Admission requirements
Admission to (one of) the programme(s) listed under Part of in the information bar on the right.
Description
This course is an introduction to the Mahāyāna Buddhist philosophical schools of Madhyamaka and Yogācāra. Topics may vary somewhat depending on the semester but will usually include an introduction to the foundational Madhyamaka philosophers, Nāgārjuna and Candrakīrti, as well as the Yogācāra philosopher, Vasubandhu. Additional figures who may be treated may include Asaṅga and Śāntideva. Topics to be considered will include how to best characterize Madhyamaka metaphysics, for instance as a kind of antirealism, or skepticism, and whether early Yogācāra thought is best understood as arguing for a metaphysical idealism or is better characterized as a kind of introspective phenomenology. Additional topics may include the relation between early Buddhist ideas and the Madhyamaka and Yogācāra schools, as well as the ethical implications of emptiness. Texts to be read may include Nāgārjuna’s Root Verses on the Middle Way (Mūlamadhyamakakārikā), Candrakīrti’s Introduction to the Middle Way (Madhyamakāvatāra), Vasubandhu’s 20 Verses on Consciousness Only (Vimsatika-Karika), and Vasubandhu’s Treatise on Three Natures (Trisvabhāvanirdeśa).
Course objectives
Students who successfully complete the course will have:
a strong understanding of the insights of many of the most influential schools of Mahayana Buddhist philosophy;
basic familiarity with the historical background out of which Mahāyāna Buddhist philosophical debates arose.
The ability to discuss the relationship between early Buddhist and Mahayana philosophical positions.
Students who successfully complete the course will be able to:engage with philosophical reasoning and arguments presented by authors of the most influential schools of Mahayana Buddhist philosophy; offer critiques of these positions.
interact with philosophical ideas on a higher level, both in active participation during class, and in written work in the form of short essay assignments.
Gain experience facilitating classroom discussion during presentations.
Timetable
The timetables are available through MyTimetable.
Mode of instruction
Seminar.
Class attendance is required.
Assessment method
Assessment
Active Participation/cooperation in class/group;
Essay, paper;
Abstract, oral presentation.
Weighing
Participation and presentation (30%);
Essay proposal (10%);
Final essay (60%).
Resit
The resit consists of the final essay (60%). The mark for the resit covers the previously earned mark for the final paper only. The grades for the essay proposal and for participation and class presentation remain in place. Students who have obtained a satisfactory grade for the first examination cannot take the resit.
Inspection and feedback
How and when an exam review will take place will be disclosed together with the publication of the exam results at the latest. If a student requests a review within 30 days after publication of the exam results, an exam review will have to be organized.
Reading list
Required readings will be announced through Brightspace.
Registration
Enrolment through MyStudyMap is mandatory.
General information about course and exam enrolment is available on the website.
Contact
For substantive questions, contact the lecturer listed in the information bar on the right.
For questions about enrolment, admission, etc, contact the Education Administration Office: Huizinga