CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2019
| Author | Aklan, Anna Katalin |
|---|---|
| Title | Wandering Lotuses: Parallel Philosophical Illustrations in Late Antique Greek and in Indian Philosophies |
| Summary | “As the lotus wanders from one pond to another without any means of conveyance” – compares Śaṅkara the creative activity of Brahman to an assemblage of lotuses which appear without any perceivable means of transfer in a pond where previously there were none, most probably from another pond where they have been seen before. The title of this dissertation is an allusion to the same or similar philosophical examples that are present in Late Antique Greek and in Indian philosophies separately, without any explicit means of transfer. Similarly to Śaṅkara’s unrefuted opponents, in the dissertation we attempt to give a logical explanation to these parallels. In our approach to comparative philosophy, this study engages in questions of historical influence between philosophical texts. Other types of philosophical, i.e. structural, conceptual, or phenomenological comparisons are also justified, which consciously avoid the question of influence. The present research, however, is explicitly dedicated to the question of influence from India to Greece, or vice versa, and as such, is intended to be a continuation of previous work done by other scholars regarding the texts examined here. The dissertation comprises two case studies in comparative Late Antique and Indian philosophies. The first one focuses on two similar passages in the work of Porphyry (233–305 CE), Neoplatonist philosopher, and Śaṅkara (cc. 8th century CE), the most illustrious representative of Advaita Vedānta philosophy. The similarities, discovered by Émile Bréhier in the 1950s, are studied for the first time in their original languages. The polemical texts refute the idea of the creation of the world, while maintaining its ontological dependency on the highest principle. Due to a detailed textual and contextual comparison, the conclusion is drawn that the similarities on the surface do not involve structural and conceptual connection between the two texts. The parallels are mostly confined to metaphorical ways of expression, which, on the other hand, undoubtedly exist. These metaphors that are present in both texts were most probably due to intellectual exchange – even if not due to influence out of textual contact but most probably due to verbal communication. Both texts are deeply embedded in their own traditions and display several layers of previous philosophies. It is difficult to tell in what period the parallel expressions were transferred from one culture to the other. It seems practical to postulate a “common pool” of philosophical expressions, a certain distinct philosophical language, which was available to philosophers of both cultures. Various authors used these metaphors as building blocks in the expression of their theories – they used them as it best fitted their purposes. The second case study is concerned with the writings of Sextus Empiricus (2nd–3rd centuries CE), Sceptic philosopher, whose works show a remarkable plenitude of similar elements that occur abundantly within various kinds of Indian philosophies. Following Aram M. Frenkian’s investigation, our study re-examines the three elements identified by Frenkian as Indian influences in Sextus’ oeuvre: the smoke-fire illustration, the snake-rope analogy, and the quadrilemma. The same elements, among others, were identified by Thomas McEvilley as evidence of Greek influence upon Madhyamaka Buddhism. After inspecting the supposedly earliest occurrences in both Greek and Indian philosophy and literature, we have to acknowledge, at least until other evidence occurs, that these three elements are not indicators of borrowing – they probably form part of the shared metaphors and ways of expressions described above. There is one exception, however, in the case of the smoke-fire example used in the theory of signs, when not only the illustration but the whole theory is present in both traditions – but due to lack of other evidence and especially, due to the lack of clearly determined chronologies, it is difficult to assess the actual type and cause of intertextuality. The dissertation provides historical and theoretical background to the philosophical comparisons: the well-known and vivid trade relations between the Mediterranean and India in the first centuries of the Common Era, and the Indian presence in Egypt, also the Greek-speaking merchants staying temporarily in Indian ports, together with possibly the descendants of Greeks from the time of the Indo-Greek and Bactrian kingdoms, made exchange of philosophical ideas, and even more, diffusion of ways of expression possible. The study is placed within the theoretical background of the Mediterraneist& #x2013;thalasso logical approach suggested by Braudel, Horden and Purcell. |
| Supervisor | Perczel, Istvan (CEU); Ruzsa, Ferenc (ELTE) |
| Department | Medieval Studies PhD |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2019/aklan_anna.pdf |
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