Dwayne Roberts

Thesis title

Unlearn to Navigate Crises: Toward a Pedagogy of Nothingness

Abstract

Unprecedented challenges, such as the Holocene extinction, appear to pose numerous philosophical problems crying to be answered. Yet, what continues to plague most propositions, at least in the English-speaking world, is the misleading belief that unconditioned entities, those that have an 'own manner of being' or 'innate disposition', as well as space and time constraints, exist. In this thesis, drawing by and large from Avataṃsaka and Chán traditions, I will argue that a point of crisis, such as the Holocene extinction, can be overcome in not overcoming it. Because all phenomena arise dependently and interpenetrate, it is the tension of this apparent paradox which can guide a singleminded person to real truth. Furthermore, the application of contradictory logic implicates the thesis itself in this case, thus, making a contribution to knowledge in not making one. This is what will form and dissolve this method and practice of teaching.

• Applied philosophy
• East and South Asian thought
• Epistemology
• Metaphysics