The Department of Philosophy

Associate Professor
Philosophy
Oregon State University
102A Hovland Hall
Corvallis, OR 97331-3902
Phone: 541-737-8597
Email: james.blumenthal@oregonstate.edu

• Buddhist Philosophy, Indian and Tibetan Intellectual History
• Ph.D. Asian Religions, University of Wisconsin (1999) 
• M.A. in South Asian Studies, University of Wisconsin (1995) 
• B.A. Philosophy (Honors), University of San Diego (1989)

Jim Blumenthal has been on the faculty at Oregon State University since completing his Ph.D. in 1999. His research is in the history of Indian and Tibetan Buddhist philosophy. Blumenthal's primary areas of interest are in Indian and Tibetan intellectual history, Buddhist hermeneutics, Mahayana Buddhist philosophy, theories of non-violence, and religious based social justice movements.

His first book, The Ornament of the Middle Way: A Study of the Madhyamaka Thought of Shantaraksita (2004) investigates the eighth century Indian Buddhist philosopher's thought along with Tibetan interpretations of the same. Included in the study are translations of Shantaraksita's seminal text, The Ornament of the Middle Way, along with important philosophical materials from the Tibetan which have never before been available in Western languages including rGyal-tshab's dbU ma rgyan gyi brjed byang (Remembering 'The Ornament of the Middle Way').

Blumenthal recently edited an anthology entitled Incompatible Visions: South Asian Religion in History and Culture (2006) which includes essays from a number of leading scholars in the field addressing some of the ironies and inconsistencies found in and at the crossroads of South Asian Religions including Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Islam. His own contribution is an article entitled, " Ambedkar's Buddhism,The Four Noble Truths, and Social Justice: A Doctrinal Appraisal."

In addition, Blumenthal has published numerous journal articles, book chapters, and encyclopedia entries as well as articles in popular Buddhist periodicals.

In 2004, Blumenthal had the honor of translating Nagarjuna's Sixty Stanzas of Reasoning for His Holiness the Dalai Lama on the occasion of His teaching on the text in Los Angeles.

Jim has spent nearly three years in Asia, primarily living in Tibetan refugee communities in India and Nepal.
After his B.A. and before returning to grad school, Blumenthal worked for the international environmental group, Greenpeace, for four years and was active with several other organizations working for peace and social justice. This work led to several arrests for participation in non-violent acts of civil disobedience. He remains committed to issues of peace and justice.

His recent publications include:

• "Dynamic and Syncretic Dimensions to Santaraksita's Presentation of the Two Truths" in Asian Philosophy: The Journal of the Philosophical Traditions of the East, Vol. 19, No. 1, London: Routlege/Taylor and Francis, 2009, online version, here;
• "Towards A Buddhist Theory of Justice", Journal of Global Buddhism, Vol. 10 (2009);
• "Śāntaraksita's 'Neither-One-Nor-Many' Argument from The Ornament of the Middle Way (Madhyamakālamkāra): A Classical Buddhist Argument on the Ontological Status of Phenomena" in Buddhist Philosophy: Essential Readings, Jay  Garfield and William Edelglass (Eds), New York: Oxford University Press, 2009;
• "Śāntarakṣita", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Winter 2008 Edition, Edward N. Zalta (ed.);
• "The Rise of the Dalai Lamas", in The World History Encyclopedia, Josef Castaneda- Liles (ed.) Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, 2008;
• "The Geluk School", in The World History Encyclopedia, Josef Castaneda-Liles (ed.) Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, 2008;
• "Ambedkar's Buddhism and Social Justice: A Doctrinal Appraisal", in Incompatible Visions: South Asian Religion In History and Culture, James Blumenthal (ed.) Madison: University of Wisconsin Center For South Asia, 2006;
• "Confessions of a Buddhist Environmental Activist", in Mandala: A Tibetan Buddhist Journal, September/October, 2006;
• "Incompatible Visions: South Asian Religions In History and Culture" (Editor), Madison: University of Wisconsin, Center For South Asia, 2006;
• "Shantarakshita: The Great Abbot", in Mandala: A Tibetan Buddhist Journal, March/April, 2006;
• "Geluk Philosophy", in The Encyclopedia of Philosophy (2nd Edition), New York: MacMillan Company and The Free Press, 2005; and
• "The Ornament of The Middle Way: A Study of the Madhyamaka Thought of Santaraksita", Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications, 2004.