The Encyclopedia of Indian Philosophies, Volume 1: Bibliography

by Karl H. Potter (Editor)

Beginning in 1350, in regions that are now Bihar and Bengal in northeast India, there was produced a vast literature embodying a methodology that not only provides a high point in Indian philosophy but also became extremely influential in many other branches of Indian thought, including law, jurisprudence, and literary theory. This volume, the sixth in Karl Potter's monumental series, deals with that literature. Thirty-three works by fifty authors dating from 1350 to 1510 represent the philosophy of Nyaya-Vaisesika in the early stages of what was to become known as Navyanyaya, the "new" Nyaya. An extensive introduction is included. The major works treated in this volume are Gangesa's initial masterpiece, Tattvacintamani, and its remarkable commentary by Raghunatha Siromani.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, Buddhism

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1972

Reviews

[Anmol · Rating 3 out of 5]

Potter's way of discussing the Indian philosophical systems is quite original - he takes a 'problems' perspective, rather than the traditional perspective of most other textbooks. This leads him to dividing Indian philosophers as 'leap' and 'progress' philosophers - as far as I can tell, this simply means whether or not they believe in ajativada (what Potter calls 'leap' philosophy, ie. where it is possible to leap out of the whole causal chain of the world for the attainment of freedom).

While I admire Potter's original attempt at discussing Indian philosophy, it does lead to a lot of confusion - indeed, some of the authors discussed simultaneously are jarring from an Indian perspective. Potter's discussion of Nyaya logic is also quite unnecessary and doesn't quite fit with the structure of the textbook - many other criticisms could be made of the structure of this text.

Nonetheless, when it comes to the content, I think Potter is at his best when he is discussing Advaita Vedanta after Shankaracharya. He explains the various debates of the later Advaitins in a beautiful way, almost as good if not better than C.D. Sharma. But I wish I could say the same for the rest of the book: his discussion of Nagarjuna is particularly lacking, though he displays a good command over the Yogachara philosophers. Also, now that I think of it, I can't remember a single reference to Theravada Buddhism in the whole text, which is a shame.

[A. B.]

Not a bad read, but I regret my interests flitted to other pastures a third of the way through.