Some Asian Philosophical Antidotes to Damnation and Awfulizing

Abstract

Logic-based therapy (LBT) is an approach to philosophical practice that involves finding philosophical ideas that can serve as “antidotes” to clients’ emotional problems. I examine philosophical arguments from an ancient Chinese text, namely the Zhuangzi, and from four Buddhist texts, namely the Bodhicaryāvatāra, the Anattalakkhaṇa Sutta, and the Mūlamadhyamakakārikā. The Bodhicaryāvatāra contains several antidotes to the fallacy known within LBT as “Damnation of Others.” Arguments from the Zhuangzi, the Anattalakkhaṇa Sutta, and the Mūlamadhyamakakārikā may be helpful antidotes to the fallacy of Awfulizing about death.