| Unit | Unit Name | Detailed Syllabus / Key Topics to Cover |
|---|
| Unit 1 | Classical Indian: Epistemology and Metaphysics | - Vedic and Upaniṣadic Philosophy: Ṛta, yajña, theories of creation, Ātman, Jāgrat, Svapna, Suṣupti, Turiya, Brahman.
- Cārvāka: Pratyakṣa, critique of Anumāna and Śabda, consciousness as epiphenomenon.
- Jainism: Sat, Dravya, Guṇa, Paryāya, Jīva, Ajīva, Anekāntavāda, Syādvāda, Nayavāda.
- Buddhism: Four Noble Truths, Āṣṭāṅgika Mārga, Pratītyasamutpāda, Kṣaṇabhaṅgavāda, Anātmavāda; Schools – Vaibhāṣika, Sautrāntika, Yogācāra, Mādhyamika, Tibetan Buddhism.
- Nyāya: Pramā / Apramā, Pramāṇas (Pratyakṣa, Anumāna, Upamāna, Śabda), Hetvābhāsa, God, debate with Buddhism, Anyathākhyāti.
- Vaiśeṣika: Padārtha, Asatkāryavāda, Kāraṇa (Samavāyi, Asamavāyi, Nimitta), Paramāṇukāraṇavāda.
- Sāṃkhya: Satkāryavāda, Prakṛti and evolutes, Puruṣa, atheism.
- Yoga: Patañjali’s Pramāṇa, Citta/Citta-vṛtti, stages of Citta-bhūmi, role of God.
- Pūrva-Mīmāṃsā: Prāmāṇyavāda, Śruti, Vidhi/Niṣedha/Arthavāda, Kumārila and Prabhākara schools, theories of error.
- Vedānta: Advaita, Viśiṣṭādvaita, Dvaita, Dvaitādvaita, Śuddhādvaita.
|
| Unit 2 | Classical Western Philosophy: Ancient, Medieval and Modern | - Pre-Socratic Philosophers: Thales, Anaxagoras, Anaximenes, Ionians, Pythagoras, Parmenides, Heraclitus, Democritus.
- The Sophists and Socrates. Plato and Aristotle: Plato’s theory of Ideas, dialectic, soul, God; Aristotle’s classification of sciences, logic, causation, form and matter, potentiality and actuality.
- Medieval Philosophy: St. Augustine (evil), St. Anselm (ontological argument), St. Thomas Aquinas (faith and reason, existence of God).
- Modern Philosophy: Descartes, Spinoza, Leibnitz, Locke, Berkeley, Hume, Kant, Hegel.
|
| Unit 3 | Indian Ethics | - Purusārtha, Śreyas and Preyas. Varṇāśrama, Dharma, Sādhāraṇa Dharma. Ṛṇa and Yajña, concept of duty. Karma-yoga, Sthitaprajña, Svadharma, Lokasaṃgraha. Apūrva and Adṛṣṭa; Sādhya-Sādhana, Itikartavyatā. Law of Karma and ethical implications. Ṛta and Satya; Yoga-kṣema; Aṣṭāṅga Yoga.
- Jain Ethics: Saṃvara-Nirjarā, Tri-ratna, Pañca-vrata.
- Buddhist Ethics: Upāya-Kauśala, Brahma-vihāra (Maitrī, Karuṇā, Muditā, Upekṣā), Bodhisattva ideal.
- Cārvāka Hedonism.
|
| Unit 4 | Western Ethics | - Concepts of Good, Right, Justice, Duty, Obligation, Cardinal Virtues, Eudaemonism. Intuition in Teleological and Deontological theories. Egoism, Altruism, Universalism; Subjectivism, Cultural Relativism, Super-naturalism. Ethical Realism and Intuitionism.
- Kant’s Moral Theory: Good-will, categorical imperative, duty, maxims, postulates of morality.
- Utilitarianism: Utility principle, Bentham, J. S. Mill, Sidgwick. Theories of punishment. Ethical Cognitivism and Non-cognitivism: Emotivism, Prescriptivism, Descriptivism.
|
| Unit 5 | Contemporary Indian Philosophy | - Swami Vivekananda – Practical Vedanta, Universal Religion.
- Sri Aurobindo – Evolution, Integral Yoga.
- Muhammad Iqbal – Self, God, Intellect and Intuition.
- Rabindranath Tagore – Religion of Man, Nationalism.
- K. C. Bhattacharyya – Swaraj in Ideas, Subject as Freedom.
- S. Radhakrishnan – Intellect and Intuition, Idealist view of life.
- J. Krishnamurti – Freedom from the Known, Choiceless Awareness.
- Mahatma Gandhi – Truth, Non-violence, Satyagraha, Swaraj.
- B. R. Ambedkar – Annihilation of Caste, Neo-Buddhism.
- Deendayal Upadhyaya – Integral Humanism.
- Narayana Guru – Spiritual Freedom, Social Equality.
- Thiruvalluvar – Tirukkural.
- Jyotiba Phule – Critique of caste system.
- M. N. Roy – Radical Humanism.
- Maulana Azad – Humanism.
- Bhima Bhoi – Mahima Dharma.
- Swami Dayanand Saraswati – Traitavada.
|
| Unit 6 | Recent Western Philosophy | - Analytic Philosophy: Frege (Sense and Reference), Logical Positivism, Moore, Russell, Wittgenstein, Gilbert Ryle, A. J. Ayer, Quine, Grice and Strawson.
- Phenomenology and Existentialism: Husserl, Heidegger, Kierkegaard, Sartre, Merleau-Ponty.
- Pragmatism: William James, John Dewey.
- Postmodernism: Nietzsche, Richard Rorty, Emmanuel Levinas.
|
| Unit 7 | Social and Political Philosophy: Indian | - Mahabharata – Danda-niti, Rajdharma, law and governance, Narada’s questions.
- Kautilya – Sovereignty, seven pillars of statecraft, law and justice, welfare.
- Kamandaki – Social order and elements of the state.
- Constitutional morality, secularism, fundamental rights.
- Constitutionalism, total revolution, terrorism, swadeshi, satyagraha, sarvodaya, social democracy, state socialism, affirmative action, social justice.
- Social institutions – family, marriage, property, education, religion.
- Colonialism.
|
| Unit 8 | Social and Political Philosophy: Western | - Plato – Ideal state and justice.
- Social Contract Theory – Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau.
- Isaiah Berlin – Liberty.
- Bernard Williams – Equality.
- Liberalism – Rawls, Nozick, Dworkin, Amartya Sen.
- Marxism – Dialectical Materialism, Alienation, Class Struggle.
- Communitarianism – Charles Taylor, MacIntyre, Michael Sandel.
- Multiculturalism – Charles Taylor, Will Kymlicka.
- Feminism – Patriarchy, misogyny, gender, liberal/so
|
| Unit 9 | Logic | - Truth and validity, denotation and connotation, nature of propositions.
- Categorical syllogism, laws of thought, classification of propositions.
- Square of opposition.
- Truth-functions and propositional logic.
- Quantification and rules of quantification.
- Symbolic logic and use of symbols.
- Decision procedures – truth table, Venn diagram, fallacies.
- Proving validity, arguments and argument forms.
- Axiomatic system, consistency, completeness.
- Deductive and inductive logic.
|
| Unit 10 | Applied Philosophy | - Nature and scope of Applied Philosophy.
- Philosophy of Technology – dominance, power, inequalities, democratization of technology, public evaluation of science.
- Ethical implications of IT and biotechnology.
- Environmental Ethics – Aldo Leopold, Arne Naess, Peter Singer.
- Medical Ethics – surrogacy, abortion, euthanasia, female infanticide.
- Professional Ethics – corporate governance.
- Media Ethics – privacy, cyberspace, pornography, marginalization.
- Legal Ethics – law and morality, legal obligation.
- Philosophical Counseling – managing everyday problems.
|