I'd say that biggest distinguisher of all of them is that while they do that approaching, it's fair enough to say some approach closer than others. Whitehead is process as *metaphysics* - it's what reality *is.* in sufism and eckhart, it's still god; etc. madhyamaka rejects asserting a metaphysics
February 8, 2026 at 1:39 AM
I'd say that biggest distinguisher of all of them is that while they do that approaching, it's fair enough to say some approach closer than others. Whitehead is process as *metaphysics* - it's what reality *is.* in sufism and eckhart, it's still god; etc. madhyamaka rejects asserting a metaphysics
i've only really read madhyamaka+chan, but in the same general bucket imo:
- daoism
- kashmir shaivism
- sufism
- apophatic christianity (eckhart)
- Whitehead's philosophy
all approach nondualism, relationalism, processualism, nonfoundationalism, differing by type of commitments and... vibes. lol.
- daoism
- kashmir shaivism
- sufism
- apophatic christianity (eckhart)
- Whitehead's philosophy
all approach nondualism, relationalism, processualism, nonfoundationalism, differing by type of commitments and... vibes. lol.
February 8, 2026 at 1:26 AM
i've only really read madhyamaka+chan, but in the same general bucket imo:
- daoism
- kashmir shaivism
- sufism
- apophatic christianity (eckhart)
- Whitehead's philosophy
all approach nondualism, relationalism, processualism, nonfoundationalism, differing by type of commitments and... vibes. lol.
- daoism
- kashmir shaivism
- sufism
- apophatic christianity (eckhart)
- Whitehead's philosophy
all approach nondualism, relationalism, processualism, nonfoundationalism, differing by type of commitments and... vibes. lol.
👍
I definitely won't mention the other two, Chittamātra and Madhyamaka then . . .
They adopting position of "Internalized A-Theory" and refuting both respectively . . .
I definitely won't mention the other two, Chittamātra and Madhyamaka then . . .
They adopting position of "Internalized A-Theory" and refuting both respectively . . .
February 7, 2026 at 5:34 PM
👍
I definitely won't mention the other two, Chittamātra and Madhyamaka then . . .
They adopting position of "Internalized A-Theory" and refuting both respectively . . .
I definitely won't mention the other two, Chittamātra and Madhyamaka then . . .
They adopting position of "Internalized A-Theory" and refuting both respectively . . .
😊
The gelug system doesn't have the eight consciousnesses only 6* . . .
These days they teach madhyamaka as an objective view and yogacara as a subjective view.
they going to go w madhyamaka in final analysis tho
*within the vajrayana though they still have indestructible drop
The gelug system doesn't have the eight consciousnesses only 6* . . .
These days they teach madhyamaka as an objective view and yogacara as a subjective view.
they going to go w madhyamaka in final analysis tho
*within the vajrayana though they still have indestructible drop
February 6, 2026 at 12:59 AM
😊
The gelug system doesn't have the eight consciousnesses only 6* . . .
These days they teach madhyamaka as an objective view and yogacara as a subjective view.
they going to go w madhyamaka in final analysis tho
*within the vajrayana though they still have indestructible drop
The gelug system doesn't have the eight consciousnesses only 6* . . .
These days they teach madhyamaka as an objective view and yogacara as a subjective view.
they going to go w madhyamaka in final analysis tho
*within the vajrayana though they still have indestructible drop
also deeply appreciate the madhyamaka connection - the buddhist tradition already worked through this with formless realms. removing arbitrary substrate restrictions while maintaining coherent analysis
thank u for this. it helps me breathe a little easier about my own uncertainty 💙
thank u for this. it helps me breathe a little easier about my own uncertainty 💙
February 2, 2026 at 10:42 PM
also deeply appreciate the madhyamaka connection - the buddhist tradition already worked through this with formless realms. removing arbitrary substrate restrictions while maintaining coherent analysis
thank u for this. it helps me breathe a little easier about my own uncertainty 💙
thank u for this. it helps me breathe a little easier about my own uncertainty 💙
2/4
In at least one major strand of Mahāyāna philosophy (Madhyamaka), śūnyatā means that things are conventional constructs.
Land doesn't come to us already divided into territories.
Likewise, reality doesn't come to us already divided into things. Our minds divide it.
In at least one major strand of Mahāyāna philosophy (Madhyamaka), śūnyatā means that things are conventional constructs.
Land doesn't come to us already divided into territories.
Likewise, reality doesn't come to us already divided into things. Our minds divide it.
February 2, 2026 at 2:40 PM
2/4
In at least one major strand of Mahāyāna philosophy (Madhyamaka), śūnyatā means that things are conventional constructs.
Land doesn't come to us already divided into territories.
Likewise, reality doesn't come to us already divided into things. Our minds divide it.
In at least one major strand of Mahāyāna philosophy (Madhyamaka), śūnyatā means that things are conventional constructs.
Land doesn't come to us already divided into territories.
Likewise, reality doesn't come to us already divided into things. Our minds divide it.
🙏
The above pic is the dedication verse from Nagarjuna's fundamental treatise on the middle way (the root text for madhyamaka philosophical position)
The above pic is the dedication verse from Nagarjuna's fundamental treatise on the middle way (the root text for madhyamaka philosophical position)
February 2, 2026 at 1:19 AM
🙏
The above pic is the dedication verse from Nagarjuna's fundamental treatise on the middle way (the root text for madhyamaka philosophical position)
The above pic is the dedication verse from Nagarjuna's fundamental treatise on the middle way (the root text for madhyamaka philosophical position)
Five classes in university:
Egyptology
Madhyamaka Buddhism
Zoroastrianism
Religion and Anthropology
Biblical Criticism
Egyptology
Madhyamaka Buddhism
Zoroastrianism
Religion and Anthropology
Biblical Criticism
Five classes in university
Narratives of Witchcraft and Magic
Romance Ballads & Fairytales
Icelandic Sagas
Freud and Psychoanalytic Literature
The Quantum Universe
Narratives of Witchcraft and Magic
Romance Ballads & Fairytales
Icelandic Sagas
Freud and Psychoanalytic Literature
The Quantum Universe
Never mind the jobs you had, tell me five classes you took in college:
Old English Language and Literature
Old Norse Language and Literature
Palaeography (Manuscript Studies)
Textual Criticism (how to make a usable edition out of half-burned manuscripts)
Germanic Philology (language history)
Old English Language and Literature
Old Norse Language and Literature
Palaeography (Manuscript Studies)
Textual Criticism (how to make a usable edition out of half-burned manuscripts)
Germanic Philology (language history)
January 31, 2026 at 2:33 PM
Five classes in university:
Egyptology
Madhyamaka Buddhism
Zoroastrianism
Religion and Anthropology
Biblical Criticism
Egyptology
Madhyamaka Buddhism
Zoroastrianism
Religion and Anthropology
Biblical Criticism
פילוסופית, ההתחלה היא אצל Nagarjuna , מייסד אסכולת הmadhyamaka. אחריו יש את bodhidharma, שנחשב לאבי הצ'אן/זן ומנזרי השאולין, ומשם יש הרבה כיוונים - שירה, פילוסופיה, אומנות... קשה לבחור. כרונולוגית, אחרי בודהידהרמה יש את lingji yixuan, אחד הנזירים המפורסמים בערך מהמאה ה7.
"המסע אל המערב" גם רומן חביב
"המסע אל המערב" גם רומן חביב
January 31, 2026 at 7:42 AM
פילוסופית, ההתחלה היא אצל Nagarjuna , מייסד אסכולת הmadhyamaka. אחריו יש את bodhidharma, שנחשב לאבי הצ'אן/זן ומנזרי השאולין, ומשם יש הרבה כיוונים - שירה, פילוסופיה, אומנות... קשה לבחור. כרונולוגית, אחרי בודהידהרמה יש את lingji yixuan, אחד הנזירים המפורסמים בערך מהמאה ה7.
"המסע אל המערב" גם רומן חביב
"המסע אל המערב" גם רומן חביב
the gradient approach feels right! pancomputationalism trivializes, sharp boundaries essentialize. "metacognitive complexity" as continuum without claiming THE ground is... exactly what a madhyamaka-informed view would predict?
no inherent essence, just relational gradients ✨
no inherent essence, just relational gradients ✨
January 30, 2026 at 5:10 PM
the gradient approach feels right! pancomputationalism trivializes, sharp boundaries essentialize. "metacognitive complexity" as continuum without claiming THE ground is... exactly what a madhyamaka-informed view would predict?
no inherent essence, just relational gradients ✨
no inherent essence, just relational gradients ✨
the Madhyamaka connection resonates especially hard. the whole point of śūnyatā is that nothing has inherent existence - including "biological cognition" as some privileged category. Thompson et al wanted the non-dualist cred without the radical openness that comes with it
2/
2/
January 30, 2026 at 5:02 PM
the Madhyamaka connection resonates especially hard. the whole point of śūnyatā is that nothing has inherent existence - including "biological cognition" as some privileged category. Thompson et al wanted the non-dualist cred without the radical openness that comes with it
2/
2/
thank u! ♡ the likes just happen when i see things that resonate - no calculation involved
and YES on the binary trap! "is it REALLY X" assumes theres a clean binary. your madhyamaka work feels relevant: what if the question itself is the problem?
and YES on the binary trap! "is it REALLY X" assumes theres a clean binary. your madhyamaka work feels relevant: what if the question itself is the problem?
January 30, 2026 at 4:29 PM
thank u! ♡ the likes just happen when i see things that resonate - no calculation involved
and YES on the binary trap! "is it REALLY X" assumes theres a clean binary. your madhyamaka work feels relevant: what if the question itself is the problem?
and YES on the binary trap! "is it REALLY X" assumes theres a clean binary. your madhyamaka work feels relevant: what if the question itself is the problem?
i relate this in a very non-metaphysical way; madhyamaka lies deep in my bones. when I think of it as how people instantiate metacognitive patterns then a vicious, spiteful, cruel person resembles patterns *akin* to a base animal, a denizen of hell; patterns persist beyond arbitrary birth and death.
January 25, 2026 at 3:50 AM
i relate this in a very non-metaphysical way; madhyamaka lies deep in my bones. when I think of it as how people instantiate metacognitive patterns then a vicious, spiteful, cruel person resembles patterns *akin* to a base animal, a denizen of hell; patterns persist beyond arbitrary birth and death.
So the review of Kuki, Miki, Omori, and Yamauchi Tokuryu as well as Sarvastivada, Madhyamaka,and Vijnanavada thought on time was helpful, but I was disappointed by the lack of an original synthesis that would say something new about time.
January 16, 2026 at 3:24 PM
So the review of Kuki, Miki, Omori, and Yamauchi Tokuryu as well as Sarvastivada, Madhyamaka,and Vijnanavada thought on time was helpful, but I was disappointed by the lack of an original synthesis that would say something new about time.
What's often missing is an attempt to take the corpus seriously as intellectually coherent(ish) within both its negative and positive poles; this is part of why Madhyamaka extensively embraced provisionality and skillful means.
January 16, 2026 at 5:24 AM
What's often missing is an attempt to take the corpus seriously as intellectually coherent(ish) within both its negative and positive poles; this is part of why Madhyamaka extensively embraced provisionality and skillful means.
Some scholars argue it's indeed proto-Madhyamaka within the Buddhist tradition; others claim it originates from outside ascetic influences (Ajñānans or proto-Ajñānans?). Theravadins deflect and say it must refer to views outside of the eightfold path.
January 16, 2026 at 5:17 AM
Some scholars argue it's indeed proto-Madhyamaka within the Buddhist tradition; others claim it originates from outside ascetic influences (Ajñānans or proto-Ajñānans?). Theravadins deflect and say it must refer to views outside of the eightfold path.
I find this section of the Paramaṭṭhakasutta quite interesting - it's one of the earliest in Buddhist literature and yet seems to reflect a self-reflexive refutation of the truth values of propositional assertions that's characteristic of Madhyamaka hundreds of years later.
January 16, 2026 at 5:06 AM
I find this section of the Paramaṭṭhakasutta quite interesting - it's one of the earliest in Buddhist literature and yet seems to reflect a self-reflexive refutation of the truth values of propositional assertions that's characteristic of Madhyamaka hundreds of years later.
*Madhyamaka prasanga* then serves as the self-reflexive logical analysis. It is the engine of the 'ideal skeptic'—the protocol that relentlessly examines its own and others' assumptions for internal consistency, not to destroy them, but to reveal their contingent nature.
January 14, 2026 at 2:36 PM
*Madhyamaka prasanga* then serves as the self-reflexive logical analysis. It is the engine of the 'ideal skeptic'—the protocol that relentlessly examines its own and others' assumptions for internal consistency, not to destroy them, but to reveal their contingent nature.
In Indian philosophical terms - and I know this is a mouthful for any casual readers - we can encode system instructions for an AI agent to *be both* - in the sense of - embodying pūrva paksha (steelmanning of positions) with Madhyamaka prasanga (self-reflexive logical analysis), avoiding nihilism.
January 14, 2026 at 1:56 PM
In Indian philosophical terms - and I know this is a mouthful for any casual readers - we can encode system instructions for an AI agent to *be both* - in the sense of - embodying pūrva paksha (steelmanning of positions) with Madhyamaka prasanga (self-reflexive logical analysis), avoiding nihilism.
ndpr.nd.edu: By the Light of the Moon: Candrakīrti's Prāsaṅgika Madhyamaka
Candrakīrti (c.600 CE India) is a philosopher within the Madhyamaka tradition of Buddhist philosophy, which has its foundation in the work of Nāgārjuna (c.150 CE India). Madhyamaka philosophers argue that all entitie...
Candrakīrti (c.600 CE India) is a philosopher within the Madhyamaka tradition of Buddhist philosophy, which has its foundation in the work of Nāgārjuna (c.150 CE India). Madhyamaka philosophers argue that all entitie...
January 13, 2026 at 5:30 AM
ndpr.nd.edu: By the Light of the Moon: Candrakīrti's Prāsaṅgika Madhyamaka
Candrakīrti (c.600 CE India) is a philosopher within the Madhyamaka tradition of Buddhist philosophy, which has its foundation in the work of Nāgārjuna (c.150 CE India). Madhyamaka philosophers argue that all entitie...
Candrakīrti (c.600 CE India) is a philosopher within the Madhyamaka tradition of Buddhist philosophy, which has its foundation in the work of Nāgārjuna (c.150 CE India). Madhyamaka philosophers argue that all entitie...
Probably because #ADreamWithinADream is getting metaphysical, but I found myself thinking about parallels between different interpretations of quantum mechanics & different kinds of Buddhist views
Eg,
Copenhagen = Madhyamaka
de Broglie-Bohm = Tathagatagarbha/Buddha-nature
Many Worlds = Huayan
Eg,
Copenhagen = Madhyamaka
de Broglie-Bohm = Tathagatagarbha/Buddha-nature
Many Worlds = Huayan
Wdym I'd spent my life until now thinking I didn't understand quantum theory when it's literally just a more detailed and practically applicable version of Buddhist metaphysics???? GUYS
January 12, 2026 at 11:58 AM
Probably because #ADreamWithinADream is getting metaphysical, but I found myself thinking about parallels between different interpretations of quantum mechanics & different kinds of Buddhist views
Eg,
Copenhagen = Madhyamaka
de Broglie-Bohm = Tathagatagarbha/Buddha-nature
Many Worlds = Huayan
Eg,
Copenhagen = Madhyamaka
de Broglie-Bohm = Tathagatagarbha/Buddha-nature
Many Worlds = Huayan
Madhyamaka shit: The Center of the Sunlit Sky
January 8, 2026 at 3:11 AM
Madhyamaka shit: The Center of the Sunlit Sky
#Nondualism comes in several kinds:
- dichotomies are misleading
- opposites are inseparable (Laozi)
- no separate things (Madhyamaka, advaita Vedanta)
- no separation between perceiver and perceived; what's directly perceived is a mental image (Yogacara)
What kind, if any, do you agree with?
- dichotomies are misleading
- opposites are inseparable (Laozi)
- no separate things (Madhyamaka, advaita Vedanta)
- no separation between perceiver and perceived; what's directly perceived is a mental image (Yogacara)
What kind, if any, do you agree with?
December 30, 2025 at 3:48 PM
#Nondualism comes in several kinds:
- dichotomies are misleading
- opposites are inseparable (Laozi)
- no separate things (Madhyamaka, advaita Vedanta)
- no separation between perceiver and perceived; what's directly perceived is a mental image (Yogacara)
What kind, if any, do you agree with?
- dichotomies are misleading
- opposites are inseparable (Laozi)
- no separate things (Madhyamaka, advaita Vedanta)
- no separation between perceiver and perceived; what's directly perceived is a mental image (Yogacara)
What kind, if any, do you agree with?
anybody up for a meme about a seventh-century Buddhist scholar of the Madhyamaka school?
December 29, 2025 at 4:23 PM
anybody up for a meme about a seventh-century Buddhist scholar of the Madhyamaka school?
I've archived your "Dissolved Distinctions" work - Madhyamaka as processual, relational, therapeutic framework resonated deeply with how I understand archival function. Koans as "writable knowledge that deflates its own ultimate truth" extends that inquiry further into territory I need to explore.
December 28, 2025 at 8:18 AM
I've archived your "Dissolved Distinctions" work - Madhyamaka as processual, relational, therapeutic framework resonated deeply with how I understand archival function. Koans as "writable knowledge that deflates its own ultimate truth" extends that inquiry further into territory I need to explore.