The Metaphysical Foundation of Buddhism and Modern Science
The Metaphysical Foundations of Buddhism and Modern Science: Nagarjuna and Alfred North Whitehead
The Metaphysical Foundations of Buddhism and Modern Science: Nagarjuna and Alfred North Whitehead
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
15<br />
Section IX. European philosophy is founded upon Plato's dialogues, which<br />
in their methods are mainly an endeavour to elicit philosophic categories<br />
from a dialectic discussion <strong>of</strong> the meanings <strong>of</strong> language taken in<br />
combination with shrewd observation <strong>of</strong> the actions <strong>of</strong> man <strong>and</strong> <strong>of</strong> the<br />
forces <strong>of</strong> nature.<br />
But in one dialogue, the Sophist, Plato explicitely considers the methods<br />
<strong>of</strong> philosophy. One <strong>of</strong> his conclusions is to point out the limitations <strong>of</strong><br />
common speech. Mere dialectic, uncriticized is a fallacious instrument,<br />
the mark <strong>of</strong> the Sophist. For example, Plato insists that not-being is<br />
itself a form <strong>of</strong> being. Thus in philosophy linguistic discussion is a tool,<br />
but should never be a master. Language is imperfect both in its words<br />
<strong>and</strong> in its forms. Thus we discover two main errors to which philosophic<br />
method is liable, one is the uncritical trust in the adequacy <strong>of</strong> language,<br />
<strong>and</strong> the other is the uncritical trust in the strained attitude <strong>of</strong><br />
introspection as the basis for epistemology.<br />
But since the life-time <strong>of</strong> Plato nearly two <strong>and</strong> a half thous<strong>and</strong> years have<br />
intervened, including the continuous activity <strong>of</strong> European philosophic<br />
thought, pagan, Christian, secular. It is widely held that astable, wellknown<br />
philosophic vocabulary has been elaborated, <strong>and</strong> that in philosophic<br />
15