The Logic of Unity: The Discovery of Zero and Emptiness in Prajñāpāramitā Thought

The book is organized around three main bodies of inquiry. Chapter I, “Methodology of Comparative Philosophy,” establishes the framework for Matsuo’s project by examining the mind-base, intuitive unconsciousness, East-West logic, space and time as modes of intuition, and the need for a disciplined comparative philosophy grounded in self-knowledge. Chapter II, “The Logic of Unity,” develops the book’s core thesis through the discovery of zero and emptiness in Prajñāpāramitā thought, addressing metaphysical bias, the nature of Buddhism, the “ten articles” of the logic of unity, the Kegon Ten Profound Gates, holistic consciousness, dialectical epistemology, philosophical zero, dual truths, unitary and integrative dialectic, and a Buddhist conception of life and worldview. Chapter III, “The Truth in the Heart Sūtra,” applies this logic to the Prajñāpāramitāhṛdaya Sūtra, focusing on Avalokiteśvara, emptiness, Śāriputra’s instruction, the nature of dharmas, śūnyatā, and ignorance, thereby presenting the Heart Sūtra as a compact philosophical expression of the unity of form, emptiness, consciousness, and liberation.