Dharmottara Anticipated Gettier Problems by 1190 Years

Why this is here: Dharmottara, writing around 770 AD, offered examples resembling the Gettier problems—counterexamples to the idea that knowledge is justified true belief—over eleven centuries before the publication of the influential 1963 paper on the subject.

Justin Weinberg at Daily Nous and economist Robin Hanson discuss philosophical concepts that appeared later than they might have. Hanson initially posed the question of ideas arriving “behind their time.” Weinberg suggests the Gettier problems—challenges to the definition of knowledge—as an example, noting Dharmottara, an Indian philosopher, presented similar concepts around 770 AD.

Hanson then lists further ideas he finds surprisingly late in history. These include Hume’s distinction between descriptive and prescriptive statements, Hume’s challenge to inductive reasoning, and Rawls’s Veil of Ignorance. He also names thought experiments like the Trolley Problem and the Prisoner’s Dilemma, and distinctions like analytic versus synthetic truths.

Hanson acknowledges Aumann’s Agreement Theorem is technically complex, but believes the core idea—that disagreement should prompt self-reflection—could have originated in ancient Athens. He also includes concepts like abolitionism and equal rights, recognizing these were not necessarily institutionally possible earlier, but philosophically apparent. He clarifies he is not arguing for the correctness of these ideas, only their delayed arrival.