---
type: Concept
title: "Prakṛti"
description: "The primordial material substrate from which all physical and psychological phenomena evolve — not nature, not matter."
tags:
  - metaphysics
  - Samkhya
  - cosmology
  - non-translatable
darshana:
  - Sāṃkhya
  - Pātañjala Yoga
not:
  - term: "Nature"
    why: "In English means the physical environment; Prakṛti also includes mind, intellect, and ego, your thoughts and emotions are Prakṛti."
    instead: "Keep Prakṛti untranslated; gloss as the tri-guṇa substrate including mind and matter."
  - term: "Matter"
    why: "Implies inert physical-only substance; Prakṛti is dynamic, intelligent through sattva, and includes the whole psycho-physical apparatus."
  - term: "The material world"
    why: "Names only the manifest result; Prakṛti is the unmanifest substrate from which the manifest evolves."
  - term: "Mother Nature"
    why: "A personified earth-deity image; Prakṛti is the precise tri-guṇa substrate of Sāṃkhya, not a nurturing figure."
related:
  - /concepts/brahman.md
  - /concepts/maya.md
  - /concepts/manas.md
  - /concepts/buddhi.md
  - /concepts/ahankara.md
  - /concepts/prana.md
timestamp: "2026-06-18"
okf_version: "0.2"
---

# Prakṛti

**Not:** Nature, Matter, The material world, Mother Nature

## What It Actually Means

Prakṛti is the primordial, unmanifest substrate from which the entire phenomenal universe evolves — both physical AND psychological. In the Sāṃkhya framework, Prakṛti is constituted of three *guṇas* — *sattva* (luminosity/knowledge), *rajas* (activity/passion), and *tamas* (inertia/darkness). When the guṇas are in equilibrium, Prakṛti is unmanifest. When they are disturbed, creation begins.

The evolution sequence from Prakṛti: first *Mahat/Buddhi* → *Ahaṃkāra* → *Manas* + *Indriyas* + *Tanmātras* → *Mahābhūtas*. All 24 tattvas of the manifest world are evolutes of Prakṛti.

Critically, Prakṛti includes the MIND. [Manas](/concepts/manas.md), [Buddhi](/concepts/buddhi.md), [Ahankāra](/concepts/ahankara.md) are all products of Prakṛti — they are material, not spiritual. Only [Ātman](/concepts/atman.md)/Puruṣa is beyond Prakṛti.

### The Recursive Nature of Prakṛti / Vikṛti

Each evolute becomes the new "prakṛti" (material cause) for the next stage — *Vikṛti* (subsequent effect/evolute) is a relative term. Mahāt-Buddhi is the Vikṛti of unmanifest Prakṛti but the Prakṛti for Ahaṃkāra. This recursive self-generation is what makes the cosmos intelligible: every layer of reality has a cause, and the sequence terminates in unmanifest Prakṛti as the first material principle.

### Modern Science Operates Within Prakṛti

This is a fundamental dissonance with the dharmic framework — not a disagreement about details, but about first principles. Modern science uses instruments of Prakṛti (mind, senses, instruments) to study Prakṛti. It cannot access Puruṣa ([Ātman](/concepts/atman.md)) from within this framework because Puruṣa is not an object — it is the witnessing consciousness that makes all observation possible.

The Vedic śāstra-s were cognized by ṛṣi-s who transcended Prakṛti in Samādhi. The knowledge is therefore trans-Prakṛtic.

## Why the Substitutes Fail

**"Nature"** in English means the physical environment — trees, rivers, weather. Prakṛti includes the mind, intellect, ego, and all subtle elements. Your thoughts are Prakṛti. Your emotions are Prakṛti.

**"Matter"** implies the physical-only, inert substance of Western physics. Prakṛti is dynamic, intelligent (through sattva-guṇa), and includes the entire psycho-physical apparatus.

## Audience Metaphor

Prakṛti is like the complete hardware-and-software stack of a computer — motherboard, RAM, storage, operating system, applications, display. ALL of it. The user-awareness observing the screen (Puruṣa/Ātman) is the one thing that is NOT part of the stack.

## Citations

1. [Sāṃkhya Kārikā](/references/samkhya-karika.md) of Īśvarakṛṣṇa
2. [Bhagavad Gītā](/references/bhagavad-gita.md) 13.19–23
3. [Yoga Sūtras of Patañjali](/references/yoga-sutras.md) (on Prakṛti and Puruṣa)
