Contents: Preface. General Introduction: Thinking ethics, the West and India. I. Introduction to Part A: Early Indian Ethics--Vedas to the Gita; dharma, rites to 'Right': 1. Dharma, imperatives and tradition: towards an Indian theory of moral action/J.N. Mohanty. 2. Dharma and rationality/Bimal Krishna Matilal. 3. The myth of the ethics of Purusartha or Humanity's life-goals/Daya Krishna. 4. The fires of strangers: A Levinasian approach to Vedic ethics/Laurie L. Patton. 5. Samkhya-Yoga ethics/Roy W. Perrett. 6. Ethics of liberation in Patanjali's Yoga/Ian Whicher. 7. Karma's suffering: a Mimamsa solution to the problem of evil/Purushottama Bilimoria. 8. Dana as a moral category/Maria Heim. II. Introduction to Part B: Buddhist and Jaina approaches to ethical decision making: 9. Purgation and virtue in Jainism: toward an ecological ethic/Christopher Key Chapple. 10. Buddhist ethical theory/Padmasiri de Silva. 11. Are there 'Human Rights' in Buddhism?/Damien Keown. 12. Buddhism and democracy/Jay L. Garfield. 13. Buddhist reductionism and the structure of Buddhist ethics/Mark Siderits. 14. Animal ethics and ecology in classical India--reflections on a moral tradition/M.K. Sridhar and Purushottama Bilimoria. III. Introduction to Part C: Reflections on moral ideals and modernity; Gandhi and Nonviolence: 15. Hindu Theory of Tolerance/Bhikhu Parekh. 16. Action oriented morality in Hinduism/Christopher Key Chapple. 17. The ethical irrationality of the world: Weber and Hindu ethics/Pratap Bhanu Mehta. 18. Social injustice, retribution and revenge: a normative analysis of the contemporary social scene/Rajendra Prasad. 19. Gandhi, empire and a culture of peace/Joseph Prabhu. 20. Ethical skepticism in the philosophy of Sri Aurobindo/Stephen Phillips. Index.
"Indian ethical traditions have been one of the great repositories of moral thought in world philosophy whose insights have influenced early Greece, Europe, Asia, and the New World. This volume is the first such systematic study of the spectrum of moral reflections from India employing a critical cross-cultural perspective and engaging modern secular sensibilities.
This comprehensive compendium explores the scope and limits of Indian ethical traditions. It reflects on the interpretations and applications of the teachings of the great texts and major schools of both orthodox and heterodox sects, relates them to present-day concerns and contexts, and highlights the distinctive aspects of the Indian ethical traditions.
The general introduction examines the distinctive nature of moral philosophy in India as compared to the West. The three parts of the volume analyse ethical traditions from the Vedic to contemporary times. The chapters chart orthodox and heterodox debates, from early classical Hindu texts to Buddhist, Jaina, Yoga and Gandhian ethics. The range of issues include: life-values and virtues, karma and dharma, evil and suffering, renunciation and enlightenment; and extends to questions of human rights and justice, ecology and animal ethics, non-violence and democracy. The ramifications for rethinking ethics in a postmodern and global era are investigated in order to explore their relevance in the present times. Indian Ethics offers an invaluable resource for scholars, teachers, and students of philosophy, history, religion, literature, and cultural studies and those interested in South Asian responses to moral dilemmas in the postcolonial era." (jacket)
