The article seeks to show that in traditional India, inference (anumāna) was an empirical device of intellectual activity that enabled access to knowledge that was not available to direct sensory reception. However, this was a useful tool, not just into the arsenal of the philosopher, but was relevant for producing reliable and systematic knowledge in all domains with which one negotiated with the outside world. It is not, therefore, surprising that most of the systems of Indian philosophy accept inference as a means of valid knowledge (pramāna). There are elaborate discussions about the nature and structure of the process of inference in various orthodox and heterodox systems of Indian philosophy, but the most outstanding contributions are those of the Naiyāyikas and the Buddhists. It appears, from all this deep and mostly hair-splitting analysis, that the Indian mind had perfected the art of logical reasoning with a vigorous methodology, which probably strengthened the scientific climate of ancient India itself.
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