Jeremy Savage Manheim

My dissertation offers a Buddhist philosophical critique of attempts to naturalize Buddhism. These attempts are motivated by the belief that our understanding of the world accurately represents the way things are—a view that many Buddhists saw as the main obstacle to Awakening. Drawing on Dharmakirti’s argument against natural kinds and Candrakirti’s critique of svabhava, I argue that Buddhist naturalists fail to see how the most radical insights of Buddhist philosophy undermine their naturalistic premises. Since these two streams of argumentation only come together in Tibet, I focus on their synthesis in the work of the Tibetan philosopher Gorampa (1429-1489). I aim to show that naturalism is only an option if one accepts precisely the premises that these thinkers sought to undermine.

84000 is a global non-profit initiative to translate all the Buddha’s words into modern languages and provide free and open access to over 230,000 pages. Emphasizing engaging and interactive comprehension tools, 84000 is creating an essential new resource for primary-source scholarship, independent study, and personal practice. As part of the editorial team, the Buddhism Public Scholar will contribute to 84000’s mission to translate the Tibetan Kangyur and Tengyur and make it freely available through online, open-access publication, including producing informative essays on topics in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, and content for 84000’s website and newsletter.