FEATURED PUBLICATIONS
নবদ্বীপ মহিমা (Nabadwip Mahima)
This book is perhaps the first attempt to portray the detailed history of Navadvipa. The author starts the discourse with the history of the name ‘Navadvipa’ along with a description of the relation of Navadvipa to the rest of Bengal during the ancient period. The second part of the book contains a detailed description of the scholars of Navadvipa who worked on Navya-Nyāya, Smṛti, and Tantra. In the third chapter, one finds an elaborate presentation of Sri Chaitanya’s biography along with a discussion on Vaishnava religion. Since Navadvipa was ruled by the king of Krishnagar for a long time, there is a discussion on the rulers of Krishnagar, their contribution to the Navadvipa scholarship as patrons. The author also adds a discussion on the famous musicians, eminent persons trained in English education and business persons of Navadvipa.
Induction Probability and Skepticism
Induction, Probability and Skepticism, authored by D.P.Chattopadhyaya, is a detailed study of the philosophical questions associated with induction. Chattopadhyaya presents several attempts made in the history of philosophy to address the problem of induction. This leads Chattopadhyaya to deal with the issue of skepticism and how different philosophers responded to skepticism.
An Introduction to Indian Philosophy
This book, written jointly by Satischandra Chatterjee and Dhirendramohan Datta, offers an introduction to the three nāstika and six āstika schools of classical Indian Philosophy. The authors present the salient epistemological, logical, metaphysical and ethical views of each of the schools of classical Indian philosophy.
Darśana Manīṣā Categories
নবদ্বীপ মহিমা (Nabadwip Mahima)
This book is perhaps the first attempt to portray the detailed history of Navadvipa. The author starts the discourse with the history of the name ‘Navadvipa’ along with a description of the relation of Navadvipa to the rest of Bengal during the ancient period. The second part of the book contains a detailed description of the scholars of Navadvipa who worked on Navya-Nyāya, Smṛti, and Tantra. In the third chapter, one finds an elaborate presentation of Sri Chaitanya’s biography along with a discussion on Vaishnava religion. Since Navadvipa was ruled by the king of Krishnagar for a long time, there is a discussion on the rulers of Krishnagar, their contribution to the Navadvipa scholarship as patrons. The author also adds a discussion on the famous musicians, eminent persons trained in English education and business persons of Navadvipa.
বাঙালির সারস্বত অবদান: বঙ্গে নব্যন্যায়চর্চা (Bangalir Saraswat Avadan: Bange Navyanyaya Charcha)
This is perhaps the most authentic history of Navya-Nyāya scholarship in Bengal with special emphasis on Navadvipa. In this book, the author presents a detailed description of the biographies and the works of the philosophers of Navadvipa. The author divides his work in the following chapters: 1. The Pre-Śiromaṇī age, 2.Raghunātha Śiromaṇī, 3. Bengali Commentators on Śiromaṇī, 4. The Post-Gadādhara Era, 5. Bengali Naiyāyikas in Kāśidhāma, 6. Nyaya Schools of Bengal. The author, with sufficient historical evidence, determines the time of many of the Navya-Nyāya scholars and he also proposes his views on the authorship of many of the Navya-Nyāya commentaries.
मुक्तिबादबिचारः (Muktivādavicaraḥ)
This book is an essay on Nyāya theory of liberation. Harirāma Tarkavāgīśa, in this book, critically assesses the generally accepted definition of liberation as permanent (ātyantika) cessation (nivṛtti) of suffering (duhkha). The debate revolves around explaining the terms like ‘atyanta’ and ‘nivṛtti’. Harirama argues that the widely accepted understanding of these words fails to cover all the different kinds of liberation that philosophers talk about. Harirama proposes to describe liberation as the destruction of final suffering and the idea of finality could be understood as a universal inhering in suffering. Harirama argues that if knowledge of reality is to be regarded as the cause of liberation, then liberation is to be regarded as the permanent post-negation of sin and not of misery.
प्रामाण्यवाद: (Prāmāṇyavādaḥ)
The original text of Gaṅgeśa, called Tattvacintāmaṇi, has been commented on by both Raghunātha Śiromaṇi and Gadāhara Bhattācārya. If knowledge is gained through the ways of knowing, then the very nature of knowledge rests on the nature and veridicality of these recognised ways of knowing. An examination of the veridicality of the ways of knowing is known as pārāmānya. In this book, both Raghunātha and Jagadīśa offer a detailed analysis of the debate concerning the nature and veridicality of the very idea of pramāṇa.
BROWSE BY LANGUAGE
Philosophy, Logic and Language
This book by Kalidas Bhattacharyya is a collection of essays on different topics. However, the first seven essays and the eleventh one do have a thematic unity. They are in one way or another linked to the questions regarding the nature and method of philosophy – a theme that we find often in the writings of Kalidas Bhattacharyya. Essays 1 to 5 and essay 6 are directly concerned with the role of language and logic in philosophical reflections. He touches upon Logical Positivism and Analytical Philosophy in this regard.
The other key issue that Bhattacharyya considers here is the nature of Self. In particular, Bhattacharyya has been keen on exploring the nature of the self we refer to by the pronoun “I” and its relation to the other selves.
The concept of God also finds its place in two of his essays here. Bhattacharyya also discusses the problem of freedom in almost all the essays, in particular the ones on self. One interesting yet rather divergent topic that is discussed by Bhattacharyya is the idea of the Given and its Appearance. Two essays are on specific philosophers – one on Rabindranath Tagore and another on Basanta Kumar Mallik.
The Essays are:
- Is Philosophy Linguistic Analysis
- The Business of Philosophy
- Language, Logic and Fact
- Objective Attitude and Idealism Proper
- Thought and its Validity
- The Given and its Appearance
- The Nature of Reflection in Metaphysics
- Modern Psychology and Hindu Thought
- Self and Others
- The Concept of Self in Buddhism
- Formal and Actual Freedom
- Approaches to Spiritual Life
- Studies in Ethical Theory
- A Modern Defense of Orthodoxy
- Rabindranath on Religion
- An Aspect of Mallik’s Philosophy
- Classical Philosophies of India and the West
- An Outline of Indian Philosophy
Bhatti-Kavyam (Canto-XII)
Bhattikavyam is a Bengali rendering along with explanatory notes in English of the twelfth canto of Bhattikavyam written by Bhartṛihari. Saradaranjan Ray, the translator and editor of the book, has added Mallinatha’s commentary to it. In the introduction, the editor/translator offers a brief analysis of the time and the significance of Bhattikavya.
Towards Perpetual Peace
This book, authored by Nikunja Vihari Banerjee, is an attempt to explore the idea of perpetual peace as has been understood by people in different ages. Different fictions have been generated by people in different eras to account for the idea of perpetual peace. In the era of science and technology, man has attempted to aspire to perpetual peace in his own way. The author explains the spiritual needs of the human mind while trying to reach the goal of perpetual peace. The book is divided into three parts: 1. The Realm of Fiction, 2. The Trial of Science and Technology and 3. The Peace-Making Utopia.
Radhakrishnan (Centenary Volume)
Radhakrishnan: Centenary Volume is edited by G. Parthasarathi and D.P.Chattopadhyaya. This book was published as part of a programme undertaken by the Government of India to pay respect to Radhakrishnan on his birth centenary. The book is divided into two parts: 1. The Philosopher and Religion and Spirit and 2. The Universalist and the World Statesman. The first part contains essays on Radhakrishnan’s understanding of Vedānta, Buddhism and religion in general. In the second part, all the essays deal with the role of Radhakrishnan as a statesman.
Pāṇinidarśanam
The present book is an analysis of the chapter on Pāṇini’ s philosophy as found in the Sarvadarśanasaṃgraha of Mādhavāchārya. Chinmayi Chatterjee, the author of this book, offers a detailed analysis of Mādhavāchārya’s formulation of the central philosophy of Pāṇini, the grammarian. The book discusses the idea of sphoṭa as advocated by Panini as well as the criticisms of sphoṭa as advanced by different philosophers. The correlation between word and its meaning has also been taken up for discussion.