Classical Indian Philosophy: Self, Knowledge, and Liberation

Learning Outcomes

Knowledge and Understanding

Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:

• Appreciating the richness of the classical Indian philosophical tradition and the significance of its ideas to contemporary philosophy.
• Understanding some of the main arguments and counter-arguments put forward by figures in the different schools of classical Indian philosophy.
• Learning some of the central texts, schools, figures, and ideas in classical Indian philosophy

Transferable and Generic Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

• Demonstrate enhanced skills in essay writing, planning and research.
• Scrutinize complex texts and extract from them key information.

Subject Specific Intellectual and Research Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

• Articulate and defend your own views about the topics discussed by classical Indian philosophers.
• Critically examine the ideas and reasoning of different schools of classical Indian philosophy.
• Relate views and arguments in classical Indian metaphysics, epistemology, logic, philosophy of mind, and ethics to ideas in the western philosophical tradition.

The syllabus may vary from year to year. It may include:

• Selections from the Vedas and Upaniṣads.
• Selections from the Pali Canon of Buddhism and the Perfection of Wisdom sutras.
• Original texts and commentaries by writers of sutras and commentaries in schools such as Nyāya, Pūrva-Mīmāṃsā, Sāṃkhya, Jainism, and Buddhism. Such figures may include Jaimini, Gautama Akṣapāda, Nāgārjuna, Vasubandhu, Vātsyāyana, Dignāga, Candrakīrti, Kumārila Bhaṭṭa, Dharmakīrti, Śāntideva, Śaṅkara, Jayarāśi, Śrīharṣa, and Gaṅgeśa.
• The metaphysics and philosophy of mind of the Brahmanical schools, with a focus on their views about fundamental reality (brahman) and the self (ātman).
• The metaphysics and philosophy of mind of Buddhist schools, with a focus on the ideas of No-Self, Emptiness, and Dependent Origination.
• The epistemology and logic of philosophers in the Nyāya, Pūrva-Mīmāṃsā, and Buddhist schools.
• The practices and ethical ideas of Brahmanical and Ṡramaṇa schools, including vegetarianism and asceticism.

Teaching and learning methods

Teaching methods include

• Lectures
• In-class discussion
• One-to-one consultation with module co-ordinator

Learning activities include

• Attending classes
• Contribution to class discussion
• Doing independent research for and writing assessed work

Resources & Reading list

Textbooks

Jonardon Ganeri (2017). The Oxford Handbook of Indian Philosophy. Oxford University Press.

Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan and Charles A. Moore (1989). A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy. Princeton University Press.

Jonardon Ganeri (2001). Philosophy in Classical India. Routledge.

Sue Hamilton (2001). Indian Philosophy: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press.

Roy W. Perrett (2016). An Introduction to Indian Philosophy. Oxford University Press.

Formative

This is how we’ll give you feedback as you are learning. It is not a formal test or exam.

Summative

This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.

Referral

This is how we’ll assess you if you don’t meet the criteria to pass this module.

Repeat

An internal repeat is where you take all of your modules again, including any you passed. An external repeat is where you only re-take the modules you failed.

Repeat Information

Repeat type: Internal & External