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
The Concept of
God in Indian Philosophy