[INDOLOGY] ODP: Direct Realism of Nyāya

[Alex Watson]

Dear All

On the question of the extent to which the Vaibhāṣika view was 'direct
realism', see footnote 5 of the attached article, referring to:
Sharf, R. H. (2018), “Knowing Blue: Early Buddhist Accounts of
Non-Conceptual Sense,” Philosophy East and West, 68 (3): 826–70.

Yours
Alex
--
Alex Watson
Professor of Indian Philosophy, Ashoka University
*https://ashokauniversity.academia.edu/AlexWatson
<https://ashokauniversity.academia.edu/AlexWatson>*

On Fri, Jun 14, 2024 at 1:05 PM Matthew Kapstein via INDOLOGY <
indology at list.indology.info> wrote:

> Dear Olena,
>
> Your comment "the *nirākāra-(jñāna-)vāda* (advocated by the Naiyāyikas,
> the Mīmāṃsakas, the Jainas, and the Vaibhāṣika Buddhists) can be called
> direct realism" very well illustrates the point I was making. Although
> these schools "can be called direct realism," it is not at all clear that
> they all mean the same thing. For the Vaibhāṣika Buddhists, in particular,
> what we "directly" perceive are primitive phenomena - the dharmas of color,
> sound, odor, etc. - and the pots and pans of everyday life are constructed
> on the basis of these primitives. This doesn't look much like what
> philosophers are usually speaking of when they discuss "direct realism." I
> also ask whether the Vaibhāṣika in fact described their own view as
> *nirākāravāda*, or whether that description was merely applied to them by
> later doxographers.
>
> The doxographical categories, whether Indian (like *nirākāra-(jñāna-)vāda*)
> or Western (like "direct realism") may sometimes obscure more than they
> reveal.
>
> Matthew T. Kapstein
> Professor emeritus
> Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, PSL Research University, Paris
>
> Associate
> The University of Chicago Divinity School
>
> https://ephe.academia.edu/MatthewKapstein
>
> https://vajrabookshop.com/product/the-life-and-work-of-auleshi/
>
>
> https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501716218/tibetan-manuscripts-and-early-printed-books-volume-i/#bookTabs=1
>
>
> https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501771255/tibetan-manuscripts-and-early-printed-books-volume-ii/#bookTabs=1
>
> https://brill.com/edcollbook/title/60949
>
> Sent with Proton Mail <https://proton.me/> secure email.
>
> On Friday, June 14th, 2024 at 1:06 PM, Ołena Łucyszyna via INDOLOGY <
> indology at list.indology.info> wrote:
>
> Dear Lee Ling,
>
> the *nirākāra-(jñāna-)vāda* (advocated by the Naiyāyikas, the Mīmāṃsakas,
> the Jainas, and the Vaibhāṣika Buddhists) can be called direct realism. The
> earliest text that formulates the* nirākāra *standpoint and sparks the
> *nirākāra*—*sākāra* debate is probably Śabara’s *Śābarabhāṣya* (to be
> more precise, the Vṛttikāra’s commentary cited by Śabara in* Śābarabhāṣya* I,
> 1, 5). Śabara’s commentator Kumārila Bhaṭṭa presents well-developed
> argumentation for the *nirākāra-vāda *in his *Ślokavārttika *(V, 4, the *Śūnyavāda
> *section). These two sources belong to Mīmāṃsā. The Nyāya source
> advocating the *nirākāra-vāda* I am familiar with is Bhaṭṭa Jayanta’s *Nyāyamañjarī.
> * For Bhaṭṭa Jayanta’s defence of the *nirākāra-vāda*, see
>
> Kataoka, K. (2003). Critical edition of the *Vijñānādvaitavāda* section
> of Bhaṭṭa Jayanta’s *Nyāyamañjarī*.
> https://www2.lit.kyushu-u.ac.jp/~kkataoka/Kataoka/NMvijR.pdf.
> Watson, A., & Kataoka, K. (2010). Bhaṭṭa Jayanta’s refutation of the
> Yogācāra Buddhist doctrine of Vijñānavāda: Annotated translation and
> analysis. *South Asian Classical Studies*, *5*, 285–352.
>
> This is one of many valuable publications I can recommend: Sinha, J.
> (1938). *Indian realism*. Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner & Co.
>
> The *nirākāra-vāda* can be called direct realism, but the *sākāra-vāda*
> has no correspondence in Western philosophy. The *sākāra-vāda *encompasses
> two very different theories: indirect realism (representationalism) and
> phenomenalism.
>
> With best regards,
> Olena
> --
> Ołena Łucyszyna, Dr. habil., Professor of the Institute
> <http://www.iksiopan.pl/index.php/en/structure/research-staff/867-olena-lucyszyna-phd-dr-habil>
> of Mediterranean and Oriental Cultures
> Polish Academy of Sciences
> Nowy Świat 72
> 00-330 Warsaw
> ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6972-649X
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
> *Od:* INDOLOGY <indology-bounces at list.indology.info> w imieniu
> użytkownika Lee Ling Ting via INDOLOGY <indology at list.indology.info>
> *Wysłane:* piątek, 14 czerwca 2024 10:06
> *Do:* Indology List <indology at list.indology.info>
> *Temat:* [INDOLOGY] Direct Realism of Nyāya
>
> Dear members of the list,
>
> Greetings!
> I have a question to ask.
> What are some of the earliest Nyāya sources that * explicitly *spell out that
> Naiyāyikas uphold direct realism (not just realism)? I'd appreciate it if
> you could point me in the right direction.
> Thank you!
>
> Best regards,
> Lee Ling
>
>
>
>
>
>
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* <https://ashokauniversity.academia.edu/AlexWatson>*
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