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Dharmakirti
 
 
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Dharmakirti (ca.
Circa

Circa means "in approximately", generally referring to a year. It is widely used in genealogy and historical writing, when the dates of events are approximately known....
 7th century), was an India
India

India, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and outlying territories by total area country by geographical area, the List of countries by population country, and the most populous liberal democracy in the world....
n scholar and one of the Buddhist
Buddhism

Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices considered by most to be a religionand is based on the teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as "The Buddha" , who was born in what is today Nepal....
 founders of Indian philosophical
Philosophical logic

Philosophical logic is the study of the more specifically philosophical aspects of logic. The term contrasts with philosophy of logic, metalogic, and mathematical logic; and since the development of mathematical logic in the late nineteenth century, it has come to include most of those topics traditionally treated by logic in gene...
 logic
Indian logic

The development of Indian logic can be said to date back to the anviksiki of Medhatithi Gautama ; the Vyakarana rules of Pa?ini ; the Vaisheshika school's analysis of atomism ; the analysis of inference by Nyaya Sutras , founder of the Nyaya school of Hindu philosophy; and the tetralemma of Nagarjuna ....
. He was one of the primary theorists of Buddhist atomism
Buddhist atomism

Buddhist atomism is a school of atomism Buddhist philosophy that flourished on the Indian subcontinent during two major periods. During the first phase, which began to develop prior to the 4th century BCE, Buddhist atomism had a very qualitative, Aristotle-style atomic theory....
, according to which the only items considered to exist are momentary Buddhist atoms and states of consciousness.
around the turn of the 7th century, Dharmakirti was a South Indian Brahmin and became a teacher at the famed Nalanda University, as well as a poet.






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Dharmakirti (ca.
Circa

Circa means "in approximately", generally referring to a year. It is widely used in genealogy and historical writing, when the dates of events are approximately known....
 7th century), was an India
India

India, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and outlying territories by total area country by geographical area, the List of countries by population country, and the most populous liberal democracy in the world....
n scholar and one of the Buddhist
Buddhism

Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices considered by most to be a religionand is based on the teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as "The Buddha" , who was born in what is today Nepal....
 founders of Indian philosophical
Philosophical logic

Philosophical logic is the study of the more specifically philosophical aspects of logic. The term contrasts with philosophy of logic, metalogic, and mathematical logic; and since the development of mathematical logic in the late nineteenth century, it has come to include most of those topics traditionally treated by logic in gene...
 logic
Indian logic

The development of Indian logic can be said to date back to the anviksiki of Medhatithi Gautama ; the Vyakarana rules of Pa?ini ; the Vaisheshika school's analysis of atomism ; the analysis of inference by Nyaya Sutras , founder of the Nyaya school of Hindu philosophy; and the tetralemma of Nagarjuna ....
. He was one of the primary theorists of Buddhist atomism
Buddhist atomism

Buddhist atomism is a school of atomism Buddhist philosophy that flourished on the Indian subcontinent during two major periods. During the first phase, which began to develop prior to the 4th century BCE, Buddhist atomism had a very qualitative, Aristotle-style atomic theory....
, according to which the only items considered to exist are momentary Buddhist atoms and states of consciousness.

History

Born around the turn of the 7th century, Dharmakirti was a South Indian Brahmin and became a teacher at the famed Nalanda University, as well as a poet. He built on and reinterpreted the work of Dignaga
Dignaga

Dignaga was an Indian scholar and one of the Buddhist founders of Indian logic.He was born into a Brahmin family in Simhavakta near Kanchi , and very little is known of his early years, except that he took as his spiritual preceptor Nagadatta of the Vatsiputriya school....
, the pioneer of Buddhist Logic, and was very influential among Brahman logicians as well as Buddhists. His theories became normative in Tibet and are studied to this day as a part of the basic monastic curriculum.

Writings

  • The Seven Treatises on Valid Cognition:
  • (Analysis of Relations)
  • (Ascertainment of Valid Cognition)
  • (Commentary on Dignaga's 'Compendium of Valid Cognition')
  • (Drop of Reasoning)
  • (Drop of Reasons)
  • (Proof of Others' Continuums)
  • (Reasoning for Debate)


Philosophy

Dharmakirti presents most of his ideas in the guise of commentary on Dignaga's works, even if his theories go beyond what was presented by his predecessor. Some of his ideas, like his proof for the authority of the Buddha's words, are innovations, for Dignaga considered language just as fallible as inference.

See also

  • Buddhist atomism
    Buddhist atomism

    Buddhist atomism is a school of atomism Buddhist philosophy that flourished on the Indian subcontinent during two major periods. During the first phase, which began to develop prior to the 4th century BCE, Buddhist atomism had a very qualitative, Aristotle-style atomic theory....