Hegel's Lectures on the History of Philosophy: Volume 1 (of 3)
Georg Hegel · en
qualities; the fifth, distinction; the sixth, is aggregation, and,
according to Canade, this is the last; other writers add negation as
the seventh. This is the manner in which philosophy is regarded by the
Indians.
_c._ The philosophy of Gotama makes doubt the third topic, succeeding
those of the evidence of knowledge, and the subjects of interest to
knowledge. Another topic is regular proof, formal reasoning, or the
perfect syllogism (Nyaya), which consists of five propositions:—1, the
proposition; 2, the reason; 3, the instance; 4, the application; 5, the
conclusion. To take examples:—1. This hill is burning; 2, because it
smokes; 3, what smokes is burning, like a kitchen fire; 4, accordingly
the hill smokes; 5, therefore it is on fire. This is propounded as
syllogisms are with us, but in the manner adopted, the matter which is
in point is propounded first. We should, on the contrary, begin with
the general. This is the ordinary form, and these examples may satisfy
us, yet we shall recapitulate the matter once more.
We have seen that in India the point of main importance is the
soul’s drawing itself within itself, raising itself up into liberty,
or thought, which constitutes itself for itself. This becoming
explicit of soul in the most abstract mode may be called intellectual
substantiality, but here it is not the unity of mind and nature that
is present, but directly the opposite. To mind, the consideration of
nature is only the vehicle of thought or its exercise, which has as
its aim the liberation of mind. Intellectual substantiality is in India
the end, while in Philosophy it is in general the true commencement;
to philosophize is the idealism of making thought, in its own right,
the principle of truth. Intellectual substantiality is the opposite
of the reflection, understanding, and the subjective individuality of
the European. With us it is of importance that I will, know, believe,
think this particular thing according to the grounds that I have for
so doing, and in accordance with my own free will; and upon this
an infinite value is set. Intellectual substantiality is the other
extreme from this; it is that in which all the subjectivity of the “I”
is lost; for it everything objective has become vanity, there is for
it no objective truth, duty or right, and thus subjective vanity is
the only thing left. The point of interest is to reach intellectual
substantiality in order to drown in it that subjective vanity with all
its cleverness and reflection. This is the advantage of arriving at
this point of view.