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Buddhist Sunya & Vedantic Self

Chinmaya International Foundation > Buddhist Sunya & Vedantic Self
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    • April 11, 2024 at 7:20 pm #623819
      Mohit Mishra
      Participant

      Hari Om. Sri Gurubhyo Namah.

      In lesson 16, we are provided an interesting and vital note of caution that while negating the five sheaths as the not-Self, the nature of the Self as Sat-Chit-Ananda must be asserted, else it can lead to a conclusion that Self is absence of everything = Sunya / voidness. The Sunya-vada school of Buddhism asserts voidness. Please forgive my limited knowledge and understanding – the Buddhists too speak of Awareness as being our real nature.

      Please forgive my limited understanding and potentially sounding silly. It appears to me in one way or another both Buddhist principle of Sunya and Vedantic principle of the Self point to the same principle in one way or another, but different expressions. A glass full of water can be said to be devoid of air. A glass devoid of water can be said to be full of air. Would this be a correct understanding? If not, I humbly request your clarification on this aspect.

      In continuation, we learn from the lesson that vijyanamaya-kosa is the locus cidabhasa. Negation points to our real nature different from this kosa by shifting our attention away from cidabhasa. The Sunya school of thought would probably stop here (?) having negated every aspect and conclude there is only voidness while Vedanta would take a step ahead and state there is an all-pervading entity (Self). Is my understanding right? If not, I again request for clarification.

    • April 11, 2024 at 7:23 pm #623978
      Anant Sarma
      Participant

      Hari Om!

      Your conclusion in the last paragraph is correct. A little bit more of an explanation would help. The cidabhasa is the reflection of consciousness in the mind. When through logic as the Buddhist Sunya vada does or Vedantins through the scriptures corroborated by logic, negate all that to be mithya, the next deduction is whether the two systems of philosophy diverge. The Buddists say that having negated everything, there is nothing. The Vedantin says, the reflection is negated, but the original is still there. That original Consciousness is the all-pervading Reality that can never be negated.

      Your example of glass of water or glass of air just muddies up the understanding. I am not able to see where you are going with the example.

    • April 11, 2024 at 7:23 pm #623979
      Mohit Mishra
      Participant

      Hari Om. Thank you very much for the explanation, this is very helpful in clearing up my doubt.

      Re: example of glass with water / air, please allow me to explain further. Both water and air are transparent. Consider water as Self. A glass full of water (Self) = empty of air (Sunya). Or a glass empty of water (Sunya) = full of air (Purnam = Self). What is Sunya in one, is Purnam in another, and vice versa. Looking from outside, the glass appears to be empty because of the transparency of the content (air / water). So the Buddhists would assert voidness (empty of air / water = Sunya). And the Vedantins would assert to look deeper (full of air / water = Purnam).

    • April 11, 2024 at 7:23 pm #623981
      Anant Sarma
      Participant

      Hari Om!

      The way you have elaborated the example is what the sunya vadins think. That is applicable in the example because, the glass, water, air are all in the same of reality. That example cannot be extended to Consciousness, because, the world, mind, reflected consciousness are all of the lower order of reality whereas the original pure Consciousness is of the higher order, it is Absolutely Real! That is why even when everything is negated as mithya, Consciousness is satyam!

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