I begin with the question of whether the problem of philosophical skepticism is inevitable, a question that was answered affirmatively by Hume and has come to be a source of debate in contemporary epistemology. If skepticism is an inevitable problem, then it should arise in any sufficiently sophisticated tradition of epistemology such as the tradition found in classical India. The Buddhist philosopher Vasubandhu gives arguments from ignorance based on dreams that are quite similar to the dream argument of Descartes. However, while Vasubandhu’s arguments give an invitation to skeptical concerns (especially if he is a phenomenalist, rather than an idealist), this invitation was not accepted in quite the same way as it has been by Western philosophers. Yet there is another form of skepticism in Indian philosophy, which is more like Pyrrhonian skepticism. I call this metaphilosophical skepticism, which consists of doubts about the possibility of philosophy itself. Reading the Madhyamaka Buddhist philosopher Nāgārjuna as a metaphilosophical skeptic solves the puzzle of how to reconcile his arguments for the view of emptiness with his injunctions against holding any view whatsoever. Jayarāśi, a skeptical member of the irreligious Cārvāka school, refutes any positive epistemological theory and embodies a contextualism that makes room to enjoy everyday practice. Thus, skeptical concerns in classical India invite us to question what we think we know about issues of philosophical skepticism. I conclude by considering what it is that allows concerns about metaphilosophical skepticism to arise in a philosophical tradition, arguing that it is this type of skeptical concern, rather than the problem of external world skepticism, that may be inevitable.

/pdf/the-dependent-origination-of-skepticism-in-classical-india-az72r7pcin.pdf

The Dependent Origination of Skepticism in Classical India: An Experiment in Cross-Cultural Philosophy

Study of the Tathagatagarbha as True Self and the True Selves of the Brahmanic, Sankhya and Jaina Traditions

The thesis presents a view of Hindu philosophy in the historical context. It is argued that; through the employment of the symbols associated with the Vedic sacrifice (yajna), the diverse socio-political, cosmological, metaphysical and theological concepts that constitute Hinduism may be united to present a single cohesive system of knowledge. In examining the symbolism of the Vedic yajna, the socio-political concept of Brahmanism is explored. The Brahmanical influences on the formation of the cosmogony of Sāṁkhya, the metaphysics of Vedānta, and the various theological interpretations of Śaivism and Vaiṣṇavism are highlighted. Intricate linkages between the concepts of karma, saṃsāra, mokṣa and dharma, as well as the principles of purity and pollution and the socio-political system of varṇa are established through an examination of Hindu philosophy when viewed from the perspective of the Vedic yajna. India, in both the historical and modern context consists of diverse kinship attributes such as language and kinship nomenclature. It is argued that Brahmanism presented a system of knowledge that united different models of kinship in India under the system of varṇa. In undertaking this examination, two key aspects of Hindu thought are engaged. Firstly, the symbolic links associated with the Vedic yajna, and its influence on the Sāṁkhyan principle of the triguṇa, are examined. It is argued that the triguṇa presents the key principle that unites early Hindu cosmogony with metaphysical and theological speculation. Secondly, it is contended that the symbolic elements that form the basis of the triguṇa are representative of the subjective properties associated with procreation. In undertaking an investigation from the perspective of the Vedic yajna, four hypotheses are presented. Firstly, it is argued that the unhindered cosmological, metaphysical, theological speculations were possible as they reinforced the socio-political system of Brahmanism. Secondly, by employing symbols associated with the Vedic yajna, the defining attribute of Brahmanism, a text may claim its authority in the Vedas. Thirdly, a new interpretation of the term varṇa is postulated, linking the term to the elements of the Vedic yajna: water, fire and earth (food). Fourthly and finally, it is argued, that the dichotomy that surrounds Śaivism, ‗the ascetic‘ and ‗the erotic‘, can be resolved through an examination of the symbols of the Vedic yajna, thus lending support to the Brahmanical order.

https://espace.library.uq.edu.au/view/UQ:177510/Beilby_BHons_totalthesis.pdf

In Pursuit of the Triguṇa: The Construction of Identity and the Concept of 'Self' Through an Interpretive Analysis of the Symbolism Stemming from the Vedic Yajña.

The philosophy of Gauḍapāda, although found in a small treatise, has remained obscure, as both the classical and contemporary approaches to reading this philosopher have overlooked his highly original contributions. This essay explores the scope of imagination in Gauḍapāda?s philosophy, with a focus on terms such as kalpanā and ābhāsa. This reading of Gauḍapāda?s philosophy tallies with some of the findings in contemporary consciousness studies.

Gauḍapāda on Imagination

Madhvācārya’s Bhāgavatatātparyanirṇaya is the oldest Bhāgavata commentary available to us, most probably predating the Advaitic commentary of Śrīdhara (fourteenth century). Thus Madhva’s commentary occupies a crucial place in the development of the Bhāgavata tradition. In this paper, I examine Madhva’s commentary on the first verse of the Bhāgavatapurāṇa, focusing on his exegesis. In so doing, I shall point out how Madhva emphasizes what are arguably the two most important doctrines of Dvaita Vedānta, namely, Viṣṇu’s absolute independence and the reality of the world. With this teaching Madhva vehemently rejects absolute monism and the idea that the world is illusory, which, we might say, are the core doctrines of Advaita Vedānta. This paper is also a modest attempt to revise the general perception of Vedānta as ‘the exegetical tradition on the prasthānatraya’. I argue that we need to include commentaries on the purāṇas within our understanding of Vedāntic discourse since, starting with Madhva, the purāṇas such as the Bhāgavata became an important text for Vedānta authors to comment upon. This is evidenced by the proliferation of commentaries on the Bhāgavata in the early modern period. The Bhāgavatapurāṇa attracted commentaries produced not only by Vaiṣṇava authors such as Sanātana, Jīva, Vallabha and Vīrarāghava but also by Advaita authors like Madhusūdana Sarasvatī and Śaivas such as Rāghavānanda. In this connection, toward the end of this paper I will point out Madhva’s influence on the Gauḍīya school that flourished in the early modern period.

Rejecting Monism: Dvaita Vedānta’s Engagement with the Bhāgavatapurāṇa

The Mandukya Upanisad and the Agama Sastra: An Investigation into the Meaning of the Vedanta

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The Mandukya Upanisad and the Agama Sastra: An Investigation into the Meaning of the Vedanta