西谷啓治の宗教哲学における「体験の立場」の意義と位置づけについて

Abstract

In order to understand the distinctive character of Keiji Nishitani's philosophy of religion, it is necessary to examine what he terms, "the standpoint of experience." This term was first introduced in the essay, "The Philosophy of Religion: An Introduction" (1941). While absent from his later works, the term nevertheless carries the basic ideas of Nishitani's philosophy of religion. Understanding the meaning of "the standpoint of experience" is, therefore, crucial in shedding light on the fundamental orientation of Nishitani's thought. In this paper, I consider the significance and the status of "the standpoint of experience" in Nishitani's philosophy of religion. The approach will be a comparative study on the following three works: "Religion, History and Culture" (1937), "The Philosophy of Religion: An Introduction" (1941) and "Religion and Nothingness" (1961). The paper begins by underlining the basis of Nishitani's early thought found in the essay, "Religion, History and Culture." The focus then shifts towards clarifying how fundamental subjectivity—the central idea from his early period—is revisited as "the standpoint of experience" in the essay, "The Philosophy of Religion: An Introduction." Finally, it is argued that in his magnum opus, "Religion and Nothingness, " "the standpoint of experience" develops into the idea of "appropriation"