Controversial Reasoning in Indian Philosophy

<i>Arthâpatti</i> is a pervasive form of reasoning investigated by Indian philosophers in order to think about unseen causes and interpret ordinary and religious language. Its nature is a point of controversy among Mimamsa Nyaya and Buddhist philosophers yet to date it has received less attention than perception inference and testimony. <br/><br/>This collection presents a one-of-a-kind reference resource for understanding this form of reasoning studied in Indian philosophy. Assembling translations of central primary texts together with newly-commissioned essays on research topics it features a significant introductory essay. Readable translations of Sanskrit works are accompanied by critical notes that introduce <i>arthâpatti</i> offer historical context and clarify the philosophical debates surrounding it.<br/><br/>Showing how <i>arthâpatti</i> is used as a way to reason about the basic unseen causes driving language use cause-and-effect relationships as well as to interpret ambiguous or figurative texts this book demonstrates the importance of this epistemic instrument in both contemporary Anglo-analytic and classical Indian epistemology language and logic.