SOURCE: "Samkara's Arguments against the Buddhists," Philosophy East and West, Vol. III, No. 4, January, 1954, pp. 291-306.

In the essay below, Ingalls suggests a comparative textual analysis of Sankara's writings for exploring his complex views on Buddhism.

Much has been said on the relation of Samkaracarya to the Buddhists, and the views which are current on this topic differ as much as black differs from white. The more enthusiastic of Samkara's followers claim that he is chiefly responsible for driving the Buddhists out of India. Their sectarian opponents, on the other hand, have claimed that far from opposing Buddhism Samkara secretly accepted its doctrines and introduced as many of them as he could into the Vedanta tradition. Scholars outside of India have also been far from agreement in their opinions, for some have emphasized the practical element of Samkara's doctrine, which is certainly opposed to Buddhism, while others, by...