Nāgārjuna's Critique of Language
Asian Philosophy 20 (2):159-174 (2010)
| Abstract | This essay attempts to provide a systematic reconstruction of Nāgārjuna's philosophical thought by understanding it as a critique of the attachment to linguistic expressions and their referents. We first present an outline of Nāgārjuna's philosophy, centering on such notions as 'dependent origination', 'emptiness' and 'self-nature'. Then we discuss Nāgārjuna's dismissal of a metaphysical use of language, particularly his contention that language can function well without assuming the reality of its referents. We also consider his statement that he has no assertion and explain his provisional use of language. Towards the end of the essay, we direct our attention to a paradoxical formula in a Buddhist sutra that should help in evaluating the contemporary significance of Nāgārjuna's linguistic critique | |||||||||
| Keywords | emptiness Nāgārjuna critique of language provisional expression | |||||||||
| Categories | ||||||||||
| Options |
|
|||||||||
Download options| PhilPapers Archive |
Upload a copy of this paper Check publisher's policy on self-archival Papers currently archived: 5,672 |
| External links |
 |
| Through your library | Configure |
Similar books and articlesJay Garfield (1995). The Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way: Nāgārjuna's Mūlamadhyamakakārikā. Oxford University Press.
Jan Westerhoff (2008). Nāgārjuna's Arguments on Motion Revisited. Journal of Indian Philosophy 36 (4).
Vicente Fatone (1981). The Philosophy of Nāgārjuna. Motilal Banarsidass.
Abraham Vélez de Cea (2005). Emptiness in the Pāli. Philosophy East and West 55 (4).
David R. Loy (1999). Language Against its Own Mystifications: Deconstruction in Nāgārjuna and Dōgen. Philosophy East and West 49 (3):245-260.
John Schroeder (2000). Nāgārjuna and the Doctrine of "Skillful Means". Philosophy East and West 50 (4):559-583.
Abraham Vélez De Cea (2005). Emptiness in the Pāli Suttas and the Question of Nāgārjuna's Orthodoxy. Philosophy East and West 55 (4):507 - 528.
Chien-Hsing Ho (2012). The Nonduality of Speech and Silence: A Comparative Analysis of Jizang’s Thought on Language and Beyond. Dao: A Journal of Comparative Philosophy 11 (1):1-19.
Analytics
Monthly downloads |
Added to index2010-08-11Total downloads33 ( #36,535 of 549,068 )Recent downloads (6 months)3 ( #25,703 of 549,068 )How can I increase my downloads? |
My notes
Discussion
