Philosophy

The purification of the elements in the body, the bhuta´ ¯ suddhi or deha´suddhi, is an important part of the tantric practitioner’s sequence of daily rites. Indeed, if any practice is characteristic of tantric traditions it is the bhuta´ ¯ suddhi. It signifies the destruction of the impure, material body through the absorption of the elements within it, which is followed by the creation of a divine body through the imposition of mantras (nyasa ¯ ), mental or internal worship (antara-/manasay ¯ aga ¯ ), and external worship (bahyay ¯ aga ¯ ). One of the interesting issues in the study of the bhuta´ ¯ suddhi, and of tantric ritual in general, is the relation between its representation in the texts, actual ritual performance, and theology or doctrine. Assuming a distinction between ritual performance and its textual representation, the present paper will firstly examine with reference to the bhuta´ ¯ suddhi, the claim that tantric traditions share a common ritual substrate. This claim of...

Jhana clearly played a major part in the theory and practice of ancient Buddhism. The word itself occurs extremely often in the suttas both in frequently repeated phrases and in more detailed treatment . It becomes a fundamental category of abhidhamma. Nor does its importance diminish later ; most of the first half of the Visuddhi-magga of  Buddhaghosa (c . 430 A.D .) is concerned in one way or another with the practice of jhana . Not surprisingly it has been the subject of scholarly investigation on a number of occasions.  Nevertheless the topic is difficult and much remains to be understood . . The time seems ripe for an attempt to develop a clearer picture of the traditional viewpoint of the Theravada school as expressed in the latest books of the Pali Canon and more particularly in the commentarial interpretations and expansions of the canonical material . In what follows no attempt will therefore be made to differentiate earlier or `original' meanings of technical terms b...

The concept of clinging (upādāna) is absolutely central to early Buddhist thought. This article examines the concept from both a phenomenological and a metaphysical perspective and attempts to understand how it relates to the non-self doctrine and to the ultimate goal of Nibbāna. Unenlightened consciousness is consciousness centered on an ‘I’. It is also consciousness that is conditioned by and bound up with a being in the world. From a phenomenological perspective, clinging gives birth to the illusion of self, or what is called the ‘conceit of “I am”’. From a metaphysical perspective, clinging binds consciousness to a worldly being. Seen in the first way, Nibbāna is ‘centerless’ consciousness. Seen in the second, it is unconditioned consciousness. Viewed in either way, Nibbāna is a state of consciousness reached through the eradication of clinging In the early Buddhist texts, the illusory sense of self is presented as the main obstacle to enlightenment. Dispelling the self-illusion is...