p. 26. Princeton University Press, Nov 24, 2013.</ref> 

# '''Spatiality''': Ākāśa is defined as the absence that delimits forms. Like the empty space within a door frame, it is an emptiness that is shaped and defined by the material surrounding it.
# '''Vast Space''': Ākāśa is also described as the absence of obstruction, categorized as one of the ''nityadharmas'' (permanent phenomena) because it remains unchanged over time. In this sense, it is likened to the Western concept of ether—an immaterial, luminous fluid that supports the four material elements (''mahābhūta''). Its radiant quality often serves as a metaphor for buddhahood, which is described as shining like the sun or space.

In meditation, ''ākāśa'' is significant in the context of the sphere of infinite space (''ākāśānantyāyatana''), the first of the four immaterial absorptions (''arupa''-''[[Dhyana in Buddhism|dhyānas]]'').<ref name=":0" /> 

Philosophically, ''ākāśa'' is considered one of the uncompounded phenomena (''asaṃskṛtadharmas'') in six Buddhist schools, including the ''Sarvāstivāda'', ''Mahāsāṃghika'', and later ''Yogācāra''. However, three schools, including the ''Theravāda'', reject this interpretation.<ref name=":0" /> 

==See also==
* [[Ākāśagarbha]] – a [[Bodhisattva]] associated with ''akasha''
* {{anli|Akashic records}}
* [[Idealism#Idealism in Vedic and Buddhist thought|Idealism in Vedic and Buddhist thought]]

==References==
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{{Indian Philosophy}}
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[[Category:Classical elements]]
[[Category:Hindu philosophical concepts]]
[[Category:Hindu given names]]
[[Category:Indian masculine given names]]
[[Category:Masculine given names]]
[[Category:Ākāśagarbha]]