A Comparative History of World Philosophy: From the Upanishads to Kant

Ben-Ami Scharfstein

feb 1998 · State University of New York Press

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A Comparative History of World Philosophy presents a personal yet balanced guide through what the author argues to be the three great philosophical traditions: Chinese, European, and Indian. The book breaks through the cultural barriers between these traditions, proving that despite their considerable differences, fundamental resemblances exist in their abstract principles. Ben-Ami Scharfstein argues that Western students of philosophy will profit considerably if they study Indian and Chinese philosophy from the very beginning, along with their own.

Written with clarity and infused with an engaging narrative voice, this book is organized thematically, presenting in virtually every chapter characteristic views from each tradition that represent similar positions in the core areas of metaphysics and epistemology. At the same time, Scharfstein develops each tradition historically as the chapters unfold. He presents a great variety of philosophical positions fairly, avoiding the relativism and ethnocentrism that could easily plague a comparative presentation of Western and non-Western philosophies.

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Ben-Ami Scharfstein is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Tel-Aviv University. He is the author of eleven books, including Amoral Politics: The Persistent Truth of Machiavellism and Ineffability: The Failure of Words in Philosophy and Religion, both published by SUNY Press.