Abhidharma tracts on dependent origination

Dear Ven. Yuttadhammo,



I finished a draft translation of the chapter on dependent origination (DO)
from the Dharmaskandha-a book of the Sarvastivada Abhidharma Pitaka-and have
almost finished a draft translation of the chapter on DO from the
*Sariputrabhidharma Sastra (abbrev. SAS), which is generally believed to
have been a canonical Abhidharma treatise of the Dharmaguptakas, who
flourished in Gandhara. The exegetical principles of both treatises in their
treatment of DO closely correspond with the Pali commentaries, though they
develop details in quite different ways. These two treatises are much less
"Abhidharmic" in flavor than the Visuddhimagga, even less so than the
Abhidhamma-bhajaniya of the Vibhanga, chapter 6. They are still attempting
to explain the standard formula for DO against the background of the sutras
rather than in the light of a distinctly "Abhidhamma system," as both
Vibhanga, 6.2 and Visuddhimagga chapter 17 do.



Neither treatise applies a full scheme of conditional relations to the links
between the factors in the way that the Visuddhimagga does. This is hardly
surprising since it seems that when these tracts were written, a
full-fledged system of conditions had not yet reached finality. However, In
a few paragraphs of its chapter on DO, SAS tries to apply its conditions to
dependent origination. SAS uses a scheme of ten conditions, which have
counterparts among the twenty-four paccayas of the Patthana system. It might
even be maintained that SAS offers us a fossilized version of the Patthana
system while it was still in process of formation. For example, SAS has one
condition that might be rendered in Pali as janaka-paccaya. This,
apparently, was subdivided by the Pali Abhidhammikas into three conditions:
sahajaata, purejaata, and pacchajaata (or perhaps four, if anyamanya-paccaya
is added), thus adding to the total in the Patthana.



As an appendix, I made a draft translation of the SAS section on the ten
pratyayas, which is probably the treatise's counterpart to the
Paccaya-niddesa of the Patthana. But some of the explanations here strike me
as odd, and I don't know how to handle them. I'm not sure whether this is
because my understanding of conditionality has been too strongly influenced
by the Patthana system or because I simply am not reading the Chinese text
correctly. The Chinese translation of the Sariputrabhidharma Sastra, the
only one we have, seems to use an almost idiosyncratic style and
terminology. Even a few Chinese pundits I questioned about it answered with
uncertainty.



I still have to line up the different treatments of dependent origination in
these tracts and investigate their mutual relationships. The version in the
Pali Vibhanga, chapter 6, Suttanta-bhajaniya, seems to be the earliest, the
least detailed, and the closest to the Nikayas. But the Vibhanga's chapter
6, Abhidhamma-bhajaniya, seems to be the latest and the furthest removed
from the sutras. Here dependent origination is being explored from a
different angle, from the unique standpoint of the Theriya Abhidhamma
system, whereas the other three (Dharmaskandha, SAS, and Madhyamaka Sastra)
are still trying to explore DO as intended in the sutras.



I could use the help of someone with more expertise in these works to answer
questions and perhaps even check my drafts. If any of the members of this
group are acquainted with the style of Chinese used in Abhidharma
translations, please let me know. I would also like help with passages in
the Prasannapada chapter on dependent origination. This is Candrakirti's
commentary to Mula-madhyamika-karikas, chap. 26, but it is in the current of
"mainstream Buddhism" and has nothing (or not much) distinctly Mahayanistic
about it. I don't want to flood the airwaves of this discussion group with
non-Pali queries. Perhaps I can make these files available to interested
readers through Dropbox? Or is there a better utility that allows back and
forth comments? 



With metta,



Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi
Chuang Yen Monastery
2020 Route 301
Carmel NY 10512
U.S.A.



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