Philosophy 438 Indian Buddhist Philosophy Buddhist Views of the ...

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92 To that God, illumined by his own intellect, do I, desiring liberation, resort for refuge— to him without parts, without activity, tranquil, impeccable, spotless, the highest bridge to the deathless, like a fire with fuel consumed. SvU 6.18–19 As fire through loss of fuel grows still (extinguished) in its own source, so thought by loss of activeness grows still in its own source. . . For by tranquillity of thought one destroys good and evil karma. With tranquil soul, stayed on the Soul, one enjoys unending ease. MaiU 6.34 Whether this re-evaluation of the image of fire—seeing its extinguishing as preferable to its burning—predated the founding of Buddhism, was influenced by it, or simply paralleled it, no one can say for sure, as there are no firm dates for any of the Upanisads. At any rate, in both stages of the Vedic attitude toward fire, the thought of a fire going out carried no connotations of going out of existence at all. Instead, it implied a return to an omnipresent, immortal state. This has led some scholars to assume that, in using the image of an extinguished fire to illustrate the goal he taught, the Buddha was simply adopting the Vedic position wholesale and meant it to carry the same implications as the last quotation above: a pleasant eternal existence for a tranquil soul. But when we look at how the Buddha actually used the image of extinguished fire in his teachings, we find that he approached the Vedic idea of latent fire from another angle entirely: If latent fire is everywhere all at once, it is nowhere in particular. If it is conceived as always present in everything, it has to be so loosely defined that it has no defining characteristics, nothing by which it might be known at all. Thus, instead of using the subsistence of latent fire as an image for immortality, he uses the diffuse, indeterminate nature of extinguished fire as understood by the Vedists to illustrate the absolute indescribability of the person who has reached the Buddhist goal. Just as the destination of a glowing fire struck with a [blacksmith’s] iron hammer, gradually growing calm, isn’t known: Even so, there’s no destination to describe for those who are rightly released —having crossed over the flood of sensuality’s bonds – for those who’ve attained unwavering ease.
93 Ud VIII.10 ‘But, Venerable Gotama [the Brahmin, Aggivessana Vacchagotta, is addressing the Buddha], the monk whose mind is thus released: Where does he reappear?’ ‘ “Reappear,” Vaccha, doesn’t apply.’ ‘In that case, Venerable Gotama, he does not reappear.’ ‘ “Does not reappear,” Vaccha, doesn’t apply.’ ‘. . . both does and does not reappear.’ ‘. . . doesn’t apply.’ ‘. . . neither does nor does not reappear.’ ‘. . . doesn’t apply.’. . . . ‘At this point, Venerable Gotama, I am befuddled; at this point, confused. The modicum of clarity coming to me from your earlier conversation is now obscured.’ ‘Of course you’re befuddled, Vaccha. Of course you’re confused. Deep, Vaccha, is this phenomenon, hard to see, hard to realize, tranquil, refined, beyond the scope of conjecture, subtle, to-beexperienced by the wise. For those with other views, other practices, other satisfactions, other aims, other teachers, it is difficult to know. That being the case, I will now put some questions to you. Answer as you see fit. How do you construe this, Vaccha: If a fire were burning in front of you, would you know that, ”This fire is burning in front of me”?’ ‘. . . yes. . . ’ ‘And suppose someone were to ask you, Vaccha, ”This fire burning in front of you, dependent on what is it burning?” Thus asked, how would you reply?’ ‘. . . I would reply, ”This fire burning in front of me is burning dependent on grass and timber as its sustenance.”’ ‘If the fire burning in front of you were to go out, would you know that ”This fire burning in front of me has gone out”?’ ‘. . . yes. . . ’ ‘And suppose someone were to ask you, ”This fire that has gone out in front of you, in which direction from here has it gone? East? West? North? Or south?” Thus asked, how would you reply?’ ‘That doesn’t apply, Venerable Gotama. Any fire burning dependent on a sustenance of grass and timber, being unnourished— from having consumed that sustenance and not being offered any other – is classified simply as ”out” (nibbuto).’
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Philosophy 438 Indian Buddhist Phil
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ii CONTENTS III The Mind Like Fire
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2 CONTENTS Weekly schedule of lectu
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4 CONTENTS
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Chapter 1 Samyutta-nikāya The Conn
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1.2. THE LEASH 9 1.2 Samyutta Nikā
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1.4. A BEING 11 “A monk who has a
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1.5. TO KOTTHITA 13 “No, my frien
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1.6. ON SELF, NO SELF, AND NOT-SELF
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Chapter 2 Aṅguttara-nikāya The G
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2.2. PENETRATIVE 19 body—agreeabl
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2.2. PENETRATIVE 21 “Now when a n
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2.3. TO GIRIMANANDA 23 pain?’ I t
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2.3. TO GIRIMANANDA 25 fabrications
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Chapter 3 Majjhima-nikāya The Midd
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3.1. ALL THE FERMENTATIONS 29 ferme
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3.2. ON RIGHT SPEECH 31 fulness as
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3.2. ON RIGHT SPEECH 33 this two-pr
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3.3. TO VACCHAGOTTA ON FIRE 35 “I
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3.3. TO VACCHAGOTTA ON FIRE 37 “
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3.4. THE SIX SEXTETS 39 the tongue-
Page 45 and 46: 3.4. THE SIX SEXTETS 41 able. . . .
Page 47 and 48: 3.4. THE SIX SEXTETS 43 such a thin
Page 49 and 50: Chapter 4 Dīgha Nikȳa The Long Di
Page 51 and 52: 4.1. THE GREAT CAUSES DISCOURSE 47
Page 63: Part II Practical writings by moder
Page 66 and 67: 62 CHAPTER 5. MEDITATING ON NO-SELF
Page 74 and 75: 70 CHAPTER 6. NO-SELF OR NOT-SELF?
Page 76 and 77: 72 CHAPTER 6. NO-SELF OR NOT-SELF?
Page 79 and 80: 75 The Mind Like Fire Unbound: An I
Page 81 and 82: Preface To study ancient texts is l
Page 83 and 84: Part One: The Abstract “Released.
Page 85 and 86: in particular. Once it no longer vi
Page 87 and 88: Part Two: The Essay Introduction
Page 89 and 90: 85 Ended the old, there is no new t
Page 91 and 92: 87 the subtle, the very-hard-to-see
Page 93 and 94: 89 him. In the version told in RV 1
Page 95: 91 does not blaze. Its brilliance g
Page 99 and 100: 95 Sariputta: Do you regard the Tat
Page 101 and 102: 97 There is the case, Sandha, where
Page 103 and 104: 99 This is where the ordinary meani
Page 105 and 106: 101 friend’. Now, how is the mean
Page 107 and 108: 103 Here Ven. Udayin compares the n
Page 109 and 110: 105 On the level of ordinary sensor
Page 111 and 112: 107 ‘Just as a fire, Vaccha, burn
Page 113 and 114: 109 If a monk abandons passion for
Page 115 and 116: 111 S XXII.121 Thus passion and des
Page 117 and 118: 113 endearing, fostering desire, en
Page 119 and 120: 115 said to her husband, ‘These r
Page 121 and 122: 117 If he does not relish them, wel
Page 123 and 124: 119 husked rice,’ in the same way
Page 125 and 126: 121 Views are the second mode of cl
Page 127 and 128: 123 as a result of sensual pleasure
Page 129 and 130: 125 so. I don’t think in that way
Page 131 and 132: 127 The construings the Buddha reli
Page 133 and 134: 129 M 118 The standard description
Page 135 and 136: 131 ness in the fourth level of jha
Page 137 and 138: 133 events and is one of the ways i
Page 139 and 140: 135 Feeling is not yours. . . . Per
Page 141 and 142: 137 the extent of the objects of de
Page 143 and 144: 139 body as in the self, or the sel
Page 145 and 146: 141 the ridges and hollows, the riv
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143 Then Vacchagotta the wanderer g
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145 is passing away, only stress is
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147 S LVI.11 Just as if there were
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149 —‘I know, I see, that’s j
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151 producing knowledge—leads to
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153 cerns that he is breathing out
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155 Knowing and seeing the eye as i
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157 A III.88 As the text makes clea
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159 death. . . sorrow, lamentation,
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161 While those who have cut off do
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163 With ignorance as condition, th
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165 MahaKaccayana: ‘Concerning th
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167 it. Sensing a feeling of pain.
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169 there were to come a powerful w
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171 the innate burdensomeness of ev
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