Kant's first critique in Sanskrit—प्रमितिप्रकारानुक्रमणिका

गणितमिति प्रमाणमूलम्, यच्च गणितेन प्रमितम्, तत् सुस्थमेव । सुस्थत्वं तु न प्रमितवस्त्वपेक्षं किन्तु प्रमात्रपेक्षमिति प्रागुक्तम् ।
अत एव यद्यत् वस्तुविषये प्रमितम् (यथा द्रव्यत्वम्, संख्या, करणत्वमित्यादि), तत्सर्वम् प्रमातर्येवाध्यवस्यते ।
तस्मात् प्रमातर्येव करणत्वेत्यादिप्रमितिप्रकाराः सन्ति । यथाहि −अग्निर्धूमस्य करणमितिप्रमितेर् मूलम् नाग्निधूमौ, किन्तु प्रमातुः करणत्वप्रमितिप्रकाराः ("categories") ।
काः प्रमितिप्रकाराः ? भूतकाले यवनदेशे, प्रसिद्धदर्शनिकारिस्तोतेलेस्-महोदयेन निर्णयानामनुक्रमणिका लिखिता । एष तस्यानुक्रमणिका−

(Aristotle's categories, वीकिपेद्य)

कन्तमहोदयस्य प्रमितिप्रकाराणामनुक्रमणिका तत्सादृशी, परन्तु कन्तमहोदयस्यानुक्रमाणिका प्रमातुः प्रमितिप्रकाराणामस्ति, वस्त्वनपेक्षा च ।

Kant's categories

न्यायवैशेषिकानां पदार्थानुक्रमणिकारिस्तोतेलेस-महोदयस्य निर्णयानुक्रमणिका सादृशी । उभे वस्तुनः वर्णनम्, प्रमात्रनपेक्षं च ।

General rules on comments on an Indological blog (like mine)

I do not believe in censuring thoughts and in general I will publish whatever is sent to the blog.

However, I expect from the reader that he or she is making a point.
If they want to insult me, they can use my personal email (just click on my name in the left column).
If they want to warn other people because of some mistake I made, this is more than fine (see, e.g., Dominik Wujastyk's comment here) and it has several advantages, because it makes other people aware of my mistakes. However, in order to fruitfully contribute to the discussion, they should point out what the mistake is. Just writing "it is all wrong" does not help the reader. If you think it is important to tell me that I am wrong and you don't want to explain why, you should send your comment to me alone.

UPDATE: The same holds also for replies to other comments. I probably feel some hidden pleasure in reading criticisms (of the sort "I can learn from it"), but I know that this does not apply to everyone else. Thus, I will strive to create an atmosphere suitable for fruitful discussions and might even delete comments if they seem to aim just at offending others, without making any contribution.

What do you think? Which comments help you?

South-Asian, philosophical and theological reviews on Amazon

I am listing here the reviews I have posted on Amazon until today. The purpose is to present a short summary of the main good and weak points of a book, so that one can figure out whether to read it or not. Furthermore, I will discuss both "Indological" books and books on philosophy (without geographic boundaries). Who knows, maybe there are other readers out there whose interests are not confined to the arbitrarily chosen geographic boundaries of "India" or "Germany" etc.

Review of Comparative Theology, by Francis Xavier Clooney (an interesting summary on a key topic; but it does not add much to F.X. Clooney's previous great works on this topic ---thus, read it as an introduction, but avoid it if you have already read other comparative works by him).

Review of The Logic of Commands, by Nicholas Rescher (if you have followed my posts on prescriptions you will know why I picked it up. Rescher's attempt is in many ways comparable to Maṇḍana's way of reducing prescriptions to assertions).

Review of Reflexion und Ritual in der Pūrvamīmāṃsā, by Lars Göhler (a great book, one that is worth reading even if your German is rosty, if only you are interested in Mīmāṃsā and/or the Veda and/or Indian philosophy).

Review of Penser l'Autorité des Écritures, by Vincent Eltschinger (a wonderful attempt of explaining philosophy through history without becoming a reductionist or a Marxist).

Review of The Vākyārthamātṛkā of Śālikanātha Miśra, by Rajendra Nath Sharma (the first English translation of a fundamental text –unfortunately not flawless).

Review of Kumārila on Truth, Omniscience and Killing, by Kei Kataoka (just a great book by a great Mīmāṃsaka, reliable and insightful).

Review of Re-use. The Art and Politics of Integration and Anxiety, by Julia Hegewald and Subrata K. Mitra (eds.) (a very interesting example of bridging disciplines on a thought-provoking topic).

Did you read any of these books? I would be glad to read your comments (here or at the reviews).

For my posts on commands, check the tags "prescription" and "Maṇḍana". For my more detailed comments on Eltschinger's book, see this post and the ones directly following it. For further considerations on reviews in Amazon (etc.), see this post. For further comments on Julia Hegewald and Subrata Mitra's Re-use, see this post.

Kant's first Kritik in Sanskrit? प्रवेशनम्

किम् कन्त्-महोदयस्य [Immanuel Kant] दर्शनं संस्कृतभाषायां व्याख्येयम् ? अवश्यम् ।

गणितादिनामर्थाः युक्ता इति केन प्रकारेण साध्यम् ? एतत्साधनं कन्त्-महोदयस्य प्रथमं, प्रधानं च प्रयोजनम् ।
 तथाभूतं साधनं ज्ञेयापेक्षं ज्ञात्रपेक्षं वा भवितुमर्हति । अा कन्त-महोदयात्,  साधनं सर्वदा ज्ञेयापेक्षमभूत् । यथा −अारिस्तोतेलेस्-महोदयः " द्रव्य-गुण-कर्मेत्यादयः पिण्डानामेव सन्ति । लोके पुरुषा न भवेयुश्चेत् तथापि द्रव्यादयः अवतिष्ठेयुः" इति मतः । परन्तु, संभवति यत् सर्वं विकल्पं भवति; केवलं ज्ञाता सिद्धो ऽस्तीति देस्कर्तेस्-महोदयेन [Réné Descartes] दर्शितम् । अत एव कन्त्-महोदयेन कोपेर्निकुस् [Nicolaus Copernicus] इव परिणामः कृतः । "यथैव न सूर्यः पृिथवीम्परिवर्तते, किन्तु पृथिवीः सूर्यमिति कोपेर्निकुस्-महोदयेन दर्शितम्, तथैव गणितादीनां सिद्धता न ज्ञेयापेक्षं किन्तु ज्ञात्रपेक्षमित्यहं दर्शयितुमिच्छामीति" कन्त्-महोदयः मतः ।

संस्कृतदर्शनेष्वपि "ज्ञाननैरपेक्ष्यं न किंचिदेवास्ति" इति विज्ञानवादिनः । तेषां कृते तु गणितादिनां सिद्धता न महात्वपूर्णा । तेषां मते गणितादय केवलं विकल्पाः स्यूः इति संभवति । परन्तु प्रमानेन विकल्पस्य भेदो ऽस्त्येवेति ते ऽपि मन्यन्ते । कुतो भेदः कुत्र प्रमाणानां सिद्धता ? अग्रे वक्ष्यामि ।

Comparing Hinduism and Christianity: F.X. Clooney

Review of Comparative Theology. Deep Learning Across Religious Borders (F.X. Clooney, S.J.) Wiley-Blackwell 2010

This is a relatively short (171 pp, references excluded) introduction to the field of comparative theology. It is a book Clooney ---in his own admission--- has long refused to write, thinking that comparative theology is a practice rather than a theory. Consequently, it is a book that generalises the methodology and ideas about comparative theology which he developed in his other comparative works, such as Beyond Compare. Thus, a reader who has read Clooney's work and is expecting some extraordinary new statements might be disappointed. The book is rather a concise summary, establishing (in decreasing order of importance, judging from the space dedicated to them by Clooney):

1. a) that comparative theology is not a comparative study of religions, since it is grounded in faith. It is a faith seeking understanding through the boundaries of different religions, but which remains faithful to its first commitment. (This is by far the most frequently repeated point throughout the book, which in many senses could be described as an apology of comparative theology).
2. b) that one has to make one's presuppositions explicit. Clooney is extremely honest in explaining his background and his first encounter with Hinduism. Nonetheless, the point seemed to the present reader even clearer when, in the Preface of Beyond Compare, Clooney wrote that his personal connection to the topic of the book was a legitimate part of the Introduction, and not of the preface, since it was part of his scientific enterprise and not accessory to it. (This point is quite stressed at the beginning, but then fades).
3. c) that comparative theology is not incompatible with (Catholic) faith (p. 115: "God can speak to us in and through a tradition other than our own"). Clooney at times even hints at the fact that it is part of God's providential design in this age of religious diversity (p. 149, p. 165). And, in any way, one should not be afraid of learning comparatively, since "[i]n Christ there need not be any fear of what we might learn; there is only the Truth that sets us free'' (p. 165).

This last point might lead one to a further consequence: in our contemporary age of religious diversity, is comparative theology only legitimate or is it also unavoidable? Clooney explicitly argues in favour of the former claim and his stress on the extraordinary requirements of a comparative theologians might make one think that only a small élite can take the path of comparative theology (see pp. 154--158). On the other hand, in his conclusion Clooney goes (back?) to the idea that "Theology is an academic discipline, but fruitful theological reflection can be carried forward by anyone who seeks, in faith, to understand'' (p. 163).

Since the first chapters are dedicated to the claim that it is possible and legitimate to study comparatively, less space is dedicated to the difficulties of such study. However, when these difficulties are hinted at, the book becomes more intriguing. One learns, for instance, that notwithstanding Clooney's emphasis on the need to return to one's own community and enrich it with what one has learnt by doing comparative theology, "the return home may be more difficult than we might wish''. For, ''[a]s we learn honestly, extrinsic or simplistic reasons for staying in our own religion may evaporate" (p. 156). Or, more concretely, that "it was difficult to read [Vedānta Deśika's] Essence (Śrīmadrahasyatrayasāra) and [Francis de Sales'] Treatise [on the love of God] together, precisely because each is a formidable classic, expressive of a complete religious world that may be taken as exclusive" (p. 126).

Furthermore, readers interested in Hinduism will find here some insightful pages summarising Clooney's works on Śrī Vaiṣṇavism. Pages 130--148 are especially dedicated to the claim, found in the Bhagavadgītā and then frequent in Vaiṣṇava literature, that God comes to His worshippers according to the form in which they love Him or Her. Such passages have never been used by Vaiṣṇava authors ---so Clooney--- in order to justify a comparative enterprise along the lines of the passage at p. 115 quoted in point c). However, they could be understood as a Vaiṣṇava legitimation of comparative practices. Clooney's examples of practical comparative theology are stimulating and one can understands why he frequently repeats throughout the book that comparative theology is done more than it is theorised.

I frequently discuss with people who tell me that they are not interested in comparatism. Do you share this view? If so, why? Is it really possible to work and live in separate worlds, without comparing them?

On my personal campaign against implicit methodologies, which makes me see with much favour Clooney's openness, see this post. For my praise of another book by Clooney, namely Thinking Ritually, see this post.

Price of (my) book

How much should a book cost? And, are we still ready to spend some money in books, now that almost everything is available on line or in a digital form?

In a post of some days ago, I announced that a new book of mine has been published. Further information can be found here.
Now, admitting you have glanced the page, you will have probably also noticed the horrible news of its price. Personally, I am quite convinced of the importance of sharing information, but I also understand that a publisher does add value to a book. In my case, the published copy has far less typos and a big mistake less; is more consistent as for editorial conventions, bibliographical information, etc.; and it looks much better, thus being more readable.

Having in view the fact that Indologists are by and large never rich enough to afford all the books they would like to read, I agreed with the publisher that they would have given forth more copies than usual for the purpose of review, even to individual scholars (i.e., not necessarily via a journal, but also to scholars willing to write a review and to propose it to a journal). Further, part of the book is available on googlebooks, a draft copy of the book is on my page on Academia (here) since several months. It is not the final copy (and there is still a mistake in the translation I only discovered later on). Thus, please read it if you like, but do not quote it. If, by contrast, you decided to buy it, let me know and I will thank you with a copy of something else I have written.


Last, I also thought of two experiments: I have a few (six) complementary copies. What about a barter-experiment? Your book for mine, in case we are both interested? And (this idea has been suggested to me by Aleix Ruiz Falqués): if you just want to read the book but you do not need to own it, you can email me and I will send you a copy, provided that you are ready to send the copy to someone else who is interested and so on.



What other strategies do you use to have your works accessible, without violating copyright?

My book on Prābhākara Mīmāṃsā has been just released!

The book is called Duty, language and exegesis in Prābhākara Mīmāṃsā: Including an edition and translation of Rāmānujācārya's Tantrarahasya, Śāstraprameyapariccheda, it is included in the Jerusalem Studies on the History of Religion Series and it is published by Brill, Leiden.

The book is an introduction to key concepts of Indian Philosophy, seen from the perspective of one of its most influential schools, the Prābhākara Mīmāṃsā, which flourished from the 7th until the 20th c. AD. The book includes the edition and translation of Rāmānujācārya's Śāstraprameyapariccheda, which is part of his Tantrarahasya (written in South India, after the 14th c.). The edition is based on the extant editions, an additional manuscript and most of all on a huge amount of the texts which have been Rāmānujācārya's sources. The Tantrarahasya has never been translated before and it is one of the clearest elaboration of the Prābhākara thought. Within it, the Śāstraprameyapariccheda focuses on the core content of the Veda in general (is it an exhortation? a duty? the fact that each sacrifice will bring you happiness, etc.?) and in particular (which hermeneutical rules should one implement while interpreting a Vedic passage?).

The book particularly aims at presenting the linguistic, deontic-ethic, hermeneutic and epistemo-logical thought of the Prābhākara Mīmāṃsā. Detailed glossary and indexes make it possible to use the book as a reference-tool for Indian philosophy and linguistics. At least this is what I hope.

You can find further information on the website of Brill, on this page. If you want to have a preliminary look at the book, you can read parts of it on googlebook or from this page on Indologica.de

I would be very happy to read your comments on the book and also on its "paratext" (title, publishing house, series…), here or directly to me.