[INDOLOGY] Analogues to Anselm's Ontological Arguments in Indian Philosophy?

[Howard Resnick]

Dear Jeff,

There is a passage in the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu by Rūpa Gosvāmī which is a sort of variation on Anselm’s argument. Anselm of course is making an ontological argument for the existence itself of God, whereas Rūpa argues that Kṛṣṇa must be the most complete form or conception of God, in comparison to Nārāyaṇa, Śīva etc, because he possesses the greatest number of divine qualities.

What somehow connects Anselm and Rūpa, is that both assume that if God is infinitely great, then the greatest conception of God is closest to the truth. Anselm deploys this argument, of course, in assuming that existence itself is a positive attribute which must therefore be possessed by God.

Rūpa assumes existence and then argues in terms of other attributes. But both share the assumption that if God is infinitely great, then then greatest conception is closest to the truth. That is what connects them, in my view.

Thanks for the topic!

Best wishes,
Howard

> On Jun 23, 2024, at 12:17 PM, Jeffery Long via INDOLOGY <indology at list.indology.info> wrote:
> 
> Dear Colleagues,
> 
> Forgive me if this question has already been raised at some point on this list.
> 
> Are any of you aware of arguments developed in Indian philosophical systems akin to the ontological arguments for the existence of God raised by St. Anselm? The closest thing I can think of is Śaṅkara’s argument that existence is self-evident.
> 
> With much gratitude in advance,
> 
> Jeff
> 
> 
> Dr. Jeffery D. Long
> Carl W. Zeigler Professor of Religion, Philosophy, & Asian Studies
> School of Arts & Humanities
> Elizabethtown College
> Elizabethtown, PA
>  
> https://etown.academia.edu/JefferyLong
>  
> Series Editor, Explorations in Indic Traditions: Ethical, Philosophical, and Theological
> Lexington Books
>  
> “One who makes a habit of prayer and meditation will easily overcome all difficulties and remain calm and unruffled in the midst of the trials of life.”  (Holy Mother Sarada Devi)
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