Nirvana and Metaphysical Experience

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THE JOURNAL OF THEINTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF

BUDDHIST STUDIES

E D I T O R - I N - C H I E F

A. K. Narain

University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA

E D I T O R S

HeinzBechert Leon Hurvitz

Universitat Gottingen FRG University of British Columbia

Vancouver, Canada

Lewis Lancaster A . W.MacDonald

University of California, Berkeley, USA Universiti de Paris X, Nanterre, France

B. J. Stavisky Alex Wayman

WCNILKR,Moscow, USSR Columbia University, New York, USA

A S S O C I AT E E D I TO R

Stephen Beyer

University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA

Volume 2 1979 Number 1


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TA BL E O F C O N T E N T S

I . A RT I C L E S

1. The Mongol Khans and Chinese Buddhism and Taoism,bySechin Jagchid

2. From Madhyamika to Yogacara, an Analysis of MMK,XX IV. 18 an d MV, 1.1-2, by Gadjin m. Nagao

3 . Dynamic Liberat ion in Yogacara Buddhism, by AlanSponberg

4 . Yogacara and the Buddhis t Logicians ,by A lex Wayman

I I . S H O RT PA P E R S

1. Sambodhi in ASoka's 8th Rock Edict,by A . L. Basham2 . Can Medi ta t ional Pract ice be Measured? A Report on a

Quant i ta t ive Survey, by Jacques Maquet3 . Nirvana and Metaphysical Exper ience,by Ismael Quiles

I I I . B O O K R E V IE W S A N D N O T I C E S

Reviews:

1 . Wor ld Conquero r and Wor ld Renounce r, by S.J. Tambiah

2 . Compara t ive Eth ics in Hindu and Buddhis t Trad i t ions ,byRoderick Hindery.

3 . Mahayana Buddhis t Medi ta t ion : Theory and Prac t ice ,byMinoru Kiyota, assisted by Elvin W. Jones

4. C h a n d i B o r o b u d u r : A M o n u m e n t o f M a n k i n d , by Dr.Soekmono

Obituary:

1. Paul Demieville, by A lexander W. Macdonald

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Nirvana and Metaphysical Experience

by Ismael Quiles, SJ.

In my study Buddhist Philosophy I arrived at the conclusion thatthe complex phenomenon of Nirvana, as described by Buddhist interpreters, is fundamentally a metaphysical experience.Of course, it is something more than a metaphysical phenomenon, but no doubt, this is the basic, and the most commonbasis of all descriptions and analyses of Nirvana amongst Buddhist mystics and philosophers.

In this paper, I am trying further to develop my analysis of

Nirvana as metaphysical experience, pointing out some of thefundamental aspects of such an interpretation.

I

What is metaphysical experience?First of all, let me explain briefly what I mean by "metaphys

ical experience." This is a relatively new denomination in western philosophical terminology. Although the reality is easy tofind in many cases in the history of western philosophy, theterminology has been used only recently as a common expression accepted by many philosophers. The main difficulty wasthe idea of traditional scholastic philosophers, as well as thosewho worked within the frame of rationalism in modern times,who rather considered the level of metaphysics as the result ofa process of abstraction, and therefore could not think in theterms of metaphysical experience.

Nevertheless, in our century, many European philosophers

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tried to surpass the rational method and to approach the ultimate reality of things by means of experience; therefore they

attempted the method of analysis of our human experiencesas the best way for our first meeting with realityitself. In thissense, we can quote many contemporary philosophers, fromBergson up to the existentialists of the last decades, and,among scholastic philosophers, Maritain, Cornelio Fabro, E.Gilson and others. Now, the terminology "metaphysical experience" is comm only accepted.

According to the meaning of the expression generally recognized, we notice the following elements.

1) Metaphysical. This means the expression is related to theultimate reality of things, which is beyond our phenomenal orsensory know ledge. W hen we say "metaphysical" we are talkingabout the last reality, the true profound reality of things.Therefore, we are looking also to the "ultimate Truth," theultimate and most profound "Being"o{ this phenomenal

world. So it is called simply "Being" or "pure Being."2) Experience.

a) First, by experience we mean always some kind ofknowledge, which makes us aware of something.

b) Second, this knowledge by experience is different fromthat by abstraction or reasoning. The former requires the object to be present to the knower. No experience can be possiblewithout the presence of its object. Experience means an immediate or direct knowledge of its object.

c) Third, this knowledge by experience needs to be felt.It is not conceptual, theoretical or rational, but simply felt bythe knower. The being of the knower is immediately and, soto say, existentially affected by the object, bo th becoming a kindof unity, as the former is in its being itself pervaded by theobject.

For a better understanding of what the expression "Metaphysical Experience" means in current discourse to westernphilosophers, it will be useful to add some quotations.

In the Xth International Congress of Philosophy (Bruxelles20-26 , August 1953) one of the central themes was Experienceand Metaphysics. Twenty-four papers were presented on thissubject. Let us see how some of them understand the fact of

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a metaphysica l exper ience as the h ighes t level of human expe r i ence .

A. de Conink, in h is paper "Exper ience and Metaphysics"says: "Ains i done no t re exper ience compor te un aspec t auque lnous ne nous in te ressons n i dans no t re conna i s sance journa-l iere ni dans nos t ravaux scient i f iques, e t qui pourtant l 'englobetotalement et sans lequel elle est impossible, savoir l 'aspectetre.Or, e 'es t la l 'objet propre de la metaphysique"(Proceedings Vol.IV, Lo uv ain 19 53 , p. 14).

M ore explici tly, D. G. L on dh ey po ints ou t the conn ect ion of

h u m an ex pe r ien ce and M etaphysics : "Man is a Metaphysica lan im al . Metaph ysics is co nc ern ed with the search af ter firs t andul t imate pr inc ip les . Man cannot reach the u l t imate pr inc ip le bythe way of the world, as i t is the business of science to discoverthe pr inciple of the world. To reach the ul t imate Real i ty manmust analyze h is own exper ience and d iscover the u l t imategr ou nd a nd p r inc ip le un der ly ing his expe r ience . "{Anatomy ofexperience, Ibid., p. 90.)

Wilhelm Weischedel makes an i l luminat ing analysis in hispaper "Wesen und Aufgabe de r Metaphys i schen Er fahrung"(Essence and Funct ion of Metaphysica l Exper ience) . He carefully distinguishes three levels of experience: 1)Common Experience, th rough which we know the Be ings (Er fahrung vonSeiendem) of the external wor ld , o ther men, and a lso ourselves; 2) Religious Experience,which is the enc ou nte r with G od ;

3) Metaphysical Experience,which is a hig he r ex pe rien ce of B eingor things, because i t is the encounter with the last reali ty whichis the foundat ion of al l beings(Ibid., p. 121-122).

I t seems tha t Western Phi losophers are approaching in th isway the concept ion of Buddhis t Nirvana .

II

Nirvana ExperienceIf we now co ns ide r N irv an a, we will f ind th e very same ele

m en ts we descr ibe d w hen analyzing metaphysica l ex per ien ce .We d o no t say that with the se elem ents we take acc ou nt of thew hole reali ty of N irv an a, b ut ce rtainly we find th at this is a kindof metaphys ica l exper ience .

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First , evidently Nirvana deals with the Ultimate Reality ofthings, that is the t rue Being of things. The Buddhist goal isto reach the Ult imate Truth, the Ult imate Real i ty, which is therea l Being which under l ies a l l changing phenomena, a l ldifferences and all multiplicity of things which we see in this material world. This is indeed a metaphysical target , as we haveseen befo re . All B ud dh is t teache rs , s tar t ing f rom th e B ud dh a,talk about the Ult imate Truth, the Ult imate Real i ty of al lthings, as the goal of Nirvana. What this Reality consists of is afurther question, but certainly to reach theUltimate R eality of hu

man exis tence was c lear ly preached as Nirvana , meaning l ibe ra t ion f rom th e bu rd en o f h um an suffe r ing .We may observe this in the earl ier Buddhist teachings, in the

class ic masters and in contemporary scholars . That Nirvana i sa "special knowledge," which can be also called intuition, wisd o m , prajnd o r jndna, belongs to the f i rs t teachings of Buddhain his First Sermon: "It is insight, which leads to wisdom, whichconduces to ca lm, to knowledge, to thesambodh, to Nirvana."1

Do ubt less , the m on k G au tam a is teaching h is person alexperience, and therefore asks his first disciples to call him" B u d d h a . "

This personal exper ience of Gautama was the most sacredt radi t ion in ear ly Buddhism. Al though Asvaghosa ' sBuddha-car-ita is a poem with much poet ical imaginat ion, i t reveals the essence o f the exper ience o f Buddha under the Bodhi - t ree .

Gautama longs for the t ruth of this human l i fe . Firs t helearns the s tages of "contempla t ion" f rom the Sage Arada2 . H esees that they do not give him the true knowledge of Reality.

Then "seeking to know the t rue d is t inc t ion ," which meansthe h igher knowledge , "he went to the he rmi tage o f Udraka ,but he gained no clear understanding f rom his t rea tm en t of thesoul ."3 He always looks for t ranscendent knowledge, "c lear unde rs ta n di ng ," w hich rea che s th e essence of reali ty. T hi s is ametaphys ica l knowledge .

A fter failing in his goal, G au ta m a is jo in ed by five m en dican ts in his asceticism, an d de cide s to find by his ow n effort th etruth by means of a profound meditat ion ( that is to say, " int rospect ion ," " in tu i t ion ,"prajna, jndna, all of which are a kindof knowledge, which European phi losophers would ca l lmetaphysical).

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ASvaghosa goes on in chapters XII and XIII using expressions which al l mean metaphysical experience: "higher wisd o m " ;4 " in h is longing to become a Buddha" or i l luminated;5

"h igher wisdom";6

"perfec t knowledge" ;7

"he was on the poin to f a t t end ing pe r fec t knowledge" ;8 Kala, the Naga king, says toGau tama , "Thou sha l t ce r t a in ly today become a Buddha" ;9

G au ta m a is called "a lam p of know ledge ";1 0 the tree is called" the t ree of Knowledge" (Bodhi- t ree)1 1 etc.

T h e B o o k X I V1 2 con tains th e descr ip t ion of Nirvan a. I t is aclear account of a special act of knowledge, which is attainedby "th e gre at m aste r of m ed itat io n . . . long ing to know th e sup r e m e e n d . "1 3 It is an in tui t ion of the totality of reali ty: " T h e nby that divine perfect ly pure s ight , he beheld the whole worldas in a spotless mirror."1 4 And when finally "the all-knowingBodhisa t tva"1 5 discovered the four sacred t ruths , "he knew al las it really was."16 The poet comple tes the process wi th thesewords: "Thus he, the holy one, seated there on his seat of grassat the root of the t ree, pondering by his own effor ts , a t ta ined

at las t perfect knowledge."1 7

The same Bodhisa t tva dec laressolemnly: "I have here at ta ined perfect wisdom."18

Let us consider some of the classical doctr ines , for instance,the concept ion of alaya-vijndna of Asahga. Ultimate reali ty ispure mind o r pure consc iousness(visuddhavijndna) and to real ize i t is the Buddhist goal . "The own nature(svabhdva) of theknowledge- recep tac le (alaya-vijndna) is a knowledge which isthe sum of all seeds (sarrabijaka). All existences in the tr iple

world and all destinies(gad) are the resul t of this knowledge."1 9

In this manner the intui t ion of this ul t imate Real i ty(visuddhavijndna) gives the perfect knowledge or Nirvana andthe description of attaining i t reveals that i t is the kind we havecal led "metaphys ica l exper ience ."

Now can we resort to a modern western scholar, whose s tudyon N irvan a is based o n a pr of o un d kno w ledg e of c lassic textsand h is tory of Buddhism. Th. Scherbatsky, inThe conception ofBuddhist Nirvana gave us the fol lowing descr ipt ion:

"T h e B ud dh ist S aint is su pp os ed , in a m om en t of myst ic illuminat ion , suddenly to perce ive the whole cons t ruc t ion , wi thits gross and mystic worlds, as vividly as if it were a direct sensepe rc ep tio n. A s a psycho logical pro cess it is equally tau gh t inH inay ana a nd in M ahay ana , but its con tent , the p ic ture which

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reveals itself at this moment, is quite different in both systems.It corresponds to their theoretical parts, to the system of pluralism which is taught in Hinayana, and to the monist view

which is the central conception of Mahayana, as will be seenlater on."20

It is easy to find in this analysis of Nirvana all elements belonging to what we described as "metaphysical experience,""mystic intuition," "mystic illumination," "to perceive the wholeconstruction . . . as vividly as if it were a direct sense perception." We can apply to metaphysical experience what Scher-batsky says of Nirvana as "the path of illumination"(drsti-mdrga), which for Scherbatsky is "sudden and momentary."

Daizets T. Suzuki has been one of the most outstanding Buddhist scholars in the last decades. He has studied Buddhist ZenSatori from different points of view: historical, religious, psychological, psycholanytical, philosophical. Of course, his approach to Nirvana is many-sided and sometimes paradoxical.But certainly he emphasizes much more the onto-psychologicalreality of Nirvana and in my opinion his description or interpretation is very near or practically the same as that which Idescribe as metaphysical experience, that is to say, is a specialknowledge (illumination), immediate (non-conceptual), ofBeing (Ultimate Reality or Truth). According to him, Nirvanais no more than a state of consciousness (knowledge), by whichin fact we transcend relativity, that is, the world of birth anddeath (Being).21 And to emphasize the philosophical and me

taphysical aspect of Nirvana, Suzuki furnishes this description,which completely fits what I call "metaphysical experience":"Satori is no doubt incommunicable, but it is not any sort oftransport. If it is, it will be a mere psychological phenomenonand cannot have any dee pe r im port. But it really is what standsat the basis of every philosophical system. It thus has a metaphysical connotation."22 These last statements synthesize theessence of Satori as a metaphysical experience.

La Vallee Poussin, in hisNirvana, clearly reduces it to a "correct act of attention," that is "enlightenment," which will cutout the roots of desire.2 i It seems to fit Suzuki's description.

But let us quote another expressive passage from Suzuki,which shows once more that Nirvana is a special profound actof "living knowledge": "Satori is generally translated as 'en-

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lightenment,' but 'awakening' may be a better term. . . . But aslong as Satori explores and reveals the deepest and darkest re-cesses of consciousness which have hitherto escaped our ordinary inspections or introspections, it is enlightenment." 24

And finally let us give the interpretation of Satori which Su-zuki attributes to the Sixth Patriarch: "This state of mind isechoed by Eno, the Sixth Patriarch, when he tells us to realize'no-mind,' 'no-form,' 'no-abiding,' and further advises us 'tokeep Tao' (i.e. prajna) ever flowing with no obstructions." 25

We understand prajfid as Suzuki here uses it to mean notthe simple act of knowledge (jndna) but a "special act of knowledge" much more profound, rich and steady, which attains thebottom of Reality itself. A kind of vital-intuition-introspectionof our profound reality and in it the pure Being; that is whatI call, with other Western philosophers, a metaphysical experience.

Notes

1. Mahavagga, S.B.E. XIII , I, 6 17-18 y Dhamma-cakkappavattana S.B.E.XI, n. 4.

2. ASvaghosa,Buddha-carita XII, 1-81. Translated by E. B. Cowell, S.B.E.,Buddhist Mahdydna Texts, vol. 49.

3. Ibid., XII, 82.4. Ibid., XII, 59.

5. Ibid., XII, 97.6. Ibid., XII, 102.7. Ibid., XII, 102.8. Ibid., XII, 113.9. Ibid., XII, 115.10. Ibid., XIII , 63.11. Ibid., XIII , 65.12. As is well known, the last four chaptersof the Sanscrit text were writ

ten by a Nepalese author, Amyitananda in 1830. He seems to have had animperfect copy of this part of the original Sanscrit, and also Tibetan andChinese translations, but in some parts is very independent (E. B. Cowell,Introduction p. XI). But Amvitananda's terminology regarding Nirvanaisfaithful to Books XII and XIII .

13. Ibid., XIV, 1.14. Ibid., XIV, 8.15. Ibid., XIV, 64.16. Ibid., XIV, 65.17. Ibid., XIV, 66.

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18. Ibid., XIV, 79.19. Asanga-Mahayana-samgraha (La Somme du Grand Vehicule) Edition

of Tibetan and Chinese text, with F rench translation by E. Lam otte. Louvain,

Bibliotheque du Museon, T II chap. I, 21, p. 38.20. The conception of Buddhist Nirvana, Leningrad 1927, p. 16.21. Zen andJapanese Buddhism, Tokyo, 1956, p. 17.22. Ibid., p. 48-49. And follows: "It is a new view of life and of the uni

verse that must be felt."23 . Nirvana, p. 86, cf. pp. 75-76.24. O.c, p. 47-48.25. Ibid., p. 27.

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Nirvana and Metaphysical Experience

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