Philosophy's Big Questions

What is Philosophy? An accurate response to this question should incorporate and embrace non-Western Philosophy. For teachers looking to broaden the canon, Steven Emmanuel's Philosophy's Big Questions: Comparing Buddhist and Western Approaches provides an excellent, accessible, intercultural introduction to philosophy. Topically arranged, each chapter fully integrates, without assimilating, Western and Buddhist sources. -- David Cummiskey, author of <i>Kantian Consequentialism</i> Interest in Buddhist philosophy has grown exponentially in recent years. These essays demonstrate that Buddhist philosophy has significant contributions to make in the major areas of philosophical inquiry. From foundational topics in metaphysics, epistemology and ethics to more focused philosophical issues pertaining to mind, religion and morality, they insightfully explore important questions of perennial concern in Western as well as Buddhist traditions. -- Christopher W. Gowans, author of <i>Buddhist Moral Philosophy: An Introduction</i> Philosophy's Big Questions redefines comparative philosophy for the undergraduate classroom by providing a fresh exploration of the perennial questions of philosophy in light of the contributions Buddhism can make to these conversations. The eight thematic essays-expertly crafted by foremost scholars-offer a broad and accessible introduction to philosophy that easily puts to rest any doubts about the value of comparative philosophy. -- John J. Holder, editor and translator of <i>Early Buddhist Discourses</i> This is a wonderful book, and it would be a great text for a course on cross-cultural philosophy. The articles are all well-written and do an outstanding job of identifying 'big questions' that have concerned Asian and Western philosophers. The responses to these questions and the approaches taken are distant enough to provide genuine space for dialogue, and close enough that each can learn from the other. This is just the kind of book we need to move forward with truly global philosophy. -- John Powers, author of <i>A Bull of A Man: Images of Masculinity, Sex, and the Body in Indian Buddhism</i> Philosophy's Big Questions makes the case that by exploring multiple traditions we can understand our questions and views differently, opening up new possibilities of thought and imagination, and new ways of understanding the practice of philosophy itself. The contributors to this volume include some of the most significant scholars in Buddhist philosophy writing today. The chapters are excellent, and their approach will be relevant and accessible to students. -- William Edelglass, Barre Center for Buddhist Studies and Emerson College