Issue

8th Issue (June, 2008)

Prajñāpāramitā-sūtras: Elimination of Ontological Commitment appeases the Human Mind

Wong Weng Hon

Introduction

Kong was walking eastward at a velocity of 10 km./hr. along a straight road which is parallel to a railway line. A train traveling at 60 km/hr., recorded by its speedometer, passed by. The velocity of the train relative to Kong is 50 km/hr. (60-10 km/hr.). The relative velocity of 50 km./hr. reflects the actual truth that the train was actually traveling at 50 km/hr. and not 60 km./hr. as recorded by its speedometer. But if the relative velocity of the train with respect to the non-moving road is 60 km./hr. (60-0 km/hr.). Hence, there were two dissimilar velocities observed by Kong. If the first train were to be compared with a car traveling as 100 km./hr. in a similar direction, the relative velocity of the train perceived by Kong will vary and become 160 km/hr. (60+100 km/hr.) In all these situations, the speedometer of the train was at a constant velocity of 60 km./hr. However, the relative velocity varies according to time and space. From Buddhist perspective, the relative velocity of any moving object is dependently co-arisen from the absolute velocities of two objects. Śākyamuni Buddha reveals that everything is relative. Albert Eintein verified the truth of Dependent Co-arising (Pratītyasamutpāda) scientifically and mathematically. Science bears witness to Buddhist wisdom.

Two-fold Truth

There are therefore two truths of velocity applicable to any moving object, namely the relative truth and the absolute truth. They are impermanent relative velocity and the permanent absolute truth. The discovery of this two-fold truth of Theory of Relativity by Albert Einstein (1879-1955) in 1905 is not only scientifically significant but also most importantly, it is parallel to the crucial religious two-fold truth of Appearance and Reality expounded by the great religious Masters, such as the Buddha, Brahman, Jesus and Muhammad.

The Prajñāpāramitā-sūtras from which Diamond Sūtra and Heart Sūtra are derived and crystallized are very important sūtras expounding and elucidating the distinction between the two truths. Nāgārjuna asserted that whoever does not discern the distinction between this two truths does not comprehend the profound Truth embodied in the Buddha’s message (MMK24.9) [1]

 Buddhist sūtras unveil the impermanent and illusive nature of the multiplicity of the phenomenal world. In actuality, all major esoteric religions perform the divine function of unveiling the two-fold truth of Appearance and Reality. This mirrors that secularism and spirituality are not separate and are, in truth, dependently co-arisen. The phenomena and the principle interpenetrate and co-exist.

Definitions of Saṃvṛti

In his celebrated Buddhist work, eminent Japanese Buddhist scholar, Gadjin Nagao defines the conventional truth (saṃvṛti satya) in three ways. The conventional truth is the concept of multiplicity. Firstly, it connotes ‘False view concealing the ultimate Truth (paramārtha Satya)’. The ultimate Truth is the One or eternal Unity of Non-duality. Secondly, it connotes ‘ the view of Dependently Co-arising’ which is relative truth,such as the relative velocities elucidated in my introduction. Thirdly, it is synonymous with three-fold concept of conventional realities, namely conventional symbols (saṃketa), worldly designations (vyavahā̄ra) and concepts (prajñāpti) [2] .

Ontological Commitment

Conventional truth is intimately related to ontological commitment[3] . According to the Dictionary of Philosophy of Mind –Ontology, Gene Witmer defines ontology as ‘ The study of what there is, an inventory of what exists’. Ontological commitment is a commitment to an existence claim[4] . What Gene Witmer conceives is that every known entity is designated with a name. Every name is expected to correspond to a real substantive object or phenomenon.[5]

The Many

Śākyamuni Buddha preaches otherwise. The Buddha promulgates that the cause of vexation or anguish (dukkha) is ontological commitment, that is the substantialist view of all phenomena thus fabricating conceptually the multiplicity of the world. The central theme of Prajñāpāramitā-sūtras unveils that multiplicity is cosmic illusion. The western philosophical concept of ontological commitment corresponds to the Buddhist vision of conventional truth explicated by Śākyamuni Buddha. In other words, ontological commitment engenders the knowledge of conventional truth perceived by the ordinary worldlings in the form of multiplicity or manifoldness of the phenomenal world. Exoterically, it is generally referred by all major esoteric religions, such as Taoism, Hinduism, Christianity and Islam as the ‘many’, ‘All’ or ‘creatures’ which are actually the images of the ultimate Truth. The metaphor of the sky moon and reflected explicates the distinction between the conventional truth and ultimate Truth lucidly: All reflected moons perceived in the countless rivers or ponds on earth are merely the images of one and the only real moon in the sky. Gotama Buddha declares that the eternal Truth of Unity or Non-duality is one and not two (ekaṃ saccaṃ na dutiyaṃ̣). Any other individual identities or entities are mere illusions. They are mere false imaginations.

Elimination of Ontological Commitment

In order to relinquish grasping upon the cognition of the conventional truth or realities, Prajñāpāramitā-sūtras recommend the obliteration of ontological commitment. Ontological commitment is rooted in the superimposition of illusive self-centred ego which directs and empowers all the six sense activities or the five aggregates (puñcaskandhas) of form, feelings, perceptions, volitions and consciousness. The obliteration of ontological commitment necessitates the development of Perfection of Wisdom (prajñāpāramitā) which annihilate superimposed,illusive self or ago.

Ontological commitment generates the erroneous object reification. Object reification is false conceptualization of four signs, namely the sign of self or ego, person, sentient beings and lifespan or tri-temporal existence[6] . Owing to these false mental constructs, an ordinary worldling or sentient being seizes upon the four signs and grasps upon the sensual stimuli of forms, sounds, smells, tastes, touches and ideas.

True and False Self

 At this critical point, it is equally incorrigible to erroneously misinterpret and mispresent the Tathāgata in the sense that Buddhist practice is to reject or deny the six sensual experiences. In actuality, without the six senses, a human being becomes functionally obsolete. The profound message of the Tathāgata is to admonish us to utilize the six senses without ontological commitment or devoid of any grasping. Elimination of the ontological commitment is is reciprocated with the manifest of our original True Self or the Buddha-mind (Dharmadhātu) directing and empowering all sensual activities. The directing and empowerment of the six sense activities by the false self or ignorant mind of an ordinary worldling or sentient being is the ontological commitment. The false self or ignorant mind is rooted in the superimposition of an illusive self or ego which does not exist in the first place.

Emptiness of All Signs

The ontological commitment creates the false notion of four signs generally expressed linquistically as signs, marks,and characteristics (nimittas; ābhāsas). They are also known as self-natures (svabhāvas) referring to the individual identity of oneself and other natures (parasvabhāva) referring to identities of others. Prajñāpāramitā-sūtras emphatically assert that all phenomena are ultimately signless, markless or characteristicless (nirnimittas; nirābhāsas)[7] . In other words, we ought not to be ontologically committed to signs, marks or characteristics which do not exist ultimately. Object reification or perception of inherent existence evokes harmful or poisonous self-centred ego. Self-centred ego evokes the unhealthy emotions of greed, hatred and delusion due to grasping upon the five aggregates as this is I; this is mine; this belongs to me.

Birth of Perfect Man

Hence, it is evident that devoid of object reification, the volitional activities are appeased. With the appeasement of volitional activities, conceptualization and obsession are appeased. With the non-arising of false mental constructs and mental diffusion, the self-awakened is said to be mentally appeased. Succintly put, the elimination of ontological commitment obliterates all forms of grasping. Non-grasping leads to the complete mental appeasement known as Nirvāṇa. Nirvāṇ̣̄a is the complete stilling of the human mind while the Delivered One is engaged actively in all sensual activities. Nirvāṇa consummates and culminates in perfect virtues from which a Perfect Man called Bodhisattva is born. The mission of a Bodhistatava is to edify and unveil the Truth to the sentient beings.

Illusive Multiplicity

The Prajñāpāramitā-sūtras expound what all phenomena or multiplicity really are (yathābhūta), the suchness (tathatā) of all phenomena or multiplicity or the true nature of all things (dharmatā). Designations or names may exist but the corresponding entities do not exist individually. For instance, the expression of ‘The hairs of a tortoise’ exists merely in designation only because a tortoise possesses no hair at all. Śākyamuni Buddha categorically exerts thus, “Discrete entities corresponding to the linquistic designations do not exist in the ultimate sense. Why should we dwell upon individual signs, marks or Characteristics which do not exist in the first place. Therefore, the Prajñāpāramitā-sūtras state that all phenomena or multiplicity are akin to the metaphors of magics, dreams, mirages, echoes, apparitions, reflected moon and so forth[8] .

Middle Path

However, it is incorrigible to deny the existence of all phenomena. Conventionally, they do exist. They only exist the way which the ordinary worldlings or sentient beings perceive them conventionally. If the absolute non-existence is asserted, this is tantamount to extreme view of nihilism or nothingness. All phenomena or multiplicity do exist from conventional point of view but they do not exist from the ultimate vision of the Enlightened Ones. The Prajñāpāramitā-sūtras recommends that while one acknowledges the ultimate Truth, the conventional truth must not be denied. This is the adoption of the middle path.

Non-duality

 Both truths interpenetrate and are mutually inclusive. The Tathāgata recommends that we adopt the middle view of admitting both truths simultaneously as both the phenomena and Principle interpenetrate and co-exist. The phenomena are the shadows of the Principle. The Principle is the light. Without the light, the shadow can not be manifested. Hence, the eternal Truth is Unity or Non-duality which transcends both absolute existence and absolute non-existence. The true Dharma is reflected from this middle view of neither existence and non-existence. The middle view is the dependently co-arisen non-duality. After the supreme enlightenment at the root of Bodhi tree in ancient India in the 6th century B.C.E, Śākyamuni Buddha was initially reluctant to preach the Dharma and thus uttered:

This Dhamma, won by me is deep, difficult to see, difficult to
understand, tranquil, excellent, beyond dialectic, subtle, and
intelligible only to the wise[9] .

As all phenomena or multiplicity, in truth, merge into a unity of infinite cosmos. An infinite Unity can not be expressed linquistically or it is beyond expression. Nevertheless, the Buddhist gnostics can intuit the ineffable Truth. Buddhist philosophy is not the advocate of external renunciation but an internal mental renunciation of self-grasping ego. The notion of self or ego is linked to the philosophical view of ontological commitment which must be eliminated in order to appease the ‘monkey’ or noisy mind. The elimination of the ontological commitment through the perfection of Wisdom unveils and manifests the hidden Buddha-nature (Dharmadhātu), the innate supremacy or great perfection of human species. The complete ‘silence’ of the mind is the Buddha-mind. The perfect knowledge of Dharma is the development of the wisdom of human engineering. The wisdom of perfection designs and constructs spiritually the Buddhist Perfect Man called Bodhisattva – the perfect image of the Tathāgata. Like all esoteric religions, the Prajñāpāramitā-sūtras of Mahāyāna Buddhism function to purge the ordinary human mind of self-centric ego to purify the mind. The way to obliterate self-centred ego is annihilate the ontological commitment to all phenomena of the multiplicity of the empirical world but it results in the grasping upon the mind and body as this is I; this is mine; this belongs to me. Destruction of the ontological commitment depersonalizes the human personality or the vaporization of personal proprietorship or ownership. Even the notion of emptiness is disowned culminating in the summit of Buddhist soterology – the emptiness of emptiness (Śūnyatā-Śūnyatā). This great nirvāṇa is experienced while the liberated one is still living with the human senses in the mundane world.