The Age of the Sutra

It's true that some of these philosophical movements eventually grow together. In the 11th or 12th century, the Vaishishika and Niyaya systems effectively merged to form a single school. We also see an intimate association between Samkhya and Yoga. But it would hardly be worth distinguishing the systems into six if they all ultimately coalesced into a single Hindu outlook. So, we want to suggest a different and more ideologically neutral contrast based on the way that philosophical texts were actually written.