Etymology
The Sanskrit term Āstika ("pious, orthodox") refers to the systems of thought which admit the validity of the Vedas. Sanskrit asti means "there is", and Āstika (per Pāṇini 4.2.60) derives from the verb, meaning "one who says 'asti'". Technically, in Hindu philosophy the term Āstika refers only to acceptance of authority of Vedas, not belief in the existence of God. However, though not accepted universally, Āstika is sometimes translated as "theist" and Nāstika as "atheist", assuming the rejection of Vedas to be synonymous to the rejection of God. In Indian philosophy, three schools of thought are commonly referred to as nastika for rejecting the doctrine of Vedas: Jainism, Buddhism and Cārvāka. In this usage, nastika refers to the non-belief of Vedas rather than non-belief of God. However, all these schools also rejected a notion of a creationist god and so the word nastika became strongly associated with them.
Read more about this topic: Atheism In Hinduism
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