Language and Consciousness in Early Buddhist Thought: On the Early Reflections on the Theme of Language and the Perception of Reality in the Pāli Canon
Philosophies April 25, 2025 DOI: 10.3390/philosophies10020031 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Philosophy of mind Buddhism |
| Keywords | Early buddhist philosophy Language theory Philosophy of language Anthropology of consciousness |
| Citations | 5 |
| Key points | Argues that archaic Buddhism in the Pāli Canon presents a theory of knowledge comparable to Saussure's linguistics and issues in philosophy of perception and cognition. |
Abstract
In this paper, the Buddhist view on language and its implications for perception and cognition will be analyzed. The aim of this paper is to demonstrate that archaic Buddhism, as documented in the suttas of the Pāli Canon, already presents a well-articulated theory of knowledge, and that Buddhist considerations on the problem of language are comparable to Saussure’s early linguistic theories, as well as to fundamental issues in the philosophy of perception and theories of cognition. This comparison with Buddhist thought seeks to provide a technical approach to the problem of consciousness in order to structure a systematic dialogue between the philosophy of mind and language, cognitive sciences, and linguistics, offering an original perspective on these topics through Buddhist thought.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on buddhism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mental balance and well-being: Building bridges between Buddhism and Western psychology. | 2006 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Buddhist Modernism and the Rhetoric of Meditative Experience | 1995 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Buddhist and Psychological Perspectives on Emotions and Well-Being | 2005 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Too Early to Tell: The Potential Impact and Challenges—Ethical and Otherwise—Inherent in the Mainstreaming of Dharma in an Increasingly Dystopian World | 2017 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| From self to nonself: The Nonself Theory | 2016 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cited by 4
- Beyond semiosis: early Buddhist phenomenology and theory of consciousness Cogent Arts and Humanities July 16, 2025
- Semiosis and nāmarūpa: Exploring the Early Buddhist Theory of Signs Through Cognitive Semiotics Philosophies August 27, 2025
- Meditation Transcending Signs: Seven Concepts for a Buddhist Psychosemiotics Philosophies January 12, 2026
- Gates of Consciousness: Buddhist Phenomenology of Cognition in the Abhidhamma Philosophies June 10, 2025
Cites 5
- Cessations of consciousness in meditation: Advancing a scientific understanding of nirodha samāpatti. Progress in Brain Research 2023
- Contemplation: Its Cultivation and Culmination Through the Buddhist Glasses. Frontiers in Psychology 2021
- Reaching the End of the World: An Anthropological Reading of Early Buddhist Medicine and Ascetic Practices Religions February 24, 2023
- In This World or the Next: Investigation Over the “End of the World” in Contemplative Practice Through the Pāli Canon Annali Sezione Orientale August 15, 2023
- Rethinking the Buddha June 23, 2014