Vol 22, No 1 (2018)

The article identifies two senses of the theory of controversy developed in the traditional Indian culture - logical and religious-philosophical (metaphysical). The researchers didn’t ever rise the problem of their differentiation because Indian philosophers did it by default, and for the Western reader of their texts two consequences of the division - the use of logic for destruction of logic (as it was in the Madhyāmaka school), or fixation of rules for virtually endless justification procedure (as it was in Jaina dialectic) - look like absurdity. However, in India, the need of discursive thinking was recognized, but the ability of thinking was never treated as absolute, and rational methods were used for the formation of convictions in the truth of metaphysical super-rational theses. Two named meanings are discernible in such works as the Buddhist canonical text “Kathāvatthu” and as Jaina canonical text “Stānāṅga-sūtra”. The conjunction of the two senses of the controversy determined the lack of ideal of objective truth in Indian logic, and that conjunction became the premise of two Jaina dialectical concepts: syād-vāda and naya-vāda, which are the complements to ontological Jaina concept of anekānta-vāda. Not accidentally Umāsvāti, Kundakunda - the founders of Jaina philosophy - paid attention to the naya-vāda. The author analyses the logical structure of discussion from “Kathāvatthu”, where the reality of the empirical subject (ātman) is argued, and the contradictions in the teachings of the opponents of the substantiality of the soul (ātman) are showing.

The article deals with representatives of creative minority (the term by H. Bergson, A.J. Toynbee) in the process of social development. Satyagrahis play the similar role in M.K. Gandhi’s philosophy. This term originates from the central conception of Indian thinker - Satyagraha . It means the calling for resistance of moral developed person to all injustice around him by means of his soul-force. Gandhi’s image of an ideal man and his understanding of the role of such man in social-dynamical processes shows that philosopher’s intellectual and cultural features influenced his views. So, being the thinker, formed on the joint of two cultures (culture of traditional society and Modernity), Gandhi gives to his image of an ideal man Eastern and Western qualities. He offers to combine the moral rigor of traditional Indian ascetic with social activity, freedom and sense of personal responsibility, which are characteristic for individualistic ethics of Modernity. At the same time he rejects the understanding of social development as a technical progress, which is widespread in the West. The thinker connects this process with the personal improvement and harmonization of social relationships. The latter is impossible without participation of mediators between different social forces. Realizing this fact, Gandhi called his followers to become mediators between quarreling religious communities, castes and political parties in order to conciliate them. Such understanding of social development was in large part determined by social image of the thinker. Being the person formed on the crossroad of intercultural communications, Gandhi himself played the role of mediator between the Hindus and Mussulmans, between high-caste Hindus and untouchables, between different branches of Indian national congress, between economical elites and pure masses.

The author considers the metaphysics of Aristotle in its significance for the aesthetics and the philosophy of music, where the music is, first of all, by its nature is presented as a substance (essence, consisting in movement, rhythm, among other things, the divine mind) and, secondly, as a becoming shape musical art, the value of human interaction with the world. In the author’s interpretation of the Aristotelian doctrine of the essence, the music is becoming substantialistically musical being. In the making of the musical form the laws of the logos, Mind, creation. Concepts: substance (essence), matter and form, entelechy, energy - are considered in the context of aesthetics and musical art. The author draws attention to the fact that the issue of music as an art form in the world of human existence, Aristotle was interested in music for the purpose of man, where he shared a professional work and making music, you need to nurture. Noting its purpose, according to the philosopher said, pleasure, recreation, virtue, purification of the soul, it was found that the ability of music to influence the moral aspect of the soul remained for him an open problem. Aristotle’s metaphysics approved idea of music as a musical form and substance as a process music as a means of value of human interaction with the world, which makes the belief in the stability of the laws of becoming of musical forms.

The article begins by defining evil, rejecting proffered negative definitions, for example, evil is privation, from which little further insight is obtainable, nor progress to be made towards a resolution of the problem, in favor of a more a constructive definition of evil in terms of an abnegation of responsibility for, or commitment to, one’s dictions or actions. This is an attitude that is both irrational and unintelligible, enabling a connection to be made between Plotinus’ view of evil as unintelligible matter, that is, impassive and inactive nature; and Hegel’s view of evil as that which is real and active, but against reason. For Plotinus, evil is formless matter, matter that is unintelligible, separated from the intellect, unlimited because not bounded by conceptual categories; and hence, what is evil is all darkness. For Hegel, for whom the rational is actual and the actual is rational, evil is an irrational perversion of the world’s inner essential rationality. But these ideas can be connected, for the purpose of finding a solution to the problem of evil, through a more specific understanding of the concept that we offer; that evil is a failure of commitment, a denial of responsibility for one’s actions; and this is in itself both irrational and unintelligible. We can then demonstrate that what that evil, though it certainly exists, is imperfection, and the good, being rational, is already complete and fulfilled and firmly established in the world, and therefore evil cannot possibly oppose it from any position of equivalence; for the good is rational and therefore true, whereas evil is irrational and therefore false.

The Ideas of Leo Tolstoy are one of the key catalyzers for the emergence of the “new religious consciousness” and religious philosophy at the beginning of the XX century in Russia. Many religious philosophers who, unlike Leo Tolstoy, believed in the possibility of reforming the Russian Orthodox Church, developed a detailed arguments both for and against Tolstoy’s moral doctrine. As for faith in Christ resurrection, art of understanding, attitude to “this world”, progress and culture, many of them followed the ideas of Vladimir Solovyov, who had sharply criticized the views of Leo Tolstoy. In 1912 the publishing house called “The Way” released a book “About Leo Tolstoy’s religion”, it was dedicated to the memory of the deceased Count in 1910, which would serve as “his own great task” - “religious awakening of modern society” - and at the same time to deal with the errors of Tolstoy. The results of debate with the Tolstoy’s religion had given a good basis for the projections of the key issues of Russian philosophy: first, the relationship between faith and reason, and secondly, the relationship between spirit and nature, and thirdly, the conflict between the individual and society, fourthly, purpose and meaning of human creativity and culture. In view of the different interpretations of the ideas of Leo Tolstoy Russian religious philosophy revealed itself not as a homogenous unity, but they demonstrated diversity of personal aspirations of its members. What they have in common are the appreciation of the literary work of Russian writer and his lofty moral claims, but at the same time, they separated themself from him, in order to remain faithful to Church dogmas.

“Maqamat as-Sufiyya” is a small theoretical works of Shihab ad-Din as-Suhrawardi (ab. 1154-1191), the founder of the Philosophy of Illumination. It contains practical instructions and theoretical reflections and proofs. As-Suhrawardi especially notes terminology used by philosophers and terminology used by sufis in “Maqamat as-Sufiyya”.

The paper attempts to investigate literary anthropology of W. Iser, created by him on the basis of receptive aesthetics. It is included a perspective of the historical and theoretical formation of Iser’s theory, as well as an actual point of view, related to the “anthropological turn” of humanities. There is an intention to demonstrate the philosophical value of Iser’s conception. It is emphasized the problem of subjective experience, the key features of which can be revealed through the study of the process of reading fiction. Iser defines his approach to the study of literature as functional, considering fiction as a medium in communication between text, reality and the reader. The focus of attention is on the transformations of subjectivity, involved through imagination in reading. Human presence, linked with a transcendental position, becomes apparent in the process of reading; however, it turns out to be connected with the essential uncertainty, the constant variability of subjective attitudes. Literature is explored as a medium of such an anthropological feature as human’s own inaccessibility for her|himself.