Theory of Self in the Early Discourses of the Buddha, Research Paper Example

Introduction

Buddhism is a religion with a huge following because of its teachings. A central doctrine in Buddhism is the minimization of suffering for everyone. Buddha attempted to achieve this through his theory of ‘non-self,’ as well as the ‘setting the Dharma Wheel in motion.’ Therefore, for contextualization purposes, it calls for the interpretations of Buddha’s teaching by Shantideva to provide a good reference point to understand their applicability.

Primary Source

The two early discourses by Buddha are central doctrines in his teachings. They represent the first two instances in which Buddha shares his knowledge after gaining enlightenment. To begin with, the setting of the Dharma Wheel in motion is the first teaching of Buddha that has its main focus on the four noble truths that are central to Buddhism (Cummiskey, 2020). The four noble truths concentrate on suffering, and the main point is on the alleviation of the experience of suffering. First, Buddha states the inevitability of suffering, and he says that all people must get sick and die sometimes. According to Buddha, the main cause of suffering is clinging to anything. Because of the temporary nature of things, it is inevitable to experience suffering as long as one is attached to anything. Therefore, to avoid suffering, one is supposed to let go or detach from everything that is temporary (Cummiskey, 2020). Such a revelation leads to fulfillment as there is nothing else to find out. Buddha describes the state of nirvana that is achieved when one gets to understand and live the four noble truths. It is a state where no suffering can be experienced because there is no cause for it in terms of attachments. In this discourse, Buddha is making an attempt at making his followers understand suffering and work towards alleviating it.

In his second teaching, Buddha focuses on the characteristics of the non-self. The discourse of non-self strives to demystify the existence of a self in most of the things that people commonly regard as self. He further says that the five Khandas, which are physical form, conscience, conditioned violations, perceptions, and feeling, are not to be mistaken to be part of the self (Donegan, 2020). The word Khandha is usually interpreted to mean aggregates. An illustration, the physical form, whether it was in the past, present, or future, gross or refined, far or near, has to be observed with the right interpretation. Which is, ‘it is not ours’ and ‘we are not its.’ This leaves the self to be independent of the body. It is a common eastern philosophy that the self can only be experienced by detachment from everything that the ego demands, which is the main message in the second discourse of Buddha.

Whatever happens to bodies does not matter since it is not a part of the self. It is Buddha’s aim that people who do this will not get attached to their bodies (Donegan, 2020). They will not view suffering as being an injustice or be affected by what is happening in the world. Such an entity can live without taking sufferings in the world seriously and will be happy. This is the main aim of Buddha, to alleviate suffering and teach people to be happy. In the same way that was done for physical form, the same principles need to be applied to the remaining four aggregates of conscience, feelings, perceptions, and conditioned violations. The discourse states that viewing the five aggregates in this way will lead to the release from all manner of suffering.

Secondary Source

Shantideva was a Buddhist philosopher in the 8^th century. He largely advocated for anti-essentialism while attempting to interpret the discourses of Buddha. According to him, the first two discourses advance the concept of anti-essentialism (“Into Hist of Asian Philosophy”). The concept of anti-essentialism stipulates that nothing at all has an essence and posits that everything is worthless. First of all, in the first discourse, suffering can only be avoided by avoiding any attachments, which supports the concept of anti-essentialism (“Into Hist of Asian Philosophy”). According to the second discourse, the self is non-existent in all the things that people can hold onto. Therefore, non-essentialism receives support by the fact that according to the second teaching, all aspects that people consider self is of no essence.

Shantideva improves his position by stating that the negation of the existence of all other things around people should be followed by the negation of themselves. In this way, the five aggregates will be broken down into parts that do not possess any self-identity (“Into Hist of Asian Philosophy”). This will lead to infinite regress where something is broken down into smaller and smaller parts but without an end. It is known as infinite regress. Shantideva argues that the importance of explaining the natural phenomena around people in such a way is that it does not provide a finish line. This is because the attainment of the foundation of all things in nature will lead to emptiness (“Into Hist of Asian Philosophy”). Everything has been discovered; hence, there is nothing left to do.

Significance

Shantideva’s reasoning stems out of the need to contradict teachings in society with the aim of getting followers who oppose them. He commonly used this technique to advance the Madhyamaka. He expounds on the teachings of Buddha by offering a more complex solution to the problem (Santiago & Managlia, 2020). This is retrograde, in a way, as problems need to be made simpler if they are to be adopted by society at large. Such efforts may draw the attention of some people but are not effective in the cultivation of a suitable culture. Shantideva is free to counter the teachings of Buddha, but he needs to offer a more reasoned judgment that is his.

Objection

Shantideva’s proposition of anti-essentialism of nature and things found within it leads to the emphasis of people on themselves. Since they are detached from all things in nature, they will naturally tend to focus on themselves, leading to individualism. The five aggregates of conscience, physical form, feelings, perceptions, and conditioned violations will hold greater weight on these individualistic people. They will be more aware of the suffering happening to them and the people around them. Attempts of preserving themselves will be made, such as protecting their bodies from harm even at the expense of others. This will not lead to loss of suffering. Buddha’s discourse offers a more directed approach by focusing on people and emphasizing that they get rid of all five aggregates altogether. This leads to happiness.

Response Shantideva does not offer a view into the ethics of his non-essentialism. This is done by Buddha. By addressing the five aggregates, Buddha brings to light the existence of opposing forces within a person. For example, there is greed, theft, and murder that lead to one committing the crime (Coseru, 2020). They are rebuked, and they will lead to the suffering of others. Instead, there is an emphasis on generosity and preservation. This causes a change in people. However, Shantideva negates the existence of these vices in society; hence, it will not matter if any wrong is committed.

Conclusion

The eradication of human suffering leads to a state of well-being. This is the central tenant in the teachings by Buddha. The discourse on the theory of non-self and setting the Dharma Wheel in motion are examples. Regardless of Shantideva’s school of thought, it is clear that using the said doctrines helps to avoid suffering.

References

Coseru, C. (2020). Reasons and conscious persons. https://philpapers.org/rec/COSRAC

Cummiskey, D. (2020). ego?less agency: dharma?responsiveness without Kantian autonomy: A defense of Buddhism, meditation, and free will. A Theory of Zygon®, 55(2), 497-518 https://doi.org/10.1111/zygo.12601

Donegan, P. (2020). Was the Buddha a reductionist about the self? Philosophical Readings, 12(3) https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/327096968.pdf

PHIL2700R [14411] Into Hist of Asian Philosophy (LEC) Winter 2021

Santiago, Y., & Managlia, D. (2020). Aid organizations and the bodhisattva ideal. Social issues in San Francisco: Perspectives from Global Buddhisms, 25. https://repository.usfca.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1003&context=thrs#page=26