Caste and Buddhist Philosophy

Vincent Eltschinger studied at the University of Lausanne, where he also taught. He is currently a research fellow at Austrian Academy of Sciences. His numerous books and articles focus on the religious and the apologetic aspects of late Indian Buddhist philosophy, as well as the relationship between Buddhism and Brahmanical Orthodyyy.
The issue of caste-classes was a topic that Buddhist philosophers focused on from the sixth century C.E. to the eighth. They did not seek to reform non-Buddhist society, but they tried to undermine theories of “naturalizing” social statuses, particularly Kumarila’s doctrine about the perceptibility and jati. Their critique has significant roots in earlier criticisms, mainly canonical arguments that were crafted to counter the Brahmin pride in their caste. Closer examination reveals many innovations made possible by the revival of Buddhist semantics surrounding the so-called “exclusion” theory. Eltschinger’s study reveals the basic ideas of early Buddhist arguments, their appropriation by later philosophers, and the new developments that were triggered by epistemologists.