Elisa Freschi

Rethinking Classical Dialectical Traditions

This essay debates the way Daya Krishna reinterpreted some dialectic elements of classical Indian philosophy, with a special focus on “dialogue” and “counterposition.” The essay subsequently analyses the consequence of this reinterpretation on contemporary Indian philosophy.1

M\=im\=a\d{m}s\=a deontic logic: proof theory and applications

Starting with the deontic principles in Măi¾źmăi¾źai¾źi¾źsăi¾ź texts we introduce a new deontic logic. We use general proof-theoretic methods to obtain a cut-free sequent calculus for this logic, resulting in decidability, complexity results and neighbourhood semantics. The latter is used to analyse a well known example of conflicting obligations from the Vedas.

There is no “East”: Deconstructing the idea of Asia and rethinking the disciplines working on it

This introduction summarises the steps which led the scholars grouped in the Coffee Break group to undertake the project and then accompanied them from the awareness of the need to deconstruct the idea of geographic boundaries and, consequently, of area studies such as “Indology” or “South Asian studies”, to the need to deconstruct disciplines such as “Philology” or “Literature” themselves, since they are also historically and culturally loaded and risk to tell one more about their subjects than about their alleged objects of study. This pars destruens is followed by a pars construens suggesting as an alternative a situated epistemology which refutes to essentialise the “Other” and, on a more practical level, by the constant implementation of team work.

There is only “Philosophy”: The case of testimony

The present introduction summarises the debate on the epistemological value of testimony, with a special focus on the reductionism vs. antireductionism polemics, and situates Indian philosophers within it. One thus sees that some Indian philosophical schools (especially Vaiśeṣika and Buddhist epistemology) attempted to reduce testimony to another, more fundamental, instrument of knowledge, typically to inference, whereas others (especially Mīmāṃṣā and Nyāya) emphasised the independent nature of testimony. The study then moves to the problem of the criteria for a reliable speaker and discusses border-line cases, such as that of speaking instruments (computers, clocks and the like). Finally, it looks at some promising and open-ended topics evoked by the Indian-European dialogue on testimony.

Măźmăźáźźsăź Deontic Logic: Proof Theory and Applications

Starting with the deontic principles in Măi¾źmăi¾źai¾źi¾źsăi¾ź texts we introduce a new deontic logic. We use general proof-theoretic methods to obtain a cut-free sequent calculus for this logic, resulting in decidability, complexity results and neighbourhood semantics. The latter is used to analyse a well known example of conflicting obligations from the Vedas.

Mīmāṃsā Deontic Logic: Proof Theory and Applications

Starting with the deontic principles in Măi¾źmăi¾źai¾źi¾źsăi¾ź texts we introduce a new deontic logic. We use general proof-theoretic methods to obtain a cut-free sequent calculus for this logic, resulting in decidability, complexity results and neighbourhood semantics. The latter is used to analyse a well known example of conflicting obligations from the Vedas.