The Buddha was what today is called an empirical philosopher, taking his philosophy from careful study of the empirical world, and rejecting "high flown" philosophies. As philosophy of existence, his view overlaps with Marx in his most interesting form, which is not the way Marx is typically understood. Marx was reduced to economics while the Buddha was reduced to religion. Many shared his view, including Dostoevsky, Proust, and Victor Hugo. Death is present in such views. But they are not recognized as philosophy.

Early Buddhism as Philosophy of Existence: Freedom and Death, Susan E. Babbit, Anthem Press, Paperback, 122 pages, $35.00

Susan E. Babbitt was associate professor in the Philosophy Department at Queen's University, Kingston Ontario, Canada. She received a PhD at Cornell University with a dissertation on rationality. As university professor, she specialized in feminism, moral psychology, epistemology and the philosophy of science. Starting in 1993, she spent large accounts of time in Cuba, eventually organizing a popular for-credit Philosophy course at the University of Havana. She received several grants for research projects related to Cuba in the 90s and early 2000s. Researching Latin America, she became increasingly interested in and concerned about the dogmatic, even bigoted nature of academic philosophy in North America: It is often taught as though three entire continents have no philosophical traditions worth teaching.