In The Concealed Art of the Soul, Jonardon Ganeri presents a variety of perspectives on the nature of the self as seen by major schools of classical Indian philosophy. For Indian thinkers, a philosophical treatise about the self should not only reveal the truth about the nature of the soul, but should also engage the reader in a process of study and contemplation that will eventually lead to self-transformation. By combining careful attention to philosophical content and sensitivity to literary form, Ganeri deepens our understanding of some of the greatest works in Indian literary history. His magisterial survey includes the Upanisads, the Buddha's discourses, the epic Mahabharata, and the writings of Candrakirti, whose work was later to provide the foundation for Tibetan Buddhism. Ganeri argues that many Western theories of selfhood are not only present in these writings, but are developed to a high degree of sophistication, and that there are other ideas about the self found in the work of classical Indian thinkers which present-day analytic philosophers have not yet begun to explore. Scholars and students of philosophy and religious studies, particularly those with an interest in Indian and Western conceptions of the self, will find this book fascinating reading.
About the AuthorJonardon Ganeri is a philosopher who draws upon Indian, European and Ango-American sources in his work. He is currently Professor of Philosophy at the University of Sussex. He read Mathematics at Cambridge before commencing graduate studies in Philosophy at London and Oxford. He has been a Jacobsen Fellow in Philosophy at King's College London and a Spalding Fellow at Clare Hall Cambridge. As well as teaching at various Universities in Britain, he has held visiting professorships at the University of Chicago and the University of Pennsylvania.
ReviewsReview from previous edition an excellent example of what comparative philosophy can be at its best. * Don S. Levi, Asian Studies *
extraordinarily informative, well-written ... a remarkable achievement. * Raymond Martin, MIND *
Book InformationISBN 9780199658596
Author Jonardon GaneriFormat Paperback
Page Count 296
Imprint Oxford University PressPublisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 468g
Dimensions(mm) 233mm * 168mm * 16mm