Ever since Erwin Schrödinger learned about Indian thought through Arthur Schopenhauer, it occupied a visible role in both his published writings and personal books. Schrödinger called for a “blood transfusion” of Indian thought into the West and, in one notebook, construed the Upaniṣadic slogan “Brahman = Atman” as the “closest thing to the truth.” However, the historical and philosophical literature on his engagement with Indian ideas remains limited and often confused. Two questions should be addressed for a more comprehensive account of Schrödinger's philosophical views: which Indian insights did he embrace, and what was their role in his thought? I argue that examining what he termed the Indian “doctrine of identity” illuminates answers to these questions and can correct some historical misinterpretations. First, situating Schrödinger's reading of Indian works in his time and analyzing his personal notebooks reveals the dominance of Śaṅkara's Advaita Vedānta reading of the Upaniṣads. Second, by analyzing Schrödinger's published writings and personal notebooks, I argue that this doctrine of identity offered Schrödinger religious consolation, but, furthermore, that Schrödinger took these Indian ideas seriously in his philosophy as well. I highlight how Schrödinger adopted this doctrine of identity into his metaphysical ruminations about the nature of reality and show how it resonates with some of his reflections in the philosophy of science.

Although quantum reality is often discussed as notoriously difficult to comprehend, quantum mechanics is applied with increasing success in the development of quantum technologies. In this paper, we collect and organise views on the influence of quantum technology on quantum mechanics and the foundations of quantum mechanics. We distinguish three types of influence: quantum technology helps in (1) understanding, (2) developing, and (3) evaluating quantum mechanics and its foundations. We outline several illustrations of these types by introducing examples. By mapping the influence of research and engineering practices in quantum technology on quantum mechanics and its foundations, this paper illuminates the interaction between the two areas. This paper suggests both how technological practices can aid in long-standing theoretical debates on understanding quantum mechanics, and how investigating the relation between quantum technology and quantum mechanics can inform understanding in the philosophy of science on the interaction between science and technology in general.