Philosophy

Why is Buddhist philosophy consistently ignored by contemporary Western philosophers, especially when there is so much truth and logic to the epistemological and metaphysical systems of the traditions, such as the Madhyamaka school?

Comments

Thank you for your message. I don't fully agree that Buddhist philosophy is consistently ignored by contemporary Western philosophers. While Buddhist philosophy is not a topic in the main stream of philosophical discussion in Western, English speaking countries, it does garner some attention. For instance, the philosopher Jonathan Stoltz at the University of St. Thomas has published articles such as the following:

"Buddhist Epistemology: The Study of Pramana," Religion Compass 3 (2009), 537-548

"Concepts, Intention, and Identity in Tibetan Philosophy of Language," Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 29 (2008), 383-400

"Gettier and Factivity in Indo-Tibetan Epistemology," The Philosophical Quarterly 57 (2007),
394-415

"Sakya Pandita and the Status of Concepts," Philosophy East & West 56 (2006), 567-582

So too, Mark Siderits (now teaching in Hong Kong, I believe) has written excellent book, _Buddhism as Philosophy_, that covers many themes that may interest you. These are just two examples among many. As more philosophers realize that Buddhism is in many respects more like an intellectual project than a religion, and as more primary texts become accessible in English, I suspect interest will continue to grow.

Mitch Green

Read another response by Mitch Green

Read another response about Philosophy