The monograph highlights the philosophical arguments offered by Buddhist thinkers on different aspects of knowledge. Various aspects of Buddhist epistemology right from the basic question of what the Buddhists mean by knowledge, the varieties of knowledge according to their belief ad their explanations of the validity of knowledge are examined.

A painstaking work of Prof. Madhumita Chattopadhyay, this study deals with different epistemological topics like the nature of knowledge validity of knowledge, knowledge of knowledge, perception, erroneous perception, inference and its related issues like ascertainment of vyapti, antarvyapati, prasanganuman and fallacies of inference. The author has referred to many primary sources which include different Sanskrit texts as well as the latest secondary literature available on these topics and discusses the important role of concept of absence and the theory of apoha or �negative nominalism� as a substitute for universals I Buddhist metaphysics. An attempt is made to explore whether solutions to modern epistemological problems as found in the Western tradition can be provided from the Buddhist perspective in order to show that Buddhist epistemology has a relevant role to play I the area of epistemology itself.

Madhumita Chattopadhyay is a Professor in the Department of Philosophy, Jadavpur University from where she completed her PhD on Liar Paradox. Dr. Chattopadhyay was a Fellow of the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla in 1999. She visited Japan with Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai Fellowship in 2002. She taught at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Michigan USA under the Fulbright Visiting Lecturer Scheme in 2004. She has also visited Budapest, Hungary in 2007 under the Indo-Hungarian Educational Exchange Program.

Her areas of interest are Philosophical logic, Buddhist philosophy, Indian ethics and Comparative Religion. She has authored two books � What to do with the Liar and Ratnakirti on Apoha. She has co-edited two other books � Ethics: an Anthology and Siksaksetre Paraparik Samparka (in Bengali). She has also published numerous scholarly articles in reputed journals.

Preface v
Introduction 1
1. Knowledge � What it is? 9
2. Knowledge � How it is Apprehended? 37
3. Validity � How it is Apprehended? 57
Devendrabuddhi 67
Kamalasila 69
Manorathanandi 69
4. Knowledge � Its Different Varieties 75
5. Perception � Its Nature 79
6. Varieties of Perception 95
Sense � Perception 96
Mental Perception 98
Self-cognition 103
Yogic Apprehension 108
7. Erroneous Perception 113
8. Inference � Its Nature 127
Controversy Between the Nyaya and the Buddhist on Inference 131
Classification of Inferences 137
9. The Threefold Characterization of the Probans 147
10. Classification of the Probans 159
The Probans as Effect 159
Probans as Essence 164
Probans as Non-Apprehension 167
11. Nature of Vyapti 179
12. Ascertainment of Vyapti 189
13. Antarvyapti � A Buddhist Perspective 201
14. Sadhanabhasa � Fallacies of Inference 213
Paksabhasa 220
Hetvabhasa 225
Asiddha 225
Anaikantika 230
Viruddha 234
Drstantabhasa 237
Anvaya 237
Vyatireka 238
Viparitanvaya 238
Vipartiavyatireka 238
Ananvaya 238
Avyatireka 239
15. Prasanganumana in the light of the Buddhist 259
16. Absence � How it is know? 277
17. Testimony � A Separate Pramana 291
Conclusion 311
Bibliography 335
Index 345