Classification of Six Religions in Four Groups
Dr. R. Lambotharan MD
Saiva SIddhanta Peedam, Canada
- Extreme Heterodox Religions (புறப்புறச் சமயங்கள்)
These are religions that do not believe in God and focus solely on material or philosophical viewpoints. They include:
- Materialism, Jainism, and four types of Buddhism, making up six distinct paths.
- These are classified in the outermost circle as Extreme Heterodox Religions (புறப்புறச் சமயங்கள்).
- Modern-day Atheism and Rationalism also fall under this category.
- Heterodox Religions (புறச்சமயங்கள்)
These are religions that believe in God but do not acknowledge the three eternal realities of:
- Pathi (the God),
- Pasu (the infinite number of souls),
- Pāsa (the blemishes or bondages attached to the souls).
These religions are categorized in the outer circle as Heterodox Religions (புறச்சமயங்கள்). The six religions in this group are:
- Nyāya (Logic),
- Sāṅkhya,
- Yoga,
- Mīmāṃsā (Ritualism),
- Vaishnavism, and
- Vedānta.
Christianity, Judaism, and Islam can also be included in this group, as they accept the existence of God.
- Ortho-Heterodox Religions (அகப்புறச்சமயங்கள்)
These religions acknowledge the existence of the threefold realities — God, souls, and bondage — but do not recognize the prime fetter of the soul, Āṇava (the darkness of ignorance). They form the third category, classified in the inner circle as Ortho-Heterodox Religions (அகப்புறச்சமயங்கள்). The six religions in this group are:
- Pāśupatha,
- Māvrata,
- Kāpāla,
- Vāma,
- Bhairava, and
- Aikiya-vāda Saiva.
Modern-day Aghoris of North India can be included in this category.
- Orthodox Religions (அகச்சமயங்கள்)
These are religions that recognize Āṇava, the prime fetter binding the individual soul. They belong to the innermost circle of Orthodox Religions (அகச்சமயங்கள்). However, they differ in their description of the final state of liberation. The six religions in this group are:
- Pādāna-vāda Saiva,
- Bhēda-vāda Saiva,
- Siva Sāma-vāda Saiva,
- Siva Sankrāntha-vāda Saiva,
- Isvara-avihāra-vāda Saiva, and
- Sivādvaita Saiva.
- Saiva Siddhānta — All-Inclusive, Yet Exclusive of Six Religions
Saiva Siddhānta forms the core, embracing the essential truths of every religion or belief system as each one holds a place in the evolutionary schema towards the Ultimate Truth (மெய்). Each religion is seen as a necessary rung on the ladder of spiritual progress. Life is a step-by-step growth of intelligence, from the relative and penultimate to the Ultimate Truth.