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Carvaka

Carvaka, also frequently transliterated as Charvaka, and also known as lokayata, is a thoroughly materialist and atheist school of thought with ancient roots in India. It appears to have died out sometime after 1000. Its principal works are known only from fragments cited by its Hindu and Buddhist opponents. Those quotes which survive indicate a strong anti-clerical bias, accusing brahmins of fostering religious beliefs only so they could obtain a livelihood. The proper aim of a Charvakan, according to these sources, was to live a prosperous, happy, and productive life in this world.



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