Sankhya, derived from the word 'Sankhyaa' which means numbers, was founded by the philosopher
Sage Kapila. The Sankhya philosophy divides the universe into 25 principles or tattvas of which the first eight comprise the material universe, Prakriti. One of those principles is considered as the motive power of the universe which is considered as the soul or spirit, termed as Purusha. The remaining principles are based on the result when the Spirit or Purusha act upon Prakriti. It also constitutes all the movements such as rotation, revolution and gravitation. Sankhya also explains the discrimination between purusha and prakriti.
Sankhya philosophy accepts perception, inference and verbal testimony as the valid means of knowledge. The ideas of the Sankhya system are somewhat atheistic which says matter or Prakriti came into existence without a creator but is activated by the motive power Purusha. The philosophy also states that Sankhya is one of the six Darshans of Hindu Philosophy, closely related to Yoga.
