Instructions for contributors:

Our online database provides easy-to-use resources for faculty members in Philosophy who are interested in diversifying their teaching but who lack training in nonwestern philosophy. Faculty who use the site can start small by selecting a single nonwestern reading to fit into an existing course.

There are many webpages where faculty can find general information about different nonwestern philosophers and texts. This page is different; it provides a searchable database of specific suggestions for readings that could be added to an existing course and paired with already selected Western texts. This site connects users with relevant primary and secondary material from the rest of the world; it is not a substitute for such materials or a substantial addition to them.

Each entry should introduce a nonwestern text that would be suitable for inclusion in an undergraduate class. It should provide an approximately 100-word description of the text, a brief annotated bibliography, a brief list of available translations, and a few suggestions for texts to pair it with.  For examples, see the site.  We’re including entries for full texts like the Gita as well as for selections from texts or specific topics like no-self in Questions of King Milinda.

Notice that we are keeping each entry very short!

Here are the basic components. Please see the entries on the site for examples.

• The primary source. Suggest a text that would be suitable as a reading assignment on a syllabus for an undergraduate course taught by somebody who is not trained in non-Western philosophy. We are looking for readings that would work well as parts of theme-based courses such as Metaphysics, Intro to Philosophy, Philosophy of Mind etc.
• Translations: Which are some of the best translations of that text for classroom use? Include a brief annotation for each translation: What are some of its strengths and weaknesses?
• Secondary sources. What are the first 3-4 readings you would give a nonspecialist to help her teach the selection you are recommending in (1)? Here too, please include a brief annotation about each text. Basically: Why are you recommending this particular resource; what is helpful and useful about it? Note that we are not looking for general websites but specific readings.
• Compare/contrast with other scholars/works/areas: Here, we are looking for connections to readings that a philosophy professor is likely to be familiar with already. Users will be able to search the site for entries that mention any word or phrase, and so they will be able to look for a reading that might pair well with Aristotle’s Ethics or for any entry that mentions egoism or nonviolence.
• Suggested keywords. These are terms that we will use as tags and categories for the entry (see the site for the tags and categories that we have created so far).

Please make sure you include full bibliographical information for all entries. Where possible, please suggest sources that are easily accessible either online or in print.

If you have questions, please contact us.

Please use the form below to send us your entry.