Early Buddhist Metaphysics: The Making of a Philosophical Tradition

296 Pages·2004·1.97 MB·English

by  Noa Ronkin

EARLY BUDDHIST METAPHYSICS
This book provides a philosophical account of the major doctrinal shift in the
history of early Theravada tradition in India: the transition from the earliest stratum
of Buddhist thought to the systematic and allegedly scholastic philosophy of the
Pali Abhidhamma movement. Conceptual investigation into the development of
Buddhist ideas is pursued, thus rendering the Buddha’s philosophical position
more explicit and showing how and why his successors changed it. Entwining
comparative philosophy and Buddhology, the author probes the Abhidhamma’s
shift from an epistemologically oriented conceptual scheme to a metaphysical
worldview that is based on the concept of dhamma. She does so in terms of the
Aristotelian tradition and vis-à-vis modern philosophy, exploiting Western philo-
sophical literature from Plato to contemporary texts in the fields of philosophy of
mind and cultural criticism. This book not only demonstrates that a philosophical
inquiry into the conceptual foundations of early Buddhism can enhance our
understanding of what philosophy and religion are qua thought and religion; it
also shows the value of fresh perspectives for traditional Buddhology.
Combining philosophically rigorous investigation and Buddhological research
criteria, Early Buddhist Metaphysics fills a significant gap in Buddhist scholar-
ship’s treatment of the conceptual development of the Abhidhamma.
Noa Ronkin received her PhD from the University of Oxford. She is currently
alecturer in the Introduction to the Humanities Programme and a Research Fellow
at the Center for Buddhist Studies, Stanford University. Her research interests
include a range of issues associated with Indian Theravada Buddhist philosophy
and psychology, the Abhidhamma tradition and comparative Indian philosophy.
ROUTLEDGECURZON CRITICAL STUDIES
IN BUDDHISM
General Editors:
Charles S. Prebish and Damien Keown
RoutledgeCurzon Critical Studies in Buddhismis a comprehensive study of the Buddhist
tradition. The series explores this complex and extensive tradition from a variety of per-
spectives, using a range of different methodologies.
The series is diverse in its focus, including historical studies, textual translations and
commentaries, sociological investigations, bibliographic studies, and considerations of reli-
gious practice as an expression of Buddhism’s integral religiosity. It also presents materials
on modern intellectual historical studies, includingthe role of Buddhist thought and schol-
arship in a contemporary, critical context and in the light of current social issues. The series
is expansive and imaginative in scope, spanning more than two and a half millennia of
Buddhist history. It is receptive to all research works that inform and advance our knowl-
edge and understanding of the Buddhist tradition.
A SURVEY OF VINAYA LITERATURE IMAGING WISDOM
Charles S. Prebish Jacob N. Kinnard
THE REFLEXIVE NATURE OF PAIN AND ITS ENDING
AWARENESS Carol S. Anderson
Paul Williams
EMPTINESS APPRAISED
ALTRUISM AND REALITY David F. Burton
Paul Williams
THE SOUND OF LIBERATING
BUDDHISM AND HUMAN RIGHTS TRUTH
Edited by Damien Keown, Edited by Sallie B. King
Charles Prebish, Wayne Husted and Paul O. Ingram
WOMEN IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THE BUDDHIST THEOLOGY
BUDDHA Edited by Roger R. Jackson
Kathryn R. Blackstone and John J. Makransky
THE RESONANCE OF EMPTINESS THE GLORIOUS DEEDS OF PURNA
Gay Watson Joel Tatelman
AMERICAN BUDDHISM EARLY BUDDHISM – A NEW
Edited by Duncan Ryuken Williams and APPROACH
Christopher Queen Sue Hamilton
CONTEMPORARY BUDDHIST ETHICS ZEN WAR STORIES
Edited by Damien Keown Brian Victoria
INNOVATIVE BUDDHIST WOMEN
THE BUDDHIST UNCONSCIOUS
Edited by Karma Lekshe Tsomo
William S. Waldron
TEACHING BUDDHISM IN THE WEST
INDIAN BUDDHIST THEORIES OF
Edited by V.S. Hori, R.P. Hayes
PERSONS
and J.M. Shields
James Duerlinger
EMPTY VISION
David L. McMahan ACTION DHARMA
Edited by Christopher Queen,
SELF, REALITY AND REASON IN Charles Prebish and Damien Keown
TIBETAN PHILOSOPHY
Thupten Jinpa TIBETAN AND ZEN BUDDHISM IN
BRITAIN
IN DEFENSE OF DHARMA David N. Kay
Tessa J. Bartholomeusz
THE CONCEPT OF THE BUDDHA
BUDDHIST PHENOMENOLOGY
Guang Xing
Dan Lusthaus
THE PHILOSOPHY OF DESIRE
RELIGIOUS MOTIVATION AND THE
IN THE BUDDHIST PALI CANON
ORIGINS OF BUDDHISM
David Webster
Torkel Brekke
DEVELOPMENTS IN AUSTRALIAN THE NOTION OF DITTHIIN
BUDDHISM THERAVADA BUDDHISM
Michelle Spuler Paul Fuller
The following titles are published in association with the Oxford Centre for Buddhist
Studies
TheOxford Centre for Buddhist Studiesconducts and promotes rigorous teaching and
research into all forms of the Buddhist tradition.
EARLY BUDDHIST METAPHYSICS
Noa Ronkin
EARLY BUDDHIST
METAPHYSICS
The making of a philosophical tradition
Noa Ronkin
First published 2005
by RoutledgeCurzon
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon,
Oxon OX14 4RN
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by RoutledgeCurzon
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This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005.
“To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s
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RoutledgeCurzon is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group
© 2005 Noa Ronkin
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter
invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any
information storage or retrieval system, without permission in
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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available
from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
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ISBN0-203-53706-8 Master e-book ISBN
ISBN 0–415–34519–7(Print Edition)
CONTENTS
Acknowledgements ix
Abbreviations xi
Introduction:situating Theravadin doctrinal
thought – towards a comparative Buddhist
philosophy 1
Buddhist thought in the philosophical arena 1
Scholasticism and the Abhidhamma from the
perspective of the comparative philosophy
of religion 7
Method and scope 9
The doctrinal transition from the Buddha’s teaching
to the Abhidhamma: preliminary remarks 14
An outline of the chapters 15
1 The further teaching:Abhidhamma thought in context 19
1.1 The origin of the ancient Buddhist schools and the
advent of the Abhidhamma 19
1.2 Abhidhammaliterary style and genre 26
2 What the Buddha taught and Abhidhamma thought:
from Dhammatodhammas 34
2.1 The development of the dhammatheory 34
2.2 On dhammas, atoms, substances and the doctrine of
momentariness 50
2.3 Buddhist thought in the mirror of process
metaphysics 66
vii
CONTENTS
3 The development of the concept of sabhavaand
Buddhist doctrinal thought 86
3.1 The concept of sabhavain the para-canonical texts 87
3.2 Buddhist doctrinal thought in the Atthakatha 108
4 Individuals:revisiting the Abhidhamma dhammatheory 132
4.1 The problem of individuation 133
4.2 The intension of individuality 137
4.3 The canonical dhammaanalysis as a categorial
theory of individuals 154
4.4 The principle of individuality 167
5 Causation as the handmaid of metaphysics:from the
paticcasamuppadato the Patthana 193
5.1 Dependent co-arising and the early Buddhist notion
of causation: a reassessment 194
5.2 The Abhidhamma theory of causal conditioning 210
Concluding reflections 244
Bibliography 254
Index 269
viii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This book is a revised version of my doctoral dissertation, ‘A Metaphysics of
Experience: from the Buddha’s Teaching to the Abhidhamma’that was submitted
to the Faculty of Oriental Studies at the University of Oxford in spring 2003. I
would like to take this opportunity to thank those who have helped me bring the
dissertation to fruition and complete its preparation for publication. My foremost
gratitude and respect are extended to Richard Gombrich, who supervised my
D.Phil. and has been an invaluable source of insight and encouragement. He has
cultivated my interest in the study of Buddhism, while nurturing my enthusiasm
for philosophy in general and comparative philosophy in particular. I am privi-
leged to have been guided by him. I am also grateful to Lance Cousins, who elab-
orated on the Abhidhamma intricacies, made shrewd observations and invaluable
suggestions, and offered useful references. To Paul Williams and Jonardon
Ganeri, the examiners of the original thesis, I am indebted for their instructive
advice and comments. Thanks are also due to Sue Hamilton, Natalia Isayeva,
Ornan Rotem and Helen Steward for their formative remarks on sections of the
thesis. Whatever omissions or errors that remain in this work are entirely my own.
The University of Oxford and Wolfson College provided an unparalleled intel-
lectual and cultural environment for studying Pali Buddhism. The University’s
generous Graduate Studentship provided the primary financial support for my
research. Additional financial assistance was extended by grants of the Overseas
Research Students Awards Scheme and of the Spalding Trust.
The book was prepared for publication after I had become affiliated as a Visiting
Research Fellow at the Stanford Center for Buddhist Studies. I am grateful to the
people at the Center for making the completion of this work possible, and would like
to express my gratitude especially to Carl Bielefeldt for his kindness and support.
Special thanks are due to Shlomo Biderman, my teacher and kalyaja-mitta,
who has given me the benefit of his sensitive understanding of philosophy, both
Indian and Western, and who first opened my eyes to many timeless questions and
sparked my enthusiasm for comparative Indian philosophy.
My mother, who always supports me with understanding and selflessness, has
my love and deepest gratitude.
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