Untangling the Tangle
March
10, 2016 Endless
Further
Re-post of an entry from March
2013:
A while back I highlighted some of the
keywords, search terms and queries that cause people to stumble
upon The Endless Further. I know that most of those folks probably
found what they were looking for, either here or elsewhere, but
it’s interesting to discuss them anyway. Here’s another
one:
“what does it mean to untangle the
tangle buddhaghosa”
“Untangle the tangle” is a well-known
phrase found in the the Jata Sutta (“Samyutta Nikaya”,
Chapter 7, Sutta 6). Buddhaghosa was the Indian Buddhist scholar
who stands out as the pre-eminent commentator on Theravada
understanding. His Visuddhimagga, or Path of
Purification, believed written in Ceylon in the beginning of
the fifth century CE, is a comprehensive study of Buddhist doctrine
and meditation technique. In his introduction to this work,
Buddhaghosa quotes, and then comments on the Jata Sutta
passage:
The sutta tells how a Brahman named Jata
(“Tangle”) Bharadvaja visiting the Buddha at Savatthi posed
this question :
‘Tangle within, tangle
without,
Sentient things are entangled in a tangle.
And I would ask of you, Gotama, this:
Who can untangle this tangle?’
Buddhaghosa comments:
By ‘tangle” is meant the net of
craving. For craving is like the tangle of the network of branches
of bamboo-bushes and the like, in the sense of an intertwining,
because it arises again and again, repeatedly in connection with
such objects as visible things. And it is said to be a ‘tangle
within and a tangle without,’ because it arises as craving for
one’s own needs and others’, for one’s own person and others’, and
for consciousness subjective and objective. Sentient beings are
entangled in such a tangle. Just as bamboos and the like are
entangled by such tangles as bamboo-bushes, so all living beings,
are entangled, enmeshed, embroiled, in that tangle of craving, this
is the meaning.
And because of such entanglement,
the meaning of, ‘I would ask of you, Gotama, this,’ is to be
understood in this way: So I ask you, addressing the Awakened One
by his family name, Gotama, ‘Who can untangle this tangle?’ means:
Who is able to untangle this tangle which has entangled
existence?”
Naturally, we are the only ones who can
untangle the tangle, for the entanglement is our own doing. It is
no good looking outside of ourselves for the solutions to problems
created within. From the Buddhist perspective, relying on external
beings or forces will provide only temporary solutions. Lasting
change must come from our own inner being.
When questioned in this way, the
Awakened One, walking in unobstructed knowledge of all things,
confident with the Four Confidences, bearer of the Tenfold
Strength, possessor of unimpeded knowledge and the all-seeing eye,
spoke this stanza in answer:
‘When a wise person, established
well in virtue,
Develops consciousness and understanding,
Then as a seeker with concentration and
insight,
That person may untangle this tangle.’
Buddhaghosa defines virtue as the life
condition of a person who refrains from killing living things,
lying, stealing, etc; virtue is ethics. It has long been held in
the West that ethics or moral behavior is only possible through
belief in a supreme being. Without belief and without fear of the
creator, humans would be free to make up their own moral standards
and it would be a case of “anything goes”.
I feel that Buddhist ethics is
different. As I see it, Buddhist ethics are based on four
core principles: hri, apatrapa, prajna
and karuna.
Hri is
“self-respect” or “conscientiousness,” although it can be
translated as a “sense of shame.” Apatrappa can also mean
“shame”, as well as “decorum” or “consideration”. Put together they
mean that a person should avoid committing unwholesome acts out of
respect for one’s own being (striving to keep the mind pure) and
out of consideration for others.
Prajna is
wisdom, having a clear understanding of what harm oneself, and
karuna, compassion, is recognition of what harms
others.
The goal of Buddhist ethics is supply
guidelines for what should or should not be done to insure the
highest good and avoidance of evil. This, is what Buddhaghose means
by “pure.” Actually, he gives “purification” a threefold meaning.
One is the purity of virtue. Secondly, refining the mind, having
thoughts free of discrimination, cultivating a non-dual mind that
sees all things equally without prejudice. And thirdly, Buddhaghosa
equates purity with nibbana (nirvana), “which is free from
all stains and is exceedingly pure.” In this sense, we can say that
ethics and nirvana are identical.