Indian Philosophy A Very Short IntroductionOxford牛津大学学科XX入门电子版 3

Indian Philosophy A Very Short Introduction Oxford牛津大学学科XX入门电子版 3 experience.This aspectcannot bedenied:experience is the monVasubandhus threeaspects of experience1.The constructedaspect:the everydayworld ofsubjectivity andobjectivity,which issuperimposed by our mental activities on to reality,which isnotitself likethat;it isour ownmental processesthat interpretthesuperimposed constructionas realityitself.2.The dependentaspect:the underlyingraw dataof subjectiveobjectiveexperience;that whichundergoes mentaltransformations andbees theconstructedaspect.3.The perfectedaspect:the flowof experientialdata unaffectedby mentaltransformations.This constitutesinsight intoreality as it really is:withoutany subjectobject construction.-102-ground orgiven forall humanbeings thatno amountof philosophicalargument canrefute.Theperfectedaspect is the pleteabsence of any mentalconstructionsoperating on the experientialflow.Several featuresof thisexplanation areimportant tonote.First,in explaininghow theworld of objectivityarises by means oftransformations ofconsciousness,it deniesclaimsby Nyya-Vai?eikas andothers thatperception of an objectestablishes thetranscendentalexistence of that object.Second,it relatesto the fact ofexperiential continuityin apositiveand psychologicallyappealing way:in insistingon thereality ofexperience itsstartingpoint isfamiliar rather than abstract.This wasimportant in the psychologicallybaffling(and tosome unaeptable)context of the doctrineofemptinessas radicallypresentedby Madhyamaka.Third,from anontological point of viewit isopen tointerpretationeither abstractlyor substantively.That isto say,karmicseedsandconsciousness storehousecan beunderstood eitheras metaphorsor as actual entities,ascan the whole notionofmindonly.Liberating insightmight simplyinvolve the cessation ofthemental activitieswhich,for solong as they continue,are metaphoricallyindicated bytheexpressionconsciousness storehouseas akind ofoperation-in-progress;or itmightmean that an actualconsciousness storehouseentity beespurified,and has somecontinuing purifiedexistence.Similarly,thetransformation ofconsciousnessmight meanthedynamics ofmental activitieswhich each person experiences,of awholly non-concretekind,or itmight refer to theway consciousnessassome kind ofmind-stuffistransformed into the worldofexperiencein amore substantivesense,as a realsubstratum.The termmind-onlyis appropriateto bothapproaches:the needtounderstand ones mentalactivities in order to attain liberatinginsight,and theclaim thattheexperiential worldconsists ofmind-stuff.Yogcra Buddhiststhemselves as well asscholars of Buddhism have been dividedon thislastissue.Within thetradition,the differentapproaches ledto theestablishing ofdifferentschools ofYogcra-103-Buddhism.Scholars differas towhether thetradition was always idealisticin theontologicalsense(there is only mind-stuff),or whether it beganas aninvestigation ofmentalactivities,leaving ontologicalissues aside,and developedan idealisticschool later.The earlymaterial isambiguous,open tointerpretation ineither wayreasonablyconvincingly.It isworth noting,however,that ifVasubandhu wassuggesting anon-ontological investigationof subjectivecognitive processes,he wouldhave hadmuch inmon with boththe teachingsof earlyBuddhism and,though verydifferentlypresented,with Ngrjunas calmingof verbaldifferentiation.Conversely,if hewasseeking to establish anidealistic ontology,this wouldconstitute amajor changeofdirection.IdealismIdealism asan ontologyholds thatall there is ismind.Some kindofmind-stuffconstitutes theunderlying substratumof reality.It isin somemannertransformedby mentalactivities.Thus,what we see isnot what there really is,because whatwe seeis reifiedinto objectsof varyingdegrees ofdensity:we arenotaware ofjustmind-stuff.Because therereallyismindstuff,idealism isnotthe sameas sayingthere isnothing.For thisreason it is potentiallymisleadingto describeit interms ofillusion.Idealism is the antithesisof anykind ofpluralisticrealism.The latteraffirms that the plurality of whatweseeistranscendentally real;the formerdenies thatthis is the case.Vasubandhu andhis followersin theYogcra traditionmade a great contributionto theperiodin whichBuddhist discourseflowered.Beginning withNgrjuna,for somecenturiesBuddhist thinkersoffered someof themost originaland sophisticatedideas andcritiquesin the Indian milieu.In particular,they offereda seriouschallenge to those whoattributedrealism to the world as it is appearsto usby means of-104-Developments inBuddhist ThoughtTheBuddha taught:all dharmas are“not-self”;thereisa regularityto things:everything isdependently originated.The Abhidharmikasattempted tounderstand moreabout the nature of realityin terms of dharmas.The Theravdin Abhidharmikascategorized dharmasinto28physicaland52mentalkinds,plus consciousness.It wasintended thatthis shouldhelp inanalyzingthem duringmeditation.The Sarvstivdin Abhidharmikas stated that all dharmasexist throughpast,present,and futurestates.In thissense,they havesomekindof momentaryessence,orown-being.Over time,the dharmasof theAbhidharmikas becamereified:they acquiredareal andenduring statusasthings.The Perfection of Wisdomwriters reiteratedthat all things arenon-essential.They presentedthenot-selfdoctrine by stating that allthings areemptyofown-being.Ngrjuna statednot onlythatallthingsareempty,but alsothat it is notpossible for anyindependent entityto ariseor ourin anyway whatsoever.Emptinessis thusanother way of referringto dependentorigination.Furthermore,the worldaswe know it is underpinnedonly bydependentorigination:to denythis isto denythe world.Yogcra thoughtsought topresent themetaphysics ofemptiness interms ofthemental processesthatconstructto the worldasweknowit.-105-sense perceptions,and to the independentexistence ofselves asperceivers.Rather,Buddhists wereprepared tofollow thelogical implications of beginningwith questioningthereliability of the cognitiveprocess asa means of certainknowledge,however radicaltheresults.Apart fromhis highlysophisticated andoriginal writingon emptiness,indefence of what hesaw as the trueteaching of the Buddha,what Ngrjuna establishedforBuddhism was the strengthof logicalargument inbacking itsposition and its critiquesofothers.This ledto aflourishing traditionof so-calledBuddhist logic,in whichlogicalarguments andrefutations concerningdharmas and the nature of existencewere engagedinwith othersatahighly intellectuallyspecialized andtechnical level.Major Buddhistlogiciansincluded Dinnga and the outstandinglybrilliant Dharmakrti,who establishedrulesof logicalargument in debate with the laterNaiyyikas andothers.While thegivensand aimsmight beradically opposedbetween the Buddhists and the realists,theirrespective argumentswere ofmutual meaningand interestbecause eachfollowed theruleslaid downbetween them.-106-Chapter7The Witnessand theWatchedYoga:Harmony andControlFrom avery earlystage in the Indiantradition,people werepractising variouskinds ofmentalexercises,or meditativedisciplines,often known by thegeneric termyoga.Theearliest Brahmanicalreferences toyoga areto befound in the Upaniads,but thereis littledoubtthat thesereflect apractice thateven thenhad beendeveloped overa considerableperiod.Over time,agreatmany differentkinds of yoga havebeen taught,but theysharean underlyingrationale.Yogaes from the Sanskritverbal rootyuj,meaningto yokein the sense ofyoking ohing toanother.The pointfor manylay in the ideaofmergingoruniting:either self/soul(tman)with universal essence(Brahman),or,intheistic systems,soul withGod.It can also liemore in the linkedconcepts ofinternalcontrol,harmony,order,or of what one might callintegrity ofinsight.The overallontologycan varyfrom systemto system,but themon underlyingprinciple wasthatnormal lifeis characterized bybeing ledastraybyoursenses,and by the misleadingbusy-ness ofeveryday cognitiveactivity.The practiceof yoga,therefore,is for thepurpose ofattaining control,calm,and,in somesystems,cognitive insight.The dar?ana of Classical Yoga is representedin atext known as the Yoga Stras.Commonly attributedtoaman namedPata?jali,in fact the-107-Chronologyc.2000BCE:the Vedicsacrificial tradition.c.800500BCE:the earlyUpaniads.by500BCE:ritual andgnostic branchesof theBrahmanical traditioncoexisted.5th-century BCEmilieu:householders andrenouncers.c.485405BCE:the lifetimeof theBuddha.4th2nd century BCE:grammarians andearly exegetesestablish thecriteria ofwhatshould belooked at.3rd2nd centuryBCE:Vai?eika andNyya binean ontologyof pluralisticrealismand aformal methodby whichto arrive at certainknowledge.4th1st centuryBCE:emergence ofdifferent Buddhistschools3rd centuryBCE2nd centuryCE:development of the BuddhistAbhidharma.1st centuryBCE1st centuryCE:the emergingof Mahyna Buddhismand theearlyPraj?pramit(PerfectionofWisdom)Stras.c.2nd centuryCE:Ngrjunas MadhyamakaKrikfocus ontheemptiness(?nyat)of allphenomena.c.4th centuryCE:the Cittamtra/Yogcra schoolof Buddhismcentres onmentalprocesses.3rd centuryCE:The Yoga-Stras representwhat is knownasClassical Yoga.Said to havebeen written byone Pata?jali,in facttheir authorshipis uncertain.The Yoga-Stras presenta detailedmental disciplinarymethodology forattaining-108-khya.4th5th centuryCE:I hisSmkhya Krik.Human beingsare boundto rebirthbecausethey donot realizethat whatthey taketo beconscious isunconscious,and thatconsciousness liesonly inontologically separateand inactiveselves(purus isto gaininsight into this dualism.authorship of the Yoga Stras isnot known,and therewere in any caseseveral Pata?jalis(including the grammarian mentionedin Chapter4).The textincorporates aprehensiveyoga methodology.Indeed,it seemsthat themethod isits mainpurpose,with referencesto theontology towhich itadheres beingincluded only inorder to justifyorelaborate thepurpose andstructure of the methodology.While concernedwith similarissuesand similardetails,virtually noreferences aremade toother systemsof thought:ifthe proponentsof Classical Yoga engagedindebatewith others,those encountersare notrecordedhere.The textis aboveall amanual forpractice,and itsvarious criteriaandformulations wereundoubtedly arrivedat fromwithin along traditionof practiceasopposed todebate.Philosophical abstractionsare ofless interest to theyogic practitionerthanthe insightsof meditation,and efficacyin practiceof moreimportance thanconvincingothers.This dar?ana perhapsexemplifies morethan anyother thatIndianphilosophyis partofatradition whoseprimary aimand purposewas soteriological.The Purposeof Classical YogaThe Yoga-Stras openbystatingtheir aim:Now theexplanation ofyoga:yoga is the cessationof theactivities of the mind(mind-activity-cessation).(Yoga Stra1.12)-109-The activities of the mind()are ofmany differentkinds,under thebroad headingsofvalid cognitions,misconceptions,conceptualizations,sleep,and memory.The means ofknowledge forvalid cognitionsare sense-perception,inference,and thetestimony oftradition.Misconceptions areinvalid cognitions,not based on anyactual reality.Conceptualizations arecognitions basedmerely onabstract mentalactivitiesthetendency toconceptualize realityonlyinterms ofthe reifyingof verbiage,one mightsay.This activelyinterferes withseeing realityas itreallyis.Sleep alsoinvolves its own kindofmental activity,and memoryis thecarrying aroundwith usof whateverwe haveexperienced,involving moremental activity.The cessationof all of theseis achievedbymeans ofyogic practiceand detachment(i.e.control).Experiences andstates ofmindsuch assickness,doubt,carelessness,sloth,falseness,failure,and instabilityall distractconsciousnessand constituteobstacles toachieving cessation.Pain,depression,tremblingof thelimbs,and poorbreathing aompanythese obstacles.The wayout liesin focusingthe mind single-pointedly,practising outward-lookingness(i.e.not beingself-centred inthe selfish sense),benevolence towardsothers,right breathing,and mentalsteadiness.(This explanationis paraphrasedfrom Yoga Stra1.522,2935.)From thiscan beseen that the authorof the text deniesthat ultimatereality isarrangedin theway weconceive ofit aordingto ourexperience of the manifest world.Mentalactivities ingeneral createdistractions whichseriously distortand leadus awayfrom clearperceptionof reality.Underpinning theYoga methodology istheaim to discriminate thatthe trueseerorself,known in this systemas puruis absolutelyseparate fromtheseenormanifest,prakr ti.Until discriminationis achieved,each individualwronglybelieves that theseer,which iswhere consciousnesslies,is partofwhat is manifest.Weconfuse ourmanifest,unconsciousegowith ourhigher self,when in factthe latter iswhollyother:the manifest world is one ofunconscious activity;consciousness belongstopuruas,which are also inactive.It is-110-theconjunctionof puruwhen thedistracting activities of the mind arestilled,effects theirdisassociation.Thus isthe true selfliberated frombondage torebirth,which continuesfor solong as there isconjunction.It isthe trueself(purua,isthecentral concernof theYoga Stras.In spiteofour ignoranceas towhere consciousnesslies,in Classical Yoga the manifest world isnot unreal.Prakr tithe manifestworldis ontologicallyexistent in its ownright,as arepurua)that isof thehighest andtruestreality;realizing it isthesummum bonumtowhich humanbeings canaspire.Knowledge of the truenature of theself,and therealityof ones essentialpuruti isa worldboth ofdistraction fromthe trueandhigherstate of?varatheLordin ClassicalYogaIn YogaStra1.238,we aretold that the goal of discriminationcanalsobeachieved by means ofdevotion tothe Lord(?vara).The Lordis saidto beaspecial purua,untouched bykarmic activities,all-knowing,and teacherofancient sages.Exactly whatthese versesmean isnot obvious,and therehasbeen disagreementamong scholarsas tothe statusof thisLord:whetherit/he isatranscendent being,giving ClassicalYoga atheistic aspect;whether theseversesrefertothefactthat themethodology ofClassicalYogawas followed byadherents of theistic sects;whether?vara is an abstractarchetype;or whethertheverses aremetaphorically indicatingwhat eachindividual willfind iftheylook within:eachpersons puruaishis orher ownLord.In Indianreligioustraditions devotioncan sometimesmeansingle-mindednessrather thanworship;thus theexpression heredoes notnecessarily implydevotion toanactual deity.-111-The practiceofyogabythedeluded individualis necessaryfor tworeasons.First,ignorance oursonly atthe manifest level.Second,it isatthe manifestlevelthatdiscrimination takesplace.Being inactive,purua does,and cando,nothing:its roleisthat ofwitness.The bulkof theYogaStras prisesdescriptive informationabout differentstates ofmind,different waysof controllingmentalactivities,different levelsof attainment,whatcontributes tothecessationof theactivities of themindand whatdoes not,and soon.egoand as the discriminatedpurua.Much ofit is,initsown context,technical,and haslittleactual meaningtothosewho haveno experienceof meditativestates.One WesternscholarofClassicalYoga has described thematerial asprimarily practicalmaps for theprocess ofan interiorjourney,which graphicallysuggests that the textprincipallyrepresents nota clearphilosophical orontological stance,but anaount ofmeditativepractices bymeans ofwhich allactivitiesof themindthat hinderdiscrimination arecontrolled.ontology andclear discussionof itsmeans of knowledge.This text,the Smkhya Krik(SK),is saidtohavebeenwrittena between350and450ce.It isclear fromevidence inavariety ofsources that there hadbeen along earlierhistory ofSmkhya thought,goingback toUpanisadic times,which might well havediffered indetail andfrom timeto timeinparison withwhat isnow takenas thetraditions keytext.No earlierSmkhya textsurvives,however.something likeenumeration.It referstothepoint thatthe truththattheschool purportstoteach isknownbymeans of-112-enumerating,in thesense ofanalysing anddiscriminating,the categorieswhich constitutethe manifestworld.The SKopens bystating:It isbecause of the anguishof sufferingthatthe desirearises to know howto overeit.Following this clearly statedsoteriologicalpurpose,it goesontostate thatwhat isrequired isa specialkind ofdiscriminativeknowledge,which candiscernthemanifest,the unmanifest,and theknower.The nextverses establishthe ontologicaldistinction betweenpuruti(bothmanifest andunmanifestbut numericallyone).khya,like ClassicalYoga,is ontologicallydualisticinthisway:reality isprised of puruas(the knowerswhich arenumericallyontologicalgiven,being manifest(itscreatedform)when inconjunction withapuruchapter,is referredto bythe termsatkryavda:the viewthattheeffect pre-exists inthecause.In the SK thepoint establishesboth thatthemanifestworldis ontologically reallyexistentand thatit is ontologically onlyone.The reasonsgiven forsatkrya inverse9are:Because non-being isnon-productive;because amaterial causeis necessary;because thingscannot arisehaphazardly fromdifferent things;because thingscanonly beproduced fromwhatiscapable ofproducing them;because thisisthe nature of causation.example isthe inferencethatthere must bea pluralityof puruasbecause thereis adiversityof births,deaths,and activities;because differentthings happenat differenttimes;because peoplehave differentlyproportioned characteristics(SK v.18).-113-The othermeansofknowledge itaepts areperception andreliable testimony.Perception isqualifiedasthe selectiveascertainment ofparticular senseobjects(SK v.5),which meansthatnot allordinaryperception isvalid.And reliabletestimony relatestothetraditionsheritage ofspecialization,going backtothe Upaniads asprimary source.Inference andperception,however,take precedenceover reliabletestimony,and wherethe latteris illogicaltheformer prevail.An exampleof thiscan beseen inthe useof inferencetoestablishtheplurality ofpuruadicas,ratherthanaepting asa giventhe