A group blog of scholars exploring Indian philosophy
Did Indian authors forge their authorities? Did they need it, given the freedom commentators enjoyed (so that Śaiva texts have been used by Vaiṣṇava authors (see the Spandakārikā) and dualist texts by non-dualist authors (see the Paratriṃśikā) as their authorities)?
Veṅkaṭanātha (also known as Vedānta Deśika) quotes relatively often from Buddhist texts, especially from Pramāṇavāda ones (as was possibly customary within Indian philosophical circles. Does it mean that he could still directly access Pramāṇavāda texts? Or does he depend on Continue reading Veṅkaṭanātha’s Buddhist quotes
I was glad to see that Amod Lele had published an article in The Journal of Buddhist Ethics expressing some of the central conclusions of his dissertation. The article, “The Compassionate Gift of Vice: Śāntideva on Gifts, Altruism and Poverty” Continue reading Comment on Lele’s “The Compassionate Gift of Vice” (Journal of Buddhist Ethics Vol 20. 2013).
A little while ago, Matthew Dasti provided a fascinating glimpse into the recent, 20th-century history of “Indian philosophy” – not the doing of it but the studying of it, the history of “secondary work” into Indian philosophy. Since Westerners have Continue reading Matilal vs. Radhakrishnan
What do nouns mean? And what is the difference between nouns and verbs? Pūrva Mīmāṃsā authors are rightly known as having conceived the first textual linguistics in South Asia. In this sense, their theory differs from the Vyākaraṇa one, as Continue reading What is the difference between nouns and verbs (according to Mīmāṃsā authors)? Diaconescu vs. Clooney
Last week in Rome the 5th Coffee Break Conference took place. During his introductory speech our Andrew Ollett asked why was such a project, with an explicit emphasis on a interdisciplinary approach, born exactly among scholars and students of South Continue reading Is interdisciplinarity easier for scholars of South Asian studies? On the 5th Coffee Break Conference
Where should one publish? The question is less easy than it seems,
Friends, Anand Vaidya asked me for feedback on a book proposal for readings in Indian philosophy. I told him that perhaps the blog members could give their two cents and he said that would be a good idea. So, what Continue reading Feedback requested for book idea
Journal of Indian Philosophy, Volume 42, issues 2-3 is now live. Please see the link below. http://link.springer.com/journal/10781/42/2/page/1
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