History of Indian and Africana Philosophy

Peter Adamson, Jonardon Ganeri, Chike Jeffers

The History of Philosophy podcast expands to cover the philosophical riches Indian and Africana culture.

  • 18 minutes 38 seconds
    HPC 26. Culture Wars: Mohist and Confucian Debates

    Disagreements between the Mohists and the Confucians: is seeking benefits the right way to approach life? What motivates us to act morally, care for our loved ones or a doctrine of impartiality?

    23 March 2025, 4:00 am
  • 20 minutes 34 seconds
    HPC 25. Benefit, Then Stop: Mohism and Impartial Care

    How did the Mohists establish their consequentialist ethic of “impartial care (jian ’ai)”? Was this theory ultimately grounded in the will of Heaven?

    9 March 2025, 4:00 am
  • 20 minutes 19 seconds
    HPC 24. Measuring Up: Mohist philosophy

    An introduction to the Mozi, the founding text of an anti-elitist school of thought that tests social and political practices by the measure of “benefit.”

    23 February 2025, 4:00 am
  • 35 minutes 24 seconds
    HPC 23. Amy Olberding on Confucian Ethics

    In our final episode on classical Confucianism, our interview guest tells us about the surprising moral depth of the concept of "etiquette"

    9 February 2025, 4:00 am
  • 18 minutes 18 seconds
    HPC 22. Inside Job: Women in Confucianism

    Can classical Confucianism be redeemed from its reputation for rigidly hierarchical thinking when it comes to the relationship between men and women?

    26 January 2025, 4:00 am
  • 38 minutes 34 seconds
    HPC 21. Sor-Hoon Tan on Confucian Democracy

    Can classical Confucian ideas be adapted to produce a theory of democracy fit for today's world?

    12 January 2025, 4:00 am
  • 19 minutes 38 seconds
    HPC 20. Heaven Can Wait: Ritual and Religion in Confucianism

    Were Confucian ideas about Heaven, ritual, and fate driven by a religious attitude, or a naturalistic one?

    29 December 2024, 4:00 am
  • 20 minutes 30 seconds
    HPC 19. The Kingly Way: Confucian Political Philosophy

    Mengzi and Xunzi show that a Confucian political theory need not be idealistic.

    15 December 2024, 4:00 am
  • 29 minutes 42 seconds
    HPC 18. Erica Brindley on Music and the Cosmos in Confucianism

    An interview about the "resonant cosmos" in early Confucianism, and the role played by music in linking sages to the universe.

    1 December 2024, 4:00 am
  • 18 minutes 24 seconds
    HPC 17. Knowing Me, Knowing You: Confucian Epistemology

    The role of knowing in Confucian ethics: should it be understood as “knowing how,” or even “knowing to,” rather than “knowing that”?

    17 November 2024, 4:00 am
  • 24 minutes 1 second
    HPC 16. To Become or Not to Become: the Confucians on Our Moral Natures

    Morality is what makes us humans, for the Confucians. But does morality come from inside us, outside us, or both?

    3 November 2024, 4:00 am
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