---
type: Concept
bundle: sankhya-darshana
bundle_version: 0.13.0
id: pramana-samkhya
title: Pramāṇa (Sāṃkhya)
iast: Pramāṇa
devanagari: प्रमाण
description: Samkhya's three-pramana epistemology -- pratyaksha (perception), anumana (inference), and shabda/aptavachana (verbal testimony) -- SCHOOL-SCOPED as the third referent after vedanta-epistemology's Advaita pramanas (v0.3) and nyaya-vaisheshika's Nyaya pramanas (v0.9). Same functional category, different school-specific enumeration and epistemic weighting.
darshana:
- Samkhya
tags:
- pramana
- epistemology
- samkhya
- knowledge
not:
- term: the Advaita seven-pramana or Nyaya four-pramana lists (v0.3, v0.9)
  why: 'Vedanta-epistemology (v0.3) documents the Advaita pramana set (including upamana, arthapatti, anupalabdhi); nyaya-vaisheshika (v0.9) documents the Nyaya four-pramana set. Samkhya''s own count is narrower: three pramanas only (pratyaksha, anumana, shabda), reducing the others to sub-varieties of these three. Treating these as interchangeable enumerations erases a real school-specific epistemological commitment.'
  instead: 'State the count explicitly per school and cross-link: Samkhya = 3 pramanas; Nyaya (v0.9) = 4; Advaita (v0.3) = up to 6.'
related:
- /concepts/anumana-samkhya.md
- /concepts/satkaryavada.md
timestamp: '2026-07-10'
okf_version: '0.2'
license: CC BY-SA 4.0
---

# Pramāṇa (Sāṃkhya) -- प्रमाण

**Not:** the Advaita seven-pramana or Nyaya four-pramana lists (v0.3, v0.9)

## What It Actually Means

Sāṃkhya recognizes exactly three pramāṇas -- pratyakṣa (direct perception), anumāna (inference), and śabda or āptavacana (the testimony of a reliable authority) -- treating other candidate means of knowledge accepted by rival schools as reducible to one of these three rather than as independent categories. This narrower, tighter epistemology matches Sāṃkhya's broader style: a compact, enumerable system rather than an expansive one.

## Audience Metaphor

Where Advaita's epistemology is a wide toolbox with many specialized tools, Sāṃkhya's is a compact three-tool kit -- fewer instruments, but the school insists every job can be done with just these three, with no loss of coverage.

## Citations

1. Samkhya-Karika 4-6 -- see [references/samkhya-karika.md](../references/samkhya-karika.md)
2. Cross-bundle warning: this is the THIRD school-scoped pramana referent, after vedanta-epistemology v0.3 (Advaita) and nyaya-vaisheshika v0.9 (Nyaya) -- school-contrast, not consolidation
