A COMPARRITIVE STUDY OF IMMANUEL KANT'S EPISTEMOLOGY AND EPISTEMOLOGY OF THERAVADA BUDDHIST PHILOSOPHY

Abstract

The objectives of this thesis are 1) Study of Epistemology in the Concept of Immanuel Kant. 2) Study of Epistemology in the Concept of Therav?da Buddhist Philosophy? 3) A Comparative Study of Epistemology in the Concept of Immanuel Kant and Therav?da Buddhist Philosophy. The purpose of this thesis is to compare the concept of the epistemology of Immanuel Kant and Theravada Buddhist philosophy to find similarities and dissimilarities between the two. The information used for the study is from the Tipitaka, Commentaries, textbooks and other documents.

The results of the research were found that: 1) Kant's synthetic a priori knowledge arises from an integration of rationalism's a priori knowledge and empiricism's a posteriori knowledge. However, due to the fact that human knowledge must depend on the synthesizing mind, his knowledge is limited and cannot go beyond his experience in the actual or phenomenal world. 2) The Theravada Buddhist Philosophy is divided into 2 levels:- worldly knowledge (Lokiya nana) and supermundane knowledge (Lokuthra nana). and what is the highest truth. The two kinds of knowledge arise from the development? according to the three kinds of training: precept, concentration and wisdom. 3) The results of A Comparative Study of Epistemology in the Concept of Immanuel Kant and Theravada Buddhist Philosophy were found as follows: Kant believed that sensual perception through the six sense-organs: eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body and mind, mixed with an individual internal knowledge could create the origin of knowledge. But Theravada Buddhist philosophy emphasized that sensual perception through the six sense-organs accompanied by contemplation was the origin of knowledge. In the process of knowledge, Kant started from the form of sensibility, theory knowledge and then ultimate knowledge. Theravada Buddhist philosophy started its knowledge from sensual perception, external factors, contemplation and then ultimate knowledge. Kant classified knowledge into 3 levels: perceptual knowledge, conceptual knowledge and rational knowledge, but Theravada Buddhist philosophy had 6 levels, i.e. sensual perception, memory, view, higher knowledge, insight and enlightenment. Kant used the experience from sensual perception and machine of production as the criteria in knowledge judging, but Theravada Buddhist philosophy used wisdom resulting from mental development as its instrument.