Nyaya - Buddhist Debate
The Nyaya - Buddhist Debate began in the 1st Century A.D. with Nagarjuna who refuted the views of Gautama, the author of Nyaya Sutras, in his Mulamadhyamika Karika and Vigrahavyavartani. Vatsyayana in his Bhashya on Nyaya Sutras defended the latter work.
At this point Dignaga the great Buddhist scholar and logician entered the scene. He was a Vijnanavadin and had commented on works of the Yogacara scholar Vasubandhu.
He directed a devastating polemical attack against Vatsyayana in his Pramanasamuccaya.
From the Nyaya said Uddyotakara came for the defense of Vatsyayana in his Nyaya Vartika.
From the Buddhist side Dharmakirti refuted the views of the former in his Pramanavartika - a commentary of Pramanasamuccaya. His other work Nyayabindu also criticized the views of Nyaya.
Thereafter Kumarila entered this debate though from the Mimamsa point of view. Buddhists had dominated the philosophical world of India for almost a millennium.
It was Kumarila who was the first one who really challenged their supremacy and turned the tables on the Buddhists.
On the Buddhist side the challenge was taken up by Santarakshita and Kamasila, the former in his Tattvasangraha and the latter in his commentary on TS called Panjika criticized the views of both Kumarila and Naiyayikas.
They were Madhyamika-Vijnanavadins. In their turn Vacaspati Mishra in his commentary on Nyaya Vartika called the Tatparya Tika, Bhasarvajna in his Nyayabhushana and Jayanta in his Nyayamanjari criticized the views of Buddhists specially Santarakshita and Kamalasila.
They were further criticized by Jnanasrimitra and Pandit Asoka.
The debate finally ended with the great Nyaya Acharya writing his famous polemical work, which is in this respect unparalleled in philosophical traditions of both east and west, which ended the dominance of Buddhists in philosophy in India after more than a thousand years, this work was known as Atmatattvaviveka.
It is divided into 4 chapters. In the first the Sautrantika view is criticized. In the second the Yogacara school is refuted.
In the third the Madhyamika school is criticized.
The fourth chapter is the Siddhanta where Udayana establishes his view and defends it, specially that of existence of the self.
The above work is thus also known by the title Bauddha Dhikkara.
Uptill now no Buddhist scholar has contested the arguments of Udayana.Three important commentaries were written on this work.
One was written by Narayana Acharya, other by Samkara Mishra and the final one by one of the greatest Naiyayikas of all times - Raghunath Siromani whose commentary is known as Didithi.
Udayana has written three more important works:
Tatparya Parishuddhi on Vacaspati Mishra's Tatparya Tika, Kiranavali which synthesizes the Nyaya and Vaisesika school, Nyayakusumanjali which defends the Nyaya doctrine, attacks the Purva Mimamsa school and seeks to establish the existence of God on a rational basis, providing in all 9 proofs.The Nyaya - Buddhist debate is one of the greatest philosophical events of the world and led to the development of both the schools with improved polemical exchanges.
It shows how rich was logic in Indian Philosophical tradition.
