[Buddha-l] Bertrand Russell

[Richard Hayes]

On Saturday 12 August 2006 01:40, Barnaby Thieme wrote:

> re: Russel, his "History of Western Philosophy" is amusing, but
> notoriously unreliable. The philosophers he does not like are
> depicted in grotesque charicature.

There is, of course, a very long tradition in both Europe and Asia 
of refuting gross caricature's of one's opponents. (It's so much 
more fun than being intellectually honest) The Pali canon's 
depictions of Brahmanical culture are outrageous. Nagarjuna refutes 
alleged abhidharma ideas that no abhidharmika ever held. Mahayana 
sutras offer caricatures of "hinayana" that are completely absurd. 
There is no truth at all to the way Huineng's rival was depicted in 
The Platform Sutra. Nichiren torched entire armies of straw men. My 
legendary politeness prevents me from mentioning instances of 
living Buddhists who have caricatured other Buddhists and followers 
of other religions (especially, these days, Islam).

Take unfair caricature out of a philosopher's tool kit, and the 
philosopher becomes a reliable but dull pedant (except that most 
philosophers are such pee-poor scholars that they don't even 
qualify as pedants).

-- 
Richard Hayes
Department of Philosophy
University of New Mexico