From: Nyanatusita
Message: 4040
Date: 2014-12-03
Tiṭṭhanteva kho bhikkhave
tattheva pañcindriyāni, athettha sutavato ariyasāvakassa avijjā
pahīyati, vijjā uppajjati.
Dear Participants,
Below I have pasted in dictionary definitions of "awakening" and "enlightenment," drawn from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary (and Thesaurus) and the Oxford Online Dictionary. I think these definitions should make it clear why "enlightenment," though it may bring along connotations of the movement in 18th century European thought, is still a more satisfactory rendering of sambodhi/bodhi than "awakening," which, despite the etymological connections, appears unsatisfactory and misleading. Even the figurative meaning given for awakening-- "An act or moment of becoming suddenly aware of something," --
makes this very clear.
There are two ways (at least) of determining the effective meaning of a word in a body of literature. One is by tracing it back to its etymological roots; the other is by looking at its contextual usage. When the second procedure is followed through for such words as sambodhi, bodhi, buddha, etc., we can see that while these words have no etymological connection with "light" or "radiance," the Buddha's attainment is repeatedly and consistently connected with images, similes, and metaphors of light and radiance, and his teaching mission with the shedding and emanation of light.
In contrast, there are very few, if any, explicit connections with images of waking up, whether from sleep or a dream. To make his case, Bryan had to draw from the Prajnaparamita literature to find an image of a dream ; but this is a Pali discussion forum, and since the question concerns the effective meaning of bodhi, buddha, in the Pali Nikayas, we should base our conclusions on the Pali texts. The other illustrations he appealed to, those drawn from the Pali Canon, don't establish the meaning of bodhi, sambodhi as "waking up." For one reason, because in the Nikayas the world is not compared to a dream. I could not find a single passage that uses this illustration--the verse Sn 807 does not establish the world as dream-like, only that people who die disappear from our lives the way people in a dream disappear when we wake up. Another illustration in the Potaliya Sutta (MN 54) compares sensual pleasures to a dream because the pleasure they give is evanescent like the joys in a dream; but again, this is not saying that the world is like a dream and that sambodhi is awakening from a dream.
The other images--of the body as foam, feelings as like bubbles, etc.--have to be taken with caution. They don't imply that emerging from these illusions occurs "abruptly" as awakening does, according to the dictionary. In fact, they don't even establish the unreal or illusory nature of life, which (as I interpret the texts) is not the position of the Nikayas at all. Rather, as I read them, the world according to the Nikayas is quite real. Our problems arise, not because we mistakenly take a world that is sheer illusion to be real, but because on the foundation of the concrete reality of the world, the mind constructs illusory pictures of things as permanent, genuinely pleasurable, substantial (populated by real selves), and attractive. The ball of foam is there, but the man on the bank takes it to be substantial, when it is without essence. The same with the similes for the other four aggregates, even for the vinnana-khandha. The Indian magician make a pile of twigs and grass, and then with a wave of the wand gets his audience to perceive the pile as an elephant--the twigs and grass are there, but the elephant is the illusion. The emerging from these illusory pictures, moreover, occurs through a *sequential, graduated process of acquiring understanding and insight*--not abruptly. This, I believe, is better conveyed by "enlightenment"--"the state of having knowledge or understanding"--than by "awakening," which again suggests a sudden or abrupt arising of awareness, which is a fairly superficial experience.
Further note that the verses cited by Bryan, Dhp 296-301 suppabuddhaṃ pabujjhanti, sadā gotamasāvakā, “The followers of Gotama are always well awakened…” [when they are mindful of the three jewels, etc.], gives no indication that they are referring to the attainment of bodhi/sambodhi. They are saying simply that the Buddha's disciples awaken happily (in a quite mundane sense) because they are mindful of the Three Jewels. These disciples seem to be at best sekhas, probably also kalyana puthujjanas, because the last verse in this series speaks of them delighting in bhavana. If they were arahants this would probably not be said. The commentary explains the first couplet quite literally: Tattha suppabuddhaṃ pabujjhantīti buddhagataṃ satiṃ gahetvā supantā, gahetvāyeva ca pabujjhantā suppabuddhaṃ pabujjhanti nāma. "They go to sleep directing mindfulness to the Buddha, and then when they wake up they still maintain [this mindfulness]; so they are said to wake up happily."
I hope I'm not straining your patience with these arguments against "awakening," which I do use in my translations to render the verb forms such as abhisambujjhati since "to become enlightened to" sounds too awkward. But while I recognize that we have to choose the rendering that matches our own understanding, I can express hope that the European scholars will reconsider "awakening" as a rendering for sambodhi. If "enlightenment" is found unsatisfactory (though I disagree) let's find another more satisfactory rendering.
I'm in the process of collecting as many Nikayas references as I can to light, radiance, darkness, sleep, and awakening where they have any bearing on this issue--at least a representative selection of them.
Now here are the dictionary definitions:
From Online Merriam-Webster Dictionaryawakening: see awaken
awak·en
to stop sleeping : to wake up
Thesaurus
1 to cause to stop sleeping <be quiet or you'll awaken the kids>
Synonyms arouse, awake, awaken, knock up [British],rouse, waken
Related Words roust, rout; raise, revive; reawaken, rewake; agitate, bestir, disturb, excite, provoke, stimulate, stir
2
to cease to be asleep <guests usually awaken to the smell of fresh pancakes>
Synonyms arouse, awake, awaken, rouse, waken
Related Words arise, get up, rise, roll out, turn out, uprise;watch; revive; reawaken, rewake; shift, stir
en·light·en·ment
the state of having knowledge or understanding : the act of giving someone knowledge or understanding
the Enlightenment : a movement of the 18th century that stressed the belief that science and logic give people more knowledge and understanding than tradition and religion
Buddhism : a final spiritual state marked by the absence of desire or suffering
to give information to <the lecturer at the planetarium enlightened us about the latest astronomical discoveries>
Thesaurus
1 to give information to <the lecturer at the planetarium enlightened us about the latest astronomical discoveries>
Synonyms acquaint, advise, apprise, brief, catch up, clear,clue (in), familiarize, fill in, hip, inform, instruct, tell, verse,wise (up)
2 to provide (someone) with moral or spiritual understanding<many people around the world have been enlightened by the teachings of Gautama Buddha>
Synonyms edify, educate, illume, illuminate, illumine,inspire, nurture
Related Words elevate, ennoble, enrich, ensoul, lift, uplift;better, improve, regenerate,
renew, transform; exalt,glorify, transfigure
Online Oxford Dictionary
1. formal An act of waking from sleep:since my awakening I had realized it was a very special day
MORE EXAMPLE SENTENCES
2. An act or moment of becoming suddenly aware of something:the war came as a rude awakening to the hardships of life
MORE EXAMPLE SENTENCES
2.1 The beginning or rousing of something:her sexual awakeningthe awakening of vigorous political debate
enlightenment
The action of enlightening or the state of being enlightened:Robbie looked to me for enlightenment
MORE EXAMPLE SENTENCES SYNONYMS
1.1. The action or state of attaining or having attained spiritual knowledge or insight, in particular (in Buddhism) that awareness which frees a person from the cycle of rebirth:the key to enlightenment is the way of the Buddha
MORE EXAMPLE SENTENCES
2. (the Enlightenment) A European intellectual movement of the late 17th and 18th centuries emphasizing reason and individualism rather than tradition. It was heavily influenced by 17th-century philosophers such as Descartes, Locke, and Newton, and its prominent figures included Kant, Goethe, Voltaire, Rousseau, and Adam Smith.
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On 12/2/2014 3:23 PM, Petra Kieffer-Pülz kiepue@... [palistudy] wrote:
Dear Bryan,
no, it is not (yet???).I have heard something about putting things online, but maybe that referred to the additional publications only.They are to the largest part available online already
Best,Petra
Am 02.12.2014 um 21:14 schrieb Bryan Levman bryan.levman@... [palistudy]:
Dear Petra,
Is the Turfan dictionary on line? I can' find it there,
Thanks,
Bryan
From: "Petra Kieffer-Pülz kiepue@... [palistudy]" <palistudy@yahoogroups.com>
To: palistudy@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Tuesday, December 2, 2014 12:56 PM
Subject: Re: [palistudy] Meaning of "Buddha"?
Dear Ven. Nyanatusita,
This dictionary is still unsurpassed, right, but besides the Große Petersburger Wörterbuch and the shorter version of the Petersburger Wörterbuch as well as Schmidt's Nachträge several special dictionaries have been made( Edgerton, Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit; the Sanskrit-Wörterbuch der buddhistischen Texte aus den Tufan-Funden (not yet completed), specialized on the vocabulary of the Sarvāstivādin, etc.). Most of them are put online by the University of Cologne (Germany). Here is the link, where all available Sanskrit Dictionary are sorted as to languages, and can be used online.
A new project at the University of Halle creates a Online-Sanskrit Dictionary which contains all information from all the Sanskrit dictionaries and many special works.It hopefully will go online next year in summer.
Best,Petra
Am 02.12.2014 um 18:43 schrieb Nyanatusita nyanatusita@... [palistudy]:
Dear Petra,
Thanks. Is it because of the excellence of these dictionaries that no newer Sanskrit English Dictionary has been made?
There have been several large Pali dictionaries since Childers first one (in 1872): Rhys Davids & Stede, Critical Pali Dictionary, and now Cone's, but as far as my limited knowledge goes, in the field of Sanskrit, development of large dictionaries ended with Monier Williams.
BW,
Bh Nt
On 12/2/2014 10:54 PM, Petra Kieffer-Pülz kiepue@... [palistudy] wrote:
Dear Ven Nyanatusita,
one remark regarding the reliability of MW. He used the excellent Große Petersburger Wörterbuch by Böhtlingk & Roth, where you can find the German meanings with references. In case you want to be certain regarding the sources in which a certain meaning appears, it is worth consulting the PW (which is also available online).
Best,Petra
Am 02.12.2014 um 18:18 schrieb Nyanatusita nyanatusita@... [palistudy]:
Dear Lance,
I would understand anubuddhā here as meaning 'recollected'. In other
words it is not that he understood them. Rather, he recalled his
experience of them. I agree that in this case it doesn't mean 'awakened'.
Monier Williams Sanskrit Dictionary has:
"to awake; to recollect; to learn (by information)"
But how could he recollect vimutti? Only the arahant and the Buddha have this experience, while 'recollect' means to bring up a memory. Gotama could not have recollected vimutti until he became Buddha. In the prose it is used together with paṭividdha, and in the verse with abhiññāya which suggests that it is more than just recollection.
Perhaps we interpret the verse, and also the prose, differently? As I understand the verse, it refers to Gotama's sambodhi under the Bodhi tree. Gotama became Buddha through wisely understanding/becoming enlightened with regards (anubuddha) the four dhammas.
How do you interpret it?
I think this indicates the range of meanings it can have. In
interpreting the Canonical texts, especially those in verse, it is
important to draw upon the usage of all the older Indic languages i.e.
Sanskrit and Prakrit both. Otherwise one narrows the meaning to one
dependent upon the much later commentaries and specific to Buddhist
contexts. The commentaries are invaluable, but they are not always aware
of older and wider usages. This is especially true of verse which tends
in Pali as in other languages to utilize unusual forms and meanings.
Yes, but I am sometimes wondering how reliable Monier Williams is since it was made in 1872 and because he does not give references.
The next stanza has abhiññāya which Bhikkhu Bodhi renders as 'Having
directly known'. This too, I think, means that it is not just a matter
of 'having information about'.
I agree with this, but I think that Bhikkhu Bodhi means `understanding' in the sense of understanding with wisdom.
BW,
Bh Nyanatusita
Lance Cousins
> Dear Bhante,
>
> The Buddha himself explained his /bodhi /in two verses, found in three
> suttas (and quoted in the Kathavatthu and Vimuttimagga), as follows:
>
> Sīlaṃ samādhi paññā ca, vimutti ca anuttarā;
>
> Anubuddhā ime dhammā, gotamena yasassinā.
>
> Iti buddho abhiññāya, dhammamakkhāsi bhikkhunaṃ;
>
> Dukkhassantakaro satthā, cakkhumā parinibbuto ti. D II 123; A II 2; A
> IV 105
>
> Which you translate in Numerical Discourses as
>
> Virtuous behavior, concentration, wisdom,
>
> and unsurpassed liberation:
>
> these things the illustrious Gotama understood by himself.
>
> Having directly known these things,
>
> the Buddha taught the Dhamma to the bhikkhus.
>
> The Teacher, the end-maker of suffering,
>
> the One with Vision, has attained nibbana.
>
>
> The Buddha here says that he “understood” or “realized”, /anubuddha,
> /four dhammas, and then says that the “Buddha, having directly known
> thus”, /abhiññāya/, “taught the Dhamma to the bhikkhus.”
> The /anubuddha /to these four states is the cause for Gotama becoming
> a Buddha. Since /abhiññāya/ is used instead of /anubuddha/ in the
> second verse, and since /cakkhum//ā/, “one with vision” is used as a
> synonym for Buddha, it seems to me that the emphasis here lies on the
> aspect of understanding and realization and vision with the light of
> wisdom rather than “awakening” from the sleep of ignorance.
>
> If /anubuddhā ime dhammā///would be translated as “awoke to these
> dhammas” it would not match with “directly known” /abhiññāya /and
> /paṭividdhā ///“penetrated” or “comprehended” //as used in the
> preceding prose section along with /anubuddhā/:
> /Tayidaṃ, bhikkhave, ariyaṃ sīlaṃ anubuddhaṃ paṭividdhaṃ, ariyo
> samādhi anubuddho paṭividdho, ariyā paññā anubuddhā paṭividdhā, ariyā
> vimutti anubuddhā paṭividdhā, ucchinnā bhavataṇhā, khīṇā bhavanetti,
> natthi dāni punabbhavo’’ti. //
>
> /Isn't there another word that fits the metaphor of light but is not
> so loaded with old connotations as “enlightenment”?
>
> Best wishes,
> Bh Nyanatusita
>
--
Best Wishes,
Lance
-------------
From:
L.S. Cousins,
12 Dynham Place,
Oxford,
OX3 7NL
CURRENT EMAIL ADDRESS:
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