This research report focuses on the philosophy of Nakamura Yujiro, who is one of the prominent philosophers in post-war Japan. His philosophy based on the theory of “common sense” evolved into his broader thinking of the cosmological perspective of the “pan-rhythm” theory and the “oscillation” of the universe. In this report, I will show his unique contribution in the Japanese history of political thought, which consists of the dichotomy between thought for autonomy and for “common sense.” In addition, the post-war history of thought in Japan has been confronted with two questions. One is the problem of how to overcome the closed vernacularity of Japanese culture, and the other is the problem of how to recalibrate the European way of knowledge based on rationality. The thought for autonomy is said to have an affinity with the problem of the former, and the thought for “common sense” is closely linked with the latter problem. The hypothesis of my study is that Nakamura’s philosophy based on the “common sense” theory suggests the possibility of overcoming both problems comprehensively, because of his viewpoint of the cosmological self-awareness as this report conceptualizes, which is introduced through his focus on the transgressiverelationships between Japanese culture and Asian cultures.
