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Revision as of 19:17, 1 December 2006
Ajivika is an anti-caste philosophy, which literally translates to "following an ascetic way of life". The Ajivikas were contemporaries of the early Buddhists and historical Jains; the Ajivika movement may have preceded both of these groups. The Ajivakas may have been a more loosely organized group of wandering ascetics (samanas or sanyasins). The Ajivikas believed that transmigration of the human soul was determined by a precise and non-personal cosmic principle called Niyati (destiny or fate) and was completely independent of the person's actions. They are believed to have been strict fatalists, who did not believe in karma or the possibility of free will.
Very little concrete information is known about the Ajivikas. Their scriptures and history were not preserved directly — instead, fragments of Ajivika doctrine were preserved in Buddhist and Jain sources, and they are mentioned in several inscriptions from the Mauryan empire. As a result, it is unknown to what degree the available sources reflect the actual beliefs and practices of the Ajivikas; because most of what is known about them was recorded in the literature of rival groups, it is quite possible that accidental distortions or intentional criticism was introduced into the records. Even the name 'Ajivika' may have only been used by observers from outside the tradition
Some regard Makkhali Gosala (Pali; Sanskrit: Goshala Maskariputra)(c. 484 B.C.) as the founder of the Ajivika faith; other sources state that Gosala was a leader of a large Ajivika congregation, but not himself the founder of the movement. Purana Kassapa was another leader of the Ajivikas. Gosala is believed to have been a friend of Mahavira, the founder of Jainism.
The emperor Ashoka's father, Bindusara, was a believer of this philosophy, that reached its peak of popularity during Asoka's lifetime, and then declined into obscurity. The Ajivikasa are thought to have existed in India in the 14th Century, but the exact dates and extent of their influence is unclear. Inscriptions from southern India make reference to the Ajivikas as late as the 13th Century, but by this point in history the term Ajivika may have been used to refer to Jain monks or ascetics from other traditions.