About this episode
The episode explores the Buddhist doctrine of 'no self' and the ethical implications of differing views on the nature of self.
Behind the familiar Buddhist doctrine that "there is no self" lies a centuries-long tradition of dispute and disagreement. Reductionists believe that the self is no more than a bundle of sense impressions and mental states that add up to nothing of substance or permanence, while emergentists believe that the self is something more - something related to these impressions and mental states, but not reducible to them. We're not going to settle the argument this week, but we will be exploring the ethical ramifications and asking what's at stake.
Topics covered
- Buddhism
- self
- philosophy
- ethical ramifications
- reductionism
- emergentism
Keywords
- Buddhism
- self
- philosophy
- reductionism
- emergentism
- ethical implications
- mental states
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: Buddhist philosophy
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