Whither Indian Philosophy?

In light of these recent posts about places for pursuing graduate training in Indian philosophy, I would like to invite a different (but related) sort of discussion: specifically, about the future of Indian philosophy, given recent debates about progress in Continue reading Whither Indian Philosophy?→

The Role of Imagination in Perception

Imagination is a topic of ubiquitous, varied and profoundly existentially significant philosophical reflection in the millennia-spanning heritages of South Asian thought.  In the Brāhmiṇical traditions that grew out of the śramaṇa movements in ancient India, it was often conceived as Continue reading The Role of Imagination in Perception→

163rd Philosophers’ Carnival

We are very happy to be hosting the Philosophers’ Carnival here for the first time and hope that readers will not feel too much baffled by the Indian philosophy milieu. Here is our selection of this month’s philosophical blogs: Epistemology Continue reading 163rd Philosophers’ Carnival→

What is unreal?

The term tuccha means in Classical Sanksrit “worthless”, “insignificant”. In Vedānta, however, it gets a more specific technical meaning, to denote the absolute unreality of chimeral entities, such as the khapuṣpa (flower in the air), which will not and cannot Continue reading What is unreal?→

Can one establish the existence of an omniscient?

…or can one just say that his existence cannot be denied? During his commentary on Maṇḍana Miśra’s Vidhiviveka (henceforth VV), 1.14–15, Vācaspati Miśra focuses on the possibility of the existence of omniscients. Why so? Because the VV is a Mīmāṃsaka Continue reading Can one establish the existence of an omniscient?→

Book note: Vincent Eltschinger’s “Penser l’autorité des Écritures”

The starting point of every discussion on this book is that it is an amazing achievement: more than 160 pp. of translation of Dharmakīrti’s Pramāṇavārttika and Svavṛtti which will enhance further studies on Buddhist and non-Buddhist epistemology and, even more Continue reading Book note: Vincent Eltschinger’s “Penser l’autorité des Écritures”→

On the epistemology of the extra-ordinary. Or: Do we need to waste our time proving that unicorns do not exist?

Do we need to prove that unicorns, tooth fairies, hobbits and so on do not exist? The question is not just funny, insofar as an upholder of the existence of ghosts and the like could easily claim that —strictly speaking— Continue reading On the epistemology of the extra-ordinary. Or: Do we need to waste our time proving that unicorns do not exist?→