The Meaning of Sunyata in Nagarjuna's Philosophy - Lemniscaat ...

The Meaning of Sunyata in Nagarjuna's Philosophy
© Thomas J. McFarlane 1995
www.integralscience.org
Introduction
In this essay I will discuss the meaning and import of sunyata (emptiness) as it is
presented by K. Venkata Ramanan in Nagarjuna's Philosophy. Ramanan's comprehensive
exposition of the Madhyamika philosophy of Mahayana Buddhism is based primarily upon
Nagarjuna's commentary on the Prajnaparamita-sutras. This commentary, the Mahaprajnaparamita-sastra,
was lost in its original Sanskrit and survives only in Chinese and
Tibetan translation.
Nagarjuna, who is regarded as the greatest Buddhist philosopher ever, founded
Madhyamika philosophy, the philosophy of the Middle Way. At the heart of the Middle Way
is the concept of sunyata, perhaps Nagarjuna's single most important contribution to
Buddhist thought. The whole philosophy, in fact, can be viewed as different aspects of
sunyata. As Ramanan says of his book, "the whole of the present work may be said to be an
attempt to lay bare the different meanings of the central, the most basic concept, sunyata."
Thus, I will attempt to bring to light the meaning and import of sunyata through the
following summary of Nagarjuna's Philosophy. For the purpose of clarity I have divided the
following exposition into three parts: ignorance, criticism, and knowledge.
Ignorance
Motivated by compassion, the wise teach sunyata as a remedy for suffering. According to
Madhyamika, the root of all suffering lies in the ignorance of clinging, the error of
mistaking the relative for the absolute, the conditioned for the unconditioned. We take
imagined separation as real, supposed division as given. By virtue of self- consciousness,
we have an awareness of the unconditioned reflected in our conditioned nature, a sense of
the real. But under ignorance we do not discriminate between the unconditioned and
conditioned, causing us to confuse them and take the relative as absolute. "The error of
misplaced absoluteness, the seizing of the determinate as itself ultimate, is the root-error."
Sunyata is the antithesis to this error, the antidote for suffering.
The most important instance of this error of misplaced absoluteness is with regard to our
own selves: "The intellect, owing to the operation of ignorance, wrongly transfers its sense
of unconditionedness which is its ultimate nature to itself in its mundane nature." Thus,
inherent existence is wrongly applied to the mind-body complex; we take our determinate,
conditioned existence as unconditioned and self-existent. In this way there arises the false
sense of "I" and the belief in an eternal soul as a particular entity. This error "makes the
individual unrelated to the organic, dynamic course of personal life and deprives the latter
of all significance." For with the positing of an absolute "I" there is the necessary "not-I" to
oppose it. The individual is then forever divided from and in conflict with the world. Since
this separation is taken as absolute, their relation is inconceivable and there is no hope for
reconciliation: we are bound to a life of continual conflict and frustration.
Following the pattern of this error which gives rise to the false sense of "I," the intellect
then posits substantiality upon every object it finds. It distinguishes objects and invents
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distinct names for them, then takes the apparent difference it has created as a real given.
"To seize the determinate is really to allow oneself to be misled by names; it is to imagine
that different names mean separate essences; this is to turn relative distinctions into
absolute divisions." As a result, not only is the individual person in conflict with the world,
but the world is now in conflict with itself. The parts, conceived as independent entities, are
isolated from each other and the organic unity that relates them in harmony is lost.
To complete the fall, the intellect mistakes its own relative views and conceptual systems as
unlimited and absolute, putting it at war with itself. For the dogmatic assertion of a single
point of view necessarily excludes other views: the former as true is divided from the
others as false and conflict results. Furthermore, every view, taken as exclusively true,
ultimately ends in self-contradiction. Clinging to extremes, one is necessarily led to
contradictions and dead ends. Then we either swing from extreme to extreme or reject the
whole enterprise of thought altogether, subjecting ourselves to self-exile in a philosophical
wasteland. But in both cases we are lead to our suffering by the same root-error.
The error of misplaced absoluteness which is the root of all ignorance and suffering takes
two general forms: the error with regard to the mundane truth and with regard to the
ultimate truth. The error with regard to the mundane truth is, as we have been discussing,
to take the conditioned as unconditioned, to cling to the fragmentary as complete. This
error results in (among other things) dogmatic views and the false sense of self. Sunyata,
as a remedy for this error with respect to the mundane, teaches the relativity of all things,
the dependent arising of determinate entities. As mundane truth, sunyata means that all
things are empty of inherent existence.
But if one were to take this understanding of the emptiness of things as itself absolute, this
again would be clinging: clinging to sunyata. This mistake is the error not with regard to
the mundane nature of things but with regard to their ultimate nature. It is to take the
conditionedness of the conditioned as itself unconditioned. But "this would mean an
absolute division between the conditioned and the unconditioned, the divided and the
undivided, the permanent and the impermanent, and in this case the undivided would not
be the truly undivided, as it would be divided from the divided." Thus one teaches the
sunyata of sunyata: in the ultimate truth even sunyata is empty of absoluteness. Ultimately,
even the division between the conditioned and the unconditioned is not absolute. Therefore
we are not forever bound to our conditionedness because we, as conditioned entities,
already are (in our ultimate nature) the unconditioned reality. In short, there is an end to
ignorance and suffering.
Criticism
Madhyamika philosophy is conceived in compassion, for its fundamental purpose is to
liberate individuals from ignorance and suffering. Through criticism one discriminates
between the real and the unreal, cancels the confusion of the relative with the absolute,
and ends ignorance and suffering through recognition of sunyata as truth. The sense of the
real is the basis for this cancellation. Just as the sense of the real leads to ignorance when
misapplied, the sense of the real leads to knowledge when guided by criticism in light of
sunyata. Without the sense of the real liberation would not be possible--but then neither
would ignorance. Thus ignorance implies the possibility for liberation. "The truth that man
is not confined to the level of the determinate, but has in him the possibility of rising above
it, that he is the meeting point of. . .the conditioned and the unconditioned, is the basic
import of the sense of the real in him."
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Criticism consists in first assuming as absolute the distinctions and claims upon which a
particular extreme view is based. From this basis one draws the necessary logical
conclusions which turn out to be false because of the falsity of the initial error. "The one
way which Nagarjuna frequently adopted was of showing up the self-contradiction and
absurdity to which the holders of exclusive views would lead themselves on their own
grounds." In this way, one is lead by the sheer force of logical truth to surrender the
ignorance of the exclusive claim. By repeated application of this method, the relative is no
longer mistaken for the absolute and the true sunya-nature of all of determinate existence
is revealed. "It is the mission of the Madhyamika to reveal that the notion of the ultimacy
and separateness of these basic elements is not only devoid of ground but is definitely
contradicted by the very nature of things." Sunyata, as emptiness, means that the
conventional world is not, as we fancy to think, composed of substances inherently
existing; in truth, these entities are devoid of inherent existence--they are empty.
It is important to point out that what is denied by such criticism is not the conditioned
world itself but our clinging to it as absolute, our ignorance. Thus, it is not the views or
determinate entities as such which are denied by sunyata but rather our clinging to them,
our misconceptions with regard to them. Sunyata does not deny the conditioned, relative
world; it only denies our mistaking it as absolute. "Words, concepts, are in themselves
pure; what makes the difference is the way in which we use them." Furthermore, the
conditioned world does not vanish when its true sunya-nature is realized. Only our
ignorance is destroyed.
As an example of the application of the critical method, let us consider the true nature of
the self. Our first error, it is said, "is the imagination of absolute exclusiveness in regard to
the 'I,' i.e., the entity that constitutes the object of the notion of 'I.' " Now if I inherently
exist, then there is an absolute division between that which is 'I' and that which is 'not-I.'
There is then no dependence of one upon the other. Each is independent and self-existent.
But without mutual dependence how can 'I' be in any way related to 'not-I,' how can I know
or be aware of the world at all? If I exist inherently, I am absolutely isolated and divided
from the world with no possibility of experiencing it or affecting it. This is obviously
absurd.
By revealing the contradictions that arise in this way from taking the relative self as
absolutely existent, we thus reveal the sunya-nature, the relative and conditioned nature,
of the self. We have then arrived at the truth with respect to the conventional world: that all
things (in this case, the self) are empty of inherent existence. However, having denied the
inherent existence of the self, suppose we now cling to this denial as itself absolute. In
other words, we assert inherent non-existence, we make emptiness or relativity itself an
absolute. Now in this case there is an absolute division between the relative and the
absolute, the divided and the undivided. But then the undivided is not truly the undivided
for it is divided from the divided. This contradiction forces us to surrender our clinging to
the conditionedness of the conditioned as itself absolute.
At this point in the criticism we thus come to recognize that emptiness, sunyata, is not the
ultimate truth. While this conditionedness and relativity of the self is its true nature in the
conventional world, it is not its ultimate nature. Ultimately, the self is empty even of its
conditionedness and relativity: it is ultimately empty of emptiness (sunyata-sunyata, as it is
called). And since the conditionedness of the conditioned is ultimately conditioned, since
the distinction between the conditioned and the unconditioned is itself conditioned, the
conditioned is ultimately identical to the unconditioned reality.
Since criticism has revealed contradictions in clinging to both inherent existence and
inherent non-existence, in the end we can neither absolutely assert nor absolutely deny the
existence of the self. We are left with the Middle Way, passing between the extremes. "This
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is the unerring sense of 'I,' which comes with mature self-consciousness in which there is
not the clinging to the determinate self either as absolutely determinate and therefore
totally different from the undivided being or as itself an eternal independent substance."
The method of criticism thus functions to cancel all exclusive claims to existence or truth,
whether with respect to the mundane nature of things (taking the conditioned existence as
unconditioned) or with respect to their ultimate nature (taking conditionedness of the
conditioned as itself unconditioned).
Knowledge
"The understanding that is the consummating phase of criticism is appreciative of the
unique nature and value of every specific standpoint, and yet is not confined to any one
point of view." The wise are thus said to have a comprehension of the truth which rises
above exclusiveness and clinging. "Transcending all determinations it is yet not exclusive
of anything determinate, and is therefore itself undeniable." To the wise, particular views
and conceptual systems are not extremes but alternatives. Thus even Madhyamika itself
can not be put forward as an absolute truth, exclusive of others. As the teaching of nonclinging,
the Middle Way is itself relative to the ignorance of clinging. Sunyata makes sense
only in contrast with the error of misplaced absoluteness. The undeniable, ultimate truth is
the unspeakable dharma.
Since the undivided reality is not ultimately divided from the divided, since the ultimate
nature of the conditioned is itself the unconditioned, the wise do not forsake the world,
clinging to nirvana as though it were other than samsara. Their compassion is a necessary
consequence of their wisdom. Conversely, if we seek liberation and truth exclusively for
ourselves, then the selfish motivation itself, as a form of ignorance, will prevent our
attainment of the highest truth. Therefore the Bodhisattva vows from the very beginning to
attain Nirvana for the sake of helping release others from their suffering. Compassion and
wisdom are inseparable aspects of the highest comprehension of truth.
Conclusion
By way of summary, we may frame the philosophy of the Middle Way in the context of the
Four Noble Truths.
The First Noble Truth: there is suffering, the world is impermanent. In our terms, this truth
expresses the mundane truth that all things are empty of inherent existence, they are
conditioned and relative. Because we cling to them as if they were permanent and
substantial, suffering is the inevitable consequence.
The Second Noble Truth: there is a cause of suffering. The cause of suffering is clinging to
the relative as absolute, the conditioned as unconditioned, the insubstantial as substantial.
The ignorance of the true emptiness or sunya-nature of things, the confusion of the real
and unreal, is the root error that leads to all suffering.
The Third Noble Truth: there is an end to suffering. Because even emptiness is empty,
because relativity and conditionedness themselves are not absolute, suffering is not
ultimate. While the mundane nature of the conditioned is conditionedness, yet in its
ultimate nature, the conditioned is itself the undivided, unconditioned reality. While the
ultimate reality is beyond the distinctions that hold in the world of the determinate, yet the
ultimate reality is not wholly separate from the determinate, but is the real nature of the
determinate itself. It is because we already are identical to the unconditioned reality that we
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can recognize this truth and become liberated from the imagination that we are otherwise,
and thereby end our suffering.
The Fourth Noble Truth: there is a path that leads to the end of suffering. The Middle Way
is the non-exclusive way that destroys the ignorance of clinging to the relative as absolute.
Through the method of criticism, extreme views are shown to lead to contradictions which
reveal the truth of sunyata with regard to all things. Ultimately, even sunyata or relativity
itself is denied as absolute, revealing the unutterable unconditioned reality which is the
ultimate nature of ourselves and all things.
Glossary
• Absolute. The absolute is that which is free from all qualification and distinction. It is
the ultimate ineffable nature of all things. Since it is free from the distinction between
the knower and the known, to know the Absolute is to be the Absolute, and to ignore
the Absolute is not to be the Absolute.
• Conditioned. The conditioned is the world of things that exist conditionally and
dependently, and hence in relation to other things. See Relative.
• Conventional World. The distinctions that characterize the relative world are mere
conventions. Thus the relative world is also called the conventional world. See
Relative.
• Determinate. The world of determined things. See Relative.
• Emptiness. See Sunyata.
• Ignorance. In the context of Buddhist philosophy, ignorance is to ignore the true
nature of things. Rather than being the absence of knowledge, ignorance is an
ignoring of knowledge we already have. Ignorance is the original mistake of taking
things to be other than what they are and then acting on this false presumption. In
particular, it is the mistake of misplacing the absolute: taking things in the relative
world, which are by nature impermanent and dependent, to have the absolute
properties of permanence and independence.
• Indeterminate. That which is free of determination. See Absolute.
• Inherent Existence. We take something to have inherent existence when we regard it
as permanently and independently existing. Usually this presumption is tacit or
unconscious. For example, we fear death because we presume that the self inherently
exists in the first place. When it is recognized that there is no inherently existing self,
then the fear of death vanishes, for what never was can not be destroyed.
• Liberation. When we take the relative world to be absolute and complete unto itself,
we are in bondage to illusion and suffer the consequences. Recognition of the true
Absolute is to be liberated from this bondage to the false absolute. See Absolute.
• Misplaced Absoluteness. We misplace the absolute when we presume things in the
relative world to have properties of the absolute. See Ignorance.
• Mundane Truth. This is the truth that teaches the relative nature of all things. All
things are impermanent, determinate, and conditioned. Thus they must be empty of
any permanent, indeterminate, unconditioned form of existence. The mundane truth
is taught to remedy the error of misplaced absoluteness, which takes relative things to
have absolute properties.
• Relative. The relative is the world of relations and distinctions that is our usual
experience. The relative world is characterized by a fundamental division between the
observer and the observed. It is in radical contrast to the non-relative or absolute.
• Sunyata. This Sanskrit word is usually translated as " emptiness. " The ignorance that
leads to suffering originates in the mistake of unconsciously taking things (such as
the ego) to have inherent existence. To correct this mistake, the Buddhas teach that
everything is empty of inherent existence. The teaching of sunyata thus denies our
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mistaken notion of phenomena, and not the phenomena themselves. For example, the
emptiness of self or ego is the absence of any permanent and independently existing
self associated to the phenomena of a particular mind-body complex, and does not
deny the mind-body complex or even the conventional notion of " self " associated to
it for practical purposes.
• Ultimate Truth. This is the truth that teaches the ultimate nature of all things. In the
mundane truth, it is said that all things are empty of inherent existence, that they
have a determinate, conditioned, and impermanent nature. The ultimate truth
recognizes that this mundane truth itself is determinate, conditioned, and thus not
absolute. In other words, if everything is relative, then the statement that everything is
relative is itself relative. Or, more concisely, the conditionedness of the conditioned is
itself conditioned. Consequently, the relative world and the Absolute can not be
distinguished. For then they would be related to each other as opposites. But the
Absolute would then be relative to the relative world. This is nonsense since the
Absolute is by definition free from all relation and determination. Thus the ultimate
truth has the consequence that this whole relative world is ultimately identical to the
Absolute, that there is really no division between the relative world and the Absolute.
But whenever we engage in the conventions of the relative world, the mundane truth
applies, for by its very definition the relative world is characterized by impermanence
and emptiness of inherent existence. The mundane truth teaches us to become free of
the illusion that the relative world is itself real, while the ultimate truth teaches us that
it is real after all, but not in the exclusive sense in which we originally took it to be.
• Unconditioned. The unconditioned is that which is free of all conditions and
restrictions. See Absolute.
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