Human Being, Bodily Being: Phenomenology from Classical IndiaChakravarthi Ram-Prasad offers illuminating new perspectives on contemporary phenomenological theories of body and subjectivity, based on studies of classical Indian texts that deal with bodily subjectivity. Examining four texts from different genres - a medical handbook, epic dialogue, a manual of Buddhist practice, and erotic poetry - he argues for a 'phenomenological ecology' of bodily subjectivity in health, gender, contemplation, and lovemaking. An ecology is a continuous and dynamic system of interrelationships between elements, in which the salience accorded to some type of relationship clarifies how the elements it relates are to be identified. The paradigm of ecological phenomenology obviates the need to choose between apparently incompatible perspectives of the human. The delineation of body is arrived at by working back phenomenologically from the world of experience, with the acknowledgement that the point of arrival - a conception of what counts as bodiliness - is dependent upon the exact motivation for attending to experience, the areas of experience attended to, and the expressive tools available to the phenomenologist. Ecological phenomenology is pluralistic, yet integrates the ways experience is attended to and studied, permitting apparently inconsistent intuitions about bodiliness to be explored in novel ways. Rather than seeing particular framings of our experience as in tension with each other, we should see each such framing as playing its own role according to the local descriptive and analytic concern of a text. |
Contents
The Caraka Saṃhitā | |
The Dialogue of Sulabhā and Janaka | |
Being a Man Being a Woman in a Mans World | |
SexProperties between Biology | |
Janakas Paradigm of | |
A Womans Agency a Particular Human Path | |
Concluding Puzzle | |
Other editions - View all
Human Being, Bodily Being: Phenomenology from Classical India Chakravarthi Ram-Prasad Limited preview - 2018 |
Human Being, Bodily Being: Phenomenology from Classical India Chakravarthi Ram-Prasad No preview available - 2021 |
Common terms and phrases
already analysis appears approach argue argument aspects attention awareness become begin bodily body bring Buddhaghosa called Caraka Saṃhitā chapter claim classical clear cognition complex conception concern condition consciousness constituted contemporary context contrast course critical cultural Damayantī desire direction distinction draw ecological phenomenology elements emotions erotic existence experience exploration expression fact feeling focus freedom function gender given gives human idea implies Indian indicates Janaka king knowledge limit lived look male material means Merleau-Ponty metaphysical mind Nala narrative nature norms notion object offers ontological particular patient person perspective phenomenology philosophical physician possible practice present question reading reasoning relation relationship seen sense sexual situation social specific Śrī suggest Sulabhā talk theory things thought touch tradition translation turn understanding University Western whole woman