In some ways this is a standard course on Buddhist Philosophy & Religion. The title Buddhist Tradition (I expanded it to Traditions) was given by another—an excellent—teacher. This is one of a number of courses that fits the bill of diversifying philosophy and engaging non-Western thought, hopefully, across Departments of Philosophy. San Francisco State University boasts perhaps the most extensive range of courses in non-Western philosophical traditions in all of California, and concomitantly attracts by far the highest enrolment in this area.
As an introductory course, PHIL 509 is modeled on similar courses in Chinese and Islamic philosophies taught in the department, in that it combines a healthy mix of readings, doctrines, and arguments derived from the classic canons as well as a range of secondary literature and commentaries thereof. It covers aspects of the historical development of Buddhist ideas and ideals to the critical, reconstructive, and deconstructive paradigms that evolved over some two millennia, from its origins in India to its strong presence in much of South-East Asia to China, Korea, and Japan. For example, classical Buddhist philosophy is often described as an ontologically reductionist doctrine propelled by the ‘Yogic-śramāṇic’ anti-metaphysical critical reaction to the prevailing Brahmanical paradigm (during Buddha’s time and after), with its quaint, almost Humean-Parfitian theory of ‘no-one home’ or no-self and emptiness theses bordering of eliminativism; and yet a theory of non-pervasive consciousness (‘store-consciousness’) that shimmers away in the texts as well as, more significantly, a forceful imperative to cultivate virtues (by way of observing stoical precepts and principles such as nonviolence), to be a ‘moral person’ and to serve all sentient beings with compassion and duty of self- and other- care. Through a series of in-class presentations and forum discussions, students are directed to formulate their critiques and counterfactual ramifications that help to unpack the conundrum and apparent paradoxical nature of Buddhist teachings on almost every front, including the Theory of Two Truths, dialetheism, or the seeming rejection of excluded middle if not also of the law of non-contradiction (especially with Nāgārjunian-fostered tetralemma).
The course also examines certain adoptions and adaptations of Buddhist thinking and mindfulness research in contemporary West—as well as resistance to the same in other quarters (among well-meaning philosophers, no less). Students are given class projects to examine the popularity of Buddhist values and teachings in modern times, why Buddhism has become so fashionable, and what kinds of social and ecological movements Buddhist practitioners from the East have been engaged in that make Buddhist philosophy relevant to our times; that is to say, from the perspective of practical ethics, global action policies, and cross-cultural philosophy of religion.
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Purushottama Bilimoria
Purushottama Bilimoria, PhD works in Indian & Cross-Cultural philosophy, Philosophy of Religion and Critical Thinking, and lectures at State University of San Francisco as well as Cal State Long Beach. Named as Lead Scientist of Purushottama Centre for Study of Indian Philosophy and Culture at Peoples' Friendship University (RUDN) of Russia, he is Principal Fellow at University of Melbourne, where he serves also as an Editor-in-Chief of Sophia, Journal of Dharma Studies, Sophia Studies in Cross-cultural Philosophy & Traditions (all with Springer). Recent publications include: History of Indian Philosophy (with A. Rayner, 2019), Religion and Sustainability (with R. D. Sherma, 2021), Contemplative Studies and Hinduism (with R. D. Sherma, 2021); Indian Ethics Vol. 2 (with A. Rayner & R. Sharma, 2022).
