In Indian philosophical traditions, a reflection in a mirror frequently serves as a metaphor, suggesting that just as a face in a mirror appears where it is not, so does consciousness. Mirror of ...Nature, Mirror of Self utilizes this metaphor to address metaphysical, epistemological, and theological problems within non-reductionist approaches to consciousness. Author Dimitry Shevchenko contends that consciousness and its properties--such as the sense of self, subjectivity, and experience of qualia--stand in falsely perceived relations to cognitive and perceptive processes. This book explores models of interaction between consciousness, the mind-body complex, and the world in the philosophical schools of S=a.mkhya, Yoga, and Advaita-Vedant. In a dialogue with psychoanalytical theory and analytic philosophy of mind, Shevchenko defends a new model of consciousness, integrating consciousness-mind dualism, mind naturalism, and representationalism about consciousness. Despite the overwhelming presence of pratibimbavadas, or "theories of reflection", in major philosophical traditions in India, they have received little scholarly attention. Mirror of Nature, Mirror of Self is the first systematic exploration of mirror models of consciousness across traditions. By grounding these theories in their historical intellectual context, Shevchenko contributes to an intense philosophical conversation between Indian reductionists and non-reductionists about consciousness. The book explores the impact of Indian mirror models on theories of mental representation, theories of knowledge, philosophy of language, debates on illusory causality and the relationship between noumena and phenomena, as well as soteriological and theological theories. Finally, by comparing mirror models of consciousness in Indian philosophy with Jacques Lacan's theory of the mirror stage and by engaging with theories of consciousness in analytic philosophy, this study contributes to contemporary debates across philosophical disciplines. This is an open access title. It is available to read and download as a free PDF version on the Oxford Academic platform. It has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 International licence.
A reductionist view of mental health tends to give limited results. While some important benefits are still achieved, other key elements are left unaddressed. These gaps tend to wipe out the gains ...which were made by focusing on the dominant aspects of mental health that are promoted by a reductionist view. This paper explores such gaps by looking at those healing traditions which view health and wellness from a broader perspective. Through the live experience of such traditions the paper tries to illustrate how the deeper aspects of mental health are also relevant. The paper attempts to argue that diverse cultures have inbuilt repositories of existential wisdom which can help in promoting and maintaining positive mental health through a conceptual exploratory analysis.
This work is an in-depth study on the philosophy of Madhva, the Dvaita Vedānta. The Dvaita tradition, which chronologically comes after Advaita and Viśiṣṭādvaita, is one of the great Vedāntic ...schools. Madhva was a Hindu philosopher of the 12th century belonging to the Vaiṣṇava tradition, and emphatically established that Viṣṇu alone is the focal point of entire Vedic writings by employing an unparalleled hermeneutical technique known as "parama-mukhya-vṛtti" (the super-primary meaning) in all his writings. This study unearths this singular concept with the help of Madhva's commentaries and related Dvaita literature.The book explores Madhva's method of hermeneutics and exegetical patterns. It focuses on the first chapter of Brahmasūtras and Madhva's application of parama-mukhya-vṛtti. It further discusses the hermeneutical issues in some commentaries and independent works of Madhva. The work suggests steps to apply parama-mukhya-vṛtti to different religious texts, taking into account many Western continental thinkers who strike a chord with the thinking of Madhva. It employs an exegetico-interpretative method, and approaches Madhva's original writings, particularly the notion of parama-mukhya-vṛtti, through exegesis, showing its relevance through interpretation.This research will open up wide horizons by providing a new methodology to interpret the sacred texts of any religious traditions. It will also contribute to Madhva scholarship by stimulating scholarly exchanges, discussions and deliberations. Moreover, it will facilitate inter-religious dialogue and understanding, particularly in the multi-religious context of India.
As a thinker and reformer of the period ascribed as the “Bengal Renaissance”, Swami Vivekananda is usually read and studied in the light of his impact on social andreligious reforms in India. This ...has elicited multiple responses to Vivekananda’s works and life ranging from profound spiriualism to political connotations. The latter again has come to be defined either in terms of eulogies for his contribution to social and political reforms during colonial rule or, much recently owing to postcolonial studies, in terms of omplicity with colonial presumptions about the Orient such as the “effeminate Bengalee”. The latter variety of critical discourse has come to closely resemble what Partha Chatterjee has aptly described as “derivative discourse”. However, my principal contention in this paper is that while the derivative nature of Vivekanada’s discourse has good enough claims to be made in its favour particularly when considered from the historical and social contexts of their formulation, its resistive potential as an anti-colonial intellectual exercise is too often missed due to a lack of serious textual engagement with them. This paper will attempt to focus on the textual aspect of Vivekanda’s thought that establishes not only its critique to the foundations of Western discourse on logic, science and politics, but also identify possible sites of subversion of these foundations in the light of Vedantic interpretation.
Abstract It is argued that when it comes to the hard problem of consciousness neutral monism beats out the competition. It is further argued that neutral monism provides a unique route to a novel ...type of panentheism via Advaita Vedanta Hinduism.
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