Tibetan SamskritWorks Series Yolo VIll.

PUBLISHED UNDER THE PATRONAGE OF THE

GOVERNMENT OF THE STATE OF BIHAR

R _

ABI-IIDHARMAKOSABHASYAM
OF
VASUBANDHU

General Editor
Prof. ANANTALAL THAKUR
Directory K. P. Jayaswal Research Institute& Patna

K\OP" JAYASWAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE

PATNA
J915
Published by
Prof. ANANTALAL THAKUR
Director. Kashi Prasad Jayaswal
Research Institufe.Pafna

i· j' {

iFlRST EDI110N ~967

SECONiJ EDiTiON 1975

"Printed at
THE TARA PRINTING WORKS

l{AMACHA s VARANJ\SI (n~DIA)

Trihetan -Sanskrit Works Series Vol. VIII

, -
ABHIDHARMAKOSABHASYAM
OF
V ASUBANDHU .

Edited hy
Prof. P. PRADHAN
Prof & Head of the Pust~Graduate
Department oj Sanskrit,
Utkal University, Orissa

REVISED SECOND EDrfION WITH INTRODUCTION

AND· ·lNDICES Etc.

By
Dr. (Mrs,) ARUNA HALDAR, M.A.,Ph.D. (CalcuttaUniv.),
Readfr, Patna University,
Head of the Department oj Philosophy, Patna Women's College,
Formerlj, Visiting ProJesso'l of Indian Philosophy,
Sanskrit and Bengali Languages to the Oriental Faculty,
Leningrad University, U.S.SR.

K .. p. JAYASWAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE

\, PATNA
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 ~~~~N~'fir~T~~ij ~~a~~l~l~~~11f
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 L The Government of Bihar established the K. P.,
Jayaswal Research Institute at Patna in 1951 with the object
inter~alia, to promote historical research, archaeological
excavation and investigations and publication of works of
permanent value to scholars. This Institute was planned
by this Government as a token of their homage to the
tradition of learning and scholarship for which ancient
Bihar was noted. Apart from the Kashi Prasad Jayaswal
Research Institute, five others have been established
to give incentive to research and advancement of
knowledge-the Nalanda Intitute of Post-graduate Studies
and Research in PaH and Buddhist I~earning at Nalanda,
the Mithila Institute of Post-graduate Studies and Research
in Sanskrit Learning at Darbhanga, The Bihar Rashtra e

bhasha Parishad for advanced Studies and Research in

Hindi at Patna, the Institute of Post-graduate Studies and
Research in Jainism and Prakrit Learning at VaishaH and
the Institute of Post-graduate Studies and Research in
Arabic and Persian Learning at Patna.
2. As a part of this programme of rehabilitating and
reorienting ancient learning and scholarship, the K. P.
Jayaswal Research Institute has undertaken the editing and
publication of the Tibetan Sanskrit Text Series with the
co=operation of scholars in Bihar and outside, Another
. series of Historical Research Works for elucidating the
history and culture of Bihar and India has also been started
by the Institute. The Government of Bihar hope to continue
to sponsor such projects and trust that this humble service
to the world of scholarship and learning would bear fruit
in the fulness of time.
 h,,_,"'- '7 •.~

General'Editer's:Note\:;' , •. . --, ,;
" . . . w <t.. •

',.;://.~:,':':.. T:,~;;:5;J,}~
, . '" ~,. ~", .

pr~face-:. ;' A. A ~l1idh~rmako~a C ',; .,! ,~: ,::::~~; (. ". ' xi

.c ':il'B~'L13tiddhisHc')stJdtes~abri~rsurvey
• • •• -
j
.'.< { , ). n'-' ;".~ j ") ~ ~
xviii
Acknowl~~~.9~m,~~,t "t .'r ~;, (:: .i}
. :.?;:; ;
xxvi
Chapt~":1,::f~1jJt10dugtiQl( "", { ) 1
(a) Bac.l(gtound;~md;HistQry;.,,ofi Buddhism.
(b) ,Peveiopmtmt' 6f Sar.¥asti,vadat \,)
(c) Sarvastivada Abhidharma l1ittr~tq,re. ,
(<1) Vasubandhu the author of Abhidharma1'-J;;l~;;l
kosa anq,]3h~~xa~/(".., ,:,' i ; 1 ",'r
( e) Abhidha~niakosa ~nd the other wotks .P"~;
;~~::;') 1.r." j~!.3r{j f".f 1''.
based on the text.
E.: ,;: :,;::~rJ-\:Re:fereii~es~':<:!:i ';{',"---' ,'; '; (::
~~~~'~'" ~f"'},.t'~
9~~pter II : ' Th~J1~rf~~~s:~l::l'fqet{i'l~;fi;J0'1T.qpn(t~tJlents or .
.' ~ :'" rAkq l),ql1l!lJlItS qr 'R~al~r' i; '; I i ; 29
:,.'1" •. ~{M~taphysfta(pr~peraes and "~PJllPQunds.)·
>0
' ..•' " ..,-' •. I, "'~.' "".

\, j)ha.rmas: Asa:tp.skrtfl~a,n(~gS:ari.iskrta'~:Aha:srta:v~ and

Sasrava Sa:tp.skrta Dharma.
(a) Ayatana (Base).
(b) Dhatu (Sources). '.
(c) Skandha (Assemblage or formation/com-
. position).
(d) BhauJika (composites).
( e ) References.
Chapter III..... The Buddhist Conception of the constituted
Phenomena. 66
(Physical world and Individual.)
(a) Loka (World).
(b) Indriyas (Senses, 22). Personality (PudgaIa)
(c) Citta (Mind).
 (d) Cooperation of Rupa and Ciua.
(e) Avijfiapti (Non=menteaux).
(f) References.
Chapter IV-The Buddhist conception of Anasravamarga~
satya (Ethical path), 151
(a.) The four Aryasatyas (4 noble truths).
(b) Ethical Process.
(c) Smrtyupasthana (Memory Training).
(d) Rupa and Arupya (Levels of Corpo-
reality and Incorporeality).
( e) Arya Pudgala (The Noble self).
(f) RefeFences.
Resume. 172
Text of Abhidharm<lko~a and Bha~ya. 1-479
Appendices
( i) Glossary-with corresponding synonyms in
English 481
(ii) Karika-Index of the first line 494
(Hi) General Index (with proper names m
Italics) 503
(iv) Selected Bibliography 517
 . It is a matter of great pleasur~thatthe?'Abhidharrna:;
Jiosabha~ya of Vasubandhu is being'presentedtotheWotld
of scholars in a revised form. TheWorKthq.tighpr()fessedlY
representing the Kashmir Vaibha~il~.a:vOint6ty1ew W~s
treated as one of the most impof;t~flt!'B~d{ll'li~t;~e'~t(;by
scholars of all the schools including?Va.casl.ia:rirhis~al; For
want of the original Sanskrit vessi&dmoderriscllolarslia,H'
to depend on secondary sourcesliKe~d:1eCn:iAege.atld
. Tibetan translations and the Sphd~att'h'a ibf/Ya'sbntitrairot
a knowledge of the Kosa. Mahapal].Q.ita Rap. ul,a$<1!Jkrit},<lm
yana reconstructed the Karikas on thebasisofthe$phutarth~
and added a Sanskrit vrtti to them_' ,It was. again the
Mahapan.9ita who during his visitstq Tibet discovered the
Karika,s and the Bha~ya in original sanskrit. The palm-leaf
manuscript of the Bha~ya consisted of 367 folia of seven
lines of about fifty-eight syIlables on each side. An appendix
to the same manuscript gives the Kariica text. The work
was edited by Prof. Prahlada Pradhan and published by
this Institute in 1967.
The necessity of an introduction and some appendices,
was very badly felt and unfortunady the editor due to his
various eugagements could not supply them. The under-
signed therefore had to approach Dr. Mrs. Aruna Haldar,
the erudite Abhidharma scholar for revising the text and
supplying the Introduction and Appendices. Dr. Mrs.
Haldar very kindly accepted the offer and prepared the
, press copy within the shortest possible time. For wc:tE~.5?f
further materials the text could not be improved beyond
correcting the misprints in the first edition. The learned
preface, introduction and appendices, it is hoped, will help
a great deal and invite fresh studies of the text.
 The undersigned is beholden to Dr. Mrs. HaMar tor
writing the lea,rned preface & introduction & the prepara
m

tion of the appendices' and for seeing the volume through

the press and to the authorities of· the Bihar Research
Society who placed the Rahula Collection at the disposal
of this Institute. Particular mention should be made of
the generous help and co=operation received from Sri
Kamta Prasad Sinha I. A. S., Education Commissioner
and Sri Damodar Thakur, Director, Higher Education
Bihar. The help received from Pc Jagadiswar Pandey!
M. A., Decipherment Pandit, K. P. Jayaswal Research
Institute is also thankfully acknowledged.

Jal1ma~tami, 1975
 PREFACE
AbhJ.dharmakosa
The introduction and other chapters of the present
edition form substantially a part of my studies in Buddhist
treatment of metaphysical phenomena as based on Abhi~
dharmakosa of Vasubandhu a waH~known scholar and
philosopher of 4th century A. D. After necessary adapta~
tion, that study is being offered in the present shape. In
my treatment of Buddhist Psychology; (some Psychological
aspects of early Buddhism as based on Abhidharmakosa of
Vasubandhu-in press at the moment--·which is being pub~
Hshed by the Asiatic Society, Calcutta), I discussed in
details the 4 Skandhas i.e, Vedana( feelings), Sarpjna(per..
ception), Vijnana (consciousness), SaI)skara (impressions)
and made a comparative analysis of Sarvastivada philoso-
phy and some aspects of modern realism, that I feel, need
not be repeated here. I present here Sarvastivada and
its history and development of Abhidharma literature
(Chapter I); full idea of Ruphskandha (Chapter II).; Coope~
ration of Rupa and Citt~ (Chapter HI) the Buddhist con m

ception of the constituents of therlftals has been also treated

in Chapter n. Chapter the Buddhist
conception of the constituted. phenQmena Le. the Indriya
(senses), the Lokas {WQrld.}, the Citta (Le, mind. in general)
their cooperation and Avijnapti (nQn~menteaux). Chapter
IV deals with the Buddist cQnception of Margasatya or the
nQbleethical path. There is a Resume besides the Glo"!
Ssary of the technical terms~ a selected. Bibliography, and
Indices.
The whole treatment is based. mainly on Abhidha:rma~
Imsa ofVasubandhu-atext which was lQst in India during
several centuries and has been reconstructed from the
 PIZEFACE

Tibeto~Chinese sources together with the Bha~ya or the

exposition written by the same author. The details of
the text and the other texts of commentary based on this
immensely valuable text have an been given in the Chapter I.
The present volume is the 2nd edition of Abhidharma~
kosa Karika and Bha~ya. The original text was reconstructed
by the scholar monk MahapaJ:}.Qita R;'l,hula Sarplq-tyayana
who brought from the prohibited land of Tibet, with consi-
derable physical difficulty and courage, cardoads of the
copies of the sacred Buddhist texts. Some of them were
extant in only Tebetan or Chinese translations. There
were others which were in Sanskrit but lost in India long
ago. After the bun:ling of the N alanda monastery and
after the Buddhists had lost state patronage in North India
many of the Buddhist monks evidently fled to different
countries outside India with their sacred texts; and that
is how a part of these could be saved.

During the middle part of the last century s the Euro-

pean scholars made every possible effort to make a scienti:"
fie study of old Indian texts including those of Buddhism.
The scholars from Western. Europe mainly depended on the
Buddhist texts obtained mostly in Pali which were extant
in Ceylon. The Eastern European scholars, however, inclu..
ding those of Russia, also took pains to enter into the diffi~
cult lands lWongoJia and Chinese Turkistan
(Tsingkian); their effort was rewa.rded with finding
almost a lost portion Buddhist texts written in Sanskrit,
and with many others translated in Tibetan or Chinese
languages by the devoted monks of those places. Thus the
Sanskrit branch of Buddhism came to be reconstructed and
Abhidharmakosa, its Bha~ya Vyakhya were aU obtained
in the process of simHar reconstruction Buddhist history
and Buddhist literature.
 PREFACE xiii

It has been already mentioned that Abhidharmakosa

Karika was transliterated into Sanskrit from Sino= Tibetan
translations by M'ahapundita Rahula Sarp,skrtyayana, The
I

Bha~ya, by itself a standard work, however, was ready for

publication a longtime ago, Most of the scholars of
Abhidharma had to take em satisfied with the translation
of the Bha~ya, rendered into French from Sino-Tibetan
sources by the well-known scholar Louis De La Vanee
Poussin the Belgian master of Buddhalogy. The Vyakhya also
was rendered into Sanskrit (in Roman script) by the well@
known Japanese scholar N. Wogihara brought up in the tradi a

tion of Taisho Scholarship. This was later edited (only the

first 3 Kosas of it) by the famous Indian Scholars Dr.
Narendra Nath I,aha and Dr. N. Dutt, the latter, a direct
disciple of Louis De La VaUee Pouss!n mentioned above.
Dr. N. Dutt also edited later the 4th and the 5th Kosas.
These are given in Devanagari script and published by Firma
K. L. Mukherji of Calcutta. The Bha~ya finally was de;.
ciphered and edited (in Devanagari script) by Profossor
Prahlada Pradhan ofUtkal University, and was published by
the K.P, Jayaswal Research Institute, Patna, in 1966. Publi·
cation of this text and the Arthavinscaya Sutra edited by
Dr, H. Samtani of Hindu University of Varanasi were most
welcome for the students and the research scholars b
working particularly in the field of Abhidharma. (Vide the
review made by Dr. N. Dutt and Anma Haldar on
Arthaviniscaya Sutra to be published in the Journal of
the BIhar Research Society, Patna).

Though a longfelt need was thus removed by the

publcation in 1966 of Abhidharma Kosa Bha~ya (first
edition) deciphered very carefully by Professor Prahlad
Pradhan,the volume only consisted of the text, and no
annotation or critical analysis of the text had been given in
that first edition. So., the u.ndersigned was requested by
 PREFACE

the present Director Sri. A.L. Thakqr ofthe K~P.J.,Institute,

himself a weU-knownBuddhist Scholar, to revise the volume~
. with critical introduction, comparative analysis, and proper
annotation. The author was prepared to do this serious piece
of work but the very idea of revising the text fuHy had to be
given up.... The editor had to limit her task considerably,
viz, to_ ·preparing a critical _introduction. ,comparative
analysis, a, glossary of the technical words used intheKoSa .
-and 11 selected bibli ographyand indi ces. She should .not be
held responsible for the text of Abhidharmakosa which is
being re-printed as it was given by Professor Prahlad
Pradhan without any annotation, etc. She only did the
revision.
The present work is mainly based on the text of
AbhidharmakosaKarika~ Bha~ya and the Vyakhya. 'The
author made her best effort to include aU the materials -so
far obtained from the later researches on Abhidharma both
in the Sanskrit and Pali versions of it. The original text
consists of nine chapters-the last of that being criticism ilf
the Vatsiputriyas, who maintained a theory about some kind
ora 'Continuous SeWand not a mere l Continuum'•. This was
very unlike the main tenets of Buddhism i. e.Anityata
(Impermanence), Anatmata (non-soul theory) and Ant-
svaraHi (Godlessness). The Vyakhya· prepared by
N. Wogihara (Taisho cdn) also has got 9 chapters, wherea~
Mahapal).Qita Rahula Samkrtyayal).a mentions only 8
chapters in his 'Karika', on which he also wrote a Vrtti.
The chapters of the texts are arranged in the following
manner.
Kosa (1) Dhatu Nirdda About the constituents
,. (2) Indriya Nirdesa Senses
(3) Loka Dhatu Nirdda " World
" . (4) Karma NirdeSa "u Actions
" (5) Anusaya Nirde~a Impuritie$
" H
 PREFACE. XV':

Rosa, (6) Arya Pudgala Nirdda H The Initiated

,~
(7) Jfiiina Nirdda H Pure know ledge
,t (8) Dhyana Nirdda Meditation
(9) Pudgala Nirdda
" The Individual.
" "
The present editor could not feel satisfied with giving
in her works mere summarises chapterwise. So she has
arranged the contents of the chapters subject-matterwise. The
present work, as has been stated before, is mainly restricted
to the study of 'Rupa Skandha, Mana AyatanaandDharma
Dhatu' which form the point of view of the Kosa 3 and would
account for aU the phenomena like 'the constituents (Bhuta)
and the constituted (Bhautika) (Page 12. A.K.B. Kosa 1
Karika3). AU the phenomena, internal and external
together, are known as the Nama Rupa Skandha, whiCh
account for everything known as Jagat and Jiva. Here we
mostly elaborated the Rflpa Skandha or the externals l
Mana or Citta the internal and the Dharmadhatu whIch
incJudes all the constituted patterns whatever they might be.
. The chapters in the critical introduction have been
arranged accordingly. The first chapter deals with intro~
ductory matter. Rather, it consists of a short background
history of 'Bu"ddhism, development of Sarvastivada and
Abhidharma Hterature and texts based on them, (vide
References) which are felt essential for a proper study of
the text.
The second chapter deals with Dharmas, Sarpskrta and
Asarpskrta, classification of Sarpslqta Dharma into Sasrava
and Anasrava, the description of Sasrava, Sarpl<rta Dharma
and their further classifications into Ayatana, Dhatu and
Skandha. These are an based on the findings from the
study of the Kosas I and n.
The third chapter deals with Indriyas, Loka D CiUa
and with the pattern of cooperation of R upa and CHta am:1
xvi PREFACE

A vijnaptL These are based on the findings from the same

of the Kosas I, If, III & V.
The chapter IV with: Anasrava Marga Satya.
This consists of the materials from the Kosa'l IV, VI, VII
and VIII. The present writer added the Resume,
glossary of the technical terms and the references to this
text.
Lastly there are the indices and a corrigenda attached
to the text in the end.
Further, it may be pointed out here that the present
author abides mainly by the findings of the text. She
has no freedom of her own to write an independent volume
here. But she humbly suggests that there is an initial
difficulty.in interpreting the materials of the text on the
part of any sincere scholar of Buddhism. Buddhist texts
use a special kind of Sanskrit (Hybrid). The terms here
have altogether a different connotation; in most of the cases
the meaning differs completely from those med in the
orthodox Sanskrit texts. Moreover, the contents of A.K.B.
reveal a kind of empirical approach to the then prevalent
scientific terms which the author of the Kosa evidently
knew. Thus a Buddhist scholar should combine a knowledge
of Sanskrit and PaJi together with that of Indian Philoso~
phY and Indian Linguistics to do full justice to a work
like the present one, In addition, one should be weB-posted
in the findings of modern Biology, Physics and Psychology;
these are required mainly for mastering the text satisfactorily.
Further. in order to read many of the ancient and modern
works which are based on A.K.B. one should at least
possess a working knowledge of classical Chinese and Tibe~
tan, French and German as well. AU these equipments
wm help one not only to decipher the text but also to
interprete the terms, at the same time, with correctness to a,
great extent.
 PREFACE xvii

Finally, the world in present times is getting more

and more interested in Buddhism. Therefore, a modern
attitude is also needed to interprete scientifically the terms
which are obtained in the Kosa, Much work is waiting
here in this field after the works of Dr and Mrs Rhys David,
who are still held as the pioneers in this matter. This,
therefore, opens a new and important vista to our new
scholars of Indology. The present author appologises to
aU reader and scholars for aU her shortcomings andlimita=
. tions. She hopes for a new generation of scholars in the
fi,eld who will be interested to make a more complete and
fuller survey of the matter and she will be gratified if her
humble effort is found to be of any help to any sincere
research seh'olar of the Buddhist literature.
c~O:q1 Namah.. Paramarhate Bhagavate
Buddhaya nama1;l."
 D,
Sources in General
Buddhistic studies were ti me very difficult
both in India and outside, tradition
~f Buddhistic studies had 111 some eleven
hundred years ago, to some soc.io~poHtical factors~.
Buddhisln took sheHer in some countries like Nepal
Tibet, Central Asia, Mongolia, China~ Japan and in South'
East Asian countries like Ceylon~ Burma, Indo-China etc.
The Buddhist priests left India and carried with them most
of their sacred texts. These original texts were again pre=
served only in their translated forms in languages of the
countries where these priests tookrefuge and settled down.
Much of the materials for present~day of Budd,.
hism are drawn, therefore, from Burma, Ceylon, Thailand,
Tibet, Mongolia, China Japan and from the texts and
on their translations found there. For, Buddhists had
<

a long standing tradition of translation. Fa Hsien

and Hsuen Tsang are two the greatest Chinese names, as
we know who had translated a number of texts into Chinese.
From about Asoka's time many Indian Buddhists too had
undertal«~n voluntary journey to these foreign lands as
Buddhist missionaries; they lived and worked there
till their death. Most farnous of them are Kumarajiva,
Pararnartha and Bodhidharma who lived and worked in
China and Mongolia, Others are Dlpankara Srijnana
Atisa, Kamalasila and Santirak~ita who lived and worI~ed
in Tibet. All these missionaries bad their original worI(S
written first in Sanskrit, which were latcr translated into
the local languages by local followers the monaste~
ries. These translations are valuable materials for studying
Buddhism at present; for., some the original texts are
lost. ,But these present also an ini~ial linguistic harrier to
stu:den:tS»'~llia;dditioIi totbeh:· technical pecularities.. which,
a;realwayg,.diffi,cultfograpple with.
Soupces·inlndia ,;
..In:,India' ptoper,'oilly'fhe Buddhists belonging to '.
Theraviida'~cho61 continued to' 'exist in some parts of Assam .
all,d:Chittag~iigareas:(nienitrer is included in Bangaladesh
atpre'serit); .' '. .• TheY 'preserved alimi ted body of PaU Ii tera .. "
tur~/aricl,stHl·is:m~Her' bQdy,ofSanskritic Buddhist Htera.·
tlite,~()neof;whiCliwere:'popular with the orthodox and'
itaditi&l'ial 'I-li'ndusth:olars;, ,Many of them thought and "
idrh~ aofhink HhnoW' that"Buddhism was merely an off~
sl],cio(bfaindri:ism.· Many others read the logical texts like'
Nya'ya.bfrldtias, mer~ly a speCimen of ,the opponents"' view' .
(1?urvapa'k§a), ' ;?tnd Sool1J'S6metimes this attitude created
i;p~eJudiceagaihst-the: pr6pet>study ahd understanding of
Bul'fdhist. ;PijHos6phy;'th:e i ;attention of the educated
lridiahs';~as;J:l6W:ever»! dra-wnanew towards Buddhistic'
studiesfr6ni th~ middle of the l~stcentury when the Euro ...
pean scholars' like· Kern and Burnouf started their investi..
gation into this field. About the same time,. or a few ,years'
later European mind had already begunto appreciate the:
empirico-rational ··,spirit and positivistic' and humanistic/
attitude of Buddhism together with its clear and analytic
e,thicaIity,which:are the remarkable'features of Buddhism •.
Professor Stcherbatskoy (d. 1931) who had come to India
from Russia was one of the last of those pioneer scholars
in some branches and was one of the rare scholars. who.
understood very. correctly the fundamental tenets of Budd~ .
hism inspite of the linguistic and technical difficulties men;..
tioned above. Other weUknown names are Lavallee
•
Poussiu,the RhyDavids, Sylvain, Levi, G. Tucci and some
Scholars of the French SchooL
History of Buddhistic St~dies-Pali Buddhism
In. order to understand the works in the .,field of
presentaday Buclphalogy,oneis' led unavoidably to take-a,_
 xx PREFACE

brief notice of the state of the Buddhistic studies in the last

125 years in India and outside. The age was remarkable
for its enthusiasm for the various fields of knowledge and
hUl;uanties including Buddhism; and Buddhism again came
to have a special intellectual appeal for the Western
scholars. The materials for Buddhistic studies; apart from
the Asol{an inscriptions, were mainly obtainable from the
Sanskrit and Pali scriptures found first in J ndia and Ceylon.
PaH materials were better' Imown thanks to the Hfelong
efforts of Professor and Mrs. Rhys Davids who lived and
wod:ed in Ceylon for a long time. The sacred texts
written in Pali, we should remember, were carded to Ceylon
. during Asoka's regime by his son Mahendra. PaH appears to
have been the then local dialect of Malava~Ujjayn]. Mahendra
was the Governor of Malava and had the advantage of
getting the texts translated into the language of that province.
From Ceylon the Pali texts were later on carried to Indonesia,
Siam (Thailand), Kamboja (Cambodia) Campa (Annam),
Burma and Malayaa Southern China, (Vietnam or Indo-
China) and Korea. PaH is the recognised scriptural language
orall these South .East Asian countries. AU of them accepted
'what is popularly called" PaH Buddhism" I which is really
orthodox Sthaviravada or Theravada. It is now lmown also
as HSouthern Buddhism". Till this day, Ceylon is known
for its traditions of learning of the Sutrapitaka; Burma for
that of the Abhidharmapitaka, and Thailand for that of
the Vinayapitaka-... the three .great branches of studies of
Southern Buddhism or PaH Buddhism or Sthaviravada.
Recently I come to know from Mr, Lam Troung Quoc who
wrote a,paper on ancient relations between the two countries
(Hist. Congo 1974) that the connection began as cearlyas
first century only.
Sanskrit Buddhism
But we come to know that, some of the branches of
Sthaviravada Buddhism had also taken to writing their
 PI{EFACE xxi

or less the
After the
gradually
and

accepted sacred
commentaries (Vibha~a)
written on them. North India was completely
under the sway of Sarvastivada Buddhism (a kind of earlier
Buddhism maintaini.ng on €Sarvastivada
and modern realism' Asiatic
Society, the the
fourth Buddhist synod taken place in
Gandhara, later from the D. Saivism deve~
loped in Kashmere declined there.
Buddhism 3 however, about 100
B.G.) to Central Asian countries,
the 5th and 6th centuries, Chinese miSSIonaries
developed communication between India and China through
Central Asia and Mongolia. re .. discovered caves of
Tung Rnan (N.W. in the Central
Asian deserts
and wide into
still coming
Tashkent,
Plenty
Sanskrjt~
scholars
scholars like
Sal11krtyi1yana
Manuscripts were
available· from China, J apan@
Mongolia, Central Tibet and
Nepal, A careful the translations
xxii PEEFACE

were mostly texts m Sans~

bit and many of which are Buddhism
prevalent those as 'Northern
Buddhism~ or ~Sanskrit t Southern

Buddhism' or ~PaH Different schools of this

Northern Buddhism are and Japan,
including both the so· called (Earlier Buddhism)
and so-caned 'Mahayana' (Later sects. It may
be stated there that so-called ~South.em Buddhism' is
mostly Hinayana in Buddhism'
allowed both the Hinayana' Ivlahayana ideas
to develop simutlaneously, So 'Nothern branch retains
its old characteristics ; e. Chinese
monastries the H'lnayana text Abhidharmakosa is a
compulsory text Hlnayanl or
Mahayan'], and text has to be read for seven
years, Abhidharmalwsa work which was
partly translated by of Russia. But
the Kosa, sum,mary as also of Jfianaprasthana,
the important text of Kasheme Vaibha~ika school, were
available only China and only III Chinese translations,
Jfianaprasthana have been very
recently edited in
from classical Chinese
Scientifie Study of Buddhism
As a matter of
to Sanskrit
the writings
century,
become a
batskoy's D:r4~a(~ce:ssors
his

Among
 PREFACE Xxiii
contemporary scholars were Sylvian Levy, the great French '.
scholar, and Louis de La VaUt"e Poussin of Belgium.
Among the scholars who worked about the same in India
mostly hi Calcutta, were Hara Prasad Sastri, and Raja
Rajendra La! Mitra, his senior Sans Candra Vidyabhu~aQ.a of
'Bu'ddhistic Logic' fame and Sarat Oandra Das of Tibetan
fame were Sastri'scontemporaries. Das was the authority
on Tibetan Buddhism and had, at considerable risk, visited
the prohibited land of Lahsa, while VidyabhusalJa's name
as a master ofIogic is often mentioned iu Professor Steher.. ,
batskoy's writings. Another centre of Buddhistic studies was
developing simultaneously in Japan. Dr. Takakusu and Ane-
saki were the pioneer scholars and were later followed by
veteran scholars like Suzuki and N. Wogihara. Wogihara~n
collaboration with the Sanskrit scholars of Taisho college,
edited the masterly text of Sphutarthabhidharmkosavya~
khya" a commentary by YaSomitra on Vasubandhu's Abhi-
dharmakosabha~ya. {In India~ we should mention, we had
no access to Prof. Stcherbatskoy's translation of the Kosa-
bha~yabut Louis De La Vallee Poussin's. French translation
of the same was available}. From the first quarter of the
present century' scholars like Mahamahopadhyaya Vidhus.
Sastri and Dr. B. Barua in India later and Prof. Tucci in
Italy furthered the cause of the Buddhistic studies a good
deal. Among the contemporary scholars of Buddhism the
two names which appear very prominent are that of Prof.
Waldschmidt of Gottingen University and Prof. Dr. N.
Dutta of the University of Calcutta. The latter, Dr., N.
Dutta,belonged to the glorious tradition of Louis De La
Vallee Poussin and was (passed away* at the age of 80)
associated with the e'ditingof the famous GiJgit manuscripts
as also various other Buddhist texts of immense value. In
India it should also be mentioned, Buddhistic studies deve-
loped significantly under the influence of the poet Rabindra
*On 27.11.73.
 PREFACE

Nath Tagore; Santiniketan w~s). and still is" a centre of.

study of the sacred texts in classical Chinese and Tibetan,
and has drawn a number of scholars there. After indepen-
dence, Delhi is developing as . another. centre. in India.
Buddhistic studies in India specially the work of collecting
manuscripts from Tibet,owes a good deal to· Mahapal}Q.ita
Tripitak~carya Rahula Sd:qlkrtydYa.nap .. who was associated
with Prof. Stcherbatskoy at Leningrad University for some
time. The manuscripts are beingmosdy. published by the "
Jayaswal Research Institute, Patna; RecenUy, Nalanda has
again become a centre of Buddhistic studies and of fresh
publications. . The Nava Nalandd· Mahdvihara draws
scholars from all over the Buddhistic world. In Europe
two centres of Buddhistic study are at present in Rome and
Paris. The idea of reviving the Tibeto~Mongolian Buddhis-
de studies in Russia suffered a temporary set-back after the
death of G. Rerich who had gone over to Moscow for this
purpose. His rather N. Rericn, the great artist, Was quite
well· known for his Central Asian expeditions, and coUec..
HOD of manuscripts from Mongolia. It may be incidentally
mentioned here that G. D. R. has developed a centre of
Bucldhisticstudies in Halle recently and German scholar-
'ship is re-entering this field. In Gangtok there is a centre
of Tibetan Buddhism now, patronised by the Government
of India and its possibilities are great. Magaqha University
in Bihar is also understood·· to be developing a' centre of
.Buddhist studies. American Centre of Buddhist studies had
"published couple of decades back a labourious work of
fIybrid Sanskrit Dictionary by Edgerto~.·.
The above brief survey of the position of Buddhistic
studies during the last 125 years makes It quite evident that
modern India is again realizing the importance of the
. Buddhist studies and it may be presumed" throllgh Buddhism
in 8enerai? . India naturally f~els its kinship with other
 PREFACE xxv

peoples of Asia who are practising Buddhists; and naturally

also feels proud of Buddha, who according to the great
thinkers like Rabindra Nath 'Tagore of modern age, is the
'greatest son of India', and exponent of the truestspirit of
India. It is not ina sectarian spirit, DOri'n aspiritofri~rrow
chauvanism we owe it to ouisel;'es:;to~ppr6aclithesestlldies
and realize the historic mission50f 'Gaut~ma Buddha; and the
'noble path' 'he held out for" humanityto,fdHow. 'TWo~
thousand five hundred years aftertheB~d(nta, a~d' hisiH~..
mination, the world at large is 'comiIigtc(tea)izemorean9 '
more clearly that man's very chancedf~4rviv.:t.1 isen:d~n­
gered unless the noble message of the Mast~r jssQrnehpw
embodied in the actual activities dfihenations amI also
of individuals. Buddhism isthhi)r~c()vedng;its \Vor1~
appeal» both in the land of itsorigi~J India •• ~n<ljnth'e
lands 'Yhereit had not traveI1eaey~rrJn. itSd;:\ysQfg.()~y.;
viz. in the Western World. TheB~cl(I#ist;d.ev,o.tion iQ ,~na:ly­
tical knowledge-'to, pursuit oftr,ut1f'raHonan}rand c()ns~
tantly, has given a new edge to its appeal, whith ~ven 'the
world of science cannot but adniir~. At<t.he sametitne its
'1-, _. .;<" .;' " •• ' . • ". ' .• ";.'

ethical message with great human~ati.c!appeal,;Qn.behalf/of

ahirpsll, Ksamll t muditll, upek~ll; katur;~·.alldmaitrJ,,;is'lmreset';
vedly, accepted by theworld~s.<pe~t.th.in~ersa;sthe )IIlost
ciyilizing principles for the guiqanC~·iof.milnand,;s·alvati()n
,of his civilization., InteUectuanya.Iid;sPirituaUy~ 'human,ity:
in, this crisis of civilization moreand'more feels likededa:~
fing-in the true sense-"BudC!h~~~aran.afu.<" gaccpami'\ ,
'jet ,me take refuge in the en.Iight~n~d:; ""~" .'
 , , , ' ,~ ,

A~~:;f)Wl84gmpnii
'>-;',','p :';',~,' /

, ,. ·',·j'~tS'9U;r,ce.b~~l}s;,·~1~~~4Y;~~~~erred to, and the list of

" r~f~~~nG~s;)~ttC:l;c;l:1e4;'i.t();,·;ea;ch.·}~l)j~pter will show ,the main
~~l.ds,l~p)ll; :;wbi~ll,.,:;i~~;/..i1,la;t~ri'~;tt~l1?r this work have been'
eglle,ctecl." ; , ' ;"'~<i

"".,.:t{' if~ls9;~~gtat~i~1/dUt'y;t~' acknowledge the help i

f~c~ive,af~diri .6t~el's&lWtesi6rtH¢ present work. 'I thank
IrlY ;£~v~~ei('t~~~~ef;s~r 'I(ed~i~N ath,a OJha,' Vyiikara\la
Ny'a'y'a:;Ye'd!nta~a'rY4,'p~rSa:ri'alailkara,
":::". ,', ,;:." '</ :.: :' ."; ,,,.!,,,:,, .:,
~. ."
'tor~erIy" Professor
j', ../ ~ ',; '. ". ,;~ <~ /".'\«' :~,{ ~'" :",,' . " ,~

otP4d6s(J,ph y;Gov\~rpblep t' Sallskri. t College I, Pa tna, for the

. ~Agr.tldgillgh~Ip;re·tille~id'to~·:m{for' years in my study of
Sanskl'it;'Phil~s~Phit.~('lf.tel~t:u;~ ,~:particulaily the texts of
J;~ht;jh~~niak(})a;~!,>i{qiflM#'$)~2· •. ter~ina1Ja~vllrtika, .NyllJabzndu,
.JIIJ'y(i)k;ritt~;' fjti~~oiHrif~~i4~!~#(1:' Tattva-sa7pgraha and other
*~x.(s~
,', ,", '."
" \, ~. < .••..... :',
",,~.>: ,", '-,,' "."'::( ,'//

"
'.' ;"':llthank;th"e;s6li~lats.i·~ria;~~a.~hers
"'.'," , ' " ...•. ' ", ' . , . ' ' . < :.;" , '
Late Miihapandi.ta
R:aI1\llcr;Sam:krtya~anaj:;.~h'el.t.at~'iProfessor· .Atlanta Kumar
,Bb~ttacharyya;::'F~~k;ati#1i:~'~a:strrbr;the N'yaya Department
5~i·~Cal~uttaIS'abg;:writ
; '.' .'; '" " "', , ; . : '''I; ; " ; ',;.
<~oiteg~·;Calcutta"t Professor' Satkari,< ' " .,,', .

l\lfu~l¥etjee·J!M.Ar~·Pli/D:'(eati;r;former Director of Nalanda.

,::; '. ,;' .,. "'~"""'" ,:',,,~:,: /' '," ",' .. , I , ; , ; , ." ,
.·la~ti.~ut~~:N~,}a'Rda,!:t1l'en >?rlhbipaIPrahlad' Pradhan' of
S'~ttibalpbr,,:G<ynegei{Sr¥:Mallindfa ' Prasid Barua; Superin;;
tea:<l~n:ll;n;::::Mah~liod~i'tW~ili.pl~it~C}ommittee•. 'Bodh Gaya,
~r?S.OholidJill~Y rtf:h·tarl4aJiJ:.zi\siatic:Society Jrtd Mr .', s.
Mitra;;>DeRuty I.Jbra~ianCa:lcuHa University Library for
··.~~ny.va.lq.~lJJe; sugg~~ti~ilsandj'or the books I received
.... rrom,all~f theni. '. .' . .
,,' .<.'; ., '"'' " .,
'.. .

....... ;SpetiaHYl~rnth~nkiIl~nlY::: most respected teacher

pa:~~;.fp::r6:f;;Dr;~.Dutta.,.M;A:·P,R.S. (G.U.) D.Litt. (Lond)
fcirrAe~lYJi~ote~·sbf/andIiea(lortheDepartment. Of Pali (C. D.)
,"', ';'," " ',' .... " "
who inspired me with his untiring and zeJous devotion to
Buddhistic studies and directed my steps into the difficult.
field of Buddhist Logic and Philosophy. I have no hesita-
tion to submit that at every stage of this work I was sustained
by the t~ought of his silent guidance good will and genius.
lowe a lot of thanks to Dr. Mrs. Surama Dasgupta, a
veteran Scholar herself, for her invaluable suggestion about
Avijfiapti (Chapter UIe) and her worthy Disciple Dr. Miss.
Anima Sengupta Reader P.U. who communicated Mrs.
lJa-sgupta'sidea to me.

. I am also grateful to my husband Sri Gopal H~ddar,

who helped me to edit and prepare the final copy for the
press and for his overall supervision of that.
lowe a lot of thanks to Prof. A. L. Thakur, Director
of K. P.Jayswal Instt. Patna for giving my humble self
this rare opportunity to work out this critical edition of a
great work like Abhiciharmakosa-Bhasya. I am grateful to
him for many valuable suggestions and his overall super-
vision WIthout which this work could not be published. I
am also grateful to Mr. J. Pande of K. P. Jayaswal Instt for
his help in prepering the verse index.
I would in the end like to thank sincerely Mr. S. A.
Amir who very carefully prepared the type script of this
difficult mss for me.
Aruna Haldar
 INTRODUCTION
CHApTER I'
'. Scholars are generally agreed that the age of Gautam~
Buddha was .marked by intense philosophical specul~tion
· and introspection among the higher classes of India. The
early iJpani~ads are the starting point of that age and the
early Buddhist teachings form a distinct, though:a little
late, landmark in it. Gautamaof .the Sakya clan" ~the
"'Buddha" as we know him,1ike some other U pani~adic
thinkers 'came of a royal family of .aleisured class, which
could spare time for high thinking and .quiet .meditation.
Buddha's circumstances were therefore favourable ..for
~ '. ~,~. . '"..

.carrying on new experiments in the field of human know~

ledge and human conduct. Like most Indian thin~ers,
he accepted the prima facie existence of pain and suffering
as conditions of human life. Man has an innate tendency
to seek pleasure which he occasionally getshut,;cannot
retain long, not to speak for antimes'.;H~suffers·f0rlosi;ng
pleasure, and feels . positive pains)H.e·the1'efore ;m~t'kes
every effort to ward off suffedngs;whitha:.pleasure.. seeking
· mind would naturally seek ,j·Desiies for.ipleasureiandfor
· avoidance of suffering and paill, appear .to .be thestartillg
point for most philosophical ibqtii",ie~jn:'Jndia. :Gautanka
Buddha attempted to give a ii~tio:n~r;e~pl?sitioQ.:()f tnese
two normal phenomena of hciman/miijd;"andproce~ded
.to .enunciate the "Four NobleTrpt:h~'~·W'Mch.are. J~is
·,contributions'to human knowl~dgefotJ('}~etE:01$lh1g,thQse
two tendencies.
The Four Truths are Du1).kha1,· S~triuda.Ya;,<Nhorjha
and Marga. .The first truth. ~ilut:lci~tedi.is'Jheunl'Vle:rsal1ty
..'. ".. '. . /.
.of suffering, (Dub..kha)" Thesec~Ild{rvrn>h:np:li~s ac;aU'se
:of that ,(Samudaya). as, logicaJiyspea!k:~ng,/~9th1ni ;ca!It
2 INTRODUCTION

happen without a cause (ex nihilo nihil fit). The third deals
.with the eradication of the cause of suffering (Nirodha).
The fourth enunciates the way of liberation from suffering
or the way Jeading to cessation of suffering (Marga).
These four truths have been compared with (a) Disease,
(b) Diagnostic cause of the disease, (c) Removal of the
disease by eradicating the causes, (d) and Cure of the
disease by medical treatment. 1
Buddha wanted to establish a correct path which
would do away with suffering. He pointed out for the
purpose the evanascentcharacter of both suffering and
pleasure, and suggested a rebuilding process of human
nature through what may be caUed, psychological analysis
and ethical purgation. The same attitude is shared by
Yoga philosophy,but, the ideas anitya (Evanascent, Transi ..
tory) and Sunya (NonQexistent) are typical of Buddhism.

Bu.d.d.ha9 § Contribu.thm, to Human Knowledge g

Gautama Buddha the founder of the Buddhist school

of thought was born in 563 RC. He retired to the forest in
534 RG. and pursued various existing methods of Indian
religious and philosophical disciplines, until he came to
find out for himself his own code of life. Following that,
Gautama became "The Buddha" or C4 t he enlightened one"
in 528 B.C~ at Bodhagaya. He then went about preaching
his newly acquired doctrine in Magadha (Behar), and
Kosala (Eastern V.P.) and elsewhere till his death in 483
RC. in Kusinagara (Eastern V.P. in the Himalayan terai).
He recruited a large number of devotees who became
monks, and formed a new monastic order having monastc s

:ries built for them by the lay~devotees. He also framed

the general rules for the SaIpgha or the assemblage of
monks, and permitted relaxation of these. rules in extra-
ordinary circumstances. He was primarily interested in
 IN TB.ODUC lION

th~ cloistered life of a recluse. He emphasised the psycho,..

ethical. t,raining which wonld enable man to know the
Reality m:Tath~ta (thatness) and attain eternal 'quietud~
or NirvaQ.a. Sometimes Buddha is regarded as a great
reformer ora social thinker who roseagainsf caste system
and animal sacrifices; but this is onlypartiaUy true.' Even
while we think of him as a great tea,chC(r of mankind', we
should not forget that he was so only incidentally. Social
. good or .social. life was not his primary concern. Life is
not good, as we believe,· but is only suffering. So he believed
in renunCiation which was in his view, the prirmiry duty,
andsd he directed the monks wh<? sought this freedom
from. ignorance to practise .certain humanitarian virtues.
Thus; the idea Qf serving the mankind occurred to him, if
at aU, as a secondary thought. .
.~t should be noted that B:uddha was not uniq ue in
prescribing renunciation and in . upholding the mendicant's
life aS'essential for spiritual salvation. There existed in
Eastern India in his time wandering ascetics of different
sects. In tbePali texts. we comeacro~s the terms
like pari vrajaka s, (Padbbajakas), Tirthikas. (Titthiyas)
etc.~. Earlier in the Upanisads we find the trend towards
renunciation creeping into the Indo·Aryan society
when 'Vanaprastha'. (retirement into forest) >a;nd
Y.ati .came to be regarded as parts of a complete Jife.
Expressie>ns like Samgha.·· GaI,la etc. were not unknown
among the' different existing orders of the wa;nderingsects
evell' during the Buddha's lifetim~. .The nOl1-13;ttddlli$l
cloctrinatirrs .Nirgrantha Jnatiputra (~ataputta),>;Safijaya
Vairatiputra,. PuraI,la Ka~yapa~' Ajitakdakarp.bali, M~~karln
Gosala and Prakudha Katyayana were regarded as famous
teachers whQ had large number of disciples.s Some of them
. w~re, Buddha's contemporaries. Still, we may hold that
.aregularly composed monastic order came into practical
existence .with Buddha. After it. was founded by Buddha,
. Buddhism continued to ~xist and flourish .under the infl.uenc~
 .. INTRopucnON

of·,tnernonastic>order or. the' cSaIpgha'~:'Fot'matiori: arid

9F:g~nisati?n of:.theBuddhis't Sall,1gha'Wete, thetefore,' of
. ·hoth llistQric .arid;psydJ.Qlogicaf imp(}rtance. j,n t'he his.totyof
··lndianreligiQ;J.ls.. . ..
Earl,yDevelo,p~ent:or B~ddhi$~.,a~uJ:~uad~ist :~~ct$
. The" history~f:BuddhismJs··liQ.kedu:p;;withthe history
of the Buddb.ist " Sam,.gh;a.s ::EYend~ringBllddtr(1's ,life~tilpe'
tne'Sall,1gha ·'appeats,~o . . ·.have/incl;tlde,d'so¢ememb~rs'wi~h
antagonistic.attitudeto:the·;Ghief 'tberas'orJhe'Sthayirast
."(Eldel'M:oI;iks o(t;he;PIde~).T&etext~fsp;eack'Q(ol1e.S u~h~dMa
.w hofen relieve~ whentrne;gre'a t teaqh~t,died> ,:t9Us,; it: can
beip,ferred, that a.spir;it'of dissatisfacH<Hl ,.appearedafter
Btiddha~s.!demi$e~ . 'Sati,putta'(Satiputta}/and; Mana-
'maucfgaI ~aY~l'lla .{Moggallaria}~' the/twoproinihet " dis 9i'ple<;
Qfthe teacher j~ied ". ~ uring'hisHre tifue ;M~h akdya pa,
Anand a aIidUpirr,~er~anvb.Th~y~pprehend~d' .some
<sertons~is~eh~'i.on (s;~1Jlgha~neda). in'the or!der~T~e~rih~re~
'. ror~;~aqe •. pteparMi,oIls lor .ag+eat .. ·assemplage sOOll aft~r
iheMasterjs . ~e~tniilo~~e.rto copsolidateth~.'tharch.,f' ; •.
'I'beJ?irstCQiincU: ·S~eds .. of DiffereDce.s~T:he
: textCulla:vagga. men.tions <.this firs t .s~n6a~~. WhiGh:.to~k '~la<:e
'in "Rajagrha {rirodern'RajgirjnBe?ar),ihHie . 'second
rnonth?ftheralny:season d~riQgking. AJ&ta~a.#u's~eig~.' .
FiVe hu~dn!dmonks ~~re saicf'to have<j?ine'd;tiaisC(Hi~tP-
.ii~n.:;XnaIldaand ]JpaH recited the Buddha~ssaYlrtgs~:tiQn~
. their/mernQrr;/M~I1akisyapa .act.etl'~st~efnqt.iiI6f;;:;the.
prQ~~e(li'ng~:ofihe:13'ir~t.·CqutIcil·~chi¢ve~:;th~s~tHemen'fbf
''','. . '.;,. ", ..... .. '. " . .'.
. .. . '" ,... ,.., .. :. '. .. .. ';"" ...... '. ...
'" . . " ':"

.,the$tl1rq and .the'ViT)itjatextS;~eCi:ted, .res~ectiveIyby

'

j, All~tldaa:hdup~rj.' · . Atdiongh'~the,~e:jexf~;,wer~generaH Y
•. '~gt~cduI>()n &ythea;ssemhIe4jfl1on¥§,1i~e'S'~~ds::bfidi~s~h§ion,
"however, .cOuld b~;tra;ce<rev~r{ "tptreJ: ZSo'rnemonks'haq
.;:in;a:~gesag~inst·; ~~a'l1<:la;s'st~ ~~s'ag:'lniA6aik$a (com pJetely
.; 'libexitedone supe'rii>ror'Arb.at}' ;'tnis '.' dispute was' settled
.•'> " ......,;.;.:' .• " :;:,., .. ' .............. , ....,:;. :..... .. ~...':: . . J....:';.;. .. : ." '. . . . . . '.:.
;inj~dtie 'c{)lltse... .Two' "~oll1er(enowned"di$~rples' . GaV'ampati
,a~a'·llri~n.a .• ifulicated th~i~;~l~~greem~~t' ,t~ 'whath~d .b:e'en·
 _ INTRODUCTION

claimed as the 'Buddha's Sayings'. Gavarp.pati remained

aloof and Punta expressed his unwillingness to be asso-
ciated with the decisions reached in the First Synod.
Tile Second Council: SpHt-· The CuUavagga
preserves also the account of the Second Council which is
said to have met one hundred years after the Master's
death. Tl1ere are other earlier sources found in Tibetan
and Chinese (the Vinaya text of the 'MUla~Sarvastivada'
and the Vinaya text of the 'Mahasarp.ghika'), which are
referred to in the writings of Vasumitra a monk of
y

Sarvastivada order, and those of Bhavya and VinHadeva.

Without going into the controversies we may accept for
our purpose the accounts on which most of the scholars
are agreed. 1I The Second Council, however took place in
y

Vaisali (Modern Sesar, near Muzaffatpur$ Behar) under

the patronage of Idng 'Kalasoka' or 'Kakavaql1' (according
to Vasumitra it was held at Kusumpur or Pataliputra
during Asoka's rule). The Council decided the question
of the nature of vices practised by the monks of Vrji (near
Muzaffarpur, Behar), Those irregularities had been brought
to the notice of the Chief monks Revata (Sa:rp.ghathera)
and 'the liberated' (Arhat) SaQavasl by monk Yasa of
Kausa:rp.bi (near Allahabad V.P.). According to another
tradition, Mahadeva, a capable monk of Mathura (MuHra;
V.P.) and resident of Pataliputra, put forward five points
which created a dissension.
Five Points MahaalEfva=According to l\tIahadeva6
· the Arhats (liberated) also may be subject to temptation,
and they may faU from a spiritual height; they may remain
ignorant of truth; they may be full of doubts; they may
learn truth from others; and spiritual realisation may be
attained and proclaimed with an exclamation (Aho), It
· seems that the session of the Second Council. was attended
· by seven hundred monks. The Council had no president but
 INTRODUCTIoN

foHowed the Ubbahika (Voting by raisiong hands) process

as is found in the Patimokkha (Vinaya Rules). The ten
vices (Dasa Avadya or VaW1I).i) were mentioned; some
deviations, like storing of the salt for the next day's use,
the length of the doth to be worn, the taking of palm juice
and such other practices, were discussed; for, these practices
were notaHowed by the PaciUiya rules. Evidentlys it
seems, that- the Vajjians were democratic people and they
did not like to be dominated over by the authority exer-
cised by the Arhats (liberated) over- the non=Arhats. It is
indicated in Mahadeva's five points. The Eastern monks
wanted some relaxation of the rigid and orthodox spirit of
the Vinaya rules, but that would not be conceded by the
orthodox monks of the western' countries. The contro.,
versy was decided to be referred to a bod y of referees
consisting of eight members, four from the east and four
from the west. The findings went against the Vajjian
monks who evidently were not allowed the latitude they
wanted. We shaH not be wrong to suggest that the second
Buddhist Synod in fact attempted to end the hostmty
between the orthodox school and the liberal school which
had already existed in the earlier Sarpgha due to very
natural and psychological reasons. The achievement of.
the Council consisted in splitting the Sarpgha into two
main branches, viz., 'Sthaviravada' or the orthodox school
and the unorthodox schooL A little later this unorthodox
school was recognised as the 'Mahasarpghika', a title which
originated from the expression Mahasarpgha oriGreat
Assemblage' of those unorthodox Buddhists at Pata[lputra,
attended by ten thousand dissenters.
Later Development ioto otber Braocbes-The
difference in the Sarpgha went on increasing foHowing the
cleavage in the Sarpgha in the Second Buddhist Synod. As
time proceeded, eighteen to twenty five minor sects appear
to have developed within the Sarpgha before Asoka's rule.
Each of these sects sincerely believed that what they fono~
wed was in perfect agreement with the Master's sayings.
The point of difference on which one broke off from the
other was, in many cases, of a minor nature.
The Sthaviravada gave rise to eleven sects which are
aU grouped- under the term 'Hinayana' (I nferior Vehicle),
though that particular term was of later origin and was
imposed on them by the later 'Mahayana' (Superior Vehicle)
sects. The Mahasarpghikas became divided into seven
sects. Within two hundred years ranging between the
Buddha's death and Asoka's rule~ we see the rise and spread
of these schools over different parts of India. The accounts
as found in Kathavatthu, the Ceylonese texts, and the wri~
tings of Vasumitra, Bhavya and VinHadeva differ no doubt
somewhat on the question of the exact time when these
schools arose; but that again is of minor importance. These
schools have been elaborately treated in Dr. N. Duua's
Early Monastic Buddhism (P. 47~206 Vol. II, Chap. XI).
Following the arrangement of Vinitadeva, and the author
of Bhik:;u Var$agra Pariprccha, , these sects can be mainly
grouped under the following five heads. viz.
Groups I & II: Schools-The Mahasarpghikas, repre-
senting IPurva Sail a', "Apara SaBa', 'Haimavata'8 'Prajfia-
ptivada'p 'Lokottaravada'. The similarity between the philo-
sophical problems of the latter and those of the Mahayana
schools is so striking that it may be inferred that some of
the Mahasarpghi1(a sects gradually developed into what may
be called 6Mahayana' ,8
Group III: Schools--Sarvastivadins representing 'MUlasa~
rvastivada'» 'Kasyapiya', 'Mahisasaka', 'Dharmagupta'
'Bahusrutlya', 'Tamrasatiya', and section of 'Vibhajya-
vadins'.
Group IV: Schools-'SarpmiUyas' representing, QKaura~
kuUaka', '" Avantaka' and 'Vatsiputriya".
 ·... '. Croup V : Schools~'St:haviras) representing, 'Jetavaniya.',
.Abhayag;l'ivasl",
Q.
.
and cMahaviharavasi'.
these schools had developed their ceritresaU over
India before Buddhism finaUy disappeared from the land' of
its origin and established itself in the Far East .and Middle
East a:nd in Central Asia. 'Sthaviras' or the Theravadins
went to Ceylon during king AsO:ka's rule and later on to
other Southern', western and Eastern parts of Asia. Thera..
Aada stilI remains the established church of oldest traditio~
in Ceylon and those places.
Preliminaries to the Third Council-At the time
9f King. Asoka's conversion to Buddhism Sthaviravada
a'ppears to have had its centre roundabout Pataliputra.
Although the Sarvastivadins claimed his favour as well we
may accept the truth that the king had his leaning towards
'Sthaviravada' or the orthodox school. Maudgaliputra
Ti~ya, Asoka's brother (according to another tradition, his
son),was the chief 'Thera of the Sthaviravada', while
Upagupta (supposed to have been Asoka's spiritual teacher.
according>to anbthertr'~ditiolf) was the chief Thera of the
.Sarva:stiv~daorclef.:iF6fso~ehIlle Sarvastivada had been
'graduaHY:~~readipgQ~er;p6~thern India. It is. supposed
,·evefithat~SdI(a~s:'disfa.v()urnra'd'e the unorthodox monks,
in:du.tUngtb()se;ofSif~~~tr~ada/leave Pata1lputra. Sarvasti-
.vadin$·::6eg~nl·'t9~ihlbve>aWaY;i6wards Mathura (Muttra,
U iP;), a:na'():bt~in~4{~h~lt~t./~~re;;£or a long time.
:lii~i'i~iJ"ta~'uI~al,i:'X~iJia's intention was to weed
out
/,~
theunol'ihoaoi~~ct~·£~~~:auddhistic
v~' ,> ."', '>; ( "': :'). '//:</ '.::;:(>" ~,:;'~:~t, "', ,,~";,< >
..'. ,./ :-, .,,",,' ';,;' .. :. /' ';. '
order; and he
'organised'fi :::&u~¢hist:';:~~]i#~11:.il1 Pataliputra. This third
"~uddhist sy#~dwa;~~h~ld'~~~etJ,li~l~uidance of Moggaliputta
:Tiss~,!i;Whc>wrp'tefifs','1fd,i~;n7Jatt/{ft,)pakara'iJa, a philosophical
(reatis~, .durfrig'the'sessio#'}>:r'Jhe Councit It is . said that
~·th~jflfn':fledged'Tripita~a:s'w~if~:;ri~vised and codified dufing
, the 'Third, Councii,:,':,'Tl'lce;;;Q'o,t¥i.l'dil further decided fO ;end
" . theh1i~siona~ies'to dift~teri~b()'u~tries.
 One Madhyantika or Madhyandina was sent to
Kashmere; Asoka's son Mahendra, went to Ceylon. He
took the copies of the sacred texts along with him to Ceylon
and the texts as they survived in Ceylon are in Pali langu~
age, the dialect probably of Malwa, of which he was the
governor. Pali thus came to embody some of the earliest
extant versions of the Buddha's sayings and PaH thus came
to be held by the Buddhists of Ceylon and South-East Asia
fiS the language of the Buddhist world.

It is curious to note that this tradition about the

Third CounciI,~in a aeme, the most important Council,-
has been preserved only in some of the Atthakathas and
the Ceylonese texts, "The omission of this Council in the
Chinese and the Tibetan accounts, in other words, in the
texts of the non·Theravada (unorthodox) sets~ signifies
that it was a sectarian affair for which it was ignored by
aU sects except the Theravadins-to be more precise,
Theravada~ Vibhajjavada sect of Ceylon." {Dr. N. Dutta's
'Early Monastic Buddhism' Vol, II, p. 264).9
The F@urdl C@undl-Sarvastivada, for some reason
or other o lost its strength in Magadha from about the time
of Asoka. It was moving towards the north~western part
of India as we have noted above. There are sufficient
reasons to believe that several minor differences began to
crop up among the various sub~sects of Sarvastivada.
When the Scythian king KaI).i~ka came to power, Sarvas~
tivada was prevalent in that part of the country. Natu~
rally, when KaI).i~ka turned to Buddhism he became a
patron of Sarvastivada. During Kal)i~ka's rule and under
his patronage, tIH~ Fourth Council was held to setde the
disputes among the various branches of Buddhism.
Sthavira Vasumitra was the head of Assembly; the poet
Asvagho~a too was present. Paramartha (499~569 A.D.)
in his life of Vasubandhu teUs us that the Council was
held in the fifth century after the ParinirvaI).a of the Master.
to INTRObUCTION

The 'Sutra', 'Vinaya' and 'Abhidharma' texts were resettled

through "fresh discussions; the IV:ibha~as' or the great
'Commentaries' were written on them. The fundamental
,
work composed. here was the Mahavibha$a
, Sastra or a
commentary Written on Jnanaprasthana Sastra of Katyayani.,
putra.lO
Devel.opment .or Sarvastivada=We may surmise,
however, that among the various branches of Buddhism
represented at the session of the Fourth Council, Sarvas~
'tivada commanded the majority. The internal disputes
between the Kashmere and Gandhara Schools of Sarvas~
tivada were settled. Both came to some points of agree~
ment and daimed to be different from Mathura Sarvas-
tivada. The new School from now onwards came to be
known as Mula Sarvasdvada. The followers of the
Vibha~a came to be known as the Vaibha~ikas, a name
which specially signified the Kashmerians. In the Chinese
texts we get the references as 'Vibha~a ShP or 'Kusa Shi'
or 'Kashmere ShP etc. It may be ac;sumed that the scrip ..
tures of this Sarvastivada were mostly written in Sanshit
instead of Pali or in any other local dialect. Gradually, the
Sarvastivada School spread over the northern and north~
Western parts of India and moved up to Central Asia,
Mongolia and China. 11
S~u'vastivada A bhidharma Litera ture=During,
the Fourth Council the commentaries UPadeSa Sastra,
Vinqya Vibhaia and Abhidharma Vibha~a were written on
the Sutras, the Vinaya and the Abhidharma respectively.
Mahavihha(a, as has been mentioned before was written on
Jnanaprasthana Sastra of Arya Katyayaniputra which forms
the main philosophical treatise of the Sarvastivada SchooL
This work together with six other supplementary treatises
form the Abhidharma texts of the Sarvastivada School.
These works are :=
 XNTlwDu.cnoN H
1. ]fianaprasthana Sastra -by Arya Katyayaniputra
2. Prajfiapti Sastra ~by Arya MaudgalyaYQa
3. PrakaraQapada -by Arya Vasumitra
4. SangUiparyaya -by Arya Mahakau~thila
5. Vijfianakaya -by Sthavira Devasarma
6. Dharmaskandha -by Arya Sarlputra
7, DhMukaya -by Arya PUrQa
Many of these texts are still existent in Chinese and
Tibetan translations in China and Tibet. A Chinese
translation12 of the Mahavibhara is available aItho,ugh the
original Sanskrit is lost. A part of Jnanaprasthana Sastra has
been rendered into Sanskrit by Santi Bhik~u of Santiniketan
(India).
There are a good number of philosophical commen~
taries and explanatory treatises written on the Abhid;harma
texts and aUied literature. A part of the Safllgiti Paryaya
is found in Sanskrit. An earlier digest of Sarvastivada
Abhidharma, Abhidharmasara by Dharmasri, has been refe~
rred to in La Vallee Poussin's introduction to Kosa P. LXIII.
The other works are briefly discussed below: 13
1. Abhidharmakosakllrika-By Vasubandhu, an emim
nent Scholar of Fourth Century A,D. The work is mainly
written from the point of view of Kashmere Vibha~a School.
There are two translations in Chinese of this work; one of
them is by Paramartha and the other by Hsuen Tsang,14
2. Abhidharmakosabha~yar[t-By Vasubandhu.
3. SphutarthablddharmakosavyakhYll-By Yasomitrao It
is a commentary on the Bha~ya by Vasubandhu on his koSa.
The 'f}llklrya is very valuable for philosophical discussions
and wen~written psychological materials. The commentary
gives, us references to the different teachers like Vasumitra:
Sarpghabhadra, Dharmatrata, Vasubandhu, Sr'ilata and
others. Hl
 .'L,1-o, I Abk£dharmanJajanzlsata~By >Sarn;gh~bhadra. This
wor'kwas'iwJ:'ittenr py:·this oldteacherof'.Kashme~e .Yi bha~a
School as.a ,~ritiGism ofVasubandhu~s1f?lrifotl}6,
'•. 5~<;Abhidharm(isama)apradzpika~ByJS~rp:ahabhaara~ The
anthor.; :crit.idsed,.··\las,ubaridhu~s·leanihg,; ,towafds,Sautra~
iltikaphilosophyas evident/in the Kosa.l'r,
. ',- i

6.Ab1;,idlrarm(t!i6salik~ ,LakjafJaru).sari~r;'::br'·· ···PuI.lyava a

rdhana•
.•.• ,1:' ..AbhidharmakosavrUZMarmajJrar,!ipa ~byDignaga.
'. ;8.' 'AltbidMrcrft'akosatika rif,ultdyi/fj, .~By:Satitisthiradeya~ •
, ' '\9~ Sdfa~a1rlliccdYi1;Jv:a1lta'Aohid1t~rama~dtara~ By llhka
IdioWh"iiuthor.'lt's . Tibetoih:' ttarisl aHOri 'was .' ma(h~ by'
Jinamitra,ancl DanaSiIa. . . . . ;
. 10., ·.i1bhidbarm~vatiira fr.akarM4.JVlifna;--hy Sugarldhara .
.ll ..'A~hidh~'(m:amt(iJrasaS'd::itra~By
'.' .' ", " ' : , ' : ..r ..... ' ,
Gh9~a.
.e·.
;,'. ,', ,.;:
:12. ;.Aq.hidh,qma~rd.qia:. $ll$.tta~J3Y. Dparm;r Jin~, (or by
, .,'Dharmottara). ; .... . ' , . '.
, " ......: <., ...••... , ..... I .. " . . ." .' .' :.
'. ,,la.:, , 4l?!da.4af,mq~rtlay/l Sqftr4:ByUpii1s~n~~.·, .' :
:':~4: '. ,;$rt~iuktalfhrdh,amtakrtfaJasU:8tra~I t is ·~ttdhuted. to
Dharmatrat.Cl.,.:his.aG9Il111lent~ryon . • Ab,hidhapll~hrdaya-
,:-, " "', " '," v',,' " , ' <, .. . ",' , •. ;- , . "... , . , ;, ;"

sastra. .
'v",,'" (;~, , , ' ,'.".,,'. ".: " . <. ,",. " '".: '; ,". -'

:. :.15." .i$;O:"iputr(j,b.hir!:harma$llstt:a~ Autu9f is, ..u~lknown •

.~.1l~n~s,e;),{'~R~J~ti~~,~f1,.Jll~ t.0xt was;.m~~~~ hy D h~nn~gupt~
.~nd..:QharmaYf;ls~ .. , . , '.' .... .
Theib0v~:t~~tsttr.e:disCtiSSed in,d~tan in itne i~ tro~ i

eduction·" ()f . .• Ab.hidba"m~ko~tt~y!'.)~i:t',iM~:ula.:SatpkrityayaQ.a:

~ndiiIl. tke ,S(lr})p,s#v~~a., l;it:~.r~t~re::;8y;:,;:pr~:~.p. Banerjee..
Th~ f()rIT\~l' me1)tl()lls:4tmQ~eje~(s;wiji<;n:'are'tiotmentiontjd'
~y jtll~ latter:8~ ;t4~&e~Fe; .~,. 'j'.~:/:;,;~,:.;":".":: •. . .' .';
~. i1okidJlarrt?{j,toitlMMJ al:i~~~B,Y;:~th~rmat,i.
'. : j .
,>2~Lo,kaprajiA~p~i.' 4bqid/l(lr.trJ.~1~j!~tl. !,'~y }\nnpmympus. .
.3.' .. 4Phi41J,artnQpr?Jve$(J~~"l ,$1.lgan,dhal'aBySkan:d,nn~.
4. Lak$(1)anusara By GU1)amati. 19 '
 INTRODUCTW.\J 13

Vasnbandhu-The author of Abhidharmakosa and

the Kosabhi.l?ya ..
Vasubandhu, as thereputed author of the 4.bhidharma-
kosa and the .f(osabhf1fja is the principal exponent of the
Vibha~a School and his works call for a fuBer notice. 20
There are references to two biographies of Vasubandhu;
one of them was written by Paramartha and the other by
Kumarajlva. The work by Kumarajlva is supposed to be
lost; the other one, byParamarthaZ\ is preserved in its
Chinese version. (For this version vide 'Toung Pao' July
1904). This forms the main source for all the other writings
on Vasubhadhu and his works. Various controversial
opinions are held by the scholars on Vasubandhu'stime,
faith, worI(S and identity.
Short Life Sketch-According to Hsuen Tsang, Vasu-
bandhu was born of a Brahmin family of Peshawar, Kausika
byname. It seems that there were three brothers of whom
Vasubandhu was the second; his elder brother was Asanga
who was a disciple of Maitreyanatha the famous exponent
ofa particular branch of Mahayana philosophy (Yogacara
school). It is said that Vasubandhu in his earHer life and
his younger brother were believers in Hinayana philo-
sophy.2~ Vasubandhu a later on, changed his faith from
Hlnayana to Mahayana, possibly under the influence
of his brother Asanga. Some thirty six texts are ascribed
to J;Jis authorship; most of. these texts arewrittcn from the
point of view of Yogacara School of Idealism.
He possibly enjoyed the patronage of the later Gupta
kings who had their capital shifted from Srava~t1 to
Ayodhya. z3 He studied Sarvastivada at Kashmere and
wrote the famous text of Abhidharmakosa,in the earlier
part of his life. He was a contemporary of the Sa:qll<hya
exponent Vindhyavasa and Vibha~a exponent Sarp.gha·
bhadra.24 It is evident from the references in the Sphutarthlt
14 IN IRODUCTWN

commentary by Yasomitra that Vasubandhu ,had a strong

leaning towards Sautrantika doctrine, in spite of which he
wrote the Kosa foHowing the Vibha~a doctrine of Kashmere.
At a later date he went to Gandhara' where he had built
monasteries with the heIp he received from his patrons,
the later Guptas 25 and spent the rest of his life there as
a teacher of Mahayana Idealism till his death at the ripe
old age of eighty.
Vasubandhu's Date: . Dr. B. Bhattacharya; in his fore-
ward to 'Tattvasaf'(Jgraha' by Santarak~ita, has suggested
either of the two important dates viz. AD. 280·360 or
AD. 420·500 for Vasubandhu. 26 He however has accept~
ed the first date i.e. AD. 280-360. Sri Rahula Sarhkrtyayat.la
mentions two more dates in his introduction to Abhz'dharma-
kosakarika, viz., 499-569 A. D. (given by Paramartha) and
401-481 (according to Kumarajlva). Another date is found
in Dr. N. Dutta's 'Development of Buddhism in Uttara Pradda'
(pp.282-283). Frauwallner in his booklet, 'The Date of
Vasubandhu the Buddhist Law-master,' adduces reasons for
two separate Vasubandhus: Vasubandhu the Mahayana
Scholar and Va?ubandhu, the author of the Kosa, and two
dates, viz. 320-380 AD. and 400 A.D. respectively. Thus,
we see that Paramartha and Hsuen Tsang give two diffe s

rent dates for Vasubandhu, viz. 1100 AN. (after Nirval)a)

and 1000 AN. respectively. M. Peri, pointing out from
two other works, ascribed to Paramartha, sticks to another
date~ viz. 900 A.N. a date which roughly corresponds to
the date of CandraguptaH I (320 380 A.D.) 28. This places
w

Vasubandhu between the third and fourth century A.D.

and makes him a contemporary of Chandragupta I and
his son Samudragupta who has been referred to in
Vam.ana's iCaVYl1lankarav(tti. This view is shared by the
historian V. Smith in his dEarly History oj India' (p. 328,
3rdEdn.) . Winternitz in his 'Indian Literature' (p. 356)
discusses the different views about Vasubandhu's date~
 INTRODUCTION

but does not place him definitely at· any particular. time:,g
Talcakusu 'considering all the possible .sources from. India
and China conclusively places Vasubandhu between 420
and 500 A.D., . which for aU practicaL purposes seems. to
be most rational (Takakusu J. R. A. S., 1905, p. 33-.35).
In his learned article on 'Parama;rtha'slife of Vasuhandhu
'and the date of Vasubandhu',,' he has eXhaustively dealt
· with aU the· references with regard to . the problem. ·of
Vasubandhu's Hfe and date.
Two distinct Vasubandhu.s-The problem of the Vasu-
, bandhus has been recently discussed by FrauwaUner in his
booklet, tiThe date of Vasubandhu the Buddhist law Master". He
however is not the pioneer to this idea. According to Winter~
nitz· (Indian Literature, p. 356). the Japanese Scholar·T.
Kimura put forward thi~ hypothesis of two. distinct Vasu-
bandhus; theearlkr of the two' was suggested to be a Maha-
yanascholar and the later Vasuhandhu, the author of the
Kosa. Winternitz however did ,not accept this theory.
Frauwallner actually anaiyses aU the possible data obtai-
nable about Vasubandhu and is of :thede·fioite opinion that
two distinct Vasubandhu~ lived in two different periods.
The margin between the two periods is.of some eighty
years, a period, ,which. h inconsequential for any pJausible
conclusion in Indian ;chronology. FrauwaJIner' however,
,states. that the earlier Vasubandhu was Asanga>s brot~er,a
resident of Gandhara and a Mahayani; existing between 280
and 360 A.D.' The later Vasubandhu was the teacher of
Manoratha,a contemporary of Nara~hphaguptaBaladitya,
· Saqlghabhadra and Vindhyavasl or Vindhyvasa (indentified
by Takakusl,l.' with iSvarkr~J:.la--
. j.R;A.S., P. 49.) and the
grammarian Vasurata, brother~inwlaw of· Narasirphag'upta
Baladitya. M 'He was a residen( of Ayodhya and the author
ofthekosa.He was a Hlnayani scholar withlea~ings towards
· Sautrantika doctrine. Frauwallner also states that these
two distinct persons were 'amalgamated into onc,as:ifina
 J6 INTRODUCTION

inosaic pattern',in Paramartha's 'Life of Vasubandhu'. It

is interesting to note that the materials used by FrauwaHner
are the same as those used by Takakusu. Although Frau-
wallner's analysIs of Paramartha's "Life of Vasubaudhu"
and interpretation of the other materials seem to be quite
novel and interesting, the possibility of two Vasubandhus
remains a doubtful problem. On the other hand, Takakusu;s
interpretations of the data and materials obtained from
Paramartha's life of one Vasubandhu, the philosopher,
seems more accetable t)h;;lH any other theory. The points
adduced by FrauwaHner may be met by a few observati~
ons as foHows :
Even if we accept that Vasubandhu's date has not
been categorically fixed and that the date remains highly
controversial, we do not agree with Frau-Wallner's
hypothesis of two V",subandhus living at two different
'periods and places. The difficuItyin dating any ancient
Indian text is wen-known, and we cannot, therefore, accept
even the Chinese materials as decisIve. As no consistent
historical record was kept, nobody can be sure of the actual
position of those persons or the places they were said to he
connected with. It maybe rather suggested that Vasu-
b~ndhu, the philosopher, came from a Kausika family
which lived in Gandhara where Hinayana, specially
Sarvastivada, was a popular school of thought. When
Vasubandhu was young, he c.amesomehow to .Kashmere
and studied the view points of the Vibha~a school before
.hecame over to Ayodhya where he obtained the patronage
of the later Gupta Idngs, including Narasirpha Gupta
BaHiditya. He wrote his Kosa Kllrika here and sent a copy
to Sarpghabhadra, the famous teacher of the Vibha~a School.
Sarpghabhadra wrote two treatises Nyllyanusllra and Abhisa-
mayapradipa) criticising Vasubanhhu for misinterpreting the
Vibha~a points of view due to Vasubandhu's leanings
towards the Sautrantika Schoo1. 31 These two scholars never
 INTRODUCT!ON

met; but Yasomitra in his Sphuiarthabhidharmakosavyakl£pll,'

often refers to Sam.ghabhadra's criticism of Vasubandhu's;
work. It is quite probable that Yasomitra refers to :one,
and the same Vasubandhu and not to two. separate,
Vasubandhus when he mentioned 'Vrddhacarya Vasu-,
bandhu~and 'Sthavira Vasubandhu) in the Vyak4Ya. It may
a]so be .said tha't Vasubandhu wrote a criticism ona work:
of Sam.khya by Vindhyavasi who has been identified';with,
, the teacher ISvarkrg1a the author of Safnkhyakarik:a. ,ltis,
said further that Vasubandhu wrote a critique ora gramma'"
tical ,text by Vasurata who happened to be a btother-in~
law of King Narasim.ha Gupta Baladitya. It is not .proper;
to state that the earlier Vasubandhu happened ,:to be,th:e~
teacher ofManorathaB1 , who in his turn was the teache:v:; of
,the laterVasubandhu.For, it may be stated that,'jhe,
teacher of the author of the Kosa was Buddhamitra who·
suffered a defeat in Vindhyavasi's hand.ss Again. to turn,
to anothe~ source, Acarya Sam.ghabhadra is accepted as
Vasubandhu's contemporary. There is a mention of anothet
Sam.ghabhadra, who translated two of Vasubandhu's works'
into' Chinese during 488-489 A.D. (Samanta Pasadika" arid
'Vibha$li Vinqya). Evidently the' latter Sa:m.ghabhadra C<ln~
not be the great teacher of Sarvastivada Acarya Saipgha~
bhadra, who is not said to have been to China. And,~bouf
thesurrnlsethat the other Satpg~abhadra translated two
works of Vasubandhu into Chinese even during VasuQan:
dhu's life~dme, it does not s'cern to be a cogent arg~ment;
nor does it, on the other way, prove that there c:?Cisted ari
earlier Vasubandhu whose works were'trans,Jated by
, Sam.ghabhadra.
Vasuhandhu's Fdith .......Theargument based on the diffe-
rence offaith of two, separateVasubandhus hardly stands
6nanalysis. First, there :is no 'actual record, o-nwhicn tfj~
difference of faithcah be based; secondJy,:in absence 9f an
actual recordit may be surmised that tbe same Vasuban'dhu
2
18 l£\ TRODUCTION

who started hisHfe as. a philosopher of Sarvastivada had

turned to Mahayana Idealism at a later age; he then went
to Gandhara and remained a Mahayana teach er till the· end
of his life. This practice of changing faith was quite com-
mon then, as it is now; or it may also be as Rahula Sam-
Iq'tyayaI.,la suggests thata in the longrun possibly Vasu w

bandhu's name was transferred to the list of the upholders

of Mahayanism 34 Even when he. wrote the Kosa and its
Bhl1~'Ya from the viewpoint of the Vibha~a School he was
charged with having leanings towardsSautrantika philo-
sophy. Sautratitika position in a sense is an intermediate
between Sarvastivada doctrine. on one hand and Yogacara
idealism on the other hand. It may then be suggested that
Vasubandhu who was a Hinayani in his earlier days accept.,
edMahayana in later part of his life. The change was not
very abrupt. And, it does not in any way affect the quality
of his writings.
Vasubandhu's work g - Thirty six texts are ascribed by
the Chinese sources to the authorshi p 95 of Vasubandhu.
The list indudes3a the excellent Hinayani text of Abhidharma-
kosa and its Bhl1$Ja and the Mahayani texts like Vi'f[lSika,
Trir(lSika, VijflaptimlUrata and so forth. I t is difficult to
believe that aU the texts contain equal touch of his ma::.terly
genius. Hsuen Tsang devoted his life to translating the
Kosa and some of his other works, but, there is no way to
find out the sequence in which these texts were written.
We only know that many of the texts were taken along with
Hsuen Tsang and other travellers from I ndiaon their way
back to China.
Lastly, there is one more pointtosuggest in support
of his philosophical transformation stated previously. A
literary kinship may befdt while going through t.he
Bhavaof the Kosa and the Bhl4ya of Asanga's Madhyanta~
vibhanga,S7 Vasubandhu is the author of both the.
 INTRODUCTION·

Bhlisyas; the first is written from the vie\¥point of the

VibMi~a andt he second from the view point of Yogacara
idealism. . The ideas are no doubtsimiJar, being, the basiy
ideas, although the standpoint in each is quite different.
The sequence of time between the two Bhlisyas as these
were written is unknown. In spite of an these facts. die
q1,1aIity of the Sanskrit ,used in both. the wQr~s,~nd tl}.~
literary style, simplicity and claritYI seem remarkably alike.
However, one need not be dogmatic about this,point,.

Abhldhal"makosaof Vasubandhu :
Ahlzidharmakosa, a masterly work by V'asuhAn:dhu~ was
written as a synthetic compilation of the different Abhi·
dharma
, texts of Kashmere Vibhasa
' . " School
. of Sarvastivada.
. .

The text seems to have had dwide popularity in It;adia.and '.

outside. Even today this Kosa text remains indispens,abte
for im adept in some parts of China and Japan,sii . T:h~
upholders of Mahayana doctrine in those countries have'
not been able to do awaywith this excellent exposition '0(,
psychoethical doctrines of HJ~ay,a.Aal1;~4g!~.\stp~ •...• Tb!s, te,'5 t
remained a source of various,'h:ito~mati6n'tQ~~ s;tQdeniof
Buddhist philosophy. "." . . .. ". "';;'''' . '.; •. ;

The Divisions of ToPits:;;J:~ere;,at'ejl.ltQgethet ·.~94:t

Slokas or :the Kliriklit arrange:,;!:; in'Niir~;}:1~o'~asthiina:s~;ori
Ohapters, each of which dea]s;;~ith;.aparticiUlttr:t,op~ci: <'T,le'
ch"apters are as, foHows :
. 'L ,Kosastharia 1-

2. ,Kosasthana ]1"';'"

3. 'Kosasthami III-

'Ka1"ma;Nir,ilesal?'~<i1ta.ls',with;th~
nature"~f ,.~~;d&:afJ~:'th~i;t,ft,uit~),'
"." ,.,' '." , . //
20 INTRODUCTION

5. Kosasthana V- 'AnuSaya' Nirdeaa' (deals with the

nature of hi tent impurities»" ",
6. Kosasth~na VI- '" AryapudgaIa NirdeSa'{deals with:
'the nature of the adept who is
established in" the four stages or'
sanctification) ,
7. Kosasthana VI 1- 'Juana Nirdda' (deals with the'
nature of knowledge)
8. Kosasthana VIU- 'Samadbi Nirdda' (deals.with the~
[lature of meditation or spir!(u<t1
realisation). " ,
9. Ko~a,sthana IX- '"Pudgala Nirdda' (deaJs" with the
Vatsiputraya idea pf Individual).,:
Abhidharma literature 'and the Kosa ;- The ritle"Abhi.. ,
dharmako~a" is significant. Kosa indicates a 'h91der' or a
'case' which contains something carefully placed in it. The
Kosa apparently contains the valuable writings and 'essential
points of Abhidharma. Abhidharma is an elaboration or
exposition of the Sfltras. Essentially the doctrine is recog~
nised as Abhidhaima. The terms 'Siitra' and 'Vinaya' are
associated with the flrstBuddhist Synod as has been previously
discussed. But, one cannot be definite about the time when
thisterm 'Abhidharma'actuaUy appeared. llS " 'Abhidharma
literature is profound and vast,in quality and extent., In a
wider sense, Abhidharma ,is that which interprets the Satras
from a particular standpoint of philosophy. In amore,
limited sense:(, Abhidharma consists of COSmology, Biology,
Physics, Metaphysics, Psychology, Ethics and the practical
religion: alLthese topics are focuss~d on the practical goal
of a human individual getting 'liberated through' a courSe of
practical ethics and introspeCtion ..'
The topicsar~ arranged in the Kos,a from both sub-
jective and objective points of view.. Psychological, analysis
and introspection Occur as steps necessary for the tibera-
 tNTRODue rION

tion of the· Individual which is its main concern. Thus,

.the 'objectiye . pattern . of the physical and· metaphysical
:,entities ~re . 'discussed ~nd classified in the first two KoSas..
thanas; The" subjective analysis of the cosmobiologica.l·
,process is found in the KOSasthanas ,III. The Psychologi-
cal analysis of the actions, di~positions and the so-called
.phenomena . ot personality appears in the Kosasthanas
)V, V and VI respectively. The deeper states of intros-
pection into the psychodynamic state of existence may
"be found in the KOSasthanas VII and VIn. The ideas,
and analysis revealed therein may> be seen to bear some-
times a likeness to some aspects, of modern Biology, and
specially, to Freudian Psychology.

Some Modern Works based on the Kosa-Abhidharmakosa is

full of valuable information and philosophical references.
Thus, for natural reasons many later exponents of Buddhism
wrote treatise or commentary based on the Kola. A detail-
ed list of Sarvastivada Abhidharma texts has been given
I

above. In addition, it may be noted that the author of

the Kosa himself wrote the Bhava on the text which is very
useful. Another masterly work is the Sphutarthahhidharma_
kosavyakhya which is based on the Bhasya only. A fuB text
~f the Vyakhya has been edited in Romar~ Script by Prof.
Wogihara of Taisho College. Among the modern works, the'
name of Louis de la Vallee Poussin comes to the forefront.
His 'L' 'Abhidharmakosa de Vasubandhu Traduit et Annote' is a
masterly work which is a synthetic compilation of the BhafYa
and the Kola and aU possible references from the PaIi,
Tibetan and Chinese sources. 'Vaibha$ika Darsana' is another
laborious work in Bengali language by Prof. Ananta Kumar
I

Bhattacarya Sastri, Nyaya-Tarkattrtha, of Calcutta Sanskrit

CoHege. There is a Simple· Hindi translation of the Kosa
Bha~ya by the Late Proferssor NarendraDeva who is suppo~
. sed to have compared the French translation of La Vallee-
·Poussin. There is a book 'instant et cause' by Lilian
SUhutn in French pubJished from the French School of
. Oriental Studies. There is an established tradition of
Buddhist studies in France and Italy; the Oriental Institute
orRome has got the great master G. Tucci as its worthy
~irector. The present editor has a work, Some Psycho-
logical Aspects of Early Buddhism As Based on Ablidharma
Kosa' based endrdy on the text. This work is being pub-
lishedby Asiatic Society Calcutta. The said volume •was
the doctoral thesis by the author submitted to the Calcutta
'University and was adjudicated by the great Masters
G: Tucd and M. Filiozat.
(0 (a)-"Professor Kern has called attention to the relations
between the therapeutic doctrine of Buddha and Indian
Medical Science." Louis de la Vallee Poussin. J.R.A.S. 1903,
P. 578 (correspondence)
(b)--Kern writes in his Manual oj Buddhism P. 46. "It is not
difficult to see that these four Satyas are nothing else but the
four cardinal articles. of Indian Medical Science applied to
spiritual healing of mankind, exactly as in the Yoga doctrine .
. (c)-YogasiUra n. 15 comm. : "Yatha cikitsasastrarp. caturvyuham:
Raga. Rogahetu, ArogyaIP) Bhai~ajyaIP iti evarp idarp api
sast! arp caturvyunarp eva, tadyatha, sarpsarab, sarp.sarahetub.
Mok~o, Mok~opaya hi.. ..... "
(d)-Dubkhasatyasyopamanarp., tannidanarp Samudaya Satyasya
Tatk~ayo nirodhasatyasya, tadbhai~ajyam. Margasatysyo-
'. pamanam. Sutre'py e~a, Satyanarp D ri~tlinta hi. Vyadhi d

sutra (Kola VI ka I.)

(e)-Comparing the four Satyas with the four stages of ~reatment
of a disease Louis de la Vallt\e Poussin makes the fonowing
observation in J.R.A.S 1903, P. 580 (correspondence)
"The Phraseology is of the best kind. You will observe that
according to this Sutra the third Satya is the way, Marga,
(Upaya) to the destruction of the disease and the fourth
the way to its not appearing" again (a-punarbhava). The
Scholastic point of view, so far as I know ,is different."
(2) -Early Monastic Buddhism-Dr. N. Dutta-Vol. Y, Chapter
III, p, 26,
(3) -do-Vol. I, Chapter IV, P. 34
(4) (a)-Early Monastic Buddhism-Dr. N. Dutta-VoD. n: Chapter
XX--P.321,
(b)-Journal of the Buddhist Text and Anthropological Society,
Vol. 6.
(5) (a)-Journal of the Buddhist Text and Anthropological Society,
Vol. n, Chapter XX, P. 324.
(b}-Buddhistic Studies Edited by Dr. B.C. Law~ PP. 26~27.
(c) -History of Buddhism by Buston, Part n, P. 71 (Translation
by Obermiller).
 (6) -Early Monastic Buddhism-Dr. N. Dutta, Vol. II, Chapter
VJ? 4L
(7) (a)-da-Dr. N. Dutta-Vol. H, Chapter VI, P. 41,
(8) -Bauddha Dharma 0' Sahitya (Bengali) By Dr. P.C. Bagchi,
P.4,
(9) -Early Monastic Buddhism-Dr.. N. Dutta. Vol. H, Chapter
XV, P. 264.
(10) (a)-:-Sarvastivad2 Literature Dr. A.C. Banerjee, P. 51·75.
(b)-Abhidharmakosakarika-Edited by Rlihula Sarpkrtyayal].a(Kasi
Vidyapuh Publications) Introduction P. 18·19.
(11) -do-AbMdharmakosakarika-Edited by Rahula Sam.krtyayana-
Introduction, P .. 18·19 .
. (12) (a)-Abhidharmakosakiirikii-Edited by. Rahula SaI}1iqtyayana-
Introduction P. 13.
(13) (a)-do-Introduction P. 18 19. s

(b)--Sarvastivada Literature-Dr. A.C. Banerjee, P. 51-75.

(14) -Abhidharmakoskarika-Edited by RllhuJa Sam.krtyayana, KaSI
Vidyapith Publication.
(15) -Sphutiirthabhidharmakosavyakhya- By Yasomitra
(a)-Edited by U. Wogihara (Taisho College)
(b}-da-Edited by Dr. N. Law and Dr.N. Dutta OmS Kosastha.nas
and Kosasthana 4).
Abhidharmakoiakarika-Edited by Rahula Sam.ktrya.yana
Introduction P. 19.
(16)also-"Vasubal1dhu-samakalika AClil'ya Sam.ghabhadl'al;l Abidha-
n:nako~abha~ye anekal1 viruddhan arpsan nirik~ya tan-
nirakanu;,l.arthameva A bhidharma-nya ya n usarasastraI}1
nyabadhnat 1751 pr~th~Hmakoyam mahlin grantho adhunapi,
ciInabha~ayam upalabhyate .... ."acaryal;l samghabhadral;l
.o . . . . .

sastrarthr-krte'pi tam ahvayata .. " .. ...... Abhidharmakosa Karika

Edited by Rahula Sam.krtyayaJ;la-IntroductionP. 15. "Abhi-
dharmokose yatra tatra KaSmIra Vaibha~ikamatad api
svatantro bhaval;!. praka:Htal;!.. X X X X Bha~yasyaiva kvac:it
pratikulata" Introduction to Abhidharmokosa, Edited by Rahula
Slimkrtyayana. K. V. P. 14·15).
(18) -Sarvastivada Literature--Dr. A. C. Banerji, p. 51.75.
(19) --Abhidharmakosa karika, Edited by Ranula Sarpkrtyayana,
Introduction p. 20.
 (20) -!'Vibhl:i~aya dtvyanti caranti vavaibha~ik«1;t" Sphutarthu,bhi.
dharmakoSavyllkhYll. KO~1;l J.Ka3.l)f. Laha's Ed~tion, p. 135
,-Intr.oduction .. Abhidharmakolak.arikll, Rahula Sarpkrtya-
y'ana, p. 13.,
~(21l ~Kumarajlvena (45S.466) Vikl'amavd::tntarale Vasubandhujiva-
nam cinabha~ayarp nivaddharn, Tat 757 Vikramavde viluptarp
asH. Paramarthena (556.617 Vikramavda)' vinibaddham
VasubandhucaritalJl idanirp api vidyate....;..Abltidharmakola.
karik71. by SarpkrtyayaJ;la-Introduction p. 14.
(22)' -"Vasubandhu1;t Glindharadese Puru~apuraIiagare Kausikan-
vaye BrahrnaJ;lavarp.se Samudbhuta1;t. Tasya trayo bhratara1;t
-Asamga Vasubandhul;t. Vasubandhul;t, . Virafid Vasuban-
dhult ......... "jye~tha1;t pravrajya Asamga namna lokaprasiddho
Yogacara (Mahayana) darsaniko jatal;t ...Vasubandhur api
Sarvlistiva.d pravrajital;t ... lntroduction: Abhidharmakolak71.,ika.
, R,Sarpkrtyliyana, p. 14.
(23) _"Kasmirvaibha~ikanitisiddha1;t prliYo mayaya1ll kathito'
bhidharma1;t yad durgr,huam tadiMsmadagal;t saddhal'-
manItau munayal;t pramaJ;lam".ADK, VIII. 40 .\
. (24) f -"Vasubandhol;t Da~avar~at prag eva Acarya Sarpghabh~dro
· manu~ah:1am samavrQot. Mr,tyo1;t prak tena svaktya krtil;t
.vb~od~ino. Ya,subandh91;l s~mip!'l we~i til. Sa clltadupari vyakh-
'., yamvidh~ya sVIY<lrp~aujanya1f:,p.rliC!Ika~at.~~! .
Jntrodriction.to .Abhidha'(iruik(Jsa-:-(F;:N)E,dited; 'by ;Ranula
Sam krtya,yana '-J;!.15. .' .'
'(25J ·(Il)....;..~!An~aU~eYasuba,ndl1ur 'jy.e§~hena .. <bhf~tr1;\ .Asarpgena huto
, ...Qa,n,d:h~r~.agat•.. TatM ca~a,d:ad,~snay~.SarVlistiV!ldam pal,'i•
. ,tYllJya,'Mah:ty~narDatam·' !I"icakaie~ika~ha'Yanti anekell'; ...
(b )~,tK~atya . . Va,sc~l:>~ndhJl~(, a~itiv~ra$~va~asI., •.Gandhal"e~u
sari.raro utsTJat,'·-.Introdu<:t1bnof Abh'UluirmakosCi.Edited by
, R:~hifla S,w.kh~fiY~Q~(P.15.' ,.' ,. . . '.
(26) -,-g'Kum~faj~veria'458::466 '\Vikh\ma.~datitat~le . Vasubandhu c

/ jhranarrt •.' cinalihi§ity!~ :nibaddhatn, 'fait '·']5'1 'Vikramllvde

····'vihrpHutl .a;sIt."Pa~l!mttt,themtt556D61;·tVik'ram!tvda) vini..
· baddha$ Vasqb3:nducarita.~ >idllnizri. apividyata. Vasuban-
dhukMa.;v'i~ay~ "'!\iiv~d~ •V.idu~am'~f IntlJ(j~ctidn AbI*lfj~,...
.mtiko1ii~EditedbyR!tli'q.la·.$liillktiy~yI;\lia;·p·; 14".
(tl1) . 'WogHlara, places: (As~niga's,n!'ld;hi$atiavBib:htimi P. 6), Vasu..
· bandhl:! between 390 and:47o:~:nl; a;ndhsljliri!:ga15etween315 a
 tNTRolmcn ION
450 A,D. but in ERE XU, 1921, 595 he states 420.500 as the
period of Va:ltlbandhu's life. Levi (Sylvain) places
Asamga's activity in the first half of the fifth century
A.D. It appears, however, that there were two Vasubandhus.
One of them was the teacher of.Manoratha. This view was
put before me and waS supported by sound arguments in
great details as early as the year 1922 by the Japanese
Scholar T. Kimura when he visited Prague and also
in a long letter. However, I cannot say that lam fuHy in
agreement with his grounds for assigning the date 420 and
500. A.D. to the later Vasubandhu, the author of Abhidharma·
kosa. Indian Literature Winternitz, P. 356.
(28) -"KavyalarpkarastUre Vamanasya etad api. uddharaQarp.
So·yarp. sarpprati Candraguptatanayascandraprakaso
yuva. Jato bhupatir asraya1;t krtadhiyam di~tya krtarthaw
srama1;t "-Introduction Abhidharmakosa-Edited by Rahula
Sarp.lqtyayana P. 14
(29) -Vide Ibid 27.
(30) (a)-"Tena ru§to mahavaiyakaraQo Vasurata1;t KO$e VyakaraJ;,la~
do~an pradurbhavayamasa. Sruyate tate Vasubandhuna
tadvyakaraQakhaJ;,lQ,anatamka1;t kascid Svatantro Nibandho
Vyadhayi."-Introduction to Abhidharmakosa (K.B.)-Edited
by Rlihula Sarp.krtyayana-P. 15.
{bl-ceVasurata, a BrahmaQa Grammarian, who had a controversy
with Vasubandhu, was married to king B::iladitya's sister"
-Early History of India by V. Smith (31'0 Edition) P. 332.
(31) (a)-UNa rupadihhya1;t pancabhyo 'sarp.skrtarp. bhavantaram astim
Ato nasamskrtarp. dravyantaram hi Sautrantika1;t"-Kosa
H. K. 55. Sphu~'{J,rthabhidharm(!,kos(!'vy'{J,khyiJ,.
(b)-"Vijnaptir na gati!!' naslit samskrtarp. k~aJ;,likam. yatah.
KOYa 4 Ka 2. Sphurarthnbhidharmakosavy7J.khylJ.
(32) -"Stha;iro vasubandhuracarya j\·ianorathopadhyaya eva~
maha" Kosa HI K::i 27. Sphutarthabhidharmakosa vyakhyit-Dr.
Law'sEd:ition.P, 43.
(33) -"Kalan tare Gandharadesarp. parityajya Ayodhyayam Agata1;t.
Athaikada Vasubandhavlinupasthite tadgun'll')a Sarp.khya m

caryena Vindhyavasina ca Sastrartham. samajani, yatra,

Buddhamitra1;t parajita1;t",
 "MataQ" lSvaraknQaviracita Slll'fLkhyakllrikavipaktle tena
Paramarthasaptatir likhit;:l. Introduction to Abhidnal'makosa
(K. V.)-Edited by Ranula Sal'fLkrtyayal;la---P. 15.
(34)-HEvam eva kadacitVasubandnur api satavdyantare mana-
vane parigrhHaQ, syat!' Introduction, Abhidharmakosa-
Edited hy Ranula Sal'fLkrtyayana p. 15.
(35)(a)-Videalso Ibid 14 arid infra 38.
(b)-"Idam hi grantharatnarp BauddhadarSana-jijrHlsunal'fL kr te
kiyad avasyakam iti Cina-Nippana-TdpotlldideSiye~u' Mana.
yanavihareSu asya pal';\(;lityanika~asthaniyatvam eva
sadhayati. Etadr~asya gambhfragranthasyaneka trkanup:kaQ,.··
Introduction. Abhidharmakosa Karika -Edited by Rahula
Samkrtyllya:Q.a p. 18.
(36) -"Cinatripitake Vasubandhunamna tatlriqiSat g;q,ntha dr::;yante.
tatra·~at Vasubandhavah. kimkasyeti ni:kayo du~karaQ,. te ca.
L Vajracchedikasutrasllstram
*2. Mah.l!.yanasarp.parigrahasastra vyakhya
3. Pamcaskandhakasastram
4. Sat~~astravyakhya
5. GayasIr~asutrar[h
6. ViSe~adntabrahma1)apariprcchasutra1ika
7. Dasabbumikasastram
8. Tripur:Q.asutropade:ilA
9, AparimitayuQ,sutrasastram
10. DharmacakrarravartanasutropaddaQ,
*1 L Mahaparinirvil'}asutrasastram
*12. Nirva1)asutra purvabhutotpannabhu.ta
G (Nirva1)asu.tranta)-:-
gathasastral'fL
d3. (Mahaparinirv3:Q.avylikhya}
14. Mab.ayanasatadharmavidyadvarasastram
15. Vidyamatrasiddhitridasasastram
16. Bodhicittotpadanasastram
17. Buddhagotrasastram
18, KarmasiddhaprakaraQasastram
19. SamathavipasyanadvarasastralUirika
20. Sadvaropadi~tadhyanavyavaharasastram
*21. Vajracchedikaprajfiaparamitasutrasastram
*22. SaddharmapuI;H;larikasu.trasastram
*23. Vidyamatrasiddhih (VijfilinaO)
 24, Ratr.mcilc;!asutracaturdharmopadeSal;1
25: Madhyantavibhallgasastrarp.
26. TarkaSi'!stralll
27. Abhidhm:makosasiistrarp.
28. Gaya :hr~asastralll
* Cinhamkitagranthal;1 Paramarthe~w. (556~617 vik) smrtal;1
Asamgamrtyoranantararp. X cihnalTlkita anye granthal;1,
pra!)Haiti procyate.
"Trivi~\apades'Iya 'Stanjura granthe' Vasubandhunamnii fme
granthii dr~yante : -
L Trmsakarika (Vijiianamatradesakatrhrdika)
(Stanjura) C ,
2, Vi:rp.sakarikii (Bahyarthanirodhakavimsika)
3. Trisvabhavanirdesal;1
4. Pancaskandhapr akaraQarp.
5. Vyak hy!:}. yukti.siltrakhaQc;!asa taka III
6. Vyakhyiiyuktil;1
7. Karmasiddhaprakara!)arh
8. MahayanasatadharmaprakasamukhasastralTl
Introduction to Abhidharmakosa-Edited by Rahula SalTl~
krtyayaQa p. 16·17.
B.B.* Also it is said that VasubancH,uwrote 'Vadavidhi'.
Vide Vaibh71.$ika DarSana p. 343. by Prof. Ananta Kumar
Bnattacarya, Nyaya Tarkatirtna, Department of Nyiiya,
Calcutta Sanskrit College. 1st Edition"Orient Book Company.
(37) (a)-Madhyilntavibhaflgasutrafikil of Sthiramati,. Part. I. Edided by
M. M. B. BhaHacarya and Prof. G. Tucci.
(b)-do-Edited by Sylvain Levy and Yamaguchi,
(38) (a)-t'Koso Buddhasiddhanto Vasubandhukrta iti tikayalTl
SalTlk arakavil;1 ......... "
(b)-"Sukairapi sakyasasanakusalaih . Kosam samupadisadbhil;1"
-Introduction, Abhidharmakosa Edited by Ranula Sam.krtya~
yana-Po 19.
(c)-K05a I Ka. 2.
(39) -According to Dr. P.C, Bagchi very few Bu.ddhi.st texts actually
were codified before Asoka's time, no Tripitaka is heard about,
only the term pitaka occurs. Translation from Bauddha
Dharma O' Sahitya; p. 5.
 CHAPTER II

THE13UPDHIST CONCEPTIONQF rf.I~E~RMENTSj!

. / OF DHARMAS OR REALS ': . . . " '.', ,,; ... > ..... .

(Metaphy~i~.~J
." .".
'rl'qperti~
"., " ,,'
qnq
-.
Compounqs)
. '"

DharIll,asand their~lassificdtion }nio Asam.skrta llncf

..
Samskrta'
SatiIskrta Dharmas--.JSasr~vaA~dAn~srava.
,'Sasrava:SaIllskrta Dharm~.'.' (a) Ayatan~a,()r.~ase. (b)'
Dhatuj Of Source.' (c) Skandh"a,()r~s$~mbJage~'{d) The
Bhautika orCompounCIs. ' . ','

Meaning of Dharma
According to the Vaibha~ika thinkers 'Dharma'
means the 'Elements' Or the 'Reals'.·These,IReafs'exiSt onW,
for the flHu,re wb.ich i~ ,;:!,gain the.,meetingplaceof the past
ancl present· Th,es~ f.lemeFts.~oP$titut~ aU the objects a~d th~
who]ewqrld. .TlJey cQmbin~ iqto,;:various modes of 'Matter',
and'Mind,-.Theyare r~sponsible for building up aU the
sensat~ons~ perceptions, and p~ycho~physiological andexteH~al
complexities of theJQ:cal,led p;~r~onaIity,and phenQmena~
Then~ a're 15 :Oharm~s . All of t4es~, are impermanep,t.OJ (a.).
i", -",' "", , ' . " " ,','

,These' dharmas or 'Reals' are not understandable in

th~8ense of. Nyaya. Vai~e~ika 'Subs'tances': which are
permanent. These • Reals,are ,not) ideritific:ible withtht
"ThiIlg.. in-;tself' (}f the, Kantian.philosophy: For; the 'Thing;.
in.. jtseln is only e:Ktramental, w;hereas, ,these 'Reab·;al·"
h0::1ih "mental andextramenta!}!;;TheyartcomparaJjle to
a great,extent· with the 'Hypothetica.l 'ReaM' 'of pre$ent
day science or ,Mathematics. ' It maybe 'said thenj that i,
30 IN'IRODUCnON

the Dharmas or the 'Hypothetical Reals' are the abstract

concepts, though lying at the basis of all the concrete
phenomena. (b).

Classifi«!ad€m, of the Dharmas into AsalP~k:rta

Dharma a~ul SalPsk:rta Dharmas.
The Dharmas are mainly classified into two mam
classes, viz., the Sarpskrta and the Asarpskrta. Sarpsktta
means the 'collected', 'made up' or constituted. The
Asarpsl(fta . means the opposite i. e. unconstituted. The
Asarpskrta . Dharmas are three in numbers. one is Akasa
or Infinite space. Another is the Pratisarpkhya 'Nirodha
(cessation of the impurities by means of knowledge or
Prajna or Pratisarpkhya). The third is Apratisarpkhya
Nirodha (or cessation of the impurities by means other
than knowledge or Prati~arpkhya). The third means some
kind of my~tic experience.

SalPsk:rta Dharma, Sasrava and Anasrava

The Sasrava Sarpskrta Dharmas are seventy two in
number. These are 11 items of Rupa or MaHer~46
items of CiUas or the impressions and mental derivatives.
the Citta or the mind, and the 14 Citra Viprayukta
Dharmas. These seventy two (72) dharmas constitute
the entire universe. These are changing, impure or
Sasrava and are interdependent. (2 a,b). Exceptions to these
is the Margasatya or eight fold path of truth and is known
as the Anasrava Sarpskrta Dharma. Sasrava is impure
while Anasrava is dev0id of the impurity. The Sa111skrta
and Asarpskrta dharmas together make up the aggregate
pf the phenomenal world. The Asarpskrta dharm;asj may
be said to be somehow connected with the deeper stages
of perfection and spiritual experience. The citta-caitta
(mind and the minCi derivatives) items are concerned with
 INTRODUCTION 31

a kind of introspective psychology, Rupa deals with the

world of Matter and Avijnapti.sa (or nonmintimation or
nonmmeanteaux). It is said that without the analysis of
the nature of the dharmas, one cannot distingnish the right
from the wrong path. The purpose of Abhidharma i~ to
establish the real nature of the dharmas in their proper
perspectives.

Sou.rces and thematernals of Sas.w:ava Saxpskrta

Dharma
It is on the basis of the dharmas (or the Hypothetical
Reals) Prof. Stcherbatskoy concludes that the Sarvastivada
philosophy may be recognised as a system of Realism.sll
13uddha maintained that all things are reducible to the
dharmas or the subtle existents or Saq1skara Samuha.
The expression 'everything exists' according to' Buddha
was explained as twelve Ayatanas (or base) exist. The
dharmas are understandable in all these three aspects and
expressions as mentioned below.
AU the beings are not equal in their capacities. So,
while instructing the disciples, one iq to remember. that
the adepts~ are of different capacity with r~gard to their
individuality and unique Moha {nature of ignorance}, Ruci
(1 nteres[) and I ndriya (sense organs). Accordingly, the
,dharmas are explained to them in terms of Ayatana,
Dhatu and Skandha (i. e. Ba~e, Elements and formations
respectively). Thus, aU the dharmas may be dassifiedintoaH
the three categories i. e. Ayatana, Dhatu and Skandha in
accordance with suitability of the adept's taste. It seems that
dharmas include both the MaUer~stuff arid Mind,stuff Le.
Rupa and Citta. Similarly~ the Ayatana, Dhatu and
Skandha include the Mauer and Mind in their different
interpretations. It may be said that, the Buddhist thinkers
were quite logical and particular in classifying the items.
 INTRODUCTION

An attempt may be seen to amalgamate the three

above categories. Thus, it is said that an the dharmas can
be classified within Rupaskandha (Matter formation), Mana
ayatana(Mind Base) and Dharmadhatu (Real-elements) 2(a)
(Kosa~l Bha~ya p, 11, 14 KariI{a). It may be further noted
that according to Mcgovem& a western scholar of Buddhism,
this type of classification has been recognised as subjective
classification. (Manual of Buddhism, P. 82 ).FinaUy it may
beaddedihat the terms Dharma and Dhatu have not been
always regularly used. The meaning is to be derived from
their functional applications and different contexts. 4

tal Meaning of the term Ayatana.

Ayatana is often used with the two other categories of
'Dharma' Le. Dhatu and Skandha. Ayatana seems to be
subtle and a 'result of the investigation of the mutual functions
of consciousness and the means whereby consciousness is
produced (Megovern, Manual of Buddhist Philosophy, P.94).
It is said in the Kosa that Ayatana means expansion or
gate (Ayadvara) of citta-caitta (the Mind and Mind·deriva~
tives). Both Professor Stcherbatslwy and Thera Nyantiloka
have used the expression ~Base of cognition' for Ayatana.3(b)
According to Mrs.Rhys Davids and German Scholar
Rosenberg Ayatana means "Place or sphere of meeting or
of origin or the ground of happening". According to Prof.:
LOUIse De La Vanee~Poussinand Dr. N. Duttameaning of
Ayatana indicates the entire span of the receiving organ.
Ayatana means then the total field of range of consciousness
of a particular type and means of consciousness as welL
According to Mr. Anng (Translation of Abhidharmartlia-
sarpgraha P. 256), Ayatana includes both the receIvmg
6rgan and the field used for achieving a conscioqsness. 6a
. It may be suggested from the above findings, that
Ayatana means a subtle receptivity in the organ concerned
 33
and the quality of being re~eiv~d inherent in the object of
1consciousness. Itjs useless to ~ompare the idea of A.yatana
with that of tpel'anmatras of SaI!lkhya ,system. Far;
SaI!lkhya . idea of. Tanmatra mostly dwells on the subtle
quality.; out ofWpich the m~nirest Bhiitas (or the elements)
appear.
'. ;'HQweVefJ t.he ternt.:Ayaiana. may also' be viewed and
understoodfromfhe point of view of modern psychology.
A,yatanamay:be cmnparedwith,the idea of entire range6f
a particular. type. of conscious.ness. Rqnge . of consciousness
Hesbetweenand linkS ,up ,the two extremes in the thresh~
hold .ot<:;onstiousne~s and ,theHmit qf consciousness ... It may
, also be sai~l foat th:~srfl.Ilg~ ;~",ri es .fropt. person to person;
for,.no.tw 0 indiviqpalsc~,n hayeex~ctly' similar a range~
Ayatana t90,in a . sipti'Iar ; way consists of the 'seeing' eye'
(Cak~vayatana) . and. the Prasada Riipa (M'anifest Matter,
Audarika.orM;;tr;Bifest) both of .which produce the. pheno-
m~ma of visualconsdou~lless. 'l'bis idea may be supported
also by thedas~i1ication of th,e; 12 Ayatanas given below;
• '6b
;: V]2.,.

"'Descl'lptic:m or the da~!i;ification or the Ayatanas

Cla,ss. I ,
1. Riipa Ayatana l'heRange or Extent of Visibles.
I ? ,'- ,
2; Sjlbda do ., AudIbles
\.: ..
" '.' -
3. Qaru:lha" do " Olfactory objects·
41; ..~as.ij'do, " " " ,Gastatory objects .'
5~ 'Spra~tavyado " " " Tangibles
'6. 'Dharma" do ,. " " Non-sensuous Reals .'

Class II
7. Caks.u indriy.aAyatana, IIi, H . ,,', f'lculty of vision (eye)
3.
~ .....
34 INTRODUCTION

:c8. Srotra indriya do ~, 11 Audition (Ear)'

9. Nasika indriya do " " Olfactory organ (Nosel
" "
10. . Jihva indriya do Gastatory organ
"
" " (Tongue)
11. Kaya indriya do " " 1I Tactual organ (skin)
12. Mana indriya do " " " Mind.
The first six .t\yatanas are known as the Bahya .t\yatana
or. the .external bases of consciousness. These include, the
visibles,' audibles, olfactory objects,gastatory, tactual and aU
the non",sensuous objects .. The last six AyatanasarecaUed
the Adhyatmika or internal bases of consciousness. These
include, the ·eye, the ear, the nose, the tongue, the skin and
the mind., These ate the faculties or sense organs. These
two classes of Ayatanas(Glass land Glass II) together lead
to a particular consciousness or Vijuana. (13A vide intra
P. 65).
It is said in the Ayatana section of the vibhanga of
the Abhidharmapitaka that all the dharmas or Reals can
be classified under the twelve Ayatanas; the eleven
items together with the Dharmayatana cover up aU
the 75 Dharma'l.Ha Finally it may be said then, each
Ayatana implies the entire range of receptivity an~l the
received content cooperating for proiucing a particular
consciousness. For example, Gak~u (eye) and Rupa
(Matter) go together; the universal mind base (Mana
.t\yatana) and non-sensuous (Dharmayatana) function to·
gether. 6b The grouping seems to be quite dose to some of
the modern theories of physics. For, instead of maintain-
ing as formerly a dear cut distinction between the Matter
and Mind, modern physics now gets more and more recon~
dIed to both when taken as a neutral staff. 6b

(b) Meaning of the term Dhlltu.

The term 'Dhatu' mean$ the compOllents or elements.
 35
In 'the Kosa, it is explained as "gotra" or "mine'" or,
"jlource". Dhatus therefore are the sources or raw materials
for constituted objects/a The term "Dhiitu" is in common
use in the Indian medical texts. It is used in such a varied
se~se th.at itisvery difficult to find suitable English equiva-
lent of the word. There are eighteen Dhatus, which cover
the 72 Sarpskrta dharma'S ofthe Sarvastivadins. These may be
dassified,assubjective,objective and 'gll bjective·objective. It
,maybe stated that all the Dhatus are psycho-physical poten,
tials out of which the constituted world has come into exis~
tence. The classification of dharmas into Dhatus is meant,
as the Kosa states, for a particular class of the adept. The
eighteen Ohatus are enumerated .thus :--'-
, ' . '

Cla.sses of Dha tu :
L. R(lpa Dhatu or Visual object element
2. ~abda Dhatuor Auditory ooject element.
3. G~ridha Dhatu or olfactory objectelement Sensuous
.. 4. Rac;aDhfituor Gastatory object' element.
5. Spra~tavya:Dhatu or Tactile object element
6.. Dharma Dhatu or Non"-sensuous object' element.
(These six Dhatus are objective and external or Bahya)
'7: Cak~u Dhatu or the Eye f~cuIty element;
B. Srotra Dhatu ~or the Ear faculty element.
, '9. Nasika Dhatil or the Nose faculty element
10. : JihvaDhatuot the Tongue facultyelement
'1 L " Kaya Dhatu or the Skin/Body tacUltyelemerit
12. Manadhatuor the Mind'facultyelement.
(These ~x Dhatus are subjective and internal or"
Adhyatmlka)
13. Cak~uvijnana Dhatu or VisuaJ consciQusness c;Iement. ,
14. Srotra Vijnana Dhatu or Auditory' c()DsdousneSs'
, 'efement :. '., '; i . ' " . ; ,

, 15. 'GhraQ.a ViJnana Dhatuor:Olfactory'consciousness .

~lemeht
36 INTRODUCTION

16 •. Jihva Vijuana Dhatu or Gastatory consciousness.

element
17. Kaya Vijfiana Dhatu or Skin/Body consciousness'
element
18. Manavijfiana Dhatu or Mind consciousness element
Thelast six Dhatus are subjective-objective in nature.
These are found in sen~ations.The Dhat1,Jsbuildup ~ll the.
phenomena. In the I<osa (I), the Dhatus are explained
exhaustively; A substance of the same is given here?b.

Number of'Dhatu :in the different spheres

There is, detailed description in' the Kosa I of the
. nature of the Dhatus.. It is said that the number of Dhiitus
vary from sphere to sphere, e. g. those in Kama are more
than those in Rupa; those in' Rupa are more than in
Arupya. These three spheres also are al so called Dhatus.
There are all the 18 Dhatus prese~t in the Kamadhiitu,
and fourteen in the Rupadhatu, in which 4 are absent,
(i. e. Gandhadhatu, Rasadhatu,GhraI}.avijfiana and Jihva-
vijfianadhatus1). In the Arupya Dhatu (sphere) there are
only three Dhatus~ These ar.:! viz. the 'Manadhatu (or Mind
element), Dharmadhatu (or· non~sensu()us element) and
ManavijfianadhMu (Mind-conscio~sness' element). The
Arupya (or non-ma,terial) therefore is, constituted of the four
Skandhas, (i. e. Vedana, SaIpjfia, Vijuana'l;tnd Sarp.skaraor
feeling, perception consciousness and Impression' respecti-
vely)~ The Rupa is either absent or exist in a very subtle
form there. "'~: '

T~e Nature of Dh~tu s

It may be said that all these Dhatus are the Psy~ho~
physical potentials or, Sources out of which the constituted
world has come into existence. (The three Asam,.skrta i. e~
 iNtRODDdlfioN

thetwe "Nirodhas, Pratisa111khya and Apra.tisa111khya

Nirodhasor cessation, of ;impurities by knowledge and
teS,sation ,of impurities, by otherethical~fueditational prac-
,tices, ,respectivelYj:arid ,the Akasa are. also recognised as
Dh~tus;ina ,differeht significance); it has been previously
saidithatthe;terin~iOharina~a.rtd Dhatu have been used in
irregular. meanings and different uses. The nature of the
.Dhattis;·constitutlog,the/Sarpskrta or the constituted world
are.described:;ts·foUows :.(KQsa1 7bka2S-48)
AIUilysisot''i:hebat~re ~rJ)h:itus according to the
',.',',;; ., . ' "
Rosa····
\Ne' shall how discuss /the nature of the Dha-tus as
pr~s~nt~dhr)ihe Koia.Dhahi'is classified as SanidarSana
(th~t which cati'be poiritedOut}and Anidadana (that which
cahnO(be,poirit'ed';ouf)~Of fhe -IS dhatus, enumerated
ahbv~,ten:(Cak~trand Rupa,Stotra and Sabda, GhraQ.aand
G::didha; 'Jihva a:ndRasa,K:a9~and Spra~tavya) are
Sapratighaor'obstnicting or resistible. They offer·obstruc..
tion:totheencroacnment on their respective spheres. These
ten <caribe-asiif,pointed.outby finger, and are . called
sani'darsana,or ,defihite;· Of the above ten' Rupa and Sabda
ate morally netitral(Avy~krta}.The. remaining Smay be
boi:h.rKusala: (rt1()raliywholesom'e) and. AkusaJa (morally
,t:mwhoiesbine),::Sabda; thoug;hproduced out Of the four
elein~ntsis;:rion~matetial(Arupa). Sabda is neither
received py{;no:tl.~;Cjesreceilfe 'any object. The remaining
9 'a.r~jpthepre$eIlt{Upatta}, and those .which are in the
past andtutuieilie An:tiPa.ttc;t.Spra~tavya or tactile extend
f6both:Bhuta,(elementsin their original state) and Bhau·
tikas(constitutedobJetts) ...... The remaining 9 ate limited
. t9.the Bllauti~as9n,Iy(constitut~cl. objects). AU the above'
fell are, ~on~lqlU~r~tJ(>ns(s~111cita )of atoms (ParamaQ.u);
"fq'l:1~,eXtern~tl.)n:~~u"a~f!·.B.ahy~ (Rupa, Rasa, Gandha;
.• $pal;s~) ,and xesi§.(.othefiobjecis and also arecresisted by
. other objects. These. possess also burning power and weight.'
This is however., an opinion which is not acceptable by all.
The five internal Dhatus (Cak~u, Srotra, Ghral).a, Jihva,
kaya) are resultsof maturing or changing acts (vipaka) as
also of accumulation of food etco (Aupacayika) and other
organic function. While Sabda is not the matured result
of any act, the Dhatus (RuPfl, Gandha,Rasa, Spada) are
originated due to matu.ration or vipaka and direct flow orthe
(Nai~yandika); and~ Ten of the Dhatus aresapratigha
(Resistible, resisting) and the eight are not so. Eight ofthe
eighteen Dhatus (Materials, Rupa ) are Avyalqta (morally
neutral) and the remaining may be both Kusala (ethically
meritorious) and Akusala (de meritorious} . Sound {Sabda) is
produced out of the materials (Rupa) but itself is Arupa
(non material). Out of the Eighteen Dhat us fifteen may be
either pure or impure (Anasrava or Sasrava), but three i. e.
Manas (Mind), Dharma (non-sensuous element) and Mana-
vijfianadhatu (Mind-consciousness element) are always
impure (Sasrava).
Some of the Dhatus 1; e.' Manas (Mind), Dharma
(ncm~sensuous element) and Manavijnana Dhatu (Mind
consciousness element) may be Savitarka and Savicara
(both investigating and discerning)~ SavitarI<a and Avicara
(both investigating and non· discerning) and Avitarka
and Avicara (or without being both investigating and
discerning)" The five Vijfiana Dh atus (i. e. eye~consciou.s~
ness, ear consciousness; olfactory consciousness, gastatory
consciousness and Body consciousness) are with both
Vitarka (investigating)' and Vicara (discerning). The
remaining ten Dhatus are without Vitarka and Vicara
(without being investigating and discerning).
Thefive Vijfianadhatus (eye-consciousness, ear consci-
ousness, olfactory consciousness gastatory Consciousness and
body consciousness) a~e associated with Vikalpa or specu.la~
tive thinking. These arc, thus, Savikalpabi. Seven Dhatus
 (Mind element, five consciousness elements and mind
consciousn,ess element) and some of the Dharma Dhatus
(Dharmardha:rp. or Half Dharma) are SaIa:rp.bana (or having
an object.substrate for appearing ) or they occur with
support, Some Dhatus are upaHa and include (both process
of receiving and conducting i. e., Anugraha and upaghata
.which mean receiving of and reacting to respectively.
Sabda or sound is Anupatta (absence of receiving and
reacting to).
The Spra~tavyas or the Tangibles are of two kinds,
viz,the Bhiitas (or the element) and the Bhautikas (the
constituted object out of the BhUtas (primary element or
the elements); theBhautikas or the constituted tangibles
are .caUed 'Upadaya Rupa (or collected Material form) .
. The five sense organs and the four objects except the Spra-
~tavya (or the Tangibles) are Bhautika or constituted by
the Bhiitas (primary dements), Avijfiapti (or non-meanteaux)
is also Bhautika or constituted by the Bhutas(or the primary
elements), It is also stated that the 10 Dhatus (five sense-
organ elements, five objects elements) are conglomerated in
nature {sa:rp.cita or collected, conglomerated)R,

It is said that the Bahya Dhatus (or the external ele-

ments) (Rupa .. Matter, Gandha-Olfactory, Rasa-Gastatory
Spara~tavya~Tangible) are like some cutting instruments;
they just divide the relations of the constituting elements
and as constituted forms .are themselves divided into speci~
fie modes 4, But, the Indriyas (sense organs) do not
behave in that way; for, the sense organs or faculties remain
and behave as a whole and undivided, Again, these faeul~
des produce the sensation as a whole and not in divided
manner. The Indriyas are internal (or Adhyatmika). The
four external elements (previously stated) have got weight
andean be weighed. But these characters cannot be found
in the sense-organs (faculties) andSabda or sound l , The
40
five internal elements (Pafica-Adhyatmika Dhatava1:)~
the eye, the ear, the nose, the tongue, the skin of the body)
are both Vipakaja (caused by transformation) and Aupacayika
(accumulated) in nature. This upacaya or coHection is due
to food (Ahara) impression (Sarpskara) Svapna (dream) and
Samadhi (concentration)2. Sabda is accumulated (Aupa-
cayika) and NaiQ.~yandika (resultant) only. It is depen-
denton the will of a being (Chanda). Eight Dhatus
(elements) (six vijnanadhatus, manas, and dharma) are
both vipakaja (caused by transformation) and NaiQ.~yandika,
(resultants). The rest of the Dhatus are (Rupa-Matter,
Gandha-olfactory, Rasa~Gastatory, Spada·Tactile) Vipa-
kaja (due to Transformation). Aupacayika (accumulated)
and N aiQ.~yandika (Resultant) 2b.
It is said that the Dharmadhatu is Real for the three
phases of time. The rest of the Dhatus are all momentary
(K~a1).ika). The Cak~uvijnana Dhatu (Eye consciousness
element) and Cak~udhatu (Eye element) are always'found
together from mother's womb till death; the twelve Dhatus,
the 5 Indriyas (facu~ties) and five consciousness, the mind and
the Mind consciousness, are internal or Adhyatmika. The
Dhatus Rupa, (Matter), Sabda (Auditory), Gandha (Olfa-
ctory), Rasa (Gastatory), and Spada (Tactile) are Bahya or
external. The internal elements (Adhyatmika) are Sabhaga
(or function only in their own fields), and the external ele-
ments (Bahya) are Asabhaga or Tatsabhaga (i.e. not only
confined to their own field). Rupa(~r matter) is the Alarpbana
(or object) of CaI{~u, but in the case of the dhyanas orin the
case of illusion', Cak~uvijfiana is there in spite of the absence
of Rupa (or Matter). In this case cak~u, is Tatsabhaga
Cak~u.
Some (15) Dhatus are eradicable through Bhavana or
meditation (Bhavana Marga). Bhavana or meditation is
repeated Dadana {or insight)l. The three other Dhatus
(manas, dharma and manovijnana Le~ mind., nonsensuous
and mind consdousnesselements) are either eradicable
through Bhavana (meditation) or by Darsana (insight). In
case these Dhatus become Anasrava (or free from impuri~
ties), they need not be eradicated at alL
Again some Dhatus (elements) are Dr~ti (wrong view);
e,g., Cak~u) (eye) and Dharmadhatu (non-sensuous); the
five Vijfiana Dhatus (elements of eye-consciousness, ear-cons-
dousness, olfactory consciousness, tongue consciousness and
body/skin consciousness) are not Dr~ti (wrong view) if ass 0"'
ciated with perfect knowledge (Prajfia J dhi).
It is said that the eye consciousness (cak~u·asrita
vijfianaJ.1l) is the perceiving process and not the eye alone
(cak~u). Both the eyes are applied to the objects for a
dearer vision. The sense organ faculties like nose (fiasika),
tongue (jihva) and body (kaya) perceive the object accor-
ding to the number of the paramaI.,lus (or atoms) or its consti-
tuents and require direct contact with the objects of their
perception (praptavi~ayaka). The eye and the ear, how Q

ever, need not require this direct contact with the object
(apraptavi~ayaka). The mind(mana} has got its objects
which are the past objects (atita aSraya). Thus,Mind-consd~
ousness elements (manovijfianadhatu) are found together with
each of the five consciousness elements. It is said that the
consciousness in each Case (Eye consciousness, Ear conscious m

ness, Nose consciousness, Tongue consciousness~ Body/skin

consciousness) gets changed or modified if there occurs any
change in a·· respective sense-organ, The change in the
consciousness is not due to any change in the respective
field of vision~ so that, if the eye is defective, the eye sight
,
IS wrong.

It is said that the Body (Kaya), Eyes (cak~u) and Rupa

(visible objects) function in the five different levels (Bhumi)
viz. the sphere of sensuous nature· (Kamadhatu) and the
 "JNTRODUlirioN
four different dhyanas of Rupa stage (these are described in
thesecdon of cosmology), The cak~uvijfiana (eye"conscious-
ness):occurs·in.twoleve1s (Bhumis) i. e., in the Kamavacara.
{Realth of the sensuous ) and the first Dhyana (Meditation)
of Rupa stage. The eye and other organs present in a parti..
'Pl.Jl~rJeve. can perceive the levels lower to that but can never
perceiv,e the .,' higher one. The Mind (Mana) is said to h,e
.<\niyata (or irregu]ar in functioning with regard to the
,(Hffer~nt levels)., Again, the un constituted (AsaIpSkrtSt)
.Dharmc:i.s are also real. It. has beenprevioualysaid that
some aspects'(Dharmard~alll) ofDharmadhatu (non~sensuou$)
are"D~avyavana or Real for three phases of time. Here,
AScllllskrta 'Dharmasmean, the two Nirodhas (Pratisalllklwa
l'~~ir;odhaG1:nd Aprati-Salllkhya Nirodha or cessation of the
impu,ritiesby means of perfect knowledge and intuition
respectively) only.
Someofthe Dhatus are Indriyas or the faculties; these
iq.CIude the five stmse,;,or'gans (eye, ear, nose, tongue, body)
(,lndth~ mind whieh function together in perceiving an object.
,:rp~.t~ir:teen,: "pther ': r,rldr,iy~~,~lso (altogether there are 22
,'fn~r~~a.s,vi¢ei1ifracli~ptef~IIB}j function through the Mind
aloite:17h~s;; ·Sa;iI~dhi.; an~. the, three Anasrava Indriyas
(faculty'6('I>~riHktio1N . theun'known', faculty,of 'having
.,~h~lV~~' au~. the/ac~ltyo[omnisCience) are independent of
,;iIirtd: ".The,uve sen~eorgans' and five consciousness derived
;t~r~,~gA' '!tI~eIriar,e~interIlaJ' (9r Adhyatmika). The five
~c()n§ctcJ1:lsness: "elem~ntsand' ni~. Mind, (Mana) and Mind-
'c()nscf6us~~ssi ele,m¢n('{1.\1:a~a vijiianadhatu) function' dnly
':th'roughlhe Min(lorManalndriya. The thirteen other
titdfiy~~:al~df~n~fipr{;th~oughthe Mind alone. The five
~xtern~ls(Rt!p.i-1V.iatterl S~bda'(Audible), Gandha (Olfac-
tory), Rasa (Gastatory h Spra~ta vya (Tactile), are not the
'j'n4tjYi{ioi tlieiftHi:~ltieg; >tHt' Siri'pumindriya (The faculties
it;f,or;ren1aJe'~ti~'m~l"ei,r~sp6~H'VblY) ,'are recognised ',as having
~:'ffiei'$e~tg;,JHilieKaY~dh~ti:i{br:Body element). Some of the,
 •INTRODUCTION
Indriyas are recognised as th~ part of the. Dl1arma~lh,atl1:.
(Dharmardham = part of the Dh~arma .Dhatu.)(y.ideil1frat~¥~
section
-"
of
." 22 Indriyas).
',"
".

Remarks:
(a)' The Kosa's view about the "DhattiasG.oir'k
" ",., ~l ~, ", ::,

(origin, source) is significant.. Thus, the" Dhatus;()rtN~

elements whiclI rmiybe interpreted as·(he'units. whiGhih
term of po~sible"compounds ~ould' constitutetheentite
v.ariety of the constituted objects ,But, ~~Uke' tberteutr~l
staff, (see the comparison" ~iththe view otNeutial
Monism), . the elements . or the lJhatus aJe ofdifferertt
categories; each Class ~f objects may be madecip'by
the compounds of the different cJa~sesof elements ... Thus.,
the ROpa objects are due to ROpa or' theMatfereI~rherlts,
different kinds of Citta or Mind, come out ofcHffer~Ilt
Citta elements or mind elements and so on .. The three
main groups of the Dhathshave been already discussed as
the subjective, objective and subjective~objective patterns
in the, beginning of this subsection" 6f the Dhatus orrhe
~lelnen'ts.l . Each unit orCIass iSa g~netativ~) .cause , of' tile
more and more complex' patterns. " .
(b) Some of the terms used in the analysis' of the
nature ,of the Dhatus or elements requite a little mote
clarification. Some oEthe concepts seem to be befter'under-
standable . in the light of modern psychology . and physics.
The description of some Dhatu, (ROpa or Matter.) may be
taken for the purpose; Rupa or Matteris'Saniclatsana'or
may,beunderstood as definite pattern or picture of ROpa;
this remains true about a pltysicalphenomenoneven
today.' Again t Rupa has ,been described as Sapratigha(or
Resistible) or .penetrable. This characteristic ofMatter was
expounded by ErigHshphilosopher Locke in: the eighteenth
century. Similar an idea of llla~ter. can b,!:! draWl} from the
realms of \ both moderp ,physics
"
'a~d philosophy., Lpgic~Uy,
' . , . '" ',: ,"
 tNTRODU(l'I'XON

no two ohjects can be thought to exist together in the same

place and at the same time.
(c) The Division of the Dhatus or ele'ments as 12
internals and 6 externals 3 . is another interesting idea .to
foHow. The five: sense organs (eye, ear, nose, tongue. body)
and their respective consciousness elements are said. t9 he
Jnternal, which actually cannot be ~~twardly localised:
Again, this idea of considering the inddyas or the sense
,Qrgans as . internal is really a valuable suggestion to a #

student of D:lode~n psychology. The students of modern

physics and psychology reduce the Sense organs to a number
of receptors of different types. Thus, some are exteroceptor
or. outwardly situated, some are interoceptor or internally
located and, some others are proprioceptive . organs which
are localisable in the muscles. Thus, according to modern
views, the outward eye corresponds to the cak~u or the eye
ball (Golaka) of the Buddhist thinkers. The real Inddya or
. Eye faculty is something intermd. The idea of internal
,'faculty reminds one of the mo~dern outlook of the invisible
stimulation. pC theopticneJ;'vesancl.thei£,6ncticmJng. electrc;ms
produCirig the vi~ual'sensation 9£ e~,e<t9nscio~sness: " .
The. terms' Hke ~nugraha,and upaghiita9;re worth
mentioning' from the point of viewofpu'rep3yehological
~nterest. Anugraha:.meansreception orre¢eivingand
upaghata means' reacting:to~. (K.uSa, J:;Ki3~ Bha~yap.2~1·
. .·According. tomodernpsycho16gy ,'e:'ntire.processofsensa t~on' .. '
;l(delef:mh~d bystim.u]a,tlop."~tl~tresponse·)whi~ha.re done
respectively ,by the Receptors. and the Rea<;:tor.s ort.h.e
cor;ductorsO'nthe parte£: the ihdividual· subjer;iirirelation to
,~he> ;e~vironment whent th,eiridi vid tial', is/placed. JntheKosa
,the term ISacetana' or'consciQlJs'hasbeen descriIied;in terms
·ofAnbgraha (Reception).a:nd Upaghata (Reacdon) only."
. ,'(c1J '. The tertiisH~~S~vl~~rK~{investi~~,t:id.~),and Savi·
.cafa.;,discernriient) .ueaIso wotthexplaining{ . Some 6f .the
 INTRODUCTION 45
elements are, in nature, investigating~ ora state which,
means hovering of consciousness before the nature is
definitely decided; after being decided the same thing may
be called definite or savicara (discernments). The first
process has been described as crude or manifest (audarika)
and the second has been described as subtle (suk~ma). Apart
from the view ofKosa, these two terms may be understood in
the light of modern psychology as the 'Fringe of Attention'
and 'Focussing of Attention' respectively. It may be also
suggested that these two ideas of Savitarka and Savicara
may be compared with marginal consciousness and clear
light of consciousness which form the relevant stages of
dynamic nature of conscious life.
(e) The .Buddhist thinkers quite rationally and logically
distinguish between the Salarpbana (with object) and
Analarpbana (without object) Dhatus or elements. The
mind element (a CiUa Dhatu) and the five other special
consciousness are salarpbana; 1. e. they appear with the
associated objects. The Rupa dhatu or 'Matter, being of
different nature, does not and need not have this object
substrate~ Psychology today would accept the object of
consciousness which is very similar to salarpbana (or being
with objects) CiHa Dhatu or Mind element. '
(f) The Dhatus are classified as upatta and anupaUa.
The 'present' (or 'being') i~ upaUa. The past or future
is anupaHa (Ibid P 37). Thus, the cOllS,tituted or collected
sense organs and their objects are all upaHa; this upatta here
means something which becomes known through mind. In
a way a similar idea is ·found in the Nyaya Vaise~ika
concept of Prameya (object of knowledge) which means
knowable. The consciousness element is not upatta. The
significance of upaUa possibly indicates externally existing
known objects, possibly the 'experienced objects'.
(g) By the term Sarpcita the Buddhist thinkers
mean collection. Thus~ the sense organs and their objects
46 INTROOUCTION

are," according to them, conglomeration of the ParamaJ;,ltis

or atoms. This idea also is very dose to modem idea held
in physics. The term 'Bhautika' or composition of the
Bhutasremirids one of the expressions 'field of forces' or
energy l!nits' of modern Psysics. The Buddhist thinkers
were particular about the term Bhautika and, speciaJly
about Spra~tavya or the 'Tactile' objects. KayadhiHu and
Spra~tavyadbatu seem to be interrelated with regard to
their various forms, It is said that the seven kinds of the
Bha1itikas . and four. Bhutas, are the spra~tavyasor the
'Tactile' objects'. Spra~tavyas seem to be the various
patterns of Psycho-physical formations. According to the
modern views' the Kaya dhatu or Body consciousness or
tOioch sense, also seems to be spread over the whole body and
seems .to he the most original pattern of organic reaction,
According to the Buddhist thinkers the Bhutas or the
ParamaJ;,lus are ananged into different states; these states
and ·the Kaya· Indriya (Dha tu) together produce the
Psychophysical patterns, like, SHatva (cold), Ugtata (Heat),
Anu~QasHa (neither hOt nor cold), Jighatsa (Hunger)
Pipasa (Thirst) and similar other kinds. It may be noted
that according to modern Psychology, organic sensation is
differentiated from tactual sensations. So, according to
modern views, sensations of heat and cold would be recog~
nised as the different varieties of tactual sensation; the
sensations rising out pf hunger and thirst are also recognised
as organic sensations. Here, however, they aU appear to the
Buddhist thinkers as the different forms of tactual expe-
rience. On the other hand» the ·clifferent touch experiences
aff, viz". the touch experiences of the. earth, water, air and
fire· (Parthiva spada, Jaliya spada, Vayaviya spada and
Taijasaspada respectively). These may be compared with
the four Hems· of 'touch experience according to modern
Psythology. They are the touch prop~r correspondent of
Parthiva sparsa~ coldness or correspondent:of Jaliya spada,
 XNTRODUCTJ:01>i'

heat, correspondent of Taijasa spada. Another inter.esting

point of similarity is detected between the an dent and the
modern views regarding the atomic orceUularnatureof
these. Bhautikas ot the composition· patterns which are aU
again constituted by the hypothetical 'reals'.
(h) It is said that some of the Dhatus are 'burhP
andsom~ may be weighed. Some of the Dhatus are so
constituted that they may 'burn" in the sense that a paftf':'
cular form may be destroyed but the real essence or dharma:
remains conserved. It will be too much to assume that
these ideas can be exactly understood in terms of modern
idea of conservation of energy which was then of course
unknown. Incidentally only,it may be stated, that a thing
burnt loses its physical weight, and, one form or its energy is
changed into another form. Similarly watermay'be hoiled
and evaporated in that way. In the same context,· these
thinkers mentioned that some of the Dhatus cut.l.ike,.the
cutting instruments~ the body or Kayadhatu does not seem
to be cut or distinctive inprcllentational appearance:
Kayadhatu or body like organicsensation of modern Psyche>-
logy seems to be giving a continuous and whole experiel)ce
in its presentation and not in parts.
(i) The categories viz. Vipakaja and Aupacayika and
Naib~yandika may be understood as the transformation alld
production or as accumulation and resultants respectivylY.
Accumulation is effected by food, im:pressions,dreall1 al)4
meditation; the sense organs are both AqpacayH~a, and
VipakaJa(accumulation. and resulting productio~).th~
nature of Aupacayika st:ems to be understood as acomple~
patternconstitutedby psychophysiological forces. Tfledistinc ..
tion between the outer and inner, from the pojnt Qfview of
modern physics is mOre or less the same.$al?daor sQuu<J;li$
pronouncedintentionaHy andis accumulated. Theabove
view about ~abda,however isstibject tocritidsm,foI', aU
sounds are not pronounced, or intentionally produced~
48 INTRODUCTION

(j ) The ideas Hke Dr~ti may be interpreted as eWfong

attitude, opinion' or wrong perception; Vikalpa may be
described as speculative thinking. With the heIp of these ideas
a suggestion can be made about the mind being susceptible
to fabrications and to wrong. or exaggerated determinations
and functionings. Again v the individual's knowing is
dependent on the individnal nature of their faculties. These
m~y be Mrdu (duB), Madhya (medium) and Tibra (sharp)
and would accordingly make up the personality.
In conclusion, it may be suggested that the Biopsy~
chological theoryof individnal of modern science is based on
a developmental history of its own; the states are the stages of
matu.rationof a simple factor to various complexities. Similar-
ly the Dhatus, considered from the Buddhist point of view, are
the potentialities for every psycho-physiological and physical
manifestation; of course all these suggestions are limited in
their scope andappHcation. For, the Buddhists never desired
to take a purely scientific interest independent of a religio-
philosophical tum ethical attitude. Nevertheless a scientific
j

treatment can be obtained from the tenets of the philosophy

they presented. The succession of associations and the trains
ofideas may be substituted even now for the phenomena of
mind; the quick-flowing physical reals may be substituted
for the changing atoms and electrons which constitu.te the
universe today, The so called phenomena of personality
is just a make-up, a synthesis of the above mentioned forces,
Although one faUs to establish a term to term relationship
between the ancient and modern ideas, it is} however, intere-
sting to note that the ideas of the two ages are found similar.
Me~D.iD.g of the teE."m Sk~ndha.
(C) According to the Kosa, Skandha means Rasi or
enmasse or assemblage. The Parama\lus cluster together·
by nature and are recognised as Sarpghata ParamaQ.u.
There are five classes of assemblage or clustering. These
are, VIZ.
 INTRODUCTION 49
L Rupa Skandha-Externals .,.;.-R upa I
2. Vedana Skandha-... FeeHngs
3. Sal)jfia Skandha-Perceptions
4. Vijfiana Skandha-Consdousness
.)4 are known as
Nama
5. Saf!1skara Skandha-Impressions
Everything in the universe is due to the vairious com m

positions of these two classes i.e. Nama Rupa Skandha. AU

the externals are the compositions of the RupaParama1}.u or
the matter particles whi eh always duster together and fortn
a pattern (or Dravya). The entire class of manifest matter
formation is known as Ropa skandha in the widest signi ci

ficance; in a limited significance Rupa implies the visibles

only. Rupa or matter-objects exist in thethre;e phases oftimc.
The items under Nama constitute aU Psychic materials.
Na¢ul'e of Rupa as lundel'stood fl'om the point of view
of oth.el' matel'liaJistic th.inkel's
Rupaor matter means 13adha (or obstruction) or Pram
tigha. This idea can be interpreted as 'resisting character'
or impenetrability on the part of Rupa or matter. This
feature of matter has been recognised by all the classes of
thinkers, western and Indian g and, ancient and modern.
Here, according to the Kosa's view, Rupa is supposed to be
Sapratigha or obstructing in nature; this means that one form
of Rupa or matter cannot occupy the same placeat the sam.e
time with another Rupa or matter. This logical idea actuaHyo
corresponds to what British Philosopher Locke says about
matter; Rflpa formations are supposed to be the matter which
is impenetrable and obstructing one another in nature. The
Rupaskandha is the main object to be grasped or fdt by the
4 classes of the internals i.e. vedana, sarpjna o vijnana and
sarp.skara.
Classes of Rupa Ol'· Mattel' considered as AR'tha Ol'
objects
The Rupa slmndhaor the world of matter formation,
consists of both the classes of Rupa or matter, yiz.) the
4
50 INTRODUCTION

Bhutas .(ultimate properties) and the Bhautikas (the matter

composites) and Avijnapti or Non menteauxBIII •
The Bh6tas or the components of R6pa Skandha
or externals
The ultimate units of matter elements are known as
ParamaQu or the properties. These properties are of four
different kinds viz K~iti (or earth particles), Jala (water parti ..
des), Vayu (air particles) and Tejas (fire particles). These are
known as the four MahabhUtas or ultimate properties 8b • AI .
though hypothetically these Mahabhutas are said to be of
different types, they are seldom found in isolation.DIII ; each type
remains in a mixed up condition with the remaining types.
Each particular dass of Mahabhutas contains its onechara~
~tristic feattire; e~g.the K~iti (earth particles) paramaQU
has got hardness; Jala (water particles) paramaI).u has got
humidity; tejas (fire paramaQu) has got heat; Vayupara-
maQU (air particles) has got motion. It is said that these
four types remain in each constituted object in relative
proportion 9b • Function for each is also different, thus,
K~iti or Earth's function is Dhrti or (collection), Jala or
water's function is sa:r.p.graha (or ~ticking), fire's function is
pakti (or transformation) andVayu or air's function is lra~la
Of praspanda (movement or· expansion). AU these four
Mahabhlltas (primary elements, ultimate properties) ar~
charaFterised with vaql.a (colour) andsa:r.p.sthana (shape).
It is said that· the BhUtas spread themselves or manifest
themselves.
Remarks about the Bh6tas
. The Bhutas' then are comparable with' the atoms of
ancient systems of Greek philosophy and Vaise~ikl:!- philo~
sophy and . with the 'physical properties of. modern science.
The Nyaya- Vaise~ika thinkers had an original and inherent'
difficulty in their atomistic conception about the worId;Jor,
they had to under$tand' the functionit~g of the atomic
 iN1'ROLUCTIOU 51
compositions in terms of' determinism of iSvara-KaraI}.a.
Vada (causal determination of God). This weakness;
however, has been eradicated in 'atomism' of the Kosa.
The auther of the Kosa says that the ParamaQ.us of different
types remain together; a Dravya ParamalJ,u exists as a
Single isolated hypothetical real .but in practical possibility
the Parama\lus are found in clusters (sarpghata ParamalJ,U).
This point is quite scientific, and seemsio be partaially
6xplainedby the point which is found in the chance factor
, of Greek atomism. Incidentally, it may be stated that from
the point of view of modern science, the atoms or the subtle
physical properties seem to be hypothetic~I in, nature and
are supposed to be functioning together, as if in a team.
The 'Bhutas' of Sarvastivada philosophy corresponds to the
same to a great extent. Of course, from modern point of
view the nature of the particular cIass of atoms is to be
determined by specific discharge of energy. This idea,
however ~ cannot be traced in the rigid classification of the
fourdasses of Bhfitas (ultimate properties) as proposed by
, Sarvastivada philosophy. It may be simply understood
that the entire manifest world is the picture of composition
of these' hypothetical reals. lO
(D) The Bhautikas (Composites)
The' composition. of the Bhutas ..01' the 'Ultimate
pr;op~tties into COQstitu ted ,patterns
. :, the Bhautikasar~ the 'c(nupositions o·r theformation~
of the Bhutas ' or the ultimate propetdes lIl1I , ,THe' ',nve
specific objects of tpc five' Indriyas or sense organs are
Bhautika' (or constituted by the Bhfitas or. the ultimate
properties). These five'Bhautikas are viz.
Rupa--The Visibles.
Sabda-The A~dibles
Gandha-J:he ~O~factory objects
'Rasa~The Gastatory,objects'
" ·,Spra*tavya.......!heTt;tctile objects'
52 INTRODucrION

These five classes of objects or maHer formations

constitute the entire external world which is manifest and
material in nature (sapratigha Rupina1;t). Thus, in a sense
(1) these are composed of the components i. e. Parama:Q.u
(ultimate properties) and, thereby seem to be derivative
and secondary in nature. These are supposed to be the
locus of aU the items of consciousness in all the different
spheres, Even in the Arupya sphere which is non-material,
an existence of a subtle type of Rupa may be logically
inferred as the necessary substratum of dynamic continuity
of the being therein (2) and Mana (Mind)11 b •

Rema.1"k about the Bhautikas in general

I t may be stated that the basic feature of aU the
Bhautikas or the matter compositions is a concrete form
(SanidarSana~sapratigha), 3b It seems that these compositions
evidently are spatio~temporal in nature. Further, it may be
kept in mind that according to Buddhism aU these composi~
tions are changing phenomena and not a permanent object.
The approach is unlike that of the Naiyayikas and is very
similar to the nature of objects as obtained from the point of
view of Hume who denied the theory of a permanent exist-
ence of matter. Material substance, according to Hum/:\ is a
name substituted for changing states of phenomena put toge=
ther and foHowing in quick succession. The composition of
the material objects or Bhautika reminds one also of neo-
realistic approach to the same. J. S.Mill, an earlier
positivist' Russell, formerly anew realistic thinker, would
imply (in his Problems of Philosophy), that, a so caned object is
nothing but a total of all possible or infinite perspectives.

Desc:a-ipti,@lffi @f the five Items.

Rupa-(The Visibles)
R upa or Visible in limited sense is one of the
Bhautikas or l\1atter compositions. Rupa Is of two kinds,
viz. VarJ;.la (colour) and Sarpsthana (shape). These two
together make up the Rupayatanarp or the field of the
visibles (described before in connection with the Ayatanarp)
(Ibid 1>.33). There are 8 kinds of sarpsthanas or shapes.
There' are 4 varI).as or primary colours. There are other
kinds of colour derived from these four primary colours.
The primary and secondary kinds of colour are together 12.
Thus, altogether twenty kindsofthe visibles are found; three
kinds' of Sarpsthana(shape) and twelve kinds of VarQ.a
(colour), are there according to KoSa.
Th.efour primary colours are :
(1) Nila (Blue)
(2) Pita (YcHow)
(3}Lohita (Red)
(4) Avadata (White)
The secondary colours are derived from these four. These
are:
(5) Abhra (cloud colour)
. (6). Dhuma, (Sm,okeColour)
. (7) Rajfl. (Dus(colour)
'.' (8} Mihika'(MistColour)
(9) dhaya{Shade colour)
(lO) Atapa (co19urbf the Sun)
(11) Aloka '(colour of the Heavenly bodies, like
Sta.t and Moon) .
(}2).Andha.kara (Darkness colour where Rnpa is
. absent)~ .....
. . ,According tootllers, onemore, Akasa. i.e. the colour of
the Sky, is a,dd«:lrl ' to. the list.' Such are said to be the realms
ofcoloufc;tnd shape. . !tis further said that there. are some
itePJ.!!I,wnich are visible. only as colour and remain the object
,of¢y~con.scio~sness (Caks.u, Vijiiana)., These,' viz. NUa
(Blue), Pita(YeUow),L9h1ta(Red), Avadata (White),
 INtRODUCTION

Chaya (colour of shadeL Atapa (colour of Sun)' Aloka

(colour of the heavenly bodies like stars and moon), Andha-
kara (colour of darkness), do not appear in terms of Sarpsm
thana or shape. It is said that there are some aspects of
Rupayatana which only exist as Sa:rp.sthana (shape) and
not as colour p e. g. some varieties of long colour~d objects a~
found in a storm, This remains simply an object of Kaya-
vijfiapti (or Body consciousness), The rest of the items in..
eluded in the Rupayatana appear both in colour and in
shape. They remain the common objects for both eyecons~
dousness (Cak~uvijfiana) and body c:onsiciousness (Kaya
Vijfiapti) .. According to others, only Atapa (colour of Sun)
and Aloka (colour of heavenly bodies) are to be recognised as
the items appearing only in terms of colour. The other
kinds of colour, e.g. Nila (Blue) etc. appear in some shape.
Thus~ these are referred to as Ilong patch of blue' and so
on. Ordinarily, all the Bhutas (ultimate properties) appear
in terms of colour and shape 8 e,g, one speaks of ' Blue storm'
or 'Round storm' and so on and so forth, This reminds us
of a specific psychological phenomenon o~ Synaesthesia or
'blue hearing' in modern psychology_
Remalrks ab(pu,t Valr:ll}.~ aDd s~!rp,sthiiD~ scheme
The Kosa's view about the four primary colours is
very similar to Helmholtz's view of primary colours. Accor~
ding to him the three L e, blue, yeUow and red are
recognIsed as primary colours. The psychologists and
physicists, are however" of different opinions regarding
accepting <white' as colour; ordinarily, 'white' is recogni~
sed as brightness vision and not as colour vision. According
to Newton." 'white' may be analysed into seven primary
colours by holding a spectrum against the sun. According
to Herring, black and white are recognised as the most
original colour presentations; 'white' later on broke into
two more primary colours e,g. blue and yellow; still later,
yellow broke into two more primary colours, red and
 IN1'RODUCTION

green and so on. According to Kosa however, white is not

a brightness vision but is One of the four primary colours.
Ohaya or the colour or:, shade where the forms are not
seen (Chaya Yatra RupanamadarSanarp) needs a special
mention here. The idea is comparable with red-vision or
brightness vision of the animals as modern psychology
would have it. According to modern ideas the tenth.
layer of human retina consists of the Rod cells and cone
cells. The former, when stimulated produce the sensation
of brightness and latter when stimJated, produce the
colourshades or tones. The human eye may also have a
partial rod vision (purple-red) due to sudden change of
position from a lighted room to a dark one. According to
Kosa however, no rigid distinction. has been made with
regard to brightness vision and colour vision, so far as the
primary colours are concerned. But, the colour of sun and
colour of other heavenly bodies are there; these may be
regarded as brightness vision. Moreover, a controversial
view has been given about these two ......i.e. only appearing as
pure colours (Atapalokaveva Var:Qato Vidyate itiApare
A. K. Bha~ya p-6 1-10).

The theory of overlapping features of Varl}a and

Sarpsthana appears in the KoSa. Actually there are some
objects which remain the common object for eye conscious~
ness and body consciousness (Cak~uvijfiana and Kaya
Vijfiana respectively), e. g. blue storm or 'round patch of
blue' etc. as has been already mentioned, This treatment
may be understood in modern light. According to the
modern theories of biological evolution, the organic sensation
and tactual sensation are more original than the other sensa~
tions one of which developed later c.g. visual sensation. In
another sense, modern physics would reduce aU the senses and
sense objects to the mutual contacts and relations between
the electrons or the atomic properties. It is quite likely that
 t:~rrRODticttON

the "Buddhist thinkers grasped the relatively greater im ..

portance of the tou,ch sense or Kaya Vijfiapti in the same
way as the former (biologists) and that of course in an
empirical manners.
The idea of amalgamation of visual consciousness and
tactual consciousness was also known to other thinkers. This
is evident from the Nyaya- Vaise~ika treatment of Jfianala-'
k~al}.a Pratyak~a or. Perception ch3racterised by previous
knowledge. Thus the idea of solidity which is a kind of
. t~>uch may be understood while merely looking at an obje·ct
from distance. To a philosopher like Berkeley, the percep"
~ tion of edistance' and 'solidity"' would appear only in terms
of some signs .and symbols of vagueness of light and shade
which could be then interpreted and inferred as a 'distant
object' or 'solid object'as a result of memory of past touch
exp~riences associated with present visual consciousness. It
may be understood that these an~ient thinkers tried to
,distinguish, although in a crude way" between the pure
forms and coloured forms and formless pure colour. The
Sau,trantikas specj~Uy,. give a . b~tter explanation of these
wheitthey ~~y" tnatSaqxsthanaor form is nothing but an
arrangement of colon r units .

. Sabda (the,Audible): ,
Sabda includessQnnd and intentionally pronounced
, s@un,<:l; '. Thus, the two~ ~lasses of the Audibles are there,
viz;SativasarP.khy~ta . or' Vagvijfiapti (i.e.· Sabda or
sound ,pronounced by the'hu~an· beings ,and reported
spe~chrespe~tively) a.nd Asattvasaqxkhyata (i.e. the
. so6i1d,made/Qt.lH!rwiseJ~,'Thesound also may again be
as lJpathul;1ahabhutaheiul~a (otartificially produced by the
fOlirultirn~tepropei'ties'puttogether and Anupattamaha-
bhtita;hetuka (orproduce& dtherwise). The former, sattvas-
'. aqJ.k~yata,~may: be und~fst()bdasHastavakSabda (gesture &
.1!tt.e!,'e~ sounds) MId the Asa ttvasaqxkhyata may be understood
as the natural sounds Hke 'rustling of the leaves of
trees or murmuring of the river and so on. Each of
these classes may be subdivided ioto two more subclasses,
viz. Manojna and. Amanojna (harmonic and dishar
monic respectively), Thus, altogether there are eight kinds
of Sabda or audibles. It i; said, that theparamaQ.us
or the ultimate properties of sound stick together like those
orthe visual nature of the other paramaQ.usor the ultimate
properties.
I
Remarks about Sabda
The Kosa's cIassifkation of the audi'bles or Sabda,
however, seems to be overlapping; for, some Sabda which
is Asattvasa:rp.khyata (sounds other than reported gesture
, I

Or speech) may again be upattamaMibhutahetuka Sabda

(sounds produced by hand etc.) or otherwise. The
view, however, does not differentiate between the
sound and word or between a sentence and a gesture.
The Naiyayikas and modern logicians differentiate between
the sound and word more carefuUy; the ideas of 'Hastavak
Sabda' (sound produced by hand and vocal organ) reminds
one of gesture of the earlyhurnan beings ~n.dth~gesti.tt~S
of their earlier predecessors of?oiInals. InddenhiHy the;
modern experiments by Garneron' animaL, languige may
be referred to. Garneis experiment~ show thattheanhnals
utter almost same kind of SOUl1ds at a .• . p~rfi~tilar- situation
e. g. sounds ar~ same when they ,getafr?id;sounds~re
uniform of the same class during the m~ting,s,eason.On th~
basis of the data obtained from the animals. in different
situations, ,he is of opinion that'. animals 'also use sOrn~
symbolic . sounds which are understoodan9responded)b
by the other animals. Even' ordinarily, animals respond
to known human 'words andgestures~ . ." ;;
The eight classes of sound ohtCi.ike.dfrom the Ko,saafe:
1. Manojiia rSattvakhya S,ab~a ,(hat:Inpnip,spe,e£b
~ound) , .
 58 INTRODUCTION

. 2. Manojua Asattvakhya Sabda (harmonic sound

which is not speech)
3. Manojna upattamahabhutahetukasabda (harmo-
nic sound produced by gestures)
4 •. Manojna Anupattamatabhfita hetuka Sabda
(harmonic sound produced by nature)

5. Amanojna Sattvakhya Sabda (Disharmonicreport~

ed speech)
6. Amanojna Asattvakhya Sabda(Disharmonic sound
which is not speech)
7. Amanojna Upattamahabhilta hetuka Sabda
(Disharmonic sound produced by gesture)
8. Amanojfia AnupattamahabhUtahetukaSabda
(Disharmonic sound produced by nature)

The above classification of sounds by the ancient

thinkers reminds us of the modern theory of auditory per-
ception. It ishe1dnow that the ear acts as the sound analyser:
all classes of sound maybe reduced to relative pictures
of air vibrations in a second. Thus, all possible sound
variatio'ns may be reduced to different frequency of varia-
tions of the air per second. The varieties of sounds 'corres-
pond. to varieties of vibrations from 20~20000 vibration
cycles per second. Here, there is no specific, mention of
vii;>ration in the Kosa; but the Naiyayikas clearly hold'
. that the sound is produced in . open air or sky. In the
Kosa, however, there is an attempt to describe the varieties
of sounds like harmony (manojua ) , and disharmony
( amanojnEt). '. .
., .,
. The idea of the Sabda Parama:Q,us or particles stick-
ingtogether' reminds one oftb'e hair ceUs in the inner ear
being together stimulated in humour or liquid; we also,
remember the other theory (Wever Bray Effect) which states
that the particular squads of the cells perform a team work
in order to produce a particular sound, This shows that no
theory mentioned in the Kosa, however crude that may beD
indicated some scientific ~~rasp in the matter.

Rasa (Gastatory objects)

Rasa or gastatory objects are of six main varieties;
but they may be combined into sixty three kinds of mixed
tastes as found in Caraka. It appears Kosa roughly
accepts the scheme without going into the details.

Ren:lark
The above scheme of six taste objects may be compar~
ed with the different gastatory sensations as modern psycho~
logy would have it. These are:
(1) Bitter : It is felt at the back of the tongue,
(2) Sweet: It is felt at the tip of the tongue.
(3) Sour: It is felt at both sides of the tongue.
(4) Salt; It is feIt all over the surface of the tongue.
(5) MetaHic
(6) Astringent or acid taste.
I t is said that taste sensation is vague and cannot be
imaged when withdrawn from the percept. Taste sensation
often blends with olfactory sensation and organic sensation
of the alimentary canal. Taste of something hot produces a
temperature sensation. Incidentally it may be stated that:
according to Kosa, Rasa objects are produced by direct con~
tact of the tongue with the food or any other object. The
tongue cannot have the taste of a remote object. Again; the
tongue can have only a present sensation; past perception
images or future images of taste are not possible with regard
to taste objects.
Ga:ndha, (smell objects)
Gandha, smeH or olfactory objects according to Kosa.
are of four kinds, viz. Sugandha, durgandha (or good odour
and bad odour) and samagandha, vi~amagandha (mild and
strong smeH respectively), According to Bhawa, there are
only three kinds of smeH, viz., good-odour, bad odour and
mild odour,
Remark
According to the view~point of modern psychology six
kinds of smell are obtainable. These are (after Herring) :
(1) Fruity, (2) Flowery, (3) Ethereal .. (4) Spicy~ (5)
Putrid, (6) Burnt. It is said that the olfactory receiving
cells are easily fatigued. Often one type of smell blends into
another if the stimulus is prolonged; e.g. sensation of jasmine
smell after along time would stimulate the sensation of
putrid. 'Flavour' is a unique blend of olfactory and
gastatory sensations. Like gastatory sensation, olfactory
senstion is equally vague and gets mixed up easily with the
organic sensation, Although it is one of the more original
senses of animals, it requires a direct contact with the
percept. Incidentally, it may be stated that, gastatory and
olfactory senses remain a problem even to aU the exponents
of modern physics, physiology and psychology. The smeH
sensations are highly suggestible in nature.
The above ideas are raised in order to understand the views
of the Kosa on olfactory sensation in a better way. Thus,
according to Kosa also, olfactory objects require a direct con~
tact with the organ. This means that a smeH sensation occurs
only when the percept is present (upatta vi~aya). There is no
olfactory image possible; so, there cannot be any olfactory
sensation of a very distant object. In case, one has gotto decide
from the blending of two Idnds of sensations one of t he olfac~
tory andgastatory, the nature of the sensation win be decided
by the relatively stronger intensity of one over the other;
 IN1'RODUCTION

(yasya vi~ayo Patiyi3n A,K. Vyakhya. p. 32. IdlO/lO). This

vague nature of olfactory sensation, seems to be recognised
by both ancient and modern thinkers. Both recognise th~
necessity of direct' contact of the object and the olfactory
organ.
Spra~t.avya (Tactile objects)
The Spra~tavyas are the tactile objects. There are
eleven kinds of spra~tavyas (or tactile). These are viz.
(1-4·) These are the 4 mahabhutas (the four ultimate
properties) 1. e., K~iti (earth properties), J ala (water proper~
ties), Tejas (fire properties) and Vayu (air properties).
These have been discussed in the beginning of this
chapter, (Ibid p. 50)
(5) Slak~aQ.atva (smoothness)
(6) Karkasatva (roughness)
(7) Gurutva (heaviness)
(8) Laghutva (lightness)
(9) SUa (depletion of heat)
(10) Jighatsa (hunger)
(ll) Pipasa (thirst)
Analysis @f the Spra~tavyas (5)-(11).
The items (5)·(8), Le. smoothness, roughness, heavi ..
ness and Hghtness (Slak~Q.atvaJ KarkaSatva. Gurutva and
Laghutva respectively) are comparable with some of the
, GUQ.as or the qualities according to the Nyaya School. But~
here these are not rec>gnised as the qualities, but as quali,.
fied objects e.g. smooth object, rough object, heavy object
and light object. It may be said that these objects remain
the common objects for both tactile sensations and visual
sensations, jfianalak~aQ.a perception (perception, determinecJ
by associated knowledge previously obtained) from the
point of view of the Naiyayikas tend to support this idea.
Among the modern thinkers philosopher Berkeley and
62
present day psychologists generally are of OpInIOn that
the ideas of objects as rough, smooth, heavy or light are
understandable in terms of visual symbols, interpreted in
the Hght of previously experienced touch. These are relative
to the individual also.
~Ha is understood as absence oftemperature. Accord-
ing to modern psychology cold sense is induced by one of
the touch senses. Cold sense however is extremely relative.
It is said in the Bha~ya of the Kosa that sUa is only anugra;.
haka (or receiving process) and not upaghataka (or reacting
process). This idea however is comparable with the fact
of 'psychological cold' of modern psychology which is more
subjective than objective. It is said that life (jivita) pas
got heat as well as energy,121!. .
Jighatsa (hunger) and Pipasa (thurst) are described
in the Kosa as two kinds of spra~~avya or tactile objects.
These are absent in corporeal sphere or Rupa Dhatu,
According to modern idea,however, these are recognised
as the two kinds of organic states of experiencing depletion.
Thus, according to Kosa tactile objects are the objects
mostlyof Kaya (body) consciousness. These thinkers, possibly
understood the organism as body or Kaya; whereas, touch
sense has been differentiated frOtn organic sense which in
a sense is more diffused and unlocalised than mere touch.
The surmise, that the Buddhists understood organism by
body is supported by the discussion in the Kosa Bha~ya
about the . make up of the different spra~tavyas (tactile
objects) and their getting blended with gastatory sense.
One may be doubtful about the nature of a perception and
led to foHow whether it has been produced by gastatory
object ortactHe object, In that case the nature of percep-
tionwiUbe deddedby the stronger intensity of the objects
producing the perception. In case both are simultaneously
presented, gastatory sense should be given priority. We
lrnay mention here also about flavour which is a mixed
seK~sation of taste and smell combined,
 IN'tRODucnON

Remark about theohjeds of consciousness or Artha

It is said that the tactile sensation (kayavijiHina) may
be produced by all the factors of the fo'ijE' ultimate·
properties (earth, water, air» fire properties) and anyone
of the seven other .categories of spra~~avyas (tactiles) 91'
roughness or smoothness and so on. Some thinkers are of
opinion that aU the eleven items are required to be put
together to produce tactile sensation whi.ch is complex in
nature.
IUs stated, that similarly the object of cak~uvijfiana
etc. may be produced due to oneebject or many objects. In
case there are many objects puUogether to produce the same
sensation, no par'ticularisation or specification (vyavaccheda)
is possible. This view, incidentally, may be compared with
one of the most modern aspects of neural process, It is said
that a common neural stimulation roay be the joint effect
of various stimuli working together. Sometimes even
different conscious processes ate produced by the same
stimuli and vice versa. (12 b)
It may be said in the conclusion, that, the Bhutas and
Bhautikas (the properties and aU their compositions) form
the subject matter of object of five different vjjfianas or
consciousness obtained by five sense organs.l~ (Pafica Artha
Kosa 1-10, A. K. Bha~ya P,5); BhUtas (Suk~mar are
subtle and hypothetical in nature. The Bhautikas are like
manifest compounds (or Audarika) and may be compared
with the DvyaQuka (Dyads) or TrasareQu (Tdad) ofNyaya
Philosophy, The first is not percivabJe while the second is
directly perceived as a Bhautika. 1 "b
 ~J(rR9DucTtON

References
:10 (a) Anityl vata Saipsk~rlih; Ko~a I I-Kii 41 Sphutlirtna p. 106.
(b) Vijnaptirnagatirn~s~tSarp.skrtarp. K~aQikarp. Yatab.
Kosa 4 ka 2. . ' ,r
~t. (a) Ndtmlsti Skandhamlitrarp. tu KarmaklesadisatMkrtarp.. A. K:
Klirikil) 'Kosa HI KilNo. 18.
(I» Sa pra~ityasamutplda 'dvlldaslingastriklioc;1akah. A; K. Karikli
Ko~a IU,· ~a ZOo '

3. (a) Tatra ye ye Sarvastitvavadino Bahyarp. Antararp. ca Vlf sva-

, 'ohyupagacchanH Bhiitarp.Bhautikam Ca cittarp. caittarp. ca
tlin stavat pratibru.mah.
Vedllntadadana 2, 2-1 8. Sarirakabha~yarp..
(0) Tadllsti'Vadat Sarvastiviidi Matab.
, A. Ko~aJ Kqsa Vya. Ka25. '
4. Na casan phrvamutpiidlit Kascidasmi Sautrlintikamatena.
Kosa3, Kli 28
5; Kathavatthu---I~6 (a)
,;' (b) Points of controversy A'ppendix P 315 '-:-7
6. (a) Kosa V, Ka. 26.
(b) Vi<ie,· Sarvlistiva.da "dada.ner a§riti SakMmat (Bengali) by
tli'e ,author, Somaprakasa (2nd: Year, I Vol. p.49. 1958)"
'1;" NaviiparamaQuru.painekarp; Prthakbhiitarp asti.
.(a).I{osa: 1;KI1 13.
(b) ,Prlhl'lkl:\hiitl;lrp.asarpgh:Uavasiharp. itiarthlib
'"T;dr~,nlis~i~ Sarp.gbata'Jtha nitya:rp; bhav.ati.
" ",,~, Ko~al,Ka 13;

'8/ ·(a) Rilparp pancent:lri~Qi artliaJ;Panca Aviji'iaptill'ev~ ca,

..••• "Ko~a 1, Ka9.
(b)Pf,thivrdhaturaptejo'ltayu(1Ilatavah, ' '~ ;
,Kosa I, Kfi 12.SphutlIrthll
, ~', '. ..
" , , ,

9. (a) Sarp,citl1,da~al'upiMb~Kosa l~.Ki:1 35) Sphlitarthli ,

Na VaLparamliourlipamekarp. P.rtnagbhutamasti. Kosa 1,Kli 13•
.(b) , Pa,ramaF;)usaqlcayaSwabhavah.Kosa 1,Kll 35 (Sphuti:1rthlI) .
10. ,Kf;:aoiklIni ca bhlitamRlipatYi:1t pradrpavat. ',' '
, Kpsa. 1,~ai2 SphullIrtha.
 INTRODUCTION 65
H. (a) RupiQ.o Nava Bbautikab,
Kosa 1, K§. 35.
(b) Samjii§.prabbr tayastraya Arupyat, Sphutartha p. 56,
Kosa 1, Ka 23.
12. (a) TasmuJivitamu~maQ.o Vijii~nasya
CadaMra Ucyate.
Kosa 2, K:1 45.
(b) Visuddhimaggah 14/32-40.
c Editor Bapat and Vadekar p. 309.
__U." ..<a) The six Ayatanas (bases already described as Ayatanas) are
related to the different cognitions and Mind elements (Mana-
dhatu). (Previously described under five sensations and
sense objects and mind.consciousness).
(b) Name and notion.

.I

5
 CHAPTER HI
(A) LOKA
€U'.

The Buddhist ConcePtion of the Phenomenal world

(Universe)
Buddhist Conception of the World.
Cosmology and Biology.
Comparison of some of the Indian and Western theo d

ries with the main philosophical outlook of Sarvastivada.

Is Safvastivada a Realism ?

The Buddhist Conception of the world.

The Universe consists of three distinct strata viz. the
'Kamaloka' or Kamadhatu' (the sensuous sphere), the
iRnpaloka' or 'Rupadhatu' (the material sphere) and the
'Arnpya Loka' or 'Arupyadhatu' (the non-material sphere).
These three, roughly, may be understood as the wodd of
desire, world of corporeality and world of non-corporeality
respectively. Sensuous sphere or world of desire thus is
characterised by 'Kama' or 'Tr~Qa' (or craving), 'Rupa' or
Corporeal world is constituted by pure matter and devoid
of craving. The 'Arupya' sphere is characterised by non-
existence of craving and Matter both. It is subtle, abstract
and non-spatial. It may be understood that aU these three
may be found together :in the same universe. A being of
Kamadhatu may be raised to the status of'Rupadhatu' and
eArupyadhatu' during the process of the dhyanas or spiri-
tual realisation.
Before each of these three spheres is individually
discussed, it may be suggested in general that these three
may be compared with the three main functions of the human
mind as accepted by modern psychology. The sensuous
n.3t 11re indicated by 'Kamadhatu' may be compared. with
 INTRODUCTOlN 67
the basic or instinctual aspect of the human nature. This
part consists of the emotional urges and attitudes. The
'Rupadhatu', then, may be understood to be the world of
reality which stimulates consciousness. Consciousness as sub~
jective~objective process undergoes modification or modaHsa~
tion as the result of such stimulation. So, this aspect consti"
tutes the cognitive life in main. The third or the Arupya
sphere may be taken as. stilI higher a level of abstract
thinking which seems to exert deliberate control over the
other spherese So this function is comparable to the motl"
vated and voluntary aspect of consciousness or the conative
life)
Freud aJso, it may be said, expounded his ideas of
lId', 'Ego' and 'Super Ego', grounded in the personality
pattern: The emotional life is common to both human beings
and animals. But, this emotional life or @Id' is modified a
lot in human nature and forms the ego or reality principle.
Ego again is further controlled and guided by the Socio-
ethical norms, formed out of abstract reason and decision
which are made up of secondary thought or rationalisation.
The three spheres, mentioned in the Kosa, roughly seem
to correspond to these three kinds of mental function. Of
course the ancient Buddhist thinl{crs could not be so dear
about the' exposition as modern thinkers would do; but is
it quite possible that they hinted at the basic functions of
reality and thought based on reality. Obviously, they
foHowed a process, of analysis and intro~spection of the
materials obtained from their own mind.2
Cosmology.
Th,®, 'Ka~adh,at~' OR' th,® sph,®R'® of Sensuous n~:duR'e
The Kamadhatu . is surrounded by the AbmaQ.Qala
(or the watery circle) on the bottom and VayumaQ.Qala (or,
the atmosphere) on top. The special feature of €Kamadhatu'
is Karma or Tr~Q.a or desire. Kamaraga, or Sensuous incH~
:nation is the outcome of 'Kabalikarahara' or solid food and
68

'Maithuml.' or Sex· act. 'Kamadhatu' is the abode of the

Pretas(or the Hellish creatures), the 'Pasu' (or the animals),
the Manu~ya (the human beings) and the lower class
of devas (gods). The Pretaloka {or the hell} consists of
existences of eight kinds. viz. :

(l) Sarpjiva-· Here the half dead are brought back

to life tor further sufferings.
(2)Kalasutra~Here suffering is caused by deadly
net.
(3) Sarp.ghata-Here suffering is caused by the
falling hillocks.
(4) Raurava~Here suffering is caused by crying
aloud.
(5) Maha Raurava~He.re suffering is caused by
intense crying.
(6) Tapana-Here suffering is caused by heat.
(7) PraHi.pana-Here suffering is caused by intense
heat.
(8) Avid~Here suffering is caused by continuous
heat.
Some of the denizens here are born of exudation and
are regarded as 'U papadukas' (or spontaneously born). The
worlds of the 'Tiryaka' (or the birds} and IPasu' (or the ani-
mal) also are induded in the Kamadhatu. The human
beings dwell in the four continents viz. J arp.budvlpa (indu-
duding India), Uttarakuru, Purva videha and 'Avara
Godaniya'. The gods of lower ranJ{ dwell in the six diffe~
rent places within the tiKamadhatu'. These are viz. 8Catu~
rmah!1rajilm9~ 'Trayastrh:p.Sa" cYama','Tu~ita' 'Nirmar.larati'
and Paranirmal}.a vasavarti'. Thus, altogether there are
tw«;:nty dassesof denizens in the Kamadh!1tu dwelling in the
eight hens) the animal world, 4 continents and the Pretaloka
(Aparhional World) and six Heavens,
 Kamadhatu has got its own importance. Even
Buddha, who was aU but perfect and rose above everything,
had to come down to Kamadhatu in .order to end his mortal
existence; for, the span of life in the other spheres is much
longer than in €Kamadhatu'. Again, those who died in the
'Kamadhatu' often obtaining Anagamya' (or never·to~
g

return stage) or the last birth before Nirvar;m would be

reborn in the higher spheres of aRupadhatu' and would
start right from the stages of bodily and mental disciplining
of the previous birth in quest of spiritual truth. Ina sense
GKamadhatu' signifies the widest sphere .of the sensuous
world; the godsofKamadhatu also enjoy a sensuous nature.
This is dear if we consider the significance of o.ne or two
places ofthedI' dwelling, vis., 'Yama', which means a place
wherefrom Dul).kha (or suffering) has been removed ;gTu~ita',
which means a place where all desires have been achieved;
'NirmaQ.arati' is populated by the gods who enjoy imaginary
creations, and so 00. Normally aU the beings including the
Arhats (the liberated) have got the possibility of achieving
NirvaQ.a in. the Kamadhatu. There are some who obtain
the 'Sakrdagam'i' (or the once-returning) stage in thekama-l
dhatu. These will be reborn in the Kamadhatu and when
they die there they will get their liberation. There are
others who are not liberated in the Kamadhatu; they will
be born however in Rupadhatu and achieve liberation the.re.
(these are said to be in€never-to-return' or 'Anagami stage).
Ru.padhiitu @r the Matel"ial Sp:here1
RupadhMu enjoys a higher spiritual status than Kama o

dhatu; but it should not be taken as physically apart from

Kamadhatu. The origin of Rupa is freedom from Trg1a (or
desire) and is due to pure maUer or Rupa alone. Rupadhatu
corresponds to four of the pure matters to be found in the
higher stages of meditation.. Each of the first three Dhyanas
again corresponds to three more stages; while the fourth
 <',' .;

nhyan~ cotresporidsto eight states. Thus, altogether we have

got Seventeen states ih t4e Rupadhatu, Accordingly, there
ar~Seventeetl classes of existents. The arrangement is given
below:
Dhyana I Corresponding Existents'
, (a) Mrdu (dull) , Brahmakayika
(b). Madhya (medium) Brahmapurohita
, (e) Tik§I].a (sharp)," Mahabrahma
Dhy'O,naII Corresponding Existents
fa) Mrdu (duB) Parittabha
(b) Madhya (medil;lm) ApramaI].abha
(c) 'Tik~I].a (sha~p) Abhaswara
Dhyiina III , Corresponding Existents
(a) Mrdu (dull) ParHta Subha '
(b) Madhya(medium) . ApramaI].asubha
,
. (c) Tjk~t}a (sharp) . Subhakrtsna
Dhyana IV Corresponding Existents

i+;~;!t4~~~~:itg~c1,a;nj ,; "'?~~:;:!:va
',. (p) 'J:'l~~lJ~(irl~:r.prv. ... . . . . 'Bffiatphala
'. (~)' "I'"." '",';" . . . '~Mpa
'(e)
. . . ..';Abr ha
. ,,+1")" ';FiVeTSttdd1rava;sas,;J5uOrSa
. (g}.i ff':'.t! ii',:!,.,:!, !;'~i ·..·~.;·!;.:.·~".!'•. ,A~~~i~tha
(Ill> . . , . ' '. ..., ,; ' . 'Sudarsana
-' . '' ' .. -,-;+. ':>-(/;:f~,:-/~:0/;~' )L~;<~/<;'1, '
':0:;'," ;};r#§~tta,~P~ct!l.({-?f;t~~Mfji~titive stages is determined
.RY:th,e:~ela?tl\#~,:,. S~P~R.iiy"'J~r:fJ!~;individual who may be of

.~t~~$~~;t*~il~:~~,:n!tT~:'::t~;~::~
. ;J;jJ';K;~)y,r~~tt~~9n,({i!tiQi1f4g~~1~~t~i~ment of a stage) .of a state
'jtl~pen.<f~;j.g,~ j~.~I~ti~,.;jj9't;~~s~~~';9f ~I)::~salamnla' .(or rootmerit).
Th~'fise~ridfCl.l1fromon~,;1,#dtlteQther state of existence is
determined by the Karma (or the act~vity)of the individual
dying ataparticular stage which ha$ already been achieved
by him. Thu~, some individual dying, say, after o.btaining
the seco.nd dhyana will be reborn there in.o.rderto. resume
his wo.rk fro.m that very stage. This state m;;ty be co.mpared
with so.me ideas expressed in the Hindu text of 'Srimadbha-
gvadgita'. It is said that the existents of Brhatphala level
or.the fourth dhyana o.btain cAsarp.jfii. Samapatti' (a
dynamic stage of no.n-conscious trance) spontaneously as an
achievement meant fo.r t11em without effort.
Description of Dhyana l II. III & IV.
The adept develops the first dhyana which in nature is
CSavitarka (i~vestigating), 'Savicara' (discerning) J 'Vivekaja'
(originated in solitude) and cPritisukha' (resulting in jo.y).
The adept develo.Ps the second dhyana which is devo.id o.f
Savitarka (investigating) and Savicara (discerning)' attitude;
he enjo.ys a kind o.f spiritual enjo.yment; he experiences
serenity bo.rn o.f co.ncentratio.n o.f thought due to. Samadhi
(co.ncentratio.n). The adept develo.Ps the third dhyana where
joyful feeling is absent and Upek~a·o.r neutraHty prevails.
So. this stage is Niwritikarp (o.r devo.id o.f jo.y). But the
adept enjoys an o.rganic state o.f caJm."Ka-yena Pratisarp.ve-
dayati" expresses a state experienced by the entire o.rganism.
Remark about the 3rd Dhyana.
This experience is no.t mainly a subjectivestate,-fo.r
the reaHsatio.n as such is experienced by the o.rganism as a
who.le(Kayena Upasarpvedayati o.r co.mmunicated by the
body).- This state may be co.mpared with a state orSu~upti
(o.r deep sleep) which has been described in Vedanta
philosophy· ·o.f Sarp.kara as Turiya state o.ra final stage
parallel to the experience o.f Brahma (the infinite). The
state also. may be co.mpar~d with' Niruddha( with':'
drawn) stage mentioned in Yo.ga philo.sophy. Dr. N.
Duha has elaborately discussed this experience in his
 INTRObUCTION

;(r'Aspects of Mahayana Buddhism and itsrelatioh to

Hinayana(p. 164.. 184). This expression 'Kayena Upasatp'-
padya' reminds us of what James, the American psycho-
l'ogistcum philosopher says with regard to emotion.
Accord;ing to James, so caUed emotion is nothing but a
name for the huge mass o'f sensatio.n:s rising from theentite
er'gahism,endi't1g inah emotionale:xpereicne. Here,how-
ever, weget in the Kosa that the state experienced in the
third dhyana is dovoi'dofemotion completely (Love and Joy
being absent : Ni~pritikatp Sukhatp Viharati).· Evidently,
it implies that this neutral psychic stage is communic,ated
through a bodily equilibrium.
The adept develops the fourth dhylina which is free of
organic pleasure and pain {Kayiki Sukha and Duh,.kha
respectively). It is also free of subjective pleasure and
irritation. (Manasika Saumanasyatp and daurmanasyatp
respectively). The experience is a completely equilibriated
. state of mind equivalent to upek~a(or neutrality} and .pure
smrti (upek~a smrtiparisuddhatp) respectively.
General Analysis of the four Dhyanas
Analysing the contents of these four dhyanas, it may
be seen that the first is a logical comprehension associated
with a sense of discrimination and happiness. The second
is free of that logical comprehension and discrimination:
it is associated with a state of pleasure, an outcome of deep
concentration. The third is free of all these and predomi-
nated over by a deep_ state of concrete and organic calm
rising out of indifference and neutrality. The fourth is a
state of complete detachment from everything. Thus, the
range of experiences starts from a subjective state of feeling,
which gradually rises upto a higher state of abstraction
which, again as higher and fuller state of experience,
pervades the entire organism; this state is non-conscious
(Asatpjfii) and dynamic.
 tNTRObUCTION 13
Vijnallasthiti
Rupa or matter is the support of Vijfiana. Thus
Vijfianasthiti implies a support for the Vijfianas which
without Rupa cannot be. Accordingly, four classes of
Vijfianasthiti are recognised from the point of view of the
KoSa. These are viz. Vijfianasthiti connected with Rupa
(matter), Vijfianasthiti connected with Vedana (feeling),
Vijfiasthiti connected with Sarp.jfia (perception) and
Vijfianasthiti connected with Sarp.skara (impression-
apperception). It is said that Vijnana~thiti and Tr~Q.asthiti
are same. These are found in all these three spheres or
dhatus.
Thus, from the ideas given above it seems that Vijfiana
or consciousness everywhere has its support or object, this
object of consciousness may be Rupa or matter~ Vedana
or feeling, Sarp.jfia or perception and Sarp.skara or a deep
rooted impression. In all these cases consciousness will
be. modified accordingly as consciousness of a thing or of
pleasure-pain, or of a particular emotion e.g. anger and
hate (Krodha and Dve~a respectively). It may be further
said that consciousness may be of various types; It may be
written with different names and different forms or may be
unique in its appearance. The different classes of Vijfia-
nasthiti remind us of infinite perspectives of knowledge
considered from the view point of Nominalism and conc-
eptualism of ancient scholastic philosophy of Europe and
modern Neo-Realistic philosophy. According to this last
mentioned school an object is nothing but a sum or a range
of all the possible sensations. These are:
Vijnanasthiti I.-This support of consciousness is known
as "NanlUvakaya Nanasafijna" or a consciousness supported
by various forms and various names i.e. many identi-
ties. This state is found in the six gods and the human
beings of Kamadhatu. It is found in the first dhyana of
14.. INTRODUCTlON

Rupadhatu (The Brahma-purohita and" Mahabnihma

Gods' only share it) ..
Vijnlinasthiti II. - This support of consciousness' is
known as Nlinlikliya-ekasa1'(lIiili or manyformsuq.der one
name, this is fdund among the Brah makayika Gods; of the
first dhyana.
Vijnlinasthiti II/,- This support of consciousness is
known as "Nanlsam.Iflli-ekakliya" or different perceptions under
one form. This state is found among the Abhaswara Gods
of the seconddhyana.'
Vijnlinasthiti IV":"" This su ppor t of consciousness is
known as "Ekasamjft.akaya" or one perception and one form.
It is found among' the Subhakrtsna Gods of the third
dhyana.· .
Vijiilinasthiti V VI VII.-$ The three other supports of
cbnsciousnessare in the Arupyadhatu and may be under-
stood as "Akasanantyayatana" (or the infinite sky), "Vijfia-
nanantyayatana" or(infinite consciousness); "Akincanyanant
yatana" (or infinite' desirelessness) (Vyakhya p 12/10
Kosa 3).
Thus, the different classes of Vijfianasthiti seem to
range from the sphere of desire (Kamadhatu or the sphere
of sensuous world) in the Kamadhatu to a state of Infinite
Desirelessness (or "Akincan;yanantayatana") in the Arupya-
dhatu. 6 This idea further indicates that the functioning
consciousness remains as a flowing 'Stream' continuing in the
threedhatus for a so-called phenomena of existence (or Bhava)
which is not dissolved till the Bhava is demolished by Nirva:Q.a. 7
This point however requires a careful consideration by a
student of Sarvastivada philosophy. Emphasis on Vijfiana
signifies an idea-listie or mentalistic attitude as a whole like
that of Berkeley's Subjective Idealism or Hegel's Ideal
Realism, the latter being but a development of the former.
 75
Incidentally, it may be sta,ted that the theory that
every consciousne~s has to be based on a support is similar
to the modern theory of consciousness which always is a
reaction to an external or internal stimulus. Thus, it again
may be suggested as has been stated previously that conscious-
ness in the Kamadhatu is similar to the modern idea of
spontaneous emotional and sensuous nature of man, while
consciousness in the Rflpadhatu may be understood as
objectdirected knowledge or cognition as the modern
psychology would have it. And, finally Arflpya indicates the
realm of abstract and symbolic thought.
The Sattva.vasas
The term CSattvavasa' introduces a discrimination
between the two types of consciousness, viz. voluntary and
non-voluntary, and signifies support (Alarp.bana) ofvoluntaz:y
consciousness only. The hellish creatures of the Kama-
dhatu are supposed to have a dim and primitive nature of
consciousness. They are put in the Hell against their
choice; so, the consciousness they have developed is deter-
mined by their state of existence which they are not free to
accept. This state of existence devoid of freedom of choice
may be accepted as a cause for their dim and feeble consci-
ousness. On the otherhand, there are nine Sattvavasas, cover-
ing almost all the conscious states determined by various
supports (Alarp.bana) or Vijiianasthiti ranging between
the first Vijfianasthiti in the Rflpadhatu and the Bhabagra
Stage (or the 'Naiva-sarp.jfianasarp.jfiananantaya.tana' or a
state of Infinite non-consciousness and Infinite no-noncon-
sciousness) in the Arupyadhatu.
The first four classes of Vijfianasthiti correspond to
the first four Sattv;lvasasof voluntary conciousness (discussed
previously). The fifth Sattv;lvasa corresponds to the Asrp.jiii.,
sattva Gods of the fourth dhyana who are inactive so far as
consciousness is concerned. For these Gods, Asarp.jni
Samapat~i (or a trance stage of non-consciousness) is a
 16 . tNTRODUCTlON

spontaneous achievement. (Vaibha~ika Darsana By Prof.

Ananta Kumar Tarkatirtha). However, with these
denizens .non-consciousness should not be understood asa
defect; they develop this attitude as a state of fullness,
(Asarpjfii Samapatti). They are included in the Sattvavasa
for they are not put there against their will. They just deve~
lop aconditio~ of mind in which consciousness as exercising
mental function is not needed. The sixth seventh and eighth
Sattvavasas Correspond respectively to the fifth, sixth and
seventh Vijfianasthiti states of the A.rfipyadhatu. The ninth
Sattvavasa is the correspondent of Bhavagra (or final stage of
Bhava before achieving NirvaQa) or Naivasarpjfianasam.jfia
nantayafana stage. Here ends all the conscious-unconscious
process of the ,functioning mind. This state is achieved .by
previous effort and voluntary choice preceding attainment
of Ni~vaI).a. This state, however, seems to be a state of purely
dynamic becoming, which is beyond the categories of know-
ing and not-knowing both (Naiva Sa111jfia Nasaro,jfia). As a
state of trance the state indicates a fulness which possibly
baffles aU understanding categories of ordinary consciousness
and merges into the free flow of being. .
These last Sattvavasa and the fifth Sattvavasa states
(AsarpjUi Samapatti, discussed before) req·uire a careful
analysis.. Both remind us of Freudian idea of the Uncons-
cious which is also a psychodynamic flow of biological
energy. The Unconscious is characterised as a hypothetical
reality which can never be exposed to the conscious light.
The nature of Asarpjfii samapatti and Naivasa111jfia nasaro,-
jfia.nantayatana states remind us of the same ide.a. Again,
these can he compared with the :idea of 'thing-in-itself' from
the point of view of Kant. The metaphysical entities accord-
ing to Kant are extrementaL So, these cannot be known by
~he mind and remain unknown and unknowable. These two
. sattva.vasas to some extent correspond in nature to Kant's
idea of the Reals which can·never be mentally understood.
 .INTRODUCTION

All the Sattvavasas in general indicate a voluntary

type of consciousness. . Thus, they seem to correspond to
the higher mental complexity of conative life as modern
psychology would have it .. This idea is evident from some
of the materials obtained from the Kosa aho.:ut the Sattva-:-
yasas. The creatures of Hell are not included in th<;
Sattvavasas for their lac.kiI}g freedom of will and so they
are put there against will ("Anicchavasan" 6,3),. The
ninth Sattvavasa or Bhavagra is preceded by volition. The
Sattvavasas are not found in the sensuous nature or Kama-
dhatu. They are higher mental functions and occur only
in the Riipa and the Arupyadhatu. These ideas are found
very similar to the modern ideas which are both, found in
psychology and ethics. Emotion and Reason are wide apart.
Emotions are blind and Reason is the guide .. Both, however,
are harnessed together by the balancing Ego-consciousness
which is superior to mere emotion. Reason does not develop
in children and animals where guiding factor is only emotion.
Arupyadhatu.
Arupyadhatu has been explained as a sphere of non-
corporeality or abstraction. Ariipyadhatu means absence
of'Riipa' or Matter; Thus,. Arflpyadhatu means the strata
or . sphere of existence devoid of Kamadhatu (or sensuous
sphere) and Arupya or non-material nature is found there
in the three Samapatti states and Bhavagra. It is also found
in the concepts like the AUta' (or past) Anagata (or future).
Avijiiapti (or non-menteaux) and Vedana (or feeling).
Remark
Thus, it may be said that the Arupyadhatu deals with
asuperibr kind. of Psycho-dynamic energy which may even
go beyond the range of ordinary consciousness. Ariipya
seems to be correspondent of subtle and abstract impressi.ons
or complex mental functions. These impressions are known
as the Salllskatas .from the point of view of the KoSa.
·78 INTRODUOTION

According to the different branches ofmodetn Psychology, the

psycho-physical existence consists of emotion, cognitio;n and
'Volition. It may just be suggested that according to Abhi~ .
dharma Kosa also the entire psychophysical existence falls
withinthe three mail1 categories viz., Kamadhatu, R;upa-
dhatuand Arupyadhatu which correspond to the emotive
nature, cognitive nature and conative nature respectively as
has been stated before.
Cosm()-B iology
. There are four different species of animals accordiJg
to Abhidharma KoSa. These are viz :-
(1) creatures, born of shell or AQQaja.
(2) creatures, born ofPJacenta or Jarayuja.
(3) creatures, born of exudation orSarpswedaja.
(4) . creatures, born spontaneously orUpa~adukas.·

His. said that. mena,nd some of the animals (qlladru·

peds) are born out of Placenta. Tiryak or the other animals
cover up the world of birds and reptiles which are. born of
shell. Some insects are 'born of exudation and some are born
spontaneously. The upapadukas (or the apparitional) and
snakes and birds are born sp~ntaneously at the beginning
of a cycle. Shape, size, and longivity of the different
beings are different in the different spheres (Kama" Rupa
& A.rupy.a). The entire animal world is sustained by food.
Food may be gross or subtle according to its suitability
for the denIzens of the different spheres. Existents of
Rupadhatu do not need food. There are four different
kinds of food in the Kamadhatu viz., Kabalikarahara
(solid food), spada (contact), Manasancetana (mental fun-
ction) and vyanjana (Vijfiana or consciousness). The first
two kinds of food are necessary. for the sustenance oforga.
nisms. .The last two are necessary for future birth.
(Qr. N.Dutta, Anarysis of KosaXIIJ p. III). The food used
in the Kam'adhatu sphere are Gandha (smell), Rasa (taste),
 INTRODUCTION 79
and Spra~tavya (tactile). These are taken by nose, mouth
or throat. These items of food are always impure. (Sasrava)
Kabalikarahara or solid food is characterised by all these
qualities and is used by the human beings and animals.
The other kinds of food are used by the subtle and inter-
me diary existence known as Antarabhava State or those in
the ROpadhatu (or material sphere).
The Arupyadhatu or the sphere of non-material exis-
tence is subtle and is constituted by the four Skandhas
which remain as the support of consciousness or Vijfiana.
Existence of Vijfiana in the Arupya level implies an indirect
and subtle existence of Rupa but not total negation of
Rupa (or matter); for Vijfianacannot remain without
Rupa. But, there is no manifest Rupa in the Arupya; for,
Arupya is characterised as non-corporeal or non· material.
The Vijfiana santanas (or the continuity ·of conscious life)
remain inherent in the mental subsistence in the Arupya
level. The continuity of the individuality is maintained by
the Jivitendriya, (the phenomena of vitality or organism, a
composition of homogeoneous class of things or Nikaya~a­
bhaga). The non-corporeal nature of some of the vijfianas
may be found e.g. in the trance stages of Asa:rp.jfiika and
Naivasa:rp.jna-Nasa:rp.jnayatana as previously described.
The Jtvitendriya (or vitality) is inherent in the Nikaya-
Sabhaga which is non-corporeal or Arupya, and stands as a
link between the two cycles of birth.
The human beings are the residents of the four diffe-
rent continents, viz. ]a:rp.budvipa, Purva Videha, Uttarkuru
and Avaragodanlya. It is curious to note that the time
indications, seasonal changes are said to be different in
the above mentioned different continents. . 1t is held e.g:
that, midnight in Uttarakura means midday in Ja:rp.bu-
dvipa. Sunset in Avaragodaniya means sunrisein:Purva
Videha. Beginning of day time and night time are men-
tioned in the Kosa. The two different equinoxes viz. vernal
80 INTRODUCTION

autumnal have .been described. The shortening . and

and lengthening of the day and night are found to be
connected with the movement of the sun. The divisions of
land ,and water over the surface of the earth, the mountain
ranges, seas and the rivers are also mentioned. The small
measures of the atomic existence (AJ}u) has been accepted
as the elementary unit of every thing and space. This unit
connected with other units produce the compositions or
constitution (Sarp.skaradharma) of various types. Again, a
small measure of time succeesion (krama) has been ac cepted
as the primary unit of time composition e.g. day, month
year, and so on. The position of the Meru or poles is given;
the extent and measurement of the different continents, seas,
mountains and Heaven are all discussed. It is interesting
<to note that the Heaven and Hell along with their denizens
are all in.cluded in the same universe. The different types
of creatures exist in Heaven, Hell and Earth. They aU
behave indifferent ways in the different courses of evolution.
The two phases of evolution are Vivarta (origin or emer-
gence) and Sarp.varta(withdrawal). It is said that the human
being may be the residents of all the three dhatus Thus,
they maybe raised from the sensuous level of the Kama-
dhatu to the higher stages of Rupaand the Arppya dhatus,
or the spheres, by means of spiri tual realisation or the
. dhyana. So,it may be implied that the residents of the
Kamadhatu are gifted with the capacity of voluntClry choice
and effort. The only different one is .Buddha or one Cakra-
varti (superman) who appears in each Kalpa, a position
parallel to the PradhanaPuru~a (the Chief Subject or iSwara)
of Yoga Philosophy.
This description of course lacks the scientific precision
and objectivity. Nevertheless, it gives us an interesting
data for analysing the rational attitude of Buddhism towards
.life's origin, continuity and the different pursuits. The
environment of the life has not been forgotten either.
 INTRODUCTION 81

Although in a crude way, the writer of the Kosa has attemp ..

ted to elaborate. in a nutshell the evolutionalcharacter Of
the world in its origin from subtle content which gradmUly'
becomes manifest and complex in character. Again, the
division of the animals has not been done in a perfectly
scientific way; Neve rtheless the idea of spontaneous origin
of life (Upapaduka) born of exudation reminds us of the
modern theory of Abiogeneses (or life appearing spontaneo
usly). Strong emphasis is seen on solid food (or Kabalikara~
hara); this reminds us of an objective attitude of the KOSel
towards a concrete reality of food. Geographical descriptions
of places and water, the time divisions, the idea of element
or AI:lU, all point out that there was some amount of scientific
thinking at the time when Kosa was written. Although this
scientific attitude need not be compared with the experi..;
mental science of modern times, it can be safely recognised
as one of the empirical efforts out of which properly.consti . .
tuted science could be built up later.
Physical Composition
The most subtle elements are known as the Reals or
Dharmas existing for the three phases of time i.e. the past
(Adhva), the present and the future. Each element is known
as a Paramar;1U or atom which is momentary (KsaQ.ika). The
world which appears in all varieties of Spatio-temporal
existents is reducible to these units i.e. ParamaQ.uor atoms
which are momentary. Co-existence of the ParamaQ.us
determines an object or Dravya or Rupa or a special manifest
exisfent. Rupa is co-existensive with the three. phases of time
(or three Adhvas). The ParamaQ.us are of four classes viz,.
K~iti (earth), Ap (water), Vayu (Air) and Tejas (fire). These
remain in a state of uniqueness (or Svalak~aQ.a) in hypo-
thetical form of existence, but in actual application they are
always found in mobile groups or in a flowing but co.mposite
state•. Thus, though we speak hypothetically of earth atom
6
82 INTRODUCTION

in isolation we actuaHy do not get it isolated from the group

of other atoms of K~iti (earth) Ap (water) Vayu (air) and
Tejas (fire). The constituted (sarp.skrta) picture of the world
is made of them. .
The above school of Atomism may be compared 1oa with
the Atomic School of Ancient Greece, Leibnitz's philosophy
of spiritual Atomism or Monadism and Logical Atomism of
Nyaya and Vaise~ika School of India. The Buddhist con~
ceptionofthe atoms lying always in group seems to remove
an inherent difficulty of Nyayavaise~ika idea about a combi-
nation of two atoms (DvyaI,luka) and perceptible manifesta-
tion of the combination of three atoms (TrasareI,lu). Thus,
these thinkers take recourse to Arllrp.bhavada (or a theory of
new origin) and Hwara KaraI,latavaaa (or a theory of casual
agency of G()d) in order to explain that combination. These
two ideas on the other hand are criticised by the Bundhist
thinkers (Tattva Sarp.graha, Gaekwad Series) Buddhists
view seem to be more rational when they hold that the
atoms always are found together. Unlike the Monads of
Leibnitz, the atoms, according to Buddhists, are not spirit
ual but physical. These atoms again are momentary a!1d
dynamic. This idea, however, is not generally found in
Greek School of atomism; evidently, a scientsfic approach
is seen here and the approach is very close to that of in
modern physics. These atoms in their composite state are
subject to change from moment to moment. The picture of
composition changes then accordingly.
Tnus, altnough the modern conceptions of physscs like
J

'field of forces.' 'Seat of energy', or 'Dynamism' or 'space-

time units~ cannot be found clearly in the Kosa, it is evident,
that these ancient Buddhist thinkers grasped the correct
nature of the universe asmultivurse, evanascent and chang-
ing at every moment. Though appearing· as a continuous
and a single one, the universe is a composition of momen-
tary units just flowing on. These; abstract and hypothetical
 INTRODUCTION 83
units whether they are thought as 'Dharmas' or atoms are
only comparable with the views of modern scientists like John
Eddington or like Sir James Jeans and white head. lOb
Psychological Composition
The phenomena of psychological comppsition is
constituted by the five skandas(Rupa, Vedana, Samjna,
Vijnana, and Sal1lskara (i. e. matter" feeling perception
consciousness and impression respectively). Ordinarily,
the creatures are free of impurities (Sasrava, Nivrta) and
remain nutral (Avyakrta). They get entangled into suffe-
ring due to respective activity (or Karma) .10
The formation of individuality is known as Nikaya ..
sabhaga (or homogeneous grouping) which continue-s as
an impression (or Sarp.skara) from one birth to another till
the NirvaQa is obtained. The subtle state of existence is
a kind of mental substrate which link up the two births
and is known as 'Antarabhava' or Intermediary state.
This has got its associate mind which is known as 'Prati-
sandhi citta'.ll This subtle exitence assumes a manifest form
during the prenatal days in the mother's womb; The
Jivitendriya or vitality is characterised by Ayu (longivity),
and u~Qata (warmth). In case the creature is born of
placanta, it passes through five prenatal stages and five
post-natal stages. The prenatal stages are viz. KaJala
(Kalala-Falopean Tube). ArbudC\ (fructified cell bodY)J
Pdi (muscles), Ghana (Maturation), Prasakha (complexity).
The five post-natal stages are viz. Balya (Infancy), Kauma-
rya (Adolesence). Yauvana (Youth), Madhya (Middle age)
Vrddhavastha (old age), These stages may be seen to be
arranged in the order of birth~ or uppada, growth, or Sthiti.·
decay or J ara" and death or vinasa of the organismas
modern Biology would have it. According to the Kosa, it
is further maintained that all these stages are either ethi-,
cally wholesome. (Kusala) or unwholesome (Akusala) or.
 84 INTRODUCTION

J
riutral Avyakr!a). Allthe hUIi.1~nbeingarethusc1assifie
under 'two main classes viz., PrthagJana (or ordinary ~being
and Arya(the adept on the way to liberation} according
inclinations and actions.I2a ' (Based bnKosa III) ",
Comments
Buddhist .approach to psychology ismostIy introsp
I ctive and philosophical, psychology is here: a study incident

to the ethical. nature of man. "Liberation, from sufferin

is the real ethical goal. However, Buddhist attitude towar
human personality seems to be quitehea,lthy and optimisti
for, Buddhism believes in th~ doctrine of change and resh
ping of the perspnality through, human effort' and fr
choice~ Evidently, freedom of will is reconized as the chi
. postulate of ethics even UOW. Buddhist thinkers do n
believe on any rigid conception of soul ~nd a closed destin
or Adr~~a (Determinism) like that of the. ortodox Hin~"
Philosophy.lsb
ProfessorStcherbatskoi in,his 'Central Conception
Buddhism and the Meaning of the term Dharma' is
opinion that the philosophy of Sarvastivada is a kind
Realism, although the term Rea1i~m in western metaphysic~
conveys altogether a different sense. Thus, it may be sa
that Sarvastivada Realism in the Western sense of the term
at most" isa spirit, of 'Epistomoligical Realism' and n
'Metaphysical Realism' can be posited there in. 'Metaph
sical Realism~places a stronger emphasis on extrament
nature of the objects while, the epistemological realism pu
the,emphasis on the extramental character of the objects
relation to the subject. S,arvasfivada philosophy ·has got;
provision for both Rup,:/l: (matter) and Citta (mindP3; but
keener emphasis is put on"the mind or Citta;for, this Ru
(or "matter)' has '" been accepted asiilitially support~d
Chitta. Thus, the position may -be' understood as a~ide'
lism.ormeqtalism in disguise' and that appears as Realk
 tNtRobUCTION

at the first instant. Hegel's philosophy of 'Ideal Realism',

or (Objective Idealism' e.g. in actuality is primarily an
Idealism to which Realism stands as subsidiary.
Epistemologically, Buddhist approach is partially
dialectic; although it hints at the paired,opposition of thesis
and antithesis {e.g. Bhava and Nirvat}.a}, the synthesis
remains beyond grasping. Or, this synthesis has got to be
realised by means of some spiritual-mystical process. IS Then '
only we realise that Buddhists analysis never aimed at any
scientific finding for its own sake; if at aU, the Buddhists
only incidentally discussed them from the viewpoints of Bio-
logy, Psychology, Geography or evolution. They tried to
know the Bhava in order to stop its stream and to realise the
termination or Nirvat}.a. 14
 References

1. Sasravlinlisravli dharmlil;l Kosa 1, Kli 4.

2. Prajnamala Sanucara Abhidharma
Tatpraptaye yapica yaccasastrarp.
3. DharmaJJ,arp. pravicayam. antareQa nasti
Klesanam. yata Upasantaye Abhyupayah. Kosa 1, Kii 3.
Kosa I,Ka 8
. 4. Dul;lkham. Samudayo Loko, Dntsthanarp. Bhavasca teo
5. lSyante ea~tlidasa dhMava straiaddhvikal;l.
Kosa I, Ka 38 A.K. Bha~yam. p 27
6. Arupyapta manodharma manovijnlina dhlitabal;l
Kda I, Ka 31 A.K. Bha~yam. p. 21
7. Ta Evlidhva Kathavastu Sanil;lsaratl Savastukal;l Kosa 1, Ka 7
8. Tatrakasarp. Anavrti Kosa I, Kll 5.
9. Sapratigha Dasa RupiJJ,al;l Kosa I, Ka 28.
10.{a) Rupam. PancendriyaJJ,i Arthat Pafiea Avijfiaptirevaca Kosa
1, Ka 10.
(b) Phenomenology of Husser!'
History of Philosophy By Thilly P. 621.
11. Apitu Dharma pravicayakale Prajfia chittasyapi Sarvasya
. Kala.pasya Rajl:lyate Kosa 1, Ka 2, Sphutartha.
12,{a) Kecit caitte~u Sammu<;!hal;l PiQ<;!atmagrahaQa'al;l. Kecit
Ropa eva, Ke cit Rupacittayol;t
A.K. Bha~yarp. P. 14. Kosa 1, Kii 20. •
(b) Cittamahankara niSraya iti Atma iti Upacaryate Rosa 1, Kii
39 Sphutartha.
13, K~aJJ,ikiinarp. nasti desiintaragamanarp.
Yatraiva utpattistraiva vinasal;l, tenaivarp.
neyati desantarotp adanaswabhava Bhuta
Srotasal;l viana k~anikatv at Pradrpavat.
Kosa 1, Kli 12, SphutartM.
14. (a) Sa punah sarvadul;lkha upasama
Nirval)a pariprapana swabha,-;a, Sphutartha, p. 6
Kosa I, Ka I.
15. Est it jamais arrive anx Abhidharmika de donner l'activite
comme paseeoututure, L'element future quand Lactivite est
nee est nomrne "present"; l'element present quand L'activite
a pris fin, est nonme "passe". L'objection elst-elle justifiec?
Te ne dispas que Ie (passeet Ie futur quent aussi activite. On
ne pent donc me critiquer (en disaut que, d'apries mei) Lacti-
vite est passeee future-'Mais, deriz-vous si Ie passe et 1 Iqve-
nir n'ont pased activite eest douc, que lactivite existe apres
inexistence et retowure a inexistence apres existence? car lacti-
vite existe senlement dans Ie present. P. 267 Vide Infra.
Pour Ie Sautrantika an contrave les elements passes et futurs
we sout pas des conditionnes (Samskara) puisquits n'on re
debut in fin caracteres du conditionne et eest pour cette raison
quits n'existent past': (MCB. V. P. 122). Vide Infra.
Les elements pases et futurs sont egabment conditionnes
(Saq1skrt) .
Le Sarvlistivadin donne ice an terme Samskara are signification
qut-hillement efficiente et, par consequente presente quit est
encore pure Ie sautrafitika-car en ce Ie passi ne Saurait itu un
sarpskara-Instant E cause P. 271.
LPar L. Silburn.
N. B., Controversy shows Sthavirav!ida and Sarvastivlida
Sarvamasti are not used in the same sense.
See Sarvastivada (1) Continuity
See to Theravada} (2) In Everything
(3) For all time.
Past and future are not 'real' in the sense of existence
Repato Sarvastivada-cRtlpabhliva' (Material-state) is retained
even in Past.
Rtlpa is transitory; Distinction is between Nirodha and Nirvlina.
 (B) 1. INDRIYA AND 2. PERSONALITY

Meaning of Indriya
The meaning of the term indriya is faculty or a special
c()ntrol over a special field. Each faculty e.g. indicates an
entry into a special field constituted by various forces. Thus, •
each indriya is a faculty or a special power by which a
particular field of conditions may. be mastered.! There are
22 Indriyas or the faculties mentioned in theKosa; out of
these 22 only five are Rupa or external. These are Cak~u (Eye),
Srotra (Ear) J Ghra va (Olfactory), Jihva (Gastatory), Kaya
(Tactile). -It is further said, that the stri (female) and purp.
(male) indriyas are to be placed in some part of the Kaya
Indriya (Body). Thus, by an implication of the Kayendriya
these two also are to be placed in the Rupa Skandha or
mafterformatlon. The Jivitendriya (vitality) has been des-
cribed as Bhautika or constituted by the Bhutas or ultimate
properties; The Jlvitendriya or vitality is supposed to be.
existing in all the three spheres (The Kama or sensuous,
the Rflpa or material or corporeal and Arupya or non-corpo-
rcalV a It is also said to be the Vikara or resultant of the
enjoyments and focus of the evil impurities. Thus it may
be said that by logical implication, the Jivitendriya may be
placed in the Rupa·Skandha or matter-formation. b For, unless
there is some substrate of Rupa or matter, the question of
vijfiana (consciousness) and Klda (suffering or evil) can
never arise.o It may be said that the remaining 12 indriyas or
faculties (or special capacities ) will be also discussed in the
section of vijfiana skandha vide intra citta-p. 119-20 and
citta (or mind formation) which is internaI.Ba (Adhyatmika)
The seven Indriyas or faculties (viz. the eye, the ear, the
 INTRODUCTION

nose, the tongue and the body the male organ and the female
organ) are supposed to be the external or Bahya or the
Rupi Indriyas. The Jivitendriya is also constituted by
the five skandhas.
Analysis of the five faculti es or special senses
The five faculties viz. the eye (eak§u) ear (Srotra),
olfactory (GhraI.la) gastatory (Jihv~) and Tactile (Kaya)
are said to have special characterisation in four different
fields. These four fields are I viz. Atmabhavasobha or·
(beauty of the person), Parirak§ana (Protection) Vijiiana
(consciousness) and AsiidharaQ.a karaQ.a tva. (mode of
special activity). In a sense each of these five faculties
enjoys these four' characters. The pair of eyes~ for example
are there both for clear vision and beauty. The individual
con protect one self by properly seeing with both eyes and·
may take steps against a danger. The individual may obtain
visual sensation (or cak§uviji'iana) by means of eyes alone.
Visual sensation which is unique and different from other sen-
sations can be produced by the medium of the eye faculties.
The auditory faculty or ear also can be similarly under-
stood, together the eye and ear often may work simultane-
ously, although in two different fields. In case of olfactory,
gastatory and tactile faculties, beauty or iitmabhava sobha,
remains same as in the case of eye and ear, but, the factor
of protection (Parirak§aI.la) is helped by them, more than
the others for, taking of solid food is performed by them.
The consciousness produced by them is often mixed up.
The above ideas are psychologically significant. It is a
fact that visual sensation and auditory sensation work often
together. The olfactory sensation and gastatory sensation
often get mixed up with the organic sensation. In case a con-
fusion occures about their respective predominance the one
with stronger intensity remains the decisive factor according
to the Kosa .. The categories mentioned above ofcourse do not
90 tNtRODUC noN'

The five special senses according to the Kosaare :

(1) Cak~u (Eye)
(2) Srotra (Ear)
(3) Ghra:Qa (Nose)
(4) Jihva (Tongue)
(5) Kaya (Body/Skin)
According to the view point of the Kosa these five
Indriyas are constituted by the composition of the BhUtas
or the ultimate properties (Parama:Qu). Some times they
are known as the Bahya or Riipa or externally manifest
Indriyas. 4 These are the external seats of consciousness.
These act as the viamedia between the consciousness
(V)jiianas) and the objects (Bhautikas) constituted. The
sense organs in general are known as Riipa prasada or
Riipa swabhava (i.e. they are recipients of Rupa in nature).
Here,,· the term Riipa has been used in a wider sense
of 'manifestation.' (Audarika) In thissense only one can
understand all of the five Indriyas as Riipa-Ptasada.
Note about the expression Rupa Prasada
According to Prof Steherbatskoy this expression 'Riipa
prasada' means the presesence of some translucent matter
in the Indriya. He also compat:es the term with the
Tanmatra as recognised by the exponents of Sarp.khya Philo-
sophy in his central conception of Buddhism. But, possibly.
the term Riipa prasada can be better understood in the
llgh~ of modern thoughts than in the light of Tanma~ras.
 iNTRonumioN 91

Any way, his interpretation of Prasada as a translucent matter

seems to be a useful suggestion in this line. According to
Descartes, the French Philosopher, and one who is recognised
as the father of the modern philosophy (18th century
onwards), substances are of two kinds, matter or Extension
and mind or consciousness. He is a typical dualistic
thinker advocating complete independence of matter and
mind from one another. According to him Knowledge
is produced by mutual introduction of matter and mind
upon each other. While explaining the. nature of this
contact between two completely foreign elements i. e.
matter and mind, and the nature of their interaction,
Descartes suggests, that the bodily energy is transformed
into mental energy while passing through the pineal gland;
It is through this Pineal gland and Pineal· secretion the
mind comes into contact with the external objects and under-
stands them. The outmoded Cartesian idea may be incident..
aI1y brought in here for understanding. The Sarvastivada
philosophers also upheld a Dualisitic theory of Ro.pa(the
externals) and ci tta (the internal). The suggestion of
Ro.pa prasada may correspend to an intermediate arrange-
ment by which the Indriyas or the sense organs harness the
citta (Mind) and Ro.pa (Matter) which are brought together.
The term Rupaprasada, however, has been used as an
attributive for the Indriyas or the sense organs. This idea
indicates the capacity for double functioning on its part.
Thus, an eye or ear is the seat of the respective (Tadvijfia-
nasraya, Kosa 1, Ka 9). Consciousness and at the same
time receptive object particularly constituted (Ro.pa-
prasada). Again, the term Ro.pa-prasada may be under-
stood in the light of some particular sensitivity on the
part of each sense organ. Lastly D Stcherbatskoy's suggestion of
translucent matter may be interpreted as a sort of chemical
synthesis which· takes place within the sense organ itself
acting as the subtle and neutral via media between the
 iNTRODUCTioN

stimulus, object and an act of stimulation (sensation). The

la,st ,view of course is the most up todate view of modern
biology and physiology . Here too, it has been previously
stated that, 'Some of these Buddhist thinkers followed, while
expoundingtlieir theory the frame work of then prevailing'
line of the, m,edical science. ,An expression like 'Rupa
prasada' when analysed' carefully tends to support the same
view,.
Nature of the five Indriyas,'
The five Indriyas then. are the. acting and reacting
grouI'ld of both the external and internal aspects and objective
and subjective functions. These organs evi~ently ar~ extern-
allylocated andact as the exteroceptors or external receptors.,
Outof the twenty two Indriyasor faculties the fiive organs. i.e.
the eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body (cak~u, stotra, ghraI}.a,
jihva, kaya) function as the special senses or sense organs as
modern;psychology would have them. It is said that Vijfiana
is inhered in the Indriyas or sense organs only. Thus., if
the:t~ is an};' dete~tt or change which occurs to the Indriya or
sense organ,a corresponding change occurs to the respective
Vijfiana or consciousness. Therefore, it seems, that Vijiiana
or consciousne,ss is determined by the nature of the Indriyas'
9,r sense organs and not by the respective objects.
The above idea about the Indriyas or the sense organs
,being the substratum of, Vijfianasor consciousness can be
cOlllparedwith some modern theories of Perception. Accor-
ding to. modern Psychology the object or 'percept' is deter-
mined or inte:rpreted sensation. This interpretatioJ] to a great
extent is inQirect or ,representative and not directpresenta-
tive, Thus, a moving cow is perceived as serial presentations
oCtne dj-fferenfperspectives of the cow in relation to different
space ,and time. Butt these intervening factors are all ingored
and our lm pression or consciousness ' appears as if the saine
cowis being perceived. Similarly" the sense organ eye,
 JNTRODUC1ION 93

recei~es the series of stimuli; but the consciousness is pro-

duced by all the stimuli reacted to as a whole, the object of
perception remains as the source of stimulus which seems to
be a raw datum. Evidently, the writer of the Kosa meant
that knowledge and the sense organ are more directly
connected together than the object of knowledge which
remains outside. This characteristic remains true of alI the
five sense organs.
It is said that the eyes can see. These eyes are descri
bed viz. Manascak~u (eye of flesh) Divyacak~u (eye with
super natural power) and Prajnacak~u (enlightened eye
of an Arhat or liberated person). Out of these three seeing
is done by the eyes of flesh. .The two other eyes function
together for better vision. Similarly the ears or auditory
organs hear a sound; olfactory organs get the smell; Gasta-
tory organ gets the taste and tactile organ touches. The
eyes of course cannot see the things if the things are covered
But, even then, eye and ear b~th (together with mind) can
catch distant stimuli to SOIlle extent; these then are known as
sprapta vi~ayaI{a or Indirect object organs. The other three
organs i.e. the olfactory, gastatory and the tactile are directly
'connected with object or are Praptavi~ayaka. Incidentally it
may be stated here that in case of the eye or ear, the stimuli
may be very near or too far. Nevertheless, vision or audi~
tion may occur; e.g. distant object may be perceived or
distant sound may be heard. Even modern psychology
agrees with the problem. On the other hand., one cannot
get the smeH or taste jf the stimulus is not in direct and
immediate contact with the olfactory cells arranged within
the nos trills and the gastatory organ respectively. ':tactile
organ also requires a direct and immediate contact.
According to some, ear is supposed to have both the
characteristic i.e, direct objectedness. and indirect
objectedness. This idea· is further continued by the
mentioning of some other facts in the KoSa.· The eyes and
94 INTRODUCTION

the ears may acquir.e some supernatural power at the higher

levels: of ,mediation (Dhyana). Brit at higher levels of
Riipa Dhiitu (or corporeal sphere) gastatory senses do not
function. . It seems therefore, that the olfactory and gasta-
tory organs are rather crude in functioning and stop at the
higher levels. About the eyes' and the ear and tactile
orga~~ (Kaya) it is said however, that they are present at
all the five levels of meditations. Each may perceive the
respective objects (matter constituents or Rupa)' existing
at the s~me levels or in. the •.lower levels but not vice .versa.
The:6.ve sense, organs in general
'~.'
All of these five sense organs are the original substratum
9f vijil*na or consciousness. These are all sasrava or impure
in nature.. These are aupacayika or collected innattire.
Thus, ~hese are alsoavipa~a (or not resultant). These indl'iyas
~re avyakrta (or neutral) i.e. they may be ku~ala' (or
morally wholesome) or akuS'ala(morally unwholesome) in
relation to the lIloral nature of the invidual. These are all
found only in Kama l)ha~u (or the sphere of sensuo lls
nature}. These '. are all eraclicable only by Bhavana. (or ,
repeated practice of m~ditation). , It seems then that these
five. sense organs. are different from the idea of the five
Jnanendriyasor, really speaking are unlike the sense.,organs
recogI1ised by. the Sam.khyaphilosophy "or :m()dern,psy~ho­
logy.~he sense organs here, according to those Buddhist
thinkers, have been described bothfuncti()nallyand struc~
turaUyin relation to the 'individual' (in which these are
collected) •
.o;igin a~~laps~ of th,e five Indiriyas or sense organs
,The five sense organs, described previously do not
seem ,to appear simultaneously all at a time. It seems that
the organs follow an order or evolution with regard to their
appear~nce'anddisappeararice. It is said in the Kosa that
 INTRODUCTION 95

the kayendriya (tactile organ) and jivitendriy~, (vitality)

appear together first in some of the beings of Kamadhatu
(or the spheres of sensuous nature). These beings are
AI,ldaja {born of shell} Jarayuja (born of placenta), and
Sarp.swedaja. (born of exude). (The mind organ and upek~a
organ are already there in the subtle form). In the other
beings who are self originated (U papadukas), all the six organs
appear together; these organs are eye, ear, olfactory organ,
gastatory organ and tactile organ and jivitendriya. In
denizens of Rupa dhatu (or corporeal sphere) the same
indriyas or organs evolve; in Aruppya level (or non-corpo-
real sphere), none of these sense organs would appear at aU.
only the jivitendriya appears there.

Developmen t of the organs

In -the Rupadhatu (corporeal sphere) and Kama-
dhatu (sphere of the sensuous nature) the organs (eye, ear
olfactory, gastatory) cease functioning first. Kayendriya or
Tactile organ, (along withjivita or vitality, mana or mind,
upek~a or neither pleasure nor unpleasure) is the last to
cease functioning. Speaking normally, no being born in
Arupya develops these five Indriyas. In the Rupa dhatu
and the, Kamadhatu Kayendriya or Tactile organ is
normally developed. The tactile organ is found along
with the Vedanendriyas or the faculties of feeling. Maxi-
mum number of the Indriyas developed in an indivi-
dual wiJl be 19 and minimum Indriyas developed will be
three but in each case Kayendriya or Tactile organ remains
present.
From the above data it may be stated that Kayendriya
or Tactilesense organ has been treated in the Kosa with relati-
vely more emphasis than the other indriyas. Incidentally, it
may be pointed out that according to modern biology and
physiology also the touch seme is considered as more basic
 96 INTRODUCTION

than the other parts of the organism. In the course of

evolution, the specialisation of sensation and sense organs
gradually occured and continued in the case of the higher
and more complex organic structures. But, 'at the begi-
nning of life i. e. protozoa etc. touch sense remained "the
,only sense. Even now; at a time when everything is reduci-
ble into subtle electronic units or components, ,contact or
,touch remains the only medium for any rcacion or change,
The Buddhist thinkers somehow grasped fromcommonsen~e
'the importance of more pervasive character of touch
"sense while describing it along, with the other faculties
or theindriyas.

Constitution or Atomic make up of the five Indriyas

or ,Sense organs
, It is said that ordinarily Vijfiana or consciousness, is
generated by the ParamaQus or the atOInS of both the
Indriyas (senseorgan) and of the objects. But the atoms of
the Visual organ and Auditory' organ (cc k~u and srotra
"respectively) and the atoms of their respective objects are
irregular. Acc6rding to the Kosa, the exaggerated reactions,
mal-observations and non-observations are due to this
irregular number of the atoms only, e. g. a small object due
to illussion is perceieedvisually as much bigger, or a sound
prod,uced by a gnat, dueto dose vicinity of the ear maybe
~perceived in a most exaggerated way as roaring of the cloud
~., ~ I

and,soon.
Thus, it may be implied, that all these Indriyas or sense
organs are all constituted by components. The paramal},u
or the atoms cluster together into the specific patterns of
the Bhautikas or matter composites. The eye, ear, olfactory
'organ and the gastatory organ are supposed to be constituted
by ten matter composites (Dravya) or objects. These are
fou~Bhiitas (ultimate properties) four Bhautikas (constitued
objects) and the Kayendriya (Tactile organ) and proper-
 INTRODUC rION 97
ties of each of the four organs. The Kayendriya itselfis
constituted by the previously mentioned 8 objects and the
specific properties of the Kayendriya. (or Tactile organ).
These constituted indriyas are found in the Kamadhatu (or
the sphere of the sensuous nature). In the Rupadhatu, the
two Bhautikas i. e. the Gandha or Rasa (constituted objects
of smell and taste respectively) are absent. 58
Description of the Atoms of the eye organs
The paramaI).us or the atoms of the eye (cak~urndriya)
are arranged against the iris or pupil (cak~u Hiraka); these
look like the small jar flowing; these are kept in place with
the help of a transparent membrane. These. according to
some other view, remain in clusters; these are themselves
transparent; so that no one obstructs the other. An object"
too distant or too near cannot be seen by the eye. b
The above description may be compared with modern
view about the structure of the eye. The eye is a· complex
and photo cameral structure. It consists of many layers;
the tenth layer or retina actually can be called the centre
of vision. The rod cells for brightness vision and cone cells
for colour vision are arranged against the retina. The
transparent membrane is known as the cornea which when
injured may be replaced by another cornea by means of ex·
ternal surgical help. The eye ball is kept in its place by some
musceles viz., the recti and obliqui. The iris however is an
opening or passage for light into the lense. Although there
is not much similarity between the two views, ancient and
modern, both are just mentioned here for comparison. The
cells and the Paramal).us although looking similar, function
differently.
The atoms of the Ear
The atoms of the ear are arranged inside the concha
or the outer ear. Such description above may be only
7 .
 INTRODUCTION

compared with the hair cells within the inner ear which
are arranged on the transparent membarne. Hearing is
produced by the vibration of these hair cells. But it should
be)saidthat the structure and function of the ear are comp~
lex in nature; ancient thinkers tried to grasp the
problem, rather in a crude and incomplete manner and
cannot be expected to explain hearing satisfactorily.

Description of the atoms of olfactory organ.

The atoms of the olfactory organ are located inside"
the nostrills. These look cone shaped and remain arranged
1ike the garland in the same way as the atoms of the eye and
ear are arranged. The problem of olfactory organ is a
baffling one even for the modern psychologists and physiolo-
gists. The existence of the cells against the nostrills IS
. recognised,however, by both.
Discripfion of the atoms of gasiatory organ
Theatcims of the gastatory organs are like half moon.
They are scantily spread over the centre of the tongue.
The description of these atoms are similar to the fungiform
ceils or the V shaped cells along the surface of the tongue
as mod~rn theories would have it.

Description of the atoms of the tactile organ

The atoms of the t'fctile organ are pervasive in
character as the tactile organ itself. The idea above
reminds us of theevanascent and subtle character of touch
se·nse and their getting ea'sily fatigued. It is said that all
{he atoms of the eye and tactile organ are not Sabhaga or
homogeneous; but, some of them ate Tatsabhaga (Hetero-
geneous). The atoms of the other organs (olfactory, gasta-
tory and auditory organs) are sabhagaor homogeneous.
The .idea of tatsabhaga (Heterogenous) and sabhaga
 INTRODUCT10N 99
(Homogeneous) atoms in the eye rna y be com pared with the
modern and psychological phenomena like colour contrast'
and colour blindness in case of the eye, and with psycho-
logical cold in case of tactile sense. It is said that accor-
ding to the chemical composition of the cone ceUsofthe .
retina, a making and breaking process. is found in action;
Some cells, when stimulated, produce the particular colour
sense; but these verycel1s again after some time produce·
the contrasting, colour sensation e.g. red in the place of
green or blue in the place of yellow and SOon. This view
is also supported by the phenomena of After image •
. Strindriya and Pumindriya , '
(faculties of masculinity and femininity)
Kosas view about the female and male organs
According to'the view of-the Kosa the male "organ
and female organ are to be placed in some parts of the
kayendriya or tactile organ. These two organs also are in-
cluded in the Rupa Skandha or matter formation. But,
although these two are placed in, some parts of the
Kayendriya or Tactile organ, these are distinctively diffe
rent both in structure and fuction.
Description of the Strindriya and Pumindriya
These two organs are supposed to be the. reproductive
organs, but these are not like the' Karmendriyas orfuric-
tioning organs as recongnised' by the sarpkhya expon~nts.
Here, according tothe Kosa, these two 'organs are the two
faculties, dominating over two objects or sets of conditions.
The distinction between the male individual and
female individual is perceived by means of these distinctive,
organs and the features, ~oice and otherindividtiaI pecu:Iari~::
ties of male and female who are also perceived and recognised
by means of these two org-ans. AccordinS' to 0~hers,~he5Q'
IpO IN'IRODUCTION

two organs also are functioning in connection with $amkesa

a~purities, evil} and Vyavadana {Purification}. Fgr, it is
said that the hermophrodites and persons ,who are ~exusally
irppotent" incapacitated and. decapicitated, are not fit for
getting liberation. Further, according to Kosa, these two
organs. of femininity and masculinity are instrumental for
origination of the organism. . Thus, unlike the expositiqn of
. S,amkhya, the function of the,se two organs is not only enjoy-
ment .but repro~uction, also. Enjoyment is only due to the
a~tachment between men and women. It may he incidentally
suggested that KOSa'sviewabout the facuIties for rpasculinity
and femininity seems to be quite rational in certain points.
These two organs 'aremeant for reproduction of the species,
but these are not the seats for any enjoyment by themselves.

Re:wark about Kosas view of the the faculties of

masculinity and femininity
: Acco'rding to modern biology., every individual has got
a bisexual potentiality ; but the actual nature is determined
by dear manifestation of the masculine or feminine features'
iricluding t:he reproductive organ, peculiar appearance and
so on. The question of hermobrodite and incapacitated in-
dividuals is shown as psychologically significant .and based
on actual observation; such individuals as mentioned are
ratherpartialJy abnormal 'minded or feeble minded. ThiS
attitude towards the hermophrodites and incapacitated per..
sons is shared even by modern psychology; ordinarily the
ihcapacitated persons seem insecured in 'nature and may
develop various bodily and mental complexes. .
I

N;i.ture of the lacuities of masculinity and fe~iniDity

" ;.. .:r ;. ." .'~' .' ' , . .; _ .'~ "

,. It is said th~t the" faculties of- masculinity and femini ..

ni~y . a~e_ sa.srava or impure. These are Avipaka or not
resultant; but, these are collected or constituted (Aupa-
cayika). These are Avyakrta or morally neutral. These
two indriyas are never found in the.Rupadhatu or corporeal
sphere; the denizens here do no.t require actual sexual
mating of the m ale and female for reproduction, It is said
that these two faculties are eradicable only by means of
Bhavana (or meditation) or repeated practice.
Note about the two organs
According to the point of view of Freudian Psychology
the development of a child is fopnd in ,three different stages,
viz. the Oral or Narcissistic stage, the Anal or Sadistic
Stage and Genital stage. Each stage is characterised with
various patterns of pecular associations clustering about the
three centres of the body viz. the mouth, and the anus and
the genital. The idea here about the faculties of masculi-
nity and femininity may be so understood in this light that
general phase of sexconsciousness develop in the personality
when certain conditions for the same get ripened. (vide infra
p. 110) Agajn, according, to Freudian view, the human
nature, undergoes various phases of change and deve..;.
Iopment till a fulftedged mental make up of male or female
is established. The Kosa's view about the hermophrodities
may specially be mentioned here. These creatures, when
compared with properly' constituted male or female, are
humiliated and are said to be unfit for getting liberation.

Origin and lapse of the two organs

It is interesting to note that the functions of masculi-
nity and femininity may be only found in the Kamadhatu
or the sphere of sensuous nature. There is no faculty of
femininity in the Rupadhatu or material or corporeal
sphere and Aro.pyadhatu or nQ-corporeal sphere.
The faculties of feeling (Sukha, Vpeksa Du1;tkha Daur-
manasya and Saumanasya (or pleasure, non-pleasure unplea..;
 l02

sure; antipathy and compassion. respectively) an.d the Kayen

dfiya (tactHeorgan) jlb'itendriya (vitality) arid manaindriya
(mind) are fOlind'together eitheraJong. with the organ of
Irtasculinity'or feminihity. ,Thesetwb organs die along with
.8 Organ; in the Kamadhatu •. Thus, it may be stated that
th~ indi vidual in ord er to be.functioning, develops either the
faculty of masculinity or femininity. It is.however a point to
be noted ,that though a Bhik~urji can be liberated 'or attain
arhathood, she can not, however; attain' NirvaJ)awithoQt
". . ' r" •

deveIoping the faculty of masculinity in the last birth. It

may be, thus, remarked, that, 'Buddhist attitude towards the
women wasrtot cornpleteIy liberal. '
"
.

De'scriptioDof'the atomiccomposition"of .the facul-

ties of masculinity a'nd femininity.
" / Li'ke all other objects in the K~madhatu (or the
~rphe~e of sens~ous nature) tht'! faculties of masculini,ty and
IJ
femininity ,consist of eight components {dravya} Viz. the
four ,Bhfltas, (ultimate properties) and four Bhautikas (com..
p()site-fo~matipns}.' Thus, like all other objects of the
, ~orld, these organs are also constituted by, the Parar;naQus
or the atoms of earth, water, fire anc! air (K~iti, Jala, Tejas,
yayu) and the four, patterns' of formation of matter viz.
~fipa ,'Rasa, Gandha and Spra~tavya (Matter, Taste, Smell
and Tac'tile objects). It is said" that the atoms of the
Strindriya (facuIty'for femininity) ;;tIe like the horn (Bheri)
or Kataha (Vessel )., Theatom~ of' ,Pumindriya (faculty for
masculinity, lpok like the thumb (Angustha) .. From the
ahove,' it' may be pointed out that the Buddhist thinkers
,rather described tile structure, of these' twoindriyas (facuI-
a
'tl~s)!n. 'crude and commonsense way, bilt, at the same
Tiine, tbey seem to hold an objective attitud~ towards
~Cisculinityan~I fem~nity. ' The seat of the.,mana ruddya
)vhicbis th.e base o(the pe~sonalityis
'.., . ' , .
the hea1i. 6 ' . . '
"--, ..
 iNTRODUC I :iON

(2) Personality
It may be pointed out here that the Pudgala or perso-
nality which may be a Prthagjana or an Aryais constituted
by the appearance, disappearance and the reappearance of
the different Indriyas. A study as such mftY be found useful -
and interesting from Buddhist point of view. A comparison
with modern concept of personality is also being given here.
The Buddhist conception of personality or Pudgala h.as
been used in a limited and technical sense. The Pali text
of Puggala-Paiinatti suggests an elaborate process of cla'>si·
fying the Pudgala. The Abhidharmakosa and the Bhaiya of
Vasubandhu and the Tfka of Yasomitra present us with
some explanations of the various aspects of the personality.
It is proposed to pursue Buddhist conception of per-
sonality after them, of course, within the background of the
fundanlental doctrines of Buddhism. Examined in the
light of modern psychology and biology, this Buddhist con-
ception may reveal some interesting data even to a modern
student of the problems of personality.
The Buddhists, we know, first, do not believe in the
theory of soul or Atman although they recognise the pheno-
menon of rebirth. The Buddhists, secondly, maintain a
theory of Anirya or impermanence and hold that everything
is in a state of permanent flux or change. They under--
stand this eternal state of flux as Bhava or existence. They
maintain that, this Bhava or existence is Anadi or beginning-
less and Ananta or endless and can be eliminated only
when Nirva1J.a or the cessation of existence (Bhava-viccheda)
is achieved. Thirdly, the Buddhists do not believe in any
active agency of god; but they believe in the possibility of
gradual purification of the Pudgala or the individual perso-
nality by dint of his own merit and effort. The Buddhist
conception of the Pudgala or individual personality, when
examined, is to be done so in accordance with the
three tenets, viz, Anatmatvarp. Anityatvarp. and Anlswara-
 ·'104 INTRODUCTION

tvarp i.e., non-soul,', no-permanence and no.. god as the

causal ageI\!. '! '0' "

The Gronndf'or E~iste~~e and -~nai~idualP~rsol1~1ity

, ' \ •• ' , - •• " . < . ' -: -.!- I ',._

It appea.rsthat' some of the ~arly branches 'of Bud~

dhisIIl recoghisect ' something like Atman, or soul' which used
tacon tinu'e, subject to changes) throughbitths and deaths.
"'Oneof the branches whiCh belie\'redln this idea was known
~s ihe 'Vlitsiputriya school. The reason for this belief' per-
haps was due to some influence of Hindu thoughts' like
those of Nyaya or Sa1(lkhya Schools which were ancient and
established doctrines. The ()rthodox Buddhists however,
criticised' the very conception of Atman or soul as Stltkaya-
Drt# or wrong notion about the existence of something,
or A.tmdvada or the wrong doctrine of soul, etc. Vasubandhu
also criticises tli'edoctrine of80u1 in the 9th chapter of his
Abhidharmakosa-( Chinese version retains the 9th chapter)
about the 5th century A. D. Later Santitak~ita condemns
these schools which recognised something like soul in his
Tattva-sa1Pgrahtl' which appeared about 8th century A. D.
He criticised these schools believing in soul as saugatamma~a
or those, pseudo-Buddhists who are not real Buddhists.
Nevertheless, the problem of rebirth remains an inexplicable
phenomon without the continuity of something like soul. The
orthodox Buddhist only would maintain that thePanca skandha
or the fivefold enmasse 'of rudiments are the only bases for
both Bhava or existence and the Pudgala or the individual
p'ersonality. Both are dynamic compositions and flow on
. or the cessationof existence· terminates them.
till N1.rvl1na· ' '

Bhava or existenceis the dynamic background and can be

compared to waves in an ocean; the individual personality or
personalities appear and disappear like the individual waves
in the Bhava ot ocean of existence. Both are basically consti-
tuted by the same Ponca ska,ndha or fivefold enmasse and
 105
continue repeatedly through the cycles of births and deaths
till Nirv'{j:J~a or the cessation. The individual personality or
Pudgala, then, may be understood as a specific and emergent
picture of the Bhava or existence. In a limited sense then
the picture of the Pudgala or individual personality is to be
seen as the rise and fall of a single wave in the ocean or as
a single stream merging in the ocean. Like a streanl, the
individul personality may be seen in its variable peculatiities
from origin to end. Thus, the so~called one and the same
individaul personality may first remain a Prthagjana or an
ordinary one and may later become an Arya or a believer
and even be developed into an Arhat or liberated one, by dint
of his own spiritual efforts. Liberation partially is attained
before death by an Arhat or liberated; liberation is complet-
ed in Nirva1J.a or cessation of existence after a death which
is not followed by any more birth. The five subtle rudi-
ments of Pancaskandha will reconstruct new births after every
death in a quick succession till the final end. The process
flows on like the water of the stream; without a gap, the
preceding moment becomes the succeeding moment in the flow
of water which incessantly appears to be passing through
apparently the same channel. In reality~ the changes are
taking place in the stream and in the channel both; but
somehow both appear to be the same stream and the same
'channel. This apparent phenomenon may be understood
as a case of constant illusion.
The Abstract Phase of an Individual Personality
The individuality thus in reality appears to be a myth
made up of (a) Sabhagata or sameness and (b) Sattvasarp,khyata
or continuity. The Buddhists for aU practical purposes
use two different terms for the states mentioned before. For
sameness they use Sabhagata or a tendency which indicates
homogeneity; for continuity of the so-called individaulity
they use Sattva-salflkhyata or individual grouping of the
or 'cbannelisitlg of the rudiments.. It appears then that the
Buddhists,witboutgivingany 'reality to these states, 'accept
tbem as mere phenome'na: these two phenomena ofSahhagata
and' SattvasaT(tkhyata' 'account for a specific and emergent
pictUre of one individual exist'ence. Thus, tbe widest back-
gr6tind is the Panca-skandha;' but of that, a picture of homo-
geneity or Sahh~gata ,is conceived. ,Tlik homogeneity is c()m-
monbothto the inanimate or animated beings; the linking of
the forces constituting the'animated being may be recogniseq .
then as sattvasaT(tkhyata. Therangebfone·existenceterrnina-
ted by one bitthand death may be understood as .tbe life·
picture of an indiviclual personality or Pudgala.· An these
states are never static; The whole p,,:ttern isdyriamic arid
the changes witbin the pattern are determined by their own
laws.. In reality the socalled' continuity of the individual
personality is like' that of a relay race of the component
factors which al ways cbange; but the cbanges are difficult'to
be preceived; for, they produce tbe effects of astatic reality
and show no cbange due to quick succession.
The Psychophysical CompositioD of. aD .IDdividual
Per SODality
. The Pancaskandha or tbe five enmasse of rudiInents are
Rapa or the externality and Nama or the internality; the latter
includes Vedana or feeling •.' SaT(tjfta or perception, Vijftana or
cognition and Sarp,skara ort~he psychogenic root associations
and biogenic tendencies. The psychogenic Sa'f(lskaras are
called the Caittasor'mentaHyderived' vide infra tableP.134.
The biogenic tendencies are called theCittaviprayukta or 'dissa-
. ciated from the mind'. Every item of the Bhava or existencc.
~ncluding the Pudgala or individual personality, isconstitut-
~d by the various compositions of the Nama-rapa-skandha or
theexternality,.in ternality rudiments. It thus appears that
, /

the individual personality is a matter-mind composition or

a' psycho-physical state of existellce. 7 The' idea of an
individual then may be understood to be an organic compo-
 iNTRonum'tON

sition of modern biology which also recognises the organism

as an integrated' pattern of psycho-physical forces. At the
sam~ time ~it may be pointed out that the Buddhists
recognised these two states of matter and mind not as two
static single substances but only as flowing succession of such
states. The Buddhist approach here philosophically comes
very near to that of English philosophers, Hume and Mill
and other later Positivists who donot recognise a substance
but accept only series of changing states.
The individual personality again, as stated above
appears to be a composition of Nama-tapa or the internal ..
external rudin)ents. The rudiments are all K~aTJ.ika or
momentary and SvalaksaTJ.a or of typically individual charac-
ter. The integration of these items against the locus of Bhava '
or the existance basically constitute a specific pattern of the
individual personality; the rearangement, reintegration and
withdrawal of the Indriyas account for the changes, viz,
attitudes, complexity and pe't'ttliarity of th~ individ,ual per-
sonality. The Rapa or 'the external' supplies the matter-base;
the Vedana or 'feeling" gives the pleasure pain sensation; the
Sam.jna or 'perception' helps to know; the Vtifiana or/cognition'
builds experience; the Gaittas or 'the 46 psychogenic root
associations' build up the mental states and attitudes; the 14
GittavipraY1l#a or 'the biogenic tepdencies' determine the
various states of positive and negative experiences of the in-
dividual's life. Thus, the whole range of an individual per-
sonality is a composition or a picture from one birth to one
death; it is a buiJding and rebuilding of forces characterised
asJati or birth, Sthiti or growth, Jara or decay and Anityata or
death; the accumulation of the forces and withdrawal of the
forces are described as Prapti or conditioning and Aprapti or
deconditioning. The conditioning and learning ofs peech habits
, developed in the individual personality have been described
as Namakaya or 'symbolising of names', Padakaya or (sy_mbo-
!ising of words) and Vyafijanakaya or symbolising of letters
I,
 tM iNTRO:bUCTtON

(vide Kosa II til. These indicate the greater and higher

cO!J.ditioning complexities introduced into the individual
personatity. The spiritual experiences like Nirodhcl Samo.patti
or temporary cessation of a· dormant mind and Asa1(ljfti-
Sarno.patti or comlete but not an absolute cessation of mind
unctioning signify' the richer and spiritual experiences ot the
indiVIdual personalities. IncidentaI1y~ it may be pointed
out th~:r't Sabho.gata or homogeneity which has beende~cribed
as the abstract basis for the s'o-caHed sameness in personalit'Y
is itself a Citta-viprayukta or mind-dissociated biogenic
tendency which will function inspite the mind or without
mind (vide Infra P. 133). So are the >others, like Jivita
or organism, Jati or· birth, Sthiti or growth, .Jaro. or decay,
. AnifJata or death, Prapti or conditioning and Aprlipti or
decondifioning.The learning of the speech and symbolic
ekpressionslike: Nlimakaya; Pada-ko.ya and Vyaftjanakaya
- have been described before. These and the spiritual experi·
enceslike Nirodha and Asamjiii' Samo.pattis are all recogni..
sed by the Buddhists as biogenic tendencies. Therefore,
it may be suggested that these tendencies are more organic
than psychic. The psychic ,states like feeling, cognition.
memory, attention, and subjective states like emotions have
been classified by the Buddhists under the Caitta o~ the
psychogenic root associations. All these factors make the
personality complex and variable at different stages of active
life. Before the death, the complex structure gets more
simplified; thefi:qal phase of withdrawal and disintegration
signifies one's death or termination only of the picture of an
individual life. Immediately, the reintegration of' forces
would begin and a new birth emerge {vide chart attached
Infra P. 134}. ' ,
,,, The Picture or An Individual Personality
Theconiplete picture of an individual personality may
·be obtained from the states present from the time of its
conception till its death. Thus, the rudimentary· mind
present at the time of conception is known as the Upapatti..
hhava-citta or ~he mind existing at the time of conception. 8a
 INTR ODUi1TION 109

The mind which is present at the moment of death is known

as the Mara1J.a-bhavacitta or the mind existing just before
the time of death. The Buddhists believe that something
of a mind is present at the time of death. For, different
expressions like horror or calmness may be detected on the
dead's face. These show that some mental states were
present at the time of the death. The typical consciousness
present before the Mara~zabhava citta or mind existing at the
time of death, is recognised as Pilrvakalabhava citta or the
mind existing prior to death. The state of existence which
links up the previous life with the next life after death is
known as the Antarabhava-citta or the intermediary mind.
This state of linking is also recognised as the Pratisandhis-
kandha or the rudiments of the intermediary state. This fact,
11Owever, is present only in the texts like Abhidharmakosa and
in those following similar tradition. The Piili texts do not
mention Pratisandhi·Skandha as an intermediary link between
two births. They however mention about 'Prati sandhi citta'
which remains as the link. It is clear from what has been
said before that, the Buddhists show a partiality towards
Gitta or mind which throughout the different states of life,
death and afterlife is present. They maintain, of course,
that every phenomenon is constituted by the two principles
of external and internal or namarilpa. In spite of that the
strong emphasis on Gitta or mind cannot be ignored. This
emphasis on Citta or mind accounts for a strong idealistic
tendencies whic;h was later found in Maha} ana Buddhism. sb
!ndriyas and Their role in Composing the Pattern
of Individual Personality
The different emergent pictures of the individual perso-
nality are variable. These variable states make the personality
dynamic and changing, complex or simple. It has been
pointed out before that all these emergent states are deter-
mined by their own causal Jaws. The Buddhists maintain,
quite logically, that all changes which are found in the in~
 110 INTRODUCTION

dividualpersonality do not occur in a haphazard manner.

Every change takes. place in accordance with sonie law of
operation of some active or passive agents.' These factors
whichict as catalytic agents are recognised·· by the
.Buddhists as the Indriyas or the determining prinCiples.
The lndriyas as has been previously~ indicated, according
to'the Buddhists, . are the dominating conditionswhich
result iIi ~hang~. This meaning, df cour&e. appears quite
. .of Indriya or sen~e
different from- the traditionalmeanin'g
-
, o~gan.· l'he Buddhists recognise 22 Indriyasor deter-
.
mining: 'principles which develop during the different stages
of the individual' personality from birth till death. 'The
development of these Indriyizs asdeterrniningprinciples;
according to the Buddhists, is responsible for Ku1ala and
Akrlsala or good and evil inclinations, for Jivita or life, for
Mana or ...
Conscious mind, for Pafica-indriya, or five special
. .

$ense ~. organs, for Vedana or feelings. for Sraddha or some

ethical norm, for A~asrava or for spiritual elevation, for sex-
character and everyother detail of an individual persona-
lity. All these do not appear and disappear simultaneously
even in the same individual. Some appear in the prenatal
and some In the post-natal phases of life. Some account for
birth and growth in the positive manner; some when ~ith­
drawn, account for death in a negative manner. Theperso-
na]ity-pec~IJa.dty has been sought to beexplained by the·
~uddhistsby t~e interl,llay of the different IndriJas or th~
determining pri'nciples ..' The picture of the activity of the
lndriyas or determining principle is given below after the
Abhidharmakos~ ofVcistibandhu.
Individual· Personality in thePre~natal . Phase
. The first stage of psycho-physical existence is found in
the. Kaltzla of the Falopian tub~ of the mother's womb
which receives the ovum. The next stage is the fructified
ovum or ceJl-hody or the Arbuda forrned in the mother's
womb, ·This stage is followed by the next stage Pe$z, when,
 INTRODUCTION III

the muscles are formed. The fourth stage following is

Ghana or the intensification or maturation. The fifth stage
is known as Prasakha or the complexity in growth. These
ideas are curiously very ~imiJar to modern conceptions of
biology. The Indriyas or determining principles which are
found active during these stages are the Adana Indriya or
the mind determining principle together with the Jivita or
the determining principle of organic life. It is, however,
I not mentioned clearly in the Abhidharmakosa whether these
two appear together but, from the data, it appears that
such possibilities are there. (I) It ha~ been said before that
the mind active at the time of death is Mara1J.abhavacitta
which is fonowed by the intermediary mind or Antariibhava
citta; this again is followed by the mind present at the time
of conception known as upapatibhava.citta. (2) It is also
said in the Kosa that the Mana-indriya or the mind determi-
ning principle is the locus of the intermediary state of
existence. (3) According to the Kosa, the Pratisandhiskandha
or the intermediary existence is a psychophysical composi-
tion. (4 Jivita is said to be Bhautika or metarial. It is quite
natural to conclude from these facts that from the time of con ..
ception both external and internal principles are present.
Therefore, it may be concluded that, both the Mana-indriya
or the mind determining principle and the Jivita or the
determining principle of organic life are together present
and constitute the early pre-natal stages of the psycho-physi-
cal pattern of the ilJdividual peasonality.

The first group of special sense organs (Development oj

Sense organs oj Cognition) or the determining principles of
cogni tion develop next. The Kayendriya or the determi-
ningprinciple of touch developes first. It is followed by
, the Cak~u or the determining principle of
the others, viz,
vision, the Srotra, or determining principle of sound) Nasa
or the determining principle of smell, and Jihva or the
112 INTRODUCTION

determining principle of taste. It may be incidentally men- .

tioned that the Buddhists, like the modern biologists, recog-
nise the touch as more basic than other sense organs. The
sex determining principles are the Stri-indriya or the deter-
mining principle of femininity and Pumindriya or the deter-
mining principle_ of masculinity. These two are to be
placed in the Kayendriya or the determining principle of
touch only. All these developments make the pattern of
individual existence more complex which continues to
develop further in the next phase of post-natal period."
(ibid p. 100)
The Individual Personality in the Post-Natal Phase
The post-natal
, phase is characterised by five gradual
stages viz. Saisava or infancy, Ba{ya or childhood, Yauvana
or youth, Madhyavastha or middle age and Vrddhavastha or
old age. These stages constitute the fuller and richer
aspects of personality.
Development of Feeling 9
Now the emotive life develops in the individual during
the childhood due to the activity of the determining princi-
ples of feeling. There are five Vedanaindriyas which deter-
mine the feelings in generat They are, viz-
(a) Sukhendriya, or the determining priciple of pleasure
(b) Duhkhendriya or the determining principle of pain;
(c) Upek$endriya or the determining principle of neut-
rality.
(d) Saumanasyendriya or the determining principle of
sympathy;
(e) Daurmanasyendriya or the determining principle of
aggressIOn.
The plan of the development of feelings, as accepted
by the Bud'dhists, is quite clear. First, there develop the feel-
ings of individual pleasure and pain; next, there is develop-
ment of more complex and Socialised feelings like sympathy
 JNT'QPUCTlON U3
and aggression which bear also sociaJ consequences. Modern
psychology offers the same plan too. The Buddhists, however ~
lJelieve in the neutral sensation which is extra-ordinary,
Modern psychology does not accept any such state as neut!ality
. of f~~Ung whi<:h is neither ,pleasure nor pain. It is said that
(he mind at the time pf death is associated with feeling.
Saumq,na.ryendriya or determining principle .of sympathy is
always ethiCally good; while th~ Daurmanasyendriya is always
evil inclined.

Development of Ethical Attitude

The next development of the individual personality is
the socio . . ethical attitude which is c;onsciously cultivated
with effort. This effort presumes some established socio-
ethical code$ of morality. The jpdividual accorqingly trains
himself to be~ome right or gooq and to reject the wrong or
evil. This socio-ethical development of personality depends~
on the activity of another Five Indriyas or determining
prici pIes. These are-
(a) Sraddhendriya or the determining pridple of faith
(in Buddha-sarzzgha and Dharma).
(b) Viryendriya or the determining principle of pro-
wess and effort.
(c) Smrtindri)!a or the determining priciple of trai-
ned memory.
(d) Samadhindriya or the determining principle of
attention.
(e) PraJnendri'Va or the determining principle of right
knowledge.
It may be pointed out that the must complex feature
of the individual personality is determined by these ethical
principles.loa. The cognitive life and also the emotive life have
peveloped previously; the conative life developes now. In
a sense these principJe~ determine the full·fled~ed develop'"
~
1'14 INTRODUCTION

ment of a matured personality, constituted by all the cogni-

tive, emotive and conative aspects. lob The active will' and'
effort on the part of the individual personality change the,
Prthagjana or the ordinary one into an Arya or Spiritually'
Progressive one.' This active effort transforms the IndriYa'$'
or determining princjples intb Kusala or gQod. Thus by
effort the individual personality achieves the spiritually
advanced states like the foHowing: ".
(a) Srotapatti or initiated into the Current of spiritua- •
lity;
(b)' Sakrdagami or the birthpr~ceding Nir\'~Q.a;
(c) Anagil7pi or, the last birth in a RupadhMu 0,1' .Acu-
pyadhatu before N i r v a 1 J a . j ,
(d) Arhat or the Ii bedted iife~ ,Or,' her€ anindivid;ual
may experience the spiritual depths ,like Nirodka-Samaplliti
·or Asamjni-Samapatti (vide infra, page 123). . " ! ./,'

The Spiritual Status

The spiritual Status of the individual p~rso~a;lity is
dependent on the activity of the three more determini:ng
prinCiples which are, extraordinary in nature. Th~se, ,of
course, are special attainments, ap.d cannot be found ine¥ery
,individual personality who is not spiritually so adv~~ced .
.Ii"'
These are: ~ . .

(a) AnlijfiiUamlijnaSYlimindriya or the' dethinining

principle by which the 'unknown is made known'.,
- ' . - \

(b) Ajnendriya or the determining principl~otGmast~F-

ing completely the known'. , " ' ,,".
(c) Ajill1tl1Vindriya or the dnert11ining principle of
"perfect insight or omo iscience':
These three pririciplesmay beco'mpared to the develop·
ments of abstract intellectual sentiments reached by some
 INTRODUCTION

specially gifted genius during his psychological process of

sublimation. A branch of modern. psychology~ known, as
para-psych610gy,is . devoted to the study of -this special
'development 'ot individ ual talent and "mystic feelings. The
Buddhists maintain that the- last principle is found on"ly ina.
'l1'iaster 'or Asaik$a who does not req uire any further training.
According to them:Buddha or enligtened alone fits into this
category and the other Arhats remain there as Saik~a.
"

,C6nclusioD' ,',
Thus; we arrive at certain findingsil about the Buddhist
conception of individual personality or Pudgald,viz. :
1. The' Pudgala or the individual persomiHty is 'an
emergent pIcture against the background of Bhava or cycles
·of-;existeifce::" The ':Co'nstitU'ent factors f6t boiI1are Nrimd'..
rflpaskandha or the composition' of the rudiments" both
external and interna1.
2. The- Pudagla or, the individual 'personality is. a
pheno~e~on' whi~h ~ppears together with . the' a,bstract
phenomena ,li.ke." Sabhagata or homogeneity and Sattv,a-
satv,khyata"or continuo'us'bei'ng.' None of them is reaL'"
, .3. The terminating points of one individ~al p,ersona-
lity ~re, 'the'l/fJapatti-bhava-cz'tta and the" Marar/abhava-citta.
The link between the two births is supplied by theAntara~
bhava-citta Or P r a t i s a n d h i c i t t a . ' t.
4, In spite of the re~peated mentioning of the psycho-
p~ysicaI - composition of the individual personality there
is a clear tendency -towards idealistic interpretation of
the same.
5. The different aspects and' stages of the individual
personality are' e'xpla:ined by the asse'mblage Of the rudi-
ments or Namarupaskandha, determined by the catalytic
agents or thelndriJas. 13 • : ,"
6. The study of the individual personality, after the
Buddhists, leads to the finding of a supposed plan for the
dynamic development of the individual personality which
H6

has aU Hs cognitive, emotive and con'l.tive ph~sfl~ develQping

together with the spiritual and supHmated stages. The ~tudy
discovers further a very careful and n,~tional effort QP the
part of these thinkers to link the flow (lfthe pre~ent life with
its past and future developments.H
7. It is dear that the Buddhists inves,tlgated into the
psychophysical composition of the individual per~on.'l.lity
thoroughly and carefully, and, reached some empiric~l
generalisations which are very near to the thepprev?Hipg
scientific finding~. It should be pourne .in the ll1irld; hOWe
ever$ that the .Buddhists never meant to know these e~Ped~
mentally for the sake of knowledge alone. 12 They were
guided by only one end while. inquiring into the Pt;dgf!,l(J,~
and that W'l.S how to attain the Nirvat)aor the ces~?tjqnof
existence for the PZt dgala 13 •
Short Bibli@graphy
L Abhidharmakosa of Vasubandhu (Kasi Vidyap]th) ed.
Rahula Sar[lkrtyayana.
2. La Abhidharmakosa de Vasubandhu, Traduit et ann ate.
parlouis de La VaHee- Poussin.
3. Abhidharmakosa BhliUa Tika (rasom,itra) cd byl)r. N.
Law and Dr. N. Dutt
4. Early Monastic Budd/Zism3 by Dr. N. Dutt ..
. 5. Instant et Cause par Lilian Silburn.
6. Tattva Sar[lgraha (Slintirakiita) vols I & 2, Gaekwad
Oriental series.
7. . Pudgala PaiHzattimPali Text Society.
8. Buddhist Psychology by Mrs. Rhys~lavies.
9. Visuddhimagga by Dr. D. Kosarphl.
10. AbllidhammatthaQsar(lggaha by Dr,D. Kosarp.b]'.
 L The new dictionary pr. Psychology P.L. Hardman P. 185.
2. Dvadas~narp. Adhyatmikanarp. Cak~uradayab panca svana~
moktab sa pta ciUa dh;itavo Mana inddyarp..
Kosa 1 Ka 48 BhrifJia P. 31
j

(a) Yavanto Hi IndriyaparamaQavastavanto Hi

Vi~ayaparama1;l:a:"ab Sametya vijnanarp janayanti
Koso I) Ka 44, Bhaf.'Ya P. 33
(b) Visuddhimagga..;...;.P. 343. Indriya~accaniddeso (Indriya
Satya Nirdeso)
(c) Sapta dWidh~tavo Mana Indriyarp..
Kosa I, Kl1 48, BhilfjJa P. 31.
3 (a) Mana Indriyasya Punarbhava Sarp.bandha
VasibMvananuvartanayob-Kosa 2, Kil. t, BliafJa P. 38,
(b) Pravfttera$rayab ~adindriyal).i
Kosa 2. Ka 6, Blfo,fya P. 40
4. R upil).i Sa ptendriyarp. Jivitendri yarp. Du bkha
daurmanasyenddye caikanta Sasraval).i ..
Kosa 2, Ka 9, B!fo,iyaP. 42.
5.(a) Se~a na SaJpcita- Kosa 2, Ka 35, Bhafya P. 24.
(b) Uktarp. hhavati Anidarsanab Se~ah
Kosa 2, Ka. 29, Bhafya P. 19.
6. Tamraparl).iya api Hrdayavastu
Manovijnanadhatorasrayarp. Kalpayanti, Tacca
Arupyadhatau api Vidyate Hi vatI)ayanti
Kosa 1, Ka l'7, VYi'lkhya P. 45.
i. Vide Infra P. 119. Consciousness formation (vijnanaskandha)
8.(a) MttyupapattibhavayorantarabhavaUha Yab
Kosa 3, Ka. 10.
(b) Patisandhibhavanga cyutivasena pavattanato
Pancatthana hod. Visuddhimagga P. 318.
"Ledi Sadaw explains it as the (P. U l), function of the being
by reason of which the pas~ive side of existence continuously
 exists so long as the Janaka Kamma (manual part V, 8) of
the past which caused that: existence lasts,"
Compendium ,~f Philosophy-Mrs. Rhys Davids and
S. Z. Aung-Appendix P. 266.
9.ManaQ.imkhasaumanasyopek~aQ. Sraddhadlni ea paiica.
Eta:m navendriyaJ;d tnumarge~u trll;li indriya:t;.l-i
ucyante. Dadanamarge AnajnatamajiHisyami indriyam..
Bhavanamarge Ajfiendriyam. Asaik~amarge AjfiatavI ndriYaJp-
iti.-Kosa 2, Ka 9, BhafJ(J P. 42.
lO;(a)SarvalpairniSubho~\abhirvimnanal;l K~ya Jivitail;l yukta\t-
Kosa 2, Kil. 20.
(b) Vahubhiryukta ekonavim.sati Amalavarjitail;l
Kosa 2, Ka 21.
11,(i) Mano Indriya~ya Punarbhava. &a!llba~dha Vas~bhava
DuvartanayoQ.- Kosa 2, Kli 1, Bhl1t.'Pa P. 38.
(ii) Manojivita upeklja Indriy~:t;.li-, Kosa ~, Ka. 12.
,(iii) UpelqaJivitamano Jlvitamanoyukta ..... ~ ... Kosa 2, Kil.1'7.
(iv)(a) Kayendriya~ JivitaI"P: ca "
. (b) 'Ekam. uttare : Kosa2, Ka 14.
(v)T·~ib. :;;a<;l Va. Kosa 2, Kli H.
(vi) Str'indriYl'i.dimariA~~abhi"':" Ko1a2; Ka cI8;
(vii) Mano jivitaupek!?a Indriyam. Sraddhadlni ea Palica-
. . ". Kosa 2, Kli 12.
(vIn)" IYamllptau Ainalam. ·Hitva, Kosq2, Ka 12.
(ix) Sukha Saumanasya upek~a Jivita Maual;l Sraddhadini.,. '"
. Kosa 2, Ka. 18.
(x) Navaptirantyaphalayol;l. Sapta~tanababhir
dvayoh- - . . KoS-a2iKii; 19.
~,-.) "-, ' ;; ,/ .~. ,- , ,

12.(a) Nirodhayati up.a.ramat Arupy~ Jivitam.

ManaQ... lJpek~am. Caiva Rupe a~tau- ';'
-. - Kosa 2, Kl1 15.
(b) Kame da~a nava a~ta va
Krama:mriyau~c-a:catvari-
13. Navendriya~i sasrava nasrava:t;.li api
A. K. Bha~yarp.P. 42.'-"

- - >
 (0) 1. CiTtA .2. COOPERATION OF
CITTA AND RUPA
CiUa is the name in general for all the functionings of
the mind. But it is used to signify a special ethical function
of mind which discriminates between moral and non-moral
states (Cinond cittarp) •. Manas or the mind stands for the
reasoning, and Vijfiana is the name for comprehending
consciousness. 1 They are all flexible states and not perma~
nent .or Nitya, as the Naiyayikas would have them. Their
functions also <lIe k~aQika or momentary and the names
Citta, Manas alld Vijnana would flow as succeeding streams
from the moment of birth (Upapattibhavacitta) upto death
(MaraJ;labhavachta). Even in the intermediary state there
is the rise or formation of Mana Indriya which lies in a
potential. state,2& between the two states of life and death.
The Sthavirabadi Buddhists assume a Pratisandhi Skandha
(Citta) which functions as a link. In Abhidharmakosa,
however, there is no men.tionohhis Pratisandhi Skandha or
Pratisandhicitta,2b We just arrive at this hypothesis mostly
from the view point of Pali literature.
It has been mentioned before that aU the different
states of mind are the results of citra (citta parivara). Thus,
citta.is like the king of all or is like the fundamental note
which lies behind every overtone or aU the other shades
of a functioning . mind while undergoing the composite
processes of modaHsation like Karma (action), Jnana
(Realisation) and Dhyana (spiritnal state}.2(l Again, the
simpieraspectsof mind are the Sarpskaras or the unlearned
propensities or the root associations and impressions.
There . are 4.4 Caittasor the. mind derivatives which are
responsibl~ for aU the different states of mental make up
.including Kusalaor morally wholesome and Akusala
orthemoraUyunwholesome states as the indication would
be. We get a complete Jist of them all in the first and the
l~O

second chapters of the Ak. and come to know how they

function together. The fifth chapter mostly deals with
the mental make up which is mainly evil inclined known
Anusaya. (Vide Table. infra p. 133).
There are some 14 Sarp.skaras which work inspite of
mind or even WhCIi the mind is not functioning for the time
being. 3 !!; They are known as the CiUaviprayukta Sarp.skaras.
These are responsible mostly for our existence, Hving, unders
standing 9 learning and even the medidating states which
touch the deeper level of our being and keep it flowing on.
Our habit.s of reading, speaking and writing, and our getting
conditioned or deconditioned to something also, may be
explained in that way. These in. a sense may be understood
to be the basic pattern of life while conscious, mind appears
later with its retinue. Sil These two co ntinue to cooperate
in the form of the individual jiva or personality (Pudgala).
The life continuum of a PudgaIa or Jiva would flow on
through the cycles of life and death (Bhava) and get termi'"
nated only in NirvaQa or Bhavav1ccheda. The same process
would apply to the human beings, the super-human crea~
tures (Deva, Naraka etc.) and the animals and the plants.
The Kosa, however~ does not mention anything which is
technically recognised by the Yogacara school of Idealistn
as Alayavijfiana or the all.,;,source-consciousness-potential. (Vide
the articles by the author in Samik~a, Organ of the Psycho~
Analytic Society.> India vol. 21 no. 2, 1967; and the 'Buddhist
conception of consciousness or ArthagrahaQa' in the Journal
of Bihar Research Society, Patna vol. xxxv. Mar.. Dec.1959).
According to the Rosa the modification of conscious ..
ness constitutes the distinct kinds of mind-states lU:e Maha-
bhumtka Cina (Basic and Universal mind state)& the Akusala
Citta (Evil inclined or unwholesome mind state), the Kusala
Citta (wholesome mind~state), Klda bhumika Citta (Impure
mind~state), PadUa kleSa Citta (a mindstate made up of
inferior emotions) and Aniyata-Avyakrta Citta (a flexible and
neutral mind state).4 AU these different mind states ate
constituted by ten items of CaiHa which make up the Basic
mind combined 'V\1ith the specific and builQing items of each
of the mind~states as stated above. (e. g. 10 caittas of Maha ..
bhnmika Citta, combined with 10 Caittas of Kusala Citta,
would make a Kusala-Mahabhnmika Citta: So, 10 Caitta!!
of Mahabhnmika CiHa together with 6 Caittas of KIesam
bhnmika Citta would constitute a K.ldabhnmika CiUa;
and so on). According to PaH tradition the caittas are 89.
"Ve are however~ foHowing the tradition of Abhidharma~
kosa 5a • Similarly, an organism would be made by the
Jivita (life) an~ Stri or Pumindriya (female or male organ)
Mana Indriya (mind organ)4 etc, AccordinglYt an ordinary
Pudgala win become transformed into an A.rya (Pudgala) by
attaining certain mental states. This transformation from
worse to better and from better to worse would go on till
Bhavaviccheda or NirvaQ,a is achieved. The seat of the
mind is Hrdayavastu which is material or Bhautika in
nature. (Ibid p. 102 chapter III B Introduction).
Adttaka (or Non-functioning Mind vide Infra p, 134,
Avijnaptih)
It may be said that the different functions of mind
are the different aspects and modaHsations of consciousness
(or citta}.5 Some other states are mentioned in the Kosa
and are recognised as non-functioning mind or absence of
SaIpjna (Perception). These stages are viz.
(1) AsaIpjuika
(2)· AsaIpjnl samapatti
(3) Nirodha samapatti and Pratisaq1khyanirodha and
ApratisaIpkhyanirodha.
(4) NaivasaIpjua~NasaIpjnayatana or Bhavagra.
The items I, 2 and 3 are recognised in the Kosa
as the Cittaviprayukta Dharmas (or Mind~free states).
The first item A.saIpjnika is said to be a natural and
spontaneous acheivement on the part of the Asaq1juisaU'Va
122

Gods who are the denizens of the 4th Dhyana or fourth

leVel of meditation. In aU these stages the continuity of
Vijiiana or consciousness is maintained through succession
orthe Vijiiana santanas or streams of consciousness, In both
the cases of Sarna patti the faculty of vitality and TactiIe
faculty (Jivitendriya and Kayendriya respectively) both go
on functioning. It may be inferred from these data that
during these stages, consciousness or dtta is either unmani~
fest (Aspa~ta Manovijiiana) or withdrawn temporarily
(Nirodha). But, during aU these stages the flow of existance
remains in tact.
Bhavagl'a
. The vijiianasantanas (or the stream of consciousness)
behave di:ffer~ntly in the A.rupya Dhatu (The sphere afnon..
corporeality) than in the Kamadhatu or Rupa Dhatu
(Sphere of sensuous nature and sphere of corporeality,
respectively). A.rupya Dhatu (or sphere of non-corpo..
reality) is recognised as non~spatiaL It is characterised as
the seat of last three Vijiianasthiti {or Substrate Qf conscious-
ness}. These stages of Viji'ianasthiti and Sattvavasas have
been previously described in chapter In (the phenomenal
world A. K. Kosa III Ka 6 8). The state Naiva saxpjiia~
c

Nasaxpjiia or Bhavagra is supposed to be the last of aU the

Vijiianasthitistates. The dear knowledge at this state is
obtained by Nirodha Samapatti. It may be supposed here,
that Vijiiana is possible only when there is some support of
Rupa or Matter. It may be said that Rupa or Matter is
there in imperceptible and unmanifest form 6 in aU states
of dtta. 7 (Also vide Infra. P. 133,)
Comparison with Nil'jnana of P~Uanjal~ Yoga.
The stages discussed above are evidently mystic states
of some deeper experience. These ideas to some extent
correspond to some of the ideas found in Pataiijala Yoga.
The term ~Nirodha' (withdrawal or cessation) is common to
both systems i.e. Yoga and Sarvastivada Vaibha~ikas. This
. state of Nirodha signifies a state when dttaor consciousness
temporarily stops functioning in a modaHsed state g specially·
in relation to the external objects. According to Yoga
sy~tem~the ultimate citisakti is recognised asnontransfor~
mabIe (Apari1.lamini) The aspect of CiUa known as
Buddhi (Reflective consciousness) maybe held as transfor~
mabIe into different modes of conscious functioning. The
nature of Buddhi (Reflective consciousness) is manifesting
and determining. The state of Citisakd (norHransforma m

bIe) is recognised as a state of restoration of original and

fundamental mind principle which may be described as
partially similar to the idea of Bhavanga citta. Alaya~
Vijfiana of the Yogiicaras is also a flow or continuum of
unmodified mind. Thus g the ideas, Nirjfiana and Nirodha
occurring in Yoga system and the ideas Asaxp.jfiika, As arpjm.
and Nirodha SamapaHi occurring in the KoSa, may be
understood to be the dynamic states of experience
maniftst in the states of 'Being'and 'Becoming'together.
These states by no means are static states. The special
emphasis is put by the Buddhists on the idea of becoming
orffce flow of consciousness. This indicates that a mystic
experience baffles the reach of ordinary determination, and
cOrisciousmodification. According to both the viewpoints
these mystic states are preceded by consciousness effort But
fromsarvast.ivada vaibha~ika point of view, ahhoughpre,.
ceded by conscious effort~ these states themselves develop
later into a stage spontaneous and natural achievement.
The experience as a whole remains dynamic in the
samap<:tUi stages,7 But, the idea one gets about the Samadhi
. or the meditation states of Yoga system seems to be rather
static than dynamic~ Atleast dynamism there has not been
emphasised upon. The two Nirodha stages (withdrawal)
may be compared with Nirvija Samadhi of Yoga system;
. Asaxp.jfU Samapatti which seems to be a state of fullness
may be compared with Savija Samadhi of the same. .
 124
Bbavanga C1itta or Kriya C1itta
.' Bhavaiigacitta fuay beincidentaUy mentioned here;
for, Bhavangacittaremains flotyitig on aU th~ timetover.;;
ing-all Hie pha.ses &t'PsydIlo-physioI6gical experiences. In a
sense, Bhavangadtta is the starting sea. bed from : WhicH
. the'surglng waves 6£ various mental states come up 10 Im-iui·
test form. As
soon .as tHesestateSarewithdtawn:,eith~t
carefuUy:or spontaneously, Bhavangacitta, devoid of any
experience goes on flowing, Accor~li1g to Yogiitara:schodl1
Bnavangacitt:i is pure consciousness or AJayavijfia.ha
devoid' of any mpdifled and conscious sfiHes kil()wri':,1s Pr'cV
vtttivUfiaiia.. Some 'mote detaHs about the Uhavanga: dna.
has' been discussed in Abhiclhamwattha Sarpgg~lta iil
connection with personality formation and channelisation tif
vtjnana satp:ttina. 8
M~ralClassificadon
,"." ~,,,' .of"' Citta.
/ ; ,;" ',' ., , ' ' ,

In the Pali texts like Visuddhiniagga" and Atthasalinl

'and¥imutfimagga, a9kinds ?of cittas a:u;e rec,:ognis.ed. Some
are known as Karma or functional; .. some,"are known as
Vipala orresuliab.t;some'are known as Kriya or ,ethiCally
unmodified citta{Mind) as is fotind irt;ihe Axha.t(libetated
ihdividual)'; •. soril~ may be known as Ahetukaor unconditio-
nal n'iind.This~ind of dtt~ maybe either Vlpakai(resuUant)
or Ktiya oi"unin bdified. 'Flie other class of. citta. is known
as Sahetauka citta or c::onditionaiwhich maybe: 9

(.1.)." .
(~)
AkMS,alaox: Kti.S,·~.;.la
OF. •. M.'
Mo~~nY,':UD:wholes0!lle~l
o. r.'. . . IY w.'..... n
. '.,.0. , lesorne Mind.
Mmd'.'j<.de.,.scrm6d
~e.fore .
(3) Avy;1krtaJ:>r I.ndetermmate Mmd IbId P. 120)
(4)' Lokottara or Suprarh~ndane Min,d of BuddUa.
that~ind.·~icitt~,is t.Hya Citta wllic1})s not ethically
'determined and is free of an the rQot evils (Ak1J~alaMula) a.nd
il\nq~Ao/a o~·~vndisposi~ion~.ln. ~~ddha's cas~i it is saidJhat
.thismind d(!velops an, ,aestJ:.tetic fac::ulty ~IsoJffasituppa.da).
It is ~lso lielp that qp~alityof P!lrity of mind to ,a gteat ~x·
t~nt is determined by quality 9f food~ •' Thena,tur~or.f!x..
perience varies from individual ,to indivi~uat
T~~;'Good'~r sublime (Subha) is ordimtrily recognis ..
eEr as beautiful (Sobhana) . Evil (or Papa) is fopposed to
that. The object whichi$ deSIrableiS' !recognised as r~ta;
tuHUmeJiJ~;ofJ~ta',ordesired qbject may be agreeable or
disagreeable. It may be under~toodt'hat from Buddhist
paint ofJvj~wp extcss or any. pleasure is painful. Thus, in
Buddhaghd~a's Sammoh~vinodinl ;commentaryon Vibhanga,
~h~ id~~ ,~pout mi<;ldlepa~h (or c'M ad&}?am a pn\tlpat) may
'beunde'rslQod asfquitesignific~nt ide~' in this connection.
The desirability 61' I~ta is '" ded~ed by either common sense
C

agpeal ~~,.t:he.s9I1s~ or~~n,s or ,the amount ofeWort required

tt~~tein.·~riefly'speaking,>then~ture of, agreeable th~ngs is
determiqed by its relative nature to, <jther conditions'and
remindsysof theqmcepts likeP~eya (Desirable) and S~eya
(~ijblimaiiQn) as we firltt' them: ip.}hetJPani~at. '
It goe~,w,ithou\s:ayingthat the Buddqist thinkers had
plade~ftP effQ~(touf!d~rstaq9,mind in aU its various possible
perspectives with a rational approa,~h~ Th~y, seemtQ ha:y~
lide:p;~i~$!? 'O:~Rd' w;~,ir:;h is q~s}rable 'with the highest mora.!
ideal Pf.sreya,which~ according to the,~ woulfl obtain rp,ankiI),d
a freedom from suffering. AU scie~~es ofmp,dernt~~es ar~
dominated ,by, an 'i.dea of. ,being 'applied to some kind of
humtfn good lot service tonIankind. It will not be, unfair
to state that Bhddhist.. approach ttrithe sCientific study of
imfnd~nd its\~ariou'~appHtadons is fundamentally guided
by a human interest: Evirlently,th,& apprqachtb minqiis
intro~pective from Huddhistpointof:view: 'But,this intl'o, '
spect~v~ an~iY$es f~i··inddehtal to, a practical aim; This
spirit saveq early Buddhism frqni"beirigi,categorilled '~s
purely Idealistic in nature. Again, the question9f I~ta or
desirable. remin:ds tis of som.e of the ,modern ethical concepts
like 'good! or 'right'. Desirable obJ~ct may' 'be agte~able or
,lZ6 INTRODUCTION

'disagreeable also according to the Buddhist ethics ;SimilarJy

any ~exccess' of desirabiHty is also recognised by themas
.pa,infu1. Such ideas may be found in ethical'appfoaches
"Yhich we find amongst the Epicureans and Hedonistic ethics
pf',Bfntham andMUL In condussion it may be pointed
Qut that the Buddhist conception of dtta is to be understopd
:30$ a composition and is to he known rationally by a psycho,.
logical analysis and is to be g,uided and purifiedgraduaHy
,and steadily by an ethical evaluation.
'(2) CoopeR"ation of DiffeR"en Functions of ~iDd aDd
, MatteR" (Citta and Rupa)
The entire process ofMind~matter cooperation can
'be best understood from the version of Abhidhammauha
;S<llpggaha audits translation (English) by S.]. Aung. ' The
'proc,es~ofindividual mind' functioning from beginning to
"end wiH be duly explained in connection withPudgahi or
personal.ity. It is said that mental function takes place by
:means ofHetu (ground) and Pratyaya (condition). Every
OiUa k~al)a or moment of consciousness consists of three
moments viz. Utpada(origin) SthW (duration) and Bhanga
(diss')lution). Speaking re1adve1y~ forms of mind ( dna
niyama) remain apparendyconstant when the maHer and
mind are reaHyvariahle. lO
Every mental act}· originates in cetana or. voJidoij.
Cetanais. universally presentin a mind (Sahajata cet«llla)
and is fonowed by ethical consequences. Cetanais determin~
edby two roots viz. Moha (Ignorance) and Lobha (Greed).
Cetana then is transfor med into Karma or action which
may bc'l\i!anasika (mental) . Kayjka(phy~ical) and. Vacika
>~praI}. Oetana essentially may be fol1o~ed by. Kusala or
morally wholesome and Akusala or unwholesome conse=
. quetlces. 11 . .. .

According to Abhidhamma texts written in PaH there

are altogether 54 classes of CiUas (mind particulars) occu@
 INTRODUCTION 121

ring in the Kama Dhatu or sensuous sphere. There are 21

classes of Citta itA the Rupadhatu (or corporeal sphere).
There are 49 classes of CHta in the Arupyadhatu (or
sphere of non-corporeality). CiUa or functioning ','conscious-
ness may also be classified in
those stages from the point of
view of morality and spiritual height achievement. Thepbject
of mind in aU these stages may be Citta ,( Mind), Ca.'itasika
(mental' derivatives) Prasadarupa (Msmifest and' Sensitive
qu.ality of the sense (faculties), Suk~ma Rupa (Subtle
quality), Prajfiapti or Pannatti (Idea, concept, or ,name)
and NirvaJ;,la (cessation of existence). These arecoHt:ctec!
together as D harmalarp. bana (Dhan;uparam.,lillaJ;,la) ,or. xefle,c,,:,
tion on object of mmd. 12

[";

The pannatti objects (concepts) are d,eiicrn~ed in,.

chapter vn of Vibhailga,or,manual. 13 It may be unde'r-
s't~~d in t~o 'different ways vjz~ the subj~ct(Pannapatio,r
knowing agent) and the object (Pannapiyatui the know'n
object)., These two, ideas may be represented by Sadda~
pannaui (which rnakeswords known) 'and Attha~pauuatti
(which makes the meaning Imown) respectively. Sadda-
pafinatti may be understood ~s a Sabda or name,or a term.
AUhapannatti ,or' Arthaprajuapti may be. ,described as
foHows :
L ,Tajja pannatti-(concepts of things in their uhi@
mate nature).
2. Upada pannatti-(concept derived from things
in their ultimate nature).4
3, Sanniha pannaui- (concept of collective things).
4. jad pannatti---(concept or generic type). '
5. Santhana pannatti- (concept denoting the form
of a thing).
6, Ddil Paunaui~( concept of place).
 1. '/'{{ al:!tpa,ifinatti~,( ~OllGept oftirrie).
8, " 'Aka~aPafifiatti~( corl,C~pt of ~pace)
9. Nimjtta pafifiatti~(c,o~cept of negation}. 'i'
,f 1O.Natthi~bavapanfiatH--(con~~pt of cau~a1ity).
, 11: 'Santat(;{pafifiatti~(concept of idei)tity in 'conH-
,nuity)~ , " !,':' ' " .' ' ,; ,,' '
l2;,S~nk~i~'pafin~,tH-(soncept of conventional ~ym,:
, boIs or sign by whicl(~thin~fis signifi:ea). " y '
?, u",. <,; '"' .. , ~' < • ;

ltis:said that a sense object is 'always present. Nib:

bana (ce~sation)and the'lPafifiaiHi obj:¢cts are;indep~ndent
Qf time, b1,lt another objects ,are rea};;for ti1reeplnises of
tithe i.e~p;:lst present aadfuture. 1a \l

A full des~riptiori ~6f the relations pf the subject'and

l4~: objec~can
, . "".. ' .":"
ber obtained
" .'.,'-' ....
.'''.
from AIJ:hidhamlUathhi' Sam-'
. '" ,
gg~ha, andl;l}so 'greaterdetaif from Patthana, in the book
VIler Abhfdhamrna'.PaHhana oriprasthdij~ deals with Hie
ru1cs:Rf the relation of things, and aU; the 'bbjectfwhich are
" con,~tHuted ~~Q aregqvern~~;'by set or sets of these rules of
relations.14 These relations may be und~rstob(F: asfhe
caus~1 conditions (6 Ifetus)and correlations and conditiom
(Pratyayasf.'TheseP~atyayai>are 24 ~n number. It is said in
the I{oSa that all objects which are, constitUted aregover.ti:ed
by Hefu (conditio~s),and Ptatyaya (correlation).
~ .t .

IncidentaUy it may be notedth~t, ,fhe'Buddhist thin-

e kerstri~d toes'tablis~s:omej;:ausal 'connections by means of
some'unifo~mity, of ~xpefiences. l,t,is a detailed and, pains-
takingeffort.,The2~ con~H~onsm~'y be,iqijghlycompared
with the 12categq;:ti~s o[J<,ant by which all experience
,ami schcma,'are explalned.:StudYQ:[Patth~*a WPtil4 reveal
that aU mind ,and body may be rdatedte;each other in
fivef;Hfferenttnann¢f(i '
 INTRODUCTION 129

Body-mind"l'®iatiolmship
'!. "(1') 'Mind is related'to the mind. This relation may
occur in 6 different ways. Consciousness (citta) and the mind
derivatiVe-s(caiHai) are 'related to one another by means of
conlintiity,)' lriunediatecohtinuity, absence, abeyance,
succession, coexistence of associations and association. (2)
Mind may be related to mind and body in 5 ways viz. Hetu
i(ca:usal), Dhyana{meditatiorial} and Path (way or means of
wIsdom). 'These are related to coexistent picture of mind and
body states. These may also be related to Karma or actl m

vityand/resultsofKarma( Vipaka). (3)Mind may be related

'to the body In terms ofconsequences and antecedents .

. . The six Ayatanas (bases, extents) are related to the

'different cognition's and Mind elements (Manodhatu; Vijfia~
naskandha thus, described under .five sensations and sense
"objects and Mind-consciousness).15

(4)Mind and body are related to the mind in terms

'of-or (a.) objectand (b) conditions. Sufficient conditions
may be found in objects or in contiguity of the objects or
in nature. Obj3ct here indicates the eight or six kinds of
Pannaui etc.; GJrl.tiguityindicates immedia.tely exhtingpast
states of mind and mental derivatives, Nature includes the
states of passion and emotions including pleasure {Sukha},
"p~iin,;(I).uQ.kp~)t food (Ahara), activity (Karma), faith
.(SracIdha,), person (Pudgala), etc,l6

(5) Mind and body may be mutually related or int·errc-

lated in terms of dominance, coexistence, reciprocity, depen~
dence support., control, dissociation, presence and continu
j
g

allce faculties. Indriyas faU within the first group (Adhi.

pad or dominance). Food (Kava<;,likarahara) is recognised
under support (Asraya), Dependence is found .in Citta
and Caittas (mental derivatives). Reciprocity may be iHus=
9
130 INTRODUCTION

traterl in rebirth, (Pratisandhi); coexistence may be recog$

nised in the subtle state of composition at the time of Cyuti
(death) and rebirth (Pratisandhi).
Thus, it may be incidentally remarked that here an aHem..
mpt has been made to establish some universal generalisations
about the experinces. 17 Mind and body are mutua'By related
by means of Pratyaya and Hetu. The process of interrela~
tion however may be compared with aU the subjective and
objectiv.e factQYs and internal and external conditions of a
mental phenomenon as modern Epistemology and psycho=
logy would have it. Experiences were understood as compo~
site matter.mind properties; also these would foHow a uni e

form manner while grouping together. lO It may be pointed

out that the logical and scientific significance of any experi-
ence is understood, at present to have the same function of
explaining another phenomena of experience taking pJace
under different but relevant conditions. It may be also main:..
tained that Buddhists hinted at a correlation of various diffe~
rent experiences originated under various psychophysical
and physiological conditions. In addition this correlatedness
of the experiences would further suggest an interpenetra~
tion of various contrary and contradictory ideas and forceL,
The picture as a whole may be understood dialectically from
logical point of view as a picture of relation, contradiction
and synthesis.
The study of PanfiaHi reveals another interesting item
of modern logic, i e. 'concept'. A 'concept' is a psychologicaUy
built up idea which again has got a fixed logical meaning.
Thus, a 'concept is a general idea'. It is like a composite
photograph, derived fromaH the related experiences, but;
does not refer to any particular experience. Panfiatti has got
two classes as the Vibhanga describes them. Sabda Prajfiapti
and Artha Prajfiapti; the first may be sound or name acting
as stimulus and Artha Prajfiapti might mean the significance
~iven by the ObJect/II which foUowsQext~
 .. J. I~Yllnte CI1~tl1da~a clhlItava,s traiaddhvikab,.
Kosa L Ka 31 A. K, Bha~yarp., p, 21.
2. (a) .Saptacittadharmadhatus ca NaH.lsyandikal;!. Vipakajalj.
A. K. Bhasyaw p 26 Kosa I, Ka 31.
(0) Cak~usrotraman()\ apraptavisayarp.. A. K. Bha~yarp. p 32.
. (c) Tatra dul;!.khe, dha~maji'Hlnak,antisamprayuktarp. ciuarp.
Manoclhatllr manovji'ianadhatu~ ca.
Kosa 1, Ka 38. A. K. Bh~~yarp. p 26.
3.(a)1 am thankful to the Late Professor Dr. N. Dutta, D. Litt. for
this valuable suggestion.
Manual of Buddhism, McGovern, p 131.
(b) Yathaiva hyekam dUamevarp. caltta apyekaika iti, Nirdi~
~tas dttacaittalj. Savistaraprabhedalj..
Kosa 2, Ka 23 AK. BM~yarp. p. 54 Sphutartha
4. CiHarp. Caitasikalj. viprayukta va sarvarp. Sarp.slqtalak~ai)ailj.
slird hamucya teo
Kosa 2, K1! 23. A. K. Bha~yarp. p 54. Sphutartha
5. Suk~mo
hi dUaca.itt1!narp. viSe~alj..
A. K. Bha~yarp., p 54 Kosa 2, Ka 33
6. . Ime te llavanupaUalj. Sapta dUadMtavalj..
Ko~a 1 ka 34, A. K. Bha~yarp. p. 23.
i.Ca) Yogadadane Ka 2
(b) Kosa I, Ka 5. A. K. Bha~yarp. p.26
8. Kosa H, Ka 36, A.K. Bhli~yarp..
9. Ko~a II, Ka 31-39~40IA.K. BM~yarp..

Hl The central conception!of Buddhism Prof. Stcherbatskoy

p. 45~46
lL Tato Viji'iananubhavalj. syat Aiambabhavat iti.
/' Kosa I, Ka, Japanese Edition p 469.
12. Natmasti Skandhamatrarp. tu karmaklesabhisarp.skrtarp.
Antar~bhavasantatya Kuk~imetj Pradipavat.
K08a ] ~ Ka: 18. Sphutarthi;i,
132 XNTRODUUTION

13. (a) Vide Visuddhimagga 14/lOi-H4 Edited by Vapatand

Vadekar. p 319
(b) Dvadasanamadhyatmiliana'ip cak~lU'adaya\l Fanca Svanae
mokta\l. '

14. SaIpghata§tnaIp nityaIp bhavati., , '" "

Kosa H. Kit 13. SplmiartM.
15. FraJnal~ala sanucarlibhidharma\l
Tatpraptaye yupi ca yaccasastram
':'" -~,: -. ...
': -'" ',.
A.K. Klirika, Kosa I, Ka 2.
16, (a) V iSe~anarthaIp Pradhanyat VahiRdharfuagrasa'i:pgraMt
EkamayatanaIp RnpamekaIp Dharmakhyamucyate.
,, KosakKa 21.
17. Tani Vang Nama Va hi e.~am ' ,.I~ '..
:Ri:fpasatPskiira Sall1graha, Kosa I. Ka 25,
'"I" '

"j ,

.~ .

" I".
 ... ~'15lithaDdb.
J'" .' ." " •..• ~. ... "F, : : {,'. ::. .... '. \'.
·Clmpnssiollll..i'orma'C:ion/composition)
'-t. ite~ ";:" .-.,~
?\~.
:!l'''' ,:,1: -~,
__"" ama·
. ,) t:. t::' -~".
;\;
:t ;;;5 E~ t,~,~
~. ~.''- .
(~:~£~:~eJ~::~ . '
..... .
-,
k,. ~f ~, 't
.;;'\.;
:(",' Zi,~ >,
~"
~:, 'Si.tt3· ;-: '
~ ,-"
\.,& '._..t
••. p" ,", 'jJ "j"
,.
~TJ ",if'''''_,
. \.{I
Lf1Cf4s.1iz ;~; ~'Av.lakrta ....~
,:"'} w
~ (;~~ ". (Morally ullwhoJ~omi) tMoi~IIYIl:utnl}'''; ,
,,'
, ..; :'0...

r" - Citta'tip~y1ilkta,
<" l~:
r"4y..... ~-.... """UV<O""Y ... ..,. '" lOy ..... U~'liUt'tJ '1 "{Non ~i~~.,dwivativt: or Biogenic)
:.".':
MaM' . - , . . ' i ". '~),' ~r~ti': . }'~S~i'miatiO~'& conditioning .
,Bhnmika:;
c' .. ,~pT.lp~~ :'f)i&~i~llatio~'& deconditioning ~
(BasiJlll~"
Ci~t~; r; C
;8abbligatl ;'H,cmogenous Continnum ~
".1'-.,

~=a~:~' , .1;, . ..~>.'~'v * " ·'···of.becoming

:';'-'~~

Saqljna SradfYM., Molia. : Ahl'~b~:, I,<rodha;~ ~ital'kEi" ASqljiilka },l)ynamic

Spatsa.. ,,' ~pra.mliil~': Prarl1ld~ Anapatr~. U pan!1~a:< f~li~~ra: ::; , Asip.jiiLsamapattih'Continnum ofbein
Chall'(!a:;' "Eras~qhh~aus'[dp <pya a~t~hya' . :Kaukrt.y.a ,:Nirodna satnapattih In Spiritual level
Matii ~: :: Upe%~!1 ,~sraiddhya:: 'ir~~ .. . ,:~~a . :,
Smrtt(. Hrr.. Sty~na (' Pra~sa ,.. :Mana '~'
-organiSm
J!tvita
M~asi~~~a:: .I\patrapll ~Jld(ihat:ya~' 't . Mrak~~~.. :F~~1i~ffiI.
AdhlPl.u.kh . A.lohl1a .' " ~~.sarya:VICl.kltS! t"1 M.

Sarii1l:ihi· . ~aV€sa .1.) .• M~Y.li. Middha .Jat(: ""} ". ~

StH.it.i . . Organ.,ic Ch:aracte.rs i.e. birth
t t:t C t "~hifl'.s! l.1.·I~a?a- ...' '1' Jara . ,growtn1decayand death
;Y:i.'l.-, r ' J : VlI:l!P.~ .1.. '., Anityata' .
I L.I~ I1:.. II "-L-ry.~f , I .1.'1' .
II;: I'" I ;~- :, ~•·. .·'l' '; .,I .• , 1 .' NaIl1akaya Learning and
I I·::; .~'.' ;- " c.. ,c. {·I . I
I r' ,. ' ..., " I Padakaya . 1 Conditioning of the
Vyahjanak~ya names, words aJphabett
I ' I I'
 (D) AVIjNAPTI (NON-MENT~AUX)
Avijuapti is the last item of l{ilpa Skandha. (matter
compositions). Aviiuapti is a state ofnon"menteaux, non~
information or non-intimation. The idea of Avijuapti is a
special concept recognised by only the Sarvastivada thinkers;
the Sautrantikas or any other branch of .Buddhism do not
have any provision for Avijnapti.Here, Avijnapti is recog@
nised as a dharma which may be either morally wholesome
or morally unwholesome, (A. K, Ko, L Ka U),
Textu.al Stu.dy of Avijinapd
. Vasubhandhu has described Avijnapti in Karika U of
K05a 1. According to him Avijnapti or non menteaux inclu..
des some of the distracted mental stages of the insane
(Vik5ipta); some of the mental slates which are dynamic
yet not consciously functioning (Acittaka), also are included
in AvijnaptL It is further stated that Avijnapti originally
starts with the assemblage or collection of the Mahabhiltas,
(Ultimate properties); but, unlike Vijnana or consciousness,
Avijnapti does not take note of the matter where from it
started and continued. This natural continuity of the being
seems to be dynamic and changing (Anubandha) in,natufe.
although it is unconscious, Further ~ this continuity from
Sarvastivada viewpoint can never be morally neutral. Thus,
according to Vasubandhu's view Avijnapti is the cessation
of Vijnapti (consciousness), is of material or corporeal nature
at the beginning which may he either KU5ala (Morally
wholesome) or AkusaJa (Morally unwholesome); this fact
indicates further that Avijuapd is essentially ethical i~
nature. Again, it is said that Avijfiapti is a free and
spontaneous continuity of fundon which originally started
in some Rilpa or matter formation, hut, later on this sponta.;
 lieo'us actidndidhotstop even when the original conditions
of Rupa or matter' composition became withdrawn.
Avijriapti, dins. is.d;eterminedorigirially by Rupa and there-
fore placed in the Rupa skandha or matter ro'rmation. The
relation ofAvijnapti to .Rupa is like'the shadow (or Chaya)
to the free or like the brightness 'to the ;gem.' According to
the Sa:vNasHvilda':min!iers A~ijnaptl is subtle and can be the
objecfof ManovijIiana only . This .kirid: of Rupadoesflat
g:et oflj~:tructed by Sipace;/or time. If may be compared with
subWtmatter'rormations of samadh'i' states. His saId that
Avijftapti may b'e',pdfe of/impure in the two spheres of
Kamadhath(sensmms nature} and ~Rupadh'atu (corporeality); ,
but"'in lVtupyad'hatu:(ndtlcropereal sphere)" Avijnapti
!~inaifi§alw~yspl.lfe. Avijnapiiis Abitpattika orwith()ut being
originated./,It isn::til.I$y~mdika or spontaneously continuing.
It' is Wot aup'acayika (of collective~ jnn'cature';', it may be
sa/madhya (born of some state of Iheditationrand Avijnapti
isaus:t5(mtanbhustesultobtained~ from the composition of
the' mah~bhutas (uHimate;properties)'ashas been stated
before ; but, by iitself';lt is not merely a matter-composition.
Avijnaptioccurs eveuwhere the Bhutas or'ultimate proper~
ties,,'do rl6t exist lu'the 'Arupya stage or non . corporeal
sphere. Here 011e gets pure Avijnapti (AnasaraVa). Avi}
napti in /'fheKama "~nd other spheres' may he born of the
BhUtas existing for three phasesdf dme. According to the
Sarvilsth/ada.vaibha~ikasJthe idea ofi\vijiiapti as a Rupa
and: ])ravya hasbeen.supportedby Buddha vacana quoted
from:' the;)fextoi Maliacundasutra;lIAccording:to Buddha,
acqUisition' ·of ethical merit· maybebhthmaterial ortion·
m~t~t.ial !bb'th6fwhicli m~y be~~cognised,as Dravyas; (or
obj~cts) ..·. ;rho textmd study of: Avijfiapti";maybe~thus,
contHudedby tli&'ntiotii:ng Sarpghabhadl'a'sdefinition which
is amodifitation of .vasubandlhi'sd~finiHon referred to
pre~i6usly?:i. A;tdordi~g' tc> ;'Saqlghabhadra, Avijnapd is.a
kind of Rnpa ot matter, ~hichisditrei'endated lron{the
< •C ~ ;
i36

ciHaormind; for, it. continues even after the dUa or mind

ceases to function; itis a kind of penetrable , Rupa or matter
determined morally. ("Krte'pi visabhage" or Hcitta ciHat..
yaye ca yat) ",08 , .

Vijili.apd and Avijnapti

According to the Sarvastivada-Vaibhasikas Vijnapti,
(or informative Consciousness) and Avij napti (non infor~,
mativec:ontinuity) differ basically althoug h both originate
from Rupa or matter in a way. The concept of Avijnapti
should not be understood as a mere negation of VijilaptL, c
It is said that every action of every st.ate of exis,tenceis
determined by cetana or, volition. It may be said that <;et,ana
or volition is a caitta (or impression) of Maha,phumika dtt;:a
(Universal and basic mind). (ibid., T~ble atta,ched p. I3S) '~nd;
may be',properly categorised under theSar.p.skara'Skandha
(or Impression formation). AU actions then are preceded by
and predetermined by a conscio,us effort, or are awareness,
of the effort. This awareness orcetana or volition may be;
understood as Kayika (Physical). Vacasika (vocal) and
manasika (mental); of these three, the first is recognised,
as Asraya (or support)~ the second as Svabhav::l, or (natural)
and the third as Samutthapaka{or originator). ,;Both
the physical and vocal acts may be. either Vijnaptht>J,'''
Avijnapti (informative and non· informative.resJ:!lectiye!~),if
The physical or Kayavijfiaptjinqicates only samstha:p.a,or
shape and never a gati or motion,. Vag Vijfiapti or VOCal inm
formation only indicates sound. Vijnaptimay be developed,
by mind, by Hetu (i, e. remote c~use) and T(;ltk~aI},a (Time
contemporaneous with cause) .. Th;efirst is thus a prime moyer
and the second is a second mover. These are known. asPravax..
taka and Avartall:a respectively, It may be u:p.clerstooq tha.t
both vijnapti and avijfiapti at:edevelope~out of the four
Mahabhuta,s (ultirnate properdes) which ~r~. th,en,.in . uncom"
bin.ed states and are ndther pure 11 0 1' im:pure;the~r b,ecome
pure or impure,. pnJy when the .~lemems corrbine~n,d f()J.'m
an individual. (Kosa 1\ Ka. 9) .
 Thusff aU the actions and abstentions of an individual
m~y be either vijuapti or avijnapti (Inform<:l,tion a,nd non=
information respectively), These abstentions and non..
abstentiQns are recognised as deeds or voluntary ~cts of
individual; and it may be said, therefore, that both vijuapti
and avijfiapti in;dicate positive actions and i\vijfiapti
does not mean mearIy absence of action or information, It
is said th,at, mana1).saqlvara (or control of mind) an,d Indflya.
sam,vara (or control of the faculties) are 'prac~ised cons s '

dowdy ~nd intentionally at first by means of smrti(memory)

and saqlprajanya {deliberation}, In due course, the pracds~
ip,g individual by con tinued and habi tua! attitud~ retain~
only the Avijfiapti (or non-information) later and forsakes
viju~pti or awareness, The Aryas (liber<itedsoul) retain
the Avijfiapti and not vijfiapti any more~ Some in Q

dividuals retain the Avijuapti of the present at first;

later one discards the Avijuapti of the present. a,nd
gradually developes avijuapti of the p.ast and future.' .ref-
formance of th,e act of abstention, is always vijuapti first,
and,the after effect of such abstention is recognised ordina-
rily as Avijfiapti. The evil acts, viz,. killing, stealing, lying,
maligning., harshwords and frivolous talking are' six' evil
acts; these when just committed are recognised ashoib
Avijflapti ~nd Vijfia pti; but l ordinarily these are the states
of Avijfiapti. Adultery is both vijfiapti anqavijuapti.
All the seven Karmapathas are physical an,d vocal, (ku~:ala
or mor~Hy wholesome karmapathas only); th,ese ar~ bo~h
Vijfiapti ,and Avijfiapti; but, when the,s~ areperforll1ed in
the stages of samadhi and dharmataSila~ these bec;om,e only
Avijnapti. The samantaka (or preliminary stage) of the
Karmapathas of the kamadhatu (or the sphere of sensuous
nature) can only be vijuapti, but, these; when per-
formed with a strong urge or faith also become Avijuapti.
Again~ any act, just performed is a case of viji'iapti an,o is
foHowed immediately after, by Aviji'iapti. 5
 INTiwDucnON

Nonabstention (or Asamvara) may be produced by

a deed or by adoption of a profession; e. g. a butcher or
hangman, as a person may be born in the family ofa layman
and help the inmates directly or indirectly in their work; or
he may simply adopt the profession of a hangman for livm~
hood's sake; in both cases, the individual is not practising
samvara (or abstention) although he may not have a
strong and positive intention to kill. It is a case of Avijiiapti
on his part; again it3 may be found that a butcher presents
offerings to the monks or observes some vows etc. In those
cases, the individual retains avijiiapti of morally wholesome
deeds. Some Avijiiapti may be caused to end by with·
drawal of faith, by cessation of energy, by giving up the
rites, by cessation of worshipping Buddha, by demolishing
a caitta and by destruction of aU the root merits (kusala~
mUla). Avijiiapti may be found in the individual with
dun type of consciousness. Avijiiapti may be found even
in the state of samadhi in which ordinary consciousness of
Vijiiapti is not found. Thus, it may be stated finally that,
Avijiiapti may be _preceded by Vijiiaptl and Avijiiapti
occurs after vijiiapti ceases functioning.
Different classes of Avijiaapd
It has been stated previously that, the action (Karma)
is preceded by eetana (or volition). There are Kayika
(Physical), Vacika (vocal) or Manasika (mental) activi~
ties; it has been also stated that both the physical and vocal
acts may be informative Of non~informative each (Vijiinapti
or Avijiiapti respectively}. 6

Analysis of Vi.k Avijiaapd O;r> vocal non-information

Ordinarily, instruction or commanding may be aceep~
ted as example for Vak vijiiapti; forB this act of comman m

ding is consciously done and is grasped by the other mind

which it is communicated to. Besides, there is some other
kind of inspiring speech (e.g. prophecy or talking in a stage
of mystic experience) accepted by the Vaibha~ikas; it is
said that, during an inspired speech of prophecy etc., the
ideas are not properly communicated to the mind of the
listener; nor the speaker himself is consciously delivering
it, this may be evil or good in nature; this kind of Yak
(speech uttered) is known as Vak-avijfiapti (or vocal non~
informative state); it is dearly stated that only the reported
speech, which may be even subvocal can be a state of Vak~
a vijfiapti, (or vocal non-informative state); but, any other
sound made audible by any part of human body, or, sound
arising out of a dead body, or any sound made by natural
phenomena cannot be recognised as such.
Remarks
Thus~ only human speech uttered without any cons-
ciouseffort and not properly communicated to the listener
has been recognised as Vak-avijfipti; An emotionally exci-
ted speaker, may be delivering an inspired talk" which
due to its over emotional nature may get beyond the
control of the speaker and may not be properly grasped by
the audience. It is said that, even Vak;.avijfiapti may be
subvocal; this may be compared with relational or symboHm
cal thinking e.g. what is mechanically interpreted, by the
person who knows them and remain perfectly uninterpreta-
ble and incomprehensible for the others even when others
hear them or read them, may remain as a state of Avijuapti.

Analysis of Kaya avijuapd 01" physicalnon-infol"ma...

don'
Ordinarily~ Sarpsthana or arrangement of space Or size
has been recognised as Kayakarma or physical actiQ
vhy; sensation of touch e.g.. is informative in nature;
Kaya vijuapd getting numbed e. g.y and receiving ,no
sensation although stimulus is there may be accepted as an
example for Kaya~avijfiapti. The idea of distance e. g.
remains unknown when a tree is seen fro01 adistancc:::;
actuany the faded colour and sm.aH. size are "the: factors
which are seen~ and these proclQce the idea ofdist;mce (a
modifi,catic:m ofspa,cearrangement) which remains directly"
u:qree;ogn;ised. The.actions of inhaling and exhaling etc. are:
nQt :intjmated by, our conscious:l;less. One remains Qften;
uncQgnisa,nt of \iVha t one does in a state of SommJ,mbul,ism .. ;
R~m~rk about Kaya~aviJnapd
,
The concept of Kaya~avijua.pti, seems
- ",-' ,
,be'Jhig~lY
.'? ,- - _\ t. ~ ,;, : ," ~

significant for the students of modern Psychology. ACCQi.d~

ing .to modern .Psychology, proprioceptive sen~~~ioll or
kinaesthic sensation has been accepted as something different
from the tactile or touch scmation; proprioceptive se:nsa~.
tion is preceed cd by the stimulation of muscle ceUs; almost
aU the' movements are determined by this muscle sense
which is hardly perceptible in terms of consciousness. Kaya-
avijnapti. may be better understood in the light of modern;
concept of proprioceptive sensation.

Ethicald~s~ifi~at;ion or Avijfllapd
These two classes of Avijnapti (non=information) Yak.
avijuapd and Kaya avijnapti (non-informative speech and
non-informative tactile experiences respectively) may be
further subdivided into three more classes. Thisprocess of
further classification may be recognised as mostly ethical in
nature. These three classes of Avijfiapti, are~ viz.?
(1) Sarp,vara, (Restraint or control)
(2) Asarp,vara (no-restraint or absence of control)
(3) Naivasal1lvara-nasal1lvara (Absence of both restraint
and negation of absence of control)
(1)A.bi,jflOptz' known as sarlwara resqIts from a 'p:rdcesllfQf
restraint from evil disposition (Daul)SiIya). These i. evil dli2
position maybeunderstooq as Akusala (normaUy unwhoIe-
 EN TRODUCTION HI

some), These Karmapathas express action; These' ate five

,in number, viz.
-(1) Pra:Qatipata (Austerities practised)
(2) Adattadana (Accepting something which IS not
given)
(3) Kamamitnyacara (Adultary)
(4) Mf~avada (Lying)
(5) Surameraya (Addiction to introxicating drinks)
Avijfiapti resulting from the restraint from the five above
,. vices may be recognised as Upasaka pratimokfa.
The above five vice'), together with three more vices$
are recognised as Parajikas or the Pataniyas (cause for a
defeat or faU). The virtues opposed to these Parajikas are
recognised as ~ala {or essential conditions or meritorious
'ac1:ioils)-:-vittue opposed to addiction to intoxicating drinks
. ·isknown as Apramadanga (or essential condition for
Cvigilenc;.e); virtue opposed to using high beds, enjoying
music and dance and having food in the evening is recog~
nised as Vratanga (or essential conditions for an ideal).
Conscious adoption ofSilanga b Apramadanga and Vratanga
indue course is fonowed by Avijfiaptior natural n6n~infor~
; mation; at that stage it is known as Pratimok~a stlf/:lvara
(JvijftllPti (ie. Avijfiapti born of restraint which leads to-
wards liberation). Avijfiapti which results from the rest-
raint from aU the Parajikas (mentioned before) is recog-
nised as Upavasa pratimok$a. Avijfiapti, rising out 'of the
restraint from 8 Parajikas and, accepting siJvercoius,'{RaJata
pratigraha) is recognised as Sramaq,era pra#mokia or (attitude
of I!oyice monk towards liberation). Avijfiapti rising out of
',aU kinds of restraint from every kind of non-acceptance is
recognised as BhikfU pratimokia (or attitude of a confirmed
monk towards liberation). AU these four kinds of Prati-
moI{~a sarp.vara (restraint practised for liberation) may be
 142 INTRODUCTION

,under$tood -as consdouslyadopted.atfirst)tnd getting int.p

a spontaneousIy performing~aturelater (which inlbn-infO:i-
mation or Avijiiap(iJ. SOl1}etimes' this kind of Avijiiapti
mayrequire a consCious. VIgil: - . . '. /~,
,: • ," .'" N.' /.••• ~. J . ' .. ;;:;" , _.':, ",,,:,,. ",
Avijiiapti born.out of meditaHon of Silanga, Apraina-
dafIga and:Vratanga (prevlously!~~plai~e,dJh,r~<:ognised
as Dhyanasaf(lvara avijfiapti (non~intB~rmati~h .bo,fn';:of rest·
rair.l~c!lusecl, .by m¢~itatior.lJ~;, Th~' noble. souls attain them
spobtaneously' wheI1: bornin: the dHferentleveis of medi-
~tadon... For. others,. this state m'aybea~fained C;bycontl.
nuousmeditation;,lfifs exp'ef1ence'is always a state of non-
information and never comes to cOll~.ciou~ light. i .
" ...... i ·TheA.rycts (lip~r~ted )inq~viduai~) also'~t~endqwed witll
the,naturaJ:virtuesofSilangaetc. ~ryas ml:!.Y I;>~ a $~i~§a: (Wl;lp
,will Jearn somet,hing yet) and Asai~§~: (wh!i>;;bas g~n~beY9Pp
anY11earning:). SiUiilga etc. practised by theIll' or natur~lis_ed
in tl:letnis' knownas Anasrava saql:¥ara (or,restrailil,t whitrh
is.1?ure). ,Someaspect~;Qf Dhyana sam.va~aand' Ana~;rava .
.$!:lm.vara,~re kI;lown .~~ ;f'rahaI,1a saql:vara (restraint from
forsaking). Avijiiapati in thosecase$ will b~(flcCOr~ipgly
.1Jnderstood. . . . ' .
Ar;i}naptiknown as ..4saf(lvara (or non-infotmation,risipg
out ·of vices or abs~nce of restraint ) Play be;; recognised as
...;practised;indulgeJ;lce hitQthe five Karmapatha$.or Da,uQ.sII-
. ya's (describedpreviousJy). The~,(} ar~. ,the \{iceswht~hiare
opposed f() SIla ,Or pra<:;tisingi.;testraiht; H;;is staterl,.that
#lese d()Jngs al'erons.cfOUsly '.performed first and later 'on
• becor,ne Avijuapti (or t1~n-infof;p;l:atiop~~i
. . , Avij'fiaptiknDwni~ai;;:Nair1~s(Jf(lvar~-:Nasarpvar~ (non-:infor-
'matiOli'iif'a bseb'cii ofr6sttaini '.;a;nd apsence -;of;'induIg~nce)
:is a kind of notl~information, . Which;'dccursrt~Y th'~l;Weak
'ffifnded i.Ildjvidtl~ds. vT~ese;~re' neither able. to practise
S~qlvara' llOr Asa'm.var~•..... Possibly this /',rHatei:~~cUrs ';;t~the
i.ndividuals who are d.uJl~nd nbf'menially ale'tir iX i
 INTRODUCTION 143

Remarks
Vijilapti evidently indicates consciousness or aware-
ness; Avijnapti or non-information is a state when Vijilapt'i
state is no .more. Now this state if compared with the
modern idea of unconscious or subconscious state of mind
yields some interesting observations. Avijiiapti occurs when
conscious effort is not present any more; Avijfiapti may be
compared with marginal consciousness which falls at the
fringe of consciousness e.g.; a person is seldom con~dous of
the daylight while reading; Avijfiapti may be found in the
mental state of strongly established habit or conditioned
actions; one, e.g., may do something good or bad while
remaining uncognisant about the effort. Avijfiapti is ethi-
cal in nature in the sense that the judgement good or evil,
is later attached to it. Avijfiapti as a state or reflexion is
originated from outside material conditions and continues
most spontaneously, may be without being anymore con-
cerned with such conditions of origination. These ideas
may be compared with Freud's idea of the uqconscious and
subconscious states of mind. 8
Unconscious and Avijilapti
According to Freud, 'Unconscious' has been used in
. two different senses; one of them which never allows it~elf
to see the light of consciousness, is primary state of organic
unconscious; this may be understood to be similar to
Bhavanga citta or the basic mind recognised by the
Buddhists. The term 'unconscious' aJsohas been used in
a partial1y different sense. This occurs to our day to day
experiences which are forgotten and get lapsed and merged
into the basic unconscious. This according to Freud, that
forgetting is even a conscious and intentional process at the
beginning. Later on forgetting becomes a natural process
and forgotten materials are apparently wiped out of the
conscious level of the mind, This is a secondary 'uncons-
144 iNTRODUCTION

cious'; both these 'unconscious' are dynami6 ·slates.

Secondary'uhconsdous'actually is a .continuous -reflection
df the 'mate-rial grounds' from which it started'; 'theldea' of
'AviJfiaptiseems to' be ever similar '. to this.sec·on·?MY
··'1.Inconsci6'us". .The suggestion is found tobestrengtliened
by'the idea that, Avijiiapti is preceded by .Vijiiapti 'or
'conSclousness and orgainated in. the material·gr~un~s.
~ ,~.

Avijiiapti in a distorted mind

. ltis s~id that AviJiiaptias suchlhCIude~ the m~ental sta.te
which'h an important 'point ofview of modern psychology.
According to Freudians and }Jther psychologists, theru.ind
functions in a stratified way; theconsC1ous stratum. "always
remains guided and directed by the reality prinCiple and the
supet'eg<j>or the social self, arid the ~wo togethert~nstitut{the
'personality pattern. Insanity indicates a disrupted persona11ty
"pattern inwhichdema'ncl of reality principlets 'baaIy6ver-
";ihrown: "Thus; during insanity states the ~()hscioiismodifica.­
.' tion 'cf'the unconsCious energYls pra.ctically imposslble. Oil2e
the conscious control fails, the vast andenormoasly pow~~fo.l
'unconscious' is exposed; the.personality integmtionbeing
__ no more"1~,he !Uind is no .. ~ore aware of itsQ~~doings.
'. Avijii~ptiref~rred to as 'Vik~iptacittakasyapi' .rem·ind~ one
.oLthiS modern' idea of unconscious domiriating over ,cpns-
. cious phases. Again, both the ideas viz. exposedllncpqscJo:us
"and\/AvUi}~Pt~.l;na,y be;~ecog,~!~~d~~: .dYI\amjp::men.taL,states
\IP¢J:~t pf.,awareness of these states; but. at the .same, one
has .got to remember that Avijiiapti is. always judged as
morally pure or· impure,. This idea is completely absent
-in modern attitude towards insanity; for. from the point of
.' view of modern ethics, the actions of the insane are never
. morally judged; because. in case of the insane mind mental
'. structure is unsteady, the sufferer can not take decision
. which essentiaIly is the expression of a voluntarily performed
mental attitude of a normally healthy mjnd. Moreover,
 INTRODUCTION

unconscious; ,scientifically understood is·a state 'which is

amoral or a state :irrespective of moraIlty, while, AviJfiapti
techniCaJly and basicaIIy'cannot betaken as such. ... ,
Avijilapti :in a defunct mind .... "
. It is said thatAvijfiapti may be found in thestateJof
Samaclhj or meditation; the stages, have been' described,
as Acittaka or cessation of mind or citta., This dyna~
inic energy 'is' of purely psychic nature,devoid of~ny
COI;lScious'modlfica,tion or ordinary determination. To this
e~terit Avijfiaptl is comiuirable with' the dynamic ·'unconsi-
ous' which :forms the' part ~nd parcel of 'Grand Biological
Nature' or 'the metempsychosis of the individual. But, this
aspect of Avijfiapticannot be recognised as theon1y asped.
More,~Yer, tbe .statc$ of Samadhi are too technical for any
ordinary mind to reach or to understand. Thus, Avijnapti,
w1).ich i$ found in .the Sam~dhi state and cannot be recognised
as . ' unconscious aSPet::t of 'Grand Biological Nature' in a
general sense. Further, it may be remembered, that Avi-.
jfi~pti recognised in the. Sarnadhi state indicates a state of
spiritual experience, a spirit which is incompatible with the
scientific idea of Unconscious as Freud would have it.
However~ the ideas 'Ks,ipla" or 'Viks,ipta' were not unknown
problems for the thinkers at that time. This expressions,
Ks,ipta (projected orrnad) Viks,ipta (scattered), Niruddha
(~essation), . and MUQha· (passive), Ekagra. (one pointed)
occurin Yoga philosophy. These have been explained there
as ·pifferent strata of mind ,( or Cittabhumi). The idea
of Biopsychological.Energy in its cosmic aspect and indivi·
dual 'aspect has been also described in Tantra philosophy.
In case of Tantraphilosophy, a spiritual realisation is hinted
at by an elaborate process of restoration of the individual's'
BiopsychologicaI Energy to Cosmic·./jiologicaI Energy. This
isan,equHibriated stage and free from any conflicting con~
sciousness. In all tliecases, these expressions are only.
tQ
J4]> IN'H~QPU,GTION

partly r~tipnal a~d: are mainly. esoteric" r_eligiQu~ 8;ndrituaJh

stic.The idea of Avijfiapti in th,e; Acittaka state~ evidently,'
may be understood in the -same light to'soIh~,e~terit.9 ,~

It needs mentioning that, modern,' Psycholog,y;",~t

pres,ent, dea)~ also with some"mystic experie~c;es aQd stages'
of nleditation under the head of ,Ex!r~a~s'ensory peJ;d~'p,tion.
Tpese items are included. in Para-psycology, iJ?s'tead' of
experime,nJal or applied bp~nches of PsydlOlogY.( 'Avijn~pti;
even fo, the purpose :of understanding c~tnn6t 'be of;c()tirs~
put under the sallIe c,ategQry ;~t the <riJ.ostit itiaj,bf ~t~t,e(J:
(hat, Avijfiapti .i~dudb: soiDe states bf' iriysticexp~rfeqc€s)
which isbeyortd the reach of otdinaryconsiousness.;! , J
:. j ' - ",1 ".. •. ,".~.

~thic8;lleaDing of Avijiiapd and habitual ,~CtiOD~,

Another aspect :of Avijfiapatir.' equires clarificatibm'
It is s~i(:l-that, Avijfiapti starts with thematerial'condidons!
i.e. Rlipa or matter formation formed by the Bhlifas'or ihe'
ultimate properties; so Avijfiaptiis- a sort,of refIexion of the'
materialconCIition. Then, Avijfi~pti -continues even when'
(heR lipa Sl:1bstrate ~r material conditions are withdrawn:;.
Again,thiscontinuity is subject to ethicaljudgerrient. Thusf
A·vijnapti in 'itse1fi,s a stateW:~ich" is',spontaneously' ah~:
mechanically occurhig' and no'consCious effort· ariymoreJ
is necessary for it; the nature of the expei'ience,howeverJil'
not independent of the cons.cious application of ethicality."
This aspect of Avijfiapti maybe compared with the hapltuif
functions. -tt maybe mentioned here that,' acco'rding' t(j'
modern ethics the habitual ~ctions are also to be m()r~lly;
judged; fur, the fo.,mation of habits are the effects . . of'
voluntary -consciousness. _Thus, it may _be seen that,: Avi;)
jiiapti is similar to a stateof experiencewhic:4'beco~es. 'as-;' -
if an effortless state preceded by effort .mad.e fd~~ge,itihg:int~:
a strong habit. This idea perhaps gives ct-. commonsense,
exposition of Avijfiapti. The above exposi~io~ ~f'Avijfiapt(:
is supported by the example's as foJlow~. Tlle' hqtcherV{h~:
.11 C'::,
 INTRODtJCTION

adopts the occupation of killing t-hetcirlimals graduJIly'16ses

hiscon$cipusness about the act of crueltyinvolved in killing.
thi,s ~e.~a4ent ~e~~e 'oIl hIs p~rt 'is"a~t~te of Avijnapti, ;and,~,
~vidently, thjs,actofkilling is subjec~ to moral condemna~
tion. The person who doe~so' is ~ecognised as Asarp,varastha
o\~t)f nonipracti$ing; re,strain~. Tqis ~tate of 'Avijiiapti rises
trom' 'the;cdeadened sense of killing the a~imaIs and is reco~
gIiiseq as 'Akusala avijnapti or mor~jly 'unwhblesom~
l\v,ijiiapti or non-informations. 'He is't9 ,be blamed or
cOlldemned' for, this evil occupation he hasconsciousiy and
trllly selected ; this' he co.uld have avoided if, heJiked.'
Although he 'is no" more, COF}scious ~f ~nymqral conflict, ~r
mel1tal 'effort, w,hile,getting,habituate'd inkiHing, his: means'
of livelihood is not agood;one. Modern ethics' alsoempha-
sises :ihe' fact tliat even a good'e~d d~es' ,not make a .
w~ong means 'jUstified.10 , ','

()rithe otherh.atjd,' the same butcher may be a

l~>virig parent at home and even a devoted follower of
Buddha; Thi~ inspires him to offer gifts to the monks and
s'O OD; ,he remains uriconscious of these good practIces in his
mind qr uncogIiisarit of his : nobler atti~udes. 'TJ;lese states
also: are the s'hites of Avijiiapti which may be recognised as,
Kusa]a"avijiiaptior'morally wholesome expe~ience pC non-
i'nfor,ination.Morally wholesome Avijnapti is reconised ~s a,
~uperior statein case of an Arya who has become a postmaster.
ip. (or Asaik~~') the, act ofSarpvara or restt:a,int; thus, the ex:-'
perienceofheing
J. '
well practis'ed
, , ' , '."
in ,self
""
restraint'
' , .
has become,
"
a.,~pont~n~Qus and natural state with him and '" he daes not
40' it" anymore' with ,conscious, effort; 'he has "be?om;e' in-,'
herently and esse~tial!J a noble person and he can not bU;t be'
so even without knowing it. This remindson,e of famops:
lines of the poem'IOde to Duty' by poetWordsworth ~ho'
'intlmds for 'humannatute ~Ii aimb~t 'irt'3tinct~alinclihatio:n
tow~dtsdutr artdvirtt\e.
~~tU~"JPf ~ ~yijiill,*,i
Finany AVijflap~:i may 'be'e6mpat"~d with a::deep·roattd
pttices~ of strong cbntiitioning af the reflexes wbich fe,ult
itl asittoothet psytho"ph}'st.o}ogicai pattern. 1t· gOeswithoui;
sMyiri~J tnaf these andent .t'hihkets of ;J3ud~hist· pMlos~l1h.Y
could ,apt flUnk abol,It t4~ process o(conditioning' of
the teflexe's at that time. 'Hut,'tne expressjoilsPtaptfap,d
Apta.ptire1fiind us bf conditiohing ':and decont;Uti6njpg}
~"ijfiapH may be better "titlde:tstoodby th~:tbodein'
nihi~ fhJbis light, of conditioned tef}exth~bry. Acc,or-
diIi~ ~o the psychologist.s oftrtodetn tilhes, .the Ptrvdt.tS~
centre bf .the habitidd ads and rhythti;lic mdy~mentsis
seated hl the lower' braIn or Cerebellum which en-joys Jl
serfiiiiltlep~t1derit status; ~t is ftee of thehi~her bI'ai~'which'
i~ tht::. diief centre of all' the 'vol tmfaty a.ctio~s and choice'
and decisions. Evidently these processes are mttchmOte
c9 m pJex tl)an th~ordinary reJIex actions fc:mnd jn walking
O,r a'~y other 1;l1echaQicatiy produced habitual acts. A viJnapti
also is stated ~o pe an ~ctively done process which la..tef
beGomes free of conscioUs control. Thus, It can be coin-
pared with. ~,he condItioned reflexes which are partly ftee' or
active ,coftsCiollsp.ess.Avijilapti,in the K,osa all a state Qf
non-informatIon, does not ~o~e up to the level ofco~sciotis­
ness, aJth9ugh at the b~ginningit'priginated .in sOlite vO(:aI
or physical (Vadka Or Kayika Karma) activi#~s.These
actlvitJes ill course are due to af;:cumulatio~ of the fQur
ulthna't~ pt9perties (Mah~(b~ut}ls) wqich alway[; combine
into sCHn~pauetns. ~yijnapti, wh¢nanalysed ftom modern
pbijit otview, s~em!! 'to be an ,o~ganict,eaction to the efi~
vit'pntYrenifuore dO$ely related t~ the phy~ical sipe th~Ui the
nl'ehtaL And, th~ Kosa' ~s justified in IncludiIlg AvlJiiapd
in ~he~tass of Rl\pa or th~'~xte,fJlatworJd. . " ' ..
l~ .is .said ~,n b~e. 'KGSa :th,at Avijua.pti ill ~\thCf ~:efaUy
good or morally evil. Tl}e qqtl}of of, th~ K:~,a e,ven mai,N,.. '
 INTRODUCTIoN
tains that the different aspects of Avijnapti present in a
scattered mind (Vik~ipta) and defunct mind (Acittaka) may
be also morally judged. All these states are originated
either in Kusala or Akusala (i.e~ moral merit and demerit,
respectively). A humble suggestion may be submitted
here. As a student of Applied Psychology and as one who
had some experience in actually handling the clinical cases
of mental patients, the author noted with curiosity that
most of the patients had some conflict with regard to moral
nature invariably. The conflict was so pronounced thtlt they
could communicate (Vacika or orally reporting) the trouble
as such, although remaining uncognisant of any social con-
vention or of their insanity "itself. The mentanyret~rded
mostly look very much like Acittaka and dQ not. suffer from
any moral conflict.
 Reference
L Rtlparp.Pancenclriylinyarth! Pancavijnaptir eva ca-Kosal:":""
Kli 9--,,..A. K; Karika.
2. Vik~iptacittakasyapi yo 'nubandhal). Subha:subh;:tl). Maha~
bhtltanyapadaya Sa hyavijnaptil'ucyate K.oSa .I:-Ka 11-
A.K.Kar~ka.
3 ~. For Mahlicunda S'istra-Vide Ko~ai, Ka 9 Ya~omitra's
Vyakhya p.'20(Law & !J'utt).
3b. Karma.jarP Lokavaicitrarp. cetana tatkrtaIJl ca ya.t-Kosa 4--
Kli 1.
<

4. Tadvijnanasraya Rtlpaprasadas cak~uradayal).-Kosa 1~Ka 9.

5. Vijfiaptiravijfiaptisamutthl1pikli K.o~a l-Kli 10.
6. 'Vide Ko~a l-Ka 10 Yasomitra's Vyakhya 5~25 (Law & putt)
7. A~1adliii Pratimok~akhyo Vastutas tuCatu'rvidhal). Kosa 4"":":'
Ka 29.
8. Collected works-Freud.
9. K~iptaIJl MuQharp. Vik~iptaIJl EkagraIJl Niruddham iti citta-
bhumayal). YogadarSana-Samadhipada - 1.
10. A manual of Ethics-By Dr. J. N. Sinha (Chapter on the
object of Moral Judgment). \
11. Textbook of Psycho!ogy-Woodw6rth(Chapter on Learning)
 ., CHAPTER IV
THE· BUDDHIST CONCEPTION OFMARGASATYA
OR ANASRA VA (ETHICS)
(a)' .,The four Ary~ Satyas.
, Anasrava Sarpskrtadharma has got a strictly technical
meaning. Buddha~s sayings are said to insist mainly on the
four noble truths viz Th.e Dul).kha, Samudaya, Marga and
. Nirodha. These four seem to cover up all the phenomenal
and noumenal aspects of the doctrine including the Skandhas
etc. ;:;md ~irodha. The first two items, i.e. Dul).kha and
Samudaya.consist of the elaboration of the constituted world;
the last two with the process of stopping the Skandhas. The
expression Sasrava means something which is full of impuri-
ties, and is- nouri&hing substtatC!. for the evils and impurities.
As'opposed to this the Marga Satya is Anasrava and lead
to the cessation of evil impurities.
: A question may be asked with regard to the Marga
Satya and its relation to the other two i.e. the Sasrava
Ska;ndhas, Dul).kha and Samudaya. The answer is that
without knowing the first two and their causes the removal
of them is not possible. Logica.lly, it follows, unless the
disease is known and its causes are known, the remedy can-
not be sugges~e~V
In this matter a letter from Prof. La VaJlee Poussin to'
P~or.RhysDavids (da,ted -April 15, 1903, published in the -
Journal of th~ Royal Asiatic Society)may be quoted to show -
t~e sllbstantialityofwhat has been said above, and this also
added "Frot. Kc~.rn has, called attention to the relations bet-
w~eIl theth,erapeuticdoctrine of the Buddha and Indian
Medical Science" (M~nuaI of Buddhism p. 46). Various pas-
s~ges fronl, Bodhi-caryavatara ( 11,55) have been'q uoted.
there.lnfh~rlka ofYasomitra one finds a parallel idea
i52
(Kosa. II, ka 15).. " Finally, Yasomitra's Sphutartha cites
again a paranel passage (Kosa"" VI Vyakhya, Wogihara)
C'Vyadhitarp .. ~Prajanati iti"~p. 514-15).
It seems Klda is Dr~ti. The way leading to the cessa-
tion of KleSa or~l1ffering is known as Marga; Marga is not
Dr~ti. Marga consists of the DarSana or Realisation of truth
and repeated thought or Bhavana on Truth. Accordingly'
Marga is'characterisedby these two paths of means known
as Dadana inarga and Bhavana tfiarga; Bhav'ana is' noth-
ing but repeated thoughts oil the Dadana. Datsarta Marga
is the Sasrava matga which is Laukika bhavana ma.rga is
Anasrava in nature par excellence. All the Dul.Ikha's kte
simultaneously put to an end by Dadana marga. These
D ul},kh as are found in all the three Dhatus, viz. Rupa,
Kama and Ariipya. The Riipa· consists of the first Dhyana,
second Dhyana third and the fourth Dhyanas; A.riipya has
got four diversions viz. Akasanantyayatana, Vijfianantya-
yatana, Akincanyanantayatana and Naivasamjilabasarp.jila-
nantayatana or the Bhavagra. From Kamaci'hatu ,lIptd
Bhavagra there are: nine stages whkh ate all eradicable
through" Dadana m,arga; Laukika or theSilsrava' marga
' I '
can'put an end to the eight stages, exclusive only of the
subtlemost: stage" of Bhavagra. There are nine fypes,of
Dul}.khas which are all Dntiheya and eradicable thro~gh
Dadana marga.
The Adept : ~rd u, Madhya, Adhimatra types
Bhavanaheyasukhas ate not simultaneously destro-
yed. "Each is eradicated one by one" at different time.
Bhavariamarga is both SaSrava and Anastava; the Sasrava
Bhavana M~rga is' recognised as La.ukika.:Bfiiyaria" iii"
Dhyana, "It is' needless to say that all these ideas mayii6t
have been very logically formulated"; but they ate tndispe"ii.-
sable for entering into Buddhist Phi1~sophy. For, Buddhist
Philosophy,
,"
like other ~tartches Qf Inclian, systems, aims, ~f
' .' .
 tNTRODUCTioN

some realisation and is not merely a theory. The DarSana

and Bhavana Marga appear in the life of the adept in
different levels and in accordance with his capacity, which
may be low or medium or high as mentioned before.
Ethical process
An adept must be disciplined in the path of virtue and
established in the SrutamaYi and Cintamayi prajfia before
he enters into the stage of Bhavana or Dhyana. Srutamayi
Prajfia presents the categories along with presenting the
name of the objects. Cintamayi Prajfia presents both the
riame and meaning together. These ideas may be under-
stood to in the light of SravaI}.a, Manana and Nididhyasana
processes as recognised by Vedic Schools of philosophy.
Bhavana can be practised by an individual adept only
after he is established in the two above processes. These
two are known as Vyapakar~a, (Kosa 6, ka 6). He has to
keep himself aloof from the contact with ordinary people by
means of adopting a retired life and vitarka (or the groping
and conflicting views); both these are impure or Akusala.
Besides, he must remain free from discontent and greed
(Asarp.tu~ti and Mahecchata). The opposite ideas are con-
tent and non-greed (Sarp.tu~ti and Alpecchata) which are
root-merit in nature (Kusala Mula). These Kusalamulas
are obtained by an adept by practising either Anapana Smrti
or Asubhabhavana in accordance with his own leanings.
It is said that individual adept maY,be of two kinds of
mental make up, viz. Ragabahula and Vitarkabahula. Raga..
bahula means a type· much tied up with longings and
Vitarkabahula means one who is still groping in the midst of
his specific thoughts. The adept of the first category ha~
got to start with Asubha Bhavana. Asubha Bhavana means
mainly a thought based on the thrown up dead bodies.
Ragabahula adept naturally is full of various attachments;
hence, this path is prescribed for him with an intentio:n to
Ih
putitnendt'o alt'~isleanings. He has got tO~"proceed"b~
GQIllparing his body with the insignificant and thrown up
<lead bodYQf the cremation groundwh~re theJ)ones'ar&
scattered. Tn-is process is technically k.nown as,Bandhaona.;j,
SfI!1khala or thought discipline. ' He will further.exte,ndthis
i.dea upJo the ,o,cean, thus starting from his body;a,gain, he
':Yillbrr~g,the I{Jea back'tohis' 'body from the ocean., The
Vitarka])ah:ula. adept has got to proceed with'a direct process
dfpract1ce known, as Anapanasmrti or PraI)ayarna,~hkh. is
a of
'psycbo-physio 19ical process. Both these types ~depts at
the'.initial stage are knownas Adikarmika or beginners. This '
is practicable in all the Dhyanas, Samantakas, Dhy~nantar~,
~ri.d I{ama.dhatu. In Rupa Dhatu it maybe. spontaneous,:
or natural, but jn Kamadhatu it must be practised. By,
CbrlS'tant practice,' the adept now becomes s~nta with.
the feelirigof $amatha. 'After this he is in a condItion to',
develope Smrt Yupasthana. "
S~rtyupiasthana,
,",,"Tadevarp. Smrtyupati~thata -iti Smrtyupasthanarp;
'rajfietiVaibha~ikiyorthaQ." is said in Sphutartha~(Kosa6
Ita 15-1-6). " Smrtyupa,sthana Iheansher~ an analysis ihtbthe
various,aharnias specially belongingt-O kaya 6rbodY/vedana~
orfeeling~dtta ormind arid the rest of the dharmas. HIS
saip-that the mind repeatedly grasping the real nature or '.
S~bhava of these Dha,rmas atta.insanequilibrium.' There
'are f6ur'Smrtyupasth~iHis; corresponding to the four items
mellticmedab6ve.These are, viz. Svabhavcl Smrtyupas- ·
thanaxp or grasping the real. nature, Sarp.sarga Smrtyupas~;
ihanaoi',graspin'g the contact," Alarp.banasmrtyitpasthana'/
or 'grasping the>'support.or 'subsisten'ce, "'and ' Dharma'
smrtyu;pastnaiiaor'the grasping the nature of the Dha:rma$~"
Thtrlast present actually the 'suitable conditions of fhefirst;
of"tli'eSvabh:ava Smrtyupasthana which is~Prajfia as has hee~ .
saitldn'the: 1ext:( Kosa 6 ki 15- i 6) (SvalihaVasmrtyti'pasthana J
P,rajfieti). This is 'Smrty~pasthana parexcelle~ce. The
rest are concerned with the feeling associates ,and the subs~
trata of thePrajna and have" beeq noted in the three ot~er
S;mrtyupasthanas. Prajfl:a connotes pall the Srp~amaYi,
Cintaniayi and Bhavanamayi aspects of"Prajfia., Thus" these
can be treated as the preliminary stages leading to Prajfia.,
:The rbrm of arrangement starts from Kaya to Vedana, froID
Vedana to Citta and from Citta to Dharma., Each of them
again consists of thre,e more subordinate stages, vi~,.~va ,?~
of the self, Para or of the other and Ubhaya or of both
(Smrti ,upatisthate Atra--KQsa 6 ka 15-16Sph). Thus;~
Kaya 'Smrtyupasthana is of three, kinds viz. Sva, para and
ubhaya. 'Jhese three categori~s wilfbe for the, reziIaining
thr~e Le. for the Vedana,Citta;artd D-harma Sm,rtyupas-
thailas also. 2 ' - "

Stnrtyupasthanas are ~reated as the opposite ideas or

negations for some fixed' and illusory practices.Ordinadl Y
the body is wrongly thought of as something pure and
pleasure giving; feeling as pleasant; Ciha as a freshly r~":
tognised permanent self. The Smrtyupasthana of Kaya'
type demoliShes the idea of purity about the body; Ved~na'
Stn,ftyiipasthana destroys the apparently pleasantness ~b6u't
feeling; Cittasmrtyupasthana demolishes the idea of perma-
nence -of theCitta. These three Smrtyupasthanas, when'
gtaduaUyestablished, lead to Dharmasmrtyupasth§.na; the'
last one is the rival for our traditional belief in the seJF:6f'
;the Atma. There is nQ permanent, 'coniintious and single
unity of self;, according to Buddhism; the nature or Svabha~a::
or .the'Dharmas are momentary, evanascerit - and - divisible'
into further smaller and subtler u'nits. Dharmasmrty-upCl,s.:'
~l1~na_gradually gets strengthened and develops into-the:
four noble trutfls, which are the Dul.lkha, the Samuday~,'
th~_Nirodha, .andthe Marga. It maybe no:t~d here that the
Ni~odha co~es first in order and thell the;' Marg~ -roUows~'
E~ph ofthese .-~ppear~ \'Yith £Ol1f 9ther sta,g¢$ 3s:belQW,~~I
~.,.• ' ....., ~ ,. - "".' < .".: .. '., ,'~
156 INTRODUCTION

DuMha Duti. There are four stages of the Dul)kha

viz. Dul)khatva (impurity), Anityatva (impermanence),
Sfinyatva (nothingness)" land Anatmatva (Soullessness)
(Sarva~ K~ailikarp., K~al}.ikarp. Dul)kharp., Dul)khaqII
Svalak~al}.arp., Svalak~al}.aJTl Srmyam Sfinyamiti). Each stage
appears to be different from the other. Every object of
Dharma is Svalak~al}.a or unique, devoid of any determina-
tion; for, it is momentary. It cannot be Atman or a cori-
tinuousseIf. The above lines quoted from Buddhist eX:,-
position as to be found in "Sarvadarsana Sarp.graha" main-
tain everything as Du1;tkha; but the Vaibha~ikas do not
accept the Marga.satyarp. as Sasrava or Dul)kha .
Samudaya DU#. Samudaya Dr~ti consists of fpur
stages, viz. Samudayatva (constitution)' Prabhavatva (do-
minance), Hetutva (causality), and Pratyatva '( conditions).
Samudayatva, technically, applies to PratUyasamutpada or
the principle of dependent origination; Prabhavatva means
special causation and effectuation; Hetutva means cause in
genera]; Pratyaya or PratiUya means the preceding and
succeeding favourable and unfavourable conditions (Samana..
ntata, Hetu, Adhipati, Ala:mbana). Actually, these ideas
are concerned with the consti tution of the composition or
origination of everything and demolishes the idea of on.e or
the first cause theory or theory of perpetual or perma~ent
causation.
Nirodha Du!i. Nirodha Dr~ti is of four kinds, Viz.
Nirodhatva, Santatva, Pral}.itatva and Ni!:tsaraI).atva. NJro ..
dhatva means a stop ,or cessation of the Sasravas; g'atJtatva
means quietude or serenity; Pra:Qitatva means somethiFlg
adorable or commendable. NiQ,saral}.atva means, gett~;ag
rid of; Qr deHverence from impurity or Kle~a.
Marga Duti. Marga consists of Matgatva. NyayatVa,
Pra,tipattitva and NairyaQ.ikatva. Margatva means the eight
fold noble path, i.e. Samyak or Right Dr~ti (attitude),5atrl-
 INTRODUCTION

kalpa (resolutio-n), Vak. (speech); Karmanta (,a(;tiyity),

Vyayamlil (effort), Ajiva (livelihood), SJl1rtj(memory), apd
Sa.micJhi (meditation); Niry;'iI}a means freedom fcom~lefeat
(Edgartpn's-Hybrid Sanskrit Dictionary,p. 314); Pratipattitv;a
lJ;l.ea.nspassipnlessness; Nairya,I}ikatva meansconducivenel!~
toq~livenmce. .
The' four Arayasatyas with their sixteen varieties are
tn,us assembled in the DharmasmrtyupasthinamwhiclJ, is ,a.
Pra.jiia. This is technically known as U~magata.' It is fqIJ:
oemerit, for the core is root merit or KuSalaMula.l(u-
saJ.amiila is the first step of the Satyabhisamaya or entering
into the domain of Truth. U1]magata, thus may be Mrdu, or
Madhya or . Adhimatra in degree; in each of them aU the
sixt<le.n varieties mentioned before with regard to the fOll'r
Sa.tyas are present.
The Adhimatra stage of U~magata is a .strong and
established Prajfia~ connituted by all the above mentioned
sixteen yarieties. The strengthened Prajfia is' known as
Njrod4a. There may again be Mrdu. Madhy.aand A<;lhi-.
matra ~tages. The Adhimatra stage of Nirodha is known as
. Ksanti. K~anti, although Prijfia; prepares the attitude on
tije part of the adept towards obtaining Satyibhisamaya.
K~anti may .again be of three var~eties yiz. Mrdu, Madhy~,
Adhimatra. Adhimatra K~anti is followed by Prajiia which
is firm in nature. The process is slightly different in the
three Dhatus i.e. Rupa, Kama and Arupya. i\,dhimatra
stage of Nirodha consists of all the sixteen varieties develop-
ed in the height of intensity. K~anti is to be cultivated ~y
decreasing the number of the sixteen varieties, and the.,
number of the truths also. These practices are performed'
during the Mrdu, Madhya and Adhimatra stages of K~anti •
. First, Arupya is discarded; then the Rfipa forms ap'pear"
and finally, the Kamavacara practices' with .regard to' th~:
decreasing stages ofK~anti are indicated. (vide Tarkatirtha,
Vai'bha~ika Dadana, p. 309-312).
 INTRODUCTION

Nirv~dhahhag'fya. These four items, i. e;' U~ma:gata,[

Nirodha, K~anti and Agradharma are' recognised in the'
scripture as the Nirvedhabhagiyas.Vedha means Bhaga':
or division (Tarkatirtha B.D. p. 313}.Vedha a]so means!
the goal.. Both the meanings do cones pond to the ide<;t of
Nirvedhabhagiya 'which connotes the goal or Ahhisama~a,;
consisHngof thevatious subdivisions: The~ou'btless Prajna
aims at it, and is established, in Du1;tkhe Dharmajnanak~anti!
and Du1;tk'he Dharmajnana stages. These are Nirvedha-
hhagiya; the U~magata, Nirodha K~anti and Agradharma l

lead to this Nirvedhabhagiya; Thus these Hems are~lf)

known" as the Nirvedhabhagiyas (Kob VI, ka 21-23) l .
Nirvedhabhagiyais included in the DadanaMarga, amI
Darsanamarga's object or Alarpbana and includes Du1;tkha.
There is no Duh,.kha in the Ariipya. Thus, there can be do
Nirvedhabhagiyain the Arupya. According to the author
of Sphutartha Yasomitra, Nirvedhabhagiyas are only to be
found in' the Kamadhatu. But, Vasubandhu himself says.
that Nirvedhabhagiyas are possible both in the Kamadhatu'
and in the Riipadhatu as wel1. Some denizens ()f the'
Riipadhatu may obtain' Ni~.bedhabhagiya although the
1\larpbana is the Du1),khasalyarp. of Kamadhatu. All Nirve-
dhabhagiyas are Sa~adhya Prajfia. Nirvedhabhagiya can
be attained by the male or female. According to Vasu-
bandhu, Agradharma, if realised, puts an end to the
existence of the adept as Prtha~jana or commonfolk.
Th~ first two of the Nirvedhabhaglyas are known as
U~rnagataand Nirodha.' These two are sacala or unstable;
so,tbat,' the Prtha~jana even achieving these two stat~s
may even come down. The other two i. e. K~anti and Agra- ,
dharma are Acala; no one can faU down from those levels
after achieving thes~ two. In' ca'le of the first two, the'
Parihani or fall is possi bIe;5 in case of the last two Vihani
Qr cessation of Prtha~janatva is recognised. Th,~se st~ges at:~
 ',INTRODUCTION

.obt~inable imthe'same hirthand,alsoin the:c"a~ei'"ofrebirth~

,'The Devas :and ,the, Arya canreaHse the~,e stages :bymere
~hange of1heleve1s gr Bhflmisarpcara ,in the Rflpa, Arupya
'.or the Kam<:l.'~hatu. The Prtha?j'anal however cannot get that
" '

level by mere, Bhfiinisarpca.ra ,unless they are reborn there;6,

Mok~abhagiyais obtained prior to Nirvedhahhagiya~'
SrtitamaYl and:Ciritamayi pr~jna and the deeds co~duciv~:
to Mok~a; are recognised as the Mok~abhagiya. A.:
M.ok~abhagiyaobtains ~'realisation in' th'e 'three s~age~cif
rebirth. First, he realises Mok~abhagiya; he realises; NirL
vedh~bhagiya at the next birth. In, the third birth'after this,
he"is' destined to 'realise the Aryamarga or; Dadanamarga.:
The persot:ll who has realised Agradharma'~tage is knOWn>
also :as the Yogacari.Yogacari is of two categories viz.
Dr~ticarita and Tr~Qacarita. Dr~ticarita agai:n may be
. either· Atmadnticarita or Atmiyadnticarita; both are,
placed in the Agradharma stage; the Atmadnticatita trims-)
forms the Alarp.bana of Dul:tkhasatya which)s in Kalllayacara
into Anatmatva. Atmiyadnticarita will transform thesame
Alarp.bana t9 Sflnyatva only. Tr~Qacarita also is of' two classes
viz ", Asmimartopahata and Kausidyadhika.' Asmim'ano~;
pahata Yogacari transforms the Alaqlbana of Kamavacara
Dul}.khasatya into Anityatva; Ka uSidyadhika 'Yogacari wiJl
transform the some materials into Dul:tkhatva only. Thus,
Agradharmct al ways fates the Dadanamarga. This Dadana-
marga is Anasrava and is recognised ,as the Saty.a~hisamaya.
This Dadanamarga consists of two divisions viz. Ksanti
and Dadana. Both are Prajna.But in the K~§.ntr ;t'age
doubt may remain (Savic.ikitsa); whereas in the Darsana
stage Prajna is Prajna par exceUence and is devoid of all
doubt (Nirvicikitsa). K~anti is of two types, viz. "Dhartna-
k~anti and Anvayak~anti. Dadana also is of two types, yiz.
Dharmajnana and Anvayajnanct; K~anti is known ~s·'A~a.
ntarya Marga and DarSana is known asVimuktimarga.The
PraJnas (Savicikitsa) with traces ofdoQbt which' ori~iii~te
 INTRODUCTION

freID the Alarp.banas of Dul;tkhasatya of Kamadhatu:are

known as Dhrmajiianak~anti; the same without doubt are
known as Dharmajiiana. The Prajiia (Savicikitsa) with
traces of doubt which originates from the Alambanas of
Dubkha in the Rupa and Arupya Dbdtus is known as An.va ..
yaji1anak~anti; those which are without doubt are known as
Anvayajiiana. The arrangement is like this : Darsanamarg-a
includes the fifteen Prajiias within the_ Nirvedhabhagiya
level. (From Dul;tkedharmajnanak~anti to Marge Anvaya,".
jnana K~anti). ,
Anantaryamarga includes the Marge Anvayajnana and
the rest of the K~antiin the three dhatus; Anantarya implies
efficiency in its own work of demolishing the impurities.
Vimuktimarga inc1uclesall the jiianas i.e. the Dharmaji,iana
and Anvayajnanain all the dhatus. 7 Anantarymarga removeS
the impurities and Vimuktimarga stops the further entry.,
of Kfda. These two ideas are comparable with the Jain-e
conception of Sarp.vara and Nirjara~ which imply stopping
the impurities first and demolishing them later respectively.
The arrangement of the K~anti and Jnanas are like'
this in the three dhatus.
(1) Kamadhatu. In the Kamadhatu there are four
Satyas viz. Dul;tkha, Samudaya, Nirodha, Marga. In every
. state we nave got one K~anti and one Jnana. Thus we
have in all eight items, viz.
(1) Duh.khe Dharmajnana K~anti
(2) Dukkhe Dharmajfiana
(3)Samudaye Dharmajnana K~anti
(4) Sam'ldaye Dharmajnarta
(5) Nirodhe Dharmajnana K~anti
(6) Nirodhe Dharmajnana
(7) Marge Dharmajnana K~anti
.(8) Marge Dharmajnana
 INTRODUCTION 161
RJlPtl &. A1"fiP.'Ptl •.Riipa and Arupyapfanes have in the systeih,
common items. There we have thus: ..1". !

(1). Dul.lkhe Anvayajuanak~anti (2) Dul.lkhe Anvayajuana

(~);Samudaye Anvayajnana K~anti( 4) Samudaye Anvayajuana
(~tNirodhe ," ,,(5) Nirodhe "
(1'):Marge ." " (8) Marge "

.These ·are the sIxteen moments of the reaHsationof

truth lOt' Satyabhisamaya, (Kosa 2. Vide above Table).
These different stages ·are aU realised .by Prayogamarga or
Dharmajnana. TheJnan'asare the Ni~yandaphalas of the pre"
ceeding K~antis. The K~antisare the Sabhagaor Homo..
gentous Retcu to the Jnanasand the Samanantara Ptatyaya
or :immediately preceeding cO'nditions to·the Jiianas. The
K~anti' stages are with doubt and Juana is without doubt.
These sixteen 'moments are known as the Anas,raVia Marga-
satya.' It <should beremember-ed that .cad) stage is come..
cutiveiy fdllowedby the 'oth'er stage. No body oatl~skip over
some of,thesta'ges in orde;r to get a qui-cker re.alisation which
is 'jnipossi-ble~ The Satyabhisamaya cqnsistsof three parts,
viz .. Darsanahhisamaya, Ala~banabhisamaya,and Ka~ya.
bblsamaya. These three again aTe arranged in the order
metiOnecl ,above. Au. adept cann:otskip over the one to
.obtain the other.

.lJarstlnu/hhisQmtlya inc1tides th~ si~teen stages of the

formation cof Kama Rupa and Ariipya as described before;.
Alambanahltisamaya includes these sixteen Abhisamayas and
aU the cittas and cittas associated with each stage of the fout
trut'hs.Karyiihltisamaya includes the sixteen stages and their
citta-caitta associates in each stage of the four truths and
particular function for each. Thus, it is said that the function
for Du1:lkhasatya is Dadana or Realisation; the function
for Nirodha is getting insight into Praha:Q.a or forsaking or
H
Sa~s.atkara; ~he\if~nctj9J1for;Matg.a {)f; path ,i~: J~ljij v:~n.a:p~
meditation.. DarSanab.hi~a1Jl~Y~. Jeags to "Aiiqil;>~n~bhb
samaya and Alaqlbanabhisamaya leads to Karyabhisamaya.
: ~ ':" .:" \ .~, ... ' . . ' ,,' >~ '-',.'~~' {f'
. Bhavanamarga- THe; ~ft~eii m09tents , (in 'the-t\gr~~
dharma stage)startiilg' wifh' 'DuQ.khe Dharm.jilanak~antI
and ending with'Marge:-Anvayajfian:ak~anti are\rtofe~litil
nuously connected an~n rerpain discreet.' The. ~ixtee~tij
mO'ment or Anvayajnana or the An~ntarya Marga is the
starting point of Bhavana.Itd~v;¢lopes ~nto;tbe'fifteep
states',of the'Abhisamaya in:th~ ·l{ama,· '. Riip'a: ~]lldJlhe
Ar(ipyastages.:·Th~s,:' the second' Bhavana,; will. end> after
the Rilpa'r(ipyavacara:'Anvayajnana,1i:s.a~ti'-'ap.d ;st'art witli
theAnvayaj~anaand wilt further: con tin u~~uPt9:::~he·stC!g~
0'(. Vajropania Samadhi.. Th.usJ~havanamarg~'fa~e~
between tne'·:A.nantarYa . :marga ·an:d Vajropam~$~IA4~~'!
state. During. these: phases the Yogi carin.ot. h~v:~ ..~y'
VyuUhanaor:;ge,tting UP:ffO'm the uf!brqken cOIltip.uJ~y "~f
the, DhyaIia.. Th~continuity .further of th~ Aryapudga.I~.'~'
spiritual l1eightis noted as L\~aik~~ or the~okottarfl.Mar_ga~
THe Aryapudgala obtain~ two Jnanas. at this stage "known,
as, the Ks.ayajnana' a~d .theA.nutpadajnana~K_s.ayaj.n~na
indicates-'DuQ.khaetc,are;~m),\Vn by me~Ja.~ih~~ b;ecO~Cf "
weakened for me'etc. Anutpadajnana indicates ~'I .•4av,e
nothing left fork~owing any further, . no ~mpurity is th~l'~
which remains to' ,be demolished by me.~ I~ may' be,s~id
that these two phases of knowledge are specifically realised
by the liberated soul or Arhat in course of :SamatHa and
Vidadana bhavana. (Discipline and' intuition respectively)~~
,~r)'apudg~la. "~" . _ _ . _ , ' '.
An Aryapudgal~ ,moves al~ng the fifteensta~e~ ~i~hi~
Jhe {\gI"adharma. ' ~he adept may -b~ . . havtrig-d~IC.:J~r
:medi,u,m or sharp fac~lt~es .or ,the Indr:iyCl:s; -his .spiI:liQ~J
status will be fixed accordingly. Thus., he·wi)I be"re~ogni~e,4
~s Sraddhanusarl
.
and Phar-rnanu~a,ri
(
in.. .relation
.,", .
t~.
. - ;. ~ '); '·.:':1
the
 INTRODUCTOIN i63
dull Im;lriya and. sharp Indriyarespectively.Both,are
known as ,Srotapanna if till then they have not been' a'ble:
to shake off 'the impurities which are eradicable through
Bhavana. But they are no longer to be born in any'lower
Jevel of existence. Sraddhanusari~s status will be kilOwn
as Srotapattiphalapratipannaka;: for the others' achievement'
it will be Srotapattiphala prapta 8 only.
The same indIvidual may continue to have further:.
achievements in the stream of spiritual realisation. H~
rhay be with Sakrdagamiphalapratipannaka, and Sakrda·
gamiphalaprapta. Further. he may be Anagamlphala
pratipannaka and AnagamlphaJ<;tprapta. He must. be able
to get all types of impurities eradiCated by means of J)r~ti
and Bhavana. The adept in the Anagami stage may ,be
of five different kinds (Kosa 1·6) 9 v iz. ' '
(I) Antarapatinirvayi
(2) U papadyaparinirvayi
(3) Sabhisaf!lskara
(4) Ana bhisaf!lskara
(5) Urdhvasrota.
(1) Antaraparinirvayi pudgala achieves his' NirvaQ.a in
the Antarabhava state; so that he is no more born.to
(2)' Upapadyaparinirvayj~ The Pudgala dies.in the
Kamadhatu and is reborn in the same Kamadhatu. He.
achieves his NirvaI}a there after he 'is born.
(3) Sabhisaf!lskaraparinirvaYi-The pudgala after' he
obtains Anagamya in Kamadhatu, will
not be reborn
there. He gets NirvaQ.a after his death and is known as'
Sarhisaf!lskaraparinirva yi.
(4) Anabhisaf!lskaraparinirvayi-The. Pudgala after
getting Anagamya in Kamadhatu t will no more be born
there. He ~chieves realisation without ~ny effort a~d is'
known as Anat>hisaIllskaraparinirvayl. '
 ,
H>4
;(5) "tl;rdl;l};<\s,I'o:~~~'I'he Pudgala ::gets his Anagfuinya. ill
the ;Riipa ,or Ar,~pya ,:¢!hat.uand dQes :notreturn to Kama..
~b~,tu. :ae :aCh,iev~s his l).1invan.a ip ;the :bigher llevel and is
knQWtn :~sOrdhv~srota. rhes~ ;Or('Uwas:rotas~re ;divided
~~J9 j~wo~la$s;es, yi?,.A~an;i~th~gcaan,dcBh ;;lvagr,ag,a. Those,
';Vll0 .~fte,rll1oviQg u;ptoAk~ni~th~ "}ok<tac,hd,eve J~JrvaQ.?\
there, are known as t,heAkani~:t!l;taga.ll {~thef;s, whoaclhieve
Ni~~aQ,a jIl t:betasts,t~ge of· Ariipya or .Bha vagra a,re !known
as the Bhava,graga. . ' .
APudgafa in the Riipadhatu may be known as
Antarapariniryayi and U papadyaparinirvaYi accordi~~Jy as
h~ gets Into Anagamya in R\ipadhatu. 12 The Pudgala wQO get~
into,Anagamya in the Kamadhatu will not be born in aQ.y
other dhfttu;' he will have his NirvaI),a in the An.tarabh~
state. In case he is an Arhat c;\nd ca:Q.die in.anywayhe J.1kes~
he will come back to Kamadhatu and will have his Nirvarja
there in after his death. NirvaI),a means the final and .abso-
lute cessation of existence or Bhava. According to later
Mahayana Schools it is negation QfKlesa or impuritiies.
Remark. Thus, it follows from . ,what wehavie ·stated
before that the Buddhists meant by the ethical path or Anas-
rava ¥argasatYa tq.e di;rec,t mef;lnsto achieve :the Nir.odha-
satya. Nirodljia IIleans only a temporary cessatjonofeviJor
suffering. There are other states of temporary cessatiol1;s of
stlffereing like Nidra and MOrch§. which are spontC:,tneollsanrl
natural to an organism an.d need not be achieved brany
effort or ethical means. But the Samapatti stages are to be
C:,tchieved !>y effqrt.
The Sap1~patti st~ges Me comparable with Yoga pro~
ces~ pf S~mi:i:dhi; accQrdingly 8avija and Nirvija states of
Samadhi may be compared with Nirodha and Asarpjnl
stales of Sflmap£!,tti respectiv:·~ly. II}. every GEHle of the~e stages
the qynqmic continn~m ofthe mind or citta aQ.d oftpe b~ing
Ot prganisrn, persists~ A~corging to the KQ~a all the$e stat~s.
are real and real for the p.as.t~ pres.ent and future phase,s of,
time (Adhva) and are logically compreheQ.sible,13
,
 lNtitODUCTioN

ethics and thestriCt£oIlowing of the Buddhist church does

also remind' US of some' of the. developments within the
Catholic Church's ways. It might have influenced Kant and
Hegel, SchopenhauerandBergsonand the other 19th century
tI:iinkersofEurope. Ana" finaUy, through the influellce
it; left on K~shmere Saivisni it might have left at least
some impdnts orithe philosophy of Sri Aurobindo him-
self. In conclusion,. we looK' forward· to the coming;, of
the sdentificminded modern scholars who would be intere-
sted in aHthese branches of human thought and will unde"r-
take furtherp'Iinstakingresearchesto unearth the link exis-.
tingin their midst
, I~ CPIl;c1usion,it may be pointed ou~that nothinghas
been IntentionaJly said about NjtvaI,.la excepting only some
references. .The Kosa observes ~ilence about that which
ipAnuttara'or uncategorisable. The ninth KosasthaQa
ghre~ a. criticism,of the idea of a'soul' persisting after de~th'
~s"the' VatsiplJhiyas would have it.. This '., viewp6~ntha~
~e'en critici~ed 'only.'as u'ridersirable f~oni, Budd~istic point
of view (Vide Tattva'> sarpgraha); the author of the' •Kosa
very clev~r1y and eIal:>or~telyrelates about the Externals,
Internalsa,nd the etl1ical path which are· useful fOJ;,
trainIng the human mind in a practical sense and avoi~
any specuIati9nabo,ut spmething which is beyond physical
manifestation and pSYGhologicaI comprehension like NirvaI,.la
Q~,,,,bs~I ute .~es~at,io~ of existence.' . '. .
"Om Namo.Buddhaya Gurave
Namo Dhaimaya TariI,.le
Namo,S,,:rpgha.ya MahattamayaNamal,l"
 " , References

1. (a) Yoga Sutra II 15. ,

Yathli, Cikitsli Sastraql catu rvyuhalJl rogo rogahetu, lirogyaql.
bhel1ajyaql , ityevarp' idaql api tastrarp caturvyiihaqi eva,
""- } taciYath~. Sarpsara, Saqlsiirahetu M:ok~a, Mok~opaya iti.
. 'BodbicarYlivatiira '
. (6) "Tatra Sarvajnavaidyasya SarvasalyapahliriQal;l Vakyarp
" ullarighliyamiti dhig miirp atyantomohitaql."
VyadhilJldntveti Vyndhir dul;lkhasaiyasyopamlnaql; tanni-
danarp samudayasatyasya; tatk~ayo Nirodhasatyasya tad-
bpai~ajyalJl margasatysyopaIn1nalJl; siitrepyel1a satyanalJl
,~>_:i i ..
. 'drl1tiinta iii vyadhisutra kathaql 'caturbhir. angail;l samanvii-
gato bhi~ak, ............... ea bhavati riijayogayasca rlijangatve
-casllrpkhYiiql gacchati...Katamais catul'b,hih ?
"2. Srtiiadibhyal;l praJiili bhavati; Tatra.,· SrutamaYi Prajfia
N'amarthaql cintamayl,nbhayasya ril!imnorthasya ca Bhava-
. namayJ Prajfi.a Kevalamarthasya Krte iti Vaibhn~iklll;l.
Kos~ 6, Ka 5, Rllhulakrtll Vyakhyll.· '.
BhavanamaYi Prajiili Vyapaka:rl1advayavatal;l,
Alobho Eva Dvayol;l SvabhiivaQ.; Teneme KusalamnlalJl
Kosa,6KlI.7. ' '
. ,A:saIfil'idrasthivistarasalJlksepadikarmikal;l-Ko~a 6 Kii 10.
·.Ni~pannasamathasyaiva Smrtyupsthanabhavana. -Kosa 6
Kii 14~ ,
Suciviparynsasya Pratipak~eQ3: KiiyasmrtyupasthiinalJl
Silkhaviparyiisasya .Pratipak~eQa Vedanlsmrtyupasthanaql ...
Nitya, viparyasasya Pratipakl1eQa' CittlsmrtyupasthanalJl
'.' . . '. Kosa 6, KI 15-16
3. Atoia viparyasasya .Pratipak~eQa Dharmasmrtyupasthiinaql
etadvidha vibhage iti vistaral;l. Tasya Dhlitoretad yarp RnpalJl
NiScita iti NiI;dabdarthaql' ditdayati. Kathaql Punarniscito
'VeAhaityata aha tu Vicikit&iipraPi:\QIit niScitiiql satYiiDaiica
.~iQhlgltidaxp: ·dul;lkhamayaql. yavanmavrag iti. Niredha
AX:X8,:mlirgal;l:' Tasya bhago darSanmargaikadesal;l tasyliva-
hakatv~na Akar~akatyena, hitatviit tasmin hitamiti ca. Tena
nirvedhabhiigiyalll,itI.bha:vati (Kosa VI, Ka, 21-23 Sphu-
, tartha). . " '. .
 fNTRo:i:>mhtoN
4. Na Arupye~u Nirvedhabhagiyarp asti. Dadanamarga pari~
varatvatadbhavab. (Kosa VI, Ka 21-23).

5. Tadayuktarp Brahmalokopapannanarp Nirvedhabhagiyabha-

vad, Kamadhatau iti Nirvedhabhagiyani Utpadyante. (Ko~a
VI Ka, 21-23).

6. A1:ariya Sarp.ghahhadrel)api daditametad., Nanu. ca Prthak-

japohpi Ya<ibumikanirvedhabhagiyalabhi bhavati tato
urdhvamupapadyamanab NirvedhahhagI¥,a ni vijahyad iti.
Nastyeta<i; Nikayasabhagatyagat eva, tyaktatvat. 1\1araJ;,ta-
bhavavas,thito Hi tani tyajatL Antarabhavastbitena' tu
tyakHini ata urdh~amupapadyamanas,y.a tannasti yad vijah-
. yliditi. (KosaVI, Kii 21-23).

7. Anagamyancantaraiica hyanabhumisca BhUmayobsyete Nor-

dhvarp (KosaVI, Ka 21~23).

8. Stages (after Tarkatirtha. P. 35 VaiblHisika. Dadana) Agra.

dharma,-16 (1.15:--Dadanamarga, $asrava; 16.~nantarya
marga..--Laukika, Anasra,va).
A. Dubkha 1. (a) Kamadhatu Duhkhalarpbane'-Prajiia (Du-
bkha, Anityata, Sunyata', Anatmata) Dhar-
majiiana K~anti (Savidk.itsa);
(b) DharmajMna (Nirvicikitsa).
2: (a} Rilparupyadhatau Dubkhalarpbane Anva-
yaJnana K~anti (Du1;tkha, Anityata,
Sunyata, Anatmata). (Savicikitsa).
(b) Anvayajiiana (Nirvicikitsa)
Dul).kha finished; (.
Eo Samudaya 1. (a) Kamadhatu Samudayalal1~bane Dharma-
jiiana K~anti (Samudayatva, Prabhabatva,
Hetutva Pratyayatva) (Savicikitsa).
(b) Dharmajiiana,.(Nivicikitsa)
2: (a) Ruparupyadhatau Samudayalarpbane
Anvayajii.anak~anti (Samudaya Prabhava,
Hetu Pratyaya) (Savicikitsa).
(b) Anvayajiiana (Nirvicikitsa).
Samudaya realised.
 iNTRODti6tION
,.9.Nirodha, 1. (a) Klmlvacara Nil'odhalalJlbanQ} Dharma-
," jnana k~lint~ CNirodha Santa PtaQIta
Ni1;l.sarl:J.o~tvaY (Savicikitsa).
" ,
(p), Dharmajnluai (Nirvicikitsa)"
2. (a¥Riipariipye Nil',bdbalatpbane anvayajnana
K~anti (Nir09ha, San ta: PraQita &
Nil;lsaraQatva)' ~S:aVijcikitsah
(b) u " Anvayajfil1na,(;Nirvicikitsa)
Nirodha fully Known;
D. Marga 1. (a)JI~ar:na\"aCal!a. M.argaJa<tpbane: DharmajiHlna
K~anti (Margatva, Nyayatva ;Pratip~ttitva
Nail'}llaoikatva) (Savicikitsa).
(b) Kl:\mavacara MargatambaneDharmajMna
Nirvicikitsa.
2. (a) RUpariipy,avalarpbane Anyayajiiana K~lnti
(Mar-gatya, Ny,ayatva,\ Pratipattitva,
Naryabikat,va), (SaNici.kitsa);
a»)'; RQpar,npylivalaIPbane-,Anv~ajnana (Nir.
vicikitsa).
9.;' Kd~ftuBlh.l.vityamrar1l("gat'e· ad'!ivanf.· K'atlta1ti; life bhavisylmi
anlgate adhavani. Pratyutpatinaiji V~Phrta:~tia' Pratisarati~'.
Madhyamaka¥ftth:R;.SQS{ Ghapter 27.
(Dnti parik~anama Sapt'a.vhpsatita-
matp Prakaranarp).•
AbhlvarthaIP Hi Siinyatirthaqladhvllropyaprasaqlg/l udbhl .•
. vito bhavatl Madbyamakavrttil;l P. 499'CHaptt!t"24:
Sino Indian studies' Liebenthal Festschrifl.,
294.3 Vol. I, Parts 3 & 4 1951. R 812,
10. IIYatboktaIP A,yasalisthabbasutra Arya: Mlai'treyej)a Mkhlbodhi
Sattvena. Ya imarp Pratityasam~tplldameV'}];lP"~Yattil1bblltarp
Samyak prajiiaYli Satata Samitam. ~jivarp.,o NirjiV'aql Yathl-
vlida ViparitamlljnataqlabhntaIJl ~krtatpasaIJlskrtaIPaprati·
gbaIJl anavaraQam SIvamabhayamanllhilr.ya:Dt,~~.ama:Jjhyu­
~a~aJllasw,a,bhavaJiJl. Pasyati~ AsatastUGchat;; rkltat~i Aslrato,
R.Qgata.. Gand,ato. Slllyato, Aghato Anityat.o" Dul;lkhatal,l
SQPyat€) AnatmataJ;t na so pn;rvait1l.n,pratisaratil'~
Madhyamaka vrttil;l Chapter 27~. P~ 593.
'" ::l 'Ii:" Kitii~i~
( .'.. . .,'
~'
~Jh~tii~~b~iivain~ti.te
- . "d: \ _
.~'
adhv~'ni
'_
' Ahbswit' nabhuvamattte
adba\rani KafhaxpnVahamaQhuvamatite adhvani. Apa-
rant~ip. va IlapunarIia pratisarati. Kirp. nvahamabhavi~yami
anaga'te adhva~iAhoswitnabha:visYlmi anagate addhvani.
f;., ",Ref;,B.B.I. VOl. 1923, Edited by Buniyo Nanjio P. 112
" Mahavyutpatti.·
The four Dhyanas,
- , ,

12:0) tiYiviktaqi' Kamairaviviktarp Papakairaku~aladharmai

Savitarkarp. Savicararp. Vivekajarp Pritisukharp. Prathamarp.
'Dhyanatp. upasarppadya viharati; . •
(2)S~vitarkaviearanarp. vyupasamad adhyatmatp samprasadllt
cetesll ekotimanat Avitarkarp. Aviearaql Samadhijarp. PrIti·
sukharpDvinatpDhYllnarp. upasarp.padya viharatL
(3) Sa Prrterviyogad upek~ako viharati smrtal;l sarpprajfHirp.
sukharp>ca Knyena Pratisaip.veaayati Yattad Arya
Acak~te- Upe"k§aka smrtva sukharp. viharati Ni,pritikarp
Trtiyaarp' Dhyanarp upasamp~dya viharati.
(4) Sa Sukhasyaeapraha1J.ilt Dul;lkh'asya ea Praha1J.llt Piirvarp.
eva ea Saumanasyadaurmanasyayor Astamgamat Adul;lkha-
sukharp ,upek~asmr.tipari~uddhirp. Caturtllflrp.,,',phJ':ilnarp.
, . d V1.'ha. r
' .• upas,arppaya " a t l '. . '.,'.'
, ( 5 ) Pr.aptakoti,brp.
,, (6JAnag~yatlI

(7) Dhyan:aht~~arp.
'(8)" S~~~t~kaIP
(9) Maulaw
(10) Asphara1J.akasamadhi
(II) PratisaIP,laya1J.a'
;,(12)·Samahita
ell) Satata~amita 8amahita, citta.

'll.Samapattis.:
" ; ,.,. (I)' '!Sa Sarva.~o RiipajfianlU, SaiIiatikrarilat Pratigba Sarp.j-
, iis:nanam· "Asta:qigamat Nanlltv«s~mjri!nat .:; Ar'n,anasikllrat
Anahta:rp.,~kl!i~aIJl Hi. Aka~inantllyatanahaIJl';tipasampa.
dya"klhat!lti:' .
 iNtRODUCTION 171
(2) 'Sa Sarvaso Akasanantayatanarp.Sam'atikramyaoantaJp
Vijiianamiti vijnanantyayatanaIJl upasaIJlpadya viharati.
(3) Sa Sarvaso vijii~nai).t,ayatanaql. Samatikramya Nasti
kirp.cid ityakiIJlcanyanantliyatanarp. upsarp.padya viharati.
(4) Sa Sarvasa Akitpcanyanatatanarp. SamatikramyaNaiva-
Sarp.jfH\.nlsaqijiiariantayatanarp. upasarp.padya· vihar,a.ti. ,;
(5) (a) Vyutkrantasamapahi; (b) Vyatikrantasamripatti:.
,,(6) Vyasaka:Q.Q.aka (vyatyastha) ~amapatti.
,,(7) Navanupo.rvavihara samapatti.
, (8) Samapatti skandha.
,
(9) Nirodha ,samaptti.
,

(10) Mahllbhuta SamauiradhanaIp.. '

(Il) Asamjiia sarna patti. '

.~' \ .'

i"

-",' ~ .:. '

~ .. '

., '
~\ .

-.J

';. !
 ,
. ;
RESUME

. We are, about dose our diseussion onj the' 'External'

te
andi lnternal'phenomenao:f tihe AbltidliarrrlrJikosl1,ffJf Vasuban-
dhu;' that of Feeli'l'Igc (Vedana), Perception ~:Samjna), Con-
sci,ousness (Vijnana) ana; Impression '(..salrrnka,ra~, We have
tried to examine them elsewhere, in,sofar as it,ispermissible,
from the standpoint of~odern psychology.* It should be •
pointed out once more that the study of Ahltidharmakosais
by no means complete, ,and our examinat,ion of certain
other aspects of that great work is to follow. 'For"the Kosa
isa basic and complete exposition of the philosophy of
Buddhism. It is, therefore, concerned not only with the
above four 'Internal' phenomena, Vedai:Ja, Samjiia,
Vijiiana, and Sarpaskara, called Skandhas (composition);
but also with a ~fifth phenomena as well called Rnpa
(Matter) Skandha; which is, in fact, the Hexternal" pheno-
mena. For, Buddhist philosophy is concerned with all
the five, the Panca skandhas, and, according to it, as we
should recall" the Skandhas are not mere elements or com- '
ponents, but each of them is a composition or formation
made up of the unit elements. The entire world is thus made
up of these compositions, classed, for our convenience, into
the "internal'" and "external''', or,. as the ) compositions of
Nama (name) and Riipa (form) respectively. As student of
psy~hology we have pursued so far the study of the 'internal'
phenomena (Name); but the Riipa Skandha also, as is found
in the Kosa deals with the four categories of matter, life,
mind and individual as Riipa, Jlvita, Manas-andPudgala
respec~ively. These categories are discussed in relation to
their origin <jati), duration (Sthiti), decay (Jara) and imper·
•• Some Psychological Aspects of Early Buddhism-Published
by Asiatic Society (in press).
 INTROBUCTI'ON

,malie-nce {Al'lityata). In general, these aTe, rherefore,

,:veiwed by Buddhism as dynamic and e:voluticmal. "Eadi
of these categories is held, to he a composite pattern 'Of
~ar~ous psycho-physical potential units as.'Dhannaot
R.eai~a technical term which ,has to ,be ,carefully 'appre~
hended by an students of the Kosa.Each of these cat'cgo\.
ries again is a relative composition of the past; present and
.futur-e possibilities. So ,the Kosa presents each category
in ;its"dementa'ry'phase'as a' compo'sition of Dharma; in its
;complexityasa Skandha; in its ethiccll nature' as~'rya­
'pudgala or Prthag-jana; and in its momentary existence
as a ,'synthesis,af the past, present and future (Adhvaf:
There is i'D the background always the assurance that the
temporary andphenoinenal relatio:ncan be subjected' to
the "'Cessation of Becoming" {NirvaI).a) ,'wMch is'in"''faCt
the ,etJaicospiritual goal of all Buddhist' specldation; -l(i$
patent, therefore, that the analysis in detailsandex:haus1.
dve description of the basic doctrines of the Kosaf~nbeyond
the scope of our present study, though the Kosci 'tiHh~ld~
the body of doctrines as a whole to lead to Nirva:Q:a. Rtipa
(:Matte.r), then, is apatternexternaUy related to· 'citta
(Mind). It impJiesphysical existence, and atthe';same
time, it is an object (Alambana) of Mind.; So,Rnpafls
significant as a subject or study both to the students of
physics and psychology. More so, as we feel, that the diffe-
rentiation of sciences had not yet taken place, and Buddhist
philosophy did try to support its doctrines with the know-
ledge of contemporary chemistry and medicine. In fact,
Buddhist philosophy, or, for the matter, Hindu philosophy,
in spite of their limitations and common bias for spiritual
perfection, views man as a whole, that is, as the centre of
all biological, psychological, social and spiritual problems;
and not in isolation, as the subject matter of scientific
investigation from distinct and exclusive view points of
particular sciences, biology, psychology, etc. would do today.
 INTRODUC nON

. Difficulties are; therefore, inherent in all such investi:"

gati~n ,that may be attempted by modern students o.f
·biology, psychology, physics, etc. in the examination of the
Indian philosophies. In the case of Buddhishphilosophy;,!
. these are further . multiplied "because of otherpifficulties
.we have . m~ntionedbeforeL viz., Byddhist texts, are rare;
their methodo]ogy,,,even
. ,
their'divisioQ. and classification, ar;e
.

different; the Buddhist traditionin India was:lost; ap.dit

h~s beens(;mght to be recovered now from new, discove.ries
pf old texts and by 'critically' re~collecting.andreassessiog .
the Hindu criticism (as found in Nyaya~ Vedanta, etc .)of
the Buddhist concepts of 'no-soui', 'momentariness' etc.
A studert of psychology Inust admit further that itjs diffi'-
cult to grasp the full meaning of the Buddhist technical
terms even wh~n ,'the te){tual meaning is settled. . Hasty
generalisation and schematic explanations. area frequent
temptation whichll)ust be resisted by s1,lch~ student. But
the depth and quality of Buddhist introspective, analysis,
its insight and ingenuity, subtlety and thoroughness, make
him feel that these masters had made as near an approach
to certain concepets of modern psychology as their conditions
and purposes in those days would allow. Our approac~
sh<?uld ,be both responsible and respectful. .'