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    The Buddhist claim conflates the absence of a Cartesian e... — Carmelics
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    Challenges→No psychophysical element in a causal series constitutes a self.

    The Buddhist claim conflates the absence of a Cartesian ego-substance with the absence of any identity-constituting relation, which are logically distinct positions.

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    1 reason for
    1 reason against

    Reasons For

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    Reason for
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    • 1.Denying a Cartesian ego-substance (immaterial thinking subject) is logically compatible with affirming continuity relations like memory and causal connectedness.
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    • 2.Buddhist anatman doctrine targets metaphysical substrates, not psychological continuity, making the distinction between rejecting substance and rejecting identity-relations conceptually necessary.
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    • 3.One can coherently say 'no permanent self-essence exists' while accepting 'this person tomorrow will be constituted by today's mental states'—these make different metaphysical claims.
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    Reasons Against

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    Reason against
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    • 1.If no identity-constituting relations obtain, then 'this person' cannot refer to a unified entity across time, collapsing the distinction between no-substance and no-identity.
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    • 2.Buddhist texts (Milinda Panha, Samyutta Nikaya) explicitly reject both substance AND continuity-based identity, suggesting Buddhists don't merely reject substrates but identity-relations themselves.
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    • 3.The logical distinction only matters if identity-relations can anchor continuity without substances, but Buddhism denies such relations operate—making the distinction practically empty.
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    Connections

    2 topics

    Consciousness & Mind1 linkedPersonal Identity1 linked

    Related

    Buddhist anatman doctrine targets metaphysical substrates, not psychological con...Buddhist texts (Milinda Panha, Samyutta Nikaya) explicitly reject both substance...Denying a Cartesian ego-substance (immaterial thinking subject) is logically com...If no identity-constituting relations obtain, then 'this person' cannot refer to...
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    No psychophysical element in a causal series constitutes a self.One can coherently say 'no permanent self-essence exists' while accepting 'this ...The logical distinction only matters if identity-relations can anchor continuity...

    Details

    Type
    claim
    Perspectives
    2 (1 for, 1 against)
    Edits
    1 edit