THE CONCEPT OF METAPHYSICS IN THERAVĀDA BUDDHISM.
1. Introduction
Buddhism is a way of life, and in the ultimate sense of the term, it cannot be called religion which is concerned with the belief in God. Normally, Buddhists speak of Buddhism as Buddhasāsana or Buddha-Dhamma meaning the Buddha’s teachings. However, by common usage of language, the Buddhists may be allowed to call Buddhism as a religion, because they do believe in the moral law of karma.On the other hand, though the Buddha preached the doctrine of karma, he could be called a kiriyavādin, Howsoever his teachings are far more than a mere notion of the karma-doctrine. He was criticized as a revolutionist because of his replacing Ātmavāda and self-mortification with Anattāvāda and the Middle Way respectively. Likewise, by the rejection of the caste-system and also of the idea of God he was reckoned as a reformist. By discovering the Four Noble Truths, he is known as a reconstructionist.
The philosophy of Buddhism is chiefly psychological, and its ethics cannot be entirely separated from its metaphysics. The ultimate purpose of all its philosophy is not intellectual but moral – the attainment of freedom from the suffering or Nibbāna (Skt. Nirvāna) which is the Buddhist Summum Bonum.
We are told in the Pitaka that the Buddha took no interest in speculative metaphysical questions, because they appeared to be questions without profit, and a mere waste of time. Even in his most abstruse teachings his purpose is ethical.
The Buddha avoided discussion about purely metaphysical questions, such as whether the world is eternal or not, and so on, which are regarded as vain, for it does not take man nearer to his goal. The world of the Buddha was that of the six-feet-long-living body along with perceptions and thoughts, where the root-cause of suffering and samsāra, namely, avijjā, can be uprooted. Therefore we can say that Buddhism does not agree with the speculative metaphysics. In Buddhist philosophy, the metaphysical doctrine must relate to the ethical goal of life as the Middle Way (majjhimā-patipadā).
The Buddhist idea of existence or the metaphysical doctrine, it is said, can be viewed under the highest forms of explanation, viz., the five khandhas, the eighteen dhātus and the six āyatanas, in the light of the Four Noble Truths. In this way, the Buddha divided truth into two kinds, apparent (sammuttisacca) and ultimate (paramatthasacca) . The latter is actually emphasized by the Buddha. The world of human beings, and its existence, for instance, do not really exist as we apparently perceive them. They are naturally described as “the conditioned existence’ (sańkhata), which can be explained in terms of five khandhas, namely, matter (rūpa), feeling (vedanā), perception (saññā), mental formations (sańkhāra) and consciousness (viññāna). These five constituents are also called nāma-rūpa. According to Abhidhamma, rūpa signifies fundamental unit of matter, material changes, and the twenty-eight derivative materials which originate from four conditions, viz., “karma”, “citta”, “nutriment” and “temperature”. Nāma refers to consciousness (citta) and its mental concomitants (cetasikas).
In the realization of existence, we will begin with the analysis of the five khandhas as the reality, which represents “life as it is”, but it is not complete in itself, for as usual we are dealing with “life as directly concerning world”. Therefore, the analysis of āyatanas has been made with a view to show the world-related life, especially by means of perceiving the world through six sense doors. Here the phenomenal existence can be explained in terms of the six sense-organs and their six sense-objects, the function of which is to develop perceptual awareness. Not only this, it also evolves as a whole in the phenomenal world (samsāra). We must remember that the five khandhas and the twelve āyatanas never function in isolation in the way we have described. But we have discuss them in isolating one from the other in order to comprehend their relative positions that constitute personality.
The Abhidhammikas classify the ultimate truth into citta, cetasika, rūpa and Nibbāna and admit that the first three do ‘conditionally exist’ (sańkhata), but the last one ‘unconditionally exist’ (asańkhata). Therefore, the Theravāda Buddhist philosophy is known as realism as it upholds the existence of the ultimate truths. In this connection, the Sarvāstivāda, the Vaibhāsikas, the Sautrāntikas and the Puggalavāda on beings have been elaborately and separately brought out in comparison with the other schools of thought. It should be mentioned here that no Buddhist school admits the definite assertible self, as it would go against the fundamental teachings of the Buddha. The Puggalavādins’ conception of self is, therefore, neither definite nor indefinite self.
The idea of existence classified in terms of khandhas, dhātus and āyatanas as mentioned above, can be well understood only through the causal law of existence, especially the law of Tilakkhana and that of Paticcasamuppāda, which completely explain the exact way in which the personality is evolved and disintergrated. The law of Tilakkhana helps to explain the nature of conditioned things in the light of impermanence, suffering and not-self. The basis of debate between the Buddhists and Hindus is the concept of self.If the causal law of nature is understood in its proper perspective, there will hardly be any scope for further confusion in this matter. According to the causal law of nature, the effect arises from an aggregate of causes and conditions. Because of ignorance arise consciousness, karma-formation, and so on.
2. Buddhist Concept of Human Existence
Buddhism regards the human being as superior to all the other species. The human being is entirely different from other animals in respect of mentality which is somewhat complicated. It is like dense forest that has no entrance and is difficult to penetrate, in comparison with the nature of an animal, which is much easier to understand.The Buddha realized that man, while being tempted to perform evil actions, could be properly directed towards the performance of good actions (kusalakamma). According to Buddhism, there are three ‘immoral roots’ (akusalamūla), namely, lust (lobha), hatred (dosa) and delusion (moha), which are regarded as the original cause of ignorance (avijjā).It is, therefore, said that the real nature of an ordinary man is always entangled with the impurities (kilesas) and worldly pleasures and he is always guided by ignorance. In the Dhammapada, the Buddha said : “Oh ! wise man, it is true that not easy to control are evil things, do not let greed and weakness drag you to prolonged suffering.”
When asked, “What is the true idea of human existence in Buddhism ?” the most apt reply is that human existence is ‘a psycho-physical complex’ (nāma-rūpa) conditioned and determined by what is called an antecedent state in the process of ‘becoming’ (bhava) in which both action (karma) and reaction (karmaphala) play an essential part in the development of personality. On the other hand, man as perceived from within and without, is analysed into a collection of ‘five aggregates’ (pañcakkhandha) of changing elements, namely, the group of his looks (rūpa), sentiments (vedanā), perceptional outfit (saññā), mental pre-dispositions (sańkhāra), and acts of consciousness (viññāna) such as remembering, thinking and so on. The first group is called ‘matter’ (rūpa), as named earlier, but the last four are together termed ‘mind’ (nāma), and they are collectively called nāma-rūpa. The analysis of human existence into nāma-rūpa and five khandhas is found both in the Nikāyas and the Abhidhamma. In the Khuddaka-Nikāya, the word nāmakāya is used synonymously with nāma-rūpa, which is the abbreviated form of the five khandhas. It is to be noted that the Abhidhamma admits the ‘Four Ultimate Realities’ (paramattha-dhamma), namely, citta (consciousness), cetasika (mental factors), rūpa (matter), and Nibbāna. It is said, the five khandhas can be matched with the Four Ultimate Realities as follows : Rūpa is called Rūpa, viññāna is called citta, and the rest are included in cetasikas. But Nirvāna cannot be grouped as it is ‘free from the five khandhas’, hence it is called khandha-vinimutta.
There is another classification of the element of human existence, which is divided into two groups of cognitive faculties and of the different categories of the objects. The two groups are called ‘based’ (āyatanas), which are of twelve kinds in number, divided into six cognitive faculties known as ‘six internal bases’ (ajjhattikāyatanas) and six categories of corresponding objects known as ‘six external bases’ (bahirāyatanas). The internal bases are also regarded as receptive faculties called indriya and the external ones are objects called visaya. These twelve bases, both internal and external, are sufficient for the formulation of the idea of man. They work for the purpose of developing a consciousness and evolve the being as a whole in the phenomenal world or samsāra. In order to grasp the concept of man more easily, the classification of man in accordance with eighteen elements (dhātus) comes into existence. Besides the twelve bases and the eighteen elements, Buddhism also admits the classification of man into twenty-two indriyas into six elements.
It is essential to note that the idea of human existence consisting of the five khandhas and twelve āyatanas is common to all schools of Buddhism. These khandhas and āyatanas are generally possessed by all, not only human beings but also animals and gods alike, because, according to Buddhism, man can be born as a god or an animal and vice versa, along with his karma accumulated in the human world. The example of this fact can be considered from the Jātakas, which narrate about the birth stories of the Bodhisatta. This indicates that Buddhism regards man as evolving out of man due to the previous karma, since Buddhism considers all perceived things as conditional things (sańkhāra) and thus the objective world is considered the same as the experienced world. In the process of analysis, the principles which explain the nature of the world and the character of man’s existence are reduced to the twelve āyatanas and five khandhas respectively. Following this, the problems of the world and soul can actually be taken into account as that of matter and mind, and ultimately the world and man are considered as one and the same. That is, the Buddha had a method of instruction based on a division of the world, conventionally called twelve āyatanas, into a material aspect (rūpa) and non-material aspect (nāma), and counting both aspects together makes a total of five components (pañcakkhandhas), which constitute the external world in general and the internal world or man in particular.
According to the Buddha, good and evil are to be considered as two aspects of human nature, and man usually performs either wholesome karmas, because of the conflict of the two aspects as already mentioned. Hence in the Ańguttara-Nikāya,the Buddha classifies human beings into four kinds : (1) Some come from darkness, but will only go to darkness, (ii) Some come from darkness, but will go to light, (iii) Some come from light, but will go to darkness, (iv) Some come from light and they will go to light. The last one is appreciated by the Buddha as it signifies one of not only noble birth, but also of good conduct. Such a person will never suffer in this life and in the life to come. In support of doing good, avoiding evil and purifying one’s mind, the Buddha preached the Middle Path as the criterion of the best man. “The tamed is the best among men - danto settho manussesu.” The best man in Buddhism is identified by these five characteristics, namely, being not credulous, knowing the uncreated, having severed all ties, having put an end to opportunity and having removed all desires. The first is that the best man ascertains everything before believing. Secondly, he knows Nirvāna. Thirdly, he destroys samsāra. Fourthly, he has no chance to do both good and evil. Finally, he has no defilements to hope for anything. If one conquers just oneself, one is, indeed, the greatest victor. The Buddha with his clear insight understands the human nature and the conduct leading to be a perfect man. In short, man is defined by his actions – what he did, what he is doing, and what he will do ; so his nature is conditioned by karma.
3. The Existence in the Four Noble Truths
Strictly speaking, the correct Buddhist position with regard to the existence of man is based on the understanding of the doctrine of the Four Noble Truths, the main contents of which are about the idea of man. Actually, there are two domains of Dharma enlightened by the Buddha, of which one is the law of Paticcasamuppāda, which includes the doctrines of karma and Nirvāna, and the other one is the Four Noble Truths. These two doctrines are essentially one and the same, because the law of Paticcasamuppāda and Nirvāna are really the essence of Four Noble Truths. But they are regarded as pure teachings or natural elements, while the Four Noble Truths refer to all enlightened Dharmas, which appear in the light of the ordered process with regard to the capacity of man’s understanding and making use of. Just as the foot of every creature that walks the earth will go into the elephant’s footprint, … so are all right states of mind said to be included in the Four Noble Truths. The doctrine of the Four Noble Truths is, therefore, the essence as well as the destiny of man. The Buddha addressed his disciples at the Simsapa grove regarding the Four Noble Truths that he had taught them by comparing them to the leaves in his hand, while the remaining Dharmas that he had known but did not teach them, are like the leaves in the whole forest, because those Dharmas are not conductive to the termination of suffering.
In the first sermon, the significance of the Four Noble Truths was made known by the Buddha.The Noble Truths are so-called because they dealt with reality and are realized by only the Noble Ones such as the Buddha. These truths will lead us only to the highest wisdom. They constitute a progressive series, that is, each truth leads up to the next. The failure to understand these truths will result in long wandering in samsāra for all creatures.1 The Buddha himself exhorted his disciples to put forth their special desire, effort and attention for the understanding of these truths.It is mentioned in the Samyutta-Nikāya that one can develop one’s spirituality by telling and hearing the Four Noble Truths among good friends (kalyānamitta).
The explanation of man according to the Four Noble Truths should be brought into consideration here. Among the Four Noble Truths, the first truth called suffering is the nucleus around which the remaining truths assemble. The first truth implies all the problems of life comprising birth, old age, disease, despair and so on. In short, anything that exists, including the five khandhas and twelve āyatanas, is suffering. Buddhism regards the five khandhas themselves as suffering. They are like a burden : it means that life is a burden. To be is to suffer and the way out would consist in going out of existence. Suffering is thus the essence as well as the destiny of man. The most important factor of the miserable condition is inherent impermanence (anicca) of man and things. When the existence is impermanent, then there is nothing called permanent soul or self, there is only becoming (bhava). It is said that this replacement of the Upanisadic idea of Being by that of Becoming and the view of the universe as uninterrupted and ununified stream of momentary particulars is the distinct contribution of Buddhism to Indian thought. The second truth affirms that there is a cause of suffering called ignorance (avijjā) that makes man cling to the sense of his ego and through it to the world by not knowing things as they really are. This truth includes the law of cause and effect (paticcasamuppāda) and the immutable law of karma and rebirth. And by stopping the operation of the cause of suffering, it is possible, as affirmed by the third truth, to uproot suffering. This truth indicates the law of Paticcasamuppāda in the aspect of the Dependent Cessation, otherwise called Nirvana. The fourth truth delineates the method one has to adopt in order to achieve complete freedom from suffering. When ignorance is uprooted, one becomes a perfect man or Arahant. This truth suggests the way of life called the Middle Way (Majjhimapatipadā), comprising the eight constituent of the Noble Path. And they are further organized into the ‘Threefold Training’ (tisikkhā) as a short practical way.
