Copyright by Matthew Roe Dasti 2010
The Dissertation Committee for Matthew Roe Dasti certifies that this is the approved version of the following dissertation:
Rational Belief in Classical India:
Nyāya’s Epistemology and Defense of Theism
Committee:
______
Stephen Phillips, Supervisor
______Daniel Bonevac
______Edwin Bryant
______Cory Juhl
______Robert Koons
______E. David Sosa
Rational Belief in Classical India:
Nyāya’s Epistemology and Defense of Theism
by
Matthew Roe Dasti, B.A.; M.A.
Dissertation
Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of
The University of Texas at Austin
in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements
for the Degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
The University of Texas at Austin
May 2010
Preface
As I get older, it becomes increasingly clear to me that one person’s successes invariably depend on the shared sacrifices of many others. In light of this, I’d like first to thank my wife
Nandanie for her unfailing support and many sacrifices. Without her patience and encouragement, I would not have been able to complete this dissertation in a satisfactory way. I’d also like to thank my mother, Lynn Eick, for a lifetime of support. Third, I am both gratified and humbled to recall the kindness of those who offered me training and guidance throughout my undergraduate and graduate education. Specifically, I’d like to thank Martha
Bolton, Robert Bolton, Dan Bonevac, Henry W. Bowden, Edwin F. Bryant, Cory Juhl,
Robert Koons, Matt K. Matsuda, Stephen Phillips, David Sosa, and Paul Woodruff. Amongst these, I owe particular debts of gratitude to Professors Koons, Sosa, Woodruff, and most especially Phillips. Looking back over my education, I see that there is no way I could repay all of their efforts on my behalf. My hope is to serve my own students in the same spirit.
Professor Phillips, my dissertation advisor, has been a constant source of encouragement, stimulating philosophical discussion, and good direction. It would be difficult to adequately express my indebtedness to him. With immense gratitude, I dedicate this dissertation to my teachers.
Abstract
Rational Belief in Classical India: Nyāya’s Epistemology and Defense of Theism
Matthew Roe Dasti, Ph.D.
The University of Texas at Austin, 2010
Supervisor: Stephen Phillips
Nyāya is the premier realist school of philosophy in classical India. It is also the home of a sophisticated epistemology and natural theology . This dissertation presents a distinctive interpretation of Nyāya’s epistemology and considers how it may be developed in response to various classical and contemporary challenges. I argue that it is best understood as a type of reliabilism, provided relevant qualifications. Moreover, I show that a number of apparently distinct features of Nyāya’s approach to knowledge tightly cohere when seen as components of a thoroughgoing epistemological disjunctivism. I defend Nyāya epistemology as a viable contemporary option, illustrating how it avoids problems faced by generic reliabilism. In the second portion of the dissertation, I examine the way in which Nyāya’s knowledge sources (perception, inference, and testimony) are deployed in support of a theistic metaphysics, highlighting Nyāya’s principled extension of its views of knowledge acquisition. In an appendix, I provide a full translation and commentary on an argument for
God’s existence by Vācaspati Miśra (a 10 th century philosopher who is unique in having shaped several distinct schools), found in his commentary on Nyāya sūtra 4.1.21.
v
Table of Contents
Primary Texts Cited, Abbreviations, Authors, and Authors’ Dates vii
Introduction 1
Chapter One: The Character of Nyāya Epistemology 12
Chapter Two: The Standard Knowledge Sources and Relevant Non Pramā as 91
Chapter Three: Yogic Perception 115
Chapter Four: Inferential Knowledge of īśvara 153
Chapter Five: Testimony and Testifiers: As Below so Above? 196
Concluding Reflections 222
Appendix A: Extrinsic vs. Intrinsic Determination of Veridicality 225
Appendix B: Vācaspati Miśra’s Commentary on NS 4.1.21 232
Appendix C: Notes on Ratnakīrti’s Argument Against Īśvara 252
Bibliography 257
Vita 285
vi
Primary Texts Cited, Abbreviations (if used), Authors, and Author Dates 1
Nyāya Vaiśe ika
Vaiśe ika sūtra (VS) by Ka āda, c. 100 (all dates CE unless otherwise noted)
Nyāya sūtra (NS) by Gautama, c. 200
Nyāya bhā ya (NB) by Vātsyāyana, c. 450
Padārtha dharma